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Reading Between the Lines: Gender Stereotypes in Children’s Sport-Based Books

Jennifer T. Coletti, Veronica Allan, and Luc J. Martin

A child’s first contact with media and culture typically comes from books they are exposed to in the home and at school. The narratives presented contribute to the early reinforcement of gender roles and norms and can greatly influence the way that young girls perceive and experience sport. The purpose of this study was to explore the narratives within sport-based books geared toward a young female audience to determine the extent to which they promote the engagement of girls in sport. A pragmatic literature search was conducted to obtain books that met our inclusion criteria. Books (n = 28) were analyzed based on the age of their intended audience (aged 3–5, 6–8, and 9–12 years) using thematic narrative analysis. Although the authors promoted the engagement of girls in sport, underlying gender stereotypes were nevertheless salient. Across the books, themes involved the emphasis of “feminine” sports as a context for diversity and learning, the need to understand development as a process, the importance of relationships, and implications pertaining to perceptions of capability as female athletes. Most importantly, the application of a critical feminist lens enabled us to identify an underlying theme—the reinforcement of gender stereotypes—that permeated the storylines and served to undermine the potential adaptive messaging intended by authors. These findings suggest the need for greater attention toward the complexity of female sport and a cultural shift in thinking toward gender equity rather than simply increasing sport access for female participants.

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Acute Ketone Monoester Supplementation Impairs 20-min Time-Trial Performance in Trained Cyclists: A Randomized, Crossover Trial

Devin G. McCarthy, Jack Bone, Matthew Fong, Phillippe J.M. Pinckaers, William Bostad, Douglas L. Richards, Luc J.C. van Loon, and Martin J. Gibala

Acute ketone monoester (KE) supplementation can alter exercise responses, but the performance effect is unclear. The limited and equivocal data to date are likely related to factors including the KE dose, test conditions, and caliber of athletes studied. We tested the hypothesis that mean power output during a 20-min cycling time trial (TT) would be different after KE ingestion compared to a placebo (PL). A sample size of 22 was estimated to provide 80% power to detect an effect size d z of 0.63 at an alpha level of .05 with a two-tailed paired t test. This determination considered 2.0% as the minimal important difference in performance. Twenty-three trained cyclists (N = 23; peak oxygen uptake: 65 ± 12 ml·kg−1 min−1; M ± SD), who were regularly cycling >5 hr/week, completed a familiarization trial followed by two experimental trials. Participants self-selected and replicated their diet and exercise for ∼24 hr before each trial. Participants ingested either 0.35 g/kg body mass of (R)-3-hydroxybutyl (R)-3-hydroxybutyrate KE or a flavor-matched PL 30 min before exercise in a randomized, triple-blind, crossover manner. Exercise involved a 15-min warm-up followed by the 20-min TT on a cycle ergometer. The only feedback provided was time elapsed. Preexercise venous [β-hydroxybutyrate] was higher after KE versus PL (2.0 ± 0.6 vs. 0.2 ± 0.1 mM, p < .0001). Mean TT power output was 2.4% (0.6% to 4.1%; mean [95% confidence interval]) lower after KE versus PL (255 ± 54 vs. 261 ± 54 W, p < .01; d z  = 0.60). The mechanistic basis for the impaired TT performance after KE ingestion under the present study conditions remains to be determined.