Are sports norms built on men's data? Sex differences in training and performance research

Research cited

1. Handelsman DJ, Hirschberg AL, Bermon S (2018), Circulating testosterone as the hormonal basis of sex differences in athletic performance, Endocrine Reviews 39(5):803-829, doi 10.1210/er.2018-00020 (full text read Oct 15, 2026, Europe PMC PMC6391653, CC BY; PubMed 30010735) ↗doi.org
2. Knechtle B, Nikolaidis PT (2018), Physiology and pathophysiology in ultra-marathon running, Frontiers in Physiology 9:634, doi 10.3389/fphys.2018.00634 (full text read Oct 15, 2026, Europe PMC PMC5992463, CC BY; PubMed 29910741) ↗doi.org
3. Elliott-Sale KJ, Minahan CL, de Jonge XAKJ, et al. (2021), Methodological considerations for studies in sport and exercise science with women as participants: a working guide for standards of practice for research on women, Sports Medicine 51(5):843-861, doi 10.1007/s40279-021-01435-8 (full text read Oct 15, 2026, Europe PMC PMC8053180, CC BY; PubMed 33725341) ↗doi.org
4. Lew LA, Williams JS, Stone JC, et al. (2022), Examination of sex-specific participant inclusion in exercise physiology endothelial function research: a systematic review, Frontiers in Sports and Active Living 4:860356, doi 10.3389/fspor.2022.860356 (full text read Oct 15, 2026, Europe PMC PMC8990239, CC BY; PubMed 35399599) ↗doi.org
5. Huiberts RO, Wüst RCI, van der Zwaard S (2024), Concurrent strength and endurance training: a systematic review and meta-analysis on the impact of sex and training status, Sports Medicine 54(2):485-503, doi 10.1007/s40279-023-01943-9 (full text read Oct 15, 2026, Europe PMC PMC10933151, CC BY; PubMed 37847373) ↗doi.org
6. McNulty KL, Elliott-Sale KJ, Dolan E, et al. (2020), The effects of menstrual cycle phase on exercise performance in eumenorrheic women: a systematic review and meta-analysis, Sports Medicine 50(10):1813-1827, doi 10.1007/s40279-020-01319-3 (full text read Oct 15, 2026, Europe PMC PMC7497427, CC BY; PubMed 32661839) ↗doi.org

Images, slide by slide

Slide 1

Unknown maker, Women competing in low hurdle race, Washington, D.C, photographic print, 1920, LOT 12344-9 [item] (Library of Congress)Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division (no known restrictions)Museum or journal record ↗

Slide 2

publisher Bain News Service, Runners ready to start in Shrubb-Dorando Marathon Race (St. Yves, Longboat, Hayes, and Maloney), glass negative, 1909-01-01, LC-B2-676-13 (Library of Congress)Bain News Service, publisher, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division (no known restrictions)Museum or journal record ↗

Slide 3

Unknown maker, Boughera El Ouafi of Algeria winning the Olympic marathon, photographic print, 1928, LOT 5234 <item> (Library of Congress)Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division (no known restrictions)Museum or journal record ↗

Slide 4

Unknown maker, Sports medicine: a man tested on a canoe ergometer in a gymnasium, watched by two colleaguesWellcome Collection (CC0)Museum or journal record ↗

Slide 5

Bar drawn to scale for this post: of all participants in 514 exercise physiology studies of vascular function from 1996 to 2021, 64% were men and 36% women (Lew et al., 2022)Lew et al. (2022), Frontiers in Sports and Active Living 4:860356Museum or journal record ↗

Slide 6

Unknown maker, Muscles of the leg and foot: 14 figuresWellcome Collection (public domain)Museum or journal record ↗

Slide 7

Unknown maker, Etta Mackay, prof. womens champ of the world, glass negative, 1920-01-01, LC-F8-8149 (Library of Congress)Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division (no known restrictions)Museum or journal record ↗

Slide 8

Illustration made for this post: before you apply a finding, ask who was studied, whether hormonal status was measured, and whether it describes an average or individuals, because most data come from men, cycles and contraception vary, and responses differ from person to person, from Elliott-Sale et al. (2021) and McNulty et al. (2020)Elliott-Sale et al. (2021), Sports Medicine 51(5)Museum or journal record ↗

Slide 9

photographer Gilbert & Bacon, U. S. international tennis players, photographic print, 1895-01-01, LOT 13714, no. 83 (Library of Congress)Gilbert & Bacon, photographer, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division (no known restrictions)Museum or journal record ↗

Story 1

Unknown maker, A sculpture of a marathon runnerWellcome Collection (public domain)Museum or journal record ↗

Story 2

Bar drawn to scale for this post: of 514 exercise studies of blood vessel function from 1996 to 2021, 32% tested men only, 56% both sexes and 12% women only (Lew et al., 2022)Lew et al. (2022), Frontiers in Sports and Active Living 4:860356Museum or journal record ↗

Story 3

Unknown maker, The muscles of the lower leg with the tendons separated from each otherWellcome Collection (public domain)Museum or journal record ↗