Ladies, your menstrual cycle can help you build muscle and lose fat - doesn’t that sound awesome!?
Now before we begin, there’s some disclaimers I should mention first…
- I’m a man without a menstrual cycle so there might be some compassion missing in my writing!
- I’m not an endocrinologist either so my knowledge and experience in hormones and their effect on the menstrual cycle/reproductive system is limited. Please seek a qualified professional for specific recommendations should you need/want them!
Linking menstruation with muscle
The menstrual cycle lasts around 28 days with menstruation (or what we commonly know as the “period”) signalling the start of the cycle.
As many women know from experience, the timing of the menstrual cycle can vary and so can the fluctuations of hormones during the cycle of which we're going to focus on two...
- Estrogen
- Progesterone
This article discusses the positive and negative effects of Estrogen and Progesterone but in short, Estrogen seems to be beneficial for muscle growth and performance, whereas Progesterone appears detrimental.
This would suggest women respond better to strength training during the earlier stages of their menstrual cycle as this is clearly when the ratio between Estrogen to Progesterone is at it's highest.
Estrogen is beneficial for muscle and growth whereas Progesterone is detrimental
So it comes as no surprise that a substantial amount of research shows that training with greater volume, intensity and frequency during the earlier stages of the menstrual cycle can be beneficial for females gaining muscle and losing fat.
So should I train around my menstrual cycle?!
Yes and no.
My initial concern with writing this article is having our female clients use their new found knowledge of the menstrual cycle as an excuse to train poorly.
There's PLENTY of other factors that hold much more importance and control over gym performance. There's also a large degree of difference between individual women and the amount in which their hormones fluctuate. Some might really notice the difference between the stages whereas others might not. Yes, pushing a little harder during the earlier phase of a menstrual cycle might help us squeeze some extra results but it's important we keep training with a certain level of intensity during the later stages of the cycle as well.
In saying this, it makes sense for women (and their coaches) not to focus too heavily on poor performances or increased levels of fatigue during the later stages of the menstrual cycle as these might be unavoidable, especially if things improve drastically during the early stages of their next cycle!
But what about menopause? Contraceptive pills? My specific hormones and cycles?
These are all specific questions and cases that should be dealt by qualified professionals. Hormones and cycles vary, there are many different types of contraceptive pills and menopause and it's effects can vary from one woman to the next.
This article serves as a basic outlay of the average female cycle so if it's something you wish to explore further I highly suggest working with professionals to understand what relates solely to you.