Women are Not Small Men: a paradigm shift in the science of nutrition | Stacy Sims | TEDxTauranga 

Not having your period is so normalized in sports, it's scary

*I've worked as an EMT and it's disturbing how little research there is on women's specific medical complications too, for example, the differing symptoms during cardiac events.*

“we don’t study women” truer words cannot be spoken by health scientists. Ready for change. Thanks for your research 🙏🏻

Women and men are not the same. Crazy this has to be said on any intellect level... Great speech!

Women are NOT small men. So simple. So brilliant. So true.

This is a much broader problem in science. Most studies are conducted with men only to avoid irregularities, even though often those irregularities could be important for what is being studied.

Women are not "difficult to study"...we make up half of the population and this is just the way we are. Thank you Dr. Sims for your work and for being a force of change!

“Taking her own physiology and working with it” ... words to train by 😻

This was perfectly said. Women are women. My wife has been through the same thing that I think most wives have been through. Their husband can lose weight easier and it discourages her. We need more information like this so she can do what her body is supposed to do.

A week before my period my body gets really hot. So when I'm working out. I find myself over heating much faster. So I have to slow down and my husband is like catch up. And I'm like I can't😥.

"Women are not small men" women are women, we have cycles, early in our cycle we can work hard, later in our cycle we need to rest more. We need to work with our bodies not against them!

My Husband and I have been training for years... after about 15 years of trying different things, I found I need to eat, and eat well, carbs as well... Weight training and cardio evenly help me. Just after ovulation I get extra hungry for carbs, and I found that by adding some rice to my protein and veges helps me through a good workout. I find my best time for exercise is the week of my period. The worst is after ovulation and is kind of continues until I get my period. My husband never seems to fluctuate, and I get that. I understand my needs, and I use it to my advantage when I can.

Please we need to move this research forward! Women's bodies are uniquely different from men and must be acknowledged.

If only this was concerning just sport and nutrition... almost all medical and psychological studies are done with the subjects being only men or men and women who are on hormonal contraceptives. Meaning the results are applicable to men and women who take hormonal contraceptives. Why? Scientists want to avoid fluctuation to get clean results. The only problem is, that there IS fluctuation within the menstrual cycle and we HAVE to take it into consideration if we want to treat or analyse women.

This is the reason why I want to study women’s health. People always say what is there to study about women. I say EVERYTHING if you look at almost all general case studies and scientific research regarding the human mind and body a mass majority of the research is going to have been originally based on men or entirely based on men and equally applied to women with little to no adjustment. I don’t understand how scientists and physicians can deny the fact that the biological differences mean something and thus affect us different. Down to our genetic makeup we are different and we should have the same studies done to make up for those differences. Not to mention the studies that pertain only to women that still haven’t been done. We have so many questions that people either ignore, give simple solutions and brush off, or often we are given the answers based off a mans study and wonder why our result is not what was expected.

This was soooo interesting. As a man I never even thought about the impact of periods on woman regarding sports (I never had one lol).

'Women are Not Small Men' what a time to be alive...

Clicked because of the muscles, stayed for the speech.

This is so needed. Women are made to feel inadequate in so many ways and forced to ignore the ebb and flow of our cycles (which is our greatest connection to nature). This essentially cuts us off from the wisdom and intuition that is our birth right. Not to mention how we beat ourselves up for not having one of those bodies that snaps back into shape after childbirth.

Coaches who work with female athletes should be required to learn this information, especially in the NCAA collegiate system. It's been so gratifying to help the current generation of female athletes navigate their menstrual cycles through training with information in Dr. Sims book ROAR. Very excited for the updated research she will be releasing

Expanding on your message, I'd like medications to be tested on woman as well as men. I am not a small man, I am a small woman.

I remember an anatomy class in med school 8 years ago: the high expert (male) teacher was explaining the trajectory of some muscle and suddenly said "there's an anomaly to this because in women this muscle..." So apparently all women having a variation from male anatomy was an "anomaly"... 🤦

Women and men are biologically different. I think all sane people can agree on this.

The least talked about difference between men and women, and yet it is the MOST significant. Thank you for bringing awareness to women and the scary word... period. 🙏🏼

Even in feminine sports like ballet losing your period is a sign of good sportmanship so we can all agree that it's not just the obese white males giving us a hard time, there's a cycle of toxic femininity and ignoring our body's basic functions to be addressed as well

‘Women have periods’. The fact that this needs to be said is disturbing. Great talk.

Hormone , blood count , body structure , even brain structure is little bit diff for man and woman...we are surely diff than each other..

Women and men are different. Nothing wrong w that

So great that this is finally out there for girls and women!

I appreciate that there's someone out there doing this research. Will be reading your book, Dr. Sims!

Having a 7 yr old girl has giving me a goal of the next four years to make sure I know everything I can about periods and sport ect so I can empower my children to make the right choices for them! Thank you Dr Stacy Sims, as a PT in training I will hopefully be specialising in women's training, specifically post natal but essentially all women! Thank you for bringing this to light!

This woman is inspirational. The information she gives has really opened my eyes. Its about time women were seen for who they are in sport and science.

First of all, I didn't feel like this was a 13 minutes talk at all! She knows how to speak and everything she says is so interesting that I could listen to her for hours. Second, I would like to thank Stacy Sims for this talk because I have never thought about most of what she talked about. I always wanted to ignore periods and act like women don't have them. I was wrong. We need to talk about them and take them into consideration when planning out our lives, our exercising routine, our nutrition... Thank you again.

Louder for the folks in the back! Your book is the go-to resource for the women's triathlon team I coach. Thank you for all you do to move the needle in understanding the amazing puzzle of the female athlete!

I was born in the early 1950s, got my 1st period at age 12 the summer after 6th grade. My father, a physician, had given me a book on the facts of life, a gift from my grandfather (a physician) for my 11th birthday. The title "The Facts of Life". I truly appreciated this gift although the book read more like a medical textbook than anything applicable to getting my 1st period. It showed the biomedical mechanics of the male and female reproductive systems, mentioning the menstrual cycle and how a baby forms. Zero guidance on how it feels to get your period or how to reckon with it. My mother never prepared me for what to expect or do until I actually told her I'd gotten mine and asked what to do. She offered me a sanitary belt and pads with little explanation. It felt like something shrouded in shame. Since my mother used pads, it was all she knew. And she had nothing further to add, no pep talk or silver lining. Later, I was at my friend Kerry's house when I got my next period. I felt so embarrassed to ask her if she had a spare pad. She said no, she used tampons and asked if I wanted to try it. I didn't have any details at all about tampons except magazine ads showing a nondescript box. Then Kerry got her mom who explained everything in detail in the most open, kind manner without a hint of embarrassment. She answered my many questions. She even told me that light physical activity like walking helped calm cramps and strong emotions. Her explanations were golden and so helpful. I was so grateful because it dispelled a lot of my concerns about what is normal. When I left Kerry's house, I was wearing a tampon and had extras to figure out if they were for me. I told my mom about the whole experience when I got home. All the questions and concerns I'd had and the answers given. I wanted her to know how this advice helped me. I knew more about tampons than she did. When I realized this, it gave me compassion for her, a 37-year old school teacher who didn't know much about such things even after 17 years of marriage and giving birth. This is when I began to truly understand how repressed many of the so-called Silent Generation were (my parents born after WW1 during the Depression). They were too afraid to even ask questions. I can only imagine why that silence existed.

The fact that women and men have different physiology seems intuitive to me. I am genuinely shocked that acknowledging women have periods and training should be adjusted to accommodate them is breaking new science.

Totally amazing, a revolution has begun. This woman is the first (I know of) that has brought this incredible info into the world! Thank you so much! You have changed many female lives and will change 1000s more!

I've always wondered about why I followed the same routines as men but they never worked for me. I decided that I would just follow what my body wants but still this video is extremely informative. I used to play volleyball for a few years and after that I switched to swimming but as I started to go into puberty I gave up. I love being active but I don't feel good at all times.

Thank you so much for this talk. It made me cry because I‘ve been there and done that and always felt bad about myself and my body.

As a female athlete, this is GAME CHANGING! Allowing women to reach new heights within our sports

"why do we need to study women separately?" uh, because they're separate i-

I feel overwhelmingly grateful that I've never really experienced shaming about my period. It was a very accepted thing in my childhood household, my guy friends didn't seem bothered or unsympathetic, my dad was accepting and kind... My mom was a nutritionist and personal trainer but also a big believer in taking cues from your body. So all athletic endeavors would be tweaked according to whatever variables we were dealing with that day. I'm glad there is more concrete knowledge of women's physiology being researched.

me: ted talks are hit or miss sees this woman's physique: i'm pretty sure she knows what she's talkin about

This is truly eye opening for me. I'm 50 years old and have always been active. I can't believe I didn't understand this before.... it's like a light bulb went on in my head!

Dr Sims is a pocket rocket of knowledge. She has a rare gift of being able to transfer scientific studies and physiological concepts to accessible, everyday application. This TED talk with only whet your appetite for learning more. As a woman and a mum of two girls, I’m so grateful for the info that Dr Sims conveys that has been a game changer for me and will influence my kids. Women everywhere- athlete or not-can benefit from Dr Sims’ knowledge and insights.

Damn, I for real always thought that women just had harder times losing weight cuz of biology, thats just how we are. 😥 thank you for schooling me and reminding me that women need more research done on them in general. And I'm glad its all happening now too, so major pluses there :)

So happy to have Dr. Stacy Simms as a resource for women's physiology and performance!

YES, PLEASE, AND THANK YOU!! We need MORE of this. All of this. Research. Advocacy. Support. Amazing talk from an amazing woman. PERIOD.

Thank you forever for initiating this change in female sport.

Dr Stacy Sims and her science/research/recommendations have been a total game changer for me!

Thank you so much for acknowledging with valid research. I played sports before and after my cycle began and it’s impact on our performance was never acknowledged. I’m just learning to work around my physiology now at 37. Keep up the good work.

Thank you so much for educating us Dr. Sims, you are truly making a huge impact.

It's amazing that when my wife & I saw that doing identical things wasn't working for her. We decided do try changing it for what works for her. Low and behold, what works for me doesn't for her.

People stopped cheering for her when she shifted from "women can do anything" to "women are not men."

I have learned more about women in the last 13 minutes and 45 seconds than i have in the last 40 years. We need to put a Stacy Sims in every school, not just for the kids but for the teachers to learn from too.

So shocking that we need to have a Ted talk about this (smh)🤦‍♀️ I hope it helps...

Very important and powerful speech! Thank you for your work Dr. Stacy Sims!!!!!

This talk and the book Roar are starting to change my life in terms of training, and how much my menstrual cycle impacts my life. It doesn't have to be a burden or something to dred every month! So grateful for the work Dr Stacey Sims is doing and I can't wait to learn more!

As a running coach and therapist working on body positivity, I find this information so valuable. Thank you!

Bravo! This all makes so much sense after listening to Stacy, but I've never thought about it until then. Just ordered her book - can't wait to read it and start training and fueling the best way for a woman!

Absolutely love her book 'ROAR' and her nutrition advice for perimenopausal women like myself ❤️

My daughter dropped out of sport at 13 and I just didn’t have words to help her navigate through it. We’re going to watch this together.

LOUDER FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE BACK!!! Dr Sims’ advice will change your life!

As a conservative man, this is enlightenment, certainly changes my perspective

Thank you so much for all the work you are doing Stacy! This talk was so full of information and enlightening and it's less than 15 mins! I can hardly imagine all the good that can be added to the Anthropocene with you in it :)

I love the tenacity Stacy shares. And her desire to find the why behind how women work. Her chatter is so insightful. I look forward to learning more.

So grateful for your work and the tenacity you’ve shown standing up for it. Thank you!!!

I agree that women should find their own way in sports. Women are not men.... Women should not "aspire" to become men. So, I guess she is right... they should have a different path in sports.

Outstanding. This woman applied common sense to understand the difference between men and women

What a powerful talk. I love how Stacy explains the physiology and how to integrate it into training and competition for both athletes and coaches. Also, what a great job explaining the need for this! big thumbs up.

So much “food for thought”! A must for all women to watch❤️❤️Thank you Dr. Sims!

It’s a shame that people have had to use the “women are just like small men” in order to legitimize women’s athletics, but now we have to tear down that false idea.

Thank you. This is so important to talk about.

All the information I wish I would've known. Thank you Dr. Sims for following your passion and proving to us that women are not small men!

THANK YOU for this! I'm so happy I came across your research about a year ago. I'm an endurance athlete and coach and this has totally changed the way I approach my training and how I train female clients. I quote your research and recommend this talk and your book to EVERYONE!

This is my favorite Ted talk ever😍

Dr Sims is awesome! May the foolish blinders and male prejudice of our social behavior ever be dampened by reality and research.

Thank you for paving the way, Dr. Sims!🙌

"women are an annomaly" lmao

Wait women aren’t men??!

Great info as always Stacy. Thanks for spreading the word!

Love love love Dr. Stacy Sims. What an amazing talk!

Thank you for not giving up on researching women and our uniqueness despite so many telling you that you were essentially crazy for even considering this line of research.

Dr Sims is an inspiration! Thank you!!

We do need to study women separately

Yes, all of this! I recommend Dr. Stacy Sims' book to all of the athletes I coach! So much GREAT, useful, helpful content!

This is so relevant to all women - especially if you’re exercising on purpose and regularly. Really understanding your cycle is life changing!!!

I wish I'd known this stuff years ago

Thank you thank you thank you Dr Stacy Sims! This conversation needs to be amplified.

So grateful for her and the research she has performed, it’s amazing how much her nutritional guidance works!

Thankful for Roar! Adding to my education to help not only myself, but the women I train!

YESSSSSSSSS!!!! Thank you Dr. Sims!

It's scary but also not shocking that physiological science excludes women just so they don't have to work out any variables. Men are easier bc they function more at a constant than we do but bc we are more complex you'd think it would be a more exciting undertaking but I guess it's too vast and hard 🤷‍♀️

As a women with type 1 diabetes that trains and is eager yo learn more about her body...This is pue gold to change for better! I AM so happy that Dr Stacy advocates for every women who is involved in training and sports!

Thank you so much! I would love to read and hear more about this !

This definitely resonates. If only I could travel back in time and take your research results and wisdom with me when I was racing pro elite, and yes, being trained as if I were a small man. Ever since coming across your interview on Sparta Chicks Radio, I have wondered how my race career would’ve been different, better and doubt that it would’ve ended with adrenal fatigue? I am so glad you are committed to making a big change and stepping into the spotlight to become a visible expert to spread this important gospel Dr. Sims! And, in the now, I look forward to digging further in your book to see how what I learn will improve my race season next year.

Excellent. More people need to see this.

YASSSSS!!! More of this! More women only studies! More awareness! More conversation! Roar has changed so much of my training and awareness!

Knowing what I know now after watching this and reading her book has been a game changer in my performance. Thanks Stacy!

Incredible talk. As a young female athlete, this all resonates with me, especially as I am on the journey of getting back to optimal health. Too much training, without understanding the consequences, I really want to be able to help prevent other women from experiencing this too. We are different! And there are a lot of factors to consider for the female athlete. So, thanks for your work and I will keep learning from you!