Benefits and harms of exercise during menstruation

All women spend about 1 week of each month during menstruation. In the meantime, people who go to the gym, exercise regularly or professionally may worry about how to do their exercises during their period. Will menstruation affect the fitness process? Do you have to stop exercising completely during menstruation? Stay with us; Exercising during menstruation is the topic that we discuss in this article.

Benefits of exercise during menstruation

You shouldn’t miss out on the benefits of exercise just because you’re on your period. Menstruation is a very complicated period from the hormonal point of view. Throughout the menstrual cycle, both progesterone and estrogen hormones reach their lowest levels. Because of this, the person will feel tired and will feel less energy. Therefore, we cannot say that exercising during menstruation will make you feel more energetic and happy. But doing some exercises will definitely be beneficial. The most important benefits of exercise during period are as follows:

Reducing the symptoms of premenstrual syndrome

Many women experience mood swings and feel very tired in the days leading up to their period and also during the menstrual cycle. In this case, regular aerobic exercise can help reduce these symptoms.

Experience increased strength

During the first two weeks of the menstrual cycle, women may experience increased potency due to low levels of female hormones.

Increased release of endorphins

Endorphins are secreted by hypothalamus from mucous glands and relieve pain. Exercise can increase the body’s natural endorphins. In this case, the mood will also improve and the person will actually feel better. The effect of endorphins in pain control makes a person feel less pain in his muscles after exercise.

Help improve mood

Exercising during menstruation can play an effective role in improving a person’s mood by increasing blood circulation. Muscle cramps, headache and back pain caused by period can be alleviated to some extent with some exercise.

Relief of painful menstrual periods

Painful menstruation is called dysmenorrhea. Women who experience heavy menstrual periods and suffer a lot of pain know very well how unpleasant these symptoms can be. Research has shown that fortunately, light exercise such as walking can help reduce these symptoms.

Does exercise during menstruation have a negative effect?

There is no scientific reason why exercise should not be done during menstruation. On the contrary, there is evidence that exercise can be beneficial during this period. Therefore, the wise advice is to continue exercising during your period, but avoid intensifying the exercise and stop exercising whenever you feel tired.

Intense or prolonged exercise may not be beneficial for the body during menstruation. This does not mean that you should stop your regular exercise, but you should be cautious. The results of one study showed that 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise during menstruation caused exercise-induced inflammation. Therefore, it is recommended to do light exercises during this period.

The best sports during period

Now that you know that exercise during menstruation can be useful, the question arises, which exercises are better to do? Especially in the first few days of your period, you may have a lot of pain and bleeding. For this reason, exercises should be done gently. According to some doctors, the best exercise during menstruation is the one you like to do. A few days after the menstrual period, you can slightly increase the intensity of the exercises. It is recommended for women to do the following sports during periods:

Light walking

Do low-intensity aerobic exercise during your menstrual cycle, or back off when you do some. Walking is an ideal exercise in this era. The result of a research showed that if you take a light walk every day during your period, the function of the lungs will improve during this period. Apart from walking, you can also do other light aerobic sports.

Light strength training

The combination of strength training and cardio are very suitable for period. Due to the potential of increasing strength during menstruation, you can do strength training in a completely mild state. Bodybuilding and weightlifting are among strength sports.

Yoga and Pilates during period

Two to three days before your period starts is a good time to do exercises like yoga and pilates. These exercises can help relax the body and relieve symptoms such as muscle cramps, breast tenderness, and muscle aches that are common with premenstrual syndrome (PMS).

If you don’t feel any problem, continue your exercise according to your usual routine during menstruation, but whenever you feel that you can’t perform as usual and you need to rest, reduce the intensity of the exercise.

What sports are not suitable during menstruation?

It is better to avoid doing some sports during menstruation. Many women can continue to exercise during their period by making very minor changes to their exercise routine. Experts recommend that it is better to reduce the intensity and amount of exercise during menstruation. But you should never stop your training. If you feel unusually tired during your period, you should reduce cardio and endurance exercises. Also, sometimes it is necessary to eliminate skill exercises and exercises that require high precision during this period. It is better to consult with your sports coach about continuing your exercises during your period.

Exercise during menstruation in traditional medicine

In traditional medicine, women are advised to reduce the intensity of their exercise during menstruation. Low-intensity walking is one of the best sports during periods, which can be confirmed in terms of traditional medicine. You can also use some light exercises and do them at home. In doing any kind of exercise during period, this point should be considered, that as soon as you feel unusual tiredness, the exercises should be stopped or some rest should be taken and then the exercises should be resumed.

last word

In the end, it is you who has to decide what exercise should be for you during your period. Premenstrual syndrome symptoms may not occur to you and you can easily continue your usual exercises. Maybe you are one of the people who suffer a lot of pain and discomfort during periods; Therefore, they should reduce the intensity of their training. In some cases, it is also necessary to remove exercise from the daily schedule of women in the first days of the period. Consult your doctor or sports coach in this regard.