OVULATION: The main event of the menstrual cycle
A menstrual cycle is, by definition, an ovulatory cycle in which ovulation is the main event and progesterone is made. Any other kind of bleed is either an anovulatory bleed or a pill-bleed — neither of which are real menstrual cycles. Ovulatory cycles are the only way to make progesterone which is important for general health, not just making a baby. An ovulatory menstrual cycle has a follicular phase and a luteal phase The follicular phase is the pre-ovulatory phase when estradiol is made. The luteal phase is the post-ovulatory phase when progesterone is made. It looks like this. The follicular phase ranges from seven to 21 days or 32 days for teenagers. It’s the variable part of the menstrual cycle. In contrast, the luteal phase is almost exactly fourteen days (ten to sixteen days) and does not vary. If you add up the variable (follicular) phase to the fixed (luteal) phase, the duration of a healthy menstrual cycle is anywhere betw...