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Response of testosterone to prolonged aerobic exercise during different phases of the menstrual cycle

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Abstract

Purpose

To examine the androgen response to exercise in women under conditions of high (H) and low (L) estrogen (E2) levels.

Methods

Ten exercise trained eumenorrheic women (mean ± SD: 20.0 ± 2.2 years, 58.7 ± 8.3 kg, 22.3 ± 4.9 % body fat, VO2max = 50.7 ± 9.0 mL/kg/min) completed a 60 min treadmill run at ~70 % of VO2max during both the mid-follicular (L-E2, 69.7 ± 7.3 % VO2max) and mid-luteal (H-E2, 67.6 ± 7.9 % VO2max) phases of their menstrual cycle. Blood samples were taken pre-exercise (PRE), immediately post (POST), and 30 min into recovery (30R) from exercise and analyzed for total testosterone using ELISA assays. Results were analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA.

Results

Testosterone responses were (mean ± SD: L-E2, pre = 1.41 ± 0.21, post = 1.86 ± 0.21, 30R = 1.75 ± 0.32 nmol/L; H-E2, pre = 1.27 ± 0.23, post = 2.43 ± 0.56, 30R = 1.69 ± 0.34 nmol/L). Statistical analysis indicated no significant interaction existed between high and low estrogen conditions across the blood sampling times (p = 0.138). However, a main effect occurred for exercise (p < 0.004) with the post-testosterone concentration being greater than pre, although pre vs. 30R was not different (p > 0.05). All testosterone hormonal concentrations immediately post-exercise greatly exceeded the level of hemoconcentration observed during the L-E2 and H-E2 exercise sessions.

Conclusions

Prolonged aerobic exercise induces short-term elevations in testosterone in trained eumenorrheic women, which appears unrelated to estrogen levels and menstrual cycle phase. These increases may occur due to either increased androgen production and/or decreased degradation rates of the hormone, and are not solely the result of plasma fluid shifts from the exercise.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the research subject who volunteered their time and effort in this study.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical standards

The authors declare that the experiments comply with the current laws of the United States of America.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Applied Physiology Laboratory, Department of Exercise and Sport Science, University of North Carolina, CB # 8700 Fetzer Hall, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA

    C. B. O’Leary, C. Lehman, K. Koltun, A. Smith-Ryan & A. C. Hackney

Authors
  1. C. B. O’Leary
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  2. C. Lehman
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  3. K. Koltun
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  4. A. Smith-Ryan
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  5. A. C. Hackney
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to A. C. Hackney.

Additional information

Communicated by Fabio Fischetti.

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O’Leary, C.B., Lehman, C., Koltun, K. et al. Response of testosterone to prolonged aerobic exercise during different phases of the menstrual cycle. Eur J Appl Physiol 113, 2419–2424 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-013-2680-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-013-2680-1

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