"Embrace the challenges and never forget the positive and amazing aspects that the sport brings you!"
Beverly Zhu, an American-born-Chinese figure skater who competed in the 2022 Winter Olympics, has faced the hard challenge of puberty as a developing athlete. Challenges she found difficult to overcome were not only the physical changes puberty caused but the mental and hormonal changes in her body as well. In this interview, she navigates through strange feelings about the changes in her body, balancing school and figure skating, and some advice she has for others.
A pivotal phase
Puberty was one of the most pivotal phases of Beverly’s athletic career. Puberty isn’t just physical changes that we can see with our own eyes. It is also the mental and hormonal changes that are happening, which we at the moment aren’t even aware are happening.
“So having to navigate through those seemingly “strange” feelings and thoughts was definitely a challenge I faced as a developing athlete.”-Beverly Zhu
For Beverly, there was a moment when she was more prone to injuries. Once one injury had finally healed, another came around the corner. Therefore, it was really difficult for Beverly to get out of that period and become stronger physically and mentally.
Figure skating is such an aesthetic and leanness-focused sport, thus body image concerns and/or disordered eating behaviors are almost inevitable. The majority of all figure skaters, regardless of gender (male or female, etc.), have to face these issues and find their own healthy ways to address them.
“Puberty is not as bad as people make it seem. Yes, it probably feels terrible in the moment, we’re not performing as we did when we were little, we get scared to fail, etc., but we’re growing from small kids into adults! Our minds are growing and going through these “unknown feelings” so that we can be able to understand greater concepts. Our bodies are getting taller and putting on more muscle because they’re trying to become stronger, healthier bodies that let us do more.” -Beverly Zhu
A tough time
Even though dealing with skating and school can be tough, the school allowed Beverly to curb those negative thoughts about training, helping her balance it all and broaden her perspective on everything. Additionally, being consistent with your jumps and staying safe really all stems around your weight. Unfortunately, that’s not something everyone wants to hear.
“I was only able to stabilize my weight by 18-19 years old. Being more self-disciplined and self-aware are definitely the most effective strategies, however, those strategies must be developed personally to fit each athlete. On a lighter note, I think just being grateful and happy for every training session, every competition, every moment to work yourself into a better athlete and person is a great mindset to have.” - Beverly Zhu
Try your best!
The development (weight gain, height, etc.) of our body is just how our body naturally works. At that time, Beverly did blame herself for weight gain, and for not being able to train or perform in the ways she could before puberty. It is hard but not being able to feel in control of those thoughts and emotions definitely isn’t something you want during a practice session, and it really gets in the way of how your body performs.
“It’s hard not to compare yourself to how you were before and those around you. I tried to remind myself that my legs and my arms are the way that they are to let me do the things that I love to do. They’re strong and able to jump triples, they’re flexible and able to spin in different positions. Every day is different, the weather is different, your body feels different, your mind thinks differently, or your coach’s mood is different. The only thing you are in control of is yourself and I just tried to put in my best effort under whatever circumstance. Of course, there are bad practices and bad moods still, but that’s sport! It lets you feel those feelings and makes you aim for the best version of yourself.” -Beverly Zhu
Advice and takeaways
Beverly gained a lot of perspective through YouTube, where she would watch other athletes who would post their experiences online as well as how they approached their challenges. Beverly also believes that it is vital to communicate with close friends during this period because her friends make her feel less alone and assure her that she herself can become a stronger athlete regardless of the setbacks she might have faced.
Appreciating her body and everything it can do is one lesson she has learned through going through puberty. She says “It’s kind of insane what the body can do! Our body can recover from crazy injuries on its own (big or small) that doctors once said you might need surgery for, it can let us spin 3 rotations in the air, and it can withstand crazy amounts of pressure.” As girls, Beverly says that puberty is just a stage in our lives that transitions us to adulthood and we must go through these challenges in order to make us stronger and ready for more difficult things in life, not only as athletes.
Especially for teenage figure skaters, Beverly encourages them to keep skating. Puberty is something that everyone has to go through, there’s a lot of pressure and many will start to forget why they love to skate because of it.
“I hope that they just push through the challenges or just embrace them all and remember that it will all pass, and you will become stronger throughout it. Don’t forget all of the positive and amazing aspects that the sport brings you! Just keep skating.” -Beverly Zhu
(Interviewed by Angel Li)
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