Breaking Down the Basics of Your Hormonal Cycle

I don’t know about you, but I don’t remember a lot from sixth grade health class. I know we learned about periods and stuff, but I certainly don’t remember learning about the hormones involved. Even in high school I don’t think there was much discussion about female hormones and how best to understand them. Given the role hormones play in how we think, feel, and function on a daily basis, this is a huge disservice to young women everywhere.

It’s important to know that your “cycle” is NOT just your period. You have a hormonal cycle that is constantly happening and fluctuating AT ALL TIMES. Did you know that there are actually 4 different phases to your menstrual cycle? How about that during each of these phases your hormones are ACTIVELY changing levels? It is these changing hormone levels that control which phase of your cycle you are in at any given moment. For most women, these 4 phases “cycle” through themselves every 28 days or so (although it can be anywhere from 21-35 days).

In order to give you a better understanding of how this works, I’m going to briefly break down the four phases of the cycle below:

The Menstrual Phase: Let’s start with the familiar. Most women know what the menstrual phase is, and that it can last anywhere from 2-7 days. These are actually considered the first days of your “cycle.” During this phase, your hormones are all at a relatively low level. 

The Follicular Phase: This phase lasts from the end of menstruation to about day 14. This is when a follicle, and eventually a mature egg, is developed in your ovary. During this phase, the hormone estrogen is on the rise.

The Ovulatory Phase: This is the shortest phase of your cycle. It is just one day, somewhere around day 14, where your ovary will release the mature egg from your follicular phase due to a sudden increase in the hormone luteinizing hormone. 

The Luteal Phase: This phase lasts from the day after ovulation (around day 15) until you start menstruating again (around day 28). During this time, the egg travels down your fallopian tube and, unless it gets fertilized by sperm, it will end up in your uterus until you begin menstruation. During this phase, estrogen lowers as the hormone progesterone increases.

Now that you understand how many (literal) moving parts are involved in order for a typical hormonal cycle to happen, I hope you take a moment to appreciate your body and all of its wondrous complexity.

I also hope that you’ve realized that if your hormonal regulation gets off for whatever reason, your cycle can be directly affected. This is why Steph and I are focusing this month on all things hormonal regulation. It truly is the basis of which all other bodily functions depend. If you feel like your hormones might not be “cycling” in an optimal way, I encourage you to sign up for our e-mail blog posts and follow us on social media for more info, insight, and inspiration.