# Can Women Maintain Their Strength Performance Along the Mestrual Cycle?
## 1 Introduction  
The rise of women in sports does not seem to match their presence in sport and exercise research [1]. When considered, they are asked to take part during the early follicular phase (EFP) of their menstrual cycle (MC), when estrogen and progesterone hormone levels remain low, minimizing their potential impact on study outcomes [1]. Therefore, there is a need to explore women's performance response to the rest of the MC phases, which is remarkable from their perceptive standpoint [2]. Of the three hormonal environments that women experience along the MC (low levels of estrogen and progesterone at the menstrual or EFP, high and low levels of estrogen and progesterone at the pre-ovalatory or late follicular phase (LFP), and high levels of estrogen and progesterone at the post-ovalatory or mid-lutel phase (MLP) [3]), the LFP and MLP phases seems to represent two relevant moments for training planning given the isotropic effect of estrogen [4]. The formation of stronger cross-bridge cycles [5] and the increase in neuronal excitability [6] could enhance women's strength performance, which could lead practitioners to prioritize certain training sessions during this period, with the understanding that estrogen is an anabolic hormone, with a neuroexcitatory function and with a possible positive effect on strength enhancement, while progesterone is a catabolic-hormone, which has a cortical inhibitory function and could have a negative effect on strength production [7]. Regarding sports performance in the different phases of the menstrual cycle, no clear evidence has been found: [PERSON] et al. [8] indicate that performance is trivially reduced in the early follicular phase compared to the other phases of the menstrual cycle, while in the CMJ jumping height variable, worse results were observed in the early follicular and late luteal phases [9]. With respect to the isokinetic and isometric strength of knee flexors and extensors, better results were found in the ovulatory phase [10]. Although this differs due to the different manifestations and capacities analyzed, generally, worse results can be found in the early follicular phase and better results in the late follicular phase for isometric or dynamic strength [7]. To date, different strength-related measures have been compared along the MC in eumenorrheic women. On the one hand, [PERSON] et al. [11] summarized those studies exploring the effect of the MC in different tasks eliciting large force outputs (i.e., maximal voluntary contraction, isokinetic peak torques) or rate of force development (i.e., jumping, cycling ergometry peak power output), observing that these were minimally affected by the MC [11]. On the other hand, [PERSON] et al. [12] summarized those studies exploring the effect of the MC on different time to failure tasks (i.e., isometric sustained, isometric intermittent, isokinetic, cycling, and running) reporting an equivalent performance enhancement distribution for the luteal and follicular phases, with the inconsistencies across studies potentially being explained by the different muscle groups involved (upper vs. lower body) or the type of contraction performed (isometric vs. dynamic). [PERSON] et al. [13] found, in their review of the effect of strength performance on the phase of the menstrual cycle, that the answer was unclear, and studies with good methodological quality, such as measurement of hormones through blood or urine analysis with detection of luteinizing hormone, should be carried out. Given the task dependency effects of the MC, it would be valuable for practitioners to explore its effects on basic strength exercises (e.g., back squat, bench press) and on those relevant variables for strength training programming (e.g., one-repetition maximum [1-RM], repetitions in reserve). In this regard, the 1-RM seems to remain unchanged for the different MC phases either for the bench press [14] or the back squat exercises [15]. With respect to the range of repetitions available to momentary failure, [PERSON] et al.