Shownotes
In this episode of Wellness Big Sis the Pod, Dr. Kelsy Vick breaks down what we learned this year about the female body, metabolism, and exercise science.
We revisit the science of fasting for women and why intermittent fasting can impact women differently than men — especially when it comes to hormones, metabolism, and body composition. We also dive into the truth behind Zone 2 cardio, HIIT, and SIT training, debunking myths about cortisol and explaining why high-intensity work still deserves a place in women’s routines.
This episode also highlights the importance of jump training for women, why it matters for bone health and long-term resilience, and how just a few minutes per week can make a big difference. Finally, we revisit why strength training really is that girl — and why it’s essential for women’s health at every stage.
If you want a science-backed approach to fitness, hormones, and training smarter as a woman, this episode ties it all together.
76:: Strength Training https://wellness-big-sis-the-pod.captivate.fm/episode/copy-of-pod-76-strength-training-pod/
74:: Jump Training https://wellness-big-sis-the-pod.captivate.fm/episode/74-the-forgotten-essential-in-your-exercise-handbag-jump-training/
63:: Fasting as women https://wellness-big-sis-the-pod.captivate.fm/episode/63-the-truth-and-science-behind-fasting-as-women/
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00:00- 00:17 Intro
00:18- 00:31 Introduction and Year in Review
00:31- 01:03 The Science of Fasting for Women
01:04- 04:37 Understanding Metabolism in Women
04:38- 11:15 High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) for Women
11:16- 16:22 The Importance of Jump Training
16:23- 19:35 Strength Training: The Popular Girl
19:36- 20:37 Conclusion and Final Thoughts
Transcripts
2025 has been quite the year for the podcast.
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So let's take a look back at 2025 and
some of the really fascinating things
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we've learned about the female body.
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Welcome back to Wellness Big Sis the Pod.
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I'm your host, Dr.
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Kelsy Vick, a board certified
orthopedic doctor, physical therapy,
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and a pelvic floor physical therapist.
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This first clip is from podcast
episode 63, where we covered
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the science of fasting as women.
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We talked to two experts
earlier in the year, Dr.
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Katie Hirsh and Mel Silver, and they
both mentioned fasting affecting women.
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Differently than men
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And why we as women might not want to
choose fasting if our goal is truly
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on body composition changes due to the
different signaling within our bodies.
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Speaker: So let's switch
to metabolism a little bit.
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And this is where women actually
thrive because we are metabolically
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superior or metabolically more efficient
or more flexible in how we utilize
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certain fuel sources within our body.
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We are able to switch between
different fuel sources and take
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from different fuel sources more
efficiently than a man system is.
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So historically, I guess what we
utilize for our fuel sources has
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typically followed this pathway.
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We first utilize blood glucose, then
we utilize stored glycogen within
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our liver and our muscles, which is.
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The stored form of glucose.
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So glycogen, glucose, you can
think of them as the same thing.
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Glycogen to just takes a little bit
to get to the point where we can
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use it as energy, as glucose, and
it is the stored form of glucose
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in the liver and the muscles.
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So we first tap into the blood
glucose levels, 'cause that's
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usually the most available in the
most readily available for us.
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Then we tap into liver and
muscle glycogen stores and then
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we tap into free fatty acids.
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That's historically what we've believed.
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As how a body taps into different fuel
sources for energy, whether that's for
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exercise or just like day-to-day tasks.
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However, it's been shown that women
specifically have this flexibility
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within their metabolic system where
we tap into that blood glucose first.
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But then we actually transition
to those free fatty acids a
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lot quicker than a man does.
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They have to go through that process
where we can go straight from blood
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glucose utilizing blood glucose
as our fuel to free fatty acids.
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And this is because we have a
lot more oxidative fibers within
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our skeletal muscle tissues.
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And so that is one of the theories
that has been brought up to why
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we tap into those free fatty
acids quicker than Amand does.
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So one of the goals with fasting could
be, Hey, let's decrease our glucose
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stores initially so that we tap into
those free fatty acid quicker, or, that's
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historically been one of the theories.
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And for a man that might actually make
sense because if we can limit the amount
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of glucose that they have to utilize
at the beginning of that pathway,
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they might tap into those free fatty.
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Storage is early on in their workout.
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Where for women, we don't
actually have to do that.
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We kind of skip that step.
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We skip the benefit of fasting
because we utilize that glucose
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within the bloodstream first before
we tap into those free fatty acids.
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And a lot of people think, oh, let's
tap into those free fatty acids as fuel.
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As soon as we can so
that we're burning fat.
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But this is not necessarily
like a one-to-one ratio.
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Yes, it does help that we can tap
into those free fatty acids, but
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it's a lot more complex than that.
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But that is one of the reasons fasting
has been promoted is because if we
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can decrease the circulating glucose
levels or stored glucose levels, then
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we might be able to tap into those
free fatty acids sooner, whereas women.
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We have that flexibility to go, okay,
utilize all that blood glucose first.
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That's circulating quick energy first
before we tap into those free fatty acids.
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But we don't necessarily have to
go through the entire process that
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we've historically thought that a.
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Men go through, but maybe a woman
does not necessarily go through.
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Speaker 7: The rest of the episode
covers Why fasting affects our
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hormonal systems, but also the
research on when fasting might be
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appropriate for some women and that.
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Subsect of women is in the minority.
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So take a look at episode 63, especially
if you are interested in learning
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about fasting for the female body.
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Another hot topic is the topic of
high intensity interval training and
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sprint interval training for women.
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And I think the reason they're
so controversial is because of
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this big push in lowering and
decreasing our cortisol levels.
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So in podcast episode 73, we chat
Why high intensity interval training
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and sprint interval training are
especially important for us as women?
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And why zone two shouldn't necessarily
be getting all of the hype when
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it comes to our training as women?
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Speaker 4: So the first foundation
we'll talk about is definitely one
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of the most controversial, which is
why I wanted to start out with it.
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but we'll talk about high
intensity interval training
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and sprint interval training.
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So hit involves short bursts of activity,
typically 45 seconds to a few minutes
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at 85 to 90% of your heart rate max, or
85 to 90% effort, followed by usually
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a one-to-one work to recovery ratio.
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So if you like, if you do the exercise
for a minute, you're also recovering
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for a minute, but that can vary.
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But that's just a general rule of thumb.
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So for sprint interval training,
it's a shorter duration at a
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hundred percent max effort.
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But basically max effort for 20 to 30
seconds, followed by a longer recovery,
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like two to four minutes in between.
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So why do high intensity interval
training and sprint interval
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training get a bad reputation?
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I think it comes down to cortisol.
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There's been a big push around.
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Cortisol, I guess, propaganda.
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Cortisol is truly that
misunderstood, mean, girl.
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We need it within our bodies,
especially to build muscle.
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We also need it in order to
have energy throughout the day.
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We need it to exercise.
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We want it to elevate during exercise,
which I think is why hit and sit.
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Have this sort of negative connotation.
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However, with high intensity interval
training and sprint interval training,
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what we expect and what we want with
our bodies is a momentary spike in
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cortisol, a momentary cortisol elevation.
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During that exercise followed by
our bodies being able to return
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to baseline, we do not want
sustained cortisol elevation, but.
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If we do the appropriate things
surrounding high intensity interval
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training and surrounding sprint interval
training, including a proper cool
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down, proper breath work, we should
be able to help control that cortisol
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elevation that naturally happens,
and we want to happen with exercise.
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Over time, high intensity interval
training and sprint interval training
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have also actually been shown to
lower that baseline level of cortisol.
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So not within one session.
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We expect a spike within each
exercise session, but over time,
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the more we incorporate HIIT and
sit into our routines, the better
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our body adapts and it's actually
beneficial to our cortisol long term.
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So why are high intensity interval
training and sprint interval training
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so important to have as part of our
essentials and our exercise handbags,
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especially as women, a lot of it
comes down to our skeletal muscle
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and our mitochondrial density.
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As women, we naturally have more type one
skeletal muscle tissue fibers compared
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to men, and these type one fibers are.
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Built more for low load
long duration work.
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So think long runs your type one
skeletal muscle fibers are the ones
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that help with your postural muscles
and standing up without falling
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over With our posture, you're having
to hold a position, low load, low
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weight for a long period of time.
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So these are where those type one
skeletal muscle fibers come into play.
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Men on the other hand have more
type two A and type two X fibers,
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which are known for these fast
explosive power-based movements.
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So think sprinting, jumping, those
like really quick bouts of effort,
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those are what those type two skeletal
muscle fibers are utilized for.
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And the ones that men have
proportionally more of compared to women.
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So as we all age, men and women,
our skeletal muscle fibers start
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to shift to have more type one
muscle fibers compared to type two.
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And it's really important that as we
age, we try and maintain those type
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two skeletal muscle fibers because
they help us with catching ourselves.
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If we're about to fall standing up out
of a chair, which you don't necessarily
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think of those as power-based activities
now, but we need that quick reaction time
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in order to help ourselves if we start
to trip over a rug or in order to get
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out of a chair, especially as we age.
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So as women, we also have a higher
mitochondrial density than men, meaning
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we are naturally shifted to be able to
handle more endurance based exercises
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better than men because we naturally have
more type one skeletal muscle fibers, and
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we have a higher mitochondrial density.
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We need to work.
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What we're not as good
at, if that makes sense.
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So structurally and physiologically,
we have a predisposition towards more
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of those endurance based activities.
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So we really need to work on the opposite,
so that high intensity, that sprint
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intensity training in order to help
maintain and increase some of those type.
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Two fibers, and then also maintain
those fibers as we age in addition
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to working more of that anaerobic
system within our bodies that
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doesn't necessarily need oxygen in
order to power certain movements.
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Since we do have such a high capacity
for using oxygen for our movements
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with that increased mitochondrial
density, I know that's a ton of science.
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But basically we are shifted more
towards those endurance based exercises.
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We're gonna be better at those
in general across the board
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compared to our male counterparts.
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So since we are shifted that way, we
wanna be able to train the opposite,
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not only for the health of our
bodies currently, but also long term.
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So it boils down to if we
don't use it, we lose it.
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And when we don't have it as
much as a guy does, we definitely
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wanna train that system even more.
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Speaker 7: If cortisol elevation is
something that you're concerned about.
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We also chat through some ways to
incorporate high intensity interval
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training and sprint interval training,
while also performing different
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actions and behaviors to help manage
those cortisol levels, especially
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after that high intensity interval
training or sprint interval training.
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one of the biggest segments of
learning about the female body
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in the year 2025 on wellness.
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The pod came from our exercise
handbag series that we did
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in the fall where we covered.
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Why our bodies need certain forms of
exercise and how to incorporate those no
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matter the style of exercise handbag that
you like, whether you like traditional
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lifting, Pilates, bar, swimming,
running, whatever sort of exercise you
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enjoy, there are ways to incorporate
these essentials or these handbag
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necessities into our exercise routines
and our exercise handbags is women.
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One of our most forgotten essentials
in our exercise routines and
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exercise handbags is women.
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Is jump training and in episode 74 we
chat why we shouldn't forget it and
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why it is so important for us as women.
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Speaker 5: You might be
thinking jump training Kelsey.
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What even is jump training?
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It's as simple as it sounds really.
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It's jumping, it's loading your body,
your musculoskeletal system with
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extra than your body weight with more
ballistic movements that increase the
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amount of load that you're placing
on your musculoskeletal structure,
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your joints, your muscles, your
bones, your ligaments, your tendons.
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All of it.
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It is all affected in a beneficial way
with jump training and is especially
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important for us to include as women.
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So a little backstory that we've
mentioned on the podcast before, but
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if it's your first time joining us, I
wanna make sure that we have a little
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bit of a physiology lesson for when
we start to talk about some of the
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benefits of jump training on our system.
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So as we age, no matter if you're male
or female, we start to lose bone mineral
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density as we age, where bone breakdown.
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Outpaces bone formation, and this
is especially the case with women.
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Women are at a higher risk for developing
osteopenia, which is basically weaker
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bones and the prerequisite or the one
that comes before osteoporosis, which
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is a lot of time, what you hear about in
older individuals and what increases the
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likelihood of fractures within the bone.
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So osteoporosis is the more
advanced stage of that.
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Bone breakdown, that starts
to be extra concerning.
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And as women, we have a higher
risk of developing both.
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So it's this imbalance, let's say
that we're constantly fighting against
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as we age, oftentimes after the age
of about 30, it happens pretty young
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where we start to see some of the
slowdown of that bone formation.
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This process affects women more than men.
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So it's super duper important for us as
women to load those bones and provide
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sufficient stimulus to our bones so that
we can build bone in our younger years,
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our adolescent and young adult years.
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And then also work against the
natural physiologic process
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of bone breakdown as we age.
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And there are studies that show
through purposeful stimulus, whether
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that is jump training or another
essential in our handbag that we'll
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talk about later in the month.
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We can actually work to combat
some of that bone breakdown.
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In our younger years, a lot of
people don't know about and don't
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know how to positively build that
foundation of bone marrow densities.
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So it is something to watch out for
no matter if you're male or female,
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but especially if you are a female
because the max amount of bone
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mineral density, the foundation for
our bones, the strength of our bones.
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Is developed in those
adolescent teen 20 years.
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So it's super duper important that we
build that foundation in our younger
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years so that when we're older and
our bone breakdown is naturally
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outpacing our bone formation, we have
this greater foundation to stand on.
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So how can we actually strengthen our
bones to build that solid foundation
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in our teens, twenties, thirties?
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This is the time where we
can optimize that foundation.
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And really honestly, in our
adolescence, up to 40% of our bone
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marrow density is formed by puberty.
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So there's a sharp increase in our younger
years, and then it starts to plateau off.
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To where in our later years we're
fighting against this decline, and we
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really wanna make sure that we build
up the strength of our bones early
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on so that we can reduce the slope
of that decline and maintain some of
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that bone marrow density as we age.
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So how do we strengthen our bones?
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Bones respond to mechanical load
in multiple directions, similar to
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how you think about muscles, right?
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When we stress a muscle, it starts
to send reinforcements in order to
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build up that muscle, to be able to
tolerate that load the next time.
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Muscles pull on bones.
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So the same thing happens to our bones.
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Bones start to respond to that
mechanical load, that stress and strain
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in a lot of different directions.
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So in a similar way that our
body is queued to build muscle
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in areas during training.
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Our bones are also queued to build
more bones in area that we load.
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And that load can come through
strength training or through
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something like jump training.
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And jump training is almost
like bone building on steroids a
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little bit, especially as we age.
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As a side note, muscles pull on
bones, so anytime we load the muscles,
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we are also loading the bones.
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The important thing for both
loading the muscles and the bones
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is that we do it in a safe way.
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Jump training sounds super
scary, especially for people who
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aren't used to doing jump rope
and squat jumps or box jumps.
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It can be super scary and it can.
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Introduce us to injury if our bodies
aren't prepped and primed for it.
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So a lot of the studies that say
how beneficial jump training is
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actually start with the Foundational
Strength Training program to help
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the body build that foundation for
when the researchers decided to add
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that jump training into the program.
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Speaker 7: In this episode, we also
chat how to incorporate it into your
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routines, but it's one of the simplest
and quickest things to add to your routine
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to get a lot of bang for your buck.
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We cover the exact parameters in the
episode, but just know it shouldn't
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take more than five-ish minutes
each week, oftentimes even less.
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Lastly, one of the most beneficial things
for the female body strength training
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we covered the Popular Girl strength
training in episode 76 as one of the final
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episodes in our exercise handbag series.
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Speaker 6: So as popular as strength
training is, it is for a very good reason.
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It's very protective against
a lot of different things.
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So not only does it help us with
our toning and our current aesthetic
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goals, but it also is protective
for our entire musculoskeletal
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system, our bone health, our brain,
our balance, especially as we age.
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So strength training
affects us positively Now.
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Way in the future, which is why it
really is the well-deserved popular
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girl that everyone's talking about.
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From the most basic standpoint, strength
training or resistance training is
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muscle contraction against an external
resistance to improve strength,
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endurance, or the size of a muscle.
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So the important thing to note is that
we are contracting against a resistance,
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whether that is shortening a muscle or
lengthening a muscle, or we can also have
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static contractions against a resistance,
such as like holding a platter.
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In your hand when you're at a
dinner party trying to serve food.
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That's an example of a
static muscle contraction.
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But you can do the same thing with a
dumbbell or with a weight or with a band
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or a, a variety of external resistances.
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So how does strength training
actually affect us physiologically?
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The very first mechanism that we
gain strength by is actually through
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neural adaptations, which is basically
improving the connection of our
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brain to our skeletal muscle fibers.
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Initially, strength training
increases our ability to recruit
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those motor units, which is basically
a collection of muscle fibers that
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are stimulated by a motor neuron.
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Our bodies figure out
what to recruit better.
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When we start a strength training program,
nerves are how we communicate with those
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muscle fibers, and so this first little
strength gain that you might experience is
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actually based on our neural adaptations,
which basically means better communication
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between our brain and our muscles.
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Not necessarily increasing the size
of the muscles, but how we communicate
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from our brain to our muscle tissue.
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So physiologically, we also
experience muscle hypertrophy.
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So when we lift a super heavy resistance,
our muscles undergo small micro tears or
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micro damage that basically stimulates
a rebuilding and repair process.
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That is why rest and
recovery is so important.
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Exercise is actually the stimulus.
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For muscle growth, but it's not
where muscle growth happens.
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It just stimulates that micro damage
to cue our bodies, to send in all
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of those resources to repair and
rebuild stronger than we were before.
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So muscle is repaired and rebuilt
during the recovery exercise is
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just the stimulus for that repair.
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Our body is queued to reinforce that
area so that we can handle the load
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better next time, which is why it's
also important that we consistently load
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the muscles bit by bit over time in a
heavier way so that we don't become static
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and plateau at a certain resistance.
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We always want to be pushing that
threshold a little bit more to
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stimulate that muscle hypertrophy.
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Speaker 7: Of course, we chatted
through the benefits of strength
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training and overall why strength
training really is that girl, but
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also how to incorporate it into your
routine even if you don't typically
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like strength training or lifting.
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We covered so much of the
female body this year.
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Of course, it's one of my favorite
subjects as a physical therapist and
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one that I'm constantly researching,
constantly learning about, and constantly
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trying to make that education and that
research easier for other people to
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understand because there's so much
conflicting evidence out there, especially
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when it comes to what we need as women.
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And my whole goal is to really try to.
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Give people, especially girls, this
education a lot earlier in life so that
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we can set ourselves up for success
later on, especially when we're in
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our eighties, nineties, and we might
struggle with fall risk or decreased
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bone mineral density, things that might
make our mobility our function, our
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everyday lives a little more challenging.
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So I love talking about the female body
and it was hard to narrow down some of
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my top moments from talking about the
female body over 2025, but these were
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probably some of my four favorites and
some of the four topics that I really want
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people to come back to and understand.
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So I hope you enjoyed this episode and
I'll see you guys again on the next
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episode of Wellness Big Sis the Pod.
