5 exercise-boosting tips exclusively for women

With a few simple tricks, you can maximize your workouts in ways that play to your womanly strengths. Here's how:

• Don't tell your health club manager, but the next time they see you working up an intense sweat, it's because you're in the latter part of your menstrual cycle.
• One study found that women who exercise during this time of the month burn more fat for energy, leading to less exercise-related fatigue.
• It may be because your body's estrogen and progesterone levels are at their highest.

• A study from Cornell University found that women with low levels of iron find it more difficult to maintain exercise and training than women with normal levels.
• An estimated 16 percent of North American women have a non-anemic iron deficiency and don't know it.
• Women who are physically active, dieting or vegetarians are particularly at risk.
• Supplementing with 100 milligrams a day of iron can double your exercise endurance.
• Don't try this on your own, however — this is prescription-strength iron that should only be taken under your doctor's supervision.
• Good sources of dietary iron include red meat, seafood, legumes, whole grains and green vegetables.

• Observing your own stepping, lunging and arm swinging might actually work against you.
• One study found that women who exercised in front of a mirror felt less calm and more fatigued after 30 minutes of working out than those who exercised without mirrors.
• Some exercise gyms are now catching on and offering "reflection-free" zones. If yours doesn't, talk to the gym manager.

• There's an army of celebrities all hoping you'll buy their exercise videos. But experts say such videos may actually undermine your motivation to work out.
• A McMaster University study looked at videos featuring super-slim models. They found that people felt less confident about their fitness and less inclined to exercise in the future.
• Oddly enough, the effect was even worse with videos featuring an ultra-slender host leading a group of normal-looking women.
• If you want a motivating exercise video or class, researchers say you should look for a teacher you can trust.
• Find a teacher with a fitness background who, like the rest of us, needs to exercise in order to look great.
• Videos created by personal trainers and exercise physiologists, or classes taught by them, are a good bet.

• Many women think they're too heavy to benefit from exercising. Others get discouraged when they don't see significant weight loss after weeks of exercise.
• The most important benefit of exercise is keeping your heart healthy.
• Research shows that the amount of activity you get, not your weight, is the chief predictor of heart disease.
• One study evaluated more than 900 women, three-quarters of whom were overweight or obese. They found that, when it comes to heart disease, weight didn't matter, but exercise did.
• It wasn't the heaviest women who showed the most evidence of heart problems, but the least active women. So get moving, whatever your size.

There's no one-size-fits-all exercise plan, especially between men and women. But with a fitness plan that plays to your strengths as a woman, you can be healthier and feel better.