How to Train Smarter Through Your Cycle (Not Against It)

In this episode, I explain how women can get stronger, recover faster, and feel more confident by training with their hormones and not fighting them.

For years, women were told to train like smaller men. But your energy, recovery, and performance naturally shift across your cycle and understanding that rhythm changes everything.

I’ll walk you through each phase of the menstrual cycle (and what to do if yours is irregular or you’re in perimenopause), showing how to adjust workouts, recovery, and nutrition for better results and fewer plateaus.

Inside, you’ll learn:
 - The four phases of your cycle and how hormones impact strength and motivation
 - When to lift heavy and when to prioritize recovery
 - How to adjust carbs and protein across your cycle to reduce cravings
 - Why sleep and stress management matter even more in the luteal phase

Your cycle isn’t a setback, it’s your superpower.
 Train in alignment with your body, not in resistance to it.

👉 For personalized workouts that adapt to your energy and hormones, visit personaltrainerturo.com

Transcript

Turo Virta: 1:02

Hey, it's Turo here, and welcome back to the fit me Turo fitness podcast. Today's episode is for all the women who have ever said I don't get it. Some weeks I feel unstoppable, strong, focused, powerful, and then other weeks, my energy crashes, my workouts feel harder, and I just can't find my rhythm. If that sounds familiar, it's not because you are inconsistent or unmotivated. It's because your hormones change throughout the month, and when you learn how to train with your cycle, instead of against it, you will see faster results, fewer injuries, and, most importantly, more self trust in your body. So why this topic, then matters? Because for years, women were told to train like a smaller men or men, same programs, same schedules, same expectations. But the truth is, your hormones fluctuate throughout your cycle, affecting everything, so energy, recovery, hunger, motivation and even coordination. Of course, these things are very individual. And if you are listening to this, and you think that I know for me, it sounds familiar, but I know I have a friend who doesn't see any problem. It's, of course, it's very individual, but when you understand your power curve and you can plan your workouts that fit your physiology instead of fighting. So And no, this is, this isn't about perfection or tracking your cycle obsessively. It's about tuning and adjusting based on how your body feels and performs. So like I said, this is very, very individual, but these are just in common patterns. What will happen in for most women? And you might think that what I am to talk about, I'm not a woman. I don't understand it, I don't get it. I don't have any credibility to do this. And honestly, I'm man, I'm I just happened to do this for 10 years, I have educated myself, learning these things and working with over 1000 women. It just gives some perspective. And these are just my what I as a coach, see for most women are struggling and how physiology behind affects to your performance. Like it's not only about the top Olympic athletes I what I work also with, but more like on kind of regular basis, clients who are aiming for just feeling more, having more energy, feeling, maybe getting a little bit more toned body, and just the basic things that are not have nothing to do with elite performance. So I want to break it down within a simple terms. So most cycles last around 28 days, but this applies even if yours is shorter or longer. So phase one is the follicular phase. It's day one to 14, roughly, and this is your kind of build up phase. So it means that your estrogen starts rising, so you will probably feel energy and mood improve day by day, and this is usually the best time to push your strength training and intensity. So because your body recovers faster, your coordination is better, and you will likely feel more motivated. So here what you should be focusing on this phase is that you should be focusing on lifting heavier weights, using adding some kind of resistance in your workouts. You could be doing some high intensity intervals or circle training if you are doing those kind of things, if that is your goal, and maybe also learning some new skills, like, for example, coordination or focus work, because your they are just the coordination and focus are sharper in this phase of your phase. So one of my clients, Sarah, for example, used to feel guilty when she was she understands her written and she plans her hardest lifts during this phase, and her progress has skyrocketed. So this is, this is I will explain little bit later on how you, if you are following a workout program, how you can actually implement this in in your workout programs, like for example, if for for most programs, every phase is around four weeks. So like for example, for my clients, for more obviously, it depends on each client, but for majority of my clients, they get new workouts every four weeks. So this is exactly 28 days. And you can build this everything based on your programming, which phase when you should get new program, where to focus on, how to actually implement these strategies, what I'm talking about, into your workout program. So but let's talk about other phases. Day it's around day 14, and this is your peak power window. So what it means? It means that your estrogen and testosterone are at their highest meaning, strength, speed and confidence are too so you might feel incredible. You are ready to hit your personal pests. You are energized. You are outgoing, and your focus should be around this phase to go for your personal pests, to sorter intense systems and enjoy the confidence boost. But what's out for injuries? Because it's not that you every month you are going to hit your personal pests on your day exactly on day 14, because obviously your ligaments in this time at this time are slightly looser to hormonal changes. So warm ups matter even more, so you better make sure that you are having a proper warm up before you are trying to go for personal best. It doesn't matter which phase it is, but especially in this phase, it matters even more because because of those hormonal changes, what your body is going through. Then phase three is literal phase, and that is around day 15 to day 28 and now that progesterone is taking over, and this hormone is great for recovery and calmness, but it also increases your core temperature and slows recovery slightly, so you might feel more bloated, more Tired and less explosive. And this is where many women feel frustrated thinking that, you know, I have lost all my progress. I don't I don't see i and this is all happening because of that, your literal face and, and, but now, and it's it's such a game changer when you understand that this is actually a normal thing to happen at this phase, and when you understand it and really get it that this is part of the cycle. This is part of being a woman at this phase, I'm it's okay to feel frustrated. It's okay that I can't I week ago, I was, if you are in day 15, day 16, day 17, somewhere there and you think that week ago, I had an exactly same workout. I hit it was so much easier. I had I used so much more weight or or I my performance was a lot higher than it is. Now. This is the reason why it's actually happening. So when you and when you understand it, and you know the science behind it, makes it so much easier, feel less it oh, this is what is actually in nature happening, and it's totally normal, because your body isn't just in that able to use the different gear and and where you should be focusing then on this phase, it's to be very pay attention to your intensity and be allow yourself to moderate your intensity. So it might mean that you are doing a higher reps, you are using a lower load. You are prioritizing your form and technique, and you are adding some mobility work, maybe yoga or and or more active recovery days, which would mean just the central walk or or doing just some stretches. So those are things, what you know, that you should also be working towards, but that often it's like that, especially for me or many of my clients, it's those are the days that you know, or things that you know maybe you are not doing that much because it it's it doesn't feel that Hard, or you don't get that same kind of dopamine boost after a workout. If you do mobility workout, or you have some weight session or intense workout, of course, you feel more after workout that while I did, I had an amazing workout, but this phase is time to prioritize something else, because, or even if you prioritize your strength, you have to be careful with your intensity and you accept it that it's normal to not have that same strength what you had in that phase One earlier. So just a quick story, push every week hard and ended up burned out every single month. Then once they started to matching her training intensity to her cycle, she felt stronger and more in control. So these are, these are just a quick examples how often those feelings are taking over, how you are feeling about yourself, how your confidence is, but when you understand that this is actually how I could be training, like, obviously, like I said, this is very individual. Some women don't feel any difference. But if you are one of them who feels that, that there is a there is a difference, that this might be a sense make sense to adjust your training based on your cycle. So then there is that phase four. What is that your main structural phase? It's days one to five, and this is where your energy often dips, and that's completely okay. So what actually happens in your body is that your inflammation is slightly higher, and your your body is focused on recovery. So you should be in this phase. You should be focusing on gentle movement, like walking, stretching or light lifting, if you feel up to it. So this is not even even if you don't train during this phase, that's totally fine. But what I like to call, or like to use a principle, because many women are thinking like, Okay, I can't work out, but there is always something you can do. And this phase is, if you plan it, to hit that, okay, this is my face. Now I should be doing a strength workout, but I don't feel like doing it. There is energy, and when you plan it, that okay, this week I'm just doing some lighter session. I'm focusing on my technique. I'm doing that all recovery work during this phase, and you are not, you are not losing any progress when you are if it's if it's when it comes to resistance training or strength training for a week or two or three, it really doesn't matter. So it makes no What matters is that consistency, and when you when you often in these phases, what I recommend to my clients is that still aiming to do something, what you are able to do. And it could be, it's, it's a totally different when you keep promises you make to yourself, even if it's if it's a if it's a planned thing, like for myself, I use my I'm a man. I'm a male. I don't have this cycle, but it's just an example. What you could be doing. I look my calendar. So you could be looking your instructional calendar, uh, how your week is looking like, and then deciding it week before, what is your goal, what kind of workouts you are going to do, and then you need to get started. And only goal is to get started. It don't need to be if you, if you already know that. Oh, I'm I supposed to be in this phase four, in my main structural phase next week. It doesn't make sense to plan things. What you know that this will be so hard, but if instead, if you plan that, I promise myself to get started, I focus on this week just walking, doing my mobility workout or stretching or light lifting session, that that is totally different. When you are able to do it, you feel so much better about yourself when you instead of if you say that I should be doing it, but I really don't feel like doing it. There is a huge difference in your mental health, on your how you feel about yourself when you are able to perform things you promise to yourself. So this phase is also to prioritizing your rest, sleep and recovery. So take your take that pressure off from yourself. This part of training, this is part of the training, smart and not skipping that effort, what you are putting into it. So if you have, if you ever had, have had week where everything feels harder, remember it's not set back. It's your body asking for balance and maybe recovery. So how then that nutrition and recovery fit into this so your training isn't the only thing affected by your cycle. Your hunger and cravings change too. So when estrogen is high, it's usually that first half of or it is that first half of the cycle, your appetite tends to be lower. So when progesterone rises, it's that second half your body burns slightly more calories. It's about 100 to 300 extra per day. So and you are craving more carbs, your body craves more carbs. So instead of fighting it, plan for it. Because if you are, you are planning it. You don't have to feel guilt and shame of eating slightly more. But when you instead, when you have planned for it, that okay, this is my second half of the cycle, I my body needs that 200 calories more per day. So if you are adding more carbs from real foods like fruits in that luteal phase, and you are seeing how your cravings drop naturally, and that what about? Then that recovery sleep becomes even more important. So progesterone can raise the body temperature and disrupt that sleep quality. So cooling your bedroom, hydrating and avoiding caffeine later in the day can make a huge difference. So and then, what about then, that strength training. It's also for your hormone health. So I can't talk about this without mentioning the why behind it all as estrogen levels start to decline in your 40s and 50s, your body becomes more prone to losing muscle and bone density, and that's why that strength training isn't just about how you look, it's about Keeping your metabolism, posture and long term vitality. So that's why you should be doing some kind of resistance training two to three times per week, that because that is helping to regulate your insulin, boost your bone density and stabilize your hormones, even during perimenopause or menopause. So instead of using that exercise as a punishment, or even, probably even worse, to burn calories, think of it's a way to train your hormones to work for you. So these are, these are just that resistance training in that age. It's not anymore about or it is also you. Obviously, when you strength train, when you resistance train, you are your body will change. It is possible later in life, but it becomes older you are getting. It becomes, becomes even more important to do some kind of resistance training. And two, three times per week, and last week I talked about how to actually plan it. I'm going to tell you now a little bit how, how to actually implement those plans into your how to implement into your routine, into your within your cycle, how it actually works. And this is, this is, it's before going into that, I want to mention that if you don't have a regular cycle, so because some women high coach, Coach, they are in their menopause, they have PCOS, or they are on birth control, you can still use this framework. Just base your written on how your body feels. So track your energy, sleep and mood two to three weeks, and you will start noticing your kind of power the month when you feel stronger, and times when your recovery is more important, and that self awareness is one of the best performance tools you can have so so because that cycle isn't limitation, it's a kite. And when you listen to your body and understand these signals. Your training is getting smarter, your recovery gets faster, and your confidence skyrockets. So you really don't need to be perfect every single week, because life happens, but if you are just consistent with how you respond to your body, so train in alignment, not in resistance. So how you can, how you could be using, then your training program within your cycle. So, like, as I mentioned, if your training program is 24, eight, it's four weeks. Like, when you when you think that, when is the time like, usually like you might have heard terms like a fitness terms called, like a deload week, week, what is like? Kind of easier week, what you should be having. You can push yourself every single week into new personal bests. But that kind of deal out week easier week is usually when I what I use, because there are different approaches and like, usually like people when they get the new program, for me, I tend to recommend it to starting it like, because it's if you get the new program, it's always there is a new movements, new exercises. You might need to learn how to do them exercises first, and then, when you know the exercises, you know the workouts, then you can start pushing more. And I like to use this like like that you are planning your peak power like it's usually, usually I start new workouts when, when you have that that because the first week is kind of easier week that you are not pushing through Your personal best. You are learning new exercises. You're checking your that you are doing them with the proper form, and that is week number one and in a new program. And that could be in your luteal phase, like maybe on on end of your luteal phase, even in that main structural phase. So it's a little bit lighter weights, focusing on your form and technique, and that is during that luteal phase. And then when you have that kind of, that follicular phase, it's that first two weeks they want to 14, roughly, that is like for me, and week three, when you are able to push yourself harder. So the most important thing is to add those like that. When you have the biggest, highest peak, it's, it should be within week two to week four. So when you are when you are able to hit the personal pests, and it could be using the depending on your how, how you are feeling like that is often like the personal pests. They happen in a in a week, maybe week three, week four, in your program, when you are getting familiar with exercises. And those should be, you should plan them around that day 14. So, so that is the time when you push yourself so, so maybe first week first two weeks are, if the Week One is just the light, light movements, and then week one, week two, you are okay. You are anywhere you are getting closer to that. You are still in a literal phase. And then week week 234, they should be always in within your first two week of your cycle. So this is how I like and then, you know, it's, it's always that kind of easier week that they are matching with your cycle. So that is, that is just how you could actually using your cycle work with your training program, and not just the thing that you know you have to do it how actually you know, everything should be going. So here are a couple action steps for for the week. So if here is like, it's just what you what you could be doing after this episode. So track your energy for the next four weeks. So just you can use just your phone notes or adding and then you can know this, like I love to use in my workout app, there is a notes For each exercise. I'm adding notes for myself that, ah, today, how I didn't feel the best. I couldn't lift as heavy as I could, but just having some notes. And then when you look back, because those things, at least, I tend to forget how I felt during the workout. I might see that the weights what I have been using, but then when you add add notes to your calendar or your workout app, and just when you feel easier or harder, and then matching your intensity to your energy, not to calendar. So, so if you are already training with me, just let me know, if you are my current client, that people are in eight weeks in just update your app and add there with your power weeks and recovery weeks. And that is the simplest way how to do it. Ask me if you need any help with this program. Email me, Turo at FIT. Me turo.com and I will adjust your workouts within your cycle so it makes it everything so much easier you feel feel less frustrated when you actually know that these things might happen. And if this episode help you to understand how to move your body better, share it with a friend or a training partner who could use it. And if you want personalized workout plan that adapts to your cycle and hormones, check out my coaching options at personaltainer turo.com All the links are in the show notes, until next time, remember your body isn't unpredictable. It's a speaking language that's worth learning you.