Tracking your Menstrual Cycle to Optimize Training
I’ve discussed the idea of optimizing around your menstrual cycle before in this post on Women in Strength and I believe that cycle tracking is something that anyone who menstruates or has menstruated in the past should look into. Although we menstruate every month, most of us have little to no idea about what’s really going on in our body throughout the month. It’s useful to have a basic understanding of how these monthly hormonal fluctuations can affect our energy level and performance during exercise and life.
Your menstrual cycle influences a lot of things, but I’ll limit my review to the fitness related stuff. Most importantly, I’ll review its effects on your metabolic rate (it varies throughout the month!), fatigue, endurance, and strength capacity.
A review of menstrual cycle phases as they relate to training
Follicular
Ovulation
Luteal
Menstruation
Again, my blog post from August covers some additional details on how training may be affected by the hormonal changes we experience during the various phases of our menstrual cycles. It also discusses other cool physiological differences between women and men like muscle fiber composition and how we can use those to our advantage!
A review of the basics
Follicular
Starts on the first day of your period and lasts for about two weeks.
Estrogen levels are highest during this phase.
Injury risk is lowest (due to estrogen levels being highest).
Actually the best time to hit some personal records in the gym! You have increased capacity to generate force, better endurance, and higher pain tolerance. You can push harder during this phase.
Ovulation
Typically on day 14 of your cycle (halfway through the month).
Lasts only one day - the day that your body releases an egg from an ovary.
Marks the end of the follicular phase.
Much like during the follicular phase, you have a high force output, but estrogren levels begin to decline resulting in lower pain tolerance and a higher risk of injury.
Metabolism begins to increase (as a result of core body temperature rising) and remains higher throughout the luteal phase.
Beginning on the day of ovulation, higher levels of hunger should be expected.
Luteal
Begins the day after ovulation (typically around day 15 in your cycle).
Everything tends to feel a little harder. Levels of fatigue increase.
Increased water retention means more bloating (give yourself a break if you feel heavier or weigh a pound or two more!)
This is the phase where progesterone peaks and then drops quickly near the end of the luteal phase. Progesterone is really important for building muscle, keeping sleep regular, keeping your mood balanced, and maintaining bone density, among other things.
Feelings of fatigue mean this is a good time to focus on lower intensity cardio and moderate weights.
Core body temperature rises throughout the luteal phase, meaning your base metabolism increases (estimates range from 9-20%). On a 2000 calorie diet, this means you might need 180-400 more calories per day during this phase to maintain weight.
Menstruation
It’s come full circle! The first day that you menstruate marks the beginning of the follicular phase (what we refer to as the first day of your monthly cycle)
Count the first day of heavy bleeding as the first day. Don’t count any light spotting beforehand as the start of your cycle
An argument for tracking
Whether you’re aware of it or not, menstrual cycles have a significant effect on training. Using the cycle tracking function on your smartphone can help you to train more intelligently. Tracking helps you know when to push hard and when to cut yourself some slack for feeling low energy.
Historically, menstruation has been considered a disadvantage in sports performance. By tracking, we can change the narrative and begin to use our cycles to our advantage. Easy weeks are an essential part of a smart training protocol for everyone. We all need them in order to perform at our best and continue to improve. While those who don’t menstruate might have a hard time determining the ideal time for a de-load week, those of us who do might look at it in a positive light. These detectable changes in our bodies allow us to be more in touch with monthly hormonal fluctuations.
Secondly, periods are a reflection of your overall hormonal health. Tracking can be the first step in working towards a healthier period. Many of us have been told to to just live with realities like super painful periods, long periods, extreme PMS symptoms, irregular cycles, and more. Just because this is common doesnt mean that it’s normal. Being aware of these patterns is the first step to take in taking control over your own hormones. The cycle tracking app is an amazing free tool at our disposal.
How to track on your iPhone
I love that the new iPhone health app includes smart menstrual cycle tracking. You don’t even need to download a new app! Plus, apple tends to be better with security so you won’t start to get weird adds for baby things if you forget to track your period one month (yikes).
Open Health app (it’s pre installed on your phone
Go to the browse screen (there should be a square on the bottom right corner of the screen when you have Health open)
Search “cycle tracking”
Follow the cues to start tracking!
After a few months, your period tracking app will start to get better at predicting your period. You’ll also be able to look at a summary and see how long your periods tend to be, how long your full cycle is (mine is a little short - about 26-27 days instead of the usual 28! So I know it’s a bit short, but within the healthy range. ), and note any symptoms. Next time your in the gym and wondering why you feel so fatigued, you might take a look and see that your period is about to start! You’ll begin to know what phase you’re in so you can program accordingly. You’ll also be aware of important irregularities to mention to your gynecologist.
Key irregularities to note
From The Period Repair Manual by Dr. Laura Briden.
Your cycle (time between the first day of one period and the first day of the next) is shorter than 21 days or longer than 35. 28 days is average.
A period (not counting light spotting before or after) shorter than two days or longer than seven days.
Painful periods. Very painful periods are common but NOT normal.
Severe breast pain
Lack of ovulation
Severe or extreme versions of any of the normal symptoms discussed in previous sections
Basic habits for healthy hormones
Adequate sleep
Adequate fiber (25-35g)
Well rounded diet (adequate carbs and fat intake are essential. This is part of why chronic dieting is not a good idea. Typically, you’ll have to cut fats and carbs in order to lose weight without losing much muscle. Your body shouldn’t be going through this for prolonged periods of time.). Check out my protein basics post for basics on macronutrient distribution.
Regular movement
Ideas for improving hormonal balance
First, talk to your gynecologist! Make sure they are a good doctor.
I personally have gone years without having a period regularly after being severely underweight. I strongly advocate speaking with your doctor about this subject. I don’t want this post to be used in lieu of speaking to your doctor, my intent is to help you form good questions can to get the most out of your appointment. Going in with a list of written questions is a great tool.
Consider what birth control you’re on and if it works for you. Birth control can really mess with our hormonal balance.
Read The Period Repair Manual- it’s so informative and the writing isn’t too dry. I got a lot of what I summarized in this post from that book. This will give you so much info on how you should be feeling and potential troubleshooting ideas for common problems.
Stop dieting. Prioritize hormonal health over weight loss - you shouldn’t start a diet if your hormones are out of whack. You can’t expect to lose weight and repair hormones simultaneously.
Reduce or eliminate alcohol and caffeine.
If you’re training hard, you might be training too hard. Reduce the number of high intensity sessions per week.
References:
The Period Repair Manual by Dr. Laura Briden
https://www.acefitness.org/certifiednewsarticle/2948/everything-you-need-to-know-about-exercise-and/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6509460/