It’s a little-known fact that I used to play badminton. That’s badMINton, by the way, which is *not* the way that 99% of Americans who utter this word say it. Ask me for a personal pronunciation lesson, if necessary. Thanks.

Anyhow, me and badminton were great friends. When I was in high school, my family had a membership at the Royal Glenora Club in Edmonton. While I see they have a truly embarrassing website now, they had a great junior badminton program back in the day (and I’m sure they still do). For three years, I lived and breathed badminton. We trained most days of the week, and went to all the provincial (and sometimes national) tournaments. My social life was very wrapped up in the club team, and badminton was good for me. It gave me focus, it gave me something to strive for, and it got me in really, really good shape. If you still harbor ideas about it being a “back yard game”, please read this blog post by Anna Rice. She's Canada’s top women singles player (who beat me at least once or twice in tournaments when we were teenagers) and her description should lay your misconceptions to rest. It’s an intense game, and more physically demanding at the elite level than you can probably imagine.

Proof: watch this video. They almost make it look easy, but a rally like that is *gruelling*.