216 Fueling and Nutrition for the Female Athlete - Part 2- with Kyla Channell and Stevie Lyn Smith

Matt welcomes back Kyla Channell and Stevie Lyn Smith, for Part 2 of a discussion around nutrition for female athletes and fitness enthusiasts. Part 1 is HERE.

Both Stevie and Kyla bring with them a wealth of expertise, passion, and decades of experience in this particular area of fueling for the female.

Stevie Lyn Smith, MS, RDN, CSSD, CDN, is one of the lead dieticians with our partner, InsideTracker. She's an experienced Registered Dietitian, board-certified in Sports Nutrition, with a history of working with both individuals and groups in clinical settings. She is wonderfully skilled in sports nutrition, weight management, and, through her work at InsideTracker, brings a great backbone of understanding biomarkers as a tool to help people focus and hone in their nutrition needs.

Kyla Channell, MS Nutrition & Human Performance, is also the owner and founder of Nutritional Revolution, where she specializes in elite athlete fueling for each unique sport and sex differences between athletes. She is a longtime nutrition partner of Purple Patch and has worked with countless athletes of all levels from beginner to pro.

Episode Timestamps

0:00-012:30 Introduction and Matt's Personal Picks

Purple Patch Blog -How to Turn Stress into an Advantage

Purple Patch Podcast - Stress is not a Dirty Word

Hop on the Interest List for our Upcoming Fall Training Camps, including St. George - email: info@purplepatchfitness.com

Purple Patch Website and Newsletter

12:40- The Meat and Potatoes - Fueling for the Female Athlete and Fitness Enthusiast, Part 2

Matt, Kyla, and Stevie provide guidance on:

• Definitions and distinctions between oligomenorrhea and amenorrhea

• Are these symptoms exclusive to women with eating disorders, or is it more broad than that?

"Many times, we'll see the loss of a menstrual cycle or just irregular cycles in our endurance athletes because there is an energy deficit to some extent, and that could be unintentional, meaning maybe they're in a bigger training block and they're pushing out a ton of calories to hit longer sessions, harder efforts, etc. But they're not matching the the energy intake."

• The (unintended) difficulties women often feel with not fueling enough based on training load and intensities

• Why these are often red flags and symptoms of greater problems

"Anytime we're getting irregular cycles or losing the cycle for a period of time, it does result in low estrogen and that's a big player in our bone health, of course, among many other physiological functioning things we need going on in the body."

• What biomarkers or blood test results can be used to identify potential red flags in overall female health and performance?

"I've never seen an athlete with overtraining and overreaching, who doesn't have elevated cortisol levels."

• Consequences of low energy availability on both health and performance

"Our strength might decline, we might hit the wall a little bit faster, because again, we don't have those carbs on board. So glycogen stores are inadequate. This increases our risk for injury, you might notice more things like depression or lack of motivation to train, and you might feel a little bit more irritable."

• Actions for an athlete if they are experiencing elevated stress and biomarker levels?

• How to help female athletes who have a fear of carbohydrates and clean-eating obsession

"Starting small, getting those wins, making the person feel comfortable, and working on helping them trust their bodies a little bit more."

• Ways to provide validation and proof of success when eating for performance

• Impacts of birth control on female athletic performance

"We might have a harder time recovering from training sessions. We might have a decreased drive to hydrate, right? Being dehydrated absolutely can impact our performance. Some people notice more regular sleep disturbances, or even slight weight gain water retention."

• Why there is such a negative connotation around perimenopause and menopause and advice on working with this life change.

• How to vet a reliable coach or nutritionist in your quest for health and performance improvement

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This episode is sponsored by our collaboration with INSIDE TRACKER. Inside Tracker and Purple Patch- Receive 20% off their services with code: PURPLEPATCHPRO20

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