Dragon boat

What inspires your motivation?

Why is the water so brown?

When you’re used to clear water coming out of the tap it’s easy to make assumptions about how clean a water body is based on how clear it is. This means that most people assume that the North Saskatchewan River through Edmonton, Alberta, Canada is pretty dirty, particularly in the spring. The visible brown colour … Continue reading →

It’s not just figure skaters and gymnasts

As a figure skater I was pretty aware of how unreasonable societal and sport pressures can have pretty significant negative effects on the health of female athletes. Amenorrhoea, low bone mineral density, and low energy availability are all concerns due to high energy expenditure and low energy intake due to pressures to be thin and … Continue reading →

A Dilemma: Get Outside or Reduce My Footprint?

When I did my PhD research, I worked with outdoor educators on how they connect to climate change in their local environment. One of the things that came out of it was the dilemma of getting outside to be active and connect with natural spaces versus the environmental (and arguably potential social and economic) costs. … Continue reading →

How to run faster…

I’ve been noticing this trend when I run. If I try to follow the main recommendations right now that to run faster I need to increase my steps per minute I get uncomfortable (fair enough, I’m not used to running like that), my knee hurts more (that’s a little more troublesome), and now that I’m … Continue reading →

How certain are you? Leadership, responsibility aversion, and certainty

I started coaching figure skating when I was about 11. Since then I’ve picked up a number of coaching certifications and worked for several years leading outdoor sports. I always knew that in these roles I had responsibility for others. I had control over the environment that was created, opting for positive and supportive, but … Continue reading →

Common cold myths

For the past two weeks some of my dragon boat teammates ad I have been heading out on the water in outrigger canoes. It has been pretty chilly air temperatures sitting pretty close to the freezing mark. Understanding the biology of what causes a cold and with a good idea of all the myths out … Continue reading →

Why sports injuries keep happening despite research to prevent them

I’m known for doing research. I read a lot of academic research papers on training and injuries as they relate to things like the sports I coach. But I’m lucky. 1) I have access to academic databases so I can get that research that is located behind the paywalls of journals and 2) I have … Continue reading →

You’re only as tired as you think you should be

I have noticed this funny trend with my wrist, which I had my third surgery on after breaking it and tearing it before summer last year. The pain almost always starts to increase as I get close to the end of an activity. If you don’t think too much about this it makes perfect sense. … Continue reading →

Who is responsible for success and failure?

Recently I was learning about attribution theory, and how it relates to sports. Attribution theory relates to how and why people explain events in the way they do. This becomes self-serving attribution theory when we look at people’s success and failure. You are responsible for your own success – for example, athletes (particularly male athletes) … Continue reading →