{"id":18861,"date":"2025-04-09T09:38:50","date_gmt":"2025-04-09T13:38:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.makivvik.ca\/?post_type=taqralikonline&p=18861"},"modified":"2025-04-09T09:38:53","modified_gmt":"2025-04-09T13:38:53","slug":"nunavik-getting-fit","status":"publish","type":"taqralikonline","link":"https:\/\/www.makivvik.ca\/fr\/article\/nunavik-getting-fit\/","title":{"rendered":"Nunavik Getting Fit"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Stephen Hendrie<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Beatrice Deer is a well known singer from Quaqtaq, now living in Dorval. She has recorded several albums and performs in Nunavik and beyond. She\u2019s also a fitness advocate and shares her workouts on her Facebook page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLots of Inuit tell me, in-person and on social media, \u2018I\u2019m inspired by you. I started exercising because of what you post on social media.\u2019 They ask me questions on how to start a healthy lifestyle.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her video reels on her Facebook page include clips of her with her personal trainer, and some solo, going through her routines with comments on the videos, all of them short and inspirational.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI had a baby three years ago and I gained a lot of weight,\u201d she says. \u201cThe whole post-partum experience has a huge effect on a woman\u2019s body, and people don\u2019t talk about that. I put comparison videos up. People notice the changes from like a year ago to now, and the change is pretty drastic. I keep saying it\u2019s all consistency, and eating is just as important, because it\u2019s 80 per cent what we eat and 20 per cent physical exercise.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Reels of Beatrice Deer\u2019s workouts from her TikTok on her Facebook Page. \u00a9 Beatrice Deer<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

She was thrilled when news came early in the summer of 2024 that Team Nunavik-Quebec (TNQ) would become a permanent member of the Arctic Winter Games (AWG). It means we can now send teams to the AWG.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s absolutely incredible,\u201d said Beatrice. \u201cAnything team related is so important, for us emotionally as human beings because we need to connect with other people. We need people to encourage us, and we need to do the same thing \u2013 it\u2019s reciprocal. And when we create these teams, we\u2019re not just creating teams for sports, we\u2019re creating friendships and bonds and memories and experiences.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a joint press release between the AWG and the Kativik Regional Government (KRG) it noted the change would take effect as of January 1, 2025. Team Nunavik-Quebec was there in 1972, 1974, 1976 and 1986, and has participated biennially since 2000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJoining the Arctic Winter Games International Committee as a permanent member is a moment of history for our youth and our region,\u201d said Hilda Snowball, Chairperson of KRG. \u201cWe showcased the incredible skill, talent and resilience of our athletes and performers for decades as a guest member. Being a permanent member reinforces our commitment to athletic excellence and cultural exchange that support the continued success of the AWG.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Chris Martin beams with pride to be with Team Nunavik-Quebec at the Arctic Winter Games Opening Ceremony in Whitehorse in 2024. \u00a9 Lucas Kiatainaq\/KRG <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Chris Martin is the Recreation Technical Assistance and Development Advisor for the Department of Recreation at KRG. He\u2019s competed at the AWG many times, notably in the Dene Games, and now attends as a Mission Staff, watching his oldest son Connor, and TNQ compete. He tells a story of being recruited when he was 16 by coach Alan Brown back in 2001 during the AWG trials in Kuujjuaq. Chris is a big guy \u2013 6\u20193\u201d 280 pounds \u2013 and was benching three plates. Brown spotted him and said, \u201cGet over there! You\u2019re on the team!\u201d he said laughing. His reaction to the TNQ news was first rate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHonestly, it kind of brought a tear to me eye, not gonna lie,\u201d he said with a laugh. \u201cIt expands a lot of what we can offer, and helps to popularize sports within the region more. It can push that agenda to help people to live a healthy lifestyle. We\u2019re all prone to our bad habits, but when you know you\u2019ve got an international competition coming up, you\u2019re going to take that seriously.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Willis Tagoona ready to drop the puck at the Kuujjuaq Arena. William York is in the blue uniform, Tuumasi Alaku is in yellow. \u00a9 Conlucy Kutchaka<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, at Makivvik, Willis Tagoona has been on the job as the new Sports and Youth Initiatives Coordinator. Willis grew up in Kuujjuaq, playing hockey, basketball, soccer, and volleyball. He worked as a phys-ed teacher at Jaanimmarik for 10 years. He was also thrilled with the news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is huge. I\u2019m so excited for Nunavik and where it\u2019s going to take us in terms of competing and growing as a contingent,\u201d said Willis. \u201cWe\u2019ve been a small group for many years, because we weren\u2019t a part of team sports \u2013 and as we all know hockey is huge \u2013 and I do believe that Nunavik has the talent in order to compete against the other contingents.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Deseray Cumberbatch getting into the zone while competing in the One-Foot High Kick. \u00a9 Lucasi Kiatainaq\/KRG <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Over on the Hudson Bay coast, Deseray Cumberbatch is an athlete and coach focussed on the Inuit games. Her day job is recruiting Inuit to work at the Raglan Nickel Mine. Two weeks on, two weeks off, fly-in fly-out (FIFO). \u201cAthletes in Nunavik \u2013 we\u2019re capable,\u201d she stressed. \u201cHaving a say in which sports that we want to compete in, I think that\u2019s really important, because we have a voice too, and us being a permanent team, it\u2019s really important. I\u2019m really excited for Nunavik.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beatrice Deer sees a deeper meaning. Fitness was her path to becoming sober over a decade ago. \u201cI needed something else to occupy my time. And the more I did it the more rewarding it was, especially when I was seeing the benefits. I first started with walking, and taking the stairs at work, instead of the elevator. I started trying to eat better, and looking at social media, what fit people eat. I cut out pop and juice, and just by doing that I started losing weight pretty quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chris Martin talks about this as well. \u201cIt\u2019s called a \u2018protective factor\u2019. These are the things that will help you be resilient, and will help you bounce back from tough times,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you\u2019re a teenager, these are the things that will help you avoid getting into drugs and alcohol too much, and will help you to avoid suicide, and stuff like that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a fact that exercising, even just taking a walk, releases endorphins and serotonins in the brain. These hormones naturally help improve mood, cognition, and concentration. \u201cOh yes!\u201d says Beatrice. \u201cThat\u2019s one of the main reasons that I exercise is to keep my mental health in check, because we release so much tension by exercising, and our brain releases happy hormones.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Imagining a Team Nunavik-Quebec hockey team at the next AWG in Whitehorse, Yukon, in 2026 brings smiles to the faces of Chris and Willis. \u201cWe have a pretty good idea of who our top players are in the region,\u201d says Willis. \u201cSo running the tournaments within the region, building on that, having training camps.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Team Nunavik-Quebec at the Arctic Winter Games in Whitehorse in 2024. \u00a9 Lucasi Kiatainaq\/KRG <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019d be working alongside organizations like Makivvik,\u201d says Chris. \u201cWe\u2019d be trying to identify a core group, or team that we can build off of. It\u2019s not just about the teams for this coming games, it\u2019s about what groundwork can we put into that team that we can play off and spin into the next games, and the next games after that, sort of thing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Inukjuak, Deseray looks forward to teaching athletes Inuit Games. \u201cI coached Inuit games, and I love teaching Inuit games. I have the passion to teach Inuit games, like a lot of physical activities, but especially Inuit games.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Deseray says she works out at the gym in Inukjuak, at the arena. She says there\u2019s also a community gym. Chris and Willis both noted there isn\u2019t an inventory of fitness infrastructure across Nunavik, covering gyms, community centres, and arenas, but this news may spark renewed interest in that. \u201cTo me it means we can harness that, we can harness that excitement,\u201d said Chris. \u201cPart of what I want to do is to have my team travel to the communities to see what each community has, what they\u2019re lacking, to get a better understanding of what\u2019s available for each community,\u201d said Willis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beatrice, in Dorval, has access to a big gym, and personal trainer. When she\u2019s in Kuujjuaq she goes to Inuk Strength Gym located at the Kuujjuaq Forum. She has nothing but praise for Jeff Gordon, who started the gym a few years ago. \u201cI\u2019m so proud of this young man who opened a gym,\u201d said Beatrice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During a summer when we watched Olympians in Paris, Nunavik athletes can start to look forward to a much larger contingent at the AWG in 2026 in Whitehorse, Yukon. Beatrice, Willis, Chris, and Deseray all said they\u2019d be watching the Olympics with excitement. Deseray imagined what it would be like to be in the games, \u201cI would compete in track and field, running!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further Browsing<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beatrice Deer\u2019s workouts are on her band\u2019s Facebook page: https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/BeatriceDeer\/reels\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Full results from the 2024 AWG held in the Mat-Su Valley, Alaska, are online here:
https:\/\/www.awg2024.org\/ulunews<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inuk Strength Gym in Kuujjuaq Facebook: https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/InukStrength<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Stephen Hendrie Beatrice Deer is a well known singer from Quaqtaq, now living in Dorval. She has recorded several albums and performs in Nunavik and [\u2026]<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":18863,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"taqralik-issues":[443,126],"class_list":["post-18861","taqralikonline","type-taqralikonline","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","taqralik-issues-443","taqralik-issues-winter"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.makivvik.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/taqralikonline\/18861","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.makivvik.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/taqralikonline"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.makivvik.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/taqralikonline"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.makivvik.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/taqralikonline\/18861\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18882,"href":"https:\/\/www.makivvik.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/taqralikonline\/18861\/revisions\/18882"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.makivvik.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18863"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.makivvik.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18861"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"taqralik-issues","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.makivvik.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/taqralik-issues?post=18861"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}