ESPN The Magazine just announced the athletes who will grace the pages of their annual Body Issue, coming July 8, and one of the biggest names revealed was Miami Heat superstar Dwyane Wade. It’s always a significant moment when a high-profile sports star agrees to pose nude (however tasteful) for the entire world to see.
Given that professional athletes are undoubtedly in better shape than 95 percent of the general population, you’d think that it wouldn’t be that big of a deal. In fact, you’d think most of them would be proud to show off the goods they’ve worked so hard for. But that’s quite frankly not always the case.
As it turns out, even gorgeous sports figures are subject to the same insecurities as the rest of us. It shouldn’t be that surprising. After all, you don’t get a body like that without a certain amount of obsessiveness when it comes to diet and exercise. For some, it goes it all the way back to childhood. That’s how Wade explained his reluctance to be part of the issue up to this point, despite repeated requests.
The three-time champ talked about how his “outie” belly button as a child stopped him from taking his shirt off and swimming with the rest of the kids and how that and other insecurities about his body have prevented from truly coming into his own until well into adulthood. Via Morty Ain of ESPN.com:
I was just never comfortable until about four years ago, when I started feeling comfortable with my body overall. As you go through life, you get more comfortable with yourself. It’s like everything else with life — you change, you grow. People might think it’s simple, but for me it was hard to even feel comfortable walking around naked when it’s just me and my wife. So the thought of doing it at a photo shoot in front of people [laughs] — it was like, “No way ever.”
It’s something that should serve as inspiration for both young people and adults. One adult, in particular, will probably be very happy to hear that one of his favorite basketball players is overcoming his anxieties and offering up his incredible physique for our admiration.
(ESPN.com)
