--- title: How do mood, heart rate, and muscle strength change during the menstrual cycle? description: Heart rate patterns change across the cycle, especially during the mid-luteal phase when progesterone is highest. Muscle strength appears stable, but feeling url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/influence-of-menstrual-cycle-on-autonomic-nervous-system-muscular-strength-and-2026/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - How do mood, heart rate, and muscle strength change during the menstrual cycle? Study, 2026 # How do mood, heart rate, and muscle strength change during the menstrual cycle? Heart rate patterns change across the cycle, especially during the mid-luteal phase when progesterone is highest. Muscle strength appears stable, but feeling energetic links with muscle activity. Depression increases during the early-cycle phase. Moderate study design 15 healthy young women with regular menstrual cycles ## What they did Tested 15 young women three times: during menstruation, during the late follicular phase, and during the mid-luteal phase. Each test measured heart rate variability, leg muscle strength, and mood. ## What they found Heart rate variability was lower during the mid-luteal phase compared to menstruation and late follicular phases. Maximum leg muscle strength and how quickly women could develop force showed no clear differences across the three phases. Depression increased during the late follicular phase. Feeling energetic was linked with muscle activity. Most other connections between heart rate measures and mood were not found. ## What it means for you The menstrual cycle changes how the nervous system controls heart rate, with the biggest difference during the mid-luteal phase. Muscle strength appears stable across the cycle. The findings suggest heart rate variability might be useful for tracking changes in female athletes. The main limitation is the small sample size of 15 women, so findings need confirmation in larger studies. 15 women studied ## About the study Original title Influence of menstrual cycle on autonomic nervous system, muscular strength and mood states Authors Serrano HM, Gueugneau N, Ravier G Journal Scientific reports Year 2026 Study design Study Open access Yes Read the paper [doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-56802-0](https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-56802-0) ## Topics [Menstrual cycle and mood](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-cycle-mood/)[Anxiety and tension](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-anxiety/) Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits. Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor. ## Related studies Randomised trial, 2026 Does aerobic or resistance exercise reduce anxiety in women with PMS? Cohort study, 2025 How common is PMS in Chinese teenage girls, and what factors are linked to it? Randomised trial, 2024 Does curcumin reduce depression, anxiety, and stress in women with PMS and dysmenorrhea? Systematic review, 2022 Do mental health disorders get worse during the menstrual cycle? Systematic review, 2021 Does damask rose help reduce menstrual pain, headache, fatigue, anxiety, and bloating? Randomised trial, 2017 Does the combined oral contraceptive pill affect mood? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗