Adding your menstrual cycle to your calendar and arranging your schedule around it
Hello everyone! Thank you for once again joining me in my little corner of the internet. Today I wanted to discuss cycle synching. This is predominately for those reading that identify and born female, but it may also be beneficial for any male readers specifically if you have female partners. For the purpose of this post, I will be referring to “female” as born female and those experiencing menstruation. As a note, I am not a doctor, I have read about cycle synching from official sources. If you’d like more information about cycle synching, speak with your PCP or read official articles and sources. For more in-depth knowledge about each of the phases and the particular hormonal changes, please consult your doctor or research the information. I don’t want to step out of my scope of practice and I am sharing the basics of what I learned for my benefit.
Cycle synching is organizing your life, calendar, workouts, and nutrition around where you are in your cycle. There has been a lot of discourse on this topic in recent years as the prevalence of females in the workplace and in society grows.
The idea of a 9-5 job and most of our society is built around male success. Males hormonally function on a 24-hour cycle while females function on an average 28-day cycle–this means that the basis of our society is not built for female success; however, despite this hormonal difference, women continue to kick ass in our society. This isn’t necessarily on topic, but it just goes to show how strong and powerful women are. That despite our society being built to hinder the success of women, we continue to overcome.
Back to cycle synching. Cycle synching can be beneficial for all women; especially those that are very prone to hormonal fluctuations, like myself. I like to joke that two weeks out of the month I’m a bitch. It’s an exaggeration, but you get the picture. I started researching cycle synching because I wanted to understand my body and the hormonal fluctuations I experience throughout the month. And because I wanted to help mitigate the severe emotional shifts I was feeling throughout the month.
The average monthly cycle for women is 28 days but it can range from 21 to 35 days. For me, I am almost smack-dab average sitting at 29 days. The average amount of time women spend menstruating is 5 days. Keep in mind that due to pregnancy, postpartum, lactation, menopause, and other hormonal changes, cycle lengths and heaviness can change. Each menstrual cycle is broken into four parts, with the beginning of the cycle being the first day of your period.
Menstruation, follicular, ovulation, and luteal.
Menstruation, also known as “period,” is the period of time women bleed.
Follicular is where the egg is released from the follicle.
Ovulation is the time when the egg has moved down and is prepared to be fertilized.
Luteal is the time where the either the fertilized egg burrows into the uterine lining or the unfertilized egg moves down and the uterine lining prepares to be shed.
During each of the phases, women experience hormonal shifts particularly in estrogen and progesterone.
I started by regularly tracking my menstrual cycle. I kept a log in the health app on my phone. I then added the information to my calendar. I had to do this manually as I haven’t found a way to sync the health app information to my calendar. I added the days I menstruate and calculated the general days for each phase thereafter. During menstruation, according to cycle synching, this is a time to rest and do light exercises like walking and yoga. This is also the time to increase iron-rich foods and omega-3s. This is a good time to relax and recharge.
The follicular phase can overlap with menstruation. Towards the end of menstruation, this is when my body begins to feel stronger and is a good time to lift heavy weights and run. I feel more confident and like how I look. During this time, according to cycle synching, it is a good time to meet up with friends. Good foods to eat are lean proteins and complex carbs.
Ovulation is about a 24-hour time period. On the apple health app, it shows “estimated ovulation days,” which was initially confusing when we were trying to get pregnant. If trying to get pregnant, I recommend using ovulation strips to know when your fertile days are occuring. In my calendar, I put ovulation as a three-day window based on months where I have tracked ovulation. I also experience ovulation pain and spotting which can be an indicator that ovulation is occurring. On average, ovulation occurs around day 15 of a cycle. This is the case for me. Ovulation physically changes how women look. We look more attractive and feel more attractive during this time. This is a good time to take pictures and network. This is also a good time to continue lifting and exercising. This is a good time to once again increase iron-rich foods, take b-complex, and increase folic acid intake.
As we move into the luteal phase, our strength decreases to an all time low right before our periods. According to cycle synching, right before the menstruation period begins, it is a good time to decrease weight lifting by doing lighter weights as strength training increases cortisol levels. This is a good time to increase protein intake to help curb any cravings. In addition, I really notice my metabolism slows down which can increase bloating and uncomfortable pain. It was recommended to increase fiber and anti-inflammatory foods. I’ve found that drinking hot water with lemon, ginger, and honey at the end of the day significantly helps during this time. I’ve also read that it is important to limit caffeine and alcohol during this time; especially right before menstruation. About five days before the menstruation begins is when impulse control can drop. I know I feel this. This specifically has been incredibly helpful with my food mindfulness–just being more aware that I’ll have less impulse control keeps me cognizant of my food choices. I also know that just because my impulse control is lower doesn’t mean I get a free pass.
I know that this is a lot of information. I found that putting it in my calendar with the basic information as a part of the notes has been a really great reminder. I set it up so each phase repeats on a 29-day cycle which can be done by clicking “repeat” → “custom” → “Daily” → “# of days.”
It also helps me to understand why I may be feeling extra grouchy or bloated or why I don’t feel as strong. The other day, I was feeling very grouchy. I kept telling T to, “not touch me,” when he would go in for a hug or kiss (poor guy). I checked my calendar and lo and behold, I would be starting my menstruation phase the next day. My hormones in charge of happiness, cuddling, and affection were at an all-month low–of course I was feeling like I didn’t want to be touched.
I hope this information is helpful to you or someone you care about in being aware of where you are in the month and maybe why you don’t feel your best. Good luck and keep kicking ass!