herBody Podcast: Recent Episodes
her Soul Shot
The herBody podcast presented by her Soul Shot helps female athletes of all ages, skill levels, and backgrounds understand their bodies to reach their full athletic potential, whether that's walking your dog or becoming a pro athlete. Join your host, Micaela Zettel, physiotherapist and owner of Instil Physio, as she works to educate, empower, and inspire female athletes to reach their full potential at any level by providing research-based knowledge, stories, and tangible ways you can optimize your body for sport and life.
Painful periods, irregular periods, and urinary incontinence are common issues for many women, but they aren't normal. Larissa Tutert is back to talk about pelvic health - this time for youth female athletes. Though the subject is often taboo, especially for young girls, Larissa takes us through the importance of pelvic health and the concerns that young female athletes may face, especially during puberty. She also shares advice on why and how parents, coaches, trainers, and health care practitioners should talk to youth about pelvic health.
The importance of strength and conditioning for female athletes of all ages and levels of sport should not be overlooked. In this episode, Strength and Conditioning coach, Sonia Cazzola, shares why she’s made it her mission to empower female athletes via strength and conditioning. Micaela and Sonia cover everything from why S&C is important for female athletes, myths around S&C, how to find the right coach for you (and red flags to look out for), to how other strength and conditioning coaches can better help female athletes, not only in their sport but for an active life.
Energy crisis in female athletes is more common than we think and affects an athlete's health and performance, yet it's underdetected. Whether you're an athlete, coach, trainer, parent, or health care professional, this episode will help you understand how RED-S and the Female Athlete Triad affects athletes, the warning signs and symptoms, and what to do about it if you think an athlete is suffering from an energy crisis.
There is power in sport and power in sharing your story. In this episode, Micaela Zettel combines both and shares her story of sports saving her in her darkest days and why she was compelled to discover and share her story to better understand her passions and how she can help other girls and women like her.
Female athletes are surrounded by harmful myths that prevent them from fuelling properly to perform their best. Sports nutritionist and former DI soccer player Reilly Beatty joins us to bust myths around disordered eating, losing your period, carbs, body composition and more. Plus, you'll get tons of tips for the proper way female athletes should be fuelling!
COVID has introduced even more barriers to sport for girls and we need to take action. Micaela breaks down the research in Canadian Women & Sport’s Pandemic Impact on Girls in Sport report, what it means for girls in sport and beyond, and how we can all take action as parents, coaches, athletes, healthcare professionals and supporters of girls in sport.
There are so many things that happen to women’s bodies during pregnancy, labour and delivery, and postpartum that we don’t talk about despite women experiencing these things regularly. In this episode, physiotherapist Larissa Tutert joins us to share her pelvic health expertise. We chat about what female athletes should know if they’re pregnant, have had children, or are planning on having children, including how their bodies may be affected, how they can advocate for themselves, and why we need to ditch the shame and start normalizing our pelvic health.
For many of us, sports have been on pause during the pandemic. No matter your skill level, activity level, or what you've been doing (or not doing) during the pandemic, this episode will help you check in with your body as you return to sports. Micaela gives you tangible tips to help you with performance care, recovery, preparing for games and tournaments, and more as you get back into playing your favourite sports.
Mental health is key to being healthy, especially as an athlete. Leah Howard, The Sports Counselor, joins Micaela and Kyla from her Soul Shot to have the important conversation about mental health in athletes. Leah shares her story of finding her career path in sports counseling and provides integral advice on strategies athletes can use to ensure they stay mentally healthy during play, life transitions, and more. This episode is a must-listen for athletes of all ages and levels. Without mental health, you don’t have health!
Pelvic health is often overlooked by healthcare providers, but is incredibly important to your health, especially for active women. This episode with physiotherapist Larissa Tutert is packed full of information you’ve probably never heard before but is so important for all women to hear. Micaela and Larissa discuss what pelvic health physiotherapy is and why more women should know about it, how pelvic health physiotherapists can help female athletes, the importance of pelvic health physiotherapists during pregnancy, and more!
Did you know your menstrual cycle is a marker of your health and can be used to increase your training and performance? In this episode, Micaela takes a deep dive into the menstrual cycle, what's normal (and what's not), and how you can align your activity and training around your cycle to be intentional and empowered in your health and training. This is a must listen for all girls and women, especially those in sports!
Breathing is simple, right? But what if we told you that the way we breathe has an effect on our performance, injuries, and our overall health? Luckily it can still be simple with practice of the piston breath! In Episode 4 of the herBody Podcast, Micaela shares what the piston breath is, how to do it, and the incredible effects it can have on your body, especially as a female athlete. Tune in to meet your core beyond the planking and six pack!
While what works for one athlete may not work for another, there are basic nutrition and training practices female athletes can use at all levels and stages of their lives to increase their performance during activity. Dr. Kirstin Lauritzen (who’s currently training for another Ironman) is a Functional Medicine Practitioner who works with female athletes to ensure their bodies are working and performing at their best. This episode is packed full of advice, tips, and ways you can fuel your body with proper nutrition and training to get the most out of activity, at any level!
Do you have pain during movement? Is your menstrual cycle normal? Do you have nagging injuries that just won’t heal? Lack of energy? All of this is an indication of your overall health. In Episode 2, Micaela shares her Female Athlete Checkup so you can check in with your body, know what problems to look for, and understand how you can make empowered decisions regarding your health to perform at your best, at any level of activity.
Welcome to the herBody Podcast where host and owner of Instil Physio, Micaela Zettel, helps female athletes of all ages and skill levels reach their peak performance in sport and life. Find out who Micaela is, the value you’ll get from the herBody Podcast, how all women and girls can be athletes and more. Remember: there is no elite club for athletes—you decide if you’re an athlete.