Current Events > Female athletes open up about health crisis. Uncontrollably peeing during events

(+) Yeah! (+)

Team GB Olympian Laura Gallagher Cox has opened up on a health problem that has plagued a number of female athletes throughout their careers, called stress incontinence.
Stress incontinence occurs following an accidental loss of urine through physical exertion, following damage to the pelvic floor over time.

The problem tends to arise in female athletes that take part in high impact sports, and is common in netball, gymnastics and trampolining.


On the daunting experience at the national trampolining event, where she was finalising her preparations for the routine she would go onto perform minutes later, she said: It completely destroyed my warm-up.

"I felt embarrassed. I went to the loo and sorted myself out and changed my leotard. People probably knew what had happened.

The Olympian is not the only trampoliner to struggle, with the research revealing that it has affected up to 80 per cent of female athletes in the sport, according to the Telegraph report.

The 32-year-old went on to reveal just why it is common in trampolinists, commenting:

When we land from a jump, we put about 16 times our body weight through the trampoline. In terms of peeing, the worst time for it seems to be the younger girls just coming into puberty.

Ive been at competitions where Ive seen girls pee as they take off when they do a double back somersault youll genuinely see urine flying through the air.

Gallagher Coxs Team GB teammate Izzy Songhurst admitted she also suffered from the issue as a teenager, and has therefore worn a pad throughout her professional career to prevent a leak whilst competing.

She said: If youre having a bad day, you do worry about whether your pad is showing through the back of your leotard or if its coming out the side.

It causes a bit of uncomfortableness and anxiety, which can obviously be distracting and can throw you off.

The problem was witnessed first hand at the 2005 World Championships after French gymnast Emilie Le Pennec urinated whilst competing at the event.

The same problem occurred for Ecuadorian weightlifter Maria Alexandra Escobar Guerrero at 2012 London Olympic Games, and on both occasions the two athletes were ridiculed online.

With stress incontinence a clear problem within female sport, former rower and women's health coach Baz Moffatt informed the Telegraph on how women can deal with the issue.
Moffatt said: My recommendation would always be to just go simple first of all and try doing pelvic-floor exercises on your own. Women have no clue how to do pelvic-floor exercises theyve never been taught properly so thats a challenge.

Full Article: https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/other-sports/olympics-female-athletes-health-problem-26307459

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/9/2/0/AAZiH8AAC9rY.png

GB = Great Britain btw.

I feel like I'm consistently hearing about another health problem that these amazing athletes have to endure to be at the top of their sport. I'm at least glad that they are speaking out about it. We need to know what they go through, and we can't shy away from any unpleasantness simply to marvel at their skills. In a very real way, people are wrecking their bodies for our enjoyment.

Damn

Never knew this

UnfairRepresent posted...

Ive been at competitions where Ive seen girls pee as they take off when they do a double back somersault youll genuinely see urine flying through the air.

This sounds oddly majestic lol.

LostForest posted...

This sounds oddly majestic lol.

No it does not

UnfairRepresent posted...

She said: If youre having a bad day, you do worry about whether your pad is showing through the back of your leotard or if its coming out the side.

So... wear shorts.

People in the front row, you may get wet!

Questionmarktarius posted...

So... wear shorts.

That can impede their performance though.

That's like telling a football player "just don't wear one" when they say their helmet is slightly uncomfortable.

bigblu89 posted...

That can impede their performance though.

full tights, then.

Questionmarktarius posted...

full tights, then.

What does that fix? Some sports have very strict rules for the competition uniform. It is rarely a matter of "wear whatever makes you feel the most comfortable while allowing you to compete at your best".

Edit: The pee thing is also prevalent in crossfit. That's how I found out about the issue. I'm not really sure what can be done about it, but for starters people need to not mock or make fun of the women who have the issue come up. It isn't their fault.

LostForest posted...

This sounds oddly majestic lol.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/9/8/1/AAJxOBAAC9sV.jpg

Questionmarktarius posted...

full tights, then.

That would be a rules violation.

Yeah, same thing happens with runners, although it often comes out the other end too.

That's just life.

Either piss or get off the trampoline.