Periods & Power!

Women are powerful…you can bleed for a week straight without dying!

Getting in ahead of all the “new year, new you” shizzle- how about the value of the current you- the REAL woman who can make informed decisions about their health NOW?

So, on that note, education about our bodies is pretty useful right? I just googled ‘menstrual cycle’ images for this newsletter, and all the images that came up were of women in pain and blood baths-sadly unsurprisingly that another element of a normal bodily function being so negatively portrayed. Having a menstrual cycle is actually a pretty powerful thing.

SO: Anyone remember the bit at school where the girls and boys were separated so we could talk periods in secret 🙄

Most of us probably don’t give much thought to what happens every month but have you ever wondered how your cycle affects your fitness goals, nutrition choices and emotions? This can be especially important in managing pelvic floor dysfunction.

So, the science made super simple: Average cycle is 28 days broken down into 2 distinct phases (follicular phase and luteal phase) with ovulation occurring in the middle. Thinking in terms of high and low hormone phases;

After your period ends, about day 5 or 6 of your cycle- your ovaries slowly start ramping up their production of oestrogen until it dips (ovulation). Both progesterone and oestrogen start rising thereafter peaking about 5 days before menstruation (Think PMS?).

What does that mean for training and exercise? You’re more likely to make greater strength gains, feel less pain and recover faster in these low hormone phases. And therefore things might feel harder during those high hormone phases.

Did you know that hormones are favourable for performance once your period has started! Who knew? Paula Radcliffe set a world record in 2002 with period pain!

(Once you’re in the clear of being pregnant, the body can go into relaxed mode and all those energy systems used in high hormone phases are at your disposal for exertion). Same situation for the low hormone phase that follows your period.

So, all things you might recognise but not know why?...

• Where’s the chocolate!?...oestrogen reduces your carb burning abilities (great for making a baby cosy but not necessarily helpful during your pre menstrual phase...although saying that, studies show that you burn more calories overall during the pre menstrual phase...equal roughly to around 200 calories..which happens to be the same as a small chocolate bar....damn the body is clever!

• Worried that strength training will turn you into a beefcake...it’s harder for women to make muscle and maintain it than guys. Cue, protein intake...that’s another post entirely!

• Clothes feeling tight? Those high hormone levels pre menstrually affect the hormones that regulate the fluid in your body- there’s plenty we can do on a nutritional level to alleviate this.

Knowing and understanding your cycle can really help you manage those different phases and make choices that support you, rather than feeling ‘controlled’ by your cycle. What I’ve written here is literally a tiny dent in the wealth of information out there and I highly recommend tracking your cycle if you don’t already.

If you’d like to know more, you can join our waitlist for workshops that we run regularly throughout the year…