Fitness Training for Girls : A Teen Girl's Guide to Resistance Training, Cardiovascular Conditioning and Nutrition (eBook)

A life of fitness A fitness guide just for teen girls Teen girls interested in serious fitness training programs have little to choose from on the bookshelves. There are lots of books about self esteem, pimples and boyfriends but few substantial workout guides. This book will tell you how to get athletically fit and firm - using the gym or making do at home - for sport and a sporting lifestyle. Training for athletes and everyday girls, too! Fitness Training for Girls sounds serious. It's that second word that does it. By definition training is the process or state of being formed by instruction, discipline and drill. Anything that involves all that must be pretty serious, indeed. So it makes sense that this is abook for athletes or aspiring athletes. Athletes train. That's what they do. But Fitness Training for Girls is for all the other girls, too. Or at least the ones who wish to attain fitness that goes beyond dieting and exercising to lose weight. They may not have the talent or desire to be athletes, but they want to achieve and maintain a life of fitness all the same. The processes for both athletic and nonathletic girls take earnest effort and the processesoverlap - especially in the beginning. Fitness is notexclusive. It is achievable for every girl who wants it. Muscles are OK In 1972 the U.S. Congress enacted the EducationalAmendment Act. Title IX of that Act requires that collegesand universities who want to keep government funding must provide students with equal opportunity in all areas of college life, including sports. The need to field more women's athletic teams fueled the development of high-school and recreational sports for girls. Girls' high-school teams increased from 15,000 to 70,000 in the '80s and women's sports participation increased 700% overall.Girls' athletic participation coincided with, and nodoubt encouraged, our society's growing interest withfitness over the last two decades.As a result, the femalebody ideal that includes soft, full curves made room fora powerfully new and vibrant option - the athleticallyfit and muscularly toned body type. Once scorned forbeing unfeminine, athletic adolescent girls gainedrespect and admiration for their healthy bodies. What's real: The myth of the perfect body It should be enough to say that physical perfection isnot an option - because it does not exist. Although weare seduced by a narrow standard of beauty through magazines, television and film, what we admire is thebehind-the-scenes work of cosmetic professionals anddigital touch-up. Trying to look like the girl in an ad isfutile. More importantly, it's the wrong place to startyour dream. You must begin with you. Every girl has her own unique body. There are thingsyou like, things you're OK with and things you dislike.The idea is to accept what you have, improve what canbe improved and take pride in your very best efforts.Comparing yourself to others or photos in magazines ignores who you are and what your needs are. Instead ofenvying pixels on the page or screen, look to your own improvements as you reach the goals that will take you to your dreams.