Training With Your Menstrual Cycle
Your menstrual cycle is more than just a period – it is a combination of the ovarian and uterine cycles which interact within the female reproductive system to make pregnancy possible. The overall duration of the menstrual cycle can range anywhere from 21 to 40 days. (1) It is rare for a woman to experience a textbook 28-day cycle, which further emphasises the need for an individualised approach. (2)
Your cycle can be divided into the follicular (or proliferative) phase, ovulation and the luteal (or secretory) phase. The image below depicts the hormonal fluctuations across the cycle, with lower levels of hormones during the bleeding phase, a peak before ovulation and an overall higher level of hormones during the luteal phase.
Not All Cycles Are ‘Normal’
Not every woman has a naturally occurring cycle, either due to environmental and physiological factors or from taking exogenous hormones. Even if you do not have a ‘textbook’ cycle, it’s important to have an understanding of your own cycle and symptoms. This is what we term body literacy.
Body literacy refers to having the self-knowledge to observe and chart signs of fertility and infertility along with a range of other health and wellness observations. (3) To make adjustments to support our training it is helpful to know the normal length of your cycle and the different phases, as well as the typical symptoms that occur each month (such as temperature changes, mood changes and hunger levels).
How Do You Track the Menstrual Cycle?
There are a variety of methods you can use to track your cycle, however it’s important to be aware that efficacy of these methods as a form of contraception depends greatly on consistency and ability of tracking. Apps such as Clue are useful for charting symptoms throughout the cycle, while a newly developed app WILD.AI helps by providing recommendations on training and nutrition based on the time in the cycle and associated symptoms.
Physiological Factors Influencing Your Training
Your sex hormone levels are lower in the follicular phase, which means that body temperatures are lower, and you are typically more resistant to fatigue. (4) A group of researchers from a variety of European academic institutions found strength levels to be higher and greater increases in muscle fibre diameter during the follicular phase. (5)
Furthermore, due to low levels of oestrogen and better insulin sensitivity, it is easier for you to tap into glycolytic stores and utilise carbohydrate for fuel. (6)
You’ll probably find that during ovulation your energy levels are typically higher which is due to the rise in sex and pituitary hormones. Ovulation is a great time for strength training as your muscle strength may peak during this time, however due to oestrogen levels there is a decrease in tendon and ligament stiffness which may increase risk of injury, particularly in contact sports. (7,8)
Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
Lastly, throughout the luteal phase and leading up to menses, the increase in core temperature which accompanies the rise in progesterone can lead to greater cardiovascular strain in prolonged exercise, particularly in hot and humid conditions. (9) You might find that you are hungrier than usual leading up to your period as energy expenditure tends to increase at this time. (10)
What If I’m On the Oral Contraceptive Pill (OCP)?
Examining the effects of the OCP on performance and training is a whole other article in itself. However, one of the main considerations when taking the OCP is that it can mask irregularities that would normally be evident if the natural cycle was occurring. (11) Menstrual cycle irregularities are one of the early indicators of low energy availability or relative energy deficiency so it’s important to that energy intake is adequate when taking the OCP. (12)
Can I Track My Cycle If I Use an Intrauterine Device (IUD)?
Given that you can still get a period and ovulate when using hormonal and non-hormonal IUDs, you can absolutely make adjustments to your training based on the cycle. The same rules apply – track your cycle length and symptoms and try to get an understanding of the length of your follicular and luteal phases to better optimise timing of deload and peak weeks in training.
Putting It All Together
The menstrual cycle is complex and leads to a variety of physiological fluctuations that influence temperature, mood, fatigue and hunger levels. We don’t need to overcomplicate the process, rather follow a few practical recommendations as best as we can.
Utilise autoregulation in training for women rather than percentage-based prescriptions to allow training adjustments based on real-time psychological and physiological feedback.
Aim for your hardest week of strength training to occur in your late follicular phase before ovulation. Use the rise in hormones and the feel-good benefits of ovulation to your advantage.
Get in your higher intensity conditioning work in your follicular phase when hormone levels are low. This ties in well with your body’s ability to better utilise carbohydrates.
Keep your lower intensity conditioning work for your luteal phase when your body is preferentially utilising fat for fuel and when your energy and motivation may be a little lower.
The rise in core temperature that occurs for women due to increasing levels of progesterone can affect sleep and recovery. In the week leading up to your period, it’s important to keep the bedroom cool and utilise strategies to avoid overheating at night to better optimise recovery from training.
Let your symptoms guide you. If you get bad back pain just before or during your period, maybe that’s a day to skip out on lifting and choose to do some active recovery or gentle stretching instead.
Lastly, get in touch with a coach that can guide you through the process!
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1. NHS. UK: National Health Service, c2019 [cited 2021 August 6]. Available from: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/periods/fertility-in-the-menstrual-cycle/
2. Bull JR, Rowland SP, Scherwitzl EB, Scherwitzl R, Danielsson KG, Harper J. Real-world menstrual cycle characteristics of more than 600,000 menstrual cycles. NPJ Dig Med. 2019Aug 27:83(2):1-8. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41746-019-0152-7
3. Briden, L. New Zealand: Lara Briden, c2021 [cited 2021 August 6]. Available from https://larabriden.com/body-literacy/
4. Pivarnik JM, Marichal CJ, Spillman T, Morrow JR. Menstrual cycle phase affects temperature regulation during endurance exercise. J App Phys 1992; 72(2): 543 – 548.
5. Sung E, Han A, Hinrichs T, Vorgerd M, Manchado C, Platen P. Effects of follicular versus luteal phase-based strength training in young women. SpringerPlus 2014, 668(3): 1-10.
6. Oosthuyse T, Andrew B. The Effect of the Menstrual Cycle on Exercise Metabolism Implications for Exercise Performance in Eumenorrhoeic Women. Sports Med 2010; 40: 207-227.
7. Bambaeichi E, Reilly T, Cable NT, Giacomoni M. The Isolated and Combined Effects of Menstrual Cycle Phase and Time-of-Day on Muscle Strength of Eumenorrheic Females, Chronobiology International 2004; 21:4-5
8. Herzberg SD, Motu'apuaka ML, Lambert W, Fu R, Brady J, Guise JM. The Effect of Menstrual Cycle and Contraceptives on ACL Injuries and Laxity: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Orthop J Sports Med 2017; 21;5(7): 1-10.
9. de Jonge, XAKJ. Effects of the Menstrual Cycle on Exercise Performance. Sports Med 2013; 33: 833–851.
10. Zhang S, Osumi H, Uchizawa A, Hamada H, Park I, Suzuki Y et al. Changes in sleeping energy metabolism and thermoregulation during menstrual cycle. Physiol Rep 2020; 8(2): e14353.
11. Dudgeon, E. Relative energy deficiency in sport (RED-S): recognition and next steps. 2019 April 22 [cited 2021 August 6]. In: BJSM Blogs. UK: BJM Publishing Group. Available from https://blogs.bmj.com/bjsm/2019/04/22/relative-energy-deficiency-in-sport-red-s-recognition-and-next-steps/
12. Williams NI, Helmreich DL, Parfitt DB, Caston-Balderrama A, Cameron JL. Evidence for a Causal Role of Low Energy Availability in the Induction of Menstrual Cycle Disturbances during Strenuous Exercise Training. J Clin End & Met. 2001: 86(11): 5184–5193. doi: https://doi.org/10.1210/jcem.86.11.8024
