KinkyShea’s Health and Fitness Tip of the Week

This week’s recipe comes as an easy and tangy side dish that pairs great with a grain or your favorite protein. As a tip you should look for a variety of colored chard. Chard with pink, orange, yellow and red stalks are typically sweeter than their lighter or white counterparts.

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh garlic

2 large leaves Swiss chard, diced (3-4 cups)

1 tablespoon small capers, rinsed and drained

1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon roughly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions:

1. Warm a skillet over low heat. Add olive oil and garlic; toss to coat and spread evenly over skillet bottom. Cook for 2 minutes or until garlic begins to brown. Add chard; mix until chard shines with oil. Increase heat to medium and cook for 2 minutes, until wilted slightly. Add capers and continue to cook for 2 minutes. Add lemon juice. Cover and cook for 1–3 minutes, until chard is tender. Serve, sprinkled with Parmesan cheese if desired.

Nutrition Facts Per Serving:

37 cal, 2g fat, 0g sat fat, 0mg chol, 1g protein, 4g carb, 1g fiber, 168mg sodium.

If you’re a woman engaging in physical activity on a regular basis you probably own at least one sports bra. Sports bras provide a kind of comfort that regular bras just can’t hold up to during physical activity. With sports bras you don’t have to worry about straps digging into your shoulders or an underwire poking you in the ribs while you’re trying to work out. Sports bras allow you to move freely and comfortably throughout your workout. In addition to comfort, sports bras also help protect against breast injury.

It’s not uncommon for females participating on regular physical activity to have breast problems in connection with their physical activity. Violent up-and-down and lateral movements of the breast, like during running and jumping, can bruise and strain the breast, especially in larger breasted women. Constant uncontrolled, or improperly controlled, movements of the breast over a period of time can stretch the ligament responsible for supporting the breast at the chest wall, leading to premature sagging. Another breast injury that is common is called runner’s nipples where the shirt or seams in a bra over the nipples rub the nipples causing irritation. Choosing the right sports bra can help prevent these injuries.

When looking for a sports bra, you must find one that actually fits your bust size, matches our activity level with minimal elasticity and allows little

vertical or horizontal breast movement. One of the first things you should do before setting out to buy a sports bra is to measure your bust. This can be done yourself or you can have it done for you with a help of a friend. Using a tape measure, first measure your chest size while wearing a regular bra with no or minimal padding. Make sure the tape measure is straight across your back and is snug across the chest just above the breast. If your chest measurement is an odd number, then round up to the next even number. This will give you your chest size. To get the letter measurement of your bra size, use the tape measure to measure around the fullest part of your bust. If this number is between numbers then you should round up or down to the nearest whole number. Now here comes the math. Subtract your chest measurement from your bust measurement. The difference will determine your cup size.

Difference	Cup Size
Less than 1”	AA
1”	A
2”	B
3”	C
4”	D
5”	DD

Next, determine your level of physical activity. This is essential. The higher the level of activity or impact, the higher level of support you will need. For example, for walking, weight training, rock climbing, or yoga, a low impact bra would be best suited. For spinning, skiing, tennis or golf, a medium impact bra would be best. For running, mountain biking, high impact aerobics, soccer, or horseback riding, a high impact bra should be worn. Most sports bra manufactures will indicate the level of activity for which their various bras are best suited.

Now on to the construction of the sports bra. There are three basic sports bra constructions on the market today. A compressive bra is one of the most common and is recommended for women with medium sized breast. Compressive bras function like wide elastic bandages, binding the breast to the chest wall. Support bras are a bit more heavy duty and provide good upward support with elastic material. Support bras tend to have wide bands under the breast with wide shoulder straps and are designed for women with larger breasts. For women with smaller breast it is not as critical to provide compression or support so a less elastic, light weight bra may be sufficient. It is typically recommended that sports bras with metal parts (snaps, fasteners, underwire support) should be avoided as they can rub and cause skin irritation.

The last part to consider when choosing a sports bra is the fabric. You should look for moisture wicking fabrics like CoolMax or a blend of Cotton/Lycra Spandex. There are also blends of polyester, cotton, and spandex that also help provide moisture management along with a great fit and support. A polyester and cotton blend can provide gentle softness as well as moisture management.

Now, all of this is a lot to take in when buying a sports bra, but in a nutshell you should look for a bra that fits your bust and cup size, matches your level of physical activity, is of a comfortable and moisture controlling fabric that control breast movement during activity. Whatever sports bra or brand of sports bra you choose make sure you find the proper fit, construction and fabric to see you (and your breast) safely and comfortably though your workout.

Until next week…

KinkySheaPT