As a female cross country runner and basketball player in high school, I had stress fractures in both legs during my last season. Now I'm going to Marine Corps training. What can I do to avoid having this happen again?
A recent study of female military recruits showed that women are at greater risk than men for overuse injuries during basic training. Out of 824 women studied, there were 868 lower extremity injuries. These included both stress fractures and other overuse injuries.
There were several factors identified that put women at an increased risk for these kinds of injuries. These included low aerobic fitness and fair to poor self-rating of overall fitness at the start of basic training. Amenorrhea (no menstrual cycle) for six or more months in a row was another clear risk factor.
If the results of this study are right, then keeping up your training may be the best thing you can do to avoid reinjury. Strength training for the lower extremities is advised. Improving aerobic fitness and completing a faster timed run may be helpful. Marine recruits with the fewest injuries completed a 1.5-mile run in less than 12.5 minutes.
If you are not on the birth control pill or patch and you aren't having regular menstrual periods, then it may be helpful to see a doctor. Regulating your menstrual cycle can help prevent bone loss, muscle atrophy, and the resultant bone fractures.
Mitchell J. Rauh, et al. Epidemiology of Stress Fracture and Lower-Extremity Overuse Injury in Female Recruits. In Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. September 2006. Vol. 38. No. 9. Pp. 1571-1577, 2006.
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