Why Tracking Your Cycle is Crucial During Perimenopause

Why Tracking Your Cycle is Crucial During Perimenopause: A Guide to Understanding Your Body and Supporting Hormone Health

As women, many of us were told that tracking our menstrual cycles was just about knowing when our period would arrive. However, as we approach perimenopause, cycle tracking becomes much more than a tool for managing monthly inconvenience—it becomes a powerful way to understand what’s going on with your hormones, body, and mood. Especially during perimenopause, when your cycle can be irregular and unpredictable, tracking can offer invaluable insights.

Knowing how to track your cycle, whether manually or through an app, can be a game-changer in creating personalized plans for your fitness, nutrition, and overall wellness. It can help you spot patterns and align your lifestyle with the natural hormonal rhythms that affect your energy levels, libido, mood, digestion, and more.

Why Cycle Tracking Is So Important in Perimenopause

Perimenopause is a time of significant hormonal shifts that can feel disorienting. Estrogen and progesterone levels fluctuate, ovulation may be irregular, and cycles can shorten or lengthen unpredictably. Without keeping track, it’s hard to understand what’s happening. Are the mood swings tied to your luteal phase (the phase after ovulation)? Is your energy dipping because you’re approaching menstruation, or is it something else entirely?

Tracking your cycle gives you a map of where you are in your perimenopausal journey. You’ll be able to predict when your period might come, when you might experience PMS, and even see trends in your energy, mood, and physical symptoms. This kind of information is incredibly helpful for creating a personalized plan for hormone balance, fitness, and nutrition that aligns with your body’s natural cycle.

How to Track Your Cycle Manually

You don’t need fancy gadgets to track your cycle effectively. With just a calendar and a little awareness, you can start gaining insights into your hormonal patterns. Here’s how:

1. Mark the first day of your period each month. This is considered Day 1 of your cycle, it’s the first day you see red blood.
2. Track the length of your period—how many days of actual bleeding you experience.
3. Track any symptoms like bloating, cramps, headaches, mood swings, or fatigue. This will help you see patterns over time.
4. Track cervical mucus (if desired). Throughout your cycle, cervical mucus changes. Right after menstruation, you may have little to no discharge. As ovulation approaches, you’ll notice more egg-white-like mucus. After ovulation, it tends to become thicker or drier.
5. Note any mid-cycle changes. Symptoms like breast tenderness, increased libido, or mild cramping can signal ovulation, even if your cycle is irregular.

Doing this consistently will allow you to see trends over time. For example, you may notice that your energy drops significantly in the luteal phase or that your digestion changes depending on where you are in your cycle. Even if your cycle isn’t consistent month-to-month, tracking can still give you a good baseline for understanding how your body is responding to hormonal fluctuations.

*See this article for detailed instructions and explanation on manually tracking your temperature.*

Using Apps to Track Your Cycle

For a more convenient way to track your cycle, consider using an app. Apps like Maya (use code nktgo4 for points toward a premium membership), Flo, or Samsung Health allow you to input the start and end dates of your period, track symptoms, and even predict when ovulation might occur. These apps can also provide insights into how hormonal fluctuations are affecting your sleep, mood, and energy levels.

Here’s what to look for in a good cycle tracking app:

• Customizable symptom tracking: Look for an app that lets you track a range of symptoms, including energy, mood, digestion, and physical sensations.
• Predictive features: Many apps will predict when your period is coming and when you might be ovulating based on previous cycles.
• Cycle syncing suggestions: Some apps offer tips or suggestions on how to adjust your diet, exercise, or lifestyle based on your hormonal phase.
• Temperature tracking integration: Some apps integrate with wearable fitness trackers to help you monitor your basal body temperature (BBT), which can give additional insight into ovulation.

Apps make it easy to track and reflect on past cycles. If you start feeling especially tired or irritable, you can go back to your tracked data and notice if there’s a pattern. You might see that those feelings arise during the luteal phase, for example, or after ovulation, and can then adjust your routine accordingly.

Fitness Trackers and Temperature Monitoring

Several fitness trackers and smart rings now offer features for tracking your menstrual cycle and even your basal body temperature. Devices like the Oura Ring, Galaxy Watch 5 or newer, Galaxy Ring, and some Fitbits have integrated menstrual cycle tracking and can automatically log BBT, which is particularly useful for identifying patterns related to ovulation.

Tracking your basal body temperature manually is also an option. This is your body’s lowest resting temperature and it typically rises slightly (about 0.5°F to 1°F) after ovulation due to the release of progesterone.

Here’s how to do it manually:

1. Take your temperature each morning before getting out of bed. Use a basal thermometer for the most accurate reading.
2. Track the temperature daily on a graph or in a tracking app.
3. Look for a rise in temperature. A consistent rise signals that ovulation has occurred, while a drop usually signals that menstruation is about to begin.

Tracking temperature allows you to pinpoint when ovulation occurs (or if it isn’t happening), which is particularly helpful if you’re experiencing irregular cycles.

How Tracking Can Help with Perimenopause and Menopause Transitions

As you move through perimenopause, tracking your cycle can offer key insights into how close you are to menopause. Once you’ve gone 12 months without a period, you’re officially in menopause, but until then, periods can come and go unpredictably. Having a history of your cycle length, symptoms, and temperature shifts can help your healthcare provider assess where you are in the transition.

Additionally, if you notice prolonged phases of no menstruation, tracking can help determine if there’s still occasional ovulation occurring or if it’s time to consider more specific treatments, like hormone therapy, to ease the transition.

Cycle Syncing and Lifestyle Planning

One of the most powerful benefits of tracking your cycle during perimenopause is using this information for cycle syncing. Cycle syncing involves adjusting your lifestyle—particularly your nutrition, exercise, and self-care routines—according to the phases of your cycle to optimize your wellbeing.

For instance:

• During the follicular phase (the first half of your cycle), you’re likely to feel more energetic and social, making it a great time for more intense workouts like strength training or HIIT.
• As you enter the luteal phase (the second half of your cycle), energy levels often dip, and your body might benefit more from gentler exercises like yoga or Pilates.

Tracking your cycle can also show patterns in mood, libido, digestion, and sleep. These patterns can help you understand when to push hard in your workouts, when to prioritize rest, and even when to focus on different foods to support your energy.

For example, many women notice they feel more bloated or sluggish in the days leading up to their period. Tracking this pattern lets you anticipate those days and plan accordingly, whether it’s adjusting your exercise routine or being more mindful of how you’re nourishing your body.

Irregular Cycles: How to Track When Your Periods Are Unpredictable

Perimenopause often brings irregular cycles, making it harder to know when you’re ovulating or even when your period will arrive. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t track your cycle—you just have to focus on tracking symptoms rather than dates.

Here’s how to track an irregular cycle:

• Focus on physical symptoms like breast tenderness, changes in cervical mucus, or shifts in energy levels. These can all indicate different phases of your cycle.
• Track basal body temperature. Even if your periods are irregular, temperature tracking can still help you identify ovulation and your luteal phase.
• Note mood and energy fluctuations. This can provide insight into how your hormones are shifting even when menstruation is sporadic.

Bioidentical Progesterone Cream: A Starting Point for Irregular Cycles

If you’re struggling with irregular periods and severe PMS symptoms, you may want to consider bioidentical progesterone cream. Progesterone levels drop significantly during perimenopause, which can lead to symptoms like mood swings, anxiety, and insomnia. Applying bioidentical progesterone cream during the luteal phase of your cycle (typically days 14-28) can help balance estrogen dominance and bring your cycle back on track.

Progesterone cream is typically applied to the skin, and while it’s available over the counter, it’s always a good idea to discuss it with a healthcare provider who understands your hormonal needs. I’ll be writing a more detailed article on this soon, but for now, know that this is an option to help support your body through these changes.

Conclusion

Tracking your cycle during perimenopause is about more than just knowing when your period will arrive. It’s about understanding your body’s natural rhythms, identifying patterns in your mood and energy, and using that information to tailor your lifestyle for better health. Whether you track manually, use an app, or rely on a fitness tracker, the key is consistency. Once you have a clearer picture of your cycle, you can adjust your fitness routine, diet, and self-care practices to feel more aligned and balanced through every phase of your cycle.

Be sure to download our free cycle tracker below. It contains everything you need to get started tracking your temperature, graph included!