What's Good?

Happy Friday! What's good?

I think, I hope, that the weather is starting to turn towards fall here in NYC. That said, I ran yesterday in what was — according to the thermometer at least — cooler weather, and it still felt hotter than I'd like. (Yes, I'm feeling a bit "princess and the pea" with the weather, as I know I’m going to be griping in a few short months about how cold it is.) So yeah, hydration — still top of mind.

And also, apparently, top of market. Gatorade says it's going gangbusters, making over $7 billion in annual sales. Best known for its colored drinks, the company will now start selling uncolored, unflavored (but electrolyte-enhanced, of course) water. Reminder: consumers might love “electrolytes” but the science doesn’t really suggest you need to drink anything special. Water is good; let’s make sure everyone has access to clean drinking water, k?

Elsewhere in sports and fitness: I loved this look back, from Christine Yu, on "The Summer of Women's Sports." I mean, Courtney Dauwalter!  Coco Gauff! Faith Kipyegon! (And I'll say it again for the back of the room: "fuck Luis Rubiales.") Lea Page on hiking 1000 miles alone across Europe. I'd like to see more public funding of fitness activities and infrastructure for everyone, e.g. "NYC set to offer free swimming lessons to 2nd graders." From Kottke: "The tenderness of Marshawn Lynch." <3 To watch: 26.2 to Life. "We Still Don't Understand the Yips," Esquire reports on mental health and performance. Something something Aaron Rodgers something something alternative medicine something something achilles. That's the segue to…

The week in wellness hustle: "'Hardcore science' or 'just a sticker' – do anti-anxiety patches actually work?" asks The Guardian, and I bet you can guess the answer! "An increase in travel and hybrid work is making it harder to poop, and now people are overusing laxatives as a result." “Big Weed Is on the Brink of a Multi-Million Dollar Surge into New York’s Cannabis Market.”  The WSJ profiles Peter Attia "Favorite Doctor of Bio-Hackers and the Longevity-Obsessed." "Caffeine Boosts Performance. But What About Coffee?" asks Outside Magazine. I am shocked SHOCKED that "The food industry pays ‘influencer’ dietitians to shape your eating habits."

Must read:

The Burnt Toast Guide to Diet Culture in Schools

ICYMI, BT Guides are a new recurring series where I dig into your most frequently asked questions. Here’s the first one, on weight and health, and the second one, on talking to kids about anti-fat bias. BT Guides are a free resource, but if you find them valuable, please consider supporting this work with a paid subscription. You can join for just $5 pe…

Burnt Toast by Virginia Sole-Smith

Other food news: "Adults are ordering from kids’ menus to save money. Should they?" asks The Washington Post. The New Yorker profiles Spencer Sheehan, "food label zealot." "The rise of Subway: the triumphant and turbulent last decades of the world's largest fast-food chain." "Banza Wants More People To Eat Beans For Breakfast, Introduces Chickpea-Based Waffles." The Wine Enthusiast reviews Eggo's "Waffles & Syrup" cream liqueur. Smucker acquires Hostess for $5.6 billion. I’ve noticed lately that Dunkin's branding is all over the place — wildly inconsistent from store to store, region to region. Plus, they misspelled "Upper West Side" up the street from me.

Mitt Romney puts ketchup on his salmon — it's not really the most important part of this profile in The Atlantic, but it's the only Second Breakfast tie-in I could think of so as to include this profile in this week’s “What’s Good?”

And finally, here's Jill Lepore, eviscerating both Elon Musk and Walter Isaacson. It’s also quite unrelated to the content here, but if your heart races with joy while reading this, as mine did, just count it as today's cardio. You're welcome.