Exercises during your period – not a fight, but cooperation with physiology

To have more answers and less assumptions, read on! Although my overarching, heartfelt advice is: listen to your body :) Then you will find out what training will be right for your body during your period - which exercises make you feel better and which require stubborn struggle with your current capabilities. Repeated myths or media motivators often make it difficult to establish individual contact with your own body. Someone says that when you have your period, it's just rest with chocolate in one hand and a painkiller in the other. Someone else says that your period is not an excuse and you can be active every day. Someone also promotes the need to adjust exercises to your own physiology and well-being, but it's probably neither a personal trainer nor a PE teacher. This voice belongs to several other people who approach the matter more holistically. And it is their advice that we will follow in this text. Today, about exercises during your period! And of course a little bit about hormones – because we couldn't do without them ;)

Effort scale adjusted to your cycle phase

Period exercises should be adjusted to how we feel . However, before we talk about menstruation itself, let's see how the individual phases of the menstrual cycle relate to our training plans .

Follicular phase. You may feel up to it

In the follicular phase (lasting from the first day of the period to ovulation), the level of progesterone is low, so – to repeat after psychodietitian Julia Morawska – it does not affect our physiology and thus our physical condition too much. In this phase, or more precisely, right after the end of menstruation, estrogen begins to increase, which increases insulin sensitivity and limits the mobilization of fatty acids to adipose tissue. This means that the body burns more glucose at that time, and it is easier for us to do an intensive workout . They can become even easier in the late follicular phase and duringovulation – that is when many of us are at the peak of our fitness. Scientist Stacy Sims points out that for the first half of the cycle, women are physiologically – in terms of carbohydrate metabolism and regeneration – similar to men. But when the level of progesterone increases in the second luteal phase, a completely different story begins.

Also read our article about menstruation .

Luteal Phase. You may not feel up to it

After ovulation, the body begins to prepare for a possible pregnancy, so a lot is happening in it at this time. Progesterone raises body temperature by about 0.5 degrees, while simultaneously reducing its tolerance to heat, which shortens the time it takes to feel tired. And most importantly, it is in this phase preceding bleeding that about 80% of people experience premenstrual syndrome , which affects their well-being (both mentally and physically). For this reason, as the reliable Stacy Sims recommends: " Instead of pushing through the hopeless battle with PMS, practice yoga, go cycling or simply take a day off. This is a good time to relieve yourself and reduce the intensity of your workouts ." The scientist has been studying gender differences in the context of exercise for many years and repeats this seemingly banal mantra: "Women have periods." She adds, “ If you’re focused on performance, your trainer should talk to you about your menstrual cycle. Your period directly affects your training. Very few female trainers take into account the menstrual cycles of their athletes—even those in the most elite sports . ” In one of her Instagram posts, she includes a link to an interesting study, summarizing its findings: “ Women who strength trained with weightlifting during low-hormone weeks and rested more when hormones were high saw a 32% increase in strength —more than double the 13% gain for those who lifted weights the same way regardless of where they were in their cycle . ”

Both the studies cited above and the considerations of Stacy Sims and Julia Morawska, writing for the magazine " Body Challenge ", concern mainly people who do sports professionally. There are probably some sports enthusiasts among you, so I hope that this part of the text was interesting for you and maybe even useful. But probably many of our readers, who do sports recreationally, would simply like to know what physical activity will be safe during menstruation. Although I have just written about the fact that exercise capacity is the best in the follicular phase, I think that if any of us consciously or unconsciously take advantage of this fact, we do so only in the second part of this phase of the cycle, when the bleeding has already stopped, and with it any menstrual pain. So which exercises during menstruation are not recommended, and which are safe and can even bring relief?

Exercises during your period. Recommendations and contraindications

At this point, I immediately recall our cooperation with yogi Maria Janiec , who last year posted tips on period exercise on our Facebook group #mensTRUEacja by Your KAYA , emphasizing that physical activity does not have to be skipped during these few days, especially if we have not received any contraindications from a doctor. Maria advises looking for alternatives and solutions that will positively affect our physical and mental comfort. And what exercises does she recommend to relax muscles and relieve pain?

• Exercises on an exercise ball.
• Pilates.
• Swimming pool (we recommend the article: Swimming during your period ).
• Walking – if it’s movement, it’s in the fresh air! Stimulation of blood circulation and oxygenation of the body in one.
• Menstrual yoga, thanks to which we will regain a sense of softness and additionally improve the free flow of breath. Maria emphasizes that all positions should be performed in ¾ of our ranges, maintaining a safe reserve and comfort. However, if the bleeding is heavy, it is best to skip yoga completely - that is also okay ;)

Let's take it for granted that we should give up intensive training during menstruation, when we feel that it does not serve us. As Maria warns, in some people, improperly selected activity during this time can increase bleeding, abdominal pain, and even lead to internal bleeding . As an experienced yogi, she lists specific yoga positions that should be avoided during this time, especially between the first and third day, when we experience uterine contractions:

• Inverted positions, such as the candle or plow, headstands and handstands - these change blood pressure and can cause quite a bit of dizziness, even outside of your period.
• Strong torso twists that put pressure on the lower abdomen, similar to other lower abdominal exercises.
• Strength positions and dynamic practices that lead to excessive heating of the body (hot yoga or ashtanga).

To these tips, Maria has included recordings of menstrual yoga practice and even breathing training, which – as she admits – also helps to relieve period pain! Thanks again for taking such care of our recipients 😍 And if you haven't had the opportunity to practice with Maria during your period, you can watch her exercises on Instagram and Facebook .

Relationship with yourself during menstruation

Some of us get goosebumps at the thought of exercising during our period, while others feel relief and a surge of energy just thinking about it. Our fitness depends not only on our level of training, but above all on our physiology and well-being . It is true that some exercises work better than painkillers, but at the same time, let's not blame ourselves if we don't have the strength or desire to do them during our period . Let's remember to take care of the relationship with our own bodies, especially when menstruation comes. Let's listen to our bodies and be gentle with ourselves :)

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