Cycle Syncing with Nutrition & Exercise: Does It Really Work?
A Moves App Perspective
Cycle syncing has become one of the biggest trends in women’s wellness, the idea that you should adjust your nutrition, training, and daily habits based on where you are in your menstrual cycle. The promise? Better energy, fewer cravings, stronger workouts, and more aligned hormones. And for many women, this idea feels validating. If you’ve ever had a week when you feel unstoppable in the gym… followed by a week where even the warm-up feels heavy… you get it.
At Moves, we love anything that helps women understand their bodies better. But we also care deeply about evidence, and about helping you build a routine that works in real life, not just on paper. And the truth is, while cycle syncing offers interesting insights, the science is still evolving. What research supports isn’t strict rules, it’s learning your own patterns, tracking your signals, and adjusting with flexibility. Think less “follow this phase-based chart” and more “follow your body, supported by structure.”
This guide breaks down what cycle syncing gets right, what it oversimplifies, and how you can use nutrition, training, and the Moves App to support your hormones and your goals.
What the Research Does Say: Nutrition
During the follicular phase (Days 1–14), from your period through ovulation, women generally have better insulin sensitivity and use carbohydrates more efficiently. Translation: many women feel more energized, workouts may feel stronger, and appetite can feel more stable thanks to lower progesterone.
During the luteal phase (Days 15–28), after ovulation until your next period, resting energy expenditure slightly increases (Benton et al., 2020). Cravings often intensify, especially for sweets and high-fat foods, and insulin sensitivity decreases. Water retention is common, too, which means scale fluctuations aren’t telling the full story. Higher progesterone can disrupt sleep and make recovery feel slower.
These hormonal patterns are real, but there’s no strong evidence that eating specific foods only during specific phases provides unique benefits. Many cycle-syncing food charts take early research and turn it into rigid rules your body doesn’t need to follow.
What the Research Does Say: Exercise
Cycle syncing with exercise is popular, but the science shows a more nuanced picture. Hormonal shifts can influence how you feel, but the measurable impact on performance is often small.
Here’s what current research shows:
- A 2020 meta-analysis of 21 studies found only trivial differences in strength and power across the early follicular, ovulatory, and mid-luteal phases (McNulty et al., 2020).
- A Sports Medicine review found inconsistent results and no reliable basis for prescribing workouts by cycle phase (Blagrove et al., 2020).
- A 2022 RCT found that strength training in the follicular phase may lead to slightly greater muscle gains (Sung et al., 2022). This is interesting, but not universal.
- A 2024 exploratory study found women reported more symptoms and lower motivation during menstruation and the luteal phase during HIIT, even though their physical performance didn’t decline (Verdejo-Román et al., 2024).
- A 2020 crossover study showed higher perceived exertion in the luteal phase during high-intensity sessions, despite consistent physiological markers (Elliott-Sale et al., 2020).
In short, some women feel clear differences. Others don’t. Trends exist, but they’re subtle, not prescriptive. That’s why, inside Moves, we don’t program your training around cycle charts. We empower you to track symptoms, adjust intensity, and choose options that match your energy and recovery week to week.
So What Do We Do With This Information?
A Moves-Informed Approach:
1. Support Luteal Phase Cravings Intelligently. Choose high-protein, high-volume meals, fiber-rich foods, or intentional treats like dark chocolate. Restriction creates more stress, not less.
2. Track What Matters. Use simple notes — energy, hunger, cravings, mood, sleep, performance. Patterns over time help you make smart adjustments.
3. Adjust Your Training with Flexibility- Moves Style. Feeling low on energy? The Moves APP gives you options without losing momentum:
- Swap in a Deload Week when stress or fatigue spikes.
- Use alternative movement swaps to keep workouts low-impact.
- Train 3 days/week instead of 4–5 when your body needs margin.
- Choose the 30-minute version of a program instead of 60 minutes.
The Bottom Line:
Cycle syncing can offer helpful insights, but it isn’t a set of hard rules. Research shows that while some women notice shifts across their cycle, performance changes are usually small and rarely dramatic. The most evidence-aligned and most empowering strategy is simple: listen to your body, not a calendar. Cycle syncing feels appealing because it promises structure, but your own real-time signals are far more accurate than any template, graphic, or trend. Your strongest progress comes from noticing your shifts in energy, cravings, mood, and recovery, and adjusting your nutrition and training in response to what your body is telling you right now.
Instead of syncing to someone else’s chart, or yes, even your Oura ring, sync to yourself. That’s where the real power and real results happen. The Moves App is built for real life, not perfect weeks, not perfect cycles. Just consistent, supportive strength training that adapts to YOU.
