Female Training, Hormones & Nutrition: Fact vs. Fiction | Dr. Lauren Colenso-Semple
6/10/20262 hr 8 min
In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Lauren Colenso-Semple to examine what the science says about female-specific training and nutrition. We discuss why so little research has historically focused on women, what makes menstrual cycle research so difficult and expensive to run, and what her own dissertation found when she measured muscle protein synthesis across cycle phases. Dr. Colenso-Semple explains the real hormone fluctuations of the menstrual cycle, why testosterone matters far less for women's muscle than people assume, and why men and women gain strength and size at the same relative rate at any age, including through menopause. We also cover low energy availability, scientific literacy, and how to figure out what works for you. This episode is for anyone, coach or lifter, trying to separate evidence from misinformation in women's fitness. Sponsors Momentous: https://livemomentous.com/perform David: https://davidprotein.com/perform TrueMed: https://truemed.com/perform Eight Sleep: https://eightsleep.com/perform Chapters (00:00:00) Lauren Colenso-Semple (00:01:51) The Lit Review That Never Was (00:07:01) Why Women Got Bad Training Advice (00:11:23) Individualization & Where Sex Actually Ranks (00:21:09) Estrogen, Rodent Models & the Anabolic Myth (00:34:52) Hormones Across the Menstrual Cycle (00:45:18) The Myth of the Textbook 28-Day Cycle (00:51:41) Why Female Research Is So Hard (00:57:55) Inside Lauren's Dissertation: Tracers & Biopsies (01:06:10) Strength, Power & Hypertrophy: No Phase Effect (01:14:13) The Real Role of Testosterone & Menopause (01:23:36) Becoming a Better Consumer of Science (01:50:10) Low Energy Availability & RED-S (01:57:30) Advice for the Average Woman Disclaimer & Disclosures Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Transcript preview
First 90 secondsLauren Colenso Semple· Guest0:00
The most important element is your training is challenging enough, meaning you can do a set of six, you can do a set of 12, you can do a set of 15 or anything in between, but when you finish your last rep, that sixth rep or that 15th rep, you should feel like you could only do one, maybe two more. If you're not there yet, the weight isn't heavy enough and, and you need to increase the load. There's no must-do exercise. There's no must-do rep range. There's no must-do length of workout or days per week. The point is that it needs to be challenging. You need to stick with it and do it consistently, and you need progression over time.
Andy Galpin· Host0:49
Yeah.
Lauren Colenso Semple· Guest0:50
So as you get stronger, we need more load.
Andy Galpin· Host0:52
[instrumental music] The science and practice of enhancing human performance for sport, play, and life. Welcome to Perform. I'm Andy Galpin. I'm the executive director of the Human Performance Center at Parker University. Today, I'm speaking with Dr. Lauren Colenso Semple. Lauren has a PhD in integrative physiology, and her research focuses on questions related to female physiology, exercise, and nutrition. She's also a tremendous scientific communicator, as well as active practitioner, having coached hundreds of people successfully to their personal fitness goals. Because of that background, in today's episode,