This one is for the coaches that work with females, the instructors and trainers that work with females, male partners that train with their females, the female athletes, dancers, and active individuals that have a menstrual cycle. This one has taken me years to write.. So here we go.
We are just starting to talk about training with your cycle, and taking advantage of the hormone flux of your cycle. There’s so much that needs to be said about it. Let’s start with the 3 main hormones
Testosterone: In females, testosterone elevates levels of physical performance by increasing aerobic power, boosting lean mass, reducing body fat and optimizing cognitive functions
Progesterone: the Prep for Pregnancy hormone, It pops up after ovulation (release of the egg) Progesterone helps to prepare the body for pregnancy by stimulating glandular development and the development of new blood vessels.
Estrogen: The ovaries, adrenal glands, and fat tissues produce estrogen. Both female and male bodies have this hormone, but females create more of it. It gets the body and egg prepped for release and possible pregnancy. Plus it actually helps with bone, cardiovascular health and mood.
Let’s start with a summary so we all are on the same page. Your cycle actually starts where everyone thinks it ends. It's the baseline.
Days 1-14 ( Follicular Phase)
The start of your flow/ menses/ or whatever you call it.. is the part where testosterone levels and estrogen levels are almost even. Then you progress to having peak levels of estrogen when you reach ovulation.
Days 15- 28 ( Luteal Phase)
Post ovulation. Your estrogen levels start to drop, and your progesterone levels start to rise. Then if pregnancy is not achieved, the body drops both hormones which triggers “the flow” to start. The body returns to baseline, where testosterone, estrogen and progesterone are around the same level.
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Now let’s talk about exercise, training, prep work, recovery and injury prevention.. Screenshot the next part (I promise you’ll want this info handy!)
Exercise during the flow ( days 1-5/7)
What you feel: Day 1 “ Period Power “ as some of my clients have called it. It’s when females feel the strongest. It’s that day that lifts are easy. That you PR on your run or you feel incredibly strong. Some of my clients have reported that they feel it coming on.. but their performance output in strength or endurance is exceptional. It’s where the popular idea is that female hormones match those of their male competitors, so they are “training like men” in that perspective.
Day 2 or 3 to the end.. “dumpster fire.” Females can feel fatigued, cramps ( think Charlie horse cramp but intermittently for days.) , and mood can fluctuate.
From personal accounts and with many other conversations, I find Day 3 is the WORST!! I feel stiff as a board and feel the worst. Some feel the worst symptoms on Day 1 or 2 and start to taper off. So plan accordingly, especially your mindset. Day 3 is also the day that estrogen starts its upward climb again. So day 3, I suggest adding in a little extra foam rolling and fascia work.
After Day 7 or end of your cycle, hormones increase, a rise in estrogen and testosterone.
This is where athletes will feel level or normality in training. Energy levels will increase ( addressing stress and the effects of training in another blog.) Females will feel high performing in their workouts and output.
Ovulation.. 24 hours with Peak in Estrogen.
Best energy level reached, hypothetically. From conversations and teaching many flexibility classes, this is also the day females are the bendiest, or feel super flexible. This can be used to benefit and complimentary warm ups to take advantage of this phase.
Luteal Phase (Day 15-28) The Downhill slope to baseline.
Progesterone is rising, estrogen levels dip and come back up. This is where your endurance can seem to fluctuate. Trainers/coaches/athletes/performers your times or performance might reflect a little of this, but it shouldn’t be an excuse. Just give yourself some grace and acknowledgment.
Then we are back to the beginning! So now, the insight…
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First off, do what you love. Don't change your activity because it’s better for your cycle. Listen to your body. Don't trade gold for copper, aka if you need to rest and recover then do it vs trying to power through another work out because you HAVE to. Next, let’s discuss the things to take advantage of:
Day 1 of flow or day right before.. “period power”. Take that day to train your glutes off! It might be the day you PR.
Day 2 or 3 till end of flow.. Recovery work. Maybe you take more time post workout recovery. Get more sleep, mindful of your fuel ( food).
Spend more time warming up. and mobility. You might feel strong, but stiff or tight. Take that extra 10-15 minutes to warm up your body before those big lifts, runs, etc.
Include:
Dynamic movement, nerve flossing/stretching/ gliding, and get those muscles super warm with blood flow.
This is where I have seen more pulled muscles and injury due to heavy contractions with max output with less than normal range of motion especially on Day 1.
spend a little more time recovering in your favorite way such as sauna, cold plunge, mobility, and movement.
Week 2 ( approaching ovulation) the day where hormones are climbing.
Train as normal with whatever preferred activity. try to push your strength gains.
Coach’s insight: when writing programming, this can be week 3 or 4 in progressive overload training with the push for maximum performance output on ovulation day. But don’t base your whole 4-6 week lifting schedule around it. Cardio output can also be increased due to more efficient movement patterns and higher energy levels.
I have had mixed feedback in this area. Some people like to start new programming this week. So ask your female, and program accordingly. Flexibility training: You might find an increase in your ROM, which leads to our next phase!
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The Bendy Phase
THe bendy phase
Where mobility and flexibility gains can be made! This is great as the hormones start to drop. Females might find that their warm up is quicker, they feel looser faster. Which is awesome!
This is the time if you are working on your flexibility or mobility that the female can push a bit too far causing injury in their fascia and muscle due to pushing their PASSIVE RANGE OF MOTION.
During your workout, please spend time doing joint stability or little muscle training. Clients have told me that they feel “loosy goosey” in their tendons and ligaments. So this is the time to do your band work at the beginning of your workout session for stable joints, especially shoulders and necks.
To take advantage of ovulation and the weeks after in mobility training, practice more active flexibility. Take deep breaths while doing it to keep the nervous system out of fight or flight. In your workouts this is where strength can actually help you stay stable.
Coaches insight: If programming heavy lifts, this is where it is crucial to watch form and technique. Your female athlete might be extra flexible that day and might not know how to stabilize in this new range of motion. Maybe spend a little extra time in the warm up doing all the “weird or PT” exercises to kick in those small stabilization muscles, especially around shoulders and hips.
Take advantage of mindset training, discipline, and body awareness with the weeks leading up to the “flow”. Power output might decrease or be inconsistent.
=====================================================================I hope that this helps you work with your hormone cycle, not against it. Reminder, training with your cycle isn’t not that complicated. It might require a little tracking. But listen to your body, you already know intuitively how to train. Understanding that males and females train differently because they are biologically different.
As always, science advancements and developments are the process of us getting things less wrong, so I’m curious to see what this conversation will look like in 5 to 10 years from now.