ONE week from tomorrow I’ll be running my second half marathon – the Nike Women’s in San Francisco and I’m hyped. The natural progression to that would be to run a full marathon however I’m not so sure I want to. It’s not only the extra time and dedication but physically it doesn’t sound the healthiest for your joints and body. Having said that…
Thousands of healthy women run marathons every year!
But there are plenty of stories out there about elite women runners who have become too thin, missed periods, and had other health problems. How dangerous is it for women to run marathons? In fact, is it dangerous at all? Some people certainly seem to think so. So…
Are Women Marathoners Endangering Their Health?
“It is generally not dangerous for women to train for and run in marathons, as long as proper nutrition is maintained and precautions are taken,” says Michael Lu, MD, assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the UCLA School of Medicine.
As with most major physical undertakings, however, there are some risks. Most of these are related to going to extremes: training too hard, eating too little, getting too thin. “The greatest potential gynecological risks of marathon training for women involve amenorrhea (no periods), osteoporosis, and disordered eating, in what is commonly called the female athlete triad,” Dr. Lu explains.
In their article on the female athlete triad in American Family Physician , Julie Hobart, MD, and Douglas Smucker, MD, MPH, state that the female athlete triad is a combination of three interrelated conditions that are associated with athletic training: disordered eating, amenorrhea (absence of menstruation), and osteoporosis. According to Hobart and Smucker, “Athletic endeavors such as . . . distance running…that emphasize low body weight and a lean physique can increase the risk of developing the female athlete triad.”
Eat Enough and Eat Well
A great benefit to training for a marathon is that you can eat more—in fact, you have to so you can replace all the calories you burn during training. Make sure your diet is adequate to meet your body’s increased demands. In general, the diet should provide adequate calories to meet the athlete’s energy needs. It should be balanced, providing all macronutrients and micronutrients from a wide variety of foods.
Keep Training in Check
One of the contributing factors to the female athlete triad is excessive exercise—and with marathon training, that’s obviously a possibility. The amount you can train is largely determined by genetics. The less there is of you, the easier it is to do weight-bearing exercise, but if you start to get too competitive and try to shed weight so your times will get faster, there can be health risks.
As with most things, moderation in marathon training is key. Don’t do more than your body can handle—and that amount is different for every runner. B Well but most of all HAVE FUN!
GOOD LUCK TO ALL THOSE RUNNING THE VICTORIA MARATHON TOMORROW!
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