Welcome to The Feist — your favorite sports, with your feistiest friends. Hosted by Sara Gross and Kelly O’Mara, Feisty's newest podcast is here to celebrate the unstoppable rise of women’s sports. Every week they'll cover what you need to know in women's sports: from running to basketball to everything in between. The Feist will bring you the untold stories of female athletes, interviews with those athletes and behind-the-scenes experts, and the feisty analysis you need to be a fan. This is the...
Jun 26, 2025•55 min
Episode 3: The Fertility Journey as a Professional Athlete In this final episode of our series on IVF, guest host Jill Van Gyn sits down with six-time world champion mountain biker Annika Langvad to explore the unexpected intersection of pro racing and the IVF process. Her vulnerability offers insight into the quiet battles many athletes face behind the scenes. She discusses: The unique challenges female athletes face around fertility and family planning Societal pressures, career timing, and th...
Jun 16, 2025•56 min•Ep. 149
Episode 2 - The Emotional Highs & Lows of IVF In this second episode of our series on IVF, co-host Jill Van Gyn explores the emotional complexities of fertility treatments, with a special focus on IVF and pregnancy loss. Joining her is Alexandra Stewart M.A., RCC, PMH-C , a seasoned fertility therapist with personal and deep expertise in reproductive mental health. They unpack the often unspoken psychological toll of infertility, highlighting: the emotional resilience required to endure repe...
Jun 09, 2025•59 min•Ep. 148
Over the past eight years, Feisty Media has grown into a go-to resource for women’s health and performance education. In this special episode, Feisty CEO Sara Gross and Hit Play Not Pause host Selene Yeager reflect on how Feisty’s content has evolved to meet the real-life needs of active women. From menopause and nutrition to strength training and brain health, Feisty is offering more than ever—including a new suite of comprehensive, on-demand courses. In a world overflowing with wellness advice...
Jun 09, 2025•35 min
Episode 1: In Vitro Fertilization 101 In the first episode of this informative and deeply personal limited podcast series, guest host Jill Van Gyn is joined by Dr. Carla DiGirolamo , a board-certified reproductive endocrinologist, for an open and honest conversation about the physical, emotional, and medical complexities of in vitro fertilization (IVF). Drawing from Jill’s personal experience and Carla’s 18+ years of medical expertise, they break down the IVF process—from ovarian stimulation to ...
Jun 02, 2025•53 min•Ep. 147
Cognitive challenges can begin as early as your 20s. Yes, it’s a little-known fact. While we’re often told how to protect our skin, bones, and muscles as we age, brain health is rarely part of the conversation. So—what’s the best regime to support our aging minds? In the final episode of our Brain Health for Women series, Dr. Sara Gross and Dr. Erin Ayala sit down with Dr. Laura Best to explore just that. A medical student at UBC with a PhD in Medical Science and post-doctoral work at CAMH, Dr. ...
May 05, 2025•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 146
If you’ve ever felt mentally foggy or struggled with decision-making during or after a long training session, this episode is for you.Dr. Sara Gross and Dr. Erin Ayala sit down with Katherine Boere, a Ph.D. candidate in Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Victoria, whose research explores how the brain recovers from cognitive depletion—especially under the demands of endurance sports.With a background in biomedical engineering and personal experience recovering from brain injury, Katheri...
Apr 28, 2025•44 min•Ep. 145
We hear it all the time—stay strong, keep your bones healthy, hit the weights. But what about your brain? For midlife women, keeping your mind sharp is just as important as keeping your body strong.In part two of this series on brain health co-hosted by Dr. Sara Gross and Dr. Erin Ayala, they are joined by Dr. Carla DiGirolamo, a Board Certified Obstetrician/Gynecologist, Reproductive Endocrinologist and Menopause Society Certified Practitioner.Hormonal shifts in midlife can impact cognitive fun...
Apr 21, 2025•55 min•Ep. 144
We spend so much time focusing on nutrition, strength training, and bone health as we age—but what about our brain? How can we build mental resilience and protect our brain health starting now? In this new Feisty series, co-hosted by Sara Gross and Dr. Erin Ayala, we’re diving into the intersection of brain health, stress, and performance. In this first episode, Dr. Erin Ayala, a Licensed Psychologist and Certified Mental Performance Consultant, sits down with Jill Colangelo, a researcher at the...
Apr 14, 2025•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 143
Recorded live at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, this special episode of The Think Tank from Essentially Esports dives into the booming growth of women’s sports. The Think Tank show is where industry leaders—CMOs, brand strategists, team executives, elite athletes, and coaches—break down the forces shaping the sports world. In this exclusive episode, Host Trey Holder teams up with co-host Angella Goran , a former Canadian National Team cyclist and entrepreneur , alongside Feisty Media CEO a...
Mar 31, 2025•55 min•Ep. 142
In the final episode of our series on coaching young athletes, Sara Gross and co-host Jill Colangelo are joined by MD student, scientist, coach, and pro-runner Keely Henninger (@runwidkeel) to debunk myths about body weight, nutrition, and the often-overlooked role of mental health in sports—especially during the late-teen and early collegiate years. Through a true-or-false format, Jill and Keely tackle key questions: Does a lighter body weight lead to better performance? Is it okay to skip brea...
Mar 03, 2025•1 hr•Ep. 141
In the second episode of our three-part series on coaching young athletes, Sara Gross and guest co-host Jill Colangelo turn the spotlight to the coaches who work with young female athletes through topics like body image, menstruation, and proper fueling. As awareness grows about the impact of body image on performance, coaches—both male and female coaches—must learn to navigate these conversations effectively. Guest Jason Russo, a veteran high school cross-country coach, shares his experience in...
Feb 24, 2025•51 min•Ep. 140
Frequent mirror checks, comments from teammates and parents, and feeling the need to “earn” food—these are common red flags of disordered eating in youth sports. In the first of a three-part series, Sara Gross and guest co-host Jill Colangelo explore eating disorders among young female athletes, a growing concern for parents and coaches. Colangelo, a researcher in Forensic and Sports Psychiatry, speaks with Sarah Naticchia, a Harvard-trained athlete who shares her struggles with disordered eatin...
Feb 17, 2025•57 min•Ep. 139
As more people seek to "clean up" their diets, we’re seeing how rigid rules and an obsession with food purity can disrupt lives. In this episode, Kylee and Zoë dive into the evolving conversation around Orthorexia—a term for the unhealthy obsession with healthy eating. We explore the impact of societal norms, social media, and misinformation on people's relationship with food, particularly athletes. And they unpack how Orthorexia isn't officially recognized in the DSM but still significantly imp...
Jan 20, 2025•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 138
So, are you in a diet cult?? In this second episode teaming up with the Your Diet Sucks podcast , Zoë and Kylee discuss the shocking parallels between diet fads and cult dynamics, emphasizing how these trends often create a false sense of community and manipulate individuals into restrictive eating patterns. How do you know if your diet is just a little bit cult-y? There are plenty of red flags, including: extreme language in the messaging (clean eating, detox, this is the best and healthiest di...
Jan 13, 2025•43 min•Ep. 137
New year, same diet BS. It’s that time of year when the world is drowning in bad diet advice and unsustainable fitness trends. That's why we're teaming up with the Your Diet Sucks podcast to bring you a series of Your Diet Sucks episodes this January aimed at ditching diet culture and getting you ready to fuel your goals, Hosts Kylee Van Horn, RDN, ( @flynutrition3 ) and Zoë Rom ( @carrot_flowers_z ) combine years of research, professional expertise (as well as unprofessional nutrition mishaps!)...
Jan 06, 2025•52 min•Ep. 136
Here we go again with the bombardment of “New Year, New You” ads and messages to “eat this, not that,” or “do this specific workout for 30 days to get amazing abs.” You know the drill and they’re probably in your feed as we speak. In this first-of-its kind episode, Feisty Media podcast hosts Kathryn Taylor (Girls Gone Gravel), Sara Gross (Women’s Performance Podcast), Kelly O’Mara (If We Were Riding), and Selene Yeager (Hit Play Not Pause) unite for a candid conversation about these societal pre...
Dec 27, 2024•55 min
Obviously, the best way to deal with a concussion is to not get a concussion. But that’s not always possible, and nearly 30% of adults report having a concussion in their lifetime. In this episode we cover the basics on how to prevent concussion and what to do if you do hit your head based on what we’ve learned during this series. We also take a deeper dive into who might be more susceptible to concussion, including if females have special risk factors with special guest Dr. Julie Rios, who is l...
Sep 23, 2024•53 min•Ep. 135
A head injury like concussion can fundamentally change you–especially if you have prolonged post-concussive symptoms, which can upend your life and sense of self for months, and sometimes years. Head injuries are also traumatic and they can leave you vulnerable to reliving other past traumas that may have been long buried. That’s where therapy comes in. Therapy can help you deal with your past and current trauma and importantly, put some new coping tools in your toolbox. As she struggled to cope...
Sep 16, 2024•1 hr 51 min•Ep. 134
What do you do when you hit your head? That can be a hard question to answer. Even when people go to the doctor or ER, the actual advice can be thin, amounting to: take it easy and let your brain heal. Sometimes that works. But for nearly half of concussion sufferers, symptoms like depression, headaches, fatigue, and cognitive impairment can linger for months. And for some, like Rebecca, they can hang on for years. When that happens, people get desperate and start trying anything that friends, f...
Sep 09, 2024•1 hr 24 min•Ep. 133
On November 11th, 2021, on day three of a solo multi-day ride on Arizona’s Coconino Trail, seven-time world champion adventure athlete Rebecca Rusch clipped her handlebars on a protruding rock, launching her from her bike and into a ravine 10 feet below, where she hit the ground with enough force to bounce multiple times, breaking her helmet and badly bruising her ribs. After self-rescuing off the trail, Rebecca did what pretty much everyone told her to do: rest up and recover. Her ribs mended. ...
Sep 02, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 132
What if everything you thought you knew about concussion was wrong? Brain Storm, presented by Momentous, is a podcast series that follows 7-time World Champion adventure athlete Rebecca Rusch after a violent bike wreck leaves her with a “mild” concussion that turns her world upside down. Each episode follows Rebecca on her journey to heal her brain and fully return to her demanding, athletic life–a goal that eludes her nearly three years after the crash. The series features interviews with leadi...
Aug 19, 2024•2 min
0:00 Olympic weightlifting 8:30 Chatting with Jenny Casson 17:36 The Feisty team's favourite moments 29:00 Olympians: They're just like us Join the Women’s Sports Fan Club at fanclub.feisty.co to get entered to win a free “It’s Not a Moment. It’s a Movement” shirt daily, plus you’ll get entered to win our grand prize worth $1,000 from Feisty and our sponsors. Support our Croissants & Commentary Live From Paris Sponsors! TRIHARD: Use the code FEISTYGAMES for 22% off sitwide at trihard.co , pl...
Aug 10, 2024•41 min•Ep. 131
0:00 Where are the change rooms? 11:25 Champions Park 19:40 Sport updates 26:40 Our picks Join the Women’s Sports Fan Club at fanclub.feisty.co to get entered to win a free “It’s Not a Moment. It’s a Movement” shirt daily, plus you’ll get entered to win our grand prize worth $1,000 from Feisty and our sponsors. Support our Croissants & Commentary Live From Paris Sponsors! TRIHARD: Use the code FEISTYGAMES for 22% off sitwide at trihard.co , plus you’ll get an extra 5% OFF during sales on top...
Aug 09, 2024•31 min•Ep. 130
0:00 Paris is sick 6:30 The diving vibe 12:09 Sports 27:35 Proposals and urinals Join the Women’s Sports Fan Club at fanclub.feisty.co to get entered to win a free “It’s Not a Moment. It’s a Movement” shirt daily, plus you’ll get entered to win our grand prize worth $1,000 from Feisty and our sponsors. Support our Croissants & Commentary Live From Paris Sponsors! TRIHARD: Use the code FEISTYGAMES for 22% off sitwide at trihard.co , plus you’ll get an extra 5% OFF during sales on top of the a...
Aug 08, 2024•37 min•Ep. 129
0:00 Inside the Team Canada House 10:38 Women's Skateboard Finals 17:05 The vibes of Waterpolo 24:00 Another night of Track 34:30 Our picks Join the Women’s Sports Fan Club at fanclub.feisty.co to get entered to win a free “It’s Not a Moment. It’s a Movement” shirt daily, plus you’ll get entered to win our grand prize worth $1,000 from Feisty and our sponsors. Support our Croissants & Commentary Live From Paris Sponsors! TRIHARD: Use the code FEISTYGAMES for 22% off sitwide at trihard.co , p...
Aug 07, 2024•39 min•Ep. 128
0:00 Inside the Urban Park and 3X3 Basketball 12:20 Another day of Track & Field 21:15 We talk to the first ever Olympic Triathlete from Guam and the Pacific Islands 29:40 Our picks Join the Women’s Sports Fan Club at fanclub.feisty.co to get entered to win a free “It’s Not a Moment. It’s a Movement” shirt daily, plus you’ll get entered to win our grand prize worth $1,000 from Feisty and our sponsors. Support our Croissants & Commentary Live From Paris Sponsors! TRIHARD: Use the code FEI...
Aug 06, 2024•33 min•Ep. 127
0:00 The Women's Cycling Road Race 14:09 The final day of swimming 20:45 Kelly gets trapped at the Mixed Team Relay 34:55 Our picks Join the Women’s Sports Fan Club at fanclub.feisty.co to get entered to win a free “It’s Not a Moment. It’s a Movement” shirt daily, plus you’ll get entered to win our grand prize worth $1,000 from Feisty and our sponsors. Support our Croissants & Commentary Live From Paris Sponsors! TRIHARD: Use the code FEISTYGAMES for 22% off sitwide at trihard.co , plus you’...
Aug 05, 2024•37 min•Ep. 126
0:00 We're back from our illness 5:00 Trampoline gymnastics 9:20 Track has started and it is 🤯 21:25 Kelly's husband tells us all about the Urban Park 26:26 Our picks Join the Women’s Sports Fan Club at fanclub.feisty.co to get entered to win a free “It’s Not a Moment. It’s a Movement” shirt daily, plus you’ll get entered to win our grand prize worth $1,000 from Feisty and our sponsors. Support our Croissants & Commentary Live From Paris Sponsors! TRIHARD: Use the code FEISTYGAMES for 22% o...
Aug 04, 2024•29 min•Ep. 125
Stomach flu has taken down the Feisty Media House in France. We'll be back tomorrow, Sunday! Fingers crossed! Join the Women’s Sports Fan Club at fanclub.feisty.co to get entered to win a free “It’s Not a Moment. It’s a Movement” shirt daily, plus you’ll get entered to win our grand prize worth $1,000 from Feisty and our sponsors. Support our Croissants & Commentary Live From Paris Sponsors! TRIHARD: Use the code FEISTYGAMES for 22% off sitwide at trihard.co , plus you’ll get an extra 5% OFF...
Aug 03, 2024•2 min•Ep. 124
