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- I'll have girls come in the gym all the time,
look me up and down, and say "I don't want to get bulky."
- I see people always look at me at the starting line
of a race and I can tell they're judging me
and probably questioning what am I doing there.
- High school I was extremely skinny.
So I would always wear extra shirts
to look a little bit bigger.
- One of our instructors told everyone in my class
that we could afford to lose weight.
We were so young and so small already
and we were being told that we weren't small enough.
- I think today's athletes are much more conscious
of how they look and their bodies.
We were more conscious about how our jump shot looked
than if we had abs or not.
- It totally happens in shows and in jobs,
where they will line you up
and kind of do body checks on people.
- An RPG hit my helicopter
and that's what caused the amputation.
I started cycling as therapy
and I haven't stopped since then.
- I have really big thighs and I love them now.
I used to be like "Oh, they're so big!"
But now I know what that means,
like for me that means a new PR.
- But I think most of the pressure comes
from the dancer as like an individual putting pressure
on themselves to want to look the best.
- Being tall and lanky wasn't always
the most comfortable thing.
Fortunately in this sport it's an advantage
to be as long as I am.
So I've learned to really love that about myself.
- What it did was it forced me to just be smarter
on the field because I knew guys were stronger.
- Being insecure has driven me
as an athlete to prove people wrong.
- My advice for anybody that's overcoming
a body image disability, I'd say to them,
go out and pursue what your dreams are.
- [Shane] I think it's definitely up to teachers and parents
to really promote healthy body images for young dancers.
- When you play this game and when you're able
to make it to this level, you're always told
what you can't do and someone's always better.
It doesn't matter what you look like,
it matters how you play.
- I definitely have my own insecurities
and if you see professional athletes on the front of a cover
they've probably been photoshopped also.
- [Shane] Be your body and just be the best
in your body that you can be.
- [Heidi] Perform through that, shine through that,
and take that and just go with it.
- My body
- My body is
- Is mine
- Amazing to me.
- My greatest tool as an athlete and it doesn't matter
what other people think about it.
- Not perfect, but it's okay.
- My scars are my experiences.
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