Running issues specific to women

If she’s anything over a C Cup she’s probably better off in an encapsulation bra than a compression one.

Also, @ariana` just be careful about wearing a sports bra for everday/extended periods, they can cause issues with lymphatic drainage.

She’s great to follow on Instagram and runs classes for clubs and groups. I’m hoping to attend one soon. I’m not available for her next ones in Dungarvan unfortunately.

Thanks - I just did some a google on compression vs encapulation and there is a youtube video by Global triathlon Network on that very topic, I've sent it on to her to look at and it's also below in case it of use to anyone else

Well worth joining the Facebook group “The Irish Menopause”. You can learn a lot there. I started on the Evorel Conti patch 3 weeks ago … that is a combination of oestrogen and progesterone. I can’t say I feel any different in one way yet suddenly I feel fitter and and stronger and in the last week I’m lifting heavier in the gym. It’s weird and possibly coincidence but I’m taking it.

Just a quick follow up had a chat with the gp and have started treatment so looking forward to things returning to normal 😀

Best of luck. Hope it goes well.

I’ve no idea to be perfectly honest. Maybe it’s seen as a precursor to HRT. I was recommended the Mirena Coil a couple of years ago and I questioned it as didn’t need it for contraceptive reasons but both my GP and gynae recommended it was it would be giving me progesterone and make perimenopause symptoms milder when they hit. I found it brilliant and still have it as well as being on HRT now.

Thanks Annie - I think peri was going on for a while I just didn’t realise it. However it really came to a head in the last 6 months-and I couldn’t go on the way I was. I think from reading the replies that I need to temper my expectations a bit - I’m very much oh I’m on HRT now it’ll be grand 😀 mindset. I’ll just have to play it by ear.

I think you’re from Cork ??? - if you ever want to try and meet for a run( I’m very slow though) at some stage let me know. No pressure.

Have been following here & only getting a chance to comment. I am on my 3rd month of HRT, it has defo helped with a lot of the symptoms but not others so giving it till the end of the month & might suggest a higher dosage to my doctor. I have the coil in so only need the patch for the progesterone, I have had the coil in for years & swear by it so will keep going with that. My advise to any woman would be to go & speak to a doctor as soon as you feel it impacting your life as there is so much more awareness & knowledge out there now so no need to suffer in silence. I personally didn't know if it was grief or peri menopause as the symptoms overlap but after Christmas I knew something was different, my mood was so low, not grieve just kinda numbness or something, then the brain fog, oh god it was awful, the feeling useless & stupid. My running was affected too, really didn't have any real drive like before. Getting PB's & not being able to enjoy them because everything just felt meh... I then felt so ungrateful & wondered why I couldn't do better, it was all a vicious circle. My boobs were awful too, so sore for weeks on end, I mean pain like I never felt before, the slightest touch or even running was so painful, it has eased a bit now but they still get so sore & even the tightest most supportive bra only helps a bit. The anxiety & troubled sleeping is tough too. I listened to the RTE running podcast & the info given by Irene was brilliant, I have being reading up on so much too around nutrition & exercise, with everything pointing towards strength training which I'm gonna get back into. The stats were quite stark too in running for women going through menopause... So for Dublin marathon last year just 23% of runners aged 45 & over were female. From a body composition perspective we are dropping muscle, so we are losing muscle at a rate of 8% per decade from 40-65, after that it drops 15%. We also can lose up to 20% of our bone density in those menopause years which ultimately increases our risks of injuries. HRT is medication that mimics the female hormones oestrogen and progesterone. It can be used to help manage symptoms of the menopause and to strengthen bones. It can help to prevent osteoporosis in the years around the menopause. Another interesting thing is that hormonal changes mean women of this age don't recognise thirst in the same way & can end up dehydrated very quickly & unintentionally, where a 2% drop in hydration can decrease performance by 6%. There really is so much info out there & I think it's trial & error for any woman but asking for help & support is the first step.

I'm similar with thirst so I just try have water near me when i'm working etc.

Yeah I had heard a few recommending the gel over the patch but my doc thought the patch was best to start off with, as I say it's early days so will see how it goes! Thanks for the feed back.

I've been reading here for a while too and contemplating posting but didn't feel I have much to add but this has triggered with me A. I've been burying my head in the sand as really I have very few physical symptoms (fortunately) but the brain fog is something else. I took on a new role in work last March, 12 months ago now, and it's been the most challenging/stressful year of my life. Most of the time I am barely functioning enough to keep my life outside of work together never mind learning new skills in role with much more pressure & visibility than I had previously. I've been in denial because it was timed with the change of role so I've been putting it down to maybe I got lazy and complacent in the last few years and that is why I am struggling but honestly it has to be more than that. I sit in meetings and tell the team I will do a certain task straight after the meeting and half an hour later someone could ask me how I got on with said task and I wouldn't have a clue what they are talking about, literally no clue... I am going around with more diaries and notebooks than ever and still forgetting what I've to do. The lid of our tea pot went missing at the weekend and I had to admit that I could very easily have put it in the bin or it may turn up in the most random places, I remember seeing it and thinking why is it there but I don't have a clue what I did with it next but it has vanished now and it was a bloody good teapot too to make matters worse 😂 Lately I can't remember my friends' kids names, little things like that that I am usually really good with. It's a constant feeling of fuzziness in my head.

@Laineyfrecks I listened to that RTE Podcast too, it was very informative, I'd love to do one of her Workshops. That fact around thirst was startling - I definitely don't drink enough so now will have to add that as another thing to do consciously even if I'm not thirsty.

Anyone got any shorts recommendations? Nearly died out there today in my leggings.

This used to happen to me a lot, there’s a few things you can do. Breathing more mindfully helped me - 2 steps in, 3 steps out (longer exhale than inhale). Also slowing down!

Stitches are still a bit of a mystery to science, apparently.