Understanding the Female Athlete: Why Training Needs to Be Different.

Focused and ready: a female athlete tying her hair in preparation for training.

If you have ever wondered why your training feels amazing one week and completely off the next - even though nothing has changed - you're not alone.

For decades, the majority of training programs, recovery protocols, and nutrition plans have been based on studies done by men. As a result, female athletes have often been left trying to ft into systems that weren't built with them in mind.

The reality is this, women are not just smaller men!

You have different hormone patterns, recovery needs, energy systems, and injury risks - and those differences deserve to be acknowledged, not ignored.

Female Physiology: It's Not a Flaw - It's a Framework.

Your body operates in a monthly rhythm that affects your:

• Strength and power output

• Energy levels and fuel usage

• Mood, sleep quality, and motivation

• Muscle recovery and joint stability

• Risk of injury

Most of these changes are tied to fluctuations in estrogen and progesterone, the two main female sex hormones. These hormones shift throughout your menstrual cycle and influence how your body responds to stress, how quickly it recovers, and what types of training feel best.

Yet, typical programs rarely adapt to those shifts - which can leave you feeling inconsistent, frustrated, or like something is "off" when it's just your hormones doing their job.

A Quick Look at the Menstrual Cycle.

A full menstrual cycle is usually 28 days, although anything between 21-35 days is considered normal. It's made up of four phases:

1. Menstrual Phase (Days 1-5): Period begins. Hormones are at their lowest.

2. Follicular Phase (Days 1-14): Estrogen starts to rise. You may feel more energised.

3. Ovulation (Around Day 14): Estrogen peaks. Strength, speed, and power often peak here too.

4. Luteal Phase (Days 15-28): Progesterone dominates. You may feel slower or more fatigued as you approach your next period.

These shifts impact everything from your endurance capacity to your joint stability and coordination. Training without acknowledging these changes is like ignoring the weather forecast before going for a long run - you might still finish it, but it's going to be a lot harder.

Hand-drawn chart illustrating estrogen and progesterone fluctuations during the menstrual cycle, with ovulation highlighted at day 14.

The Cost of Ignoring Your Physiology.

Trying to train the same way every week, regardless of what your body is doing hormonally, can result in:

• Overtraining when energy is low but training volume stays high.

• Plateaus due to missed opportunities to push when your body is primed for it.

• Increased risk of injury, especially ACL tears and stress fractures.

• Symptoms of low energy availability (LEA), including irregular or missing periods.

• Burnout and loss of motivation, especially in the second half of your cycle.

Many female athletes push through symptoms because that's what they've always been told to do. But the answer isn't more discipline - it's more understanding.

Training Smarter, Not Softer.

Cycle-aware training isn't about doing less - it's about doing what works best for you at the right time. That means:

• Planning heavier or high-intensity sessions when your body is most capable (e.g. late follicular/ovulation phase).

• Scaling back intensity or focussing on skill work when energy is naturally lower (e.g. late luteal phase).

• Being more intentional with warm-ups and movement quality around ovulation when joint laxity increases.

• Paying attention to your recovery signals and adjusting before fatigue turns into injury.

It's a performance strategy - not a limitation.

Real-World Example.

Let's say you're training for a triathlon or running event. You notice your long runs feel great in week two of your cycle, but in the week before your period, you're sluggish, heavy and your pace suffers - even with the same nutrition and sleep.

That's not in your head. During the luteal phase, your core temperature is slightly higher, you retain more fluid, and your ability to regulate heat and intensity is reduced. Trying to maintain the same pace or effort may feel like a grind - which can lead to overreaching, negative self-talk, or even injury of you force it.

But if you know this, you can plan around it:

• schedule speed work during the follicular phase.

• Save technical sessions or lower-intensity workouts for late luteal.

• Focus on hydration and recovery when your most vulnerable to fatigue.

That's not weakness, that's training like a professional.

What You Can Do Right Now.

1. Track your cycle. Use an app or training journal to note when your period starts, how you feel in training, and any symptoms you notice.
   

2. Look for patterns. Do you feel stronger at a certain point? Struggle with recovery at another? This data is gold.
   

3. Adjust with confidence. Small tweaks - like moving your toughest session by a few days - can lead to big gains in consistency and injury reduction.

Final Thoughts.

Every female athlete experiences their cycle differently, but by tracking your menstrual cycle and symptoms, you can begin to understand your own patterns and learn to train in harmony with your body.

Female athletes deserve more than generic training advice. You deserve a program that considers your biology, honours your experience, and helps you thrive - not just survive - in sport.

Training with your cycle isn't a trend, it's a tool. When you understand your body, you can perform at your best - all month long.

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Up Next: "Train with Your Cycle" - a phase by phase breakdown of how to adjust your training, prevent injuries, and make your hormones work for you.

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