I have been reading the book ROAR by Dr. Stacy Sims. It is amazing read and geared specifically to women. I am on my second time through. There is just so much good information, and how the book is structured takes some time to understand. The book was recommended in a course I took that highlighted some new thoughts on hydration and nutrition. To be honest, it took a bit to get my head around the difference between absorption and fueling. It is a concept that most nutritionists do not differentiate between (at least to my knowledge). Sims drives home the saying, “food in your pocket and hydration in your bottle.” Sims does an amazing jog of explaining how the female body works. She dives deep into how hormones impact the female athlete during the menstrual cycle, pre-and post menopause and pregnancy. She provides prescriptive guidelines on hydration and fueling to help the female athlete throughout the different stages of her hormonal journey. I do not provide information on fueling and hydration in this article as it is very in depth. I encourage you to read the book.
As a former elite female athlete, I understand the struggles that female athletes are challenged with when it comes to hormones and performance. When I competed, the literature and research available specific to the female was limited. Much like Sims, I was frustrated with coaches suggesting to get on the pill to control my menstrual cycle. It did not make sense to me given how the pill can elevate estrogen and progesterone.
As a coach, I have finally found a resource that can help me better coach my female athletes in areas of hydration and fueling for training and racing. The concepts of fueling and hydration that Sims provide are not foreign. What Sims does extremely well is connecting the dots between the female hormonal cycle and what has to change in hydration and fueling during training and racing.
My goal for this article is to summarize some of the key points from the book. Every female athlete and coach of females should read this book. I don’t recall much of my high school biology class (except that my teacher sat at the back of the class and picked his nose) but Sims refreshes this for us.
Human Biology Refresher
- The largest muscle fibers in a female body are endurance fibers (Type 1).
- Essential body fat for females is 12 percent and for 4 percent for males.
- Females pump out 30 percent less oxygenated blood than males.
- Males have 6 percent more red blood cells and 10 to 15 percent more hemoglobin (molecule that carries oxygen in red blood cells).
- Female VO2 is 15 to 25 percent lower than men.
- It takes longer for females to sweat and this impacts heat tolerance.
- Females rely more on fat whereas males rely more on carbs. This is important to understand when it comes to the menstrual cycle and pre-and post menopause. Understanding the shifts in estrogen and progesterone levels and how to manage this is the main theme in the book.
- Females are more likely to sweat out excess sodium and eat into their muscles for energy.
- The metabolism of a female drops back to normal within three hours post exercise compared 21 hours for a male.
Key Concepts From the Book
- Performance levels are highest once your period starts and days five to 11 following your period (Follicular phase). Estrogen levels surge on day 12.
- Five days before menstruation, estrogen and progesterone reach peak levels (Luteal phase). Why is this important to know? Estrogen reduces carbohydrate burning ability so when estrogen surges it will have an impact on high intensity performance. Female athletes will feel unfit and unable to push hard. High levels of progesterone promotes catabolism. It increases the breakdown of muscle tissue and makes it more difficult to access amino acids. Key message here is that one-third of muscle tissue is composed of the amino acids leucine, isoleucine and valine. Leucine triggers muscle repair and growth.
- Estrogen and progesterone are elevated during the luteal phase (days 14 to 28 of the cycle), and peak five days before menstruation. During this time blood plasma can drop up to 8 percent. This can impact hydration and cooling during exercise. Plasma volume is the amount of fluid in our blood. When it is low our blood is thicker, less blood is pumped out, and exercise will feel harder. Progesterone elevates core temperature, and this means higher loss of sodium.
- From ages 35 to 50 estrogen declines by 35 to 50 percent and progesterone by 75 percent. In addition, there is relatively higher estrogen levels compared to progesterone.
- Wake up call – postmenopausal females have a hard time metabolizing fructose in processed foods (for example, gels). Further, synthesis of protein changes and there is a higher rate of protein breakdown. Also, sweat rate is lower, and the ability to feel thirst declines. There is also a decreased insulin sensitivity. Insulin instructs the body what to do with blood glucose. Insulin communicates to our cells to take up blood glucose to use as fuel or store as glycogen. Decreased insulin sensitivity results in higher amounts of glucose left in circulation and eventually stored as fat.
Read the book
This book is a handbook for female athletes and coaches of female athletes. The book teaches you about the female body and provides exact details on hydration and fueling during exercise and through the different stages of the female hormonal phases.
My Own Advice
To maintain and improve bone density and lean muscle, heavy resistance training is needed. I felt that even though the book does go into exercises and some strength training, it does not stress the need for heavy resistance training. My suggestion around types of exercises are centered around things we need to be able to do in our everyday life. We need to be able to lift, carry, pull and push. In addition, everything we do requires grip strength. Throw away the biceps curls and start working on functional exercises which focus on the anterior and posterior chain. I also suggest adding exercises that help with balance, and this should be part of every routine regardless of age.
- Deadlifts
- Farmer’s Carries
- Sled push and pull
- Standing or walking with a sandbag on your shoulders
- Squats with weight
- Walking Lunges with weight
- Push ups
- Pull ups and body holds
