Lindsey Elizabeth Cortes interviews returning guest Marina Paul, founder and CEO of Superhera, a data-driven sports apparel company addressing female athletes’ ill-fitting, male-centric gear and its links to body image and performance. Marina describes research conducted with 858 respondents (with researchers from Brooklyn College and Notre Dame) showing contradictions: 65% said sportswear is “fine,” yet 55% considered restricting food to fit better and 39% had done so; many also altered gear to make it work.

Most athletes prioritized fit over look, and while 80% said they look like an athlete, descriptions of the “ideal” athlete emphasized being leaner and more toned. Marina explains Superhera’s evolution into a sizing technology company using athlete measurements and photos to recommend uniform sizes and create custom gear for teams, now including men’s teams.

Marina Paul is the Founder and CEO of Superhera, a data-driven sports apparel company dedicated to closing the "gear gap" for female athletes. A former Division I soccer captain at Georgetown University, Marina transitioned from elite athletics to a career in consulting before launching Superhera to solve a systemic multi-billion dollar sizing error in the sportswear market. Her mission is deeply personal: after a successful career on the field was marred by a battle with body dysmorphia—driven by ill-fitting, male-centric uniforms—Marina set out to revolutionize the industry.

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Lindsey Elizabeth Cortes shares her take on the 2025–2030 USDA Dietary Guidelines released in 2026, explaining how the USDA updates them every five years and how they affect downstream food policy. She says the new inverted food pyramid and “eat real food” messaging feel more like marketing than a true 180, though she appreciates that the guidelines are shortened to 10 pages.

From a sports dietetics lens, she critiques the low grain/carbohydrate guidance as inadequate for athletes, recommends past episodes on carbs, sugar, and during-training fuel, and notes athletes may need some refined carbs to avoid excessive fiber and GI issues. She likes the increased protein target (1.2–1.6 g/kg), the more permissive tone on whole fats despite a still-low saturated fat cap, and the stronger “limit alcohol” message, and discusses potential implications for SNAP, school lunches, and ultra-processed foods.

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Lindsey Elizabeth Cortes, host of the Female Athlete Nutrition Podcast, reflects on Super Bowl ads, praising Dove’s body confidence message but feeling disheartened by multiple GLP-1 weight loss commercials and what she sees as renewed cultural pressure to lose weight. She clarifies she is not anti–weight loss or anti-medication, but supports body acceptance, fueling and nourishing with real food, and case-by-case medical decisions, and she critiques the broad “lose weight to be healthier” message, including concern about Serena Williams promoting Ozempic.

Lindsey discusses REDs risk in female athletes and shares advice she gave an 11-year-old worried about being bigger than friends: bodies grow differently and she should keep fueling and training. She apologizes after a listener reported a GLP-1 ad ran on her podcast due to hosting-platform ad miscategorization, says it was fixed quickly, and invites listeners to email feedback.

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The episode features Nora Bordeau of Balancing Bowls, a former collegiate rower and food blogger focused on practical bean- and lentil-based cooking for families and athletes. They discuss types of beans and lentils, nutrition benefits (protein, complex carbs, fiber, micronutrients, antioxidants), and how beans can count as multiple food groups.

They cover convenience, affordability, accessibility, and how to use canned versus dried beans (soaking, rinsing, cooking tips). They address gas and bloating, fiber tolerance, and strategies like gradual intake increases and discarding soaking liquid. Nora shares recipe ideas including bean salads, crispy chickpeas, stuffed peppers, brothy beans, pizza spreads, and using blended beans to create creamy soups.

Nora Bourdeau is the creator of Balancing Bowls, a food blog focused on balanced, practical cooking with a special passion for beans and lentils. A former college athlete, Nora brings a grounded, food-first perspective to nourishment, strength, and sustainability in the kitchen, helping women fuel their lives with confidence and flexibility.

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Lindsey Elizabeth Cortes, host of the Female Athlete Nutrition Podcast, welcomes returning guest Dr. Kate Bennett, a clinical sports psychologist, licensed Way of Champions trainer, and multiple-time national champion, to discuss her new venture, Full Send Consulting. Bennett explains that while her mental health practice (Athlete Insight) continues, Full Send was created to address the systemic gap between education about eating disorders/RED-S and rising prevalence rates by shifting from individual treatment to team- and coach-focused culture change. She outlines the Way of Champions philosophy—rooted in Eastern thought, mindfulness, values, and transformational (rather than transactional) coaching—emphasizing psychological safety, purpose, belonging, and eliminating fear-based scarcity mindsets to help teams become protective factors for athlete wellbeing.

Lindsey connects these concepts to nutrition, RED-S prevention, and team-wide fueling standards, sharing an example of value-based work with a university equestrian team. They discuss how teammates and coaches influence culture, the importance of trust and accountability, and how athletes—including alternates—contribute to team success through relationships.

Bennett describes how Full Send Consulting works with teams and one-on-one with coaches in customizable formats (one-day intensives to season-long support) and serves youth, high school, college, and professional teams in person, virtually, and via travel.

Kate Bennett, PsyD, is a clinical sport psychologist. She is the reigning 2024 Downhill Masters National Champion in addition to being a two-time national track cycling champion. Prior to her clinical training, Dr. Bennett was an athletic trainer and cycling coach. She combines her sport experiences and clinical expertise to treat athletes recovering from eating disorders, disordered eating, exercise dependency, and REDs. Dr. Bennett authored "Treating Athletes with Eating Disorders."

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NEED HELP FOR AN EATING DISORDER? Call: 888-364-5977 or head to: https://emilyprogram.com/begin-recovery/

Host Lindsey Elizabeth Cortes interviews Dr. Jillian Lampert (Vice President of Strategy and Public Affairs at The Emily Program), who explains eating disorders as mental health diagnoses that disrupt a person’s relationship with food and negatively impact life, and outlines diagnoses including anorexia nervosa (including that it can occur without visible underweight), bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, ARFID, and OSFED; she notes orthorexia is not currently a DSM diagnosis.

They discuss why athletes are at higher risk (temperament traits like persistence, rule-focus, and high standards combined with sport pressures), warning signs such as secrecy, defensiveness, and constant preoccupation with food, and serious health consequences including RED-S impacts, cardiac risk (especially with purging and electrolyte disruption), GI issues, bone and endocrine effects, and dental damage.

Dr. Lampert describes The Emily Program’s full continuum of care (inpatient through outpatient, including virtual options), emphasizes individualized treatment for athletes (including decisions about training/competition), and shares Jessie Diggins’ public story of treatment, recovery, relapse, and ongoing support; the episode closes with encouragement to seek help by calling or requesting contact through emilyprogram.com.

Dr. Jillian Lampert, PhD, MPH, RD, LD, FAED, is the Vice President of Strategy and Public Affairs for The Emily Program, a national eating disorder treatment company. She completed her doctorate degree in Nutrition and Epidemiology and Master of Public Health degree in Public Health Nutrition at the University of Minnesota. She earned a Master of Science degree in Nutrition at the University of Vermont and completed her dietetic internship at the University of Minnesota Hospital and Clinics. She has an expansive range of policy, clinical, research, education, teaching, and program development experience in the area of eating disorders.

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In this episode of the Female Athlete Nutrition Podcast, host Lindsey Elizabeth Cortes discusses the complexities of nutrition, especially for female athletes, and the high expectations placed on them. Special guest Jess Cerra, Vice President of Product and Community Development at Elite Active Nutrition, shares her journey from an elite athlete to an entrepreneur in the sports nutrition industry.

They dive deep into the importance of electrolytes, how sweat testing can help optimize hydration and balance, and the innovative products offered by Salt Stick. They also touch on Jess's personal athletic achievements and provide practical advice on managing nutrition and hydration for optimal performance.

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Beyond her athletic pursuits, Cerra is the founder of JoJé Bar, a gluten-free, real-food energy bar designed for endurance athletes, which became part of the Alete Active Nutrition portfolio in 2021. She also co-founded The Last Best Ride, a gravel cycling event in her hometown of Whitefish, Montana, which allocates its proceeds to scholarships for women pursuing post-secondary education.

Use code FAN20 for 20% off at saltstick.com

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In this episode of the Female Athlete Nutrition Podcast, host Lindsey Elizabeth Cortes interviews Sarah Krol, Vice President of Food and Nutrition at NSF, and John Travis, Principal Technical Manager at NSF. They discuss the complexities of nutrition and the importance of food safety and supplement standards.

Kroll and Travis emphasize the role of NSF in protecting and improving human health through rigorous testing and certification processes, particularly in the areas of supplements, food products, and cosmetics. They also touch on the evolving landscape of consumer demand for clean and safe products, and NSF's role in ensuring quality and safety in a variety of industries.

This episode provides valuable insights into how consumers can make informed choices about the products they use.

Episode Highlights:

01:22 The Impact of Period Pain on Women's Lives

03:01 Meet the Experts: Sarah Krol and John Travis

06:25 NSF for Sport: Ensuring Supplement Safety

09:21 The Importance of Certification and Standards

28:17 Addressing RED-S in Female Athletes

33:32 The Evolving Landscape of Supplements

34:29 NSF's Expanding Role Beyond Supplements

39:32 Food Safety and Consumer Awareness

43:03 Supply Chain Stressors and Adulteration Risks

45:36 The Rise of Sugar Substitutes

50:27 Lead in Protein Powders: Understanding the Risks

54:39 The Importance of Certification and Safe Consumption

57:37 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

John Travis has more than 25 years of experience in analyzing dietary supplements, utilizing techniques such as gas and high-performance liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. His expertise in the analysis of dietary supplements for ingredients prohibited by antidoping organizations was instrumental in developing screening methods for NSF’s Certified for Sport program. These procedures help analyze and detect potentially harmful substances, contaminants and emerging drugs in dietary supplements. He joined NSF in 1995.

Sarah Krol is Vice President, Food and Nutrition at NSF is responsible for NSF’s global Food and Nutrition division, which includes primary food production/agriculture and fisheries, food manufacturing and distribution, product claims certifications such as Organics/Non-GMO (including NSF’s subsidiary Quality Assurance International), and nutrition and wellness (including supplements and cosmetics).

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For more information about the show, head to work with Lindsey on improving your nutrition, head to: http://www.lindseycortes.com/

Join REDS Recovery Membership: http://www.lindseycortes.com/reds

WaveBye Supplements – Menstrual cycle support code LindseyCortes for 15% off: http://wavebye.co

Previnex Supplements – Joint Health Plus, Muscle Health Plus, plant-based protein, probiotics, and more; code CORTES15 for 15% off: previnex.com

Female Athlete Nutrition Podcast Archive & Search Tool – Search by sport, condition, or topic: lindseycortes.com/podcast

Female Athlete Nutrition Community – YouTube, Instagram @‌femaleathletenutrition, and private Facebook group

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Host Lindsey Elizabeth Cortes of the Female Athlete Nutrition Podcast takes a brief hiatus and uses this time to highlight notable episodes from the past year. While outlining the podcast's mission to simplify nutrition for female athletes and combat harmful body image expectations, Lindsey recommends standout episodes, such as discussions on sustainable farming, eating disorders, menstrual cycle health, and supplement transparency.

The episode also promotes awareness of RED-S (Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport) and offers resources for listeners facing nutrition challenges. Lindsey emphasizes the importance of subscribing and revisiting past episodes during the break.

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In this episode of the Female Athlete Nutrition Podcast, host Lindsey Elizabeth Cortes discusses the importance of nutrition during a break from sports. Highlighting common fears and misconceptions around weight gain and muscle loss, Lindsey explains why metabolism and body composition do not drastically change during short breaks.

She emphasizes the need for proper refueling and maintaining adequate nutrition to ensure athletes are energized and ready to resume training. Additionally, Lindsey shares her personal updates, including an upcoming move to Boston for better medical care for her son. She announces a brief hiatus from the podcast, set to return in February with fresh content.

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