Q & A: Does menstruation affect athletic performance?
Posted March 15th, 2007 at 1:59 PM by Martin Kennedy
Section: Health & Fitness, Exercise
Athletic events are scheduled without regard to whether a woman will menstruate when she competes. Most world-class female athletes feel that menstruation does not interfere with their strength, speed, coordination or endurance. However, a higher body temperature after an egg is released during the last half of the menstrual cycle could cause the heart to work harder to pump extra blood from your hot muscles to skin to dissipate heat.
Most female athletes do not need to manipulate their menstrual cycles, but some women feel that they can compete at a higher level when they are not menstruating. They can take birth control pills for several months prior to their championship events and stop taking the pills 10 days before their competition. They will usually start menstruating within three days and stop menstruating before they compete. An alternate method is to take progesterone, such as 5 mg of medroxyprogesterone acetate, for 10 days, from 20 to 10 days before competition.
Research Sources:
1,2) Hessemer and Bruck: J Appl Physiol. 59(6):1911-1917, 1985 and also 1902-1910.
3) Med Sci Spts and Ex. 1990 (Oct);22(5):575-580.
4) Mirkin and Shangold Women and Exercise; Physiology and Sports Medicine. F.A. Davis co, P 193
This post is written by Dr. Gabe Mirkin, M.D. and used with permission. Dr. Mirkin is board certified in Sports Medicine and has practiced for over 40 years. He has completed more than 40 marathons and was a talk show host of a nationally-syndicated radio program for about 25 years. For more articles by Dr. Mirkin, please check out: www.DrMirkin.com
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Tags: birth control, egg, medroxyprogesterone acetate, menstrual cycle, menstruation, womens health
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