Your Menstrual Cycle & Exercise
Did you know that you can utilise different stages of your cycle to help optimise your training and in turn help you feel better through your cycle?
A lot of my clients are often shocked when I explain how your strength and fitness levels can fluctuate during your menstrual cycle and that you can actually adapt your training during your menstrual cycle to support your body better.
Do you ever feel like you just want to become a couch potato while you're on your period?
And then other stages of your cycle you are bouncing out of your skin with energy?
Now don’t be worried if this is all super new to you, a lot of women are only learning about their womanly cycles for the first time when they are well into their 30’s or 40’s. Although do note that your female cycle is very important and unfortunately many women have been made to feel that it is “too hard to understand”, “taboo to talk about” or have just simply been on contraception for their whole life so don’t really know what their normal cycle is.
Does this sound like you?
Now let’s learn about your cycle and what types of training is best for each phase.
Working out with your cycle: When to rest, when to train
This is based on a 28 day cycle, so please adjust if your cycle is shorter or longer.
FYI normal cycle lengths can range from 26-34 days.
Day 1-3:
Day 1 of your cycle is day 1 of your period.
This is a time to rest and replenish.
A lot of women can feel tired and a bit sluggish on these days so it is a great time to have some rest or opt for rejuvenating movement. Gentle yoga or stretching is best. Definitely no inversions and always try to keep your body warm with infrared saunas and Chinese medicine suggest to have socks on your feet to protect your kidneys. In Ayurveda, a woman should be resting her body in this time of bleeding.
Day 4-14:
This is your follicular phase.
Superwoman phase.
This is when your follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) rises and causes egg follicles to start developing. These follicles produce oestrogen, which is the hormone that rises in the first half of your cycle and is the dominant hormone here. Egg release happens around day 14 - this can be different for every woman. You can track your basal body temperature to find out exactly when you ovulate.
Overall this is your time to enjoy strength training and bubbly outgoing energy.
By day 4 of your cycle you should be feeling strong and ready for the gym. Strength workouts are best here, aim for heavier sets and more volume. Days 7-14 should be your heaviest and hardest week of training in the month. Studies have found that strength training during this phase of your cycle resulted in higher increases in muscle strength compared to training in the luteal phase.
Ie. never skip leg day before ovulation.
This is a great time to enhance your training with cold water therapy - 4 min cold showers first thing in the morning are amazing for your energy and muscle recovery.
Here you may also notice your appetite is good, energy high and your sex drive goes up due to coming into your ovulation and the spikes of testosterone.
Day 15-28:
This is your luteal phase - coming out of your follicular and ovulation.
Time to welcome your beautiful progesterone - our fat burning, calming hormone.
As oestrogen drops and progesterone rises you may find that your strength feels less than the first half of your cycle. For women who lift weights, now is a good time to focus on technique and lift at lower intensity/volume. Now is a great time to swap out heavier weights for HIIT workouts, easy cardio or active recovery type fitness. This is also the best time to take rest days and get into nature for some grounding.
Interestingly, higher progesterone increases the laxity (stretchiness) of ligaments and tendons, therefore you may want to avoid lifting heavy weights in the few days leading up to your period.
Fluid retention can happen more commonly in this time of your cycle due to the overall increase in body temperature and reduced sweat rate. This is a great time to support your lymphatic system with dry skin brushing every morning, increasing electrolytes through lots of vegetables and using epsom salts or magnesium flakes in your evening bath.
Overall, this is a great time to go easy on the high weights and opt for more rejuvenating training.
First and foremost, women are cyclic creatures and the sooner we can start listening to our bodies and learning, the better we will be able to feel. Start by tracking your period, tracking your basal body temperature and pay attention to start connecting the dots for your own unique cycle.
Above all, remember that there is nothing wrong with experiencing fluctuations in strength, endurance, body weight, cravings, sex drive or energy during the average menstrual cycle. Even if your hormones are 100% on track and balanced, it is very normal to have these fluctuations due to the cyclic nature of the female body.
Learning to work with your body and menstrual cycle can improve overall health and wellness and help you to feel more comfortable in your training.
Note: This post is to provide general advice and rationale for exercise and your menstrual cycle. It may not be applicable to all - eg if you are on contraception (The Pill, Mirena, rod etc) - and if you’re having ongoing hormonal difficulties, please seek professional treatment from your healthcare practitioner.
