What effects do running have on women?

Thanks for your info everyone. This is one incredibly helpful site. I've begun my training - and its going well. I did pull a muscle in my ankle, and that's pretty much better, though it does hurt if I push it to much. Definitly don't want a permeant injury! Thanks again.

I'm cutting/pasting the below comment that I'd recently posted in another conversation about long distance running in case it's helpful here.......This isn't about developing cysts on your ovaries from running per se, but is about how I came close to being dangerously ill from too much running......

The big thing I learned from all of my distance running over the years is that you have to find a good and healthy balance. At one point in my life (my teens and early 20's), I was running too much and couldn't keep enough body fat on my body to have periods. I was competing on my high school's, and later, on my college's cross country teams and also competing in marathons. On a typical day, I would run 15-18 miles. One of my biggest accomplishments was running the Boston Marathon in a decent time, but I weighed only about 90 pounds which was not at all healthy for a 5'9" 19-year-old girl.

With all of the running I was doing, it was really impossible to eat enough to make up for the calories/fat that I was burning each day. So even though I was an athlete and thought I was in great shape, I was not healthy, and at one point when I was 20 years old, I ended up in the hospital for several days and needed a blood transfusion. My body fat percentage was so dangerously low that my internal organs were rubbing against each other and causing internal bleeding. There was just no padding on my body, which is very dangerous. I had to get 2 pints of blood, which was a huge wake-up call. Under doctor's orders, I gave up running for a year and focused on gaining weight. My period started several months after my hospital scare for the first time in my life.

Fortunately, I recovered from being completely caught up in my running -- I'd let it take over my life and it nearly killed me. I think we can do just about anything in excess until it's harmful. I was lucky that the experience didn't impact my ability to have kids -- I've had four babies, including a set of twins. Fertility was never an issue for me, but my doctors are always amazed that I didn't have a period until I was 21.

I guess, long story short, that my experience with running when I was younger is a good example of what not to do -- don't go overboard with your running. Don't take it to the extreme. But if you want to train for a half marathon, and you follow a good and healthy training schedule, take care of your body and rest when you have pulled muscles or any aches/pains, etc., then go for it. You can always shake up your training by substituting some runs with cycling, swimming and/or fast walking, so that you still get the same cardio benefits from exercising in a way that isn't as rough on your joints. And don't forget to re-fuel with healthy food, lots of water and rest.

I actually just did a half-marathon in January (I'm 43 now), and it was the first long race I've done since I was in my 20's. I didn't push it at all, didn't go crazy with training, ran it slow, and just enjoyed the fact that my body can still do something that physically challenging at this point in my life. I have no desire to do another one, but it was nice to know that I can run and keep a healthy balance.

I would like everyone on here to know that what the woman's doctor told her is completely TRUE! My sister, an avid marathon runner in her past for only 3 years, went to try to conceive and had the greatest of problems. After many doctors and lots of money, she found a doctor who did his thesis on this exact issue and found it to be true for both marathon runners and gymnasts. Lone and behold, that is why my sister could not have kids. After many thousands of dollars later with fertility treatment my sister was able to get pregnant with our little angel Claire, but she is no longer allowed to run at such great distances... So, keep that in mind!

Diane provided great information.

I'm one of the marathoners on board, here, and - so far - have only benefitted positively from distance running. As a lupus patient with a myriad of issues, like rheumatoid arthritis, scoliosis and osteoarthritis, one would think running would be more damaging to my joints than not. Actually, running helps keep my bones and joints healthy.

I've never heard of running causing ovarian cysts. We can develop cysts for no apparent reason. I have a few on my ovaries, but they are not at all serious enough for my doctor to be concerned.

Women do have different issues from men when it comes to running. We have wider hips, smaller hearts, less testosterone, higher body fat, lower muscle mass. We also run differently because our biomechanics are different.

Women make up more than 50% of new runners and walkers participating in distance events each year (I forget exactly where I learned this statistic), which is why we rarely refer to them as "races," any more. They are events for participants of all ages and abilities.

During the last summer Olympics in Beijing, there were several stories about the "older" female Olympians, from swimmers to a marathoner, who were moms. Elites have trained most of their adult lives, so these women were testament to the possibilities of super athletic achievement not hampering childbearing.

Just get out there, get good training and enjoy your run!

Hi, Anon, and welcome to EmpowHer. Thanks for your question!

(I am tempted to leave it for one of our long-distance runners on staff who are also moms!) I'm sure they will weigh in later as well. =)

I found no evidence that running at all, even long-distance running, causes ovarian cysts. What I'm wondering is if your friend knew someone who found out that they had ovarian cysts because running caused them pain in that area and they went to a doctor who discovered them. That seems likely, as some ovarian cysts can indeed be painful.

Here are two good pages on ovarian cysts, their causes and treatments:

https://www.empowher.com/media/reference/ovarian-cyst#definition

http://womenshealth.about.com/cs/ovariancysts/a/ovariancysts.htm

In terms of all aspects of running and how it can affect a woman, I found a great article by Runner's World UK called "30 Things Every Woman Should Know About Running: Health, Psychology, Pregnancy and Motherhood, Training and Racing, All From A Woman's Angle." Here's a link:

http://www.runnersworld.co.uk/news/article.asp?UAN=285

That article covers all kinds of interesting things. For instance, runners have half the risk of breast and uterine cancer and only a third the risk of diabetes than do their non-running peers, partly because the estrogen they produce is less potent. Women runners need to keep track of their levels of iron. And infants dislike post-exercise breast milk, which is higher in lactic acid.

And here's an ongoing study that shows how running benefits women:

http://www.lbl.gov/Science-Articles/Archive/running-women-study.html

One of the things that WILL hurt a woman is overtraining and undereating, such as losing your menstrual period or making your bones more vulnerable to injury. Here's an article that discusses this:

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0NHF/is_6_17/ai_86649669/

And here are a couple of sites specifically geared to women runners:

http://www.traxee.com/
http://www.running4women.com/health.php

So get yourself a great pair of shoes, and enjoy!!

Could you share what these unique effects on women are??