I was idly scrolling through my news feeds when a dramatic headline caught my eye: My Teen’s Energy Drink Habit Led Me To Learn Of Their Dangers For Kids. The author described the development of her child’s caffeine habit from imbibing an energy drink.

Notoriously high in stimulants, energy drinks aren’t meant to be drunk by kids. However, like coolers and spritzers, brightly coloured (blue, purple and hot pink!) energy drinks look more like funky sodas and are popular with younger teens.

It got me wondering, what is the consumption of energy drinks among adults, especially women? First, though, the content of energy drinks made me stop in my tracks. An average 8oz cup of coffee contains about 95 mg of caffeine while your average energy drink contains about five times as much, about 500 mg.

There’s no real risk to women and people with uteruses, except when pregnant. Then the recommended amount of caffeine should be less than 200 mg a day. However, teens generally should avoid energy drinks because of the risk for high blood pressure, poor sleep, upset stomach, and increased irritability and jittery nerves.

There’s no real difference in the numbers of male and female persons who consume energy drinks. It’s just shy of 30% each. But men are over-represented in the purchasing of such drinks at almost 60%.

Here are some other interesting numbers about energy drink consumption:

• Gen Zers are 238% more likely to consume energy drinks than Boomers, with only 8% of that demo report consuming energy drinks.

• Exercise is the number one energy drink usage occasion at 37.3%; followed by sports at 24.7%; household chores at 20.2%; and studying at 17.1%.

• 41.2% of males consume energy drinks for exercise in comparison to the 31.5% of females, whilst only 15.5% of men consume energy drinks for household chores compared to 27.2% of women.

Energy drinks are primarily marketed towards men. A feature article about the industry noted there was only one female CEO leading an energy drink company. Back in 2011, there was an energy drink developed and marketed for women. Called Rockstar Pink, and packaged in a very intense pink-coloured can, this drink’s prime selling feature was the fact it was less than 10 calories per serving.

I don’t care for either energy or sports drinks as I prefer to drink my caffeine as a latte, preferably in the morning with a book and a cozy couch and not chugging it back in a gym.

However, I do recognize that some sports drinks or solutions offer some value in replacing electrolytes and stabilizing blood sugar levels during particularly challenging workouts. That said, is there a need for monster claws, large kapow stars, or giant letters on a can, all pointing out that in your hands you hold A Very Important Drink?

I wasn’t all that surprised to learn that sports/energy drinks are now something you consume outside of the gym, and the industry would like you to serve such drinks at your next social gathering, pending pandemic guidelines, of course. Mind you, if you intend to dance all night long, an energy-boosting beverage is probably going to go over well, especially with the younger clientele now taking up the largest market share.

Nor was I surprised to learn energy drinks are replacing soda as the beverage of choice among millennials, especially female millennials. I was surprised by this quote: “While millennial men typically are the face of energy and sports drinks products, the category is gaining momentum with other consumers. Women, in general, are less likely to consume sports drinks, but millennial women consume sports drinks at levels that exceed their male counterparts. Similarly, women aged 50 and older also exceed males in consumption of energy drinks.” (emphasis added)

I honestly thought I was going to find research showing the increased consumption of energy drinks was connected to increased physical activity, but I was wrong.

Actual physical exercise definitely helps relieve stress and boosts energy. But do we actually have time for fitness in lives full of work demands, parenting labour and family responsibilities? For women, the answer is no. According to a UN Women Count study, women’s unpaid workload has increased to the point that women are contributing as much as a full day of unpaid labour weekly compared to men.

The fact is more women than men are reporting higher rates of burnout, and the pandemic isn’t helping. A recent American survey asked for ideas on alleviating burnout and they got a number of suggestions: “additional paid time off (22%), a condensed four-day workweek (22%), schedule flexibility (17%), remote work options (13%), company-wide mental health days (13%) and a lighter workload (12%).”

So the next time you pass a rack of energy drinks, think about what it really means in terms of time and fitness. Because when it comes to women, it seems the reason we need the energy boost is not because of a hard session in the gym.

MarthaFitat55 enjoys powerlifting, trail walking, swimming and yoga when she can find the time.

I loved the running bras I used to wear in the early aughts. They were comfortable and supportive, whether I was running or rowing. I remember texting my husband from Spain when I heard the local running shop had a sale on. I think I got four new ones at an unbelievable price.

There finally came a day when the company discontinued that line. Despite my best efforts at searching the Internet, I never found any others. I acquired a new line and the best I can say about them was they were okay. Not great. Not bad. Just okay.

But really, should I, or any person with breasts wanting decent coverage and support, have to settle for just okay?

My fear is getting stuck, arms atangle, especially after a workout when I’m all sweaty and in need of a shower. This in fact did happen to me once and it was a very unpleasant half hour until I escaped the spandex manacles. I have a friend who got trapped in one once and had to text her partner to rush to her aid.

So you can imagine my happiness when I heard the news from Adidas. They have expanded their line of sports bras to 43 styles. Their ad campaign is equally exciting.

Before readymade clothes, what we wore was created to shape our bodies. While there were patterns, you could adjust and alter to ensure a perfect fit. These days we squish and push our bodies to conform to what’s available, as some of us lack the skills or the cash to custom fit our clothing. Again, I ask, why do we have to assume only one kind of body is suitable regardless of the item we search for?

The fact that Adidas has so many lines is laudable, but what I really appreciate is the validation that we are all different in how we are shaped, and that our bodies also represent our life history. I also really appreciate the sheer audacity Adidas has brought to this campaign.

Embracing body diversity is really important, and as the Olympics play out this month, it’s wonderful to see strength and skills on the ice, on the hill and on the trails.

There’s also the issue of padded bras taking over the bra shopping marketplace, which Sam discussed here. One of the things Sam raises is nipple phobia. We all know the ruckus that results if someone catches sight of a free nipple when a child is breastfed, when you attend a meeting in an air-conditioned board room or experience a wardrobe malfunction on global television!

There’s no end of public opinion on bras, breasts, and nipples. While I haven’t had the opportunity to check out the line Adidas offers, I hope, regardless of our size, shape, and wish (padded or sheer, silky or spandexed), we all get what we need and want when it comes to our preferred sports bra. At the very least, I do hope there’s a bra out there that won’t compress my chest into one uniboob of seamless, uplifted perfection.

I’ve not tracked my activity for two weeks now. I broke my Fitbit strap and there was no easy way to keep the tracker on my person while I waited for a replacement.

My new strap arrived today and after retrieving the Fitbit from the charger, I put it together and promptly put it on. It was like welcoming an old friend. It’s true: you don’t know what you have until it’s gone.

I missed counting steps, checking my heart rate, responding to my stretch reminders, looking at my sleep records. As I work at my desk for a large part of my day, I like ensuring I have a minimum number of steps. Not having my Fitbit available had left me somewhat adrift.

Tracking simple things for me is a habit that works to keep focused. It’s easier than I like with the ebbs and flows of public health restrictions to lose my attention on intentional movement. I have felt the absence of my Fitbit these past two weeks; I’ve been lost without its little vibrating nudges of my pre-set reminders. I can’t prove it, but I know my activity has been less and I know my sleep hasn’t been great.

So I’ve refreshed my data, double checked the charge, and I’m excited about counting my steps again. It’s the small things that make a difference. What are the little things that keep you going on your fitness journey? Tell us in the comments!

MarthaFitA55 lives and works in St. John’s.

Some of you may remember the funny meme circulating last winter of a winter scene featuring a baleful eagle. In case you can’t remember, or didn’t see it the first go around, here you go:

The meme struck a chord with me. I have never been someone who goes for leisurely walks. I do enjoy a good brisk walk, or a lovely stomp, especially when I am trying to work out a problem for a client.

The pandemic has brought home for me the need to maintain regular physical activity, so when I came across this reel on Instagram with a reference to angry self care, I was intrigued. The video shows a person who presents as young, able, and white making her way determinedly and spiritedly down a snowy street.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CYH5eN_LR1E/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

There’s something appealing about angry self care, the same way rage baking took off as a way to ease and redirect rage and anxiety in the last Republican presidency. We often see anger as a negative emotion when it can actually be a spur to useful and productive activity that takes us outside our headspace and repeating interior monologues.

Going for a walk, drinking your water, getting your sleep, meeting your swimming goals to name a few examples are all great ways to look after yourself and aren’t really stupid at all. However, as this pandemic stretches on, even the most positive and optimistic among us have days when we don’t feel like doing all the healthy things. That’s when stupid walks can help.

These days I can get down with some motivational resentment. If it gets me out the door, why not? Come join me. Get your footwear, get your coat, and yank that hoodie on your head. Or put on an especially stompworthy tune — like London Calling by the Clash or Iggy Pop’s Lust for Life — and stomp your fine self around your space.

MarthaFitat55 really enjoys good stomp for her mental health. She hopes you will too.

It’s a new year, a new variant, and the same old horse-puckey we’ve all been dealing with since March 2020. At almost two years into the pandemic, we are tired. So very, very tired.

When i look back at the past two years, i feel like a plant that has become root bound. I suspect we’ve all become a little root-bound because of our new normal. It’s what we are used to.

While the pot can be comfy and cozy, it’s also cramped. Parts of you fall asleep, and other parts get cranky and stiff. At a certain point, no matter how much water, sunshine or plant food you get, nothing much is going to happen.

Even before the pandemic, I was used to shaking up my approaches to work, life and fitness. I have tried tiny habits, participating in group challenges, sleep training, meal planning, and retreats. I have learned a lot, but I also discovered i have more to learn.

I spoke with a colleague who had protected a day a week in her schedule. No meetings, no emails, no phone calls. Some weeks she planned a new workshop, sometimes she read a new book, or researched an area new to her field.

While i was already used to protecting certain activities, i did not create space for recovery and selfcare. And that is really important.

When we embrace a new form of training, we can overdo it. We can over train. When we try a new pose, a new exercise or a new level of intensity, we may forget to rest.

This holiday season lead up was stressful. Omicron put paid to lots of stuff we had planned. i worried about senior parents, finding a booster, keeping my distance in a time when socializing is in hyper drive.

So I took my colleague’s idea and protected a whole chunk of time. I turned on my out of office settings. I did not look at my email. I turned off notifications. I loaded my e-reader with books. We made sure to plan meals and organize grocery pick ups. I got good sleep and I napped. I did my arm stretches and got rid of my tennis elbow.

It was peaceful, restful and totally chill. Over the New Year’s holiday, I looked hard at my calendar. I remembered advice a mentor gave me early in my career: choose something that will help you do your work better, choose something that will help you be a better human, and choose something that will bring joy to your life.

My calendar looks totally different. Programming down time to rest and also to explore new professional and personal commitments has opened up new possibilities. I’ll be exploring how i can incorporate different ways of practicing active rest and recovery over the next few months. Yoga and mediation are on my list. What’s on yours?

I took almost eight weeks off from blogging. I needed to stop and assess where I found myself at 60. It wasn’t just reaching a milestone birthday. I needed the time to reflect on what’s next in a time where change is constant.

I did a fair bit of reading – some thoughtful, some frivolous, some challenging. I work a fair bit with mental health so I looked at self care, stress management, and the pandemic.

I came across this fabulous image.  You can find it and a number of other useful resources at cohcwcovidsupport.org. The graphic explains the continuum of stress from “Thriving: I got this” to “In Crisis: I can’t survive this.” I find it useful as it identifies a number of ways stress, especially increasing, constant stress – can appear.

The holidays can be very stressful. There is a lot of pressure to make things perfect, splendid, memorable.  The reality is we are not characters in a Hallmark movie (thank heavens for that!). We are imperfect, flawed human beings and we need to treat ourselves and each other with compassion and care.

Last year I created a wellness advent calendar, a post a day during December 2020. You can find the round up here: https://fitisafeministissue.com/2020/12/26/dec-26-wellness-calendar-collected-edition/

Take a look. Perhaps you will find a few strategies that will help you navigate the year ahead. During my brief blogging hiatus —  such a handy word to describe a pause or a gap in a series or sequence – I learned again how important it is to step outside and take a breath.

This doesn’t mean I shut myself off; it meant I took time to figure out what I needed and how I was going to do it. A good chunk of my paid work is helping organizations create strategic plans. It had been a while since I last created a plan for myself so I took time to create one for the year ahead. I’ll share some of it in future blog posts. It’s been a good break and I am glad to be back.

The Spanish have a proverb: if you don’t know where you are going, then any road will do. Without vision, you cannot imagine what should or will be. A vision guides you in making your purpose real. Your vision is the beacon that lights your way forward. I hope you can create your vision and live it boldly. Be well, stay well.

Earlier this week, WHO posted a tweet on World Diabetes Day. It received a significant response, so much so, it deleted the tweet and then posted an apology which included a screenshot of the now-deleted Tweet (see image below).

Dr. Yoni Freedhoff, an Ottawa-based specialist in obesity writes a blog and here he writes: Never mind genetics, social determinants of health (including poverty, education, caregiving requirements, etc), co-morbid medical conditions, and more, the actual World Health Organization on World Diabetes Day, is stating if you have type 2 diabetes, it’s your fault.

Weight stigma surrounds us everyday. The pressure to lose weight to meet a social ideal is constant. It used to be the ads would start late in the spring on getting beach body ready. Now we have, beach-body season followed by little black dress season in the holidays, then by New Year’s resolution season, winter beach vacation season, prom season and wedding season.

Really, when is there not a season where we are told to lose weight?

That said, the WHO, with their use of stigmatizing language and victim-blaming, lent an aura of credibility to long-held assumptions on the causes of diabetes, and also possible solutions (eat less, exercise more). The WHO ignored issues of social determinants — whether one can afford nutrient-dense food, whether one can afford to go to a gym, or even if you afford the time to workout and the issues of genetics such as family history, conditions which lead to insulin resistance/diabetes/obesity (hello polycystic ovarian disease).

Yes, we can all make choices that lead to improvements in our health, well being, and quality of life overall. However, we need to make choices and be able to afford those choices based on best evidence, and in this case, the WHO got it all wrong.

We were doing our weekly grocery shop. We parked in our usual spot, masked up, got our reusable bags and got the week’s worth of food pretty quickly. We came out only to discover the driver of a very large truck had parked next to us and closed off access to the driver’s side.

What to do? What to do? What to do? There was only one way in and that was to climb across the front passenger seat and slide into the drivers’s seat.

One of the three at the scene was too young to drive; one was too tall to fold themself comfortably in the space available. And then there was me.

I’m not an especially bendy person. Becoming a human pretzel is not what I am into.

But needs must. My car is not the old-fashioned kind where you can just slide across a smooth expanse of seating. No, my car is ultramodern, with a gear shift console in the middle, complete with sticking up type travel cup holders.

I took a look, channelled my inner cat, and figured out how to fold myself so I could shimmy, step, hop and slide into the driver’s seat.

I may not have been super graceful, or elegant, but I did it! As I dropped myself into the driver’s seat and then unfolded legs to reach the pedals, I felt relief, exhilaration, and most importantly, not a single twitch. Part of my brain said, oh wait until an hour later.

An hour came and went, the next day came and went, and then a week. All was normal!

I realized eight years of steady work, interrupted by ups and downs as life does, had its advantages. We may have different goals for our fitness path over time, but for me, functional fitness has been my number one goal.

To carry my groceries and not have my back complain; to walk a hill with my family without collapsing from tired lungs; to climb up and down stairs with household goods to help a family member move. And yes, to get into my car from the passenger side so I can drive home and not pull a muscle. Wellness level number eleventy thousand: Unlocked!

You can just call me MarthaFitAt60More.

A new study arrived this week, this one looking at the status of women in sport media. To no one’s surprise, the conclusion was consistent with other research on the representation of women. Sports media continues to be pale, male, and stale.

As an aside, I don’t know who first came up with that clever, biting summary of the state of most things in the world, but I send my thanks.

I digress. The study was carried out by the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport (TIDES), its first since 2018. It found:

• 79.2% of the sports editors were white and 83.3% were men.

• 72.0% of the assistant sports editors were white and 75.8% were men.

• 77.1% of the columnists were white; 82.2% were men.

• 77.1% of the reporters were white; 85.6% were men.

• 77.0% of the copy editors/designers were white; 75.3% were men.

• 72.4% of web specialists were white; 78.1% were men.

You might ask why does it matter? Because it does. If we have absorbed one fact in the last few years is that unconscious bias exists in all aspects of our lives. Or as Richard Lapchick, author of the ESPN article said of the review of more than 100 newspapers and websites: “These are same outlets that determine what stories to cover, when to cover them and how they are portrayed. Diversity, equity and inclusion among the staff in our media is crucial to news being representative of our society.”

We default to what we know. We highlight, either deliberately or unintentionally, the things that matter to us. The absence of women and people of colour in sports media, or other media usually means fewer stories about the things that matter to those who belong to groups historically excluded from decision-making, content creation, and participation.

Or as Lisa Wilson, a former president of the Associated Press Sports Editors Association said: “We need those voices. We need that perspective. We need them making coverage and hiring decisions.”

The study results are mixed. While there were tiny shifts when it comes to women, the rate of improvement is still quite low and slow. Improvements for people of colour were better with measurable increases in representation among Black reporters, editors and columnists.

We also need better coverage of women in sports by women because media coverage has an impact on pay rates. Women atheletes do not receive the amounts of money male athletes receive. Josh Strupp writes:

“In America, on average, a woman makes 89% of what a man makes, despite having the same amount of experience and holding the same position. The average salary of an NBA player is $7.7M. In the WNBA, it’s closer to $75,000, so the female athletes are making about 1% of the salaries of their male counterparts. Anthony Davis makes $27M a year; one of his closest comparators statistically and in terms of dominance — Natasha Howard — makes $117,000 a year. In the case of Davis and Howard, she’s making 0.43% of what he makes.“

We also cannot underestimate the impact of seeing someone who looks like you in sport, on and off the field as it were. Role models inspire us: to aim high, to do better, to excel. How many little girls saw themselves playing hockey because of Hayley Wickenheiser? How many people imagined themselves behind the desk providing colour commentary? How many saw Simone Biles address the giant elephant in the room –mental health — making it easier for others to report similar experiences?

When I first started working training in a gym, I was surrounded by posters featuring ultra thin, ultra fit women in fashionable workout gear. I didn’t like the messages and I did not like the images. I did not see myself on those walks — not the then current version of me, and especially not even someone I thought I might like to become. If I, a white, middle class, middle-aged woman with a fair amount of privilege, felt excluded, what is it like at all for others?

Not good. As Maya Angelou said, when you know better, you do better. I hope the APSE take their report card seriously and embark on a program of real change. The Ds and Fs peppering their review really need to shift upward and turn into As and Bs. It is the 21st century after all.

— MarthaFitat55 lives and writes in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Well hello everyone! It’s the Labour Day Weekend when we try to cram in as much late summer activity as we possibly can in 72 hours.

While hurricane season is upon us, and multiple hatches will be battened, there are lots of fun ways to get your fit on the long weekend. Here are five ways you can put a spring in your step getting ready for fall:

1. Take a hike, or a walk, or even a meandering stroll. If you are spending a good chunk of your weekend getting ready for fall, then it will be even more important for you to stick your head out and your whole body too and get some fresh air.
2. Go for a swim. Wild water swimming is taking off big time. It doesn’t matter if you plunk your feet in a fountain or a brook, or if you go go all the way and jump in a pond or lake. Paddling around in water is always fun.
3. Play a game. Find a ball, a frisbee, or a kite, and get going. Make up rules if you have to, but get out and run around with a spherical object.
4. Practice forest bathing. All you need to do is find a wooded area, make yourself comfy, and breathe. Forest-bathing originated in Japan, and was designed to reconnect people to forests/nature while counter-acting the negative effects of too much tech use. After 18 months of pandemic restrictions and online working, getting re-energized by sitting in a quiet, wild and natural environment sounds pretty good to me.
5. Be social — it’s been a hard slog with the pandemic, but one of the lowest risk activities is to be outside; there you can maintain social distance, while still enjoying friendship or extended family contact. Grab a sandwich, a cold beverage, and a blanket, and get your chat on with some real time face time.

It might not be possible for you to do all of these things every day of the long weekend, but if you can, try one. if you are feeling especially ambitious, aim for the Labour Day triathlon where you walk, breathe, and connect. Let us know how you do in the comments.