Shortly after tying for third in last season’s Palos Verdes Championship, the then-world No. 3 Lydia Ko was asked by Golf Channel reporter Jerry Foltz whether the tightness in her back and hips that had obliged her to receive on-course treatment during the final round was an ongoing problem.
“I hope not,†said Ko, 26, a 19-time LPGA winner from New Zealand. “It’s that time of the month. I know the ladies watching are probably, like, ‘Yeah, I got you.’â€
Foltz, on the other hand, was more than a little flummoxed. Indeed, had Ko told him with solemn insistence that she believed Doug Sanders had faked the moon landings from a basement room in the R&A clubhouse, he might have been rendered rather less tongue-tied.
Which is no criticism of Foltz. Ko herself added, “I know you’re at a loss for words, Jerry,†in recognition that she had joined a small but growing band of female athletes who want the cloak of secrecy surrounding a natural aspect of life to be lifted. It’s a change that would make her life more straightforward and ought to enable future reporters to be less flustered by male ignorance and embarrassment.
During this summer’s AIG Women’s Open at Walton Heath Golf Club in England, the Ladies European Tour launched a performance institute which, supported by the R&A, will develop player relationships with leading sports medicine, nutrition, performance and women’s-health providers.
The LETPI was opened by retired heptathlete Jessica Ennis-Hill, and the presence of the three-time world champion and 2012 Olympic gold-medal winner was no coincidence. Instead, she will be playing a key role in the future of the programme, one that likely will interest Ko.
Since quitting competition, Ennis-Hill, 37, of England, has been involved in the creation of a hormonal health platform and app called Jennis. It provides women with insight into the distinct hormonal phases of their menstrual cycles and uses the intelligence gleaned to inform decisions on training, fueling, recovery and, ultimately, performance.
Speaking with GGP at the launch, which also marked Jennis’ first engagement with a sporting organisation, Ennis-Hill said: “We’re all different, so understanding how fluctuations in hormones and symptoms impacts our sleep, mood, energy and performance trends at a personal level is truly game-changing.
“In elite sport, you want to find small areas where you can make a positive change. My mission is for this collaboration to give our golfers personalised and unique data points that make all the difference in competition.
“It’s also understanding the phases of a woman’s menstrual cycle and how you can get the most out of your performance through known patterns, tapping into how you change personally as a woman on a day-to-day and month-to month basis.â€
The prevailing situation is an extraordinary one. In a world that discusses just about everything with an often-dizzying candour, one absolutely regular element of life provokes awkwardness on a scale that might be deemed epic were it not for the fact that this collective clamming-up prevents associated physical and mental health problems being addressed and, ultimately, managed.
Moreover, in a sporting context, it has handicapped performers at all levels. Ennis-Hill is grateful for the words of Ko and others who have ventured to reshape the status quo.
“When I was in the thick of my career, there was an awareness of menstrual health,†Ennis-Hill said. “Yet there was never a real focus. In recent times, talk has been bubbling away, and now more athletes are being open about it.
“But there’s been a lack of funding and research to educate us about what the cycle means for training, how to push, how to back off, how it affects injuries, and also how to create strategies around competitions and performance.â€
“There’s a massive gender data gap, and it needs to be addressed, because it can have a significant impact on performance.â€
JESSICA ENNIS-HILL
Ennis-Hill has drawn on her experience: specifically, of knowing that as her menstrual cycle affected performance, she remained stuck within society’s reluctance to become informed about the issue.
“I definitely had moments when I would dread competitions because of a lack of understanding and knowledge of where I was. There were also so many times when I trained and it didn’t go to plan. I didn’t have that full context about why I was performing at one standard, having expected much more of myself.
“If I’d had that data, it would not only have offered physical benefit, but also provided psychological forgiveness.â€
Nor does Jennis merely have the potential to assist female athletes. It also can educate male coaches.
“From my personal perspective,†Ennis-Hill said, “I had a female physio who I could have conversations with, but the rest of my team was very male-dominated. They had expectations and, without the full holistic context Jennis provides, it could be hard to explain my results in competition or practice.â€
It doesn’t feel like too much of a stretch to suggest that enhanced study of the relationship between menstrual cycle and sporting performance has the potential to transform women’s sport.
“It’s mad to think that it hasn’t been a focus,†Ennis-Hill said. “I remember talking to my nutritionist years ago, saying, ‘Are there certain foods that can affect the way I feel at different times of the month?’ and he was, like, ‘Well, there’s not that much research.’ That’s crazy, because female athletes will tell you it makes a huge difference.
Is it possible that, in the future, an LET golfer will attribute a victory to preparation that was advised by Jennis? Ennis-Hill was keen not to claim credit ahead of any breakthrough, but she was bullish about the future.
“I love psychology; in fact, I did a psychology degree,†she said. “So, I know that 20 years ago, sports psychology was a small part of what we did, and now it’s a massive part of why we perform the way we do.
“I feel that menstrual and hormonal health will witness a similar growth. It’s on the rise, and it will become a key focus for every sport in the future.â€
E-MAIL MATT
Top: Jessica Ennis-Hill, the 2012 Olympic heptathlon champion, wants to help female athletes be able to understand how bodily changes can affect performance.
Paul Harding, Getty Images
