Ep.20 Women's health strategy, fast twitching & Dua Lipa

This episode covers a wide range of topics including fitness trends, women's health strategies, the impact of NHS policies, and personal fitness journeys. Hosted by Sarah Bevan and Laura 'Biceps', it offers practical insights, industry updates, and personal anecdotes to inspire and inform listeners.

Chapters

00:00
Introduction and Personal Updates

02:57
Running and Training Challenges

05:49
Fitness Trends and Innovations

09:55
Women's Health Strategy Discussion

27:04
Concluding Thoughts and Future Outlook

27:31
The Politics of Women's Health

30:54
Challenges in the NHS

32:59
Misunderstandings in Women's Health

35:19
The Importance of Advocacy

38:04
Running and Strength Training

41:57
The Role of Strength Training in Running

49:17
Plyometrics and Power Production

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Hello and welcome back to Fit for War, a no-nonsense evidence-based take on health, fitness, and wellness with humour, honesty, and practical advice to help you be fit for whatever life throws at you. My name is Sarah, and if you're not boring me saying it yet, I'm a women's health coach, PT, and owner of some very white but very sore teeth. Now I think I resigned from the teeth whitening front.

SPEAKER_01 0:24

No, we're doing great. This is like teeth whitening is like an inju a test of endurance and resilience. It's like when it gets hard, that's the really good bit. And you're just you you've got you've got to push through it. Um just obviously it's an audio podcast, but just so you know, my teeth are about three shades uh icier. Yeah, yeah, they are so wide. They are so white. My name is Laura, also known as Biceps on the internet. I'm a PT, best-selling author, presenter, and quite elite uh at the cinnamon bun connoisseuring these days.

SPEAKER_00 0:59

Oh, I've not seen any on your stories this week.

SPEAKER_01 1:02

You kept them quiet. I have had one within the hour. Oh, have you? Um yeah, I did try and get one yesterday. Who did I take to show a cinnamon bun? I took my friend Ella. We were in the sauna yesterday, and then we went to MS, and I said, Ella, come, come, come, come. I'm gonna show you these cinnamon buns. And I said, they're£1.95 from MS, and they are baked fresh daily, and they're in a little, they're in a little sort of cupcake um holder. Is that right? I don't know how to say that. Cupcake in a container. In a container. Cupcake, case, case, case, case, case, case, cinnamon bun case. And they're not as big as the usual cinnamon bun. Now, obviously, size does always matter, but in the case of cinnamon buns, sometimes less is more.

SPEAKER_00 1:46

Ah, I think you have spoken about these, but is this the MS, this is the big one in CJ. You're not going to be able to do this.

SPEAKER_01 1:52

Yeah, yeah, yeah. The head of the HQ, the South West London HQ.

SPEAKER_00 1:56

Thank goodness. So they're not available in the little um in the station ones, are they, sadly?

SPEAKER_01 2:00

No, they're not. And what I have what I have also found out, as I am, I can't look at anything other than what's the commercials behind this operation, um, is what I found is their pricing uh is different on my Apple crumble, depending on uh what location. So there is at least a fifth a 15% price differentiation starting from£2.90 all the way up to£3.30. Um, and depending on where I am. And if I am in an on-the-go MS location, they're right, they can take me for that extra 40p because I ain't finding anything better.

SPEAKER_00 2:35

No, agreed. Agreed. I think yeah, I'm I find the same. I think I was at King's Cross the other day and I was like, I think they were£3.40. I thought, oh, that's more than I'm used to paying on the high street. But you're right, where else am I gonna go? Because no one else is gonna provide me with that quality item, are they?

SPEAKER_01 2:49

So it's in a choke hold, literally choke hold. We should report it to the competition commission because there just is no other alternative. So they've got they've got monopoly. They've got monopoly on us. Yeah, I will. I definitely definitely won't. Um, so what I do need to report to you is I've absolutely lost my head uh with this running business now. Um I am ready, I'm ready to go for it, but this week, um, and it is probably I've looked at my um ultrahuman ring air, uh which I've mentioned a few times, a new tracker because the whoop has gone. Um so I'm I'm I'm making decisions uh now based on a a match black ring. Um and I felt like in the absolute bin all week um aligned with my loot till phase. The good news is, and I say that with full sarcasm, is the day I'm due on is the day of the midnight marathon. I know. No this is an audio podcast, but Sarah's George has hit her nether region. No, I know, it is what it is. I keep saying, well, Olympic medals are won on every day of the cycle. That's true. We just gotta, I know, it's not ideal, but you know, God sends his best little soldiers, and uh, I'll just have to be a good little soldier. But yeah, I felt I felt pretty rubbish, and then I have to keep having like rational conversations with myself and others that are taper in the taper phase because we've built up so much fatigue from this block, and we we we should be resting. Um, and also I I actually um graduated from my um bilateral uh eccentric only calf raises yesterday. I was delighted to report to my physio that I can do them uh single leg now, both concentrically and eccentrically without pain. So yeah, so I've I've I've moved on. I've moved on. Um and also I'm having when I sort of tell people and they go, What are you up to this week? And sort of the coming week, I sort of tell them, and they're like, and you're still doing jujitsu, and you're still doing it. I'm like, Yes, you don't know me. You don't as the as the great Armin van Helden said, you don't even know me. So I um, yeah, I I can't lie. Strength training has taken an absolute back seat in terms of maximal strength training and and and power expression, but I'm I'm good. But I know, I know I'm trying to do too much.

SPEAKER_00 5:19

Bless you, you have been doing a lot of menu. Yeah, this week, another week has flown by. What have I been up to? Do you know what? I've actually had quite a good training week, if I do say so myself. What have I been up to? Yeah, I did a session on Monday. I've actually Harrison has updated my programme off the back of our conversation last week, which I had with him privately. I don't think he listened to the podcast and thought, I'm gonna change your program accordingly. But we've now reduced the sessions down to three strength sessions a week. Lovely session on Tuesday with my lovely friend Olla. Um, yeah, and I'm gonna I meant to be going to Yin Yoga, but it's fucking full again. Classic. A steady on the F in, yeah?

SPEAKER_01 5:54

So we've been doing really well. We've been doing really well with our language. Oh, we have anti-press uh explicit uh material for a while. No, no, no, not all.

SPEAKER_00 6:03

So we've done it now. Source bread. Um so I was gonna go to yin yoga after this, but I don't think I'm gonna get in. So I might do one of those really annoying like I'm gonna test my calf and my shin run after this, but I think I'm literally gonna do 3k no further. But I want to get back into one again. I am missing it. Now though it's getting warm, it's like 17 degrees today, so she's back in her fair weather running vibe. So yeah, I've been running, I want to do a run. I went for a swim the other day. Haven't sauned enough this week, actually, on reflection, but I might maybe do that tomorrow morning. But a good week all round. I finished my course, finished all 12 modules on my course, which I'm really chuffed with because I kind of set myself out to do that by the I gave myself six months to get that done in, so I'm well ahead of schedule, which is cool. Um, but I now have to revise my exams. So yeah, I was just telling Laura actually before we came on about this new well, I don't think I don't even think it is new, this um software called Google Notebook LM, I believe it is called. Yes, Google Google Notebook LM. And you can buy it as like an extension. I think I've paid like three pounds a month for it or something, but I've uploaded all of my module notes and it's created like different study materials for me. So like podcasts, flashcards, quizzes. So any any fellow students out there, and you're getting bored out of your brain doing the same past papers on repeat, have a look at that. I think it's really cool, and I've actually really enjoyed it. It feels quite kind of satisfying having all this kind of stuff produced for me. So I was I was listening to my podcast about the endocrine system whilst I was in MS earlier, which was a fabulous time for all around, really. Very on brand. Um, but yeah, good week, really. Actually, I was in a I was a bit of a grumpy cow yesterday morning, Laura was like Okie dokie, but I managed to turn it around. Good gym session, music blaring, windows open driving home. It doesn't get better than that, does it? It's something about music, music and cars and sun and windows open. Great week, great week, actually. Yeah, positive vibes.

SPEAKER_01 7:59

Nothing better than a good flashcard.

SPEAKER_00 8:01

Oh god, yeah, the four love a flashcard ID.

SPEAKER_01 8:05

Yeah, Sarah yesterday she goes, I I feel I'm in a bad mood, and then she told me a few things that had happened, and I said, Okay. And it was just one of those where it was like, Oh, I know exactly how she feels because I've also been frequently in positions where I'm like, you'll never guess what happened. And then you say it out loud to someone and they're like who's not mental or or feeling shit that day, and they go, Yeah. Yeah, it was. I said to Sarah, I said to Sarah, is there any other context to this? Because I wouldn't feel any sort of way about that situation. She's like, Yeah, no, I know, but it's just like so yeah. I've also got another uh one of uh my friends who's actually uh a regular um listener of the pod. It's probably about time that I I shout out my my mate Spoons. Um she listens to us while she is doing her uh training, she trains at home. Oh, I love that. And what she does is she sends me a voice note that says, Hi, hiya, mate. Um, permission to uh to do a rant.

unknown 9:05

I love that.

SPEAKER_01 9:06

I don't even ask permission, I just do well. She doesn't now, she just says I'm gonna rent because I said don't ask. I'll always say yes. I'll say, always say yes, but it was it was a five minute 59. And I thought I was like, ooh, locked in. But it was also a five minute 59 after about five other voice notes between one to two minutes that I said, bro, I'm I've just arrived at jujitsu. I see, I see, I see something's going on. I'll come back to you an hour and a half minute, and then and then I had so I've had about 15 minutes worth. So yeah. Oh, I love that. Um yes, but obviously been one of those weeks, and um on the uh on the spiritual side, I understand Mercury is in some sort of micro micro ave. Again, yeah, yeah, yeah. Kathy said so. Kathy, um we've mentioned Kathy before, she is a spiritual guide, let's say. She does um lots of sound baths, does lots of Pilates, she's the the head of uh mind, body, sound, soul, uh legs, bones, and tums, I think, at Thirds Phase, and she has forwarded me some some spiritual information today that I read and I was like, yes, so that it's all about change is occurring and everything feels a bit unsettling and all of that gaff. So it's all happening. And speaking of things that are all happening, what is new uh in health and fitness this week? So, one of the things that really caught my eye in one of our favourite subjects, which is the Hydrox, and we just saw Hydrox is in Poland this uh this week in Warsaw, and it looks to be a very fast course um for those that are interested in in Hyrox, lots of PBs. The new male uh singles pro and women's uh singles pro world records got broken um last night in Warsaw, and um my good mate Faisal who um is the the voice of of all of the the high rocks events um he PB'd his lifetime uh yeah it was he was trying to get under sub 70 minutes and he got one hour seven, so it's obviously obviously good vibes, but yeah. So on the subject of Hyrux, um and I have a good mate of mine who actually I used to work with back in the day when I when I was uh did my five year stint at L'Oreal, and she is now the head of international global research and development at Les Mills, and she came to visit the UK not too long ago, and and I and she was going, What's the what's the deal? What's the trends? I said, mate, it is not Les Mills, I can tell you that for sure. I said, There's still definitely a cohort of people that love it, and I'm not knocking not knocking it. However, the future trends of fitness and the younger generation is in fitness racing, and um whether I've had an influence, who bloody knows? Um but we now see um Les Mills and HyRox are the official uh HyRox group training program partner. Um and Les Mills, listen, like it or not, for yourself, they are the world's largest group training provider. And if you know anything, yeah, they are. And if you know anything about it, um my friend Claire Rafferty, she used to be a Les Mills instructor up north in wee Scotland, and it's like a cult. It's like a cult. You get all the the instruct the top instructors are like like celebrities, they're like Jew Leepa of fitness.

SPEAKER_00 12:31

No way. Get me up.

SPEAKER_01 12:33

I don't know why I don't know why I chose Jewel Leeper there. I just really like personally, I really like Jewel Leeper.

SPEAKER_00 12:40

I love a bit of Julia Peep, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 12:42

Exactly. We love Julia Peep. She said don't call him or something. That song is one of my favourite. Don't ring him up. You know, don't don't call him. It's like it's the girly's anthem. Don't don't ring your ex, basically, is the girly's anthem, isn't it, Jewel Jewel Peeper? I love her. Is that her? No, babe, that's Mabel. Nah. That's Jewel Leepa. Mabel, Mabel might be don't call up. No, that no, that's the ring ring ring on the phone, is the Mabel one. I know what you mean. I know what you mean now. That is also a banger. But Jewel Lipa, right, that's it. Fuck yeah. Jewel Peapa. Jewel Lipa banger. What's her best song? Call on the phone. What's the Jewalipa phone? What the hell? It New Rules, New Rules, it's called. New rules. No, it is, it is, it is, it is. So you go, Jewel, new rules lyrics, right. I'm gonna wrap to you live and direct.

unknown 13:39

Please, please.

SPEAKER_01 13:40

Yeah, don't pick up the phone. What one? Don't pick up the phone. Next one. No, that's the anthem. That's it. That's it. Just don't pick up the phone. You know he's only calling because he's drunk and alone. Two. Don't let him in. Because you'll have to kick him out again. Three, don't be his friend. I know. I've restricted him. I've I've un I've removed him as a follower. I've restricted him. I'm definitely not gonna wake up in his bed in the morning, I'll tell you that for free. Juliefer is actually like the GOAT. Actually, when you really think about that advice, that is sound advice from Jill Pieper. How have we got to there from Les Mills and Hyrule? Right, so that is what's happening in fitness this week. So there we'll be we'll share more about this, but it seems a slightly on the surface an unlikely partnership. However, they are the performance endurance end of the spectrum.

SPEAKER_00 14:37

Yeah, yeah, yeah. No, it does it does, it does make sense. I'm intrigued to see what it actually results in.

SPEAKER_01 14:45

Well I tell you, it's a fit it's a f it's affiliates, so they will provide gyms with like a structure to have like classes. So you would sign a bit like a CrossFit model, right? Where you would be a CrossFit affiliate and you would get the programming from CrossFit.com or whatever someone. So yeah, so now Les Les Mills.

SPEAKER_00 15:06

So the gyms that are now HyROC's affiliates will get all of their programming from Les Mills.

SPEAKER_01 15:11

Yeah, potentially adopted uh quickly in the UK, probably not. I think Les Mills would have some work to do in the performance area of uh of authority and and programming. And I do think in sort of HIROX centres, I do think in the performance land of the UK in particular, there's quite a lot of pride and uh ownership of the programming that a head coach will be delivering to like say, for example, where you are at Barch, I imagine the programming is delivered through a framework that is sort of the blueprint is owned for Barch, and you as coaches and representatives will programme. So over that, yeah, yeah. Yeah, I don't know, it's it's a tough one, isn't it? Because I think programming is is what it is. It is, but it can also be whatever. I think you can get a bit too stuck into you know the ins and outs of yeah, rips and blah blah blah. It's it's really how you how you deliver it and how you get the best of each individual, whether that's one-to-one, small group, or oh large groups. So yeah, that was that was quite big uh news. Um the other the other thing to share from me um from Fitness This Week is I went to a uh Nike Women's Um run club that was hosted at the new Nike Women's Store on King's Road. Um, I'll be really honest with you. The reason why I went is not because I was looking for another run club, uh, is because my mate Dora haven't seen her in ages, and sometimes with busy working people, the best way to see them is to arrive at their work. At their work.

SPEAKER_00 16:44

I am here.

SPEAKER_01 16:46

Yes, so maybe if you get too busy, I'll have to book in a tabac on a Thursday morning. Um so yeah, I arrived at Dora's work, and actually it was really lovely because it was a great group of women, uh, and I know some of the staff uh there at Nike Um Women King's Road, and I tried on the new Pegasus 42s uh as uh over the last year I've been a staunch Adidas girly um with the Carbon Adios Pro 4s and the Everyday Runners Cushion No Carbon, the Evo SLs, and I actually really like them. So it gets up. Yeah, the the the bicep seal of approval. I don't think for me, I think maybe my I'm a bit because I'm I love the look of the Adidas ones, yeah trainers, um I'm sort of all of my socks and outfits really align to those shoes that I own, and I've struggled. I I didn't I don't like sometimes when Nike launch a shoe like a Metcon, they launch them in some of the rankest colours I've ever seen. And I hate red. I hate red, I hate red. Yeah, hate red. I don't have anything red. I'm a pink pastely corally lilac gal with a with a with a bit of black and don't come back, don't call them up. And that is I didn't like them because they're green, but I wore them and actually they're sick. So that's that's nice. That's that's that's my that's my uh observations of I like your observations.

SPEAKER_00 18:08

I have some observations, obvious, observations that I like to share as well. Did you see off the back of our conversation around Nike shutting gyms? I was intrigued to see Gym Sharker opening a gym in Miami. Miami, welcome to Miami. So that I was interested to see. Obviously, as we've discussed in that, it's such a tough time to be opening physical spaces and to see them doing that now. I was like, oh, interesting. So I'll be intrigued to see how that goes down. Um and my second finding, which I thought was actually really heartwarming, pardon the pun, the British Heart Foundation released a survey showing that a quarter of Brits said their top fitness goal this summer is simply to have fun. Oh isn't that really nice? And I think that's actually quite a stark finding compared to our performance, performance, performance, PB, PB, PB. Like people just want to go and have a lovely time exercising. Bit of paddle, bit of pickleball. Also, I don't I still don't understand. Do you know the difference between pickleball and paddle? Because I am a clue.

SPEAKER_01 19:17

Yeah, I've played both. Pickleball's like a bit more like the it's the the ball's softer, the court is smaller, it's a bit more like a small badminton is the pace of the game.

SPEAKER_00 19:29

I really love Badminton, so I might do a pickleball.

SPEAKER_01 19:32

Yeah, much lower in there. I found it quite irritating, pickleball. It was like it wasn't, yeah, it was like Badmington's like you hit it and like ten years later it goes over the net. So you're more of a paddle girl, yeah. I'm more of a paddle girl, yeah, and you can really wallop it in paddle. Whereas if you really wallop it in pickleball, oh my watch has just told me to stand up. I can't, I'm I'm working. I'm working hard. My watch needs to respect my hustle. Yeah, okay. So that's that's quite uh two observations. So let's go back go quickly back to uh Gymshark do gyms. I think, yes, it is really difficult to operate a commercially successful um uh gym space. However, what my hope would be is that for any brand um that has is sort of has the ability to invest today in a in a in a um activity or a thing or a place or a shop that is low ROI or maybe doesn't even make any money, is that it's brand positioning, it's brand credibility. Um and one of the other things that we saw um Unilever, FMCG Giant, they have yeah, they have stood down uh a lot of their advertising um revenue and they're just they're they've expanded their influences. And I had a conversation with uh someone yesterday, a friend of mine who was within the industry who is a her role is a community leader, and we both sort of said, yeah, it's not really what brands say about themselves anymore, it's what other people say about your brands. Yeah, you know, it's like it's like you I could put up an ad and say biceps training programme is the best thing ever, but when you go on, you know, Google review one star, she didn't she was shit. So what you know it doesn't matter what I say because the the way in which consumers decide they've got so much access to information is that they can they can sense check that, they can uh yeah, they can fact check you immediately. So I think that's I think that's really interesting, but I just hope they don't think they're gonna make loads of money from it, and it should just be seen as a rich brand experience for consumers.

SPEAKER_00 21:30

Yeah, because I think their their event that was it drumsheds last year, that was crazy, that was really, really popping. So yeah, I guess they're trying to replicate that kind of environment perhaps in a in a um permanent fixture, but the biggest update of the week for me was and this is the renewed women's health strategy for England. Have you read it, Laura? Did you see it?

SPEAKER_01 21:53

Well, I haven't read the whole health strategy. Cover to cover. No, no, no, no, I haven't yet. I'll I've planned to do that tonight at about midnight.

SPEAKER_00 22:00

Batman, perfect. Well, yes, so basically, I don't know if anyone has seen this. Um, Wes Streeting, who's a health secretary of state for health and social care, has recently um this week renewed the women's health strategy for England, which initially I was very excited by, and lovely Dr. Faye Bateman did make me laugh because she said women are creaming their pants over this, and I thought that's probably quite accurate because I thought fantastic. We have some update, we have some progress, and then I read it, and I'll be honest with you, I am a little bit disappointed. I think it's been very emotively written. The first kind of part written by Wes in the vertical commas was quite emotive, but and they use kind of big terms like medical misogyny, and obviously everyone's getting really excited over this, like great, we're being seen, we're being heard.

SPEAKER_01 22:52

And also a man a man saying that, saying there is medical misogyny is like okay, middle-aged white man, we hear you.

unknown 23:01

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 23:01

Yeah, so initially I thought fantastic, and then I kind of got into it a little bit more. And for full transplant, I haven't read it covered to cover myself, but I've read kind of the ovary and the summary ovary, ovary, the summary of You are full of pens today. I'm full of them today, but I guess I mean some of the some of the headline stats that came from it were quite shocking. Obviously, I think it's it's I think the fact that we're talking about women's health is obviously fantastic, and I think obviously there's been a lot of data and a lot of research pulled into this document anyway. So some of the key stats that actually were really quite shocking, and it's good to see this written. I think it's important for everyone to see this kind of stuff written now. Um, so basically, it's saying some of the kind of the fact that life expectancy fell by 2.5 years between 2019 and 2021 and 2022 and 2024. So life expectancy is dropping, and also 84% of women report not being listened to by their healthcare professionals, which is really quite scary. 84% of women women not being listened to.

SPEAKER_01 24:08

Sorry, I'm so so locked in with these stats. That is a that is a very classic joke that I thought. That was quite classic. That's what I remember. Okay, can continue.

SPEAKER_00 24:18

Continue. So, and then some of the equalities. So basically saying that black women face nearly three times the maternal maternal m mortality rate of white women, yeah, and the wealthiest women live almost 10 years longer than the poorest. So there's some really scary stark stats there. That's for nice. And again, I was like, great, we're un we're actually kind of revealing this level of inequality in the UK now. Like, yes, this is horrendous, but at least we're being presented with the facts. Go into a little bit deeper. So, in terms of like, I guess I kind of broke it down into four key pillars that this covered. So I'll go through them quickly and then we can have a bit of a breakdown between the two of us. So, the idea now that they're planning on embedding patient reported experiences as a measure in terms of NHS services. So, basically, the idea is that if you have a bad experience, you'd feed that back, and then that would have a direct impact on the funding for that department. So, basically, if you say that something's shit, it's basically accountability, essentially, which is a step in the right direction, we can argue for sure. So, that's one thing. Another thing that's been really interesting, because I spoke I've got some clients that actually live in Ireland, and they were really shocked that I didn't have any pain relief when I had my coil fit, and I said, Well, that's not really a thing in the UK. Another update that they're proposing is that there's going to be um a level of informed consent and pain relief choices for any gynee procedures, and that includes the coil implantation. So it's again there's more of an understanding and a reasoning around the idea that actually these procedures are really quite uncomfortable and painful. So that's again, we're moving in the right direction in terms of that. Um they have said that they're going to again, this is very broad stroke, they're going to tackle the gynecological waiting list, which is currently over half a million women. Wild. But this is a promise, but my concern is how the helly are you gonna actually achieve that if you're not supporting doctors in the NHS anyway? So there's all well and good promising this, but actually, how well are they gonna be able to follow through with this? Like they're taking things online. My biggest argument for that is like actually, it says like there's an NHS hospital, like a virtual hospital on the NHS app. I couldn't find it on my app yesterday. So they're putting all these things in place, supposedly, but actually they're not very accessible. And for my mum or your mum or the the older generation of vertic comers, that's gonna make it even harder for them to access it if you're digitalizing everything that you're gonna massively miss out a large chunk of the population as well. So that concerned me. Um yeah, basically they're trying and they're making some really big claims here, they're trying to in improve quality of life, in increases life expectancy that we've seen dropping. They claim that they're gonna eliminate cervical cancer by 2040, they're gonna expand genomic testing, um, and they're basically trying to improve kind of quality of life. There's lots of promises, but I just don't see it happening if I'm honest with you. Um, yeah, to be honest with you, there's a lot of big terms used, like medical misogyny again. I think a lot of emotive languages using it, but can I see anything drastic actually happening? I don't know. I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 27:33

Yeah, I think it's one of those things. I mean, this isn't obviously we don't talk a lot about politics, but I sadly think our health, and especially women's health, is highly political. Political, I agree. You know, as much as I I I I can't really speak from a position of of qualification or or or really understand, but I think just as a woman who has worked with a lot of women who have lots of gynecological issues, and you know, we have heard and have experienced the stories of not being listened to, of being told it's in your head, or people that you know, we've got people that we know that have it's taken 10 years to get a a diagnosis and actually be operated on, and that can have completely life-changing impact on on your future options, and yeah, like it's it's actually it's it's frightening. And I always think if any of these things were to be happening to men, we would have been far more advanced at it at this stage. Um I I think I think it's because it is political. I think the main messages are so emotive, and it does sound fantastic. Okay, great, let's let's hit the waiting list, you know. Um, and I I'm gonna say I'm gonna sound like a uh a a real knob with this, but I I have private health insurance and I don't actually interact often with the NHS. My actually, my my um gynecologist is Sarah's client. Um PT client, but it's just one of those things where it's like I don't trust the system at all. And and and and yeah, like you said, you're not they're not fixing the the the the foundations of the NHS to enable the staff to uh to equip and empower them to actually do that.

SPEAKER_02 29:22

Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 29:23

I know that's what the I I know I've said before, like my my mate is training to be a I think this is how you say it, phlebotomist, she takes blood. Yeah, yeah, training to be a nurse, and the the conditions that she works in in Chelsea and Westminster is absolutely savage. I'm never complaining again that I, you know, I had to work till 10 pm, you know, sat at my desk with a nice cup of tea, listening to Julie. It's actually it's it's horrendous. So I I think unless that the foundations of ENHS is tackled, we're not tackling anyone's ovaries.

SPEAKER_00 30:00

I totally agree. I totally agree. And I think Yeah, I was just I kind of it angered me a little bit. I think even the language use, I mean, and I again I'm not um I'm not a medical professional, I've spent a lot of time and money studying around women's health, but even the the language use, it's like the the term menopause is misused. Menopause is one day. It drives me insane. It's like the menopause, I was like, no, no, we're talking about the perimenopause here, and I think the fact that even the basics aren't being mastered in some of these key documents drives me crazy. Just think that actually, do we actually care, or is this just very performative? And sadly, I think because we talk about that political charge with this topic, I think a lot of it is performative, and I sadly don't think we're gonna see these changes that are promised. And it's it's so right, like the structures and the bones of the NHS need massive change, and even like the fact that I was like, Great, okay, an online hospital. I can't get on it, I don't know how to use that. Um yeah, and it's it's really quite sad. I don't know. I mean, have you ever had experience yourself of feeling like not listened to? But I'm saying you're kind of saying you kind of by bypass it almost.

SPEAKER_01 31:05

Um yeah, I think I've no, because anything, anything of that I can remember in recent life, I've I've gone to a private doctor. Okay, and I've been very however, so not me personally, however, I have experienced some people very close to me that I think I have witnessed um the because the NHS is struggling. Um I in when I was in uh hospitals supporting someone very close to me, I really struggled with that urgent. I didn't think there was enough resource and support there. And yeah, and only because I was able to and had the energy to politely push for answers or I'm seeing this, please can you come and have a look at this? And you just think I dread to think some, you know, due to lack of resources, I I these people are got are unbelievable that they work in these environments. You know, I was in ICU for a short period of time, and I could tell you I could still hear the beeps of the life support machines for for weeks after. So the environment that they work in in a health capacity is dreadful, I think. Um so so I I I yes, I I I do think, yes, I do. Even I hope she won't mind me saying this, but my my mum has been sent around the absolute houses with her diabetes. She got she got told one thing, and it sent it sent her into quite a challenging position, and there was no way of looping back the feedback. It's almost like she had to start again. You sort of get in, you see someone, you've got 15 minutes. I mean, this works both ways, right? I'm sure the doctor would like more than 15 minutes, but you've got 15 minutes to explain a life story in XYZ, and then she's oh, try this, right? Well, I can't come back. Oh, another mate of mine who had the coil, it was and uh HRT, it was like, try this, come back to us in three months. Three months.

SPEAKER_00 33:01

I know, I know, I know, and that is so it's and I think that's what really fired me up for my transition from kind of PT to more women's health coaching is like it just I've got such a and and sadly, I think a lot of my passion is driven from anger around it. Like I've got clients and they won't mind me saying, They've been sent round the houses. Like HRT has got to be so specific and so tailored, and it's so different person to person, day to day, hour to hour. And of course it's going to take time, but putting someone on a generic HRT dosage and then saying, Yeah, we'll have a doctor's call in six months' time, it just isn't acceptable, and it just I don't think there's still enough understanding around how how complex it is and how much help people need in that time, and it breaks my heart. And I think as women, and I've seen it sadly, I'll always kind of say to my clients, like, please go and speak to GPI. I always obviously it's not within my scope of practice to kind of to tell them to do X, Y, and Z. I can make recommendations, but it they've always got to be overseen by a medical professional. But it's that final step of seeing a medical professional that is often that door in front of them to make any changes or see any improvement. It's it and it breaks my heart. And yeah, it's funny. I had a I had a when I had my coil fitted last year, I only had it for literally two weeks, my body started to reject it, which is a different story altogether. But I remember when I was kind of going through the process of consultation, them asking me about it, and I said, Will I will I still have a cycle? And they were like, Yeah, yeah, you'll have a cycle. I said, But it's uh it's a hormone. I'm having a hormone implanted into me that'll be that'll be releasing a synthetic hormone, so surely that would impact my cycle. And I was kind of like, No, no, that's not how it works. Anyway, that is how it works. I've put my hours and my research into it. You obviously releasing a hormone, you that may in some people cause ovulation to stop. So then I wouldn't be having a full cycle. So the information that I presented with was not really correct. And instead of just saying, I don't know the answer to that, which I would have taken, to be honest with you, kind of being shushed a little bit just made me feel tiny, and I thought, actually, like this is and I'm someone who is very confident in my knowledge and abilities in women's health. How the hell would Sally down the road who hasn't a clue what she's taking feel? Like it's it's it's a system that I think this this performative document isn't gonna fix, I'm afraid. But at least we're talking about women's health, I guess, a little bit more, and at least it's kind of giving a bit more of a stage to it, I suppose.

SPEAKER_01 35:27

And I think also, you know, with all of these things, it in it encourages this discourse, and and and what you know, people like I really like um Dr. Fay Bates, uh his fantastic, yeah. Similar to Dr. Hazel Wallace, uh the food medic. She, you know, they're both ex-NHS workers that have studied that very, very hard, dedicated a lot of their time to be in that position, and for their own personal reasons, which I completely support, they've exited the NHS, but they're still trying to dedicate their life to try and help give Share more information, and it just is like, yeah, it's it's it's really sad, isn't it? That I I one um my my goddaughter actually she she trained up to be a nurse, and I remember her very early on in her career. Once she'd done the the hours, she went off to be a locum, which is a GP that is basically like a consultant freelance, yeah. And I was like, Oh, what's can you just do that? And she's like, Yeah, because the NHS are desperate, so I'm a locum, they have to pay me more, and I do less hours. And I'm like, that's not a sustainable uh way for the NHS to run because they're paying uh more. So, yeah, again, listen, this is purely our speculation, this is our our views as just two two women that are really passionate about advocating for women, and the statistics are really clear like 84% of women don't feel heard. That's probably that's that's that's probably like if it applies to everything at home, yeah. At work, you know, it's like it's um yeah, it's it's it's a mad one, but it you know, in a way, let's try as women usually do, we try and find this tiny positive and go, well, at least we're being talked about.

SPEAKER_00 37:09

Yeah, yeah. And it's even the stats like I listened to, I signed up to a petition. You know, you can sign up to a petition now and you get no updates on kind of if it's gone through parliament. And there was a debate I was listening to this morning actually, that um they're trying to push for leave, three days leave a month for those who suffer with adiosis, endometriosis. I've not actually come to the end of the debate, I'm not sure what the the outcome was, but uh again, like at least it's being brought up for debate now, it's being discussed in these kind of archaic old walls. Like actually, they're they're talking about it now. So it is progress, it's a step in the right direction, right? Like 10 years ago it wasn't even being discussed, or people would be embarrassed to talk about it. So I guess it is some some positive to it, but yeah, that was another stat that really shook me. It was one in six women with endometriosis leave work because they can't they can't work or they don't feel supported in work, which is just it's just unacceptable, it's just totally unacceptable. So, yes, that certainly got me fired up this week, that's for sure.

SPEAKER_01 38:07

Yeah, absolutely. And speaking of being fired up, it is now one week until biceps can uh I can finally stop talking about it. Um but yeah, so it is one week, seven days, seven days until I'll I'll head off and run the midnight marathon. And one of the things that I've been reflecting on uh a lot, and I've observed it, I was I was in in my gym um this week, sat on the C2 bike with time on my hands, looking for entertainment, and I was looking around and I saw a lot of girlies do some calf, they were doing some calf raises and some some things, and I just thought I I just don't think that was positive, I thought it was good, but I just don't think people truly understand how to strength train whilst being a runner. Um, obviously, you and I both look at it from a professional capacity, and obviously I'm you know I'm going through it at the moment in that I have my running career has probably lasted, I don't know, three three years of my life over the years. Because the first marathon I didn't train at all. I just went for I I went for long runs with my with my mate Nat. Literally, we would have been out, we would have been out in in in Bougie, South Ken, until 3am, and we go, oh shit, mate, we've got to go on this run, and we drag ourselves round and our joints and everything just felt our the DOMs were insane. That was 2013, was my first marathon. That's that's when I that's when I worked for L'Oreal and we smoked fags like before we started, and then like I remember I remember what it's just giving me a flashback of sorry Nat, you're married and it's fine, no one's gonna judge you. Um she basically we were like running and she was like started like retching, and I was like, what's going on? And she was like vomited full tequila. Yeah, it was absolutely disgusting. And then another time she, you know, we were like, right, apparently we need these gels. This is twelve this is 2013. Apparently we need these gels. Yeah, we didn't take the the Joe Wick. Did you see that thing? Joe Wicks. Joe Wicks is like, people do not need to fuel for their marathons. Goodness, okay. So yeah, we we took the Joe Wicks um guidance on uh don't don't do anything anyway. We've got these gels. Oh no, we had some jelly babes in these gels. Anyway, we were in Hyde we were in Hyde Park and Nat went to throw her gel in the bin. It wasn't a regular bin, it was the Hyde Park dog poo bin, and she opened it and the oh my god, yeah, and there was there was a dog poo situation. I was like, I cannot even look at you. But she is like my one of my best. We have been through some times, we've seen each other absolutely at our at our worst. But that was 2013, so yeah, as I'm coming up to the marathon, my Facebook account is reminding me of the two of the two times that I have already run the marathon, which is 2013 and 2019. So yeah, and obviously, you know, I I'm not arriving fully uh in intact, which I knew I probably wouldn't, um, because I'm trying to do a lot of things, but yeah, I just think you know, with with running, people think, you know, if I need to get better at running, I need to run more. So I think there's there's a there's a few things that I I see in that people think every run should be like go ham. Every run sh every run should be a hard run, and people neglect their their strength training. So I think it's like we know strength training it's not optional, it's actually very protective. And yes, in the short term, me my terrible outlook on training in in 2013 did get me over the line, um, but I was a bit of a mess um afterwards, and like now I would say I'm in the best shape uh probably I've ever been. I think that strength training compounds over the years, and you know, I'm I'm in a good place. I can run a half on a Sunday and be not a problem the Monday, you know, because I I can I can recover really well. So I think so true, actually. Yeah, yeah, just uh for those listening, those listening may already know all of this. I think it's just it's good, it's good to have the reminder and the refresher that if you know if you if you're not strength training, we know you could be increasing your risk of injury. And I think even those in the profession that know still find ways to avoid it. And have I been excellent at my strength training that is running specific every week? No. Have I told myself that you know doing uh a few goblet squats and blah blah blah as as part of an accessory in a class is enough? Yes, I've told myself that, and and I know deep down uh it is not, and if we really think about what is what is distance running, you know, I'm out on the road for hours and hours, it's that repetitive load, that shock, that force that goes through your entire body. Um and it is your yeah, it's the force onto the floor plus your body weight, you know, a thousand times, a step of uh, you know, 10k, 10,000 steps. It's mad. And without strength training, the tissue isn't in a in a position that it is able to avoid uh the fatigue as fast, your form breaks down, obviously injury risk uh rises. So if you do have stronger muscles, uh you get better load distribution across the joints at the tendons, and you might find that when you are running, I I hear it a lot from my girlfriends that they start running again. I'm back on the back on the wagon, I'm back running. Oh, and then three, four weeks down the line, oh, I've got a bit of a pain in my knee.

SPEAKER_00 43:30

This will be me.

SPEAKER_01 43:32

I did say friends, I didn't I didn't say that that close company, but listen, you know, you and I know better, and we still we still think it's it's okay. I mean, I I certainly think I'm completely invincible. Um, and we know strength training has been shown to reduce the running related injuries by up to fifty percent. Uh we know that from ev evidence based studies, and particularly effective for you know those little problem areas, so like your knees, your Achilles and And I don't know, I don't talk about it much, but maybe calf strains. Um, it can also improve your running economy. So if you are more efficient, just think you know, how how do I know if I'm getting better? Well, I'm using less energy to deliver the same output. That is still progress. Um, you can produce more force with less effort. Um, and also I think people get really worried about lifting heavy while they're running, like it's gonna take away from your running. And I think that's where you need to be smart in your periodisation, and by and by that I mean uh, you know, don't do a heavy leg day and then go into a run on the same day. Like what like schedule your week so that you can you can lift relatively heavy for you, you've got the ability to recover, and then you've got a day or so to then get into that run and and push it. Like there is technically uh you know a potential inference effect if you're training two different domains, which I guess is maximal strength or strength endurance plus your cardio uh ability and your running economy. But I just think you have to focus on training smart your uh your you know your your posterior chain, your glutes, your hamstrings, you can't neglect that as well. Um and so yeah, dude, how how would I how would I encourage someone to strength train if they're currently running a decent volume a week? I'd say start with twice a week. Um two strength training sessions, make them full body, uh go for you know relatively heavy, heavy is different for everyone. I think a good you know rep range is something like a if you're completely new to it, go for a 10 to 12 rep. If you've been going a little while and you think actually I can push the intensity a little bit, hit a six to eight rep range, three or four sets, uh that is wonderful. And you know, yeah. What is running is single leg plymetrics, it's single leg work. So don't just do your you know your your regular goblet squats. I would actually and I I said this on another podcast as I've got older, actually, my preference to get more out of people is to do more single leg, single leg and single arm work because there's always a compensation somewhere. Uh, you know, a leg press, I love a leg press. Just do a single leg leg press and and and give yourself actual rest between your left and your right because you're stimulating your nervous system. So make sure. Start with your weaker side, your non-dominant side, push it, give yourself a rest and then hammer it on the other. And I think you know, people go, Oh, you know, but I'm not lifting as much, but the intensity is there, and that's what we want. We we want the intensity to to create the stimulus. So that is one of my uh yeah, one of my observations uh this week. But yeah, to the girlies that were calf uh calf raising with me yesterday, we were we were bang on it. We sort of gave each other a knowing look and we're on the rehab hype.

SPEAKER_00 46:58

We're doing it. It's so easy to neglect as well. I think and I yeah, I think only really in the last year. Like I we've spoken about like that. I do like six months of good running and then I then something happens, and it's it's so true. Like now I'm training with a coach that actually knows how to train me for running. I said to him, look, this keeps happening. I'm working my osteo and I'm working with my my kind of ex exercise coach. How do what I even call it? A online coach, programming coach. But he's actually program, he's actively programming plyometric work for me, which I would never normally do. Like I I have a real lack of fast twitch muscle fibres and actually learning learning to use those. I'm like, oh my goodness, like and it's so interesting. Like even yesterday I was doing some vertical drops off a box, and I'm more than happy to walk forward on my on my right leg, but my left leg, it's like a mental block and like box jumps and stuff, stuff that I've neglected for years because I've got a bit of a mental block over it. Well, funnily enough, they're the things that I need to work on, and actually being told to just shut up and get on with it for me has been really good, and understanding how important things like calf raises are because it's so easy to neglect that, it's boring, right? Like we're just like, oh I and I actually felt I actually find polymetric work really enjoyable, but it can be quite a daunting thing. I think people think they look like a bit of a melon in the gym doing it, but I'd much rather look like a bit of a melon than not be able to run for six months, you know what I mean? Like there's a there's a cost benefit, as we always talk about to everything, but and just start easy, start so easy. Like I really enjoy these pogos I do with a a resistance ban on the on the uh rig, but they're fun, they're quite fun to do, and it doesn't matter if you don't get them right the first time, but introducing that kind of like force production work into your exercise is so key, and even if you're not a runner, in terms of bone health, reducing the risk of things like osteoporosis and all this kind of stuff as we age. I know we talk about longevity so much, but it's really important for that stuff as well. You don't have to be a runner to be training like this, like a calf raise in terms of ankle and and joint health is a really good thing to be doing. Do from I had my client who can't do them from standing, do them from seated, stick a heavy plate or your or a couple of books on your lap and do some calf raises from seated. Like they're all very scalable and applicable for day-say life movements as well, and they're so easily neglected. So, yeah, big up the calf raise.

SPEAKER_01 49:19

Yeah, and I think like you were talking about sort of plyometrics. I've I've done a lot of deep tier plyometric work because of the training that I've done within weightlifting, is that I need to very quickly catch uh a relatively heavy weight in a very in triple flexion um in a in a difficult position. So I think I think that's probably the the last thing that people consider. Uh maybe because it is a bit technical, you uh like you say, you need a bit of confidence to do it, you say sort of looking like a bit of a melon stood up, you know, stood on the on the platform doing some deep tier pliers or some you know repeated jumps or or step downs because it does it's like all right, Michael Jordan. Do you know what I mean? So, but I do think that that is like the long-lost piece of the strength puzzle in that strength can the strength continuum. Yes, I think the the industry has got strength endurance nailed. We don't look thanks Les Mills, like we've got that maximal force. I think you know, maximal uh strength, sorry, it is is is having its moment, I think that more people are training heavier, uh despite a few arguments on on that topic, and heavy, like I said, heavy is is relative. Um then I think that yeah, the missing piece of the puzzle is really the power, uh, and and we should at any age still be able to produce force, and by that, that could be short sprints 20 seconds on an assault bike. That that's power production, that could be skipping, it could be you know you know, jump lunges, and I think that that ability to still produce force feels quite empowering, agreed, and enables you to be agile, but also most importantly, like you were saying about bone density and bone health, you need that stimulus through the bones to to to keep us strong, um, but also just the tissue tolerance. Like, how many times have you been walking around and I laugh because me and Emma have got the same, my friend Emma, we've got the same ankles. Our ankle can completely go and we'll just bounce back from it.

SPEAKER_02 51:23

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 51:24

Because we've done so many, okay, yeah, we've done so many plyos, it's like what okay, yeah, and and if someone was to watch it, you'd be like, game over. Yeah, but we're but we're like cheese. It's like yeah, exactly. So just ha having that tissue tolerance because yeah, an ankle sprain is is is is game over. So yeah, here's here's to looking more of a melon in the gym, and you know, as this the saying goes, no one uh is hating on you that is doing better than you, so you know.

SPEAKER_00 51:55

Very true.

SPEAKER_01 51:56

I'll be there. Oh my god, I had the most cringe, I've just remembered it was a flashback from yesterday. You know, I'm gonna you'll know the position. I was on the track where the sandbags are, the the dumbbells and the sandbags. I had my little Lesmills stepper, and I was going heel off the back of the stepper, and I was using the sandbags as like guide, so my head was like peering up and I yeah, and me and this guy on the Smith machine, he was like No, and yeah, it was we actually had a giggle at the end because we were really in sync. But yeah, I just was yeah, so that was my moment of feeling like a complete melting. Because it must have been what the hell is she doing? Is that what we're doing over there? Um why why is she just peering over the sandbag? Because you couldn't have seen, he couldn't have seen what was going on underneath. So maybe I could have just said, Oh yeah, I was just doing dips, yeah, yeah, yeah. I was just doing dips on the sandbag, you know. But um, but yeah, let's let's pray because the next time um that we record, the next time that we come to you uh as a duo, some significant life events will have happened. Sarah will have finally started her new job. Yes, yes. Next Thursday. Next Thursday today is Friday. Um, this will be our new recording time post uh she will have finished uh I think you're you're working today, aren't you? Yes, yeah, I've got yeah, I'm done now. She's done. Yeah. I do I go to jujitsu and then I'll do some contrast and then I walk to MS on a Friday. Um, but I don't I assume actually, yeah, if we record next Friday, I won't have marathoned yet. Sadly, you may have to hear about me having the day before nerves. I know, yeah, sorry. Well we could we could record it late. Who knows? Who knows? But maybe. Um but what a week it's been, what a week it's been, and thank you as always for listening to our pod. If you have any thoughts, uh questions, or things that you would like to share with us that are related or unrelated, we'd be keen to hear it. Because oh my god, my no, my teeth are happening next Friday. I've just remembered, I just looked at the diary, I'm getting my teeth done next Friday. What time?

SPEAKER_00 54:00

What time of the teeth?

SPEAKER_01 54:01

In the morning, in the morning. I've I've yeah, I've cleared my diary and I'm having my teeth done. So but I'm in in London, I'm not going to Turkey. But hate has gone.

SPEAKER_00 54:13

Hey, because they're looking they're looking so good. I don't think you need the composite. I'm questioning whether I get the composite now. Once now they're whitened. The confidence is giving me and I banged about this last week, but the confidences give me is wild. I know.

SPEAKER_01 54:30

And we were just saying, actually, neither of us are having as much coffee. Mainly because we can't, because it sends shooting pains. The shooting pain's down my teeth right now.

SPEAKER_00 54:39

That breeze. I'm gonna go for a run now, but I'm scared of the breeze on my teeth. I might have to like get that like mouth tape just so I don't get a breeze on my teeth. I'm scared. I used to do that at first. I think I like followed you on Instagram. I was like, what is that woman doing? And you just want to do it.

SPEAKER_01 54:56

Yeah, because I did the oxygen advantage course. Um, and one of the things is around yeah, maximum uptake of oxygen and nasal breathing through uh sort of mid-range exercise. So I actually at once I got I PB'd my 5k with my mouth shut. Um that's wild. Yeah, me and me and when I this is when I was coaching at Foundry at Bank, and we used to go on this run club, and one of the coaches there, Jason, always used to love rinsing me and the other female coaches there, going, Oh god, you're so slow. Basically said we were really slow at running, and we were like, It's because we've got our mouths shut, Jason. And and actually, yeah, we PB'd our 5k with our mouth shut. It's it's very interesting. Maybe we'll have it as a topic for another time.

SPEAKER_02 55:36

Yeah, I listened to me.

SPEAKER_01 55:38

But yes, all right, well, good luck with your run. I'm actually going, I'm now going to um where am I going? I'm going to a sound bath. Oh, well, Joel. Give Kathy a cuddle for me, please. I absolutely will. The Aries is in the microwave and um I think it's Aries.

SPEAKER_00 55:52

I think that's what I got this morning, Aries. I need to have a proper look at it from her.

SPEAKER_01 55:55

But it was I am Aries. Oh, you're in the microwave. I'm in the microwave, which is why I'm saying I'm like, get it, Kathy. Like that stubborn. It's not gonna be good for your teeth though. That stubborn ram is really feeling it this week.

SPEAKER_00 56:07

Stubborn, eh? It's you. Right, thank you so much for listening, everybody. And have a single weekend. See you next week.

SPEAKER_02 56:14

Bye.

SPEAKER_00 56:15

Bye.