19May 2021 by Leah Higl
Pickle Juice: Good For Cramps?

Pickle Juice: Good For Cramps?

Sports
Cramps. The bane of existence for many athletes and weekend warriors. Despite the many products claiming to reduce cramping, the efficacy of all the different “cures” to cramps is mostly lacking substantial evidence.  However, there is a small amount of research to suggest that pickle juice may actually assist with reducing the duration and intensity of cramps. And may even prevent them! But not for the reasons you might initially think. What Are Cramps & Why Do They Occur? Exercise-induced muscle cramps (EAMC) typically occur in single, multijoint muscles (eg, triceps surae, quadriceps, hamstrings) when contracting in a shortened state. Although some cramps do not affect athletic performance, other times, they can be completely debilitating. With cramps being so common in exercise and having the potential to completely stop an athlete…
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22Jun 2020 by Aidan Muir
The Game Changers: A Dietitian’s Review

The Game Changers: A Dietitian’s Review

Sports
When The Game Changers documentary came out on Netflix, I felt I had to watch it. It was almost a job requirement for me, since not only am I a dietitian, I’m also a sports dietitian specialising in strength athletes and I have a bit of a presence on Instagram. This meant that I had a crazy number of questions coming in about the documentary. Nutrition documentaries typically have quite a lot of bias and do not represent the totality of the evidence well. This is a common theme" because honestly, the fundamentals of nutrition typically are not that interesting for the average person. To really bring in an audience they need to make bold claims. Nobody is interested in hearing what they have heard before. People want new and…
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23Jul 2018 by Aidan Muir
Hannah Baker Q&A

Hannah Baker Q&A

Other
Can you please tell us a little bit about your career so far? I started out in marketing in Perth—that was my original career—but I’ve always been interested in health and food. So, I decided to “bite the bullet” and moved to the Gold Coast to study dietetics as a mature-aged student. Six months after graduation, my fiancé got a job in Shanghai so we moved to China. As extremely challenging as the move was for my career, it was also amazing because (as far as I know) I am the only qualified sports dietitian in Shanghai so it has meant I have been offered some fantastic work opportunities. I have worked with the Shanghai soccer team, Olympic and provincial athletes, movie stars and brand ambassadors. I also lived in…
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12Jun 2018 by Aidan Muir
Alicia Edge Q&A

Alicia Edge Q&A

Other
Can you please tell us a little bit about your career so far? I graduated in 2008, so I’m on the ten-year anniversary this year and I’m not even sure how that happened! I came out and, like everyone else, I struggled to find work—particularly in Newcastle where I graduated, because when you graduate in Newcastle those jobs are pretty few and far between and everybody wants to stay locally. I knew that I probably wouldn’t be able to stay if I wanted work. I’m from Taree originally which is two hours north of Newcastle, so I was lucky enough to get a job in community health and from there I ended up in a job in Taree in private practice. I was employed there full-time for about a year.…
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14Dec 2017 by Jessica Spendlove
How to Fuel an Athlete

How to Fuel an Athlete

Sports
When working with elite athletes, it is not only about eating a healthy balanced diet. Don’t get me wrong of course that is important, but it is equally if not more important the advice you provide considers one main thing – performance! What does that mean? It means optimising intake to ensure your athlete has fuelled and recovered appropriately for their training requirements. An athlete’s requirements could be considered abnormal when you compare them to the general population. After all, an athlete can train for 4 to 8 hours per day, compared to the average person who may struggle to exercise that much in a week! For this reason, it is important recommendations are being made which consider the individual athlete and what their training and performance requirements are. Having…
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17Sep 2017 by Aidan Muir
Lisa Middleton Q & A

Lisa Middleton Q & A

Other, Sports
Can you please tell us a little bit about yourself and your career? I work predominantly in sports nutrition and I basically became interested in it just from my own personal interest in sport. I did a lot of sport when I was younger and was just interested in the link between what you ate and how that affected performance. I used to experiment with my own diet and was enthusiastic about learning more. When I was in early high school, probably Year 8 or Year 9, I decided I wanted to work as a sports dietitian. I headed down that path, did a human movement degree at Deakin, and then did dietetics after that and got into nutrition from there. I was unemployed for a little while after I…
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04Apr 2017 by Aidan Muir
Chloe McLeod Q & A

Chloe McLeod Q & A

Other
Can you please tell us a little bit about yourself? I’ve lived in Sydney for the last five years, but I grew up in South Australia in the country. When I finished university, I decided that I would not stay in Adelaide, which is where I studied, and I got a job in Northeast Victoria working in the local health service there. I stayed there for a couple of years; I’d planned on a year, but I really liked the job and the people, so I stayed longer. And then I moved down to Melbourne for about a year before moving up to Sydney. I’ve always been interested in food and nutrition and how food impacts on the body, and I’ve got food intolerances myself to some degree, which is…
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