For years, Taylor believed that losing her period was just part of being a runner. 

She was a two-time Olympic Trials qualifier, logging 80–90 miles a week, and earning constant praise for her discipline and drive. But when she and her husband started trying for a baby (and her period still hadn’t returned) she realized something deeper was wrong.

After years of trying to “fix it” herself, Taylor found the Food Freedom & Fertility Podcast and recognized her story in every episode. Two years later, she finally took the leap to get help, and what happened next changed her relationship with food, movement, and fertility forever.

Exercise and Fertility: When Discipline Turns into Dysfunction

Many women believe that as long as they’re eating “healthy” and staying active, their hormones will follow suit. But the truth is that exercise and fertility are deeply connected—and sometimes, doing more can actually hurt your chances of getting pregnant.

In fact, research led by Dr. Mary Jane De Souza at Penn State University has shown just how common hormonal disruption is among active women

• Roughly 79% experience luteal phase defect (LPD)
• 50% have irregular or anovulatory cycles
• Nearly 30% experience total period loss (amenorrhea), even when they appear “healthy” on the outside.

These subtle but significant menstrual changes often go unnoticed—especially when cycles seem regular—but they’re early warning signs that the body’s reproductive system is under stress and lacking the energy it needs to function optimally (De Souza 2009; De Souza 2003).

Like many runners, Taylor thought she could have it both ways: run marathons, stay lean, and still get her period back. She believed she was the exception. When her cycle never returned after stopping birth control, the truth became harder to ignore.

Even trying fertility medications like Letrozole, Taylor still wasn’t pregnant nor did she have any sort of cycle to track for fertility. Her body simply didn’t feel safe enough to function normally, and no amount of clean eating or careful mileage tracking could change that.

Why Overtraining Keeps Your Body Stuck

Period loss with Hypothalamic Amenorrhea (HA) happens when your brain senses too much physical stress and not enough energy. Chronic under-fueling and overtraining tell your hypothalamus to conserve energy by shutting down reproductive hormones—especially LH and estrogen, which are essential for ovulation.

Taylor’s story shows how subtle this can be. She wasn’t intentionally starving herself, but her intense training, performance pressure, and lingering food rules created the perfect storm for hormonal shutdown.

The Breaking Point: Letting Go of Control to Heal

In 2024, Taylor achieved a lifelong dream: qualifying for her second Olympic Trials. But while her athletic goals were thriving, her fertility journey was stalled. Her doctor confirmed what she already suspected: she had hypothalamic amenorrhea.

That diagnosis, combined with her faith and desire to start a family, became her turning point. Sitting on a porch in Oregon, she describes feeling a nudge from God saying: “You have to surrender this.” It was the moment she stopped running. 

When Exercise Becomes an Idol

Even after quitting running, Taylor found herself clinging to other forms of movement like cycling, daily workouts, and constant activity. It also did not help that her job as a Physical Therapist required a certain amount of movement while she worked on patients. Even outside of work, exercise had become her coping mechanism, her social circle, and her identity. Learning to rest felt impossible.

Inside the Food Freedom Fertility Society, Taylor began to see that healing wasn’t about cutting out exercise forever. It was about changing her relationship with movement, and learning to respect her body instead of pushing it to its limits. 

For many athletes, finding the gray area between “training hard” and “doing nothing” is where real recovery begins.

Restoring Hormones and Digestion Through Nourishment

When Taylor started her recovery journey, her digestion was a mess– bloating, reflux, and fatigue were daily struggles. But within weeks of eating more consistently and reducing stress, her GI symptoms began to improve. Her body was finally exhaling after years of running on cortisol.

After 15 years without a natural cycle, Taylor got her period back just eight weeks into the program. Her first few cycles were irregular, but her body was learning to feel safe again. This is what true healing looks like when you focus on how to get your period back naturally—not through quick fixes, but by rebuilding trust with her body.

From Recovery to Pregnancy

After a miscarriage and a few irregular cycles, Taylor and her husband made the mindful decision to try Letrozole again, not as a shortcut, but as a tool. They had already done the inner work: restoring nutrition, mindset, and balance. 

She went into that next Letrozole cycle with confidence in knowing her body was ready. And sure enough, two weeks after confirmed ovulation, they were pregnant with a baby boy.

Taylor’s story proves that exercise and fertility don’t have to be in conflict. Once you address the root causes and let your body truly rest, your fertility can thrive.

Pregnancy didn’t erase Taylor’s body image struggles, but it gave her a new perspective. She learned to listen to her body’s cues, rest when she needed to, and extend compassion to herself as her body changed. Instead of controlling her body, she finally felt at peace with it.

Freedom Is Worth the Surrender

Taylor’s story is a powerful reminder that your body isn’t broken—it’s just waiting for you to listen. Healing your hormones and fertility takes courage, patience, and support, but the reward is freedom—the kind that lets you rest, laugh, and live fully.

If you’re trying to figure out how to get your period back naturally, you don’t have to do it alone ❤️

👉 Watch my free training: “How to Get Your Period Back Naturally (Even If You’ve Tried Everything)” to learn the exact steps Taylor took to recover her cycle and restore her fertility.