👋🏼 Hey ladies!

Welcome to Bodytalk, where we discuss the realities of women’s health, culture, and more. This is our space: To unpack the double standards, to confront the misinformation, and to open up about the things we’ve been told are “TMI”.

Think back to where you were six years ago, when a global pandemic completely rocked our worlds. it was a terrifying time…but it was also kind of the forced pause so many of us needed. And I’m finally in a place where I can admit: I feel some pandemic nostalgia. Which may just me being a typical nostalgic millennial. Who knows?

Speaking of being a millennial — as we approach 40, I think many of us are thinking a lot about aging and how we want to look, feel, and function as we get older.

I love the shift from “anti-aging” to longevity, but I also feel so many problematic messages about getting older, especially on social media…and I’m just here, trying to figure it all out. I’m sure you are too.

Let’s do it together? Time to chat 🗣️

Another day, another TikTok rabbit hole. And this one led me to the part of the app where people are obsessed with…well, beans. No, this isn't meant to signify something else. I’m literally just talking about beans. Black beans, navy beans, white beans, kidney beans…any type of bean you like. 

It’s called “beantok” because of course it is, and it features people touting (no, not “tooting”, touting) beans for their ability to “make you hot”, according to a super viral TikTok. Creators are especially into beans for breakfast, and they’re sharing the bean-centric morning meals they’re concocting. Think: A pile of black beans topped off with avocado, a fried egg, and hot sauce. Or, if you prefer, a pile of sauteed beans plated with boiled eggs and whatever other breakfast fare you like.

But is there truly anything magical about eating beans, specifically for breakfast? Because honestly…beans are not high on the list of things I crave first thing in the morning (give me a bagel over a pile of kidney beans any day). Is this TikTok hack worth paying attention to…or is it just another example of wellness culture telling us to do something with zero grounding in fact and turning it into a huge fad?

According to registered dietician Anna Bohnengel, there’s something to the whole beantok thing.

“Starting your day with a mix of protein and fiber is one of the most reliable ways to stabilize blood sugar, hormones, and appetite. Research consistently shows that higher-fiber, higher-protein breakfasts reduce post-meal glucose spikes and improve satiety for hours afterward,” she says.

But why beans specifically? Read more.

🔎 Ask Clara: What are the benefits of eating beans?

Today is my 38th birthday. I don’t know when things shifted, but I’ve officially crossed over into the point of my life in which aging feels scary.

It’s hard not to think about aging constantly, especially right now, when the beauty standards of youthfulness are so much more intense than they ever were before. 

I want to be someone who ages gracefully. But in 2026, what does that even mean? Our image of what a 40-year-old woman “should” look like is so warped right now…but then, it always has been, hasn’t it? 

Ten years ago, women over 30 were portrayed as ancient and invisible, as if their entire lives had passed her by. The only real representation of “middle aged women” we had was this sitcom-ified version of a suburban mom in a minivan. She wasn’t really a full person in many of these portrayals; she was a symbol and vessel. No dreams of her own, no agency, no personal style…it was like messages everywhere told us that once we hit a certain age, we should just retreat. 

There have been some notable exceptions: One of my favorite comfort shows, Younger, is all about a 40-year-old woman who fully embraces her second act. She’s a main character, and she still has desire and ambition and fun. The show’s whole premise, though, is that she has to masquerade as a much younger woman in order to live this full life.

And then there’s one of my favorite books, The Idea of You, which is about an age gap relationship — come for the steamy scenes, stay for the beautiful commentary on what it is to age as a woman in a world that essentially tells us we become invisible once we hit a certain age. Read more.

 🔎 Ask Clara: How do beauty standards affect women as they age?

I’ve never been a big fan of protein bars. To me, they’ve always tasted chalky and unnatural. And…well, they kind of are.

When you’re eating a protein bar, you’re eating something with lots of ingredients. I’m not someone who never eats processed food (what would life be without the occasional Oreo?), but I do often feel like eating a protein bar is basically like eating a (very filling, to be fair) candy bar...except it doesn’t actually taste all that good. And listen, if you love the taste of them, feel free to disagree here. Protein bars are great for the convenience, for travel days, for stashing at your desk when you don't have time for a full meal, etc. But I've just never found one I've really enjoyed.

Enter: The Internet’s new favorite “protein bar”, which is a single-ingredient snack the girlies on TikTok are loving.

The “bar” in question is actually not a bar at all, but a hunk of parmesan cheese. Online, people are calling this out as an easy, on-to-go, high-protein snack. Only unlike a protein bar, this is delicious and not chock full of a laundry list of ingredients. 

Listen, as a cheese lover, I’m fully on board with this. I’d much rather chew on a piece of parm as opposed to any of the protein bars I’ve actually tried. Obviously, a hunk of parm isn’t nearly as portable for on-the-go snacking as a packaged bar, but it’s also...packaged food. Which is kind of the positive and the negative here, you know?

There’s definitely a time and place in which a protein bar is going to make sense (I will not be stashing a block of cheese in my car for snack emergencies, thank you very much), but if I’m home and want a filling snack? I’d much rather reach for my cheese drawer than a bar.

Registered dietician Anna Bohnengel co-signs that parm is a delicious snack option, albeit one she never considered as a protein bar replacement…but the Internet girlies get a few things right, says the expert. Read more.

🔎 Ask Clara: How much protein should I be eating?

It’s been six years since the world as we knew it changed entirely thanks to a global pandemic. Like most people, I miss parts of our pre-pandemic world (we’ve gotten a little too socially awkward, yaknow?), yet I also think this world-altering virus changed some things for the better.

But here's my little secret: From time to time, I miss those earliest days of the pandemic....and I used to be ashamed to admit that because, well...it wasn't exactly the happiest of times. When I recently dared to admit my pandemic nostalgia to a friend, she confided that she felt it too. 

To be very, very clear: I don’t miss the way the world felt, that sense of doomsday every day. I don’t miss the darkness or the fear or terrible news cycle or the death and destruction the pandemic brought upon so many people.

But I do miss how slowly time moved. I miss not feeling rushed all the time. I miss spending so much time with my family. 

Of course, it’s easy to look back at the pandemic and only remember the coziness of being quarantined, and blocking out all the anxiety we faced. When I think back to the quarantine days, I remember playing on the floor with my kids. I don’t immediately remember wiping down my groceries and feeling my heart sink with every news update, but that was the reality of that time.

But even with all the paranoia, I  think those pandemic days showed us that there’s a better way to live — with less hustle and less chaos. My husband, who works a demanding job with lots of travel, was suddenly home all the time, and the way he bonded with our children was indescribable. So many other families experienced that too.

We spent our days making food from scratch, snuggling with our kids, and resting, and just being grateful for the gifts of life and health. It’s a privileged stance to take, I know: So many people were forced to go back to in-person work and didn’t have the slow, cozy experience I did. 

I took so many lessons form the pandemic. Read more.

🔎 Ask Clara: How did the pandemic change our behaviors?

Most supplement routines are built on guesswork.

SuppCo fixes that. They help you audit product quality, optimize your budget, and track the exact nutrient density of your stack. You take the right dosages from trusted sources. Nothing more, nothing less.

Plus, their core features are free. Not a trial. Just free.

Download the SuppCo app to see what you're actually taking. Then start building a routine that makes sense for your body and your budget.

Your workouts aren't random. Your supplements shouldn't be either.

Download SuppCo