“Women are not small men” - Dr. Stacy Sims

Dr. Stacy Sims is an expert for female physiology, exercise and nutrition.

Men and women are equal but different

Until recently I did not want to hear about the differences between men and women. Yes there are obvious differences in how we look and our roles in reproduction. But I did not want to acknowledge that these superficial differences reach much deeper. I wanted to see men and women as equal - equal in their role in society, their role in the workplace, their physical abilities - at least more or less (even though of course I knew men are stronger on average). That is why and for lack of female role models I looked to male role models for work, exercise, life design. I worked like a man, I trained like a man, I aspired to live like a man.

Yet recently I’ve come to discover ignoring the differences between men and women only weakens our abilities to be successful in any aspect of life, be it work, exercise or life in general. I’ve come to realize that I need to embrace those differences, acknowledge my needs and play to my strengths. And that is what I think other women should too. And men need to be aware of our specific needs as well. So what are those differences and what does it mean for work, training and life (not intended to be an exhaustive list)?

Our different roles in reproduction actually extend far beyond that period where we have children. Women’s physiology is very different than men’s due to different sex hormones. While men mainly have testosterone and are only subject to minor fluctuations (at least in a healthy man), women have either only estrogen or progesterone and estrogen depending on whether they are in the first or second half of their cycle, and testosterone only comes in for a few days around ovulation. Now this might not be news to you but what was a revelation to me was how those hormones impact our moods, our energy level, our drive and motivation, our ability to do hard workouts, to do intermittent fasting and of course to work.

Now I know that you were allowed to skip physical education in school when you had your period and that many women really suffer from pain during that time of the month. Yet I never really payed much attention to my cycle during the rest of the month and never attributed any kind of changes in mood, drive or strength to it except when actually on my period. But even then I hated the kind of comments you get “Oh are you getting your period?”. I did not want to hear that my cycle impacts me in any way. I was very disconnected. No wonder as a society we don’t talk much about women’s cycles or hormonal differences - we also don’t know that much about it. Most studies in medicine are done on men - partially because women’s hormones make it too complicated to get comparable results. But also because we live in a world where the lives of men have been taken to represent those of humans overall (see last edition of this newsletter).

Work in sync with your cycle

So the point I want to make here is not just about timing your exercise and nutrition with your cycle (which you definitely should do!) but rather about bringing this conversation into the workplace. How can we time our work better with our cycle? Especially in environments where most people are men and don’t have these special needs. Spain passed a law last year that allows women to take 3 days of paid leave per cycle. While this is amazing it does not have to go that far. Especially the week before the period starts women feel lower on energy and need more rest. I often do feel that and now put it on my calendar to 1) adjust my workouts, 2) try to keep my schedule clear from important meetings, 3) plan more time for rest aka take it slow. While of course this doesn’t always work perfectly, it is a first step to acknowledge women’s special needs and give them flexibility. Especially in male-dominated environments this can be hard for women to push for or even express because they are trying to belong, so they want to minimize otherness as much as they can instead of pointing out how they stand out. Yet this often comes at the expense of getting their needs met and being less authentic which takes up a lot of energy and is not sustainable in the long-run.

Some more hacks:

• if possible, schedule important meetings before or around ovulation
• keep in mind that the time to push yourself on all different levels usually is the first half of your cycle up to ovulation
• track your cycle and see if these general statements (aka feeling great around ovulation, feeling flat the week before your period) apply to you

Menopause & Pregnancy

Also women who are in menopause or transitioning into it have special needs. So how can we accommodate those? I can’t give any advice here, just point to some resources. And of course pregnancy also changes the way women like to work - again, how can we make sure pregnant women get the support they need during this special time?

Awareness for female needs

So my goal of this edition of newsletter is creating awareness around the topic for men and women and for women to reflect on how they can get their needs met better instead of blindly following the male example: not only when it comes to exercise, nutrition, fasting, ice baths and other health trends but also to work.

What are your favorite work hacks tailored to your female needs? Share them on LinkedIn, tag this newsletter (#WomenInAINewsletter or include the homepage) and tag me. Looking forward to learning from you.

Studies and stats ??

This stat shows how crucial sponsorship is for women to be heard.

Active sponsorship—often from men—in the form of advocating for women and opening doors to sponsors’ networks, in fact, increases the chances that women’s ideas are heard by 70 % and are likely to be implemented by 200 %.

Source: McKinsey Study Women in tech: The best bet to solve Europe’s talent shortage published in January 2023

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