In May 2025, I was struggling at work and going through a breakup, so naturally, I did what women in their late 20s do: I signed up for my first marathon. As someone whose longest previous run was a 5K —that left me huffing and puffing and keeling over by the end—I figured I’d better do some research. So, I looked up “long-distance running tips for women.” Overnight, my social media algorithms started serving me posts about how to avoid an apparent litany of running-related “issues.” For every video about how to pace a long run, there were five about newfangled terms and reasons why other women had stopped running purely because of what it was doing to their appearance. “Here’s How to Avoid Runner’s Face,” “My Top 10 Tips for Keeping Your Ass When Running,” “Why Running Actually Doesn’t Burn Fat,” and the latest one, “Am I Going to Get Runner’s Waist?!” I was livid. As if there aren’t enough barriers to entry for running, especially for women.…