Physiology Cipher: Women’s Hockey
The future of health-centred women’s hockey lies in precision — not only in technical evolution, and tactical execution, but in physiological alignment. Hormonal profiling is a potentially valuable toolset to support this. It offers a lens through which recovery becomes adaptive, personalised, and empowering. Moving beyond generalised models toward cycle‑aware programming acknowledges the complexity of female athleticism and the interplay between endocrine rhythms, neuromuscular performance, and psychological readiness (Elliott‑Sale et al., 2021).
At VOITTO, we view recovery not as a passive interval, but as a coded language — one that can be decoded, understood, communicated and optimised. For female athletes, hormonal profiling is the cipher key, unlocking empathetic understanding of coaches and support staff, smarter training, deeper resilience, and sustained performance.
Physiology as a Performance Lever
Getting to grips with the nuances and interplays of endocrine systems and the pivotal role of hormones is important for periodized training and player management. Fluctuations in estrogen and progesterone across the menstrual cycle influence substrate utilisation, connective tissue elasticity, thermoregulation, and central nervous system excitability (McNulty et al., 2020). This, of course, reveals itself at a systemic level with performance output and overall wellbeing.
Elevated estrogen phases may enhance collagen synthesis and muscle repair, whereas luteal‑phase progesterone dominance can alter ventilatory thresholds and perceived exertion (Sims & Yeager, 2021).
Ignoring these shifts risks under‑recovery during high‑load phases or missed performance peaks during optimal windows.
From Profiling to Practice
Cycle‑aware coaching is not about constraining athletes to biology, but leveraging it. Integrating hormonal data into training microcycles enables coaches to:
Front‑load high‑intensity work (particularly strength speed focused sessions) during follicular phases when anabolic potential is higher.
Prioritise recovery and mobility during luteal phases when connective tissue vulnerability may increase.
Adjust tactical and cognitive demands to align with phases of heightened reaction speed or decision‑making acuity. This requires knowledge of the collective and a shared understanding among the group and qualified advisers.
Bridging the Coaching Gap
Despite mounting evidence, many periodisation models remain male‑normative, leading to avoidable overuse injuries and sub‑optimal adaptation (Levi et al., 2022). Closing this gap requires:
Coach education in sports endocrinology and its impact and management.
Normalising dialogue about menstrual health in performance settings.
Athletes‑led data ownership to foster autonomy and trust underpinned by bullet-proof data security and privacy systems and processes.
(VEASS) VOITTO Exercise & Sports Science
These services are context (emotional,social, environmental including time and resource constraints) aware and data driven. We look to combine:
Cycle‑specific recovery protocols — nutrition, sleep, and mobility tailored to the hormonal phases.
Athlete‑driven tracking — empowering players to log and interpret their own data.
Coach integration — translating endocrinology into actionable drills and load plans.
Bibliography
Elliott‑Sale, K. J., Minahan, C. L., de Jonge, X. A. K. J., Ackerman, K. E., Sipilä, S., Constantini, N. W., Lebrun, C. M., Hackney, A. C., & Mountjoy, M. L. (2021). Methodological considerations for studies in sport and exercise science with women as participants: A working guide for standards of practice for research on women. Sports Medicine, 51(5), 843–861. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-021-01435-8
Levi, H., Wadey, R., Bunsell, T., Day, M., Hays, K., & Lampard, P. (2022). Women in a man’s world: Coaching women in elite sport. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/10413200.2022.2051643
McNulty, K. L., Elliott‑Sale, K. J., Dolan, E., Swinton, P. A., Ansdell, P., Goodall, S., Thomas, K., & Hicks, K. M. (2020). The effects of menstrual cycle phase on exercise performance in eumenorrheic women: A systematic review and meta‑analysis. Sports Medicine, 50(10), 1813–1827. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-020-01319-3
Sims, S. T., & Yeager, S. (2021). ROAR: How to match your food and fitness to your unique female physiology for optimum performance, great health, and a strong, lean body for life (Rev. ed.). Rodale Books.
