As staying active during a world pandemic can be daunting, many people have turned to running as a free, low risk option. What people don’t know is that most running plans are structured for male physiology as women and non-binary individuals have been grossly underrepresented in medical studies [9]. Now with over 50% of runners being non-male identifying [1], Luna Endurance bridges the performance gap by looking at how individuals train and eat in sync with their period cycles to achieve the same results as their male counterparts.

Outlined below are three example running plans for 5K-10K events designed specifically for people with female physiology in three different life stages: puberty, pre menopause, and menopause.

For reference, we have provided workout examples found in these plans:

• Drills: foot-tapping exercises, lunges, jumping jacks, hopping
• Skills and drills: jump box drills, shuttle runs, lateral running, side-to-side drills
• High intensity running intervals: switching 1 min hard, 1 min easy
• Plyometrics: box jumps, star jumps, jumping lunges, ball slams, v-ups
• Heavy lifting: 4 sets of 6 reps or 8 sets of 3 reps with heavy weights
• Moderate lifting: 3 sets of 8-10 reps with moderate weights
• Light lifting: 3 sets of 12 reps with light weights
• Easy cross-training: rowing, cycling, skiing
• Easy run or bike ride: easy pace inducing no sweat
• Recovery bike ride: easy pace with limited sweat

PUBERTY

Setting in as early as 7 or as late as 16, puberty starts prior to menstruation: widening of the hips and shoulders, developing breasts, gaining adipose tissue, and lengthening of the bones. A key difference for those with female physiology is that bones lengthen first then fill with bone density—increasing the risks of injury, poor technique, and limited athletic performance [8].

Key Considerations

Training on form is recommended such as running drills, balancing skills, and motor control to accommodate changing body dimensions [4].

Weekly training requires consistency and frequency to improve sport or technique

Gaining adipose tissue is essential for those with female physiology during puberty development, healthy hormonal cycles, and the endocrine system [10]. Dieting or a strong focus on weight loss of adipose tissue is counterproductive at this stage. Being lighter to be faster can work well for those with male physiology, but not for their gender counterparts [4].

PRE MENOPAUSE

Pre menopause refers to the stage after puberty typically during the ages of 18 to 50 years old until perimenopause. Most cycles last from 21-40 days with an average of 35 days—not 28 as often believed [8]. For individuals with a regular period cycle, syncing the cycle and running plan is critical to optimizing performance*. The few studies completed on individuals with periods reveal those who sync up their workouts with their hormonal phases have a 32% increase in strength, compared to a 10% increase for individuals who don’t [3]. Training alignment to period cycles also accommodates the body usage of carbs for fuel during low hormone phase and its usage of fats during high hormone phase.

Key Considerations

During the low hormone phase higher intensity workouts are recommended: lifting weights, interval workouts, and testing bodily limits. Additionally, the low hormone phase duration will differ person to person as it starts day one of your period all the way through ovulation.

During the high hormone phase, endurance focused workouts are recommended. The body does not have access to glycogen required to hit the same high intensities that one could during the low hormone phase without some extra glucose (i.e. bananas and grapes, glucose tabs, bread, honey) to hit something hard or fast. This also renders carbo-loading ineffective during this phase [2].

During premenstrual syndrome (PMS), recovery and easy workouts are recommended due to the shift from high to low hormonal phases.

*Runners on hormonal contraceptives may require different training plans not covered in this post

MenOPAUSE

Perimenopause is the time prior to losing the period cycle and fluctuates hormones to cause menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, brain fog, weight gain, etc. During this time, the follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and the luteal hormone (LH) fluctuate with estrogen and progesterone to eventually plummet. Menopause refers when someone has gone 12 months in a row without a period [9]. Throughout perimenopause or menopause, a key change is the sensitivity to insulin [6].

Key Considerations

Fast twitch muscle fibers are the first to go so switch to high intensity interval training 2-3 times a week [5].

Bones start to decay and become brittle, requiring deep muscle stimulus to tug on the muscle and bone to create bone density—strength training of very heavy 1-6 reps should be done about 2-4 times a week [6].

Excess carbohydrates cause blood sugar to be higher for a longer period of time and more likely to be stored as fat—switching carbs from grains to fruits and vegetables is recommended.

Check FSH levels and symptoms with a trusted health provider to gauge the perimenopausal journey through a blood sample.

Sources

Andersen, Jens Jacob. “The State of Running 2019”. RunRepeat, 15 June, 2020, https://runrepeat.com/state-of-running?fbclid=IwAR3x_Z4MeyKxCaLBwOTBL8uSqcAnz64s5H_Lh8aGHbsm72GxRz_G4Su1zcU.

Arner, P., Bernard, S., Appelsved, L., Fu, K., Andersson, D. P., Salehpour, M., . . . Spalding, K. L. (2019). Adipose lipid turnover and long-term changes in body weight. Nature Medicine, 25(9), 1385-1389. doi:10.1038/s41591-019-0565-5.

Bartolomei, S. (2015). Block vs. Weekly Undulating Periodized Resistance Training Programs in Women. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 29(10), 2679-2687. doi:10.1519/JSC.0000000000000948

Boutcher, Y. N., Boutcher, S. H., Yoo, H. Y., & Meerkin, J. D. (2019). The Effect of Sprint Interval Training on Body Composition of Postmenopausal Women. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 51(7), 1413-1419. doi:10.1249/mss.0000000000001919

Buckinx, F., & Aubertin-Leheudre, M. (2019). Menopause and high-intensity interval training. Menopause, 26(11), 1232-1233. doi:10.1097/gme.0000000000001433

Dupuit M, et al. “MICT or HilT ± RT Programs for Altering Body Composition in Postmenopausal” Women Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise: 12 September, 2019.

Sims, S. (2020, January). Puberty. Lecture presented at Women Are Not Small Men, San Francisco.

Sims, S. T. (2016). Roar. New York: Rodale.

Criado-Perez, C. (2020). Invisible women: Exposing data bias in a world designed for men. London: Vintage.

Wikström-Frisén, L. (2017). Increasing training load without risking the female athlete triad: Menstrual cycle based periodized training may be an answer? The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness. doi:10.23736/S0022-4707.16.06444-6