Health-conscious Japanese women are running in style

'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."

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