You can read the information on this page or select the link below to view the PDF poster version Supporting Female Athletes with Stress Urinary Incontinence (SUI) Poster (PDF, 3,200kb, opens in new window)
Did you know...
MECHANISM AND RISK
Stress Urinary Incontinence (SUI) is when you leak urine during activity, it’s common, but not normal. 1 in 4 women in the UK experience SUI at some point in their lives.
High-impact or heavy-lifting activities can put repeated strain on the pelvic floor but technique and conditioning help protect it.
Your pelvic floor muscles support your bladder, bowel, and uterus and they’re vital for performance and health.
IMPACT AND MYTHS
Factors like pregnancy, childbirth, genetics, obesity, high impact activities or low energy availability can make athletes more prone to leakage.
SUI isn’t just a “women after childbirth” issue, it can affect young, fit, and child-free athletes too.
Between 25–45% of female athletes report leaking during training or competition. You’re not alone.
SOLUTIONS AND POSITIVITY
Pelvic floor training and physiotherapy can reduce leakage by up to 70% and help you return to full performance.
There are discreet, sport-friendly products to help you train confidently while strengthening your pelvic floor (e.g. WUKA, Modibodi).
Urinary leakage doesn’t mean you have to stop exercising, the right exercises can make a big difference.
We understand that talking about stress urinary incontinence can feel uncomfortable, but you’re not alone! Talking about it helps you and others, breaking the silence helps break the stigma!
- The more we discuss female physiology openly, the better we can tailor training, recovery, and performance.
- Appropriate individualised planning and guidance are critical to us helping you achieve success. It’s not normal to leak, we want to work with you to best guide training and performance without any leaking.
- Leakage is not always caused by weakness and therefore if you have started doing pelvic floor exercises with no success then it is important to seek further help.
- Talking about female physiology, and how it affects training, may be the missing piece to a possible breakthrough performance for some female athletes.
Do you want to learn more?
You can find out more about female health with our online resources.
If you are a sportscotland institute of sport athlete, speak to your Physio, Physical Preparation Coach, Sport-Specific Female Athlete Health Rep, or email femaleathletehealth@sisport.com
If you’re not supported by sportscotland institute of sport and feel you need help and advice, please contact your GP.
https://learning.sportscotland.org.uk/catalog?pagename=Work-with-female-athletes