Very good book by Stacy T. Sims The author's basic thesis is that we women, because of our hormones, have to train very differently and that women's training should be built around the men's cycle so that they can realise their full potential and be successful. It doesn't matter whether they play in a team or are individual athletes. The book contains lots of nutritional advice and very good but simple training exercises (e.g. using your own body weight, jumps and exercises with weights (= very suitable for training without a gym). The authors are really passionate about promoting women of all ages and spreading up-to-date knowledge. The topics in the book include: hormones, heat and cold exposure and defined nutrition for athletic women. In the book, the authors (because there are actually 2 authors, Selene Yeager is also a co-writer) go into more detail about what exercising women should pay attention to in order to get or stay in good shape. Z. For example, we read about how women should train and pay attention to their cycle, as well as what women should eat during (before and after) training in order to perform at their best. One of the aims of the book is to look away from the male view of sport and observe our own female physiology, and then adapt the training to the cycle in microcircuits. Yes, visually we women are different, for example we have more body fat from puberty onwards. So we have to work with our physiology, whereby we will know from the authors after reading that women are not "little men" (especially important if you do sport at the top level). I think the knowledge about hormonal fluctuations during the menstrual cycle is very good, even though I don't have any at my age. But there is also important information in the book about the different stages of a woman's life as she ages, contraceptive problems, gastrointestinal problems (which many competitive athletes have), pregnancy (very carefully described), the menopause (such as information on strengthening muscles and bones), regeneration, biohacking, brain training and much, much more. The problem: Studies are usually done on men, not women. As a female academic and athlete, the author started with many questions, which she then spent years researching. The solution: women should train differently and consciously incorporate their cycle into their training. This is illustrated in the book using a number of training examples with different questions. I found it very informative, I have never read so much in a book about women in training! As an older woman, I naturally find the helpful descriptions of older women interesting: Female athletes should start training differently in their early 40s if possible. She calls them the "forgotten athletes", i.e. women in their 40s + years (= perimenopause). You should start lifting heavier weights at this age at the latest in order to maintain bone density. Of course, I find this an extremely important statement for me personally and have been training according to the book today, so I did some exercises from it, the photos are helpful. Very, very important! Her research then leads to statements in the book such as "Whey protein is better suited for muscle formation, according to the author, as it has a higher content of the amino acid leucine. Therefore, soya protein is not a good source of protein for female athletes to promote protein synthesis and lean body mass gain. Why? According to the author, it has to do with the amino acid profile of the protein: 50 grams of soya protein are needed to achieve the biological effect of 25 grams of whey protein. I think all the nutritional information is very good, e.g. on individual nutrients, individual training plans (in combination, how to eat before or after training). There are several photo series with exercises, recipes and much more. In any case, the book also puts non-athletes like me on the right track; as I said, I started training straight away. For real athletes, there is a lot more in-depth information on how to boost their high performance. I really like the variety of approaches to the topic, tips on different body types, tips on not using your period as an excuse to take more magnesium during your period, for example.... Adapting your training to your bone type (including testing whether you are a lean bone type or have an average or robust bone structure).

From the author's profile in the book, I learn that "Dr Stacy Sims, has worked for more than 20 years both as an athlete and as a scientist in the fields of sports and environmental physiology and sports nutrition science" and has specialised in "gender differences in environmental and nutritional aspects of athletic performance and recovery" as part of her academic career. In this book, she shares her findings in a very readable and easy-to-understand way, aimed at athletes, coaches and others. The individual chapters repeatedly provide specific plans and strategies for pre-competition nutrition, regeneration and more. Overall, the different physiological needs of men and women are highlighted and emphasis is placed on adapting nutrition to the body's needs so that it can perform at its best; I find this very exciting for me too. I myself am far from being an athlete; I was very interested in how nutrition and fitness could be perfectly adapted to the female organism. I've never read anything like it before, and I learnt a lot of new things, especially in more depth than usual. I found the information on hormonal fluctuations during the menstrual cycle and the various stages of the menopause, together with the explanations on how to strengthen muscles and bones to counteract natural degradation, particularly interesting. Nutritional advice, including on individual nutrients, training plans, photo series with exercises, recipes and much more will also put non-athletes on the right track; for athletes, there is a lot more in-depth information on how to improve their high performance. I also really like the short summary at the end of each chapter and the interspersed case studies, which break up and complement the theory. Overall, I find the book very interesting and informative; I have gained a lot of new insights. The book is very motivating and shows how you can perfectly harmonise nutrition and fitness for yourself, not only as an athlete, but also in all phases of life as a woman. For me, it is extremely helpful and highly recommended.

I think the book is very good. I am not an athlete myself, but I am very keen on exercise and it has really motivated me to do more for my fitness. Especially the information about how the cycle affects fitness and that hormones are so much more, I was somehow not really aware of. So girls, really worth reading.

Everything delivered without any problems, books top