{"id":96042,"date":"2023-11-14T01:24:21","date_gmt":"2023-11-14T01:24:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stopsmokingway.com\/?p=96042"},"modified":"2023-11-14T01:24:21","modified_gmt":"2023-11-14T01:24:21","slug":"kathryn-batte-stars-cant-run-on-empty-so-quit-the-fat-shaming","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stopsmokingway.com\/soccer\/kathryn-batte-stars-cant-run-on-empty-so-quit-the-fat-shaming\/","title":{"rendered":"KATHRYN BATTE: Stars can't run on empty, so quit the fat-shaming"},"content":{"rendered":"
As Fran Kirby walked out on to Chelsea\u2019s training pitch at Cobham, the voice behind a camera filming her asked: \u2018Fran, how are you wearing a jacket?\u2019<\/p>\n
The England international replied: \u2018Because I get called fat all the time, so I have to cover it up.\u2019<\/p>\n
The forward\u2019s remark may have seemed jovial, but it told a story of struggle. Many players in the women\u2019s game feel the pressures of body image. They are subjected to comments about the way they look when they are playing and when they are not.<\/p>\n
The consequences can be damaging. Some players will drastically cut back on calories, leading to disordered eating habits, which can in turn increase the risk of injury.<\/p>\n
But social media trolls are not the only cause of this; problems can stem from within clubs. Over the years, pros like Fara Williams have spoken about how players would be placed in \u2018fat club\u2019 if they were over a certain weight.<\/p>\n
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England and Chelsea star\u00a0Fran Kirby has spoken out about body image in a documentary<\/p>\n
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Only more recently have the top women\u2019s clubs employed full-time nutritionists who can provide players with expert advice and tailored regimes, rather than generalised programmes.<\/p>\n
Kirby\u2019s reflection about her weight features in Chelsea\u2019s documentary Nothing Stops Us. She goes on to talk about how many female players fear carbohydrates because of an assumption that, if they eat too much, they will gain weight.<\/p>\n
\u2018There still is a big fear of carbs,\u2019 Kirby said. \u2018Not just in myself, but in the women\u2019s game in terms of fuelling, in terms of being ready for a game, being able to withstand a level for 90 plus minutes. There is that stigma around it as the game is growing.<\/p>\n
\u2018It\u2019s something that should be championed to be strong. If that means you have to eat more, you\u2019re doing the right things that your body needs, not just because of how you look on camera.\u2019<\/p>\n
Kirby\u2019s fellow England star Alessia Russo also opened up on how she was fixated on tracking calories and losing weight earlier in her career.<\/p>\n
\u2018There\u2019s a bit of a stigma because you want to compete and be the best on the pitch, but you want to look a certain way as well,\u2019 Russo told Women\u2019s Health. \u2018Like a lot of young girls, I wanted to be skinny.<\/p>\n
\u2018I understand I need to eat a lot more than I thought I did at the start, and now I don\u2019t want to be skinny, I want to be strong.\u2019<\/p>\n
Testimonies from Kirby and Russo will do a great deal to help current and future female players, but the sport also needs to do more.<\/p>\n
Sam McHaffie, who will join Manchester City as their full-time nutritionist this week, did research around perceptions of nutrition in the women\u2019s game as part of his PhD through Liverpool John Moores University, which was dual-funded by the FA and Science in Sport.<\/p>\n
\u2018There tends to be this belief from some players that if they eat too many carbohydrates, they directly associate that with gaining body fat,\u2019 McHaffie tells Mail Sport. \u2018Based on the research that has been done, that level of under-fuelling on calories primarily comes from under- fuelling on carbohydrates.<\/p>\n
\u2018We had some saying they had players in their teams who would have a salad the evening before a game rather than carbohydrate loading and the main reason for that was this obsession with body composition and how they look.<\/p>\n
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England forward Alessia Russo has opened up on how she was fixated on tracking calories<\/p>\n
\u2018We had one player talking about a team-mate and they believed the reason they didn\u2019t make it at professional level was because they constantly under-fuelled and that led to health problems.\u2019<\/p>\n
Chelsea manager Emma Hayes does not put her players through body composition tests because of how much women\u2019s weight fluctuates throughout the menstrual cycle. But things like skinfold testing \u2014 a method which uses calipers to estimate body fat \u2014 is still common in the men\u2019s and women\u2019s games.<\/p>\n
\u2018Players spoke about having really bad experiences of that,\u2019 McHaffie says. \u2018This was particularly to do with the way the results were presented back to players, which was a big learning point at the start of my career. Importantly, \u201cThis is how the men do it\u201d is never a good rationale in itself.\u2019<\/p>\n
Something which appears more commonplace in the men\u2019s game is a new manager coming into a club and immediately banning certain foods such as ketchup.<\/p>\n
\u2018It\u2019s crazy to me because what you\u2019re doing is maybe reducing 50 calories a player eats per day,\u2019 McHaffie says. \u2018I travelled with England women Under 17s to the Euros in May and we did the opposite. We introduced a selection of sauces at different times to increase food enjoyment, hopefully resulting in players consuming more food at meal times, as preventing under- fuelling was a priority.\u2019<\/p>\n
Educating youngsters coming through the England pathway is a priority for the FA and it has to be. Kirby and Russo are great role models who should be celebrated for their football talent, not the way they look.<\/p>\n
Read Sam McHaffie\u2019s research paper by going to www.tandfonline.com and searching \u2018carbohydrate fear\u2019.<\/span><\/p>\n Man City boss Gareth Taylor overstepped the mark with his comments after Arsenal game<\/p>\n If I had \u00a31 for every time a WSL manager called for better treatment of match officials before immediately criticising one in their next post-match interview, I would be a very rich woman.<\/p>\n Manchester City boss Gareth Taylor overstepped the mark by calling Arsenal\u2019s Jonas Eidevall a \u2018bully\u2019 when it came to his conduct towards the fourth official in their match last weekend. Taylor himself was critical of referee Rebecca Welch after the game. \u2018This referee tends to never give us a penalty,\u2019 he said. \u2018Always gives penalties against us but never gives us one.\u2019<\/p>\n Leicester boss Willie Kirk said managers need to try harder to respect referees, then criticised official Stacey Fullick\u2019s performance in his side\u2019s defeat by Arsenal.<\/p>\n It is not a crime to question a decision, yet let\u2019s not pretend any of the managers in the WSL are saints. Refereeing needs to improve, but we must also remember many of these officials are not full-time and need more support.<\/p>\n I can understand why some teams and players may not see the benefit of the Continental League Cup.<\/p>\n It struggles to generate much excitement and perhaps needs an overhaul.<\/p>\n Geyse finally scored her first goal for\u00a0Manchester United in 7-0 victory over Everton<\/p>\n But a number of last week\u2019s results showed how valuable the competition can be. Aston Villa were able to get their first win of the season against Championship side Sheffield United, a result they desperately needed and one which led to a subsequent league win over Bristol City.\u00a0<\/p>\n Manchester United forward Geyse finally scored her first goal for the club in a 7-0 victory over Everton \u2014 and that seemed to give her extra confidence against West Ham on Sunday, with the Brazilian netting after just three minutes.<\/p>\n The group-stage fixtures may feel unnecessary at times, but they also offer the perfect opportunity to build form and break losing streaks.<\/p>\n Chelsea boss Emma Hayes said the competition should be scrapped in 2019, but her side have made the last four finals, so she must see some value.<\/p>\n It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Your browser does not support iframes.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
It\u2019s time for coaches to practise what they preach<\/h2>\n
There is some value in Continental League Cup<\/h2>\n
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IT’S ALL KICKING OFF!\u00a0<\/h3>\n