Month: June 2014

body image · diets · eating · health · motivation · weight loss

“Healthy stuff is still healthy, it just doesn’t make you thin”

Tracy I6 Comments

Yesterday Sam posted about the CBC report with latest “news” about obesity research: “Obesity research confirms, longterm weight-loss almost impossible.”  This is hardly news. We’ve said this many times.  It’s one of the most controversial claims you can make that’s fully supported by research.

I responded last summer with the post “If Diets Don’t Work, Then What?”   There I promoted the benefits, mostly in terms of mental health, of the intuitive eating approach.  I didn’t lose weight when I embraced intuitive eating. But I did lose a debilitating obsession with food and weight.  That more than made up for it.

And yet, after a year of intuitive eating, I still chose to pursue the Precision Nutrition Lean Eating Program for Women. Knowing what I know, it may seem like an odd choice. Why, when all the advertising surrounding the program is about body transformation, would I want to do it? I blogged about it in the post “Why I’m trying PN “Lean Eating” after a year of intuitive eating.”  There, I said my main reason had to do with tweaking my nutritional habits:

One of the principles of Intuitive Eating–the last principle, in fact, because it is so loaded for so many chronic dieters–is “Honor your health with gentle nutrition.”  I don’t want to exaggerate. It’s not as if I’m living on junk food and soda pop or anything like that.  But I do feel as if I’ve not quite mastered nutrition since I became vegan just over three years ago. And while I’ve been focusing on a more intuitive approach to eating, nutrition hasn’t been the main guiding principle in my choices.

And truth be told, I’m ready for a change.  From what Sam has told me about the Lean Eating program and from everything I’ve read, it’s not a diet and it can be compatible with an intuitive eating approach to food. So let’s just say that this year, I’m honoring my health with the re-introduction of gentle nutrition.  Nothing extreme will work for me.

And so far, it’s been doing that really well.  What I didn’t know ahead of time is just how compatible with intuitive eating the PN approach in the Lean Eating program actually is. If you could just embrace the two “anchor habits” of eating slowly and stopping at 80% full, you would be a fairly successful intuitive eater. And a whole lot more comfortable after meals.

So I’m engaging in some healthy behaviors and developing some healthy habits. And since they do ask for weight and measurements on a regular basis, I can report that I have dropped a few pounds along the way. But I am not deluding myself this time. The real test of any program is not to be found by comparing the “before” with the “immediately after.” Not at all. Check back a year after. Or two years after. What about five years after?

As Sam reported yesterday, PN doesn’t track that sort of thing at all. No follow-up means no data to report.  With the stats for any program as they are, it’s not surprising no one wants to track the long term results. And the fact that lots of people do PN multiple times is evidence that despite its focus on healthy habits, the results are not likely to be sustainable for the majority of people.  If they were, they would be more enthusiastic about follow-ups and reporting the longer term outcomes for their clients.

The quote from the CBC article that I liked the most, is the one that I put in the title today. Pyschologist Traci Mann, who ran an eating lab at the University of Minnesota for 20 years, says: “Healthy stuff is still healthy, it just doesn’t make you thin.”

As Sam did yesterday, I’m concerned about people who put thinness as their primary goal for engaging in activity or for making balanced nutritional choices.  That’s not the only reason to make those choices. As the research shows, it’s not even a good reason.

I do wonder whether I will keep these “healthy habits” over time.  Does the weight come back on inevitably, or is it because habits slide? “Researchers are divided about why weight gain seems to be irreversible, probably a combination of biological and social forces. ‘The fundamental reason,’ [obesity researcher Tim] Caulfield says, ‘is that we are very efficient biological machines. We evolved not to lose weight. We evolved to keep on as much weight as we possibly can.'”

Okay, so as Sam asked yesterday: liberating or depressing?  For me, it’s helping me a lot to keep any weight loss that I might be experiencing in PN LE in perspective. Thankfully it’s not my primary goal, and even more thankfully the weighing and measuring has not fostered a new obsession. In fact, I have found myself quite capable of adopting the recommended attitude of “get ’em and forget ’em” towards the weekly updates.

I used to feel more hopeful about a different outcome, namely a change not in weight but in body composition. But now I think that aspirations of that nature are just another breeding ground for false hope.

When I reflect on what has been most amazing so far about the “fittest by 50 challenge” that Sam and I are on, for me it comes down to two things:

1. becoming adept at intuitive eating, to the point where I no longer obsess about food.  I repeat: I NO LONGER OBSESS ABOUT FOOD!

2. how much I am enjoying the activities I’m pursuing these days. I’m all geared up for my first triathlon of the season on the weekend and I couldn’t be more excited.  Weight loss and even body composition just aren’t factoring into that picture.

I also have an expanded conception of health that includes my mental health.  I feel more grounded, more at peace with who I am, much healthier in my relationship and attitude towards food, activity, and my body.  I’ve still got a bit of a way to go with respect to body image, but I am further than I was last summer when I wrote this post.

I too fall into the “liberating” camp.  Knowing the facts should also liberate us from stigmatizing fat bodies and making moralized judgments about body fat (on ourselves and others). In moral philosophy we have this principle that says “ought implies can.” It means that you can’t be under an obligation to do anything that is impossible.  If we say you “ought to” then it means you should be able to.

And the stats on long term maintenance of lost weight don’t support the “can.” Therefore, they call seriously into question the “ought.”

At the same time, that doesn’t mean we need to give up on making choices that make us feel better. But making thinness the primary motive is a set-up for feeling much, much worse.

 

 

body image · diets · eating · fitness · health · weight loss

Well intentioned lies, doctors, and the diet industry: If weight loss is impossible, then what?

Sam B9 Comments

Recently the CBC repeated news many of us know to be true, that significant long term weight loss is so difficult, so rare, that it counts as near impossible.  I thought the piece was pretty well-researched and well-argued and while I have quibbles and questions here and there, frankly I sometimes I find news of this sort a relief. I’m going to write a part two with quibbles and questions but for now, let’s take this news at face value.

You can find this news depressing or liberating. Personally I’m opting for the latter and I’ll say more about why later.

See Research confirms long term weight loss almost impossible.

As incredible as it sounds, that’s what the evidence is showing. For psychologist Traci Mann, who has spent 20 years running an eating lab at the University of Minnesota, the evidence is clear. “It couldn’t be easier to see,” she says. “Long-term weight loss happens to only the smallest minority of people.”

We all think we know someone in that rare group. They become the legends — the friend of a friend, the brother-in-law, the neighbour — the ones who really did it.

But if we check back after five or 10 years, there’s a good chance they will have put the weight back on. Only about five per cent of people who try to lose weight ultimately succeed, according to the research. Those people are the outliers, but we cling to their stories as proof that losing weight is possible.

“Those kinds of stories really keep the myth alive,” says University of Alberta professor Tim Caulfield, who researches and writes about health misconceptions. “You have this confirmation bias going on where people point to these very specific examples as if it’s proof. But in fact those are really exceptions.”

Our biology taunts us, by making short-term weight loss fairly easy. But the weight creeps back, usually after about a year, and it keeps coming back until the original weight is regained or worse.

This has been tested in randomized controlled trials where people have been separated into groups and given intense exercise and nutrition counselling.

Even in those highly controlled experimental settings, the results show only minor sustained weight loss.

So that’s the “news,” scare quotes because it’s not new news.

See The Fat Trap, the New York Times in 2011, or The Obesity Era in Aeon Magazine in 2013. (The obesity era article raises the puzzle of fat animals, as humans aren’t the only animals getting bigger. See also I’m not fat, I’m fluffy: The puzzle of animal obesity.)

My favourite though is Gina Kolata’s 2007 book Rethinking Thin: The New Science of Weight Loss–and the Myths and Realities of Dieting. She’s a terrific writer and I highly recommend her book. Kolata is another New York Times science reporter and so this isn’t exactly fringe stuff.

So let’s get back to supposing this gloomy/liberating view is right. Two things immediately follow.

First, doctors shouldn’t prescribe weight loss to overweight/obese patients, especially not without mentioning the long term likely effect. Would we recommend any other treatment with these odds of success? Medical professionals should spend more time emphasizing weight maintenance. Second, especially if you’re a normal weight or overweight person, the last thing you should try to do is lose weight. That looks like a clear fast train to getting fatter.

Here’s the more interesting question, if doctors know this, why don’t they act on it? Here is my guess at an answer. Doctors hate problems they can’t solve. I saw that when they were dealing with a family member with incurable illness. They want to hold out hope.

So that’s part of it. Doctors are also human and reason as everyone does. The simple mathematical model of “eat less, move more” seems obviously true. Weight loss looks like just simple math plus will power. How could it go wrong?

Finally, doctors also know that healthy eating does matter and so too does exercise. Indeed a recent study in the British Journal of Sports Medicine concluded that  for women and heart health exercise matters more than any other factor including obesity. (See Study: Exercise Trumps Body Weight When It Comes To Women and Heart Health.) Doctors fear that without the promise of weight loss, no one would be motivated to eat well and stay physically active. As the article about the impossibility of weight loss says, “Health experts are also afraid people will abandon all efforts to exercise and eat a nutritious diet — behaviour that is important for health and longevity — even if it doesn’t result in much weight loss.”

But I worry that this reasoning gets it exactly wrong. People aren’t idiots. Tell them to exercise and eat well in order to lose weight. What happens if they don’t lose weight? They’ll quit exercising and quit eating well. That’s because you told them to do it to lose weight. And clearly it wasn’t working so why stick with it?

Also, think about the thin people. They need to eat well and exercise too. But if weight loss is given as the main reason to do so, why would they? They’re already thin after all. See How equating being fat with being out of shape hurts thin people too.

Moving past doctors, what about the weight loss industry? Weight loss companies are ethically bankrupt–see my past post on Weight Watchers, I hate you Weight Watchers–and ought to be shunned. They’re in business to sell the impossible dream. If you fail, it’s your fault. Weight Watchers always says that people who attend the meetings lose weight. That’s because those who don’t lose weight sensibly make the decision to quit.

Is there another way? What about companies like Precision Nutrition (see my take on them Precision Nutrition’s Lean Eating Program: A Year in Review) and dietary approaches like Intuitive Eating?

We haven’t tried Go Kaleo’s approach but it also seems to fall into this category. As a commentator on our Facebook page put it, “Her idea seems to be that our focus on ridiculously low calories when dieting pushes people toward a complete lack of ability to see how many calories they’re actually eating (If not all the way into Binge Eating Disorder) See https://gokaleo.com/stop-dieting/.”

These approaches focus on process and habits rather than results. It’s all about the journey.

Okay, but what about results? Does focusing on the process get you where you want to go?

My suspicion, and it’s just a suspicion, is that these approaches don’t fare much better in terms of weight results but that they do help people have a better, healthier relationship with their food and bodies.

Why the suspicion?

First, they don’t track results. Since I left Precision Nutrition’s Lean Eating program there’s been no follow up to find out how weight maintenance is going. I’ve gained weight back but they don’t know that I suspect they don’t want to know that. When I did the program I met lots of people doing it a second, third, or fourth time. Each said, “This time, I’ll do it right.” But that reminded me a bit of Weight Watchers with its high rate of recidivism.

Second, if they had good news in terms of weight loss results they’d share it. Loudly and from the rooftops. Not a single weight loss company shares honest to goodness statistics about their results. You can assume, I think, pretty safely that if there was good news, we’d all hear about it.

Ragen Chastain of Dances With Fat puts it pretty bluntly talking about the CBC piece:

“If you read the comments on the article, which I don’t recommend, you’ll see that many people subscribe to the magical power of semantics. If you attempt intentional weight loss, but instead of dieting you call it a lifestyle change, they claim you won’t gain your weight back. This is the second to the last stop on the denial train, at the final stop people just close their eyes, stick their fingers in their ears, and scream LALALA! “

So why do I find all this liberating rather than depressing?

It removes an impossible goal.

You can move because it feels good and it’s good for you. You can eat because it tastes good, helps fuel your activity, and makes you happy and  healthy.

You can join Tracy in stepping off the scale.

You can love your body the way it is now.

Now go play! Enjoy!

Image: Misty grassy spot in a forest Jonas Nilsson Lee, Unsplash

body image · cycling

Anti-cyclist abuse with a side order of body shaming to go

Sam B8 Comments

Ragen Chastain recently blogged about her experience of good intentioned abuse from a minister, while out training for her marathon.

Who’s Ragen Chastain? She’s an amazing blogger. Her self description is, “Dancer, Choreographer, Writer, Speaker, Fat Person” and she’s training for her second marathon.

On her latest training walk/run, the minister whose church is on her usual long run route laid his hands on her, without permission, and asked God to heal her of her obesity.

That’s the good intentioned version of abuse that fat people get exercising in public.

She’s also blogged about the not so nice abuse larger women get when we dare exercise in public view.

I got the nasty version, “Stop at the stop sign fat cow” yelled from a car that pulled up beside me while riding home from a training ride last night.

It happened at a four way stop. I actually did stop. I just didn’t unclip. There was no other traffic at the intersection. I suppose it wasn’t complete and total stop but by cyclist standards, I stopped. Indeed. by my usual car driving standards I stopped.

I got the abuse above, plus an added “fat bitch.”

Now it wasn’t clear at all whether the nastiness was anti fat woman, or anti cyclist, or both. I got the sense that both fat women and cyclists annoy these guys and the combination was just too much to bear. But I don’t know. I pedaled away quickly, turned left when they went right, and didn’t see them again.

Now to be clear–it just annoyed me. My self esteem is independent of judgements about my size from twenty something year old men who feel free to bellow out car windows. I’m the mother of teenagers. It would take a lot more than that to upset me.  (See Fat or big: What’s in a name? or Fit, Fat, and What’s Wrong with BMI, if you haven’t already to get a sense of that.)

But it did make me worry about  larger women who want to exercise without a side order of verbal abuse. After all it’s not like the options for larger women who want an abuse free workout are that great. Gyms aren’t easy either. See Working Out While Fat and Traveling, new gyms, and thin privilege.

Lots of larger people exercise at night so that no one can judge. And I confess there was a time when I did that too. See an old post, I like it in the dark.

When I first started running on my own I confess I liked the dark because no one could see me! I didn’t look like a runner and I felt stealthy about it all. In the dark it didn’t matter that I was a much larger than average runner, that I wasn’t going that fast, and that I didn’t have all the right clothes and gear. It gave me the protective nudge I needed to get started though now I’ve left that cocoon behind.

But on the bike I just don’t think that’s that safe.

The world isn’t a very nice place in lots of ways and I’m not asking for sympathy. But if physical activity is good for one’s health and that good is more difficult for some people to attain than others, we have reasons, as feminists, to be concerned.

 

 

 

clothing · cycling · fashion · injury

Here comes the Sun! Summer sports and skin cancer

Sam B7 Comments

Skin cancer is on the rise in Canada, dramatically so. And we’re emerging from a particularly brutal winter so it can be hard to believe that the sun is our enemy. I think Canadians tend to not pay attention to skin cancer and sun because much of our year is so dark and cold. When I was cycling in Australia I was struck by the absence of sleeveless cycling jerseys. No one wore them. Not just because of silly cycling fashion rules either. They often wore full sleeve jerseys in the summer and/or white arm covers that protect you from the sun.

Here’s a blog post on arm coolers, as they’re called. They are designed for use in extreme heat and sun and have a high SPF and are supposed to help keep your arms cool. The post just mentioned reviews several brands but I haven’t seen them at all out on the road in Canada.

 

In Australia it wasn’t a joking matter. In pretty much every group of cyclists I met, there was someone being treated for skin cancer. (On the beach in Australia I was struck by two camps, the little children dressed  in full length top and bottom bathing suits that looked kind of “hazmat” like, with hats, always with hats, and the older people, both men and women, in tiny teeny speedo style suits.)

Now here in cold, dark Canada I have a few friends with cancer and the norms are starting to change.

The Canadian bad news gets worse because it’s melanoma that’s on the rise here. That’s the kind of cancer that kills. See the Globe and Mail piece on the spike in deaths.

Skin cancer, one of the most preventable forms of the disease, is also one of the fastest-rising in this country, according to a new report from the Canadian Cancer Society that notes the death rate for all cancers combined continues to fall for most age groups.

“Melanoma is certainly increasing more than nearly all other cancers,” said Frances Wright, the head of breast and melanoma surgery at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. “They [rates] are increasing rapidly and it’s probably related to behaviour, related to lack of sun protection.”

When it comes to malignant melanoma – the type of skin cancer that is likelier to spread and kill – the rate of new cases has climbed significantly over the past 25 years. So has the melanoma death rate. Only lung cancer deaths in women and liver cancer deaths in men have increased at a faster pace, according to Canadian Cancer Statistics 2014, the annual compendium of cancer figures and projections published by the Canadian Cancer Society, Statistics Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada.

The report, released Wednesday, estimates 6,500 new cases of malignant melanoma will be diagnosed this year, with 1,050 expected to die from the disease.

I’ve been aware of the risk of skin cancer for a long time. Here at the B-F household we had our wake up call early. My partner Jeff had some pre-cancerous lesions on his hands in his twenties from years of sailboat racing. He was told to wear a hat and sunscreen at all times and signed me up for that plan along the way. Later we had some incredibly fair skinned children, of the sort who burned after minutes in the sun. We bought them full body bathing suits and big hats too.

An aside: This why whenever Tracy mentions nude vacations as an antidote to body image woes and as fun in their own right, my first thought goes to buckets of sunscreen. I rarely sit on the beach, even with all my clothes on! And then I think about a forested nude holiday, hiking in the woods maybe, and then I think about mosquitoes and tics. The fact is I’m happy with nudity and I love the outdoors but for me, I don’t see the two mixing. The World Naked Bike Ride isn’t for me.

But still, even after I adapted to the ways of the sun avoiders, I had some false beliefs about tanning.

I once had an argument with my thesis supervisor in the Philosophy department lounge over whether it was okay to go out in the sun for short period of time once you were tanned, and if you didn’t burn. He insisted that it was never okay and that a tan was just evidence of sun damage. One should never feel good about having tanned. He liked to argue, he was very good at arguing, he was married to a medical professional, and he directed me to Cancer Society resources.

Of course he was right.

The Centre for Disease Control says that “tanning does not protect against sunburn. In fact, a tan only provides a sun protection factor (SPF) of about 3 (CDC recommends sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15.), so a tan does not provide enough protection against the sun. The important thing to remember is that a tan is a response to injury: skin cells respond to damage from UV rays by producing more pigment.”

What about vitamin D? I rely on the Canadian Cancer Society for advice. (This is an area where paying attention to the credibility of online sources is particularly important as many are funded by the indoor tanning industry.) The cancer society says our vitamin D needs are easily met with a few minutes of indirect sunlight a day and that tanning is never recommended. Their slogan is “a little sun goes a long way” and they recommend Vitamin D supplements–never artificial tanning–in the winter.

Cyclists joke lots about our tan lines.  I confess I use a lot of sunscreen (on my face year round, in fact) but I also use fake tanning lotion to avoid the pale legs thing. I feel bad about that as it perpetuates the summer tan norm but I can’t shake my dislike of my legs without.

Bicycling Magazine warns that cyclists shouldn’t be proud of our tan lines. (I think we think of it as evidence of how much we’ve been riding but surely our Garmins and Strava times are better things to be proud of.) See How to Prevent and Recognize Skin Cancer Crisp tan lines shouldn’t be a badge of honor. Here’s why—and how to shield yourself from the sun’s harmful rays.

In the last three decades, more people have had skin cancer than all other cancers combined, according to data from the Skin Cancer Foundation. And between 2000 and 2009, cases of melanoma (the deadliest form of the disease) rose steadily by almost 2 percent a year. It’s also the most common type of cancer in people ages 25 to 29.

Numerous studies have shown that regular exposure to ultraviolet radiation from the sun leads to an increased risk of melanoma and that outdoor endurance athletes are particularly susceptible to skin cancers. While there is little research on cyclists specifically, we are clearly vulnerable given the sheer amount of time they spend outside, says Prentice Steffen, MD, physician for Team Garmin-Sharp. One study published in the journal Dermatology found that during eight stages of the Tour de Suisse, riders were exposed to levels of harmful UV radiation that were 30 times more than recommended limits. Several factors compound the risk, say experts, including sweat, which increases the skin’s sensitivity to UV radiation.

Less worrisome but just as sobering, a staggering 90 percent of skin changes—like the fine lines and wrinkles that we attribute to just getting older—are caused by the sun.

I can attest to the age point. In visiting Australia and New Zealand I was constantly mistaken for a much younger person. And judging from the condition of the skin around me and the ages of my friends there, I don’t think they were joking. That too has prompted me to keep slathering on sunscreen and wearing nerdy sun hats.  When prudence and vanity point in the same direction, it’s an easy choice. I might even order arm coolers this year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Guest Post

Shay Welch Guest Posts about Sling Feminism

Sam B3 Comments

by Shay Welch

So lately I’ve taken up a new sport—aerial arts.  This is a much needed move beyond the weightlifting I was doing to train for fitness competitions; I am, or was, or who knows, a figure girl.  And I’ve gotten bored.  Again.  But my entire life, all I’ve ever wanted to do was dance.  I am an avid and fabulous dancer but there’s always been a catch.  The same catch that kept me out of gymnastics, swimming, volleyball, cheerleading, pom pom, and bodybuilding—I have a disability.  No one notices that I have it; it’s one of those invisible but painful and limiting conditions that tons of people slightly limp around with and adjust their life around.

Then one night, I was at the club.  And this woman there…my goddess…she was doing this stuff in the air and it was dynamic and graceful and athletic and just looked like a whole lot of upside down fun that I could get down with.  So I introduced myself to her and she gave me her card.  One month later I scraped together the money and booked a private lesson with her.  And now…now I do sling.  Now…I am an aerial girl.

 

Not only is this particular version of aerial super conducive to my disability, I would say most people with disabilities could do one version or another.  I’ve even seen photos of a pole person who only had one arm, which is pretty magnificent if you’ve ever seen pole competitions.  There’s really nothing bad I can say about aerial except that it’s certainly pricey for a single assistant professor but it’s more than worth it.  And given that I’ve spend my entire life being largely dependent on my upper body and that I’ve spent that last (almost) decade of my life as a hardcore weightlifter who loves to break it down at the club, I seem to be both a natural and at an advantage since I know my body, know how to use it, and can lift it repeatedly.

I’ve only been at this a month and I’m already working my way into level 3 classes, which takes most beginners a VERY long time to achieve.  So I take this moment to preen like a peacock *PREEN*…done.  This stuff is magic.  Every time I complete a new trick I can’t wait to learn a new one so I can combine them.  It’s also given me new motivation to keep my shit together.  I’m back to my good nutrition; I know I have to eat lots of food to keep my strength but I can’t eat bad food or I’ll lose my energy.  I’m practicing more than I thought I would but that’s mostly because, as it unsurprisingly turns out, I seem to belong with the circus folk.  That gym already feels like home.

 

Now for the not-so-gravy part.  This is a sport and a damned hard one.  And for me, it is a new sport.  Anyone who is athletic knows that endurance or strength in one area of sport means squat (see what I did there) in another sport.  So it hurts.  Bad.  I’m covered in bruises and burns and I’m convinced I’ve pulled everything down to my little toe.  It’s not as obvious or natural as I thought it would be.  As a dancer and a lifter, I have excellent mind-body-space orientation and manipulation ability.

But when you’re leg only gets up in the air by a pulley system that requires one arm behind you while tugging on your ear and flexing your knuckles (you see where I’m going with the drama), things don’t quite…fall into place (I’m full of jokes tonight)…as instantaneously as anticipated.  Thus, I’m exhibiting a lot of narcissistic disappointment that all my skillz haven’t made me an instantaneous pro on day one.  But like all fitness related stuff, it hurts, it sucks, and I can’t imagine I’ll be able to live without it anytime soon.  If you like to hang upside down, I suggest you start right now.

 

Special thanks to the awesome trainers at Sky Gym Atlanta!

Shay Welch is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Spelman College who doubles as a rock star of all trades. In her free time she likes to ride her motorcycle, see live bands and DJs, and reads more Urban Fantasy than a pre-tenure professor ought. 

athletes · body image · Crossfit

CrossFit and women’s bodies: It’s complicated

Sam B16 Comments

Let’s note that CrossFit doesn’t exist in isolation from the cultural forces that shape women’s desires to look a certain way and to embody a certain kind of athletic aesthetic. It might be that “strong is the new skinny” but if “strong” is a look rather than an ability there are a whole new set of problems that come out of the woodwork. Bodies vary and not everyone who gets strong builds muscle mass. Not everyone who builds muscle loses fat. Elite athletes aside, there a lot of different kinds of women’s bodies doing CrossFit.

Part of the problem is that at the elite level the fittest looking bodies of CrossFit (here’s one blogger’s list) has lots of overlap with the top athletes of CrossFit.  That doesn’t mean though you’ll get that body as your reward for CrossFit training no matter how dedicated you are. Two words: genetics and diet. You might just get fitter, faster, and stronger than you are now and that’s nothing to sneeze at.

Fit and Feminist asks what happens when  the pursuits of “skinny” and “strong” collide. She writes, “Now, I support the general idea behind the phrase.  I would prefer that women – and men, really – work to cultivate their bodies’ abilities rather than fight against them in an attempt to meet our culture’s incredibly fickle beauty standards.  But I also have some issues with the execution, which, as I and many other fitness writers have argued, merely exchanges one unattainable physical ideal for another one.  I mean, I might have a shot at attaining a visible six-pack, while nothing short of a life-threatening wasting disease will give me a thigh gap, but the effort required for me to get visible abs is so tremendous that I might as well not even consider it a possibility.  Plus, it elevates one body type (muscles) at the expense of another (skinny), which is not exactly my definition of body-positivity.”

But it’s not irrational in a world where women are disproportionately rewarded for what we look like, rather than what we can do, to care about what your body looks like. Even if you’re a feminist committed to changing those pressures and expectations, it’s hard not to care. Let’s also note that CrossFit isn’t just a community (or cult, as some claim), it’s also a business. And sexy bodies sell. Given the incredible strong desires women have to look a certain way, it’s obvious that those desires explain some of the popularity of CrossFit.

It’s why Precision Nutrition’s Lean Eating program (reviewed here) teaches body acceptance and intuitive eating but seems to advertise its programs largely through before and after pics of Lean Eating body transformations (even though most of the Lean Eaters I did the program with changed their attitudes far more than their bodies.) I’ve gained back the weight I lost doing the Lean Eating program but I’m eating better and I feel like I have a lot more tools in my bag to figure out how to use food to nourish my body, get stronger, fitter, and faster. Ultimately I don’t think the program’s strengths lie in body transformations so much as mind transformations. But the former sells and the latter doesn’t.

CrossFit is much the same. The reality of women who do CrossFit is pretty varied. Within the two CrossFit boxes I’ve attended (currently taking a break due to my injured knee) there’s been no emphasis on body transformations or weight loss and lots of emphasis on strength and physical conditioning. I’ve never worked out in such a positive environment.

(I’m still angry though at the treatment of Chloie Jonsson.)

Now given that CrossFit is a massively popular program, growing at an incredible rate, it’s no surprise you’re going to find a range of experiences. Here’s some recent posts that express that diversity:

  • Accepting my CrossFit Body:
    “In real clothes, I feel boxy, broad, wide, thick, and all other synonyms. My once trusty companion, the size medium, stretches across my back and through my biceps and leaves me feeling insanely uncomfortable.This got me thinking. There are a lot of things about my body that have changed since I started crossfitting. Things I struggle on. Thing I love and hate at the same time. Starting from the head down.”

“I decided that it was time to REALLY celebrate what my ugly body CAN DO rather than focus on what it looks like…or doesn’t look like. So I asked my friend Emily, the amazing photographer at Southern Star Photography, to take some pictures of me DOING the THINGS I have NEVER, EVER…EVER in my entire life…not even as a kid (with the exception of the cartwheel) have been able to do until now. So here you go!  Today I am celebrating what my body is capable of doing because of the lifestyle changes that I’ve made and the hard work I’ve done in and out of the gym.”

“I’ve met lots of amazing looking women at CrossFit, it’s true. But these images do not do justice in anyway to the range of women who actually do this activity. The images are almost all young and lean, able bodied and white. Now I’ve only been to two CrossFit locations and I’ve been doing it for less than a year but what I’ve seen so far is a lot more diversity than I see in the images about CrossFit.

These images aren’t advertising, of course. Instead, they are the collections of photos from CrossFit community members and fans. But insofar as they do perform some work as promotional material for one of my favourite physical activities, I worry they are doing that activity a disservice.

If you’ve been thinking of giving CrossFit a try and find the super fit, super lean images off putting rather than inspirational, set the images aside and come see the reality.”

“CrossFit, as it grows in popularity, continues to evoke passionate opinions and intense commentary.  There are the CrossFitters who fall in love with a sport that means more than exercise.  There are the naysayers who believe it is dangerous and do their best to crucify it at every turn.  There are the enthusiasts and the detractors, both groups vocal and emphatic.

 For women, however, the opinions and judgments and commentary surrounding CrossFit take on an additional layer of complexity.  Those women who choose to participate in CrossFit are often discussed and dissected, as though somehow a science experiment open to any who wish to poke and prod and examine:

 Is it feminine to be a CrossFitter?  Are women who CrossFit pretty?  Are they too muscular?  Are they bulky?  Are they too manly?  Are they attractive? “

Guest Post · overeating · weight loss

biodots, mood lighting and dandelion salads (guest post)

natalieh (she/her)4 Comments

Dandelion Bacon salad. The trick is to make a roux from 1 tbl fat, 1 tbl flour then add a mix of 1/4c honey, 1/4c lemon juice, 1/2 c milk. Mix that still warm over 8c greens &4 slices of bacon (vegan option roasted pine nuts). Mmmmmmm
Dandelion Bacon salad. The trick is to make a roux from 1 tbl fat, 1 tbl flour then add a mix of 1/4c honey, 1/4c lemon juice, 1/2 c milk. Mix that still warm over 8c greens &4 slices of bacon (vegan option roasted pine nuts). Mmmmmmm

 

Life has been a whirlwind since I was diagnosed with high blood pressure back in April and I griped about my feelings here and got some great resources from readers/friends/family.

I am learning to reign in my charming, yet not so good for my health, A Type personality and to be mindful of tension in my body. The good news, I’m making headway, so much so that after 6 weeks of blood pressure medication my doctor halved the prescription as I had lost 14 lbs and my blood pressure was too low at 107/72. This is good news. It means my arteries have not yet hardened, that my blood pressure responds to medication/weight loss and that I can prevent further damage to my circulatory system.

I’ve been seeing my psychologist and doing some grueling trauma work has helped me self-regulate and reduce my overeating without it feeling like an imposition or taking much effort at all. The biggest change for me since my post in April is that I am now confident I can make the changes I need to be healthier and keep my blood pressure where it needs to be for me to have the long life I want.

It’s all on the table, from eating my weeds in dandelion salad (they are called piss-en-lit in French because of their diuretic properties) to turning off the big overhead light at work to using biodots. Have you ever heard of biodots?

I once attended this really great time management seminar about 7 years ago with Harold Taylor and one strategy for time management was to live a long, healthy life and address stress. He offered us this tool, a tiny black sticker:

Image: blue bio dot on wrist
Image: blue bio dot on wrist

It works like the mood rings of old, the colour changes based on your skin temperature. When  you are tense blood leaves your extremities so the dot goes brown to black. At home the dot is usually a deep blue, I’m so chill in my garden or with my family, at work brown and black rule my day. I’m mindful to relax and take a deep breath and the dot changes colour. Part of the success in the biodots in helping me is that it is a mnemonic for mindfulness. I put it on and  it reminds me to check what’s going on with my body and thoughts. I feel more in control when I have good information about what’s going on and I’ve been able to have a scale in the house without going all obsessive about weighing myself.

The one downside is that with all this rapidly changing blood pressure I’ve been too light headed to work out. I have to let go of racing in the Kincardine Triathlon this July with Sam and Tracy. I’m going with a friend and will cheer all of them on though, and that should be good fun. 🙂

Uncategorized

Pushing Past the Resistance to Aging

Tracy I6 Comments

harriette500_0Something really uncharacteristic has come over me lately: I do NOT want to turn 50.  I’m having all sorts of resistance to it.  That’s not like me at all.  My usual take on getting older is that, given that death is the only alternative to aging, I’d rather age.

Reminding myself that it’s better than death is not exactly a huge endorsement of aging, but I’m also a big believer in Reality.  My resistance to the big 5-0 has taken a strong turn towards a refusal to celebrate.  On my 40th, I had a big party with tons of people.  For my 50th, I can’t wrap my head around that at all.  I can imagine dinners with a few friends, getting together with family, but not a festive bash where everyone comes to celebrate my big day.

Maybe that’s okay, but the more general mindset of resistance to aging is not going to do me any good. To push past it, I like to remind myself of a few things.

  1. I’ve never in my life been so physically healthy and fit.  I could easily take on myself at 20, 30, or 40 and out-perform her in a triathlon. That’s some kind of awesome. Go almost-50 year-old me!
  2. Harriet Thompson.  This is the 91 year-woman who just completed the San Francisco marathon. It took her 7:07:42, a new age-group record for the 90 and over group.  That’s another kind of awesome.  It’s not just amazing that she completed the marathon.  I think we underplay the accomplishments of those who are out there for longer.  If I can stay on my feet, running, for over 7 hours when I’m 90 (that’s if I make it to 90), I’ll be pretty satisfied!
  3. Age is just a number that doesn’t mean a whole lot.  On my 50th birthday, I’ll just be one day older than I was the day before. And that happens every single day anyway. So what’s the big deal?
  4. I’m not turning 50 alone.  Sam is going to check it out a few weeks before me.  Tim Horton’s, Canada’s favourite place to get coffee and donuts, was also born in 1964. So were Michelle Obama, Sandra Bullock, Courtney Cox, Courtney Love, Nicolas Cage, Keanu Reeves, Lenny Kravitz, Marissa Tomei, and most of the people I graduated from high school with.
  5. Lots of people have turned 50 before me and I always told them they weren’t old (and I even meant it).
  6. That quote about forty being the old age of youth, and fifty being the youth of old age.  I just love that.  It makes me feel like something new and exciting is about to begin.

When I think of all the things I wished I could do before I turned 50, there really aren’t many that I haven’t done.

And there are just a few left on the list, and I’m all on track to doing them between now and September 24th: an Olympic distance triathlon in Bracebridge in August, Burning Man, and another Olympic distance triathlon in  September. I’m warming up with two shorter events: the Cambridge Sprint on June 15th, and the Kincardine Women’s Triathlon in July.

Sam and I are writing a book about our fittest by 50 challenge, and we’re excited about the project. My bike skills are improving weekly. Today is the first day that I actually feel excited to go out riding the road bike, almost no trepidation at all.

Here’s my favourite birthday message to give to people:  older, better.  I’ll look forward to hearing the same on September 24th!

 

injury · running

Moralizing body parts and physiotherapy

Sam B6 Comments

I’m still working away at physio. Progress is being made. My knee hurts less and that’s a very good thing.

I’m amused though at the language physiotherapists use to describe body parts. Apparently I have lazy glutes and as a result have an angry miniscus

 

Makes sense that if one body part isn’t doing it’s share of the work, that other body parts do too much.

But is that right? I read this week in Runners World that the glute-knee connection is more complicated than you might think. See this article on hip weakness and knee pain.

If you’ve got knee pain, you might need to strengthen your hips. That’s an increasingly common prescription these days, thanks to a bunch of research over the past decade or so linking conditions like runner’s knee (also known as patellofemoral pain, or PFP) and more recently iliotibial band syndrome to sub-par hip strength. But there’s a key question lurking behind these studies: do you develop knee pain because your hips are weak, or do your hips get weak because your knees hurt and you’re forced to alter your movement patterns?

In my case physio seems to be working, or it might be that just not running is the thing that’s helping, so I’ll keep it up. Ready for a very short, gentle run soon to try it out. Wish me luck!

 

 

Uncategorized

Summer Schedule: Swim, Bike, Run, Rest, Repeat

Tracy I13 Comments

swim bike runAs a triathlete training for some new goals this summer, I’m doing my best to balance my training for all three legs.  And it’s a big challenge.  My ideal schedule for that is: early morning swim training with a group on Tuesdays and Friday for 90 minutes; short run on Thursday and long run on Saturday; biking to work and longer rides on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and/or on the weekend.

That’s ideal. I have difficulty hitting it.  One of my challenges is that I am also committed to my Precision Nutrition workouts, and they’re getting tougher.

Triathlon training and intense weight training pull against each other.  Triathletes often take it easy on the weights during the main season, perhaps doing some light maintenance but sometimes not even hitting the weight room at all.

And I’ve heard all sorts of views about how endurance sport compromises weight training results.

What I’m finding most difficult right now is balancing all of this sufficiently with adequate rest.  Rest is really important.

RestTime-Logo1As this article states, it gives the body time to recover and build. And in our PN program lately, we’re working on sleep rituals (I’m terrible at establishing a recommended sleep ritual, and the poor quality of my sleep reflects that) and post-workout recovery strategies.

I’m supposed to be taking a full day of rest a week. I have blogged about my struggles with this before. Things are no better at this point. I’m much more likely to get rest only when I reach the point where I have no choice. Like this:

i_need_rest_by_gada_chan-d34h65n That’s kind of where I’m at today. My swim workout was tough. That usually energizes me for the day. But instead, I know that it would be a bad plan for me to push on with the scheduled noon bike ride.  I need rest!  And I need a better strategy for getting it before I hit the wall.

Suggestions welcome!  How do you balance everything else with adequate rest?