Author Archives: feministfiguregirl

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About feministfiguregirl

I am a 51-year-old professor named Lianne McTavish who receives as much satisfaction from working out at the gym as from publishing my academic research. About eight years ago, I decided to combine my two primary identities (scholar/gym rat) to create "Feminist Figure Girl," a fictional character who both analyzes and participates in bodybuilding. I competed in my first figure show in June of 2011, and then wrote a book inspired by the process, published by SUNY Press in February 2015. In this blog I will write about and consider my ongoing research on the body, while regularly making fun of myself. I recommend that you start reading my first post from August 2010 (available on the home page), instead of backwards from the most recent one, in order to get the full FFG effect.

Meet the Woman who Kicks FFG’s Ass: Personal Trainer Audrey Shepherd

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Behold the Monster Girl, aka DYT, aka Audrey Shepherd.

Behold DYT, aka Monster Girl, aka Audrey Shepherd.

You might know Audrey better as DYT, the Delightful Young Trainer who whipped me into better shape for my figure competition in June 2011, after G-Smash, my original trainer, decided to devote herself full-time to bodybuilding. Audrey’s nickname is apt, for she is indeed delightful. When Audrey recently opened her own business in a studio near the campus where I work, I was happy to start training with her again. She is at once sweet, supportive, and tough—willing to push me to work harder every session. I look forward to and enjoy every single work out with her, especially the boxing sessions which my back fondly remembers for about a week afterwards. I recently sent Audrey a list of questions about her life as an athlete and personal trainer, and paste her responses below. Continue reading →

Vaginal Overshare

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Grease me up, lunch lady Doris.

Grease me up, lunch lady Doris.

A few weeks ago I read about a group that had formed to stop parents from oversharing about their children on facebook. Some people do not like seeing pictures of kids with food smeared all over their bodies, or receiving constant updates related to barf and poo. Fair enough, but did they really need to form a protest group? Continue reading →

Guest Post: What are You Putting into Your Body? (and flushing down the toilet?)

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by Lorrie

I dumped my McDonald’s cheeseburger into the garbage with disgust. Feeling very hungry, I had ordered two cheeseburgers during a quick stop on our road trip to the cottage, hoping that they would provide me with a bit of protein. All the same, I simply could not consume the second cheeseburger, which tasted like cardboard and contained a small hard white lump (of something?) in its first bite. As a parent of young children, I am aware that McDonald’s hamburgers are not processed in a safe manner. According to a Facebook post by Jillian Michaels, they actually contain ammonia. I am ashamed to admit that my family and I still occasionally (although rarely) go to this fast food chain. Why you may ask? Probably for the same reason that other parents go. Continue reading →

McDonald’s versus Stem Cell “Schmeat” Burger

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Picture of Mount Robson taken with my cell phone.

Picture of Mount Robson taken with my cell phone.

My partner and I are driving west, toward the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia, listening to a Sirius XMU Program called Gorilla versus Bear (http://www.gorillavsbear.net). Most of the new/independent music that the kids are listening today sounds like watered down hits from the 80s to me, but I am probably just showing my age. In any case, as we head into wine country, the satellite radio keeps going in and out, its signal blocked by magnificent mountain ranges like the one shown here. My LSP and I must resort to amusing ourselves the old-fashioned way—no, not that you perverts. We discuss age-old questions that have long puzzled humanity: Who would actually win the battle between a gorilla and a grizzly bear? [I vote bear]. Wonderwoman vs Thor? [That’s pretty obvious]. But how about a Big Mac vs a hamburger grown from the stem cells of a dead cow’s shoulder? I vote for the laboratory version. Oh wait, since both kinds of artificial meat are produced in a lab, I should be more specific. My money is on the stem cell Schmeat. Continue reading →