Training and your cycle
Have you ever noticed the patterns of training and your cycle?
Premenstrual and menstrual symptoms can impact you physically and emotionally. Being aware of the different phases of your cycle can help you understand and modify your training load. It gives you expectations about your performance so you aren’t hard on yourself if you are not feeling energetic every single day and night of training.
Leading up to your period (the luteal phase) you may feel
- Muscle fatigue
- An overall feeling of being tired.
Both of these symptoms may lead to a decreased level of sports performance and place you at higher risk for injury. Learn to be nurturing to your body in this phase. Get plenty of rest, run a bath, don’t push yourself if you really don’t have to.
During the follicular phase (the first two weeks from when your period starts) studies have found that compared to the luteal phase, muscle contractions and endurance levels are
- Higher
- More forceful and
- Less fatigable
This is the time to try new skills, push yourself a little more. It’s a great time to compete!
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