Lindsay: Welcome, welcome to the Lifting Lindsay podcast.
Today we are gonna be talking about,, does your menstrual cycle affect your strength?
Should women be changing their training type, , and basing it around
different phases in their cycle.
And I've watched this idea kind of come and go over the past few years.
And a recent study, it was a meta-analysis of 22 studies.
It, this was published in, in this year, January of 2024.
And man, these studies bring heat.
Now I think the presentation of these, of this meta-analysis was,
hasn't always been done well.
Meno, uh, is a.
A pretty popular guy on Instagram.
He's a researcher.
He posted, uh, the menstrual cycle still doesn't affect strength.
New meta study confirms, I think it was a, a blanket statement.
It, that statement in and of itself, I could see getting a
rise out of some, uh, females.
Because it, it failed to actually cover what the study said and bring in the
nuance of what the study said, and, uh, which the study did recognize that there
were some women who, who experienced it, but on average we're not seeing any
effects on, well, not any on average.
We're not seeing.
Majority of women's strength being affected.
And this really brought out, um, a i, I wanted it to be a healthy
discussion, but it just brought out a bunch of angry people.
What was fascinating about it, as I looked through the, um, the comments
and stuff is the amount of, individuals that didn't actually understand the
science behind the, the, the idea and the theories of it affecting women's strength.
Um, there was a lack of education of even what part of the
cycle, strength was affected.
And I was thinking, man, if we were all educated a little bit more
on our own cycles and on the fact that we are all individuals, this
wouldn't be threatening for us.
This could actually have just been a really good discussion, but
instead it turned into just kind of.
Um, just a, a messy little thing.
So that's, that's my way of saying a messy little thing.
In fact, a one woman, um, was making some, uh, large blanket statements that
weren't accurate, and I just simply said, well, it depends on the woman.
I, I felt like that wasn't controversial.
I felt like that was a, a, a pretty levelheaded, you know.
It does actually, it does depend on the woman.
Sorry guys.
My voice is still shot from this cold that I had last week, so
bear with me during this episode.
Anyways, this woman was pretty upset that I dared bring up the fact that all
women experienced things differently, which I thought was too bad because
I feel like we, we, we need a few things to have this discussion.
One, we need a general understanding of hormones.
Why, um, some women are affected as far as strength, why others aren't.
Who this, who, what population does this impact more than others?
Um, and then also just a general recognition that every
single individual is different.
The way that that each woman responds to hormonal changes in their body
is actually quite different too.
Now, if you're a coach who has worked with hundreds of women, this isn't a shocker.
This is just, well, yeah, everyone's an individual.
Studies view things in generalities.
It's looking at and making generalized statements.
It's not about the N of one, it's not about the individual.
It's looking at at, at just generalizing the masses.
What are we seeing in general?
So that's really good to understand about studies because then we can
understand how to properly apply them.
But look, I'm really excited because where this conversation.
In that post when awry, in my opinion, truly was, there were one women
who were feeling very invalidated.
These were women who were saying, no.
But I do experience dips in my strength.
And now you're just telling me it's all in my head, even though it happens around
the same time of my menstrual cycle.
But now you're just telling me it's in my head.
I think women in general are sick of being told things are in their head
and having their, their feelings, just,
being completely invalidated.
But I do think that there is nuance in this conversation.
So what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna take a step back and I'm actually
going to do some, some light education on the menstrual cycle and we're
gonna go over hormones and how they're influenced during this cycle.
We're also gonna be talking about specific populations we're gonna be talking about.
Okay.
Well, there's What about, uh, women who are in their fertile
years who are not on hormonal birth control, who are experiencing
healthy normal menstrual cycles?
Okay, because that's one population, then you have another population.
What about those women who are entering perimenopause?
They haven't completely stopped their cycle.
They are still experiencing some.
So does this apply to them?
How does it apply to them?
And then you also have the, the population where they are on hormonal birth control.
This may or may not apply to them at all.
Totally, just depending on the individual.
Like I said, I, I feel like in these discussions that we often
have in health and fitness, the individual is oftentimes ignored.
So my job today is to educate you on some basics of the menstrual cycle,
how hormones are influenced, and why.
Some women feel dips and when they usually feel it, a lot of times when
we have these conversations, women just jump to, oh, well, yeah, during when
I'm bleeding, during menstruation, I can't lift because it's uncomfortable.
That's not what we're talking about here.
Okay.
They kind of jump to this idea of, well, their strength will
be impacted by menstruation.
That's actually not what we're seeing when it is impacted.
So there's just these false ideas being thrown around
about, about this whole thing.
So let's start from the very beginning.
Okay.
Let's just look at stages of the menstrual cycle.
So we have these different stages and we have two main phases.
The different stages and I'm gonna be ter speaking in terms of generalities
and then I'm gonna talk about how to apply it to the individual.
But when I refer to stages of menstrual cycle, we're just gonna go by 28 days
'cause that's like a, an about ish.
Obviously some women are a little less, some women are a little bit
more, but I'm just gonna go through it quickly with, with 28 day cycle.
So day one through five, we usually have menstruation.
I.
And then we, once that ends, we end into the follicular phase,
somewhere between six to 14 days.
Now, the follicular phase, you can remember that because that
phase is all about prepping.
Preparing the follicles to.
Be stimulated to grow and for that moment, that third stage, which is ovulation,
that moment where the egg is released, and then, um, you have ovulation and
then you move into the luteal phase.
Okay?
This can be longer, shorter, just depending on the individual.
The luteal phase can be about eight days.
It's actually in the luteal phase that is reported that women feel weaker.
So why is that?
Well, let's go through what happens to your hormones.
I'm just gonna be looking at this and separating this really into two phases.
A lot of times.
When we, when we're looking at the hormonal changes, it's just easier
to say, we have the follicular phase and we have the luteal phase.
So in the follicular phase, remember what I said, we are seeing some rises
in FSH, LH and estrogen, and that rise is all about preparing that follicle.
to mature and grow this egg, and then it peaks, you get a peak of
estrogen, lh, FSH, you get that peak and it produces ovulation.
Okay?
And then after that, once ovulation happens.
That actually is what stimulates a then rise in progesterone.
You see during the follicular phase, you have estrogen, specifically
estradiol, which is important to note because estradiol is it.
It really is like.
It's the primary form of estrogen in your body during your reproductive years.
It's the most potent form and it's kind of like women's testosterone.
We have links to muscle and strength, um, that is linked more to estradiol.
Okay, so that's actually why.
During the follicular phase as estrogen really begins to rise,
well, what, what did I say estrogen was in charge of for women.
We're looking at muscle and strength, actually an increase
in contractile strength.
So during the follicular phase, you'll hear people say that's
when you really perform for strength around ovulation, right?
Before you may be hitting prs because estradiol, that form of
estrogen is hitting its peak.
That really has direct correlations to increases in muscle protein synthesis,
uh, contractile and contractile strength.
Well, after ovulation, estrogen begins to go down and dip.
Not flat line, but it's going down and what's coming up?
Progesterone.
So like I said, um, ovulation is going to stimulate.
A rise in progesterone.
Progesterone is interesting because it has some anti estrogenic effects.
Does that make sense?
Estrogen and progesterone kind of balance each other out, and this
is what people are referring to.
A lot of times when they talk about hormone balance.
Sometimes I hear people on Instagram say that hormone balancing is a joke.
It's not true.
I'm like, are you kidding me?
Well, that, that's tell me you don't know anything about hormones without telling
me you don't know anything about hormones.
That's a joke.
This is, this is just one example in the body of we need this appropriate
balance back and forth because they, they actually have, have almost opposing roles.
Keeps the body healthy and balanced.
So estrogen, like I said, increase in muscle protein synthesis and
increasing contractile strength, and then progesterone rises.
Well, what does progesterone do?
Like I said, it has those anti estrogenic effects where it can
start to slow down the rate of muscle protein synthesis and women can feel
a decrease in contractile strength.
So it's at the peak of progesterone, which can happen.
I mean, here's the thing.
It happens at different points for different women.
On average, you can say maybe it happens five to eight days before menstruation.
Um, maybe that's when you'll notice kind of an increase in hunger cues.
Right.
Calories are the same, nothing's changed, but all of a sudden, you know, the week
before your period starts, you start noticing, um, oh, I'm, I'm hungrier now.
I wanna be a little bit more snacker.
Why is that?
It's the rise in progesterone.
So, progesterone, estrogen, once again, they, they have those
opposing effects, estrogen.
You can actually see a decrease in hunger because the actual, um, hormones that
are in charge of hunger, you see a slight reduction because of higher estrogen.
It, it makes you feel fuller, longer.
Progesterone has those opposing effects where now you're feeling
a little bit more snacker, right?
So.
Like I said, if you pause here and look at, okay, so estrogen
is in charge of muscle strength.
Okay?
So when that's peaked, a woman may be all of a sudden hitting all these, these prs,
may is a really important word, a woman, she, some feel this more than others.
Well, then as estrogen goes down a little bit and progesterone really comes
up post ovulation, then you have the, the opposite where peak progesterone
can decrease that contractile strength.
So this is where in the luteal phase, not menstruation, but the
luteal face, you may feel weaker.
This is the why behind it all.
This is why they say, well, maybe during this phase, the luteal
phase, you change up your training.
Maybe for two weeks you change up your training.
Let's just kind of break this down now.
Okay.
There's a few more things to consider.
I've already said one, that some women feel this more than others, some don't.
And you can chalk that up to those that are on hormonal birth control,
may not feel it as much as others.
You can say, even that will some feel it more during actual menstruation
instead of the luteal face.
That typically has more to do when they're menstruating with
them, just feeling uncomfortable.
Maybe some women's are really, really heavy and so, um, they just, they
do have overall lower energy levels.
But when it comes down to this theory, the idea is the luteal phase.
As soon as progesterone peaks, that's when you're gonna feel your weakest.
So.
Another interesting thing, I'm just gonna throw.
So, so take all of that information, just kind of put it up on the shelf
now and, and let me kind of go into in a little bit different direction.
So when they look at healthy, fertility years, uh, women, and
they've tracked them, they notice that.
20% of the time, and this is for healthy women with healthy periods
20% of the time, even though they're menstruating and everything looks
great, these are an ovulatory cycles, meaning that they are not ovulating,
meaning that they are not going to be getting that peak progesterone.
And these are during healthy years.
So 20% of the time, even for those that feel a reduction in strength,
20% of the time they wouldn't because 20% of the time they're not ovulating.
So it, and then also you look at, well, what about women who are in perimenopause,
especially early, um, earlier on.
These are women who they haven't fully stopped menstruating and they haven't
even fully stopped, uh, ovulation.
Usually when you very first enter in to perimenopause, you start
ovulating less and less, which is, it makes sense now, right?
Why a lot of people, a lot of women in perimenopause are experiencing
estrogen dominance, especially at first.
Because they're not getting that progesterone from the ovulation.
It, the body is amazing.
It really is.
So the, the early, uh, stages of perimenopause and even throughout
perimenopause, as they get more and more and more cycles that don't
include ovulation, they produce less.
Less and less progesterone, but sometimes more, more estrogen
as the body's really trying to force, um, the, the, the follicle.
They're really trying to force ovulation and prepare the body for ovulation.
So that's why these women will experience estrogen dominance
and then estrogen comes down.
But I mean, it's all over the board really in perimenopause, you know, one.
A few months you could be estrogen dominant, and then
the next few months you're not.
Maybe it's higher progesterone, lower estrogen.
There's, there's all, it's all over the place, right?
So as you enter perimenopause, the idea of constantly changing your training.
Well, that doesn't even make sense for that population because you
don't even know at what point what's going on in your body.
You just don't.
So early perimenopause kind of pointless and, and that can start
happening anywhere between 40 and 45 as as you start entering into that.
So.
Really, we're just kind of looking at this idea applying to women
who are in their fertile years.
But once again, not all women feel it during their luteal phase.
Another thing to consider is that, uh, 20% of the time you're not
getting that peak progesterone, so you shouldn't feel a decrease in strength.
Those are, that are on hormonal birth control.
Um, they can have, uh, a suppression of progesterone, to a degree, so
they wouldn't feel this as much.
Um, and it really just comes down to the individual.
Do I think in practice, do I think it's practical to change
your training for two weeks?
Um, to try to mitigate any, uh, possibilities of strength decline?
No, I actually don't, but, but it doesn't have to be done on paper.
What I do believe a woman should be doing is listening to her body so she
doesn't have to rewrite her entire program based off of this two weeks.
So if somebody has goals to build muscle, they're only lifting for, you know, two
weeks out of the, you know, four I that.
Doesn't make sense for somebody who is striving for body recomp wants a
little bit of muscle fat loss, that that doesn't make sense to change the whole
programming based off of 70% of the time.
You may, if you fall under that category, you may feel this decline.
What makes more sense is when you do feel the decline.
You listen to your body.
So instead of going and shooting for prs that day, you go in and
you just listen to your body.
You know, in, in, you lower the weight a little bit.
You bring down the intensity a little bit.
You still show up for yourself.
Maybe that day you just wanna stay in bed.
If you're feeling really tired, maybe you decide, you know what?
Today was just gonna be a, I'm gonna go and walk.
Or no, I'm gonna do yoga instead.
It, it can be as simple as just listen to your body for a few days.
Well, not a few days.
You know what I'm saying?
'cause this isn't, this shouldn't be impacting two weeks of strength.
It really shouldn't.
Here's another thing that's really hard too, is.
And, and I handle it the same way as I would with this.
Sometimes it's can be as little as I, I'm not sleeping as well.
I'm under a lot of stress.
I don't have as much energy as I usually do.
Well then let's listen to your body.
Let's respect it and what do you want to do?
What would keep you moving towards your goal?
In a respectful way, so you don't have to go in and shoot for prs.
Maybe this week you're, you're not actually seeing large progressions
from your training or any progressions.
That's okay.
Uh, maybe you're doing a few less reps, maybe you've lowered
the weight a little bit more.
That's fine.
Listen to your body.
But the idea of changing an entire program and telling somebody, oh, only lift
during follicular phase, and then during luteal phase change your entire routine.
Some people go as far to be like, only do yoga, only walk only this or
that, and I'm like, you know what?
I don't think it needs to be this complicated.
I really don't.
Um, and I'm somebody who studies the nuance and
complications of program design.
And even in my own studies I've seen where people dive too deep, get a little weird
in it, it's, we've gotta pull out of that.
We've, we've got to start teaching people to trust their body.
To respond in healthy ways, to be flexible.
Being flexible really is a strength.
I've talked about this a lot on this podcast, so if you wake up one morning,
I don't care if it's peak progesterone or not, and you are just feeling like you are
dragging and you don't have the strength, maybe that day is a, you know, I'm just
gonna go out, gonna get a walk-in, or.
I really love that, that yoga class, that recovery yoga class, I'm gonna go in there
and just, just healthily move my body.
That's, or, um, I love the gym, I love lifting weights.
I'm gonna go in, but I'm, I'm going to go in and just enjoy the movement today.
Now, I did see my friend posted a video on this.
And, um, he was talking about how some women will experience this, this reduction
in strength and I think he was showing his girlfriend and she usually uses like a 50
pound dumbbell and he hands her a a five pounds as here do it with this instead.
I really laughed at that 'cause I really liked the guy.
He's awesome.
But I laughed at that and I was like, okay, well we're not feeling it that much.
I mean, come on, we don't go from 50 pounds to five.
Like that's not what we're doing here, but maybe it's 50 pounds to 40 or 35.
And I really think that that's all it needs to be.
Do you want today?
Today could be peak estrogen, but I didn't get enough sleep last night and I'm not
feeling like I can push and progress more than I did last week or the week
before, but I'm still going to keep my habit alive of showing up for myself.
And so I'm gonna choose a way to show up for myself that honors how I feel.
Recognizes that, and I'm still taking care of my mind and my body.
That's it.
Now I know there are some women that are not gonna like this.
Nuance and, uh, flexibility and saying that all women, you
know, handle things differently.
Some people don't like that.
Some people are.
even under the illusion that if a woman lifts weights during, the luteal
phase, that they'll gain weight.
Like, no, they, I don't, well, I don't know where you're getting that one from.
That was somebody's argument on that meow post, like,
that's just a little bit weird.
But nobody's gaining weight from continuing to lift in the
gym during their luteal phase.
If they're gaining weight due to peak progesterone, it's because
they're feeling an increase in hunger and they're eating more.
That's what it's coming down to.
So in conclusion, some women feel a decline in their strength.
They've gotta listen to their body during that time.
It's usually not for half of the month.
So don't worry about rewriting an entire program for, you know, 20 days,
10 days, 15, something like that.
Um, some women don't feel a reduction in strength at all.
Doesn't really matter.
Doesn't matter which camp you fall in.
'cause the truth is all of us at one period of time, whether it
has to do with our cycle or not.
We're gonna have low recovery, low sleep, low micronutrients.
Um, maybe we pushed a little bit too hard and, and now the body's just
struggling, recovering from your last training, and you wake up like you've
been hit by a train period or not.
You know, luteal phase or not, doesn't matter.
We've gotta learn to be flexible, listen to our body, find ways to
show up for yourself that day.
But in a way that is respecting your body and your body's needs.
Thank you so much for joining me today on the Lifting Lindsay podcast.
I really hope that this was beneficial.
I really hope that you actually understand a little bit more about
what's going on in your body.
Um, I, I wish that I had been taught, um, more about.
The menstrual cycle and hormones and all of those things from a
younger age, and I'm excited to continue to teach women about it.
Um, on Be Strong, my training app and the community.
I actually have a mini course on menopause and we are three videos in
and every month I am posting one or two.
It's just going to be a course to help you learn more about your body,
learn more about the changes that are coming, or maybe the changes that you're
experiencing right now so you have a better understanding of what's normal,
what's not, what's the length of this, what's abnormal, what can I do to enter
this in a healthier way, and how can I, uh, mitigate a lot of these, uh, symptoms?
Those are the types of things that I wanna help educate women on.
Anyways, I hope you guys have a wonderful week and I will talk to you next time.