#16 Missed Periods and Endless Bowls of Granola
My original plan was to use this blog to talk about the time I went paragliding over the south coast of Spain. Check me out:
BUT that’s not what I really care about writing today. So we’re gonna reroute this baby into talking about overtraining, yet again!! Why you may ask? Because I once again missed a period. And it feels like I just conquered a CrossFit workout of the day when I walk from one room to the other even though I haven’t been to the gym in over a month. I want to share my symptoms because I think it could help people realize how much it really impacts your body and mind:
Missed period. So this was the biggest sign to me that I was overtraining. I missed my period for 4 months, got it back for 1.5 and then it was gone again. I say 1.5 because the second period was basically nothing - SUPER light. After I missed my first period I eased up on training outside of practice (fewer reps, less intensity). But I was also still in season so I continued to have practices and games. I’ve never missed a period before but I’ll admit it felt sort of normalized because my roommate also missed her period the same month as me. And for a moment I even had a thought like, “wow, I must be working really hard.” But missing your period from overtraining IS NOT SOMETHING TO BE PROUD OF. I think this is the dangerous line in sports. There are times when you should push and there are times when you need to listen to your body and rest. Train hard and recover hard baby.
Lack of motivation. Okay so typically I LOVE the gym. Even on days where I don’t feel like training I look forward to going because I know I’ll be happy and proud that I did. But I didn’t just stop having motivation to train, I also found it hard to get out of bed in the morning. I mostly just wanted to eat and sleep. From my experience with depression before when I had my second ACL surgery I knew the best thing I could do for myself was to just get out of bed. So more days than not, I would. And I would take my unmotivated ass to a cafe and do some reading or work. But towards the end of my time in Sevilla I was really really struggling with motivation, especially going to practice. And the thing is objectively I LOVE practice, especially in Sevilla. The team was super fun and positive. The coach was great. The field was gorgeous and there was pretty much always a magnificent sunset over top of the bridge while we were practicing. Yet I was just so burnt out I wanted to just sit, pout, and cry.
Disordered eating. A little bit after my first missed period I started eating bowl after bowl of granola. I remember one night eating 4 bowls of granola in my bed. I was a granola and peanut butter addict. Typically, I eat a lot of food and I have no problem with that, but this was different. I wasn’t even tasting or savoring the food I was eating. I was eating mindlessly only thinking about what my next bowl or plate would be. While eating I would know that I was full of food and that I didn’t need to be eating more but it was like I didn’t care. I turned to food to fill a whole that I was feeling. Eating became something to do to keep myself occupied since I was lacking motivation in most other aspects of my life. After the granola kick it turned into just eating frequently. I think that’s part of the reason I threw up from not eating for 6 hours. My body became so used to eating every hour that it was pissed when more food wasn’t coming in. The weight gain has been hard mentally I think especially because I’m not currently lifting. I’m still working on managing this but talking to friends who have been through similar experiences has helped as well as filling myself and time with experiences and connections with the beautiful beings all around me.
Muscle soreness. I specifically remember one practice in Sevilla where we started off with some short sprints and I could feel the lactic acid pumping through my legs even though we were only on rep 1. I felt slow and distraught that I wouldn’t perform well at Nationals coming up. Now it’s been almost a month since Nationals and my muscles still feel TIGHT. My masseuse yesterday told me my hamstrings were so tight she felt like she could just take them right off… yikes.
So yeah, this sucks. But of course, where there is pain and challenge, there is a lesson learned and there is growth! First things first, I am working on my recovery process which includes:
Rest. I have been staying away from the gym and running while I try to let my body heal. My achilles is still bothering me and I really want to make sure I am ready to go for next season so I am taking this off time very seriously. I did sign up for a yoga studio, unlimited sessions for the month, AYO! Yoga is a great way to be sure I’m getting in mobility, flexibility, and stability training. Resting feels sort of strange to me but I am happy to have yoga and nature as my outlets.
Raspberry leaf tea, Turmeric, and Ashwaganda. Hello beautiful herbal babies. The raspberry leaf tea is supposed to help regulate my cycle. I don’t know that it will help but a lot of people have actually reached out to me and said it’s helped with period cramps, making babies, and all other things hormone related so I have faith! The turmeric is for joint inflammation and depression symptoms. I have been using turmeric in my diet for awhile either latte style or in my eggs. There have been studies that show turmeric can help with both anxiety and depression! And lastly I’m taking ashwagandha supplements. This is my first time trying ashwagandha and I’m only on day 3 so I can’t really tell you much about it’s effectiveness (for me). BUT supposedly it may help reduce stress and promote recovery. Please let me know if you all have any suggestions or info to share about herbal supplements. I’m all for it. I also love that Placebo effect baby so as long as I think it works I’m sure it’s helping at least a little :)
Massage and epsom salt baths. Got a freaking phenomenal massage yesterday then woke up today and took an epsom salt bath and read a chapter of Byron Katie’s Loving What Is. I absolutely did drop some lavender oil in there to feel extra relaxed and pampered. I also have my knock off brand theragun. My masseuse did recommend I start using that on my rock solid hamstrings and calves every other day. She also recommended acupuncture. This isn’t the first time someone has recommended acupuncture for an irregular cycle so I am intrigued.., I’m gonna give it a week and see how I feel.
Lessons Learned
So now that I’ve allowed it to get this bad and I’ve experienced overtraining myself I know the initial warning signs and how seriously to take them. Reflecting on my lifestyle leading up to my first missed period I recognize how big of a role nutrition plays in recovery. When I moved to Spain my diet changed kind of drastically. I lacked micronutrients I was used to getting and I was eating and drinking more sweets, alcohol, and caffeine than before. So on top of the extra training I was doing I wasn’t giving my body the right fuel to recover. I also should have eased up on training more than I did after my first missed period and once I started experiencing overtraining symptoms. I was also going from not practicing at all to 3 practices a week plus games on weekends and it had been awhile since I had a full contact game of rugby. So my key takeaways have to be:
Prioritize nutrition for recovery
Slowwww progression into high level training environment
Pay attention to overtraining symptoms and make a change