Train your female client alongside her menstrual cycle

By using a client’s menstrual cycle to inform her training, you can help her achieve more with less effort, writes trainer and educator Clare Hozack.

For women, the menstrual cycle is a significant, but often overlooked, influencer of exercise performance. When factored in, however, it can make a world of difference. I want to start by saying that this is the simple, generalised version that will only work for about 15% of your client base, because only about 15% of all women have a 28-day cycle.

To further complicate things, all women react differently to varying hormone levels; some feel amazing at certain points, while others will feel downright awful. After trial and error, however, when you get your client’s unique rhythm right, it will be a game changer. It will get her working easier, sticking to dietary plans better, and consistently getting results in a way that you previously had to fight to achieve.

Track the data

The first thing to do is start tracking information about a range of factors, including sleep quality, mood, pain, skin changes, joints, temperature and motivation levels. You can use a combination of app-gathered data and your client’s personal observations to gather this information. Once a pattern emerges, you can map her training session plans to it.

After at least three cycles (which may or may not be three months) you should start to see a pattern emerge. Lack of a pattern is a symptom that may warrant a visit to a GP, preferably an integrative one or one who is passionate about women’s health, or a naturopath who specialises in fertility and hormonal health.

Matching your client’s training to her pattern

Once you’ve established your client’s pattern, the way to start matching her training to her cycle is actually very simple:

Phase 1: Menstruation

This can go anywhere from three to five days and shouldn’t require more than a super pad to absorb a few hours of blood. Bleeding that is excessively heavy, painful, or longer than five days should be referred to a GP or naturopath that specialises in hormone dysfunctions. Some women will feel excessively tired, which is also a warning sign to get their iron checked, while others will feel released and energised.

Phase 2: Follicular

It is in this low hormone phase that women are the most like men, and characterised by a slow increase in oestrogen, followed by a sharp increase in luteinising hormone right before ovulation. This is the most comfortable time for most women to train hard, lift heavy and diet (because of reduced insulin sensitivity). Her testosterone is at its highest in this phase, so strength gains are better. Take advantage of this by scheduling muscle building exercises for this phase.

Phase 3: Ovulation

Ovulation will sometimes be symptomatic for some women, with back or abdominal pain, and in others it will pass unnoticed. Either way, your client is at greater risk of injury during this time, so slow down reps and cut back on plyometrics if possible. A rise in your client’s core temperature indicates that ovulation has occurred.

Phase 4: Luteal

This is characterised by a large increase in progesterone. In some ways, this hormone is wonderful, helping your female client sleep, but in other ways it can make training less comfortable. Her core temperature will rise, she becomes more sensitive to insulin, and her metabolic rate increases. This phase of the cycle is not good for dieting, and calories should be increased by at least 100 per day if she is dieting. Training can still be hard, but she’s more at risk of overheating, so it is a perfect time to lengthen your sessions and work on endurance.

The end of phase 4 is the most common time for athletes to feel down, lethargic and unmotivated, so go with it and prescribe a week (or so) of light exercise, walking, yoga, and recovery.

Performance is only impaired minimally by the late luteal or menstrual phase, so don’t skip important meets or competitions because of her period.

For training, however, starting to sync your intensity and objectives to literally ‘go with her flow’ will make sticking to your program easier for her, getting better results with less effort.

REFERENCES & FURTHER READING

• https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/dia.2006.0004 
• https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/menstrual-cycle
• https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article-abstract/36/4/611/4693508
• https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/03635465980260050301
• http://journals.lww.com/pain/Abstract/1999/06010/A_meta_analytic_review_of_pain_perception_across.1.aspx
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12959622
• https://fitness.edu.au/the-fitness-zone/article/hormones-menstruation-and-female-training/
• https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/oestrogen
• https://www.webmd.com/women/guide/normal-testosterone-and-estrogen-levels-in-women#1
• https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/01/070103201311.htm
• https://www.shecares.com/hormones/testosterone/articles/testosterone-and-the-menstrual-cycle
• https://www.bodyandsoul.com.au/health/womens-health/how-to-sync-your-workout-to-your-menstrual-cycle/news-story/eab595669110ae4ae4d2a4e9775e2733
• https://www.hormone.org/your-health-and-hormones/glands-and-hormones-a-to-z/hormones/luteinizing-hormone
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1902847/

Clare Hozack

A former athlete and strength and conditioning coach, Clare applies this experience to her work training and educating pre- and post natal women to help them develop ‘next level’ fitness for parenting. A trainer with IntoYou studio on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, she is also the Australian and NZ Master Trainer for Burrell Education, which delivers a range of women’s health and pregnancy-related courses. You can download Burrell Education’s free Pre-Screening tools for pregnant women here and post natal women here.

into-you.com.au / burrelleducation.com

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