WOMEN V MEN – some key differences and how they might impact sport in particular
WOMEN
Smaller heart and heart volume
Smaller lungs – around 23-30% less capacity
Lower diastolic pressure in heart – this predisposes us to lower max heart rates and we pump out less oxygenated blood with every beat ( around 30% less)
On average 6% fewer red blood cells and 10-15% less haemoglobin ( the molecule that carries oxygen in the blood)
Our combined smaller heart and lungs and lower oxygen-carrying capacity means we have a lower VO2max : around 15-25% on average ( the max amount of oxygen your body can use to make fuel).What does this mean : if a male and female athlete do the same training then the woman will have a higher heart rate and need more oxygen to get the job done
Smaller Type II fibres ( used for short, hard efforts) means men can usually out perform women in short intense bursts however men also accumulate more lactate which leads to muscle acidity (commonly known as ‘the burn’) leading to longer recovery time for all out efforts
Higher oestrogen levels means women rely less on carbs and more on fat. This is great for endurance sport but not so much for hard intensity where we do need to supply the carbs to hit the highs. And be careful as we are also more likely to eat into muscles for energy if there isn’t enough available glucose. We also find it harder to rebuild or repair muscle post exercise – especially post menopause and during the high-hormone premenstrual phase in the monthly cycle
Recovery:
Although we mobilize more fat during exercise we burn more carbs during recovery while men switch to burning an increased proportion of fat. We have around a 3hr window of raised fat-burning metabolism, men have around 21hrs…..
Women need to burn the carbs to prevent the body from using muscle to recover – this is why a good does of protein is really important in the first 30mins post exercise (around 30g) to rebuild our muscles and reduce the signalling to store fat.
The window for carb replenishment is around 2hrs - once past this insulin sensitivity is reduced so it takes longer for muscles to absorb glucose from your bloodstream and glycogen storage is lower. Insulin insensitivity also leads to fat storage. In fact once past 2hrs30 your glycogen storage rate has reduced by 50%.
Eating a protein & carb recovery snack within 30mins of finishing exercise can extend your ability to replenish muscle glycogen by up to 8 hrs if you just keep topping up the tank
WHAT TO EAT FOR RECOVERY CARBS:
Starchy veggies are an excellent choice – full of carbs and nutrients (unlike your bread and pasta) .
Eg cup of mashed potato =@ 45g carbs v cup of oatmeal @ 27g or pasta @ 38g
Avoid fruit to refuel ( except bananas and grapes) as it is high in fructose which will be soaked up by the liver and not head to restock the muscles
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