photo of person s hands Inclusion in Sports: Feminism and Transforming Men’s Gymnastics Uniforms
fitness

Inclusion in Sports: Feminism and Transforming Men’s Gymnastics Uniforms

Sam B

Just because we’re a feminist fitness blog, that doesn’t mean we only care about women and women’s sports.

It’s not even the case that all the bloggers identify as women. Some of us are genderqueer or nonbinary, and we all advocate for the inclusion of trans and nonbinary athletes in sports. Broadly speaking, we’re interested in areas of sport, fitness, and movement where a feminist analysis applies. We’re a feminist blog, not just a women’s sports and fitness blog.

I say that because I’m about to discuss an issue about uniforms and men’s gymnastics. Whenever I write about men, I inevitably get comments saying “I thought this was a feminist blog.” It is. And my feminism includes fairness and inclusion for men, too. Another way of putting it (this came up in an online discussion of men’s health the other day) is that the best analysis of many of the ways things go wrong for people is a feminist analysis.

Okay, back to men’s sports and uniforms. I first read about the issue on Slate: Men’s Gymnastics Uniforms Leave Nothing to the Imagination. One Olympian Is Trying to Change That

“Winter Cup, an elite gymnastics competition that takes place at the end of February, is normally a sleepy event, garnering the attention only of hardcore fans. Last weekend, however, the traditional opening meet of the 2025 American season broke out of the “gymternet” and into regular-person news—for its men’s competition, even! Is this because Pommel Horse Guy is back on his Superman game? Amazingly, no. Instead, coverage centered on University of Michigan junior Frederick Richard—whom some in the gymnastics media (ahem) have called the future of the sport—and his one-man protest against its antiquated apparel standards.

Allow me to explain. Or, rather, allow Mr. Richard to explain. In the lead-up to the competition, Richard, who is known for his savvy social media presence and community outreach, dropped several teasers on his numerous feeds in which he explained that the regulation men’s uniform required by the International Gymnastics Federation is deeply unpleasant for him to wear, and as such, he doesn’t want to wear it anymore.”

Here’s Richard on Instagram: “I’m changing the gymnastics uniform and will be deducted for it. But that’s what it takes to create change. The sport made me and now it’s time for me to make the sport.”

See Richard: More than an athlete, a game changer, The Round-off Roundup: Male gymnasts deserve functionality in their attire too, and Olympic medalist Frederick Richard is aiming to change men’s gymnastics with a fresh uniform for more background.

From the NBC story, “The new uniform is part of Richard’s larger plan to bring men’s gymnastics into the sports zeitgeist.

“I feel like these next four years for me is, like, my arc of changing the sport,” Richard said. “Not just changing rules or changing uniforms, but bring more eyes to the sport, partner with different athletes, partner with different artists, partner with different people, to bring eyes to gymnastics and to tell my story.”

Growing up, Richard recalled “feeling uncomfortable or kind of embarrassed to tell people that I do gymnastics” for many reasons, but the uniform was a big one.”

We’ve written about the issue of skimpy uniforms in women’s sports. See here and here. And the values for me, in both men’s and women’s sports that matter here are are choice and inclusion. Those are feminist values and we here at Fit is a Feminist Issue applaud the efforts of Richard to change the culture of men’s gymnastics.

Just like women can play rugby, men can compete in gymnastics. And just like women should be able to play beach volleyball in the uniforms that make them comfortable, so too boys and men who compete in gymnastics ought to be able to do so in a uniform they’re not embarrassed to wear.

woman with a sign
Photo by cottonbro studio on Pexels.com

fitness · swimming

Facing an old fear and getting back in the big waves

Sam B1 Comment

In December 2007, just over 17 years ago,  I hurt myself pretty badly while on sabbatical in Australia. The whole family, including Jeff’s sister Susan who was visiting, were staying at a colleague’s cottage in Milton and enjoying a day at Mollymook Beach. Everyone, kids and adults, were playing and splashing in the waves. A fun day.

Suddenly, a very big wave appeared out of nowhere. It basically picked me up and threw me on the beach. I can’t describe it any other way. I couldn’t have done anything to make it end differently.

I passed out when I landed and I was in so much pain I was certain I’d broken my hip. Family took me to the emergency room. Nothing was broken, as it turned out. It was all soft tissue injury. It took me weeks to recover. For a few years after, my back wasn’t the same and I kept having back injuries. Needless to say, I’ve taken waves much more seriously ever since.

At the time it was all overshadowed by a much more dramatic event that happened that same weekend–Jeff’s more serious health issue,  a spider bite that caused his arm to swell up dramatically. Oh,  Australia.

Unlike me he was admitted to emerg and then ICU (yes, same hospital that I’d been to earlier in the day) and then spent days in hospital on IV antibiotics recovering, testing out the limits of our university travel insurance.

Okay, we’re both fine now. Maybe he’s more nervous about spiders. I’m definitely more nervous about playing in the surf. I’ve been in the ocean since, maybe once or twice, but only when it’s been calm.

Here’s where on the Australian coast it all went down.

Staying out of the surf has been easy in southwestern Ontario. I haven’t had to think about it really.  There are lots of lakes but no nearby oceans. I’ve visited the ocean in Newfoundland and Nova Scotia but it’s so cold there I’ve had zero temptation to get in.

I did love watching the surfers at Lawrencetown beach in Nova Scotia where some people actually surf year round. Brrrr!

Now here I am in Dunedin, New Zealand, living in the neighbourhood of St. Clair, one block from the beach. St. Clair beach is a good beach for surfing, lots of big waves. I love watching the beach. On a good day there’s dozens of surfers, My favourite is watching the kids and teens doing their surf lifesaving training in the evening. They wear wetsuits and confidently swim out through the waves. Sometimes they take boards and race back. I’m impressed!

Between the big waves and the cold water though–not to mention the shark warning bell!–I haven’t been that tempted to go in myself. Yes, to the hot salt water swimming pool but no to the ocean. But last weekend we had family from Australia visit, my cousin Greg and his wife, Jo. And we had an extra warm day. Also, the waves weren’t that big, and lifeguards were on duty between the flags. All the stars had lined up just right, and I happily went back into the waves.

Shark bell!
The salt water pool

Here we are! Yes, the waves knocked me off my feet once or twice. You can see from our faces below that we look plenty happy though. I think I’ve gotten over my fear of waves. Thanks all!

Thanks Greg for the photo. I’m in the middle, Jo on the left and Sarah on the right. (I’m going to nag Jo into writing about CrossFit sometime I hope.)

Jo, Sam,  and Sarah
St. Clair beach
The pool in the distance

Two divers retrieving debris in the Florida Keys. Scuba diving for fun and for good
fitness · scuba

Scuba diving for fun and for good

catherine w

Ever since I first went scuba diving ten years ago in Australia, off the Great Barrier Reef, I’ve been thinking about a return to the underwater world. It’s quiet (despite the sounds of the regulator making bubbles) and magical; swimming feels more like flying to me, and my body moves smoothly and efficiently, more seal than human.

My recent visit to the rivers and springs of Florida to visit manatees has firmed my resolve to get PADi-certified so I can dive properly and explore the blue world underwater. My interests are mainly in warm clear waters, in search of colorful fishes, graceful large undersea creatures, and hopefully some hardy and resilient corals.

However, this week I came across some examples of other reasons to go diving. In this story in National Geographic, writer and explorer Tara Roberts recounts her discovery of the diving group Diving with a Purpose. Here’s what they do (from her article):

…a group of predominantly Black scuba divers called Diving With a Purpose (DWP); they search for and document missing slave shipwrecks around the world. They helped with the discovery and documentation of the São José Paquete d’África shipwreck.

…since 2003, DWP has been training ordinary people as underwater archaeology advocates to assist archaeologists and historians in finding the submerged history of the African diaspora around the world. People as young as 16 and as old as 90 participate in this work. The only requirement is an interest in scuba diving and a commitment to perfecting your diving skills.

Tara in a slave ship wreck area, measuring to document the story.
Tara in a slave ship wreck area, measuring to document the story.
Measuring an area underwater near a slave ship wreck.
Making notes on an area underwater near a slave ship wreck.

So she joins them, and begins the process of scuba certification, specialized marine archaeology training from DWP, and then trips with them to search for and document the stories of people who were kidnapped and transported against their will and perished during the transatlantic slave trade.

You can watch a documentary about the search for slave wrecks here on Youtube.

Roberts has written a book about her experiences, called Written in the Waters: a Memoir of History, Home and Belonging. It just came out, and I’m looking forward to reading it. Will report back with a review.

My curiosity was activated by reading about Roberts’ voyage of discovery through diving. What projects are going on out there in the water whose purpose is greater than pursuit of colorful fish?

Turns out, there are loads of environmental and other organized diving groups, doing work they find personally meaningful and which contribute to the health of our planet.

One such program is called the Dive Against Debris diving certification. The PADI certification organization sponsors this program for training divers to learn how to survey sites targeted for debris cleanup. And there are a lot of such sites. Here’s a map of sites they’ve mapped out already:

Partial world map with debris sites for PADI Debris Diver cleanup.
Partial world map with debris sites for PADI Debris Diver cleanup.

You can learn more about the cleanup efforts in the Florida Keys in this video.

Unsurprisingly, there are organizations that keep track of and facilitate both learning and volunteering for underwater environmental projects. You can find such a list here, for example.

First things first, though: gotta get PADI-certified. Time for one of my favorite things: adventure travel planning!

Readers, have you done any underwater volunteer work? Any on-the-ocean environmental citizen science? I’d love to hear from you.

Sat with Nat

Nat uses self talk for your amusement

natalieh (she/her)1 Comment

A few weeks back I realized I could not bike to work for a good while. My beloved works from home. I get very anxious on my walk into work.

What can an extrovert who verbally possesses everything to do?

Post your positive self talk on social media! here is an example from Thursday.

Natalie is wearing a blue raincoat with the hood up. Her grey toque with a red and white band pokes out. Her wet brown hair slides down her shoulders.

Honestly, it started back in December posting love notes online during a winter storm while my sweetheart was away for 2 weeks. Then it became a bit of a walking weather report. Then it became the nice words I need to hear to be ok in the morning.

Before the pandemic I’d regularly cry on the walk to work. Sometimes I’d dry heave on my front lawn. I never realized how bad my anxiety was or how much it coloured each day until I got to work from home for a few years.

Going back to the office I stuck to a steady routine, every Wednesday, whether I was needed there or not for 18 months. I needed the practice.

My schedule includes a second day now and I keep working on pairing a self propelled commute with a little pep talk. It really does help.

My friend Yvonne regularly ends our chats with “I love you.” It wraps up our conversations beautifully.

It took me by surprise at first. I grew up in a family culture where “I love you” and hugging were not central to interactions. Turns out I really enjoy those two things quite a bit.

So, I’m glad you are reading this. I love that you care and spend time thinking about fitness and feminism. I think it’s good for both of us. I love you!

Cubiis, productity myths, and The Squeeze
equipment · fitness · functional fitness · gadgets · gear · health · overeating · time

Cubiis, productity myths, and The Squeeze

elan.paulson3 Comments

It’s been a long, cold winter, and I work a few days a week from home, so I’m inside at my desk a lot right now. When a friend told me she uses a Cubii whenever she works at her desk I went online to see about it (as one does).

The Cubii is one of many (many) under-desk elliptical and cycling trainers, ranging from about $150-$450 (if you don’t count the high-end ones). They claim to be small, silent, and easy enough to be peddled for exercise while one sits doing office work. The Cubii looks simple and convenient, though if I bought one it might join all of my other doo-dads I have bought over the years for simple and convenient exercise…now gathering dust.

Pedal trainers join many (many) other devices that are sold for exercise at one’s desk: isometric standing devices, standing desk mats with ridges for stretching, disc wobble cushions, gyro balls, and smart water bottles. I remember when at one time there was only the stabilizer ball that you sat on instead of a chair. Now you can buy an entire work station that doubles as exercise machinery.

Various people sitting on exercise balls at desks, a google image search
Various people sitting on exercise balls at desks, a google image search

Awhile ago I read an article by Eryk Salvaggio (2024), “Challenging the Myths of Generative AI”, that has stuck with me. The piece focuses on how, based on misunderstandings about how AI works, certain myths are shaping how we justify AI’s importance and reshaping how we think about ourselves and what we do.

For example, AI is widely regarded as useful because it is understood to save time. (Frequent users know this may not be true depending on how complex the task, how good one’s prompting skills are, and how critical one is about the output). The productivity myth underlying this valuation is the automation of work. If is AI is good because it saves time, then automating more of our work with AI is good because it will save more time. In this AI-infused workflow cycle, where saving time with AI is better than working without it, the automation of work itself becomes the preferred norm.

Put another way, has anyone encouraged using AI to help complete a task more slowly because that task is worth spending time on?

I just spent a bunch of time explaining that idea (thanks for sticking with me) because the productivity myth may take a related form in the world of desk exercise equipment. This equipment is sold as a healthy remedy for the harms of sedentary office work, but it also produces a new idea that exercising while working is good. We save time because we are doing both at once, but in doing so our relationships to work and exercise change.

In “optimizing” work time also as exercise time (or using exercise time to work) then neither work nor exercise needs to be (should be?) the single focus of our time. Whether we are effective working while exercising, or exercising in safe form or duration while working, is beside the point.

Of course, no one lives in this purely either/or world: you can use your Cubii at your desk and still go curling later in the day. And, not every minute of our work day is likely to suffer if we were to divide our attention with light exercise once in awhilr. For fidgety people like myself, physical activity of some sort might indeed promote increased focus during certain tasks.

Furthermore, if you want to exercise at work, you can certainly avoid commodifying it by passing on the costly exercise equipment and opting for brief stretching or body weight exercises. Most importantly, I am certainly not refusing the vast evidence that prolonged seated work is bad for one’s health.

But…in reviewing many review pages of Cubiis (and their first and second cousins) I began reflecting on how serving the myth of productivity means we may be more more likely to buy things that will help us to squeeze more out of our time without questioning the squeezing. When it is always better to optimize by going faster or doing two things at once, we may start to care less about what we are actually doing than how long it takes us to get to the next thing.

cycling · fitness

Discover Otago’s Stunning Harbour Cycle Loop Trail

Sam B

The Otago Harbour Cycle Loop trail opened in August 2023. Lonely Planet lists it as one of the top ten cycling routes in the world. And Sarah and I were happy to ride it Monday afternoon with our friend James.

The Otago Harbor Loop

We rode out the Portobello Road to Portobello picking up James along the way.  The oceanside pathway is protected from cars but it’s pretty exposed on the oceanside.  The view of the harbour is beautiful but I did spend a fair bit of time being extra careful not to wander off the edge into the water! We had a head wind on our way out so that helped with the being slow and careful part. There were lots of cyclists on the path,  including lots of seniors. I was surprised it was so busy on a weekday.

Here’s what the path looks like near the Portobello Pineapple.

We had time for a quick coffee in Portobello before catching the ferry across the harbor to Port Chalmers. The ferry looked like it would only fit a few bikes but the ferry operator managed to get a dozen or so on the boat– ten e- bikes and our two manuals, as she called them.  It was a quick trip across the harbor in the small ferry.

The bike path loop is formally called The Otago Vine .

The section from Port Chalmers back to Dunedin is pretty different. Because the railway line runs next to water you’re a bit set back from the ocean, possibly safer but also maybe less scenic. Where the Portobello side is pretty flat, the Port Chalmers side does have some hills. And the Portobello path has been there for a very long time, the Port Chalmers side is very spiffy and newly signed.

It’s a great fun loop to ride. 10/10 recommend for riders of all levels and abilities.

Sarah says, 

“There’s lots to love about the ride on both sides of the harbour. Stunning natural beauty is just the beginning, but it’s worth mentioning just so you know to stop at every bench along the way to marvel at the view.

It also has the advantage of having a steady prevailing winds that blow down the harbour, which means riding out into a headwind and zooming back. Whee!”

fitness

Am I fit enough?

Diane Harper

How much fitness is enough? At dance class last week, I did something that engaged all those lower ab muscles.

It has been ages since I had sore abs. I used to feel pretty good about feeling my abs because it meant I was working hard. Now, I am wondering whether I haven’t been working hard enough for a very long time, or whether my overall level of fitness is satisfactory (and therefore they don’t hurt).

And also, I’m almost 64 – who cares whether I have tight abs? If I’m honest, I do, sometimes, but I’m pretty sure no-one else even thinks about the state of my belly.

My belly, for reference, in my Wonder Woman swimsuit.

My Garmin tells me I have the fitness of an excellent 20 year-old. Aside from the grammar, what does that mean? Also, has Garmin ever considered talking to my knees? I’m pretty sure they would have a different story to tell, but that’s mostly because I have quad muscles that work way too hard.

I tried to find an amusing image of tight abs but the results were awful: diets, unrealistic workouts, probably photoshopped images. The least visually offensive was from a site with the word skinny in its name. If those are the role models, I’m definitely good, thanks!

Go Team 2025: Review, Revisit, Reassess…
ADHD · advice · fitness · goals · habits · self care

Go Team 2025: Review, Revisit, Reassess…

Christine Hennebury2 Comments

Okay, Team, here we are at the end of February and I, for one, have not made a lot of headway with my goals.

There are lots of good reasons for that but I have been feeling a bit frustrated and down about the whole thing.

But I don’t want my frustrations to get in my way though and I don’t want to waste time feeling bad about something that I can keep adjusting until I get more momentum.

So, I am digging into some RE words.

Return to my ideas.

Review what I want.

Revisit what I have tried.

Reassess my systems.

Rework my schedule.

Revise my plans.

Reinvigorate my practices.

Restart as needed!

You see the pattern here, right?

I am starting over but this time I have a bit more experience.

I’m checking what new information I have gathered since I started last time.

I’m figuring out what worked and what didn’t work.

I’m exploring how to adjust what needs adjusting.

I am going VERY easy on myself about the whole thing.

And I’m inviting you to do the same thing.

So, Team, if you have also been feeling a bit frustrated about your progress, can you take a look at your habits, your plans, your ideas, and your practices and choose some RE words to help you find your next steps?

And whether your practices have been puttering a long just fine or whether you have been kind of going in circles (and not in a fun way), or whether you are into the RE words like me, I offer you this gold star for your efforts.

Your hard work counts, no matter what!

Go Team Us!

Please be kind to yourself out there.

A painting of a gold star against a spiraled background
Image description: a small painting of a gold star with a background that’s a large green spiral with black stripes in between the spiral’s layers.
fitness

Thanks knees for all this Aotearoa activity!

Sam B

What I haven’t done on this trip to New Zealand: any multiday back packing Great Walks for which this country is famous. Maybe next time!

What I have done: Wow.  Rather a lot of things I wouldn’t have been capable of without my new knees.  I’ve been feeling very thankful for them.  I’ve been keeping a list from most recent to longest ago.

  1. Walking up (and down) the world’s steepest street!

Baldwin Street is the world’s steepest street and it’s here in Dunedin. I walked up it with Sarah and my cousin Greg, and his wife,  Jo, who were visiting us last weekend.

Me,  Sarah,  Jo, and Greg

The last time I did that was thirteen years ago, when my old knees worked just fine.

Here’s a record of that walk.

2. A monster hike that involved Sarah and me, bad Google map directions, and an hour downhill hike through long grass and bramble on uneven ground.  But hey,  check out the view!



3. A very long hike by my standards,  more than 3 hours  up and down lots of hills. This was on the west coast near the pancake rocks.

4. Scrambling over boulders at Maruia Falls. I was pretty impressed with my ability to scramble over the rocks. 

Thanks new knees!

Exploring Dunedin: Cycling and Local Culture
cycling · fitness

Exploring Dunedin: Cycling and Local Culture

Sam B

My research leave in New Zealand has two parts. The first part involved camping our way around the south island, taking the (very) long way between Christchurch and Dunedin. We worked in the morning–starting early so Sarah could overlap with Ontario in the afternoon yesterday. We’re both good now at scheduling meetings in Eastern Time. You just add 6 hours and subtract a day. So 6 am Tuesday for us, is noon Monday Eastern time. Later in the afternoons, after the ET workday ended,  we hiked or biked or even, one day, kayaked.

Now, the second part begins, my visit to Philosophy at the University of Otago. We’ve got a tiny rental flat in St. Clair, and every day, I’ll be biking to work. If you know Dunedin, you’ll know that I’m not that close by local standards. It’s almost 8 km to campus. It is, however, a flat route to campus, which is significant given the local geography. Last time I was here I was closer, but I lived halfway up something they call “the city rise.” It was a very steep downhill commute from our flat to campus, and I never successfully made it up the hill home. Ultimately, for the first time in my life, I walked to work and riding became a recreational pursuit.

Here’s my commute. This version was extra-long on time because it had a stop for groceries.

My ride home

So far in New Zealand I’ve done lots of recreational riding, some beautiful trails as well as some sketchy single track. Now it’s time to become a bike commuter again, on the left side of the road.

As a commuter that means getting used to local bike culture.

Here’s some of my observations so far:

🚴 There are a lot more cycle pathways–separate bike lanes–than there were when I was last here more than a dozen years ago. That’s great but the downside of that is that people expect you to know where they are and be in them. It’s taking us a bit to figure out routes using the bike lanes. There are also bike boxes at intersections. My fave thing is that there are also bike-specific traffic lights. Bikes get a green and no traffic is allowed to turn thus preventing bikes riding straight in the curbside bike lane from getting run over by people driving cars turning without looking. I Iike that a lot.

🚴The other thing that’s changed since I was here last is the proliferation of e-bikes. So many e-bikes. Like sometimes I feel like the last acoustic commuter in town.  The university even has e-bike charging stations. Now given the city’s topography if I lived here I would also have an e-bike for commuting.  There are places I just don’t go by bike because the hills are too steep to ride. Don’t suggest riding and then taking the bus as bikes are no longer allowed on the bike racks on the front of busses here. It turns out they block the headlights and there is a national rethink of how best to fit bikes on busses.

No bikes on bus bike racks.  We scanned the QR code for the explanation.

🚴 I know I can be annoying to local cyclists. First, I’m always signaling with the wrong arm. But I have to since I need to brake and signal and my rear brake is operated with my right hand. See this post for the explanation. I’m also slowing a lot coming into stops and intersections because I’m nervous about looking the right direction. I’m good with all of this driving on the left but on the bike I always need to keep track of where cars are and it takes a bit longer to process when I’m so conscious about it all.

🚴 Then there is the no small matter of the local weather. WIND! Whee! And also, unpredictable rain. Like a rainy day on the forecast doesn’t just mean it might rain. It means it will rain for a little bit in the morning, and then maybe again midafternoon and then thunderstorm at 7 pm. Storms move in fast and the radar isn’t as useful as it is at home. New Zealand is the middle of rather a lot of ocean and the weather is wild and unpredictable.

🚴The Otago campus is a “walk your wheels” zone. That varies from university to university. Guelph is a “ride slowly and yield to pedestrians” campus which I prefer but the building Otago Philosophy is in is right on the edge of campus, so all good.

Walk your wheels

🚴 Bike theft is less of an issue here so we’re locking our bikes up outside but we’re not being as careful as we are at home about taking off all the lights.

NZ front porch
We’re a long way from home