The female athlete triad is perhaps the most important combination of information for any young female athlete to understand, as well as parents and coaches. In the story that follows Emily Giannotti and Jennifer Malcolm, friends of MileSplit, talk about the female athlete triad through personal experience and what can be done to better understand it. For all female MileSplit readers, coaches and parents, please take the time to read this article, and we encourage you strongly to become involved with this study.
Striving for the 'Perfect Running Body'
A Personal Account by Emily Giannotti
My story would probably have to start when I first started running cross-country in the eighth grade. I was an “OK” runner, but became even better when I moved to the varsity team my freshman year. I won my league, my district and placed 27th at states. The following track season also gave me a great year in the distance events. Little did I know, however, that a big problem had been growing behind all of this.
While my love for running and competition grew, unfortunately, so did the pressure I put on myself to develop the “perfect” running body (which I finally learned did not even exist). I started limiting what I ate and eventually dropped to about 110 pounds on my tall 5’6’’ frame. Although I didn’t become full on anorexic, I looked horrible, sick and tired all of the time, and I obviously weighed too little for my big-boned body. In addition to my deteriorating relationship with food, I hadn’t gotten my period for over a year. I ignored all of this and was certain that it would all help my performance. I wanted to be a better runner!
All of this carried into the beginning of my sophomore cross-country season, but fortunately, although I didn’t like it at the time, my bad habits came to a screeching halt. One summer day before a fun run, my dad stopped me in the car. Being an orthopedic surgeon, I had talked to him before about my problems but insisted I was fine. He obviously saw right through that and gave me a brief but serious talk about the female athlete triad. He explained what it was and told me that he thought I had it. He also told me that if I continued with my ways, my running career would be over very soon. That fact alone changed my habits from that point on. I wouldn’t be the same without running!
That very night at dinner, I ate a lot more than I normally would have. Mentally, it was very hard. While it felt good to finally be able to feel full, I felt like I would become fat and slow if I ate that way all of the time. I persisted, however, thinking of how much running meant to me. Eventually, I saw a doctor for nutrition, my period started and I got back up to a healthy weight.
My efforts to get on the right track were encouraged even more when I had a shin splint scare right before my sophomore track season. Luckily, it passed for the most part, but could have been much worse without my eating changes.
Today, I feel very proud to have overcome the challenges I faced, mainly the false mentality I had developed that skinnier was better. I still have instances today where I struggle to eat more food. However, instead of focusing on limiting the amount of food I eat, I try to take in plenty of calories and improve the quality of my food choices. I believe that I am on my way to my best cross-country season yet (but I don’t want to jinx anything)!
For other girls that are purposefully struggling with the triad, I would like to say that you are taking the wrong path. Although, it might improve your short-term racing, you could be done running even before next year. It is very unhealthy and obviously not the way our bodies were intended to work. I encourage anyone with the condition to seek help immediately. Trust me, you won’t slow down!
Learn about the Female Athlete Triad & Join the Research Study
by Jennifer Malcolm
Many of you may be aware of such issues as amenorrhea, oligomenorrhea and the female athlete triad…but I suspect that to many female high school athletes this is a foreign language. You see, amenorrhea is the absence of menses (your period) and can be caused by strenuous exercise, like in the case of Emily. Oligomennorhea is scant or little menses and is also associated with the hormone changes that occur in female runners. One study shows that 49% of amenorrheic runners had stress fractures. The constant weight bearing exercise involved with running, along with hormone imbalances associated with missed menstruation, may be increasing your chances of getting stress fractures.
It’s true that adequate calcium, vitamin D and the right shoes are extremely important in stress fracture prevention, but don’t forget about underlying issues. Emily recognized that her shin splints may be associated with her menstrual irregularities…what is causing your boney pains? These problems may also be linked to a third problem common amongst female distance runners. Disordered eating. Anorexia and bulimia are common in sports which have a “thin ideal body image”. Not everyone who has an eating disorder starves themselves or induces vomiting, the most commonly accepted definitions of these disorders. Instead, an eating disorder may be associated with vigorous exercise in order to prevent weight gain. Together, menstrual dysfunctions, osteoporosis and disordered eating make up the female athlete triad. Athletes may look “normal” for their sport and still have 1, 2 or all 3 of these conditions. Take Emily’s advice and seek help if you think you may be affected by the triad.
My name is Jennifer Malcolm, D.O. and I, along with Christopher Mehallo, D.O. and Ryan Savitz, are researching the subject of Menstrual Irregularities in High School Cross Country Runners. From the winter of 1996 until spring of 2000, I ran PA District 1 cross country and track for Villa Maria Academy, and later went on to run at Bucknell University. I recently graduated from Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and am starting my Family Medicine residency at Medical College of Georgia. I look forward to pursuing a career in Family Practice/Sports Medicine.
Our research study is designed to determine the incidence of menstrual irregularities in high school cross country runners and to asses the adequacy of screening for these problems. It is a volunteer study involving an online questionnaire. The study is strictly confidential and will not require athletes to indicate their name or school. The initial survey takes no more than 15 minutes. Athletes are then asked to keep an online menstrual log during the 2008 fall cross country season. The log requires less than 5 minutes of your time each month.
If you or your team are interested in participating in this study, or you have any questions, please contact me at jennifermal@pcom.edu or Dr. Mehallo at cmehallo@comcast.net. Be sure to indicate in the email title that it regards this research. Thank you for your interest and look out for more information about menstrual irregularities and a link to our online survey.
Pre-season Survey Link
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