Ellie Boatman: “When I got to my smallest I was at my most unhappiest”
The Telegraph Rugby Podcast
The Telegraph
4.5 • 679 Ratings
🗓️ 15 November 2024
⏱️ 49 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this episode from the Telegraph Women's Sport Podcast, we're delving into the topic of body image. Hosted by Dame Laura Kenny, we bring together three women to share their stories and insights.
Ellie Boatman, a Great Britain rugby sevens player, opens up about her journey through body image struggles and overcoming an eating disorder to develop a healthier relationship with her body and food. She emphasises the influence of social media on body perceptions and the importance of education around its dangers.
Amy Truesdale, an Paralympic taekwondo champion, speaks about her confidence in competing in a male-dominated sport despite her disability. She highlights the necessity of focusing on performance over aesthetics, celebrating individual differences, and rejecting societal pressures.
Kate Dale, campaign director of "This Girl Can" at Sport England, brings her expertise in promoting women's participation in sports, discussing the need for positive reinforcement and conscious behaviour around diet culture and appearance. She champions the importance of understanding female physiology in training to shift focus from appearance to performance.
If you have been affected by an eating disorder, contact the NHS or Beat for help.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi, I'm Maggie Alfonci, former England rugby player and now a MasterCard ambassador. |
| 0:06.0 | MasterCard is proud to sponsor the Telegraph Women's Sport podcast hosted by Dame Laura Kenny. |
| 0:12.3 | MasterCard has championed women's sport for over 25 years. |
| 0:16.6 | Discover more at MasterCard..com.ukuk, UK, forward slash impact. |
| 0:27.3 | Welcome to the Telegraph's Women's Sport podcast with me, Laura Kenny. |
| 0:31.4 | In this episode, we're tackling an important topic that affects so many women and girls in sport, body image. |
| 0:43.3 | Where we're delving into how concerns around body image can hold girls back from participating and enjoying sports and how even elite athletes aren't immune to these pressures. |
| 0:47.3 | We'll explore the role that society plays in shaping perceptions around weight and aesthetics |
| 0:52.3 | and how we can shift the focus from looks to performance. |
| 0:56.3 | So for me, I haven't ever actually had any body image concerns, I guess. |
| 1:03.7 | When I was at school, I realized that I was different. |
| 1:07.7 | I started cycling when I was young. |
| 1:09.3 | So for me, I started riding a bike when I was eight. I was cycling when I was young. So for me, I started riding a bike |
| 1:10.9 | when I was eight. I was probably 12 or 13, I guess, like year, seven, year eight time when I actually |
| 1:17.3 | realized I looked different. But for me, I quite like that. Like, I quite like the fact that |
| 1:24.6 | I look different to everyone else. You know, my legs were really muscle. You know, psychists are known for being powerful, right? And I knew that I had a six-pack, |
| 1:31.3 | mainly from doing trampolining, but I quite enjoyed the fact that I looked like that. And I |
| 1:37.1 | also quite enjoyed the fact it meant I beat the boys quite often, to be totally honest. And so, |
| 1:43.1 | but what I would say is I feel very lucky that I didn't grow up |
| 1:46.8 | in the social media world because do I think that affects how people see themselves now? |
| 1:52.3 | 100%. Like I think it's a world that you now can't escape and you know you put an image |
| 1:58.9 | out there. You're opening yourself up to anyone judging it |
... |
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