SimplyComplexJen

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I realize this may not be the most fun topic to tackle, but it's worth a post in my opinion.

About a year ago, I bookmarked an article so wittily called "Cycle Training".  (insert groans here).  There is no earth shattering news in this article, but gives a good breakdown of what your body may need during each phase of your cycle.

A few days ago, I was reading in Yoga Journal about inversion poses and menstruation, which I thought gave good balance to the argument of doing (or not doing) inversion poses during that "time of the month" (hereby known in this post as TOTM).

That got me thinking about in all of my preparing for a triathlon last year, and my years attempting yoga ..... surprisingly this topic rarely comes up.  So I thought about it and of course Googled.

In short, there is lots of advice out there, and more information than I care to think about.  Most of these studies and "rules" were done by men (who probably didn't bother to ask their wives for input).  What it boils down to is that, as with most things, you need to exercise your individual choice for what works best for you.  Listen to your body, maybe write down changes in your workout log, and go with whatever you decide.

From my experience, Western (or at least American) culture has deemed our period as "dirty" or almost like a disease to be cured (take this pill and skip your period, which I'll admit to have doing in the past).  But the reality of it is, it is a natural process and we should embrace it and try to understand how it affects us.  That includes our workouts.

I found this article to be interesting regarding TOTM and Yoga: http://yogapilates.suite101.com/article.cfm/practicing_yoga_on_your_period

TOTM and Triathlon Training and Racing: http://www.trifuel.com/triathlon/triathlon-training/the-challenging-periods-for-women-in-training-001342.php


Iron Deficiency and Nutrition: http://www.trifuel.com/training/health-nutrition/triathletes-and-iron

And on a lighter side, of course I run across a similar musing by a triathlete who wonders if you have a greater risk of being bit by a shark during TOTM and open water ocean swims.  http://www.triathlontrainingblog.com/post/for-females-do-you-swim-in-the-ocean-while-mentruating/

Be sure when you (if you're a woman!) line up at the start of  Tri, or in a room full of women waiting to do Downward Dog or Warrior, be assured you're not alone when it's TOTM.  As with anything, be sure to listen carefully to what your own body is telling you and work with your body, not fight it. 

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