Author: Sam B

Philosopher, feminist, parent, and cyclist! Co-founder of Fit Is a Feminist Issue, co-author of Fit at Mid-Life: A Feminist Fitness Journey, published by Greystone Books.
a marker near checked circles on white paper Checking up on my #26in2026
fitness

Checking up on my #26in2026

Sam B1 Comment

Diane posted a check-in on her #26in2026 and that’s prompting me to check in on mine. After all, fall is my last chance. I knew it wouldn’t be good. It’s been a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Summer and lots of things we planned just didn’t happen. So many bad things happened that we started saying we shouldn’t even plan anything because we were certain something new would happen and cancel our plans. At this point, some things won’t happen because of busy schedules (travel, 100 km bike rides), and others won’t happen because the weather for them has passed (Snipe sailing, bike packing, river tubing). The Ice Cream bike ride tradition won’t happen because Slickers has closed for the season.

Other things are possible, but not likely–like riding 3000 km this year!

But I can still make some things happen, like a spa day!

  1. Go on a 100 km bike ride. ❎ Unlikely to happen this year!
  2. Spend an afternoon at the beach. ☑️ Sandbanks in August
  3. Ice cream bike ride at the farm. ❎
  4. Big Island bike ride at the farm. ☑️
  5. Go on a bike packing mini vacation. ❎
  6. Develop a morning mobility routine. ❓Update: I’ve got several. And I do them sometimes. But there is no regular morning mobility happening. Not yet!
  7. Read 20 novels. ☑️
  8. Ride my bike 3000 km in 2026. ❓Update: I’m at 1,262.5 km, and there are only 13 weeks left in the year. I’d have to ride more than 130 km a week to make it.
  9. Work out 400 times, incl dog walks and physio. I’ll track workouts in this group and you can join too. ❓Update: This one I will make. I’m at 339 now and there are 94 days left in the year. Easy peesy!
  10. Go back-country canoe camping. ☑️ See And then there were three!
  11. Host a bloggers’ backyard BBQ. ☑️
  12. Go sailing at least once! ❎
  13. Do at least one charity bike ride. ☑️ See It’s August and Sam’s Riding in the Great Cycle Challenge! and The Spinning Wheels Tour, London to Stratford
  14. Spa day. ❎ Update: There’s still time!
  15. Go swimming in the Elora Quarry. ☑️ Thanks Susan!
  16. Take Cheddar on a hike in the Elora Gorge. ☑️
  17. Have friends over more often and worry less about my house. #ScruffyHospitality ☑️
  18. Learn to swim at least 6 lengths of the pool, without taking a break. ❎ Update: I might get there yet. I’m at 3.
  19. Visit at least one other Canadian province, besides Quebec. ❎
  20. Do another lazy river tubing trip, maybe when Catherine is visiting. ❎
  21. Ride 62 kms on my birthday with friends. ❎ Update: I did a 65 km bike ride a few weeks after my birthday. Does that count? It was the Spinning Wheels ride from London to Stratford, not a birthday bike ride with friends though. On the day we thought we might do one, it rained and we were at a memorial service for a friend the next day. It’s been that kind of summer.
  22. Dance! ☑️
  23. Plan a couple of weekends away with my adult kids. ☑️
  24. Go on a short trip with my mum and her little dogs. ☑️
  25. Keep up my daily gratitude habit, #ThreeGoodThings. ☑️
  26. Car camping with our new fancy car tent. ☑️
tired woman with hands in hair What are your favourite de-stressing exercises?
fitness

What are your favourite de-stressing exercises?

Sam B1 Comment

September isn’t the easiest month for a dean.

I’ve had lots of days that end this way.

My Garmin suggests light exercise breaks and time outside, and I actually do get outside quite often for walks, especially between buildings on campus. I also walk Cheddar in the evenings, so I feel like more outdoor time and more wlaking isn’t the answer.

Close-up of a smartwatch displaying a message about stress and battery drain, suggesting to take breaks and consider light exercise.

What I want to know is what do you do to de-stress? Do you have an end-of-day de-stressing routine that works for you? I’m pretty good at putting my phone away, but what else? Advice welcome!

Note, I can’t read in the evening, though I can and do listen to audiobooks and watch shows. My current faves are Slow Horses, Dark Matter, and Ted Lasso. Just finished Ride or Die, Dalliance, and Strange New Worlds. And like everyone else, I’m desperately waiting for a new season of Pluribus.

What do you do?

Past posts on this theme:

Sleep, stress, and exercise: Sam’s vicious cycle
Light exercise is not particularly good for stress relief, says Sam. Or is it?
Sam’s six fitness motivations
text printed on a multicolored background Sam does some math and adjusts her cycling distance goals
challenge · cycling · fitness · goals

Sam does some math and adjusts her cycling distance goals

Sam BLeave a comment

My cycling distance goal for the year was 3000 km . I’m at 1278 km, and there are only 13 weeks left in the year. I’d have to ride more than 130 km a week to make it. That seems highly unlikely.

If I change my annual goal to 2000 km for 2026, and I’ve ridden 1278 so far, that’s 722 left for the year. Can I do that?

Yes, I can! There are exactly 13 weeks left in the year, so that means I would need to ride 55.5 km a week.

What’s the plan? I usually bike to school two or three days a week, and that gets me about 15 km. And then there’s Zwift. See you in Watopia!

speed limit road sign on a tiled wall What are five simple exercises to do at home? #grouppost, #TeamFIFI
fitness

What are five simple exercises to do at home? #grouppost, #TeamFIFI

Sam BLeave a comment

What are five simple exercises to do at home?

View all responses

Sam

Ride my bike on the trainer

Walk the dog

The 9 morning movements

Glute bridges

Cat-cow stretches

Diane

I like to do yoga in bed or bedtime yoga (various YouTube videos), and chair yoga (also YouTube). I try to fit in lots of little physio exercises with a Theraband and blocks as well as calf stretches and heel raises.

Tracy

All the yoga, push-ups, air squats (with a jump if so inclined), kettlebell swings, burpees. And of course 90% of the ab work.

Laura

Push-ups. Active hangs. One-legged calf raises. Shrimp squats. Downward-facing dog.

Nicole

Stationary bike, Yoga with Adrienne (particularly her yoga for runners), push-ups, ottoman step-ups, 108 Sun Salutations.

Also, this is my old post about just this kind of thing:

Five Body Weight Movements and Modifications
cozy autumn decor with pumpkin spice mug Going in Circles, Taking Up Space, and Beginning Again: September 2026 on the Blog
blog · blogging · fitness · link round up

Going in Circles, Taking Up Space, and Beginning Again: September 2026 on the Blog

Sam BLeave a comment

How many posts? Forty-seven posts this month. The back-to-school rush turned into a back-to-the-blog rush.

Who blogged? Sam, Christine, Diane, Catherine, Nat, Nicole, Tracy, Cate, Martha, Mina, and guest blogger Winnie, who wrote for us twice.

September is the real new year. Christine opened the month with her September Circles, a tiny experiment: five minutes of circle-based mobility before bed. She closed it with an update reporting less twitchiness, less morning stiffness, and a plan to keep going in circles. Sam mapped out her fall fitness routine, which got off to a start when a fire alarm interrupted cocoon shavasana. Catherine wrote about fall transitions after a quiet summer and was surprised to find she loves the louder days of September. Christine was ready to head back to TKD and then reported that she was right about muscle memory. Mina came home from five weeks of hiking and retreats and found two words that changed her meditation practice, in I Begin. Again. Yet Again. Christine’s Go Team post told everyone they could forge ahead, pivot, or restart, whatever the date on the calendar.

Aging: what’s decline, and what’s a choice? Sam started a conversation with Subtle Physical Withdrawal and Gradually Declining Fitness and Strength, about how we narrow our range of movement without noticing. Winnie, our oldest blogger at almost 75, shared her take on aging and fitness, including 100-mile weeks and dance classes. Sam followed up with a study on hard workouts and better aging, and her search for an intensity level that works for her body. She also celebrated her left knee’s fourth birthday and her fitness age finally matching her actual age. Diane checked in on her heart health five months after surgery: she’s back at work and has passed her fitness tests. Later she asked what strength and mobility for grandparenting actually requires. Nicole wondered whether stretching while shaving your legs counts. Nat shared her surprises four months into retirement, including a big jump in daily steps and a new sense of calm.

The data and the doubts. Our watches had a lot to say this month, and we had a lot to say back. Sam asked what the heck heart rate variability is and whether she should care. Nat marked a two-year Strava streak while wishing she could switch off the sleep scolding. Later she went looking for what actually drops her resting heart rate. Catherine reminded us that science says lots of things about easy versus intense and short versus long. She also looked at a Finnish study suggesting coffee might be good for you in every way.

Use your voice, take up space. Gloria Steinem’s death on September 2 hit us hard. Cate wrote about her gratitude and sadness and what discovering Steinem and Ms. meant to her as a teenager. Martha drew two lessons for fit feminists in Use your voice, take up space. That spirit ran through the rest of the month:

Bikes, bike lanes, and getting there. Diane asked why anyone would want to rip out bike lanes. Sam asked readers how they were celebrating World Car Free Day. Diane marked Bike to Work Day by riding in for the first time in over a year. Sam reported on the Spinning Wheels Tour for Parkinson’s, which ran from London to Stratford with wind and a trumpet fanfare. Winnie returned with thoughts on cycling and distance and a possible Transamerica ride, peanut butter sandwich required. Sam also wrote about two Montreal road trips in Fitness, food, and charging the electric car, and about why an old post on unlikely sports heroes was suddenly getting so many readers.

Finish lines and small joys. Tracy ran her 5K, a year in the making. She finished in 36:40, twenty seconds under her goal, and raised over $500 for Sea Paws Rescue. She then reflected on evolving goals and how her feelings about speed have shifted. Nat looked back on 10 summer swims. Sam got a fitness duck for her birthday, marked World Gratitude Day with a #ThreeGoodThings round-up, and posted August’s month in review. Catherine shared sage advice from animals (the goose says to honk if it helps) and wrote about a good week. Diane admitted that her funny old body needs to move, even when her brain says rest.

What kept us writing? Partly it was the fresh-start energy of September, the academic January. It gave us new routines, restarts, returns to class, and a lot of beginning again. Partly it was Gloria Steinem’s death, which reminded us why this blog exists: women’s bodies, movement, and space matter, and saying so out loud still counts. Mostly, though, it was each other. Winnie wrote in response to Sam’s post on physical withdrawal. Sam’s knee anniversary prompted Diane’s heart-health check-in. Sam sent Tracy an old quote that became a post about changing goals. And Diane was at the finish line cheering Tracy home. It was a month of small things done consistently: five minutes of circles a night, two years of logged activities, and a year of training for one 5K.

See you in October!

Month-in-review posts are assembled by Claude with prompts from Sam and edited by Sam. If you spot any errors, let us know.

colorful circular lights
Circles. Photo by Diana ✨ on Pexels.com

september autumn decor with leaves and pumpkins The Blog’s Top Ten Posts, September 2026
blog · blogging · fall · fitness · top ten

The Blog’s Top Ten Posts, September 2026

Sam BLeave a comment

🍁 Nat’s surprises 4 months into retirement (Nat)

🍁 The faceless fatty is the new-new fat shaming… (Catherine)

🍁 Sam moves a post to the trash after learning that the expert quoted was an AI generated hoax (Sam)

🍁 Bike Lanes are Beautiful (Diane)

🍁 Research focus: is coffee really good for you in every way? If you ask the Finns, they’ll say yes (Catherine)

🍁 Fitness, food, and charging the electric car (Sam)

🍁 Subtle Physical Withdrawal  (Sam)

🍁 Nat’s surprised by what drops her resting heart… (Nat)

🍁 Gratitude and sadness for Gloria Steinem (Cate)

🍁 Tracy’s 5K, a year in the making (Tracy)

red leaves on a branch
Photo by João Saplak on Pexels.com
fitness

Surprise! Or posts on unlikely heroes in sports

Sam BLeave a comment

An older post of ours about unlikely sports heroes is doing well in the stats today and I think I know why.

Here’s the older post:

Meet our newest sports hero: Jolien Boumkwo, Belgian shot-putter and substitute hurdler

But here’s the story people were likely looking for!

‘I had to shave my legs’: Slovakia’s team masseur becomes an unlikely cycling hero. With no nominated rider able to start, the former cyclist got back on his bike at the world championships in Montreal.

Read more: https://spectator.sme.sk/sport/c/slovak-team-masseur-cycling-world-championships

“Martin Svrček, Slovakia’s nominated rider, could not compete because of health problems. Matthias Schwarzbacher had ended his season through injury, while Lukáš Kubiš’s team had not released him. With the entry deadline past, the Slovak Cycling Federation registered Kováčik, a former rider who met the licence requirements.

National coach Jakub Vančo said Slovakia entered Kováčik to meet its obligation to field a rider. He said failing to do so would cost the country points and could affect its chances of qualifying riders for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

Asked by Eurosport what it felt like to line up alongside cycling’s leading riders, Kováčik said: “It’s every cyclist’s dream. And I’m a masseur, so it’s crazy.” He had no ambitions in the race, he added.

frustrated boy with his hands on his face
Surpise! Photo by Keira Burton on Pexels.com

Sarah and I were there watching the race in Montreal, and we love how long Vladimír Kováčik stayed with the peloton.

Fitness, food, and charging the electric car
fitness

Fitness, food, and charging the electric car

Sam BLeave a comment

634 km

That’s the distance between Montreal and Guelph.  Sarah and I have driven there and back twice this month.

We’re both good at weekend roadtrips. We listen to audiobooks and we call friends and talk on speaker phone. We talk to one another and catch up on our long work weeks. Mostly we enjoy the time on the road.

But one of the things I haven’t liked about road trips has been the lack of activity,  combined with lots of unhealthy snacking.  Bring on the twizzlers and the peanut butter M&Ms! Let’s eat all the drive thru burgers and fries.

I sometimes arrive places with a sore back and upset stomach.

What’s new this year though is Sarah’s electric car.  It’s a used Subaru Solterra. It charges to about 300 km and I’ve got to say that stopping to charge has really improved the quality of our road trips.

A charging station

Note: I know this won’t last long.  Charging is getting faster and the storage capacity of car batteries keeps increasing.  Pretty soon stopping to charge won’t be much different than refueling a gas car. These longer breaks will be a story we tell grandchildren. But for now,  I’m enjoying the mandatory breaks.

I used to break my step goal streak each time we drove somewhere.  Not now.  I’m writing this in the car on the way home from Montreal and on our way there and on the way home,  I kept my step goal streak.

Friday we drove to Montreal and Sunday we drove home.

What’s different?

🚗 Charging stations are usually at the far end of parking lots.  More walking! (I have wondered and worried about disabled drivers and electric cars for this reason though.)

🚗 There’s also more time to stop and stretch. I’ve enjoyed seeing families with camp chairs and tables playing games at the charging stations.

🚗 The time it takes to charge means we can have real sit down dinners in actual restaurants rather than fast food. Sometimes we even walk to them. Other times restaurants and hotels have charging stations for customers only. Check out #chargeanddine.

🚗 This time we stopped and met a friend at a charging station and caught up at a nearby picnic table.

🚗 There is also some shopping involved.  In recent weeks,  though not on this trip,  we’ve stopped at Ikea, Jysk, and Winners. They all have charging stations on this route.

🚗 Oh and napping while charging.  We’re both ‘sleep anywhere’ types so sometimes there are charging naps.

Here’s a song from out roadtrio playlist:

How are you with road trips? Love them or hate them?

(And yes, of course, you can take breaks driving a gas powered car. I know, I know. But we don’t. We’d rather just get to our destination sooner. It’s the enforced breaks that are the good thing.)

The Spinning Wheels Tour, London to Stratford, with wind and a trumpet fanfare
charity · cycling · fitness

The Spinning Wheels Tour, London to Stratford, with wind and a trumpet fanfare

Sam BLeave a comment

Sarah, Mallory, Rob, Susan, Sumaya and I were all part of the Parkinson’s Spinning Wheels Tour ride from London to Stratford. Mallory, Susan, and Sumaya drove support vehicles and Rob, Sarah, and I, and about ten other riders, rode bikes.

Here’s Susan in Stratford Today talking about the ride and her role in it.

“Susan Fullerton is a former cyclist who helped with the logistics of the event. She was diagnosed with Parkinson’s nine years ago, and she says it’s really impacted her life.

“I’m no longer able to work. I moved out of Toronto to Guelph, to be close to my family, as I don’t really drive very much,” she shared. “I have quite bad tremors, and something called dystonia, where I freeze; my toes curl, and I have trouble walking, but I’m fairly well managed on medication.”

She was a part of a clinical trial where they opened her brain and put drugs in the brain to help stop the progression of Parkinson’s, and she thinks it really helped.

“I used to not be able to smell very much at all. And I can smell some things now,” Fullerton said. “I came home from the surgery, and I could smell my cat litter, something I hadn’t been able to do for a number of years, so one of my friends sent me flowers because she said I should smell something better than cat litter.”

When it comes to Parkinson’s, there are a lot of misconceptions.

“I think most people think of old men with tremors, and they don’t think it’s happening to, people in their mid-30s, so it’s not just old people; it’s young, middle-aged, and old people,” Fullerton said. “People think it’s only tremors, and there’s so much more, and the other thing is, it’s not just physical symptoms. There’s the anxiety, depression, and the other thing is that stress is one of the biggest contributors to the progression of your disease.”

See more here: https://www.stratfordtoday.ca/local-news/spinning-wheels-tour-cyclists-arrive-in-stratford-to-raise-parkinsons-awareness-12809123#

The ride is really about raising awareness of Parkinson’s and celebrating community, but it’s also a fundraiser. You can donate here if you like.

“More than 120,000 people live with Parkinson’s in Canada, a number expected to grow significantly in the coming years. At Parkinson Canada, people with Parkinson’s are at the centre of everything we do. Parkinson Canada funds critical research, provides information and support, increases awareness and advocates for improved healthcare outcomes for people with Parkinson’s across Canada. With the support of our sponsors, partners and the Parkinson’s community, we continue to invest in research dedicated to finding a cure and improving the quality of life for all people affected by Parkinson’s.”

The route was about 65 km and the day was gorgeous. There was sunshine and temperatures starting out at about 10 degrees and ending at about 15. There were also hills, but rolling hills mostly, so fine. And wind. The wind was less fine.

We regrouped for the final ride into Stratford and our highlight of the day was riding into the park, complete with trumpets and a fanfare. Thanks Mary, Larry, and Phil for the welcome!

Video of our arrival at the park, with a very Stratford welcome and a trumpet fanfare!

man sitting beside bicycle Winnie’s thoughts on cycling and distance
cycling · fitness

Winnie’s thoughts on cycling and distance

Sam BLeave a comment

I rode about 40 miles the other day. That used to be a shortish ride.

Today it was, then suddenly, it wasn’t. I got too hungry & hadn’t packed any reasonable amount of food. I had a cookie, but somehow, that just wasn’t going to take care of things. So I stopped at the grocery store after calling my husband & sister to come along & rescue me, along with stuff for a very early dinner. I’m not sure why I couldn’t get this right; it’s not all that hard. I travel with a medium-sized Camelback, which helps me drink enough, and has plenty of room for nuts (and cookies) and, if I expect to be out at a regular mealtime, a peanut butter sandwich or something like it. And perhaps a nice sparkling water. 

Right now I am trying to get back to longer rides of 60 miles or more. We are seriously considering two different tours next spring/summer: a couple of weeks exploring Japan, probably free-form, mostly organized by a friend who has been there several times; and/or, a ride along what Adventure Cycling calls The Transamerica Trail. That one could be quite a challenge. Although I have ridden the northern cross-continent route and the southern one offered by Adventure Cycling, I have chosen not to ride this one. I still don’t want to ride the whole thing. Why? Well, up until recently, it was because I didn’t want to take on the winds, mostly in Kansas, and because I am frankly scared of the dogs in eastern Kentucky. The winds on that open prairie state are almost constant, but can change directions quite a bit. I am small, my bike is light; my bike touring doesn’t include camping, so I don’t need to carry all that equipment. I have already experienced winds strong enough to push me a foot or more from where I thought I was riding, and in one case, 90 degrees from where I’d been heading. I just don’t want a sudden gust to come along and send me out into the traffic lane. I have ridden in Kansas, loved it in many ways, but all the way across? Nope.

The dogs are notorious among touring cyclists. There’s an area where there seem to be no restrictions on keeping them behind a fence, and they act as if they’ve been bred from Prohibition-era dogs that were schooled to keep the inspectors at a good distance from the stills hidden in the Appalachian hills. Bloggers write of using horns, water sprays from bottles, shouting, bear spray (but what if the wind is heading your way???), getting off & putting the bike between you & the dog (but if there’s more than one dog…). Anyway, I choose not to take that one on. I have ridden in western Kentucky. It’s lovely.

There was one other concern. The pass across the Rocky Mountains is high. Over 11,000 feet. I have ridden up Haleakala on Maui, a bit over 10,000 feet, and I really feel it when I get above about 8500 feet. How can all these people make it across? Why do none of them even talk about the reduced oxygen?

I read lots & lots of journals on crazyguyonabike.com. I finally realized: they spend a week or two on the ascent. I do the beach-to-summit in one day on Haleakala. Oh. Maybe I could do it. So we are seriously considering giving it a try. We would ride from somewhere in Oregon (Coast? Bend? Doesn’t matter much; we’ve ridden both those areas quite a bit) and finish in Pueblo, Colorado, where the land flattens & becomes the Great Plains.

Which explains why I need to remember my peanut butter sandwich on my longer rides starting now.

Bio: I am a lifelong Californian. My mother and father were not born here but moved to the state as small children. I have two grown daughters and five wonderful grandchildren. I spent my working life working at, and eventually running, the family insurance business. My father had introduced many employee benefits – sabbatical starting in 1970, optional four-day work week in 1972, elimination of all official work time rules in 1974. Adults like to be treated as adults, and people tended to stay a long time, so it was a very pleasant working environment with key elements of trust and respect. I also served on a couple of independent school boards, one a strong academic school serving grades 6-12, one a school designed to start helping city kids who had suffered the ongoing effects of racism & poverty to find opportunities they might not as easily discover without support. I live at a Lifetime Care Community where I serve on the finance committee and chair the sustainability committee. I also plan to join the newly formed fitness committee. And for fun, I have ridden my bicycle across North America. Twice.