Cycle-Syncing Workouts Optimize Female Physiology and Healthspan
TL;DR
- Training programs designed for male physiology fail women by ignoring their 28-day infradian rhythm, leading to self-blame for perceived fitness failures rather than acknowledging biological differences.
- Muscle's metabolic function as the primary site for insulin activity and glucose/fat utilization is crucial for women, especially in perimenopause, to prevent elevated blood glucose and lipid profiles.
- Weight training offers women significant mobility benefits by enhancing proprioception, thereby reducing the risk of falls and subsequent hip fractures, which disproportionately affect postmenopausal women.
- Lifting weights transiently increases testosterone in women, supporting muscle mass, cognitive function, and clarity, and helps balance progesterone and estrogen, particularly in the luteal phase of the cycle.
- Cycle-syncing workouts leverage hormonal fluctuations, with week two (follicular phase peak) ideal for strength and power development due to peaking estrogen and testosterone.
- In week three (luteal phase), when inflammation and PMS symptoms may increase, focusing on form and technique with moderate rep ranges (8-12) is recommended to accommodate reduced strength.
- Week four, characterized by higher inflammation and potential fatigue, benefits from longer sets (15-20 reps) to release myokines, which reduce systemic inflammation and improve mood.
Deep Dive
Women's fitness programs are often designed for male physiology, ignoring the distinct 28-day infradian rhythm that significantly impacts female hormones and energy levels. This misalignment leads to frustration and perceived failure when women try to adhere to male-centric training regimens, rather than recognizing that the programs themselves are the issue. Understanding and adapting training to these cyclical hormonal shifts is crucial for optimizing health, performance, and well-being throughout a woman's life, including during perimenopause.
Muscle plays a vital role in women's health, serving three key functions: mobility, metabolism, and menstrual health. For mobility, strength training builds bone density and strengthens ligaments and tendons, which is critical for preventing falls and fractures, especially in postmenopausal women. This training also enhances proprioception, the body's sense of its position in space, reducing reliance on vision and improving balance. Metabolically, muscle is the primary site for insulin activity, glucose storage, and utilization, directly impacting blood glucose and lipid levels. Maintaining muscle mass is therefore essential to prevent the metabolic shifts common in perimenopause, such as increased fasting glucose and triglycerides. Finally, weight training offers menstrual benefits by transiently increasing testosterone, which supports muscle mass, cognition, and confidence, and can help promote a healthier progesterone-to-estrogen balance in the luteal phase, potentially mitigating PMS symptoms.
Training should be adapted across the four weeks of the menstrual cycle, with the overarching principle of autoregulation--listening to one's body. In Week 1 (menstruation), hormone levels are low, and while some women may feel fatigued and choose lighter activity like walking, others can begin weight training. The focus should be on moderate rep ranges (8-12 reps) performed with good form, lifting close to failure. Week 2, characterized by peaking estrogen and testosterone, is ideal for strength and power development. This phase supports heavier lifting in lower rep ranges (5-7 reps), with an emphasis on maximal effort and improved recovery. Week 3 marks the start of the luteal phase post-ovulation, where hormone levels shift, and women may experience increased inflammation, water retention, or mood swings. Training here often reverts to the Week 1 protocol (8-12 reps), prioritizing form and technique over maximal weight to accommodate potential decreases in strength and coordination. Week 4, leading up to menstruation, may involve higher inflammation and lower energy for some. Elongating sets (15-20 reps) with lighter weights and focusing on muscle contraction can help release myokines, which reduce inflammation and improve mood. For women with irregular cycles or in perimenopause, either following the established weekly cadence based on perceived hormonal states or consistently applying autoregulation daily is recommended.
The core implication is that a one-size-fits-all fitness approach is detrimental to women. By embracing cycle-syncing and autoregulation, women can move from frustration to empowerment, optimizing their training for enhanced physical and mental well-being at every stage of life, including navigating the hormonal changes of perimenopause and beyond. This approach not only supports athletic performance but also contributes to long-term healthspan by maintaining muscle mass, metabolic health, and bone density.
Action Items
- Audit training protocols: Assess current fitness programs for male-centric design and identify 3-5 specific adaptations for female physiology.
- Implement cycle-syncing framework: Develop a training plan that modifies intensity and volume across 4 weeks of the menstrual cycle, prioritizing autoregulation.
- Track metabolic markers: For 3-5 individuals, measure fasting blood glucose and lipid profiles to evaluate the impact of muscle preservation on metabolic health.
- Design strength-building program: Create a weight training regimen for women focusing on hourglass proportions (waist-to-hip ratio of 0.7-0.8) for longevity benefits.
- Evaluate proprioception training: Incorporate exercises that enhance the body's sense of position in space to reduce fall risk, particularly for postmenopausal women.
Key Quotes
"for too long women have been following fitness programs designed for male physiology and then blaming ourselves when they don't work but here's the truth you have a 28 day infradian rhythm that men simply don't have and it's time to start training in alignment with your actual biology"
Dr. Stephanie argues that traditional fitness programs often fail women because they are designed for male physiology, ignoring the unique 28-day infradian rhythm that women possess. She emphasizes the importance of aligning training with a woman's natural biology rather than adhering to male-centric models.
"muscle serves three functions in the body one is a mobility function right so muscles obviously help us ambulate they help us get around they help us walk all the things we don't really think about mobility too much in our 30s our 40s our 50s even in our 60s but if you are now postmenopausal and you are not lifting weights which is going to have a you know byproduct of helping you increase your bone density and keep your tendons really strong and ligaments really strong"
Dr. Stephanie explains that muscle serves three key functions: mobility, metabolic activity, and menstrual benefits. She highlights that maintaining muscle mass through weight training is crucial for mobility, especially in postmenopausal years, as it helps increase bone density and strengthen tendons and ligaments, thereby reducing the risk of falls and fractures.
"second m is a metabolic function right so when we are thinking about the role that muscle has in the body muscle is the primary site so the primary site for insulin activity okay it's also the primary site for glucose storage glucose utilization and fat utilization so your blood glucose and your blood lipids are heavily dependent on muscle metabolism"
Dr. Stephanie details the metabolic function of muscle, stating it is the primary site for insulin activity, glucose storage, glucose utilization, and fat utilization. She explains that maintaining muscle mass is essential for regulating blood glucose and blood lipid levels, which can become problematic in perimenopause if muscle tissue is not preserved or increased.
"and then of course the last piece the other last m is a menstrual benefit right so every time that we lift weights we are going to have a transient but significant rise in testosterone post lift depending on how fit you are and how long you've been lifting weights that's going to look something like you know new lifters you might have up to a 48 hour increase"
Dr. Stephanie discusses the menstrual benefits of weightlifting, noting that it leads to a temporary but significant increase in testosterone post-lift. She specifies that for new lifters, this testosterone boost can last up to 48 hours, which can be strategically used to maintain elevated testosterone levels throughout the month.
"what overrides what overrides everything that i'm about to say is autoregulation okay i want to talk to you about one of the most important molecules in your body to help keep your energy up as you age i am talking about nad high nad levels help our bodies by creating energy maintaining healthy dna and protecting our cellular health but in our 30s unfortunately as young as our 30s our nad levels start to plummet"
Dr. Stephanie introduces autoregulation as the overarching principle for training throughout the menstrual cycle, emphasizing that it means checking in with one's own body. She also briefly mentions the importance of NAD levels for energy, DNA maintenance, and cellular health, noting that these levels begin to decline as early as the 30s.
"all month long you lift heavy right so you're lifting heavy within one or two reps of failure so if you were to you know rate it on a scale to of you know one to 10 you might say yeah that was like an eight you know that was like a seven eight or nine or 10 out of 10 okay um that's called rpe or rate of perceived exertion"
Dr. Stephanie explains that throughout the month, training should involve lifting heavy, defined as being within one to two repetitions of failure. She introduces the concept of Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) on a scale of 1 to 10, suggesting that workouts should feel like an 8, 9, or 10 in terms of effort.
Resources
External Resources
Books
- "The Betty Body" by Dr. Stephanie - Mentioned as a resource that discusses different hormonal environments and how women might train differently.
Articles & Papers
- "Chiropractic literature" - Referenced for supporting the idea of neck adjustments and their effect on joint approximation.
People
- Dr. Heidi Havik - Mentioned as an incredible chiropractic researcher.
Organizations & Institutions
- Center for Disease Control (CDC) - Cited for reporting data on hip fractures requiring hospitalization.
- NFL (National Football League) - Mentioned in the context of women following fitness programs designed for male physiology.
Websites & Online Resources
- Equipfoods.com/better - Referenced for purchasing collagen products.
- Mimiohealth.com/better - Referenced for purchasing fasting mimetic products.
- Massachips.com/better - Referenced for purchasing massa chips.
- Qualialife.com/better - Referenced for learning about NAD and purchasing NAD precursors.
Other Resources
- Infradian rhythm - Discussed as a 28-day rhythm that women have and men do not, influencing training.
- Autoregulation - Presented as an overarching principle for fitness regimens, emphasizing checking in with one's body.
- Proprioception - Described as a "sixth sense" that helps the brain understand joint position in space without vision.
- Osteopenia - Mentioned as a condition where bones become weaker and more frail, a precursor to osteoporosis.
- Osteoporosis - Described as a disease state where bone appears pockmarked and brittle on X-ray.
- Hourglass figure - Discussed in relation to health span and lifespan benefits, specifically a waist smaller than hips conferring longevity benefits.
- Waist-to-hip ratio - Presented as a metric (ideally 0.7 to 0.8) associated with fewer risks of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.
- Myokines - Described as cytokines originating in muscle that cross the blood-brain barrier, reducing inflammation and improving mood.
- Oura ring - Mentioned as a device used to track readiness scores related to body temperature and inflammation.