A woman taking to the Tokyo streets in full running regalia. (Kaori Shoji)

Health-conscious Japanese women are running in style

By Kaori Shoji

Published: May 12, 2008

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TOKYO: 'The quickest way to beauty is to sweat." So goes the battle cry in a recent issue of Anan, Tokyo's most influential women's magazine. A year ago this same publication had boldly endorsed sex as the surefire way of attaining and maintaining a beautiful body.

Now its paradigm has shifted, as more women equate fashion with health and the sense of true empowerment gained by strenuous workouts. And far from being sports geeks, these women don't forget to accessorize their activities with femininely attractive sports paraphernalia. "Because sporty is sexy!" declares another blurb in the Anan issue, followed by: "Women who sweat are beautiful from the very core of their beings."

"I think the magazine is finally starting to realize that their readers have other interests beside sex, dieting and clothes," said Yuka Takahashi, a model who works regularly for the magazine and is herself an avid workout fan. "Nowadays, fashion has got to be about individual happiness, well-being and ecology. It's great that they're finally tapping into those things."

Among the increasing number of young women acquiring this sports/health consciousness are those who have embraced the latest Tokyo fad: running. The number of Japanese who run more than twice a week has reached 280,000, according to a sports publication company Runners Inc., and a growing number of them are women under 45, mostly concentrated in and around the city.

They take to the streets in groups of 10 or more; they're members of corporate marathon clubs that meet before or after office hours to run and foster female camaraderie. A good number of these teams can be seen running the 5-kilometer, or 3-mile, route around the Imperial Palace, clad in snazzy marathon gear from Danskin or New Balance, the brands of choice for the female runner who is in it less for athletic glory than as a means to stay healthy, pretty and sane in stress-filled Tokyo.

The enormous popularity of the Tokyo Marathon, now in its second year (80,000 people applied for 30,000 slots, according to the Tokyo Marathon Committee) has fueled the running fever.

The Japanese have been enthusiastic runners since the nation first participated in the Olympics in 1912. Running was immediately recognized as a national sport: the economy and efficiency (all you needed was a pair of legs and a relatively smooth ground) of it was something the Japanese could identify with. Historically speaking, running had always been part of the lifestyle. Back in the Edo Period (1603-1864) urgent mail and messages were delivered by sprinters known as hikyaku (which literally means flying legs), who traversed treacherous mountain passes and jagged coastlines wearing straw sandals. Since the mid-20th century, the Japanese have consistently been among the world's speediest runners, but it is only recently that people have begun to equate enjoyment and fashion with long-distance running.

"Clearly, it's because more young women have joined in," said Michika Muramatsu, 39, a veteran runner of 15 years whose average monthly running distance totals 400 kilometers.

For public running events, women can pick and choose from any of the more than 2,000 races held across Japan but they often practice with an eye to the Honolulu Marathon, now nicknamed the "The Marathon Catwalk."

The presence of women, Muramatsu said, "has substantially broadened the field for running fashion. No girl wants to be caught looking like an emaciated ascetic, which is the usual image of a Japanese marathon runner."

Young women are appearing on the streets in running skirts, leggings, tops shaped to flatter the torso and shoes in rainbow colors, procured, if not from a major sports brand, then certainly from Muji, which has come out with a new line of yoga and exercise wear.

"The actual performance is secondary," Muramatsu said. "Enjoying themselves is much more important."

Fashion-conscious runners have no lack of role models: popular actresses and models preach the virtues of running (in sweat-proof makeup).

Even the novelist and passionate marathon runner Haruki Murakami has turned his attention to a running theme: an autobiography with the evocative, Raymond Carver-ish title: "What I Talk About When I Talk About Running."

Sports companies are cashing in on all the attention to running. Foremost is Asics, sponsor of the Tokyo Marathon and supplier of sports shoes since the 1950s. Asics's efforts to "make Japanese feet go faster," the creed of the late founder Kihachiro Onitsuka, has drawn attention to its marathon shoes for their precision craftsmanship. The Asics flagship store in Ginza district makes customized running shoes to match the exact physical needs of the wearer. The store is thronged with women runners waiting to be measured or advised by a knowledgeable staff. The shop is also equipped with lockers, changing room and shower space, mostly for the benefit of women's running clubs that have cropped up all across the Ginza area.

"As a stress-reliever I prefer running to drinking," said Midori Funabashi, 30, a bank clerk. Since she started running last winter, Funabashi has shed three kilograms and feels healthier than ever. "Now I'm afraid what's going to happen if I quit," she laughs. "But then I tell myself, never, never, never!"