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What: “The Athletic Woman’s Survival Guide”

Authors: Dr. Carol L. Otis and Roger Goldingay

Publisher: Human Kinetics

Price: $17.95

This 264-page paperback book serves as a guide to help women deal with the pressures they might face in athletic endeavors.

The author, Carol L. Otis, is a physician for UCLA Student Health Services and serves as chief medical advisor for the WTA Tour. She formerly was an assistant team physician for UCLA. Her co-author is husband Roger Goldingay, a former soccer player who is a Web designer, writer and photographer.

Billie Jean King, in the foreword, says, “What I love about ‘The Athletic Woman’s Survival Guide’ is that it lays out all the reasons to ignore the critics and it helps us refute the misguided attempts to change use in impossible and health-threatening ways. . . . The health risks and damage to our performance and self-esteem can be enormous--even life-threatening.”

Otis writes about a female athlete “triad” that results from unhealthy training practices.

The book offers examples of women who have fallen into the triad trap and how they’ve fought their way out.

Because the triad is preventable, the book provides recommendations for changing the attitudes of people dealing with female athletes and advises young athletes on how to get help so they can train and compete while remaining healthy.