Menstrual and oral contraceptive cycle phases do not affect submaximal and maximal exercise responses

To examine whether the menstrual or monophasic oral contraceptive cycle phases affect submaximal (oxygen uptake (VO2) kinetics, maximal lactate steady-state (MLSS)) and maximal (VO2max, time-to-exhaustion (TTE)) responses to exercise in healthy, active women. During the mid-follicular or inactive-pill phase and the mid-luteal or active-pill phase of the respective menstrual or oral contraceptive cycle, 15 non-oral contraceptive users (mean and standard deviation (SD) (+/-): 27 +/- 6 years; 171 +/- 5 cm; 65 +/- 7 kg) and 15 monophasic oral contraceptive users (24 +/- 4 years; 169 +/- 10 cm; 68 +/- 10 kg) performed: one VO2 kinetics test; one ramp-incremental test; two to three 30-minute constant-load cycling trials to determine the power output corresponding to MLSS (MLSSp), followed by a TTE trial. The phase of the menstrual or oral contraceptive cycle did not affect the time constant of the VO2 kinetics response (tau VO2) (mid-follicular, 20 +/- 5 seconds and mid-luteal, 18 +/- 3 seconds; inactive-pill, 22 +/- 8 seconds and active-pill, 23 +/- 6 seconds), VO2max (mid-follicular, 3.06 +/- 0.32 L min(-1) and mid-luteal, 3.00 +/- 0.33 L min(-1); inactive-pill, 2.87 +/- 0.39 L min(-1) and active-pill, 2.87 +/- 0.45 L min(-1)), MLSSp (mid-follicular, 181 +/- 30 W and mid-luteal, 182 +/- 29 W; inactive-pill, 155 +/- 26 W and active-pill, 155 +/- 27 W), and TTE (mid-follicular, 147 +/- 42 seconds and mid-luteal, 128 +/- 54 seconds; inactive-pill, 146 +/- 70 seconds and active-pill, 139 +/- 77 seconds) (P > .05). The rate of perceived exertion (RPE) at minute 30 of the MLSSp trials was greater in the mid-follicular phase (6.2 +/- 1.5) compared with the mid-luteal phase (5.3 +/- 1.4) for non-oral contraceptive users (P = .022). The hormonal fluctuations between the menstrual and oral contraceptive cycle phases had no detectable effects on submaximal and maximal exercise performance, even when RPE differed.