Menstrual cycle and athletic performance with Dr. Kirsty Elliott-Sale

What better way to start off 2021 with Associate Professor Dr. Kirsty Elliott-Sale discussing the #menstrual cycle and how sex #hormones may affect #exercise performance in the general female population.

Dr. Elliott-Sale is the Head of the Musculoskeletal Physiology Research Group at Nottingham Trent University in England and lectures in the areas of Exercise Physiology, particularly in Female Physiology, Endocrinology, Performance, and Health. She has more than 20 years of experience working with females, elite female athletes and maternal populations including expertise in regards to the design and implementation of exercise-based interventions.

Since the completion of her PhD, which examined the effects of female reproductive hormones on muscle strength, her research has concentrated on various aspects of health and athletic performance in female populations.

In this episode we cover:

• the stages of the menstrual cycle – simplified so we all understand!
  (CLICK HERE AND HERE FOR MENSTRUAL CYCLE PHOTOS TO FOLLOW ALONG)
• if hormonal changes influence athletic performance
• whether the research supports females training according to their menstrual cycle
• How oral contraceptives change the picture

She also recently recorded a brilliant podcast episode with BJSM so do not miss it – it’s a great compliment to this one! 

Her Twitter account @ElliottSale

Open Access Papers:

• McNulty, K.L., Elliott-Sale, K.J., Dolan, E. et al. The Effects of Menstrual Cycle Phase on Exercise Performance in Eumenorrheic Women: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sports Med 50, 1813–1827 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-020-01319-3
• Elliott-Sale, K.J., McNulty, K.L., Ansdell, P. et al. The Effects of Oral Contraceptives on Exercise Performance in Women: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Sports Med 50, 1785–1812 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-020-01317-5

Listen and enjoy and a big thanks to Always Discreet for sponsoring this episode of The Pelvic Health Podcast. Head to Always Discreet to learn more about bladder leak tips, management and incredible bladder leakage protection!