All of us who swim, do Aquafit, or just enjoy hanging out at the beach or pool with loved ones, are grateful that you are there to help keep us safe.
Happy International Lifeguard Appreciation Day!
Top Ten July 2026
Sometimes Good Things Grow (Diane)
Blowing the Whistle on Gender at the World Cup: Why Six Women Referees Matter More Than the Score (Martha)
Deny Pain, Heal Faster; if only … (Mina)
Nat’s trying to “live like Doug” (Nat)
A Fitbit for My Finger, Five Years On (Elan)
Sam’s summer movement plans go awry: Some problems and maybe some solutions (Sam)
Nat, spinal movement and the Jefferson curl (Nat)
What I thought my body was for (Chloe)
Recovery is Weird (Diane)
The bloggers and our best habits (Team Post)
It’s August and Sam’s Riding in the Great Cycle Challenge!
I haven’t figured out the full plan yet, but I’m starting strong: the first holiday Monday with Sarah, then Tuesday morning before work with Abby, my Tour de Guelph Gryphons teammate. Neither ride is huge on its own — but they add up fast, and that’s the idea.
Cancer is the leading disease-related killer of Canadian kids. Over 1,700 are diagnosed every year. Kids should be living life, not fighting for it.
Click here to donate — every dollar supports SickKids Foundation’s work on care, treatment, and finding a cure.
Here’s my weekday commuting bike and my smile yesterday at the cool, clear summer air.
Positive is Practice – Sam’s 3 Good Things
I interviewed Sam about her regular habit of sharing “3 good things” from her days on her personal social media feed.
EP: You often post “3 good things” on your personal socials along with photos. How long have you been doing this, and has your reason for still doing it changed since you started?
SB: I started six years ago in November. November is gratitude month, and it’s also my least favourite month of the year, so I figured it couldn’t hurt to look around and find things to be grateful for.
I’m not sure exactly when I started doing it year-round, maybe two or three years ago? I liked it so much I didn’t want to stop when November was over.
Why do I keep it up? I like the way it makes me feel. But also, and I notice this more these days, the practice itself trains me to start looking around for good things.
EP: This tracks with something I heard on a recent podcast about negativity bias. We’re wired to overfocus on the bad (to the point where we overlook the good), but intentionally practising the positive can help us rebalance. The researcher called it gain-framing, seeing experiences through a positive lens or treating setbacks as opportunities to learn. Does that match your practice?
SB: Yes, that definitely matches my experience. I do a bit of only good things and a bit of reframing. I’ve got a close family member in the hospital. Not good. But good that they’re getting the excellent medical care they need.
I also share bad news. I’m one of those academics, for example, who posts about rejections. It’s not just good news. Junior scholars need to see that rejection is part of the process. I also share when I stop doing things, so it doesn’t always look like I’m doing more new things without stopping others.
EP: The podcast researcher talked about the value of sharing positive experiences with others, which reinforce them and connect us to others through that sharing. Do you think about how others receive your posts? How do you feel sharing them?
SB: I do worry sometimes that people think it’s all good things all the time, but there’s a lot of bad at work that I can’t share on social media for a whole host of reasons. Ditto bad personal news, which often involves other people, and sometimes it’s their story to tell, not mine. Sometimes I find it hard to get the valence right.
EP: It sounds like you are aware of thr bad, but it’s not always shareable. So that’s another reason why you just choose to focus on the good. And maybe that you don’t want the terrible to stop your from seeing the good?
SB: I find that seeing the good helps me understand what we’re struggling for, why it all matters. The world is a beautiful place.
We were canoe camping this past weekend and I loved the light on the water, the sounds of the birds, watching a hummingbird on the flowers, swimming with loons, basking on warm rocks after swimming in a cold lake, the taste of hot tea and cookies, swaying in a hammock and napping. So many good things.
EP: How would you recommend that others try out sharing “3 good things,” and what to do on the days when thry feel negativity bias creeping in?
SB: To be honest, I’ve skipped 3 or 4 days over the years where things were too bleak to do it. I think that’s okay. That’s life.
I keep a Google doc on my phone, called Three Good Things, for myself. But I also share on social media for the habit and the accountability. For a time I thought about starting a blog just focused on tracking workouts and sharing good things. You could do that too.
Listen to “Stepping Out of the Shadows” from Hidden Brain, hosted by Shankar Vedantam, with psychologist Alison Ledgerwood (University of California Davis).,who explores negativity bias, the deeply human tendency to hold on to what went wrong and overlook what went right. In the episode, Ledgerwood unpacks why our minds are drawn to losses and threats, and what can be done to rebalance our attention.
Swimming is for Life
I have fallen into a joyful corner of Threads that is full of adults learning to swim. Some are nervous, some are looking for stroke improvement tips, and some are absolutely bursting with pride at how much they have learned so far. Interestingly, most are Black women.
At the other end of the spectrum, I went for a swim at the lake this week with some experienced old friends. And by old, I truly mean old. At 65, I was one of the youngest swimmers there.
But also friends of long-standing. I have been swimming with some of them for over two decades. Others are newer friends to me, but there were fun overlapping circles of acquaintanceship.
That swim was part of my practice to complete my fitness test so I could return to work. We swam about 2 km, and I did as many stretches of head’s up freestyle as I could. I hate sprinting head’s up freestyle in the required speed with burning of a thousand fiery suns.
Friends, I did the test on Tuesday and passed! (By the skin of my teeth). Soon I’ll be able to see all these women from my usual spot on the lifeguard chair, when I’m not swimming alongside them to keep working on getting faster.
Best of all, I’ll be able to start teaching again, and encouraging more adults and kids to enjoy the sport that we can continue to enjoy well into our senior years.
Canoe Camping is Type 1.5 Fun
At least that’s what Susan, Sarah, and I decided on day 3 of our 4-day canoe trip into Algonquin Park after a particularly long, buggy portage.
A younger guy travelling with young kids looked at us carrying the canoe and hauling backpacks and paddles and PFDs and asked us if we were having type 1 or type 2 fun.
Sarah replied, We’re getting old. It’s all type 2 fun for us.
But then Susan and I discussed it and decided it averages out to 1.5 fun.
You know the distinction between Type 1 and Type 2 fun?
See Bored by the same activities? Try some ‘Type 2’ fun. The joy hits later, but lasts a lot longer.
“First, let’s break down the differences. “Type 1” fun is pure, uncomplicated enjoyment in the moment. Think eating ice cream, watching a movie, or lounging on a beach. It’s casual, low-effort, and comes with an immediate reward.
Type 2” fun shifts the dynamic. It’s an activity that requires effort—and maybe even a little discomfort—in the moment. Think backpacking deep in the woods, downhill mountain biking, or learning a physically and mentally demanding new skill. Sure, you might feel a little miserable while you’re in the thick of it, but once you’ve accomplished it, the experience can feel downright glorious.”
Here’s our breakdown:
What’s Type 2 fun? Portages! Paddling into the wind! Hanging the food so bears won’t get it!
What’s Type 1 fun? Swimming, basking on rocks, paddling on a flat lake, naps in hammocks, eating any food cooked over the camp stove, coffee in the morning…
Here’s some photos from our trip:
Magnetawan to Hambone to Ralph Bice to Little Trout and back
We moved everyday!
Christine inches slowly towards her 2026 movement goal.
When I started The Conqueror 2026 challenge in January, I set myself a goal of 730 kms of deliberate exercise* for the year.
For those of you playing along at home, that would be the equivalent of 2 km per day, every day.
Why ‘the equivalent’?
Because I don’t actually care all that much about walking that specific distance.
What I care about is increasing my daily exercise/activity levels and the Conqueror challenge lets me measure everything in terms of distance so all of my fitness activities are adding up to the same thing. *
If that sentence made you say, “Wait, what?”, please allow me to clarify.
- The distance was pretty arbitrary in the first place – I picked it to represent the approximate amount of activity I figured I could do most days.
- I don’t care specifically about walking that distance, I care about doing that much activity.
- The app lets me input other activities – like calisthenics, yard work, or dancing – into the tracker and tells me the walking distance that is equivalent to that activity.
- Since my ADHD self tends to struggle with tracking/measuring progress, especially if that tracking is overly detailed or fine-grained, having everything translated to distance is really helpful. AND having everything rolled into one metric reminds me that all of the different types of exercise I do are all part of the same goal – feeling better and moving more easily.
But even though the tracker is useful and has helped me to be way more consistent than I would otherwise be, I am currently behind on my challenge.
Luckily, I’m not fazed by this in the least.
There were definitely times in the past when I would have ditched the challenge by this point because of the focused effort it will take to close the gap between my current position and the ideal position for this point in the year.
But this current version of myself is looking at that gap and thinking. “I can totally close that!”
And guess what?
I’m right!
It may take me until the end of September but I am 100% confident that I will catch up, keep going, and earn a 2026 Conqueror challenge medal.
I’ll let you know how things are going at the end of August.
*And ‘deliberate exercise’ means additional movement that I have chosen to do – i.e. I am not measuring steps that are part of my daily activities.
**Besides fitness, of course, but the idea of being ‘fitter’ or having a good ‘fitness level’ is not even remotely tangible.
More silly things Sam didn’t buy, the summer edition
I declared May. June, and July no shopping months but here we are at the end of July and I have to say that was a bit of a bust.
Maybe.
I’m not sure.
What happened? Well, a dress I’d been admiring online from one of my favourite Montreal designers was finally on sale so I bought it, my feet hurt with walking so much so I bought new Birkenstocks, and I’m still struggling with the hiatal hernia and bra fit, so I bought more summer tops with built-in bras which don’t bother me at all.
I said “maybe” above because all of these strike me as reasonable purchases. What am I trying not to buy?
Here are some things I didn’t buy;
Any more maxi dresses, which look great on models but make me look a Hobbit, but every summer up until now, I’ve bought one anyway. Lucky my daughter Gwen is tall. She’s benefited from my shopping mistakes.
A new matching leash and collar set for Cheddar with a matching name tag. I couldn’t decide between the unicorn one and the dragon one. Votes?
The bracelet that says This Too Shall Pass But Fucking Hell in Morse code
The t-shirt that says Let’s wake up super early and go cycling really far.
Mid-summer: a time for ordinary movement and extraordinary sensory experience
The past couple of weeks I’ve been out and about, traveling to Tennessee and North Carolina, and then hosting my sister and niece here in Boston, with a day trip to the beach in Maine.
Nothing extraordinary happened, really; I visited friends, went to a meditation retreat, and did some touristing with my sister and niece.
But, in fact I had extraordinary pleasure from what my senses were conveying to me, once I slowed down to really experience them.
What do I mean here? Lemme explain with examples:
Water: My friend Jennie and I went to Townsend, TN and dipped our feet in the Little River, just inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It’s a shallow rushing river, great for tubing, dipping, and hanging out in and beside.
The feeling of rushing water on my legs, moving along, on top of and between the rocks, hearing the sounds of the water– so satisfying, cleansing, refreshing.
More water: My sister, niece and I went to the beach at York, Maine last week for the day. Loads of people were out on Long Sands Beach, enjoying the sun, sand, sky and each other. I knew the water was extra cold– 58F/14.4C– but we had to wade in a little. Wow– the contrast between air and water was something! It felt shocking and prickly and a little painful; but the overall sensation was fully engaging.
Crunching sounds: during my meditation retreat, while doing a morning sit, we were encouraged to let ourselves be aware of sound around us. This included birds, wind through the trees, the rustling of our fellow meditators, our own breath– any sound could become the object of our attention.
I noticed the distinct and surprisingly pleasurable sound of tires on the gravel way outside our meditation hall. The deep crunch of rubber on rock left me very pleased. And wanting more of it. So, when we next did a walking meditation, I put on my red-strapped Teva sandals and headed out for the gravel path, planning on exploring crunch.
I was not disappointed. From bigger rocks to sandy spots, my sandals made contact with sounds and tactile sensations. They varied, creating a banquet for me to sample from. Honestly, I totally recommend this for anyone who’s feeling stressed or overwhelmed, as immersing yourself in the sound and feeling of something crunchy beneath your feet will reboot you to original human factory settings in the best way. Try it.
The color green: during my visit with Jennie and her family, we went to the Knoxville Botanical Garden. It is a well-cared-for space for wandering, contemplation and enjoyment. What I really enjoyed that day was the Bamboo Forest, with many shades of green.
Being surrounded by one color in so many configurations felt wonderful for my eyes, my imagination and my love of the world. Thanks, nature, for such variety!
One last comment: On the cover of this post is the watermelon slushie I had at York Beach. It was its own universe of sensation: intense manufactured sweetness from the fake watermelon taste (not exactly pleasant, but certainly unavoidable), and the piercing brain-freeze feeling from taking too big a sip. We all remember summer brain-freeze, don’t we? It’s a mid-summer thing. Feel free to try it if you dare.
Happy mid-summer!
Today’s the day! Nat’s at the MS Bike Tour
Canada Life Cycles team at the 2025 start line.
This morning my alarm went off at 4 am. Michel hopped on his bike to ride the 70 km to the start as part of his training.
The past two weeks have been hit and miss cycling wise due to storms and air quality. But this morning I’m feeling good.
I collected Tracy & Tyler at 5 am and we arrived at the Grand Bend Motorplex for 6 am.
I love seeing friends, old and new, at an event that continues to have a strong core of longtime supporters.
We will have a light headwind both days. It’s just how the weather worked out. Some years we get tailwinds both ways. Just the luck of the draw.
It’s delightfully cool and I’m thankful we are not in a heatwave.
The route this year is simplified. It is the same both days and uses roads local cyclists frequent.
Michel and I have had excellent results with our fundraising. I think having the top fundraiser, Barry Travnicek, join our team gave us a good reputation to live up to.
As of writing this I have raised $2,165. Michel is sitting at $685. We are hoping to best our total of $3,200.
Help us get there by Donating here
This event is much more than a cause related fundraiser. It’s a weekend riding with my beloved, our friends and colleagues.
Michel’s involvement pre-dates mine. He had been involved for a couple years before we rode together for the first time in 2018.
It’s become a touchstone in our relationship and our cycling season. We know several couples who met at the event/ride together.
Riding for this cause, the treatment and cure for MS, has brought me closer to friends. It has connected me with a community of caring and action. It’s something I treasure a great deal.
I don’t take for granted that I can ride 80 km two days back to back. It is a challenge but an achievable one.
I hope you too can find meaningful ways to connect activity and community. It’s powerful stuff.