BACKGROUND Resistance training is well known to increase strength and lean body mass, and plays a key role in many female athletic and recreational training programs. Most females train throughout their reproductive years when they are exposed to continuously changing female steroid hormone profiles due to the menstrual cycle or contraceptive use. Therefore, it is important to focus on how female hormones may affect resistance training responses. OBJECTIVE The aim of this systematic review is to identify and critically appraise current studies on the effect of the menstrual cycle and oral contraceptives on responses to resistance training. METHODS The electronic databases Embase, PubMed, SPORTDiscus and Web of Science were searched using a comprehensive list of relevant terms. Studies that investigated the effect of the menstrual cycle phase or oral contraceptive cycle on resistance training responses were included. Studies were also included if they compared resistance training responses between the natural menstrual cycle and oral contraceptive use, or if resistance training was adapted to the menstrual cycle phase or oral contraceptive phase. Studies were critically appraised with the McMasters Universities Critical Review Form for Quantitative Studies and relevant data were extracted. RESULTS Of 2007 articles found, 17 studies met the criteria and were included in this systematic review. The 17 included studies had a total of 418 participants with an age range of 18-38 years. One of the 17 studies found no significant differences in acute responses to a resistance training session over the natural menstrual cycle, while four studies did find changes. When assessing the differences in acute responses between the oral contraceptive and menstrual cycle groups, two studies reported oral contraceptives to have a positive influence, whilst four studies reported that oral contraceptive users had a delayed recovery, higher levels of markers of muscle damage, or both. For the responses to a resistance training program, three studies reported follicular phase-based training to be superior to luteal phase-based training or regular training, while one study reported no differences. In addition, one study reported no differences in strength development between oral contraceptive and menstrual cycle groups. One further study reported a greater increase in type I muscle fibre area and a trend toward a greater increase in muscle mass within low-androgenic oral contraceptive users compared with participants not taking hormonal contraceptives. Finally, one study investigated androgenicity of oral contraceptives and showed greater strength developments with high androgenic compared with anti-androgenic oral contraceptive use. CONCLUSIONS The reviewed articles reported conflicting findings, and were often limited by small participant numbers and methodological issues, but do appear to suggest female hormones may affect resistance training responses. The findings of this review highlight the need for further experimental studies on the effects of the menstrual cycle and oral contraceptives on acute and chronic responses to resistance training.

中文翻译：

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月经周期和口服避孕药对抵抗训练的急性反应和慢性适应的影响：文献的系统回顾。

背景技术众所周知，阻力训练可以增加力量和瘦体重，并且在许多女性运动和娱乐训练计划中发挥着关键作用。大多数女性在整个育龄期都会进行训练，因为她们会因月经周期或避孕措施而接触到不断变化的女性类固醇激素。因此，关注女性荷尔蒙如何影响阻力训练反应非常重要。目的 本系统综述的目的是确定并严格评价当前关于月经周期和口服避孕药对阻力训练反应影响的研究。方法 使用相关术语的综合列表对电子数据库 Embase、PubMed、SPORTDiscus 和 Web of Science 进行搜索。其中包括调查月经周期阶段或口服避孕药周期对阻力训练反应影响的研究。如果比较自然月经周期和口服避孕药之间的阻力训练反应，或者阻力训练是否适应月经周期阶段或口服避孕药阶段，也包括这些研究。使用麦克马斯特大学定量研究批判性审查表对研究进行严格评价，并提取相关数据。结果 在 2007 年的文章中，有 17 项研究符合标准并纳入本次系统评价。纳入的 17 项研究共有 418 名参与者，年龄范围为 18-38 岁。17 项研究中的一项发现，在自然月经周期内，阻力训练的急性反应没有显着差异，而四项研究确实发现了变化。在评估口服避孕药组和月经周期组之间急性反应的差异时，两项研究报告口服避孕药具有积极影响，而四项研究报告口服避孕药使用者恢复延迟、肌肉损伤标志物水平较高或两者兼而有之。 。对于阻力训练计划的反应，三项研究报告称基于卵泡期的训练优于基于黄体期的训练或常规训练，而一项研究报告没有差异。此外，一项研究报告称，口服避孕药组和月经周期组之间的力量发展没有差异。一项进一步的研究报告称，与未服用激素避孕药的参与者相比，低雄激素口服避孕药使用者的 I 型肌纤维面积有更大的增加，并且肌肉质量有更大增加的趋势。最后，一项研究调查了口服避孕药的雄激素性，结果表明，与抗雄激素口服避孕药相比，高雄激素药物的强度发展更大。结论 所审查的文章报告了相互矛盾的发现，并且通常受到参与者人数少和方法问题的限制，但似乎确实表明女性激素可能会影响阻力训练反应。