Dr. Elly Michelle discusses the importance of tracking ovulation and using your cycle to gauge exercise volume and intensity as well as prioritizing protein for body composition.
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Connect with Dr. Elly Michelle: drellymichelle.com
About this Show:
02:50 Day 1 of a menstrual cycle is the first start of monthly bleeding. Three to seven days is normal. There will be a rise in FSH, follicle stimulating hormone, from the brain. This signals follicles in her ovaries to start maturing. Estrogen stimulates the ovaries to prepare for ovulation.
03:50 Ovulation requires a rise in LH and a rise in estrogen. After ovulation, women secrete progesterone and enter the luteal phase.
04:50 Progesterone peaks then drops off and estrogen begins to drop off. The drop in progesterone causes the shedding of the uterine lining.
05:15 You are only fertile for a 6-day window. Sperm can survive in a woman’s body for up to 5 days.
06:00 Basal body temperature is an accurate method for tracking fertility. Apps are not accurate. Interpret the signs from your body. Pay attention every day.
10:00 An anovulatory cycle is when a woman does not ovulate. There may yet be a shed of the uterine lining. When there is no ovulation, there is no progesterone. This leads to a state of excess estrogen, aka unopposed estrogen, or estrogen dominance. Symptoms can be heavy bleeding, cramps, prolonged bleeding, or PMS symptoms.
11:10 Signs of ovulation: Basal body temperature rises after you ovulate for 3 consecutive days, higher than the previous 6. Cervical mucus will look like raw egg white on the day of ovulation. In the fertile window, cervical fluid is creamy and lubricative.
15:50 You have to ovulate to have a true period. Menstruation follows ovulation.
17:15 Unopposed estrogen is linked to gut issues. Some gut bacteria can cause estrogen to stay in the body longer than it should. Progesterone can cause slowing of GI motility, causing bloating and water retention.
19:30 Hormonal IUDs only have synthetic progestin. Oral contraceptives can have a combination of synthetic estrogen and progestin or progestin only. You do not get a true period when you are on birth control.
22:45 Hormones influence your overall wellbeing, mood, and sense of vitality. Your emotions influence your hormones.
23:45 Going off hormonal birth control causes a withdrawal bleed. After that monthly bleeding my resume right away or it may take months or a year.
24:45 Your brain controls your hormones and your ovaries.
27:10 Pharmaceutical substances are not hormones. They affect our hormones and can bind to the receptor.
28:00 Progesterone keeps estrogen in balance, preventing proliferation. Progesterone is protective.
28:15 Ovulation is about more than reproduction.
29:00 Testing hormones: Cycling women’s hormones fluctuate every day. Progesterone can be tested 5 to 7 days after ovulation. Post menopausal women have more stable estrogen levels. DUTCH test is good for cycling women. It includes cycle tracking through daily urine test strips. The menstrual bleed is a vital sign for a woman’s health.
38:10 Low progesterone can be caused by stress, poor nutrition, and over training. You need body fat and energy to make adequate hormones.
42:40 Estrogen is anabolic and helps build and maintain muscle mass. Oral contraceptives inhibit muscle building. Post menopause, when estrogen is low, it is harder to build muscle.
44:20 Post menopause, when estrogen is low, risk increases for heart disease, dementia, Alzheimer’s, osteoporosis, loss of lean mass, and osteopenia.
44:40 Muscle building and recovery in a cycling woman is more conducive in the high estrogen follicular phase. In luteal phase, with higher progesterone, we are more stress sensitive and may not want to push as hard.
48:50 Anti-mullerian hormone is an indicator of IVF success, not necessarily of fertility. Hormonal birth control and lifestyle factors can suppress AMH.
52:00 To support hormones, prioritize consuming protein. Eating meat has made a huge difference for Dr. Elly’s digestion and overall health and vitality.
55:30 Adaptogens can be useful, but they are not the magic fix. No pill can solve everything. You need to do the work.
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