Feminist reflections on fitness, sport, and health
I went to a class on Sunday at my yoga studio that distressed me. The studio usually teaches a diversity of yoga styles, with an emphasis on “listen to your own body,” safety and many modifications. There’s usually music, and sometimes a sweaty flow, and a lot of options for slower or more reflective practice.… Continue reading When do you speak up?
by Shannon Dea I am a late blooming, on-again-off-again exerciser. In September, I flicked the switch back to the “on” position. For many years, I was convinced that exercise and sport weren’t for me. I was born with club feet and for the first five or six years of my life wore casts and then… Continue reading Coming Back to Fitness (Guest Post)
by Laura Rainbow Dragon When Covid-19 forced our local seniors’ centre to close its doors back in March of 2020, I knew I had to do something to keep my then 79-year-old mother active. I’m happy to do a yoga practice alone in my room, or go for a run in the forest for my… Continue reading Modified Mindsets and Adapted Asanas: A Pandemic-Inspired Family Fitness Journey (Guest Post)
In my province of Ontario, like many places, we’re experiencing a spike of Covid cases, resulting in a movement back to modified “stage 2” rules about public spaces, including a 28 day closure of gyms and indoor fitness studios (along with indoor dining, theatres and bars). This prompted a certain amount of understandable angst from… Continue reading Another pandemic shutdown for fitness studios and gyms: how do we help?
CW: mention of diets and quoting of bogus articles’ judgy and false statements about body sizes and ages and (oddly enough) heights. I don’t necessarily hate internet exercise advice; often I can pick and choose the good stuff from the bin of otherwise useless or ill-fitting or totally-not-for-me tips, and go about my merry way.… Continue reading Livestrong won’t live long with this bogus exercise advice
Every December I choose a single word to inspire me and to set the tone for the year. Instead of making a list of resolutions that I would probably never revisit, I have my one word to use as a touchstone to remind me of my desires and hopes for the year. A word to… Continue reading Word of the Year (Guest Post)
My favourite piece of fitness advice is that “the best exercise is the one that you will do.” I have spent much of my life trying to find exercise I can stand. I discovered that I can always get myself to do yoga, which is why I’ve become committed to it. Also, I can do… Continue reading Psyched out: Spirituality, the yoga space, and laughter (Guest post)
I don’t like to rant (well maybe a little bit, sometimes). But the “yoga and” trend is starting to get to me. Regular readers may recall some recent posts about goat yoga – I wasn’t a fan (a judgment I formed without having to try it) and Sam thought it was fun when she went… Continue reading Enough already with “yoga and…”
by Loretta C My friend Cate said “you should write something for Fit is a Feminist Issue.” I thought, “I don’t belong on that blog. I am the most unfit I have ever been in my life.” I am, and always have been, fat. I am 47 years old, and for thirty-some years I went… Continue reading I’m really not fit (Guest post)
Perhaps part of Ashtanga’s development was to address the needs of adolescent boys, and men seem to be particular keen on it because of its physical demands — it’s “macho yoga,” but … as the old Irish Spring commercial says, “I like it too!” The binds seem unreasonable given my belly. The jump through and floating seem absurd with my hips and butt. When I try to do camel – which used to be a favourite pose – my now substantial middle-aged boobs are squashed to my face and I seem to have some trouble breathing. However, I’m noticing that the difficulty is less my boobs, belly, and butt than I thought. As my abdominal strength improves, as I work those twists, I can do a lot more on the mat — and everywhere else!
