Active Women

3 Posts

Soccer Star Kristine Lilly Talks Pregnancy

Posted by mvalenti Apr 24, 2008

Pregnancy Update: 26 Weeks and Counting! (Excerpt from Kristine Lilly's Online Journal)

Little movements and a bigger belly is the big news these days. The little one inside is growing and so is my belly--it's officially in the way. I have to bend down on one knee to tie my shoe. I also feel my belly when I work out. It's not so much that I can't work out but that I have extra weight to carry with me. However, with all these changes, I feel the life inside me and that is something special.

I always wondered why pregnant women touch their bellies so much and now I get it. First off, it's a place to rest your hands, which is convenient, but more importantly to feel the life that is growing inside you. I have had Dave put his hand on my belly but most of the time the little one doesn't continue to kick. He did feel the movement one time and I think it freaked him out and helped him realize that there really is a baby in there. I think for the guys it is tough because they don't go through all the changes. They only experience what we say and how we act. Maybe that's enough for them.

I am still doing my workouts and some days I feel like it, some I don't. The fact that I have a choice not to some days has been really nice. I haven't increased anything I'm doing, I'm just maintaining. It is nice to go up to the gym and get a little sweat, but not too much sweating, because I am not exerting myself too much--nothing like I am used to. It is more for my psyche than anything else really. Plus I get up there and see some of my friends and that is nice.

As for cravings and other senses, I haven't really experienced anything. The fact that I love a bowl of ice cream is pretty much right up there with what I did before I was pregnant, so I wouldn't say that is a craving. I have pretty much cut soda out of my diet. I have one every so often, so that is a good thing, however, I do crave a big Diet Coke with lots of ice. I eat more frequently and have lots of healthy snacks throughout the day. For the most part I have had a good experience so far and look forward to the weeks ahead.

Pregnancy for me has been an adjustment, but for the most part it has been great! I love the fact that I have a little one inside of me and that soon it will enter the world. It is so amazing and I know when I have it, my world will be turned upside down and it will be the greatest thing. So for now, I am enjoying each step and taking it all in and making sure I am doing everything I can to feel good.

Take care,
Kristine Lilly

Keep up with Kristine Lilly's journal at http://kristinelilly13.com/kristine/journals/index.php?&id=110

Or Sign up for the Kristine Lilly Soccer Academy at http://kristinelilly13.com/kl-soccer-academy/index.php

0 Comments Permalink Tags: kristine, lilly, soccer, pregnancy, workouts, fit, pregnancy, kristine, lilly, soccer, academy

You Can't Keep Those Women Down

Posted by mvalenti Mar 4, 2008

Back in 2004 the LA Marathon presented a challenge that involved giving women a head start in an attempt to make the final stretch to the finish more competitive, and therefore, more interesting.

On Sunday, March 2 Russian Tatiana Aryasova capitalized on that offer, crossing the finish line before any of the men and winning the $100,000 prize for doing so.

William Burke's (race co-founder and president) reaction? Accoriding to the LA Times he said,

"You can't keep those women down, you can't get them back in the kitchen."

Was he joking? Maybe he meant it to be a compliment. Apparently he didn't crack a smile or indicate in any way that he intended the comment to be friendly. So how do you react to someone like this? Someone that has been on the athletic scene for more than 20 years? He has most definitely seen women excel and even kick some butt.

If he thinks women belong in the kitchen, why then would he create an incentive to keep them out there. it almost feels like it was his way of taunting the women who participate--like it has been his little joke to see who would chase the carrot.

Who knows what motivated Tatiana. Was she after the prize, did she want to prove a point or did she just want to run well?

Maybe one of the reasons a marathon finish is not that exciting is because there just aren't that many people, men or women, that can keep up with the elites. An exciting finish comes from the history and passion of the individuals racing and the fans watching--not from staging a setting where the women are battling the men in the final yards to satisfy the fancy of a race president that has become bored.

I think we should ignore people like Burke and just keep doing what we're doing. He is the one that looks like a fool and no matter what, whether they mean to or not, women will continue to break barriers, exceed expectations, prove naysayers wrong and slowly peck away at chauvinistic doubts.

0 Comments Permalink Tags: marathon, athletics, running, la_marathon, tatiana_aryasova

Kikkan Randall Makes World Cup History

Posted by mvalenti Jan 2, 2008

On Sunday December 16, 2007 Kikkan Randall--from Anchorage, Alaska--became the first U.S. woman and the second American to win a World Cup cross country skiing race.

Get a glimpse inside Randall's head as the race progressed, and watch her kick butt here.