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Former Division I Athlete Victoria Garrick Is Changing The Idea Of Beauty In Women’s Sports After Battling Depression And Disordered Eating

Former Divison I athlete, TED Talk speaker, podcast host, and now a mega-viral content creator.

At only twenty-five years old, those are just a few of Victoria Garrick’s latest and greatest achievements as she works to undo the harm that stereotypical ideas of beauty and femininity have done to young girls and women around the globe.

Although, Victoria’s mission to change the world did not start without her own personal struggle with body image and worth.

Instead, she reflects on how popular media shaped her internal perception of beauty, beginning right as she entered teenhood.

“The idea of what it means to be a beautiful woman has changed for me many times,” Victoria began in an article she penned for GOOD.

“In 2011, when I was thirteen, I thought beautiful meant weighing the same as the Victoria’s Secret models I googled. In 2013, at fifteen, I thought beautiful meant having the hashtag-famous ‘thigh gap.’ In 2016, at the age of eighteen, I thought beautiful meant not having to edit your pictures on Instagram.”

Still, Victoria’s internal battle with her own appearance did not become the epicenter of her world until 2017.

That year, she committed to the University of Southern California’s (USC) women’s indoor volleyball team.

Instagram; pictured above is Victoria

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