#89 MONTHLY MEDICINE... The 'glutes' drama on TikTok, a celebrity nutrition launch to avoid and how one fitness journalist trains without fail

Welcome back once again to my newsletter spin-off series, which returns with the good and the bad of the health and wellness scene this February...

Is it just me or does this month feel like it’s passed in the blink of an eye? A big welcome to the many of you who have subscribed to this newsletter in recent weeks—I’m so glad to have you here. In case you missed it, I began February by exploring what the early stages of dating do to our mental wellbeing and also asked if we should all be a bit more ‘Montoya, por favor’ in expressing our emotions. The latest in the Tuesday Scoop… series has seen my best recommendations (as a health and wellness journalist of a decade) for home workout equipment that’s actually useful, hot drinks with health benefits with which to swap your regular brew, fake tanners for a safer glow during grey weather and things that are helping me sleep right now. Meanwhile, a fresh Buy This, Not That… also revealed the expert verdict on ‘gut health’ ketchup, hair growth serum and sun exposure apps. Now, let’s get into your brand new dose of my Monthly Medicine… series—which has a slightly rejigged structure—beginning with…

ONE THING WELL: Bridie Wilkins, fitness director of Women’s Health

One thing well…move? ‘I exercise in the morning,’ shares Bridie, who fulfilled her dream of joining the team at Women’s Health magazine in 2021. ‘You will genuinely never catch me doing a workout in the evenings—especially after work, because there’s no way I’ll have the energy or the motivation. If I can, I train the second I wake up—sometimes in pyjamas if I’m not doing something too sweaty, like Pilates (I use Bryony Deery’s Pilates by Bryony app) or yoga (using the app Basic Space at Home). For anything else, I’ll make sure I lay out my activewear the night before—on a radiator during winter.’

One thing well…fuel? ‘I always eat breakfast within 30 minutes of waking,’ says Bridie. ‘This is something nutritionist Jess Shand taught me, in order to help optimise my hormones after coming off the pill, and I’ve found that I definitely have more energy throughout the day—and in the workouts that I once did fasted. I’m a creature of habit and have had the same breakfast for almost a year: rye bread, avocado, eggs, rocket and seeds.’ She adds: ‘I “seed cycle”, so I take one tablespoon of flaxseed and pumpkin seeds daily during my follicular phase, and one tablespoon of sunflower and sesame seeds during my luteal phase—which has been shown to help regulate hormone levels and reduce PMS.’

One thing well…mind? ‘I do yoga,’ reveals Bridie, who had always wanted to be a writer and secured a first-class degree in journalism at university, before going on to intern at the likes of Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire and Harper’s Bazaar. ‘Speaking as a qualified instructor, I’m the biggest advocate of it for mental health; absolutely nothing compares to the way I feel after a vinyasa flow. It’s my form of meditation, and even 20 minutes is enough. I go to Studio Moon every week.’

One thing well…snooze? ‘Reading before bed is key,’ notes Bridie, who began writing about fashion for Look magazine—where she was also soon assigned pages evaluating the top health and fitness trends and products, sparking her interest in covering the wellness beat. ‘Without fail, I read for at least 15 minutes before turning the lights off. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t do this, and I always stick to fiction books as I find non-fiction fires my brain up again.’

One thing well…hustle? ‘I go for a walk at lunchtime,’ says Bridie, of the single thing she does to help swerve professional burnout while also staying productive—whether she’s working from home or in the Hearst office in central London. ‘Studies show that just 20 minutes of walking can increase focus, attention and decision-making speed. I do this pretty much every single working day, and I always come back feeling more productive.’

You can keep up with Bridie via her Instagram and work for Women’s Health

1/ Breakfast

The ‘most important meal of the day’ has been given a boost in the science journals this month. If yoghurt is your daily AM go-to, then long-term consumption has been linked by a study to having a protective effect against certain types of colorectal cancer thanks to its positive impact on the gut microbiome. Better still, top it with a handful of walnuts—research has shown this can aid brain function, including reaction times and memory, throughout the remainder of the day. Oh, and if your mental wellbeing is a bit wobbly right now, there’s fresh evidence that things really do feel less bad in the morning.

2/ Dancing

Many people around the world—including those in Lisbon—will be celebrating Carnival this weekend and early next week, and there will certainly be a lot of shimmying to samba in these parts. Which is just as well, since a study has found that all you need to do is dance for 20 minutes a day in order to hit the NHS-recommended target of 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week. A little boogie also easily ticks off one element of self-help guru Mel Robbins’ viral six-step morning routine, as reported by Glamour. The author, who has just released her book The Let Them Theory to much acclaim, previously endorsed moving your body as soon as possible after waking—even if just for a few minutes, and in any way you please—as transformative.

3/ Romance

Word on the street (TikTok) is it’s set to be a Jane Austen Summer rather than a Brat Girl Summer this year. If you’re in a particularly decorous mood, then researchers have been inadvertently getting into the weeds of dating etiquette of late. One recent study found that honesty is the best policy at the start of a relationship because white lies to seemingly low-stakes questions (do you like my outfit?) can risk trust issues down the line, even if a truthful reply may initially sting. Additionally, evidence has emerged that women are more financially generous than men, with one theory being that it’s because society expects us to be. It’s certainly food for thought over how (or not) you’re next splitting dinner with your Mr Darcy.

4/ Bums

Quite the hot topic this week thanks to Kayla Itsines calling out the how the ‘fitness industry has become so sexualised’. In a now-deleted post on TikTok, the PT and Sweat app founder criticised the way in which her fellow fitness influencers were filming their videos from a ‘particular angle’ under the guise of a ‘glute workout’. The mother-of-two said ‘I don’t wanna see your ass’ as she scrolls with her daughter peeking over her shoulder. It has generated, err, well-rounded backlash—as reported here, but I do see where Kayla is coming from. Since #fitspo became a thing almost a decade ago, I’ve heard women who make a living in this space complain of being automatically sexualised while simply trying to demonstrate moves, while others admit that they feel forced to participate in the online obsession with women’s bodies to reap the rewards of the algorithm.

5/ Ageing

The Oscars might be taking place in a few days, with its assortment of visually ageless red carpet attendees, but new findings have platformed some simple ways to stay youthful on the inside too. One study revealed that a daily intake of omega-3 fatty acids (found in fatty fish, as well as nuts and seeds) was able to slow down biological ageing, while other research showed that working beyond 65 was beneficial to health and wellbeing (and keeps the brain sharper). In this same vein, a third study has indicated that life satisfaction among over-50s in England is higher than before the pandemic. That awful time did a lot of awful things, and I wonder if it made clear to this cohort what really makes them happy?