With training comes a unique set of pitfalls depending on what the routine is. Weightlifting, running, aerobics and even yoga all come with injuries that can be sustained if you’re not doing it properly or are doing too much. To compound the problem, women, being built differently to men, need to be aware of the injuries that they are more likely to suffer through everyday exercise and training.
The most common is ankle sprains and tendonitis. This is by no means exclusive to women, but it is, statistically, more common for them. This is also linked in with plantar fasciitis, which is a series of tears in the supporting tissue along the foot arch and the heel. It’s thought the latter is down to possible abnormal alignment of the foot or flat feet. In truth, women have higher levels of oestrogen which leaves them with less muscle mass and less bone and muscle density. There are also studies that show women jump and land differently to men; typically, women typically land with the knees closer together and more upright, causing the potential for more impact damage. So whilst a habit of not running properly may do minimal damage to a male, the risk for women is greater.
Shoulder and neck injuries are also quite common. Women have, on average, a smaller frame, and so heavy lifting places more strain on the upper torso as well as the head and neck. Often, this is the result of someone reading a training guide and not accounting for the subtle but important difference in stature that exists between men and women, and so they head straight into dead lifting and heavy weights that are simply too heavy. But, even when this has been factored in, the truth is that the female upper core is still weaker than that of a man due to less bone strength and less muscle growth, regardless of size. Ignorance of this fact causes all manner of neck, spine and shoulder injuries that could be avoided with some foresight.
This leads onto the next common injury; fractures. This is also more of a problem for women who have given birth. Naturally, because of higher oestrogen levels, female bones are weaker, and additionally, women who lead busy lives often do not get enough calcium in their diet. After having children, hormone levels spike and drop which leaves women susceptible to stress fractures and cracks. If engaging in any sport or exercise, women need to be especially careful to make sure they consume more calcium and vitamin D for healthy bone growth.
Because of the many exercises geared towards women, anterior cruciate ligament injuries are also more common in females than males. We previously mentioned that women jump and land differently to men and this is partly the reason behind increased occurrences of ACL injuries. Women also engaged in more aerobic exercise, much of which involves twists, turns and running; these all mean that, ‘like for like’, women engage in workouts that present much more risk of ACL damage.
Lastly, concussions are now being understood more and more with each passing day as doctors now face up to the reality that it is a much more serious problem than was previously acknowledged. Women, on average, suffer from these injuries more than their male counterparts. It is thought that hormone levels play a part in the sensitivity to concussive injuries, but another more obvious and accepted cause is that women have less isometric neck strength and girth; this means that even something as innocuous as a sudden jolt can cause a sudden movement to the head that ends with a concussive injury.
Much of this is now being mitigated with better education and more understanding of the risks that women face during exercise. It’s not to say that women need to train less intensively or less often; far from it. Women are encouraged to do just as much in the gym as men, and in fact normally do. But just like men have their own ‘typical’ gym injuries, so do women, and as our bodies do not show any signs of evolving any time soon, women need to be more aware of ‘female specific’ issues.
