This perceptive, lively study explores U.S. women's sport through historical "points of change": particular products or trends that dramatically influenced both women's participation in sport and cultural responses to women athletes. Beginning with the seemingly innocent ponytail, the subject of the Introduction, scholar Jaime Schultz challenges the reader to look at the historical and sociological significance of now-common items such as sports bras and tampons and ideas such as sex testing and competitive cheerleading. Tennis wear, tampons, and sports bras all facilitated women’s participation in physical culture, while physical educators, the aesthetic fitness movement, and Title IX encouraged women to challenge (or confront) policy, financial, and cultural obstacles. While some of these points of change increased women's physical freedom and sporting participation, they also posed challenges. Tampons encouraged menstrual shame, sex testing (a tool never used with male athletes) perpetuated narrowly-defined cultural norms of femininity, and the late-twentieth-century aesthetic fitness movement fed into an unrealistic beauty ideal. Ultimately, Schultz finds that U.S. women's sport has progressed significantly but ambivalently. Although participation in sports is no longer uncommon for girls and women, Schultz argues that these "points of change" have contributed to a complex matrix of gender differentiation that marks the female athletic body as different than--as less than--the male body, despite the advantages it may confer.

Running Times magazine explores training, from the perspective of top athletes, coaches and scientists; rates and profiles elite runners; and provides stories and commentary reflecting the dedicated runner's worldview.

Getting to the Ironman Triathlon World Championships in Kona, Hawaii can be pretty tough. But with this new book from Ben Greenfield and the Rock Star Triathlete Academy, you'll be instantly equipped with what you need to qualify. This comprehensive manual includes: - History Of Kona Ironman World Championships - Qualification Criteria - List Of Qualifying Races - Tips From The Experts On Qualifying - Qualifying Times per Age Group - What To Expect on Race Day - Tips From the Experts on Racing Kona - Race Day Pacing and Fueling Strategies This manual contains all the insider tips you need to begin your road to Kona!

Entertaining and inspirational, Why I Run is the new book from the founder of iRun magazine, Mark Sutcliffe. Drawing on more than five years of writing about running in newspaper columns, magazine features and blog postings, the 13-time marathon runner chronicles a journey that begins with a guy looking for a bit of exercise and evolves into running as a way of life. At once analytical, self-deprecating, enthusiastic and inspiring, Why I Run provides a fresh and rousing perspective on the rapidly growing sport that has allowed thousands of individuals to overcome challenges and fulfill their dreams, literally one step at a time. In sharing his own experiences and those of other runners who have inspired him, Sutcliffe narrates his love affair with the sport. And in the many stories ranging from stumbling through his first trail run to tumbling at the finish line of a marathon to cheering his training partner to a qualifying time for the famed Boston Marathon, every runner will find both entertainment and motivation.

America loves sports. This book examines and details the proof of this fascination seen throughout American society—in our literature, film, and music; our clothing and food; and the iconography of the nation. This momentous four-volume work examines and details the cultural aspects of sport and how sport pervasively reflects—and affects—myriad aspects of American society from the early 1900s to the present day. Written in a straightforward, readable manner, the entries cover both historical and contemporary aspects of sport and American culture. Unlike purely historical encyclopedias on sports, the contributions within these volumes cover related subject matter such as poetry, novels, music, films, plays, television shows, art and artists, mythologies, artifacts, and people. While this encyclopedia set is ideal for general readers who need information on the diverse aspects of sport in American culture for research purposes or are merely reading for enjoyment, the detailed nature of the entries will also prove useful as an initial source for scholars of sport and American culture. Each entry provides a number of both print and online resources for further investigation of the topic.

Time Trials is the story of the redemption of Wes Strong. After surviving an abusive father and a devastating loss in his family, he becomes an elite runner in high school and earns an athletic scholarship to Clemson University. Tragedy strikes when he becomes addicted to painkillers and bad decisions land him in prison where he is saved both literally and spiritually by the mysterious Preacher. Preacher enlightens Wes about the New Testament, particularly Romans 8:28. Wes is granted early release, and he becomes a counselor at the Bowers-Rodgers Shelter for Abused Children, where he uses his newfound faith to help others. Another counselor, Roxie, encourages Wes to resume running to set an encouraging example to the children at the Home. During this time, Wes is reconciled to his father who is dying of cancer. As a gift, Wess coworkers send him to the Boston Marathon, where extraordinary things happen. Afterward, Wes continues to preach Romans 8:28 to all as surprising rewards continue to come his way.