ABSTRACT
Women's running bodies are embedded in cultural discourse about appropriate ways of being; the dominant cultural image of a woman runner and the normative running body is white, thin, straight, fast, feminine, middle-class, and disciplined. Women begin running primarily for exercise, weight control, and because of family and friends, and keep running to stay healthy and in shape, and to relieve stress. The organization creates opportunities for women to learn coaching, to support one another in running communities, and to find the fun and social aspects of running, and provides expert information on women's health, women's running, and women's running groups. Zelle and Women's Running highlighted themes related to health and appearance. The online narratives women runners present subvert the dominant cultural image of the white, thin, straight runner who runs solely to maintain aesthetics, and demonstrate how women run against idealized images of a "running body".
