Fuel your adventure with kombucha
Summer is all about being active and getting outside! Biking, hiking, climbing, camping, you name it and we can probably do it right out our back door in Squamish. And after all that adventuring, we like to refuel with a bottle (or a growler!) of kombucha; all the benefits of an energy drink without the added sugar.
But you don’t have to take our word for it, because this month we’re checking in with professional volleyball player Autumn Bailey. She’s a member of the Canadian women’s national team, she previously played in Turkey as part of the Venus League, and is an alumni of Michigan State. At just 26 years old she’s already travelled the world to compete at an elite level, but right now she’s cheering her teammates on from home in Vancouver while she recovers from a serious injury she sustained while playing in June 2019. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is super important to Autumn, especially while she recovers from injury, and we asked her a few questions about how she does that for life both on and off the court.
Spark Kombucha: Back in 2019 you suffered a pretty serious injury while playing with Team Canada in Peru. Can you tell us a bit about your injury and where you’re at now?
Autumn Bailey: In 2019 I suffered a devastating injury in our gold medal match in Peru. I tore several ligaments in my knee and damaged some cartilage as well. The timing of my injury was extremely unfortunate as we had our 2020 Olympic qualifying tournament just 3 weeks after, which I would have to miss.
It was a difficult time for me, physically of course, but mentally and emotionally as well. Shortly after returning to Canada, I had an extensive knee surgery that would prevent me from walking for a month and a half afterwards. I spent a year rehabbing and trying to gain strength back in my leg before our surgeon suggested another knee surgery to try to reduce some of the lingering pain. A year after my second surgery, the pain hadn’t reduced as much as we had hoped, and so just over a month ago, in June, I had a 3rd surgery on my knee.
I’m back to rehab and a lot of my day is spent trying to get my knee in the best state possible to get back on the court and continue playing the sport I love! It’s been a long, unexpected and hard journey with a lot of ups and downs, but I'm determined to get back on the court and represent Canada again.
SK: Now that you’re in recovery and post surgery, how do you stay active and healthy, without affecting your rehab progress?
AB: This is a really great question because it has been a lot of trial and error with our rehab team. A lot of learning - what my knee can handle, what’s too much, what makes it feel better. We’ve tried some things and learned that it’s too much for me and causes pain, while other things, such as swimming have had a positive impact on my knee. We’ve had to be extremely diligent, monitoring how many steps I take and how hard I can push it on a daily basis.
Some ways I’ve managed to stay active and healthy primarily include swimming, biking, short hikes and, weigh-lifting. Swimming and biking are easy on my knee and allow me to get a good, hard workout in, while weight-lifting helps me to keep it safe and strong. Hiking is something I enjoy and try to do it as much as my knee can tolerate.
SK: Do you feel like the sports industry does enough to inspire people to choose natural foods and drink options over processed fast food or sugar filled energy drinks?
AB: I think the sports industry can still do a better job inspiring people to choose natural food and drink options over processed food. I personally didn’t learn about healthy and natural alternatives until my first year with the Canadian national team. We have a team nutritionist who taught me a lot about properly fuelling my body for training and helped me to find natural food/drink options.
I don’t think that everyone always has access to these types of resources, and I was lucky to be able to learn from our nutritionist, but I think that’s where the sports industry can do a better job educating people. For so long, sugar filled energy drinks were touted as the drink for elite athletes, helping to quickly replenish energy sources. I think as we become more knowledgeable about what we’re putting in our bodies and how it affects us, a lot of elite athletes are turning to more natural alternatives that provide the same benefits.
SK: How has Spark Kombucha aided your health and wellness goals?
AB: Spark Kombucha has aided my health and wellness goals in a lot of different ways. For starters, besides water, Spark Kombucha is practically the only other thing I drink! I started drinking kombucha my first summer with the Canadian national team as an alternative to juice. I grew up loving juice, and until I was probably 23, you could find up to 3 different flavours of juice in my fridge at all times - orange, apple, tropical, you name it. After learning about the high sugar content in juice, I decided to look for an alternative. I came across kombucha and loved the added health benefits it had, besides tasting great.
It wasn’t until this past year that I started taking an even closer look at the ingredients on the labels of different kombucha brands. This was shocking to me because I thought that I had already made a conscious effort to be healthier, but when I discovered that a lot of kombucha brands have extremely high sugar contents, I was on the hunt for a kombucha that was even more natural and health conscious. I came across Spark Kombucha and it’s been my go-to ever since. It has just 4 grams of sugar in every bottle, no added sugar or preservatives. It’s the best and a staple in my diet and helps me to lead the healthy lifestyle I want to have, especially while recovering.
SK: What's your favourite Spark Kombucha flavour?
AB: Oooh, this is tough. I think Berry Hibiscus. It’s so summery and the perfect amount of sweet. But I’m really looking forward to trying some of the new seasonal flavours as well!
SK: Aside from volleyball, what other sports have you been keeping up with during the Olympics?
AB: This Olympics I really got into watching badminton! I’d never really taken too much of an interest in watching badminton before, but I’ve never seen anything like it! The rallies were just so insane and intense and impressive! It was so entertaining, if we missed matches, my boyfriend and I would go back and watch them because we were just so in awe of the game being played at that level.
