wiaa

After suffering from injuries that took away my sophomore cross country season, I knew that coming into junior year, I wanted to make the most out of every race. I pushed myself in workouts and strode to finish empty at every race. I showed a lot of growth during the beginning of my season, hitting consistent PR’s and getting better mentally every race. Yet once the post-season hit, I felt like I had nothing left in me after the first mile. I would get fatigued a lot more easily and would end every race by collapsing onto the ground due to dizziness. At NXR Northwest, my symptoms reached their worst as I started to feel so nauseous after my race, I couldn’t walk for more than 100 meters without taking a break. 

While post-season race courses are not easy in any aspect, I had a feeling that my symptoms were still something unusual. When I was at peak fitness on a completely flat course at NXR, I ended up running over a minute over my PR. Yet in workouts, I was hitting my splits and showed consistency in my training, creating more confusion about my health.

After blood tests and research, I learned I was suffering from iron deficiency. In comparison to Anemia, iron deficiency focuses on the lack of iron stored in your body rather than having a low red blood cell count. Iron is vital for physical and mental performance, especially in endurance athletes who consume large amounts of oxygen, which is transported by iron. When iron is depleted, the body is unable to provide sufficient amounts of oxygen throughout the body. The lack of oxygen can cause reduced athletic and mental performance, which is commonly overlooked as burnout or just fatigue. Furthermore, iron deficiency is commonly overlooked in women. According to an article by UCLA Health, symptoms can be overlooked due to vague or easily ignored symptoms. This is extremely problematic as more than ⅓ of reproductive women are not receiving proper iron levels. Additionally, nearly 35% of female athletes suffer from iron deficiency, 52% being adolescent teens. Female athletes are at high risk for iron deficiency not only due to blood loss with menstruation, but also due to food restrictions that are common when training for athletic competition. Dr. Caitlin Lewis of the Cleveland Clinic Sports Medical Center emphasized, “Iron deficiency in women athletes is not discussed enough,” and that “Even if they’re eating iron sources such as legumes and fortified foods, females often are not consuming enough iron, especially if avoiding red meat…” 

As an athlete who has experienced iron deficiency, it’s easy to second-guess your symptoms as something that will eventually go away. However, I strongly advocate that athletes should listen to their bodies and to seek medical care when something feels off. Nobody should have their symptoms dismissed when they are truly affecting their physical and mental well-being. I have always been passionate about health and providing for others, and I hope I can use my voice through WIAA to encourage other student athletes to seek care if they feel any symptoms, and continue bringing awareness to an issue commonly overlooked by many.