Author Archives: Michelle Carroll

Everyone loves to hate a fitspo. Everyone also loves money. And the easiest way to generate content and subsequently revenue, is to pile on someone. And that someone just always happens to be a woman. The Problem with Cardio Carol Happen upon any male personal trainer with a TikTok and mammy issues and chances areContinue reading “The Lowest Hanging Fitspo: The Scapegoating of Females in Fitness”

As Ireland’s answer to Socrates, eminent philosopher and boyband superstar Ronan Keating once said, you say it best, when you say nothing at all. This was statement was obviously made in direct reference to individuals who comment on the weight or body shape of others. Unfortunately, not everyone listened to darling Ronan, so we’re in a bit of a mess. How do comments from others affect our body image? And what, if anything, can we do about it?

You may have heard the latest uproar on social media owing to a certain media outlet publishing an article heralding the return of Heroin Chic. This was immediately used for content by a rake of influencers. Some virtue-signalling, some actually trying to make a fair point. Swings and roundabouts. However, it got me thinking about what we replaced thinspiration with – fitsporation. And, it turns out they aren’t all that different.

Wanting to improve your body composition is not necessarily a bad thing. Indeed, we see many positives to health with an increase in muscle mass. However, when chasing muscularity goes too far, it can be detrimental to body image and overall health. What is this “drive for muscularity”, and why does it matter?

Supplements are everywhere, and they aren’t all effective. Deciding what to invest your money can be really confusing (wouldn’t be like nutrition companies to mislead the general public would it?). So, I think it’s important to have some general guidelines to go off – and hopefully save yourself from making the same financial mistakes I did *cries in BCAAs*.

As the old adage goes: if everyone else had body dysmorphia wouldn’t you? Social physique anxiety is unfortunately a global phenomenon, exacerbated by social media and an increasingly appearance-based society. So, what is social physique anxiety and is there really something wrong with you for caring what other people think of your body?

Binge-eating was my ride or die for 25 years. I don’t think it’s something I will ever be fully ‘healed’ from, contrary to the curative binge-eating recovery plans prescribed by Instagram PTs acting way out of their scope of practice. What better way to highlight this than by completing oversharing on the internet?

You know I love to come for shift work, and just how detrimental it can be to our health and eating behaviours. However, being “on-call” is a little different, and offers its own unique challenges to our dietary patterns.

Disordered eating is rapidly becoming a hot topic in nutrition coaching. However, it is poorly understood as it stands. We’re going to cover the basics of disordered eating and the challenges it provides for nutrition coaches.

Are meal-replacement shakes effective in weight-loss diets? Or are they merely #hoescience?