Fit Mom's Blog

Photo Credit: Thanasis

Who is Athena, you might be wondering?

Athena daughter of Zeus is one of the most respected goddesses in Greek Mythology (depending on where you read). Interesting is the story of her birth — that Zeus had an enormous headache and she sprang to life out of Zeus’ head fully grown and in full armor. She is not known to have a mother. A virgin goddess that is always depicted holding a spear, not known for her warrior skills- yet she was good at that as well- more than that she worked as a mediator, judge and diplomat in times of war. Athena made wise decisions that were often self-less and merciful. One story I read said that she spared a man’s life after he entered her room while she was bathing on accident. This was punishable by death so instead she covered his eyes and took away his sight. That man became a very wise man. She was the creator of many FIRSTS, such as the Bridle and Chariot, the inventor of the Trojan Horse, first ship to sail across the ocean, science of numbers, earthen pot, flute and trumpet. (Resource)

The name Athena is also a category in triathlons. If you’re a woman weighing 145 pounds or more, you could enter yourself as an Athena. For men it’s called Clydesdale and you have to weigh more than 200 pounds. I think a lot of us can identify with 145. I can anyway. 145 was my “normal” weight for years. It’s a size 8 in women’s clothes and I would never have thought of myself as overweight. Just normal. Not thin, but, not fat. The YOU Diet takes the focus of health OFF weight and asks readers to consider their waist in inches. The authors, Roizen and Oz, state that fat in and around your belly can be extremely dangerous to your organs. For women, the ideal waist size is 32 1/2 inches and for men it’s 35″. According to Weight Watchers a healthy weight range goes from 124-155 for a 5’6″ person. Holy cow! 124???!! You’ve got to be kidding. So, for the sake of your health and sanity, let’s throw out the scale,ok? One more point to the argument is the BMI scale. (Body Mass Index) A healthy BMI for a woman of my height goes from 18.5 to 24.9. This number doesn’t mean much to me except that a 145 pound woman is just barely going to be in the healthy range.

You are the athlete. As runners, cyclists, and hopefully future triathletes- it’s about how you feel in your own skin. Whether you want to enter a race as a Athena or as an age grouper, it’s that you are doing it! Not what category that you enter. The only person whom you need to prove to is yourself. Same thing as entering a marathon, it is that YOU ARE DOING IT. In all the reading I did about Athena, it never said she was particularly good at athletics- although possibly good at sparing- she was most known for her wise decisions, strong personalities and her creative genius. Find the Athena in yourself and compete!

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