Angela Naeth: Struggles with ‘Female Issues’ and The Survey on Menstruation and Cramping in Female Endurance Athletes (with Results)
November 10, 2014
Photo by n2photoservices.com
We’re joined by pro triathlete and Ironman champion Angela Naeth to take a look at some of the messy and often “taboo” health issues that women face in endurance sports.
Many female endurance athletes struggle with their cycle and menstruation — whether that means having “harsh” periods with cramping and debilitating pain, or amenorrhea (the lack of regular menstruation, which is usually due to the vigorous and stressful nature of endurance sports, and resulting low body fat).
In this case Angela shares the struggles she’s had with her own menstruation over the years and gets candid with her journey and the role that sport played. We also learn why she was compelled to conduct an informal survey asking fellow female triathletes and runners how they manage their menstruation and use of birth control.
Menstruation and Birth Control Survey – The questions, results and a more detailed analysis by Angela.
Along the way in this show we give a bunch of tips and insight for the female athletes out there! We hope to bring these issues to light and no longer have women fear speaking up about the harsh realities of participating in endurance sports.
Comments (3)
Great interview! Thank you for chatting about this topic. Can’t wait to hear more about it.
This article shows the true facts and issues of women during sports. I think during menstruation it can be a difficult task for all the women athletes, but some rules have to be changed by the sport community to give rest , atleast for first 2 days. As it is a biological process which should not be neglected. Still there are nice protections for women like the menstrual cups which are really helping them to feel comfortable during sports.
Wow, great podcast. What Tawnee said about not letting a doctor just put you on the pill if you are amenorrhea was spot on. When I was in college (in the mid 80’s (yes I am old LOL)). I played soccer at the college level. I was amenorrhea during the season (probably about 1/2 the year) and was irregular the other half. This was true in high school as well. I finally went to the doctor at the college because I wanted to make sure there wasn’t anything wrong with me. The doctor didn’t listen to me at all. He basically treated me like a co-ed who was too embarrassed to ask to be put on the pill. He thought I was making up the whole thing just so I could go on the pill. I kept telling him I didn’t want to go on the pill, I wanted to find out why this was happening. He wouldn’t listen to me at all. Gave me a starter pack for the pill, prescription and sent me on my “merry” way. I would hope that if this happened now, it would be different, but maybe not. sigh…