Cycle Syncing vs. Cycle Awareness: What’s Hype and What’s Helpful?

You’ve probably seen the term “cycle syncing” floating around on Instagram, in wellness books, or maybe even on your period tracker app. It promises to help you unlock your full potential, by syncing your workouts, meals, meetings, and even sex life to your menstrual cycle. Tempting, right?

But before you start planning your calendar around your hormones, let’s break it down: What’s the science? What’s the hype? And what’s actually helpful?

Where did Cycle Syncing come from?

The phrase “cycle syncing” was popularized by Alisa Vitti, a functional nutritionist and women’s health coach, in her 2014 book WomanCode. She later expanded on the concept in her 2020 bestseller In the FLO and launched the MyFLO app to help women “live in harmony” with their four cycle phases: menstrual, follicular, ovulatory, and luteal.

Vitti’s philosophy encourages women to plan not just their workouts and food, but also their productivity and social lives according to where they are in their cycle. It's an empowering idea, and a refreshing counter-narrative to the old idea that our periods are a weakness.

But here’s the catch: while women have always noticed fluctuations in mood and energy throughout their cycle, cycle syncing as a structured wellness protocol is more lifestyle trend than hard science.

Is Cycle Syncing backed by science?

Short answer? Not strongly.

Yes, research clearly shows that hormones like estrogen and progesterone influence energy metabolism, core temperature, hydration, and more. These fluctuations can affect how you feel.

But when it comes to actual performance outcomes like strength, endurance, or muscle growth recent large-scale reviews (like Colenso-Semple et al. 2023 and Elliott-Sale et al. 2020) found no consistent evidence that training in one phase over another gives you a clear edge.

Many cycle syncing rules like “don’t lift heavy during your luteal phase” or “only do yoga on your period” aren’t rooted in robust science. In reality:

• Women can build muscle and strength in any phase.

• Performance often depends more on fueling, sleep, and stress than hormone fluctuations.

• Every body is different. Some women feel amazing before their period; others feel drained. There’s no one-size-fits-all cycle plan.

What about Cycle Awareness?

This is where science and self-knowledge come together.

Experts like Dr. Stacy Sims, a researcher in female physiology and author of ROAR, advocate for cycle awareness, not rigid syncing.

Rather than telling all women to rest on certain days or avoid strength training mid-cycle, Sims encourages tracking how you personally respond to hormonal shifts. If you consistently feel sluggish before your period, it makes sense to scale back. But if you hit a personal best on day 26? Own it.

“Women are not small men,” Sims famously says. But that doesn’t mean all women need the same plan.

Cycle awareness means tuning in, not tuning out. It’s flexible, informed, and backed by both science and your lived experience.

So what’s the bottom line?

Let’s clear it up:

 

We love that cycle syncing has opened up the conversation around menstrual health. It’s helped women rethink what it means to train, eat, and perform in tune with their bodies.

But instead of following a fixed formula, try this: track how you feel, notice patterns, and adjust where it helps. The power isn't in a strict schedule, it’s in knowing yourself.

Whether you're lifting heavy or lounging with cramps, you’re not doing it wrong. You’re doing it your way.