The purpose of this review is to present the basic principles of a healthy nutrition in female
endurance runner enriched by the latest scientific recommendations. Female endurance
runners are a specific population of athletes who need to take specifically care of daily
nutrition due to the high load of training and the necessity to keep a rather low body
mass. This paradoxical situation can create some nutritional imbalances and deficiencies.
Female endurance athletes should pay attention to their total energy intake, which is often
lower than their energy requirement. The minimal energy requirement has been set to
45 kcal/kg fat free mass/day plus the amount of energy needed for physical activity. The
usual recommended amount of 1.2–1.4 g protein/kg/day has recently been questioned
by new findings suggesting that 1.6 g/kg/day would be more appropriate for female
athletes. Although a bit less sensitive to carbohydrate loading than their male counterparts,
female athletes can benefit from this nutritional strategy before a race if the amount of
carbohydrates reaches 8 g/kg/day and if their daily total energy intake is sufficient. A poor
iron status is a common issue in female endurance runners but iron-enriched food as well
as iron supplementation may help to counterbalance this poor status. Finally, they should
also be aware that they may be at risk for low calcium and vitamin D levels.