Website Recommendation: See Jane Run

In my constant search for feminist and fat-positive (or at least fat-neutral) resources for athletes i've found some good resources. There is a great running store in San Francisco called See Jane Run that is owned by women, and helps women find resources for running and other endurance sports at any size. So far they come the closest to passing the Menville test of anything that I have found. The mentions of weight and weightloss are few and far between, and mostly in a personal context i.e. one woman wanted to gain fitness by losing weight and took up running even though she felt embarrassed to be running as a plus size woman. She worked hard and became fit and is very proud of herself. I'm proud of her too. It can be hard to be a runner when you don't look like what people expect you to look like. I sometimes feel judged on my runs when I notice people looking at me. I get nervous when I end my runs on a busy street because I feel like people assume that I am too tired because of my size and not because I just finished running 3 miles. I'm happy that she has gotten fit, and I am happy that she likes her body now. I am also happy that she was able to train to run in a friendly environment that focused on her activity level more than on her size.


See Jane Run is the best resource I have found so far, and I want to give them a ton of credit for the things that they do well. I get the impression from their site that they don't bring up weightloss as a goal unless you do, and that even then the focus is on activity and heatlh with weightloss as a side effect. That is pretty damned good, and I have to give them love for that even though I wish they were more in your face political about what they do, you can't discount the good that they do on an individual and community basis. How about stocking sports bras all the way through E cups, focusing on performance and ability, and for having an awesome manifesto:

Here's to you.

The broad-shouldered, the knock-kneed, the pigeon-toed, the small-breasted, the wide-hipped, the long-waisted, the short-legged, the stocky, and the skinny. And yes even the perfectly proportioned. May you live long, enjoy dessert, and never stop laughing.


While See Jane Run might not always pass the Menville Test, and they occasionally veer into cliched shopping and chocolate style sisterhood instead of my preferred in your face political activism they will probably listen to you and respect you if you don't want to lose weight. They'll listen to you and respect you if you do want to too. I have to respect that. See Jane Run gets a thumbs up from me.

Any other feminist sports resources out there? Share them if you've got them, we're all in this together.