In this episode of the Femme FC Podcast, Nicole speaks with Vittoria Marin of Isokinetic Medical Group to unpack what we truly know about ACL injuries in female footballers, and how clinicians can translate that knowledge into smarter, more individualized rehab.

Vittoria discusses her recent publication on ACL injuries in women's football and shares insights from her clinical experience across the full rehab spectrum, from early post-op care to advanced neuromuscular and movement-quality training in Isokinetic's "green room." She highlights the anatomical, biomechanical, hormonal, and cultural factors that shape injury risk, and explains how understanding how an athlete tore their ACL should meaningfully influence rehabilitation planning.

Topics include:

• Why non-contact mechanisms are so common in women's football

• The importance of reverse-engineering the injury mechanism

• Integrating neuromuscular and neurocognitive training throughout rehab

• How training age, resource allocation, and cultural norms influence movement quality

• Seven priority areas for improving ACL outcomes in the women's game

This episode provides actionable tools and thoughtful perspectives for any practitioner working in female athlete health, rehab, or performance.

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Lorena Sumser joins the show to share lessons from a global career across Germany, France, and Scotland. Lorena has worked in the private sector, the Bayern Munich Academy, FFC Wacker München, the German U20 and U23 National Teams, OL Féminin, and now Rangers FC Women, where she serves as the Lead Physical Performance Coach.

We dive into the realities of supporting players in different systems, the importance of collaboration between club and national team staff, and how culture and expectations shape the physical preparation of female footballers. Lorena talks through her experiences at World Cup level, what she learned from OL's Champions League environment, and how she approaches player readiness in the Scottish league.

In this episode, we cover:
• Early influences that shaped Lorena's coaching path
• What national team environments teach you about communication and trust
• Navigating the U20 and U23 pathway in Germany
• Managing players with different playing minutes and training histories
• What separates elite performers at OL and why their standards are so high
• The role of culture in gym expectations and strength training
• Moving into a lead role at Rangers and guiding a growing performance department
• The coaching values and principles that stay consistent across environments

This conversation offers practical insight for coaches, physios, strength coaches, and sport scientists working in women's football, or anyone preparing to step into a new environment with different demands and expectations.

This episode takes a deep look at ACL injury patterns in women's soccer and explains new evidence showing that many ACL injuries occur early in matches rather than later. This challenges the long held idea that cumulative fatigue at the end of a game is the main driver of risk.

We discuss how acute, transient fatigue during the early high intensity phases of play may influence injury mechanisms and what this means for both training and rehab.

Topics include:

• Early match injury patterns and what they reveal
• The differences between acute, cumulative, and chronic fatigue
• The impact of early match intensity and chaotic play
• Tactical and neurocognitive factors that shape risk
• Training and warm up strategies that better prepare players
• Why rate of force development matters in ACL rehab
• Contextual influences such as travel, fixture congestion, and position
• Future directions for ACL research in women's football

This episode offers practical and evidence informed insight for practitioners supporting players in elite women's soccer.

In this episode of the Femme FC Podcast, Suren Vata joins the show to break down the five pillars of female athlete health in professional women's soccer. Suren is a dual accredited physiotherapist, the Female Athlete Health Lead at Charlton Athletic Women, and a practitioner whose work spans elite football and rugby across Singapore and the United Kingdom. His recent research and his presentation at the Arsenal Sports Medicine Conference have helped shape a modern, practical roadmap for supporting women in the professional game.

We walk through each of Suren's five pillars, including:

• How to use biomechanics screening and on field movement coaching to reduce injury risk
• Why pelvic floor support is essential for performance and long term health
• How to track the menstrual cycle in a way that informs care and empowers athletes
• How to build safe and supportive pathways for pregnant players
• Why bra and breast education affects comfort, confidence, and performance

We also discuss the growing collaboration within the Women's Super League, the importance of injury surveillance, and the value of a multidisciplinary approach that keeps players healthy and performing at their best.

This episode is full of practical insight for physios, athletic trainers, sport scientists, S&C coaches, and anyone working in women's football.

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Dr. Margie Davenport joins the show to discuss the modern science of training through pregnancy. Margie is an exercise physiologist, professor at the University of Alberta, Christensen Professor in Active Healthy Living, FIFA Women's Football Consultant, and a leading researcher whose work has shaped international guidelines and supported athlete-moms across recreational and elite sport.

We cover the evidence behind training while pregnant, including:

• Why physical activity during pregnancy is both safe and beneficial

• What athletes can continue doing — including running, HIIT, and heavy strength training

• The importance of pelvic floor support

• The role of clubs and multidisciplinary staff in supporting pregnant players

• Why removing athletes from their sport too early can create harm

• The emerging guidance being developed with FIFA

This episode is full of practical insight for coaches, physios, sport scientists, S&C coaches, and athletes navigating pregnancy in sport.

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In this episode of the Femme FC Podcast, host Nicole Surdyka talks with Christi Edson, Head of Performance for the Orlando Pride, about how she programs gym sessions and uses velocity-based training (VBT) to individualize and optimize strength work throughout the professional season.

Christi shares her philosophy of keeping things simple and effective—focusing on movement patterns, player readiness, and sustainable progression across a season. She explains how she integrates gym work with on-field demands, manages volume and intensity for starters and non-starters, and uses VBT to individualize lifting and build confidence in the weight room.

They discuss:
⚽ Programming gym sessions across the competitive season
🏋️‍♀️ Using velocity-based training to guide load and intent
📊 Individualizing exercises without overcomplicating the program
💡 "Microdose" strength exposures and managing fatigue in-season

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In this episode of the Femme FC Podcast, host Nicole Surdyka talks with Dr. Carol Mack, Exercise Physiology and Biomechanics Lab Coordinator at John Carroll University, about why we need to look beyond biomechanics when training and rehabbing female athletes.

Carol shares emerging research showing that biomechanics vary just as much within genders as between them — and how training age may explain many of the differences once attributed to sex. She explains why focusing only on biomechanics as a risk factor for ACL injuries misses the bigger picture, and why strength is the true prerequisite for effective, efficient movement.

Carol also unpacks the physiological differences that shape how female athletes respond to training, including:
⚽ A higher ratio of type I to type II muscle fibers
💪 Greater capillary and mitochondrial density
🔁 Faster recovery and fatigue resistance during strength and sprint work

She explores how these insights can help coaches, clinicians, and sport scientists better load, recover, and develop female athletes — and what questions still need to be answered through research.

Listen in to learn how we can better tailor training and rehab to match the physiology and potential of female athletes.

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In this episode of the Femme FC Podcast, host Nicole Surdyka talks with Gaby Smith, Performance Sports Scientist for Bay FC, about how she builds practical, collaborative sport science systems in elite women's soccer.

Gaby shares how she bridges data and decision-making, the workflows that keep players and staff aligned, and how to make athlete monitoring meaningful rather than overwhelming.

They discuss:
⚽ The core metrics that matter most in women's football
📊 Building simple, effective data workflows within a multidisciplinary team
💪 Translating performance data into daily training decisions
🤝 How communication and collaboration drive better outcomes for players
🔄 Strategies for connecting rehab, return to play, and performance monitoring

This conversation offers actionable insights for practitioners who want to simplify their processes, improve staff alignment, and build trust through transparent, evidence-informed support in the women's game.

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