78% of girls hate their bodies by 17. A former NCAA champion says running is the fix

I don’t like the way my body looks.

I wish I were prettier. Thinner. Cooler.

For too many teenage girls, this inner monologue plays on a constant loop.

American teenagers spend nearly five hours a day on social media. That’s not just a lot of scrolling—it’s a lot of time absorbing unrealistic beauty standards, comparing, criticizing, and critiquing. It’s five hours a day behind a screen instead of in the world, building real connections. High school has always been defined by change and self-consciousness, with social pressures tied to cliques, grades, and looks. Today that transition is increasingly accompanied by body dissatisfaction: 53% of girls dislike their bodies at age 13, a figure that rises to 78% by age 17.

The current generation faces an additional threat as social media accelerates a mental health crisis. Teens with the highest social media use are far more likely to rate their mental health as “poor” or “very poor” compared with those who use it least. The former U.S. Surgeon General warned that kids who spend more than three hours a day scrolling face double the risk of developing anxiety and depression.

Social media is meant to connect, yet young people feel alone. A World Health Organization report found teenagers to be the loneliest age group, with roughly 20% of 13-to-17-year-olds worldwide reporting feelings of loneliness. In a society flooded with notifications, likes, and comments, many girls feel unseen and unheard.

There’s another dimension to this crisis: by age 14, girls drop out of sports at roughly twice the rate of boys. The reasons are well-documented—lack of access, cost, safety concerns, and body image. When girls leave sports, they lose community, confidence, and a sense of belonging.

So where do we go from here? We can’t ask teenagers to completely unplug, but we can offer girls an alternative. A safe, supportive space to feel strong, powerful, and confident alongside their peers.

Running.

I believe running can be an antidote.

Running is for everyone. It’s accessible, all you need is a pair of sneakers and a safe place to run, whether that’s a park, a track, or city streets. Running welcomes all shapes, sizes, ages, backgrounds, and paces. There’s no such thing as “one size fits all.” If you don’t believe me, watch the TCS New York City Marathon and you will witness the beautiful diversity of life. Running is uniquely designed for personal goals, — from one block to one mile to 26.2 miles.

In a world that constantly demands, running gives girls so much.

What Running Gave Me—and What It Can Give Every Girl

This isn’t theory. It’s my lived reality. Running has always been there for me. I ran my first New York Road Runners race when I was 10, and that passion carried me through my career, including five NCAA titles. Through successes and disappointments, running reminds me that I am capable. It’s where I feel most empowered because running doesn’t care what I look like, — only whether I show up and put one foot in front of the other.

All it takes is one step to feel the transformative power of running. If every girl takes that first step, she is one step closer to taking charge of how far she can go.

The lessons extend far beyond the finish line. It’s no surprise that 94% of women in C-suite roles played sports, as did 80% of Fortune 500 women executives.

Investment in Girls’ Sports Is an Investment in Women Leaders

That’s why investing in women’s sports, especially at the youth level, is critical. This means creating school and community programs, dedicating resources to facilities, training coaches, and fostering environments welcoming to all bodies.

As Board Chair of the nonprofit New York Road Runners, I’m proud that we’ve championed women in sport since 1958, including several all-women races like the Mastercard New York Mini 10K, first held in 1972, just weeks before Title IX revolutionized women’s sports. Our free youth running program, Rising New York Road Runners, has more than 200,000 participants nationwide, many of them young girls ages 2-18.

This year marks the 15th anniversary of Run for the Future, our signature free running and wellness program for New York City high school girls. Over six weeks, participants train together and attend workshops about nutrition, mental health, financial literacy, and body image — culminating in their first 5K race. We meet girls where they are and encourage them to believe through every step.

Less scrolling, more running—whether alone or with friends—can replace that inner monologue of doubt and loneliness with one of affirmation, connection, and self-belief.

Let’s put down our phones and lace up our sneakers. New York Road Runners’ Run for the Future applications are open—and there’s no better time to encourage the young girls in your life to take that first step.

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This story was originally featured on Fortune.com