JOIN Cycling Launches Innovative Period Tracker for Female Athletes

August 6, 2024

New feature aims to enhance training and performance by integrating menstrual cycle data with endurance sports metrics

AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS, August 6, 2024/ENDURANCE SPORTSWIRE/ – JOIN, the adaptive cycling training app, announces today its new Period Tracker feature designed to address a vital aspect of female athletes’ training. Understanding menstruation cycles is crucial to performance training, as cycles represent significant impact to women’s training performance, recovery, and energy levels.

While these impacts have been generally understood, the academic research available around those impacts in sport and training remains highly limited. JOIN wants to deepen our understanding of these impacts in support of female athletes by integrating period tracking into their adaptive training platform, enabling athletes to adjust their training plans in accordance with the various phases of their menstrual cycle.

The new JOIN Period Tracker will allow female users to log their menstrual cycles and combine this data with other training metrics like heart rate, RPE, and power. This feature marks a significant step toward personalized training plans that consider the unique physiological needs of female athletes. In addition to developing the period tracker, JOIN will support further research on the impact of the menstrual cycle on sports performance in collaboration with the Martini Hospital and UMCG/Obstetrics and Gynaecology

JOIN’s approach to this aspect of training is undertaken in partnership with the Dutch Society of Obstetrics and Gynocology’s own Sport & Gyn knowledge network and Dr. Anne Marijn van der Graaf, noted sport physiologist, to deepen the knowledge of how female cycles impact training and performance through the JOIN app.

“So often women are expected to train in the same way as their other teammates – men and women alike – without consideration for the regular impacts that come from their own unique cycles,” says Dr. van der Graaf. “We cannot ignore the impacts of fluctuating hormonal levels, iron availability, visible blood loss, and other contributors to fatigue, discomfort and mental state that should be considered as we train towards athletic performance.”

“We want JOIN to be a destination for athletes who are committed to improving and need simple directions on how to train today,” says Jim van den Berg, CEO and founder of JOIN. “That means we have to have a clear understanding of the substantial impact the female cycle has on training in order to give women the best possible coaching, any day of any month.”

As more and more women use the Period Tracker, the feature will become more precise and beneficial for users, including predicting menstrual cycles and incorporating this data to adjust training plans specific to individual athlete needs. Any data sharing with academic institutions for the purpose of research is a secondary opt-in by users and not a default setting.

All data in the JOIN app, including period tracking information, is protected under the GDPR regulations in the European Union, widely considered one of the most comprehensive set of data protection laws in the world, providing an overarching framework for the processing of personal data and not subject to local or state jurisdictional changes.

For more information about JOIN Cycling and the new Period Tracker feature, please visit join.cc

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About JOIN

Founded in 2020 by former professional cyclist Jim van den Berg, JOIN offers recreational cyclists a customizable training experience through its app, which provides access to over 400 professionally developed workouts. By inputting personal data and training goals, users receive tailored training schedules that adapt automatically based on performance and activity levels. The app supports integrations with platforms like Strava, Zwift, and Garmin, allowing for seamless performance tracking and detailed progress analysis. With features for off-bike training content and continuous improvement guidance, JOIN helps prevent overtraining and injuries, making goals accessible and achievable. Available in five languages on Android and iOS, JOIN boasts over 100,000 downloads, a high user rating, and, most importantly, many cyclists successfully completing training plans and achieving personal success.

Media Contact:
Greg Fisher

greg@igtstudio.com