About half the people who train with me have a cycle, and most have never been told how to work with it. This is what I have seen coaching since 2010. None of this is medical advice: heavy, very painful or irregular periods, or a cycle that has stopped, are GP conversations first.
Section
What can change across the month
- Energy and strength. Many women feel strongest in the week or two after a period and flatter in the days before one. Not everyone; some feel no difference at all. The point is to notice your own pattern, not follow a chart.
- Appetite. Hunger often climbs in the days before a period. That is normal. Plan protein and proper meals for that week rather than white-knuckling it.
- The scales. Water retention before and during a period can add two or three pounds that are not fat. This is the single biggest reason I measure with a tape and compare week one to week eight, not Monday to Monday. More on that here.
- Sleep and mood. Both can dip before a period, and both affect a session. The tonight tool will tell you to dial it down on those days rather than skip.
What I change in the gym
Only what you ask me to. If you tell me it is a heavy day, the session gets lighter weights, fewer jumps and no finisher, and it still counts. If you say nothing, I coach the session as planned. Nobody is asked and nothing is announced; a quiet word at the door is all it takes.
What stays the same
- Turning up. Three or four sessions a week across the month, adjusted on the day, beats a perfect fortnight and a missing fortnight.
- Protein and walking. Every day, every phase. Those two never move.
- The programme. Lifts still progress across the eight weeks. A lighter week is a lighter week, not a lost one.
Perimenopause and after
Cycles that change length, heavier or lighter than they were, hot flushes and broken sleep: strength training is the most useful thing you can do for all of it, and it needs its own guide. Menopause strength training: what helps covers it, and the menopause page explains how the gym handles it.
If you want to track it
Note the day of your cycle beside your session in the tracker for a month or two. Patterns show up fast, and then you can plan the heavy sessions for the good weeks and the technique work for the rough ones.