At CTS, after working with hundreds of female athletes, we’ve found that they’re often in need of three key nutrients: calcium, iron, and folate, which, in addition to ensuring a woman performs at her best on the field, helps her maintain her overall health. Let’s take a closer look at why.

CALCIUM
Calcium is essential for the development and maintenance of healthy bones and teeth. It also helps regulate heartbeat, muscle contraction, nerve impulse transmission, and blood clotting.

Everyone needs calcium, but female athletes should pay special attention to their calcium intake since they lose calcium through sweat, and face a higher risk of osteoporosis, a disease resulting in calcium loss from bone that occurs with aging.

Find it Here: Milk, cheese, yogurt, broccoli, kale, and calcium-fortified foods are good sources of calcium, although dairy sources have the highest concentration of calcium in an easily digestible form. Try 1 cup of milk at breakfast, 1 cup of low-fat yogurt with fruit at lunch, and stir fry 8 ounces of tofu with 1 cup of broccoli for dinner to meet the recommended daily amount of 1000 mg.

IRON
Iron is a key component in helping to get oxygen to your working muscles. Without it, your red blood cells won’t grab onto oxygen and distribute it all over your body. And with less oxygen for your muscles and brain to tap, performance—both mental and physical—can suffer.

There is a high incidence of iron-deficiency among female athletes due mostly to the smaller calorie needs of women, avoidance of red meat in their diets, menstruation, and loss of iron through sweat.

Find it Here: There are two types of iron: heme iron (well absorbed by the body) found in red meat, poultry, and fish, and non-heme iron (not as well absorbed into the bloodstream) found in fruits, vegetables, dried beans, nuts and grain foods. However, most grain foods such as cereals, pasta, rice and bread now come fortified with heme iron and make for good alternatives to meats and fish. Everybody can increase the amount of iron absorbed from all food sources by pairing it with Vitamin C-rich foods. Next time, have a glass of orange juice with steak or pair it with vegetables like red and green bell peppers or broccoli. Women should aim for 18 mg/day of this mineral.

FOLATE
Folate or folic acid is a B vitamin that plays an important role in the prevention of birth defects and is required for normal DNA and red blood cell synthesis. Without enough of it, a woman’s chances of heart disease increase, which makes it a concern for any female's overall health.

Getting enough folate into the system requires a helper in the form of Vitamin B12. It’s this reason that you’ll find folate/folic acid supplements packaged with Vitamin B12. With it, the body won’t synthesize all the folate it needs.

Find it Here: Dark green leafy vegetables, dried beans, fortified cereals/grains, and strawberries are all good sources of folate. Vitamin B12 can be found in fish, meat, poultry, milk, eggs, and fortified cereals. Vegan athletes may need Vitamin B12 supplements. Women should strive to consume 400 mcg/day of folate and 2.4 mcg/day of vitamin B12.