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.

Imagining Freedom

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Bags are unloaded directly onto the tarmac in Fort Chipewyan.

Bags are unloaded directly onto the tarmac in Fort Chipewyan.

We like to be free in this country

—Alexandre Laviolette, 1897, Chipewyan minor chief and negotiator of Treaty 8 at Fort Chipewyan

I am sitting on a tiny plane bound for Fort Chipewyan, Alberta, admiring the letter that Alexandre Laviolette wrote to the police authority in 1897, indicating that his people would not stand for any infringement on their hunting and fishing rights. “I think myself a man same as you, and I would not step back for your gun.” Continue reading →

ASK A TRAINER: Should I Force Myself to Eat After Working Out?

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zzzzzzzz lift and bitch 033Dear Fitbabe, I love your posts. I also love intermittent fasting, but I have a problem and hope that you can help me to solve it. I work best with a 9-5 or 11-7 feed and 16 hour fast. I hate eating before bed. I wake up groggy. So this plan works for me. However, I am a professional ballet/modern dancer, and workout with my company for three hours at a time, from 6-9 pm, three days a week. My question is this: if I drink a protein shake prior to my workout, is it ok that I’m not refueling after dancing? Continue reading →

Pursuing Discomfort

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Not my buttocks.

Not my buttocks.

I am moving up the stairs as quickly as I can, motivated by the vision of DYT’s taut buttocks ahead of me. If my lady ass can become even half of that, it will be worth it. DYT is much faster than me on the stairs, which makes sense because she is 18 years my junior. At least, that’s my current excuse, and I think it’s a good one. Continue reading →

Compulsory Diversion: A Las Vegas Rant

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LasVegasSign“I’m sorry Miss, but it is too early to order alcoholic drinks. You will have to wait until 10 am.” The passenger seated in front of me shakes her dyed blonde hair in mock amazement, responding to the polite flight attendant with a donkey-like “Hee Haw!” Her bray of forced laughter is repeated many times during the direct flight from Edmonton to Las Vegas. I find it rather annoying. Continue reading →

Guest Post: Male Entitlement and the Pregnant Female Body

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Figure 1 Travelling Alone While Pregant Invites All Kinds of Unwanted Attention [http://www.tallinn-airport.ee/upload/Editor/Reisijale/ lapseootel_reisija.jpg]

Figure 1 Travelling Alone While Pregant Invites All Kinds of Unwanted Attention [http://www.tallinn-airport.ee/upload/Editor/Reisijale/
lapseootel_reisija.jpg]

By Hissy Fit

After attending two conferences in as many weeks, I have learned that strangers, especially white men, feel entitled to make unsolicited comments about women’s pregnant bodies.

These men can be from all walks of life – hotel staff, airplane travelers, and conference acquaintances.  Yet no matter their position, when they see a pregnant woman working or traveling alone, their response is to (a) notice the woman’s belly; (b) make a remark about it; and (c) engage in unwelcome behaviour. Continue reading →