Abstract

29-year old office worker U-no has been working out at G-gym for just over a year when one day former bodybuilding champion O-shima convinces her to enter a national bodybuilding competition. As she trains in O-shima’s gym, U-no learns all about the sport—posing, tanning, dieting, as well as the different criteria between the men’s and women’s categories. Even though the focus is on muscles, female athletes are judged by their smiles, their mastery of high heels and their overall elegance, things that U-no has never practiced in her life.
Despite months of meticulous preparation, when it’s time for the final round of the competition, U-no abandons her heels and earrings in protest against the rigid gender norms of the sport. She realizes that what’s most important is achieving her own ideal body, not someone else’s, and returns to G-gym.

Author’s Information

Born in Saitama, Japan in 1991. Graduated from Tokyo Institute of Technology. The 45th Subaru Literature Award, Honorable Mention, for "My Friend, Smith" in 2021..