Amanda Bingson is a record-breaking Olympic athlete, but it was her nude photo on the cover of ESPN The Magazine's Body Issue that turned her into a household name. At 210 pounds, the hammer thrower is unapologetic about her body—and she's out to prove that "athletes come all shapes and sizes." (See more stunning photos and inspirational body-image quotes from rest of the women featured in the issue).
We sat down with the headline-making 25-year-old to find out what it was like to strip naked for a bunch of strangers, how she feels about being the new champion of the body-positive movement, and her fitness mantra. (Spoiler alert: It's "Look good, feel good, throw good." How great is that?!)
Shape: What was your initial reaction to being asked to pose naked? And then what was it like actually being on set?
Amanda Bingson (AB): My initial reaction was 'Y’all are lying to me. This isn’t real life.' Actually doing it was really fun. It was awesome. There is always that nervousness when you’re putting yourself out there...there’s always going to be some pushback and negative response, but the way it all turned out put me over the moon. It turned out so beautiful and amazin about what we accomplish. So to have this kind of exposure is so mind-blowing. I’m still not quite used to it . If a girl can see me and say 'She’s 200 pounds, and athletic and kicking ass and maybe I can do that too,' then that’s great. Big record big end