Skip to main content

How to Workout During your Period

 


Young woman crouched over from period pain
 Image: Shutterstock


Should you even workout during your period?

Especially when PMS seems to be working against you. Bringing with it:

  • Cramps
  • Weakness
  • Nausea and
  • Dizziness

Let's not forget the fact that as women, our bodies are so different that working out may be therapeutic for some, while to others it's torture.

If exercising during your period sounds like torture to you, you probably think it's a bad idea.

Pause!

Before you rule out working out during your period, read on for how best to do it.

What to consider before working out during your period

Before you workout, it's important to consider the kind of symptoms you experience during your period.

Cramps

With cramps, working out may either reduce or aggravate them. This depends on the kind of workout you do though. In my experience and for some other women I know, ab workouts tend to worsen period cramps.

Weakness

Exercising requires energy and working out during periods is no different. If you find that you're very weak, it's best to avoid working out altogether. You wouldn't want to pass out as a result.

Mood swings and Bloating

Thankfully, it's not all scary with periods. Infact, exercising- according to studies, releases endorphins (feel-good hormones) which help to elevate moods. This can greatly help with mood swings.

Also, workouts can help with bloating. The process of moving about and sweating out eliminates bloating caused by water retention and helps you feel lighter generally.

Now, if you feel like working out is the last thing on your mind during your period, take a break. But if you feel up to it, go ahead. 

Before you workout, there are some things you must do.


Precautions to take before you workout during your period

Don't workout in soaked sanitary wear: You don't want to get stained while you move. Change if necessary before you begin.

Select your workout clothes carefully: Choose darker colours to be on a safe side. Also, avoid wearing very flimsy clothes. Just in case you get stained, you want it to be as discreet as can be till you change.

Decide on location: you can decide to workout at home as opposed to going to the gym. This is to ensure that if you do get tired, you can quickly go in, freshen up and rest. As opposed to driving or walking back home.

Stay hydrated: this will keep dizziness, dehydration and heat in check. Drink lots of water in between and after workouts.

Work with your cycle: know the days you have your heavy flow and avoid working out if it will cause you great discomfort.


Simple workouts to engage in during your period

Walking

Taking brisk walks for a few minutes will satisfy your workout needs without being too tasking on your body. Preferably for 10-30 minutes, put on comfortable shoes and just stroll.

Yoga

You don't have to go overboard or do more complex moves like the hand stand. A little downward dog, side stretches, child pose should give you some relief and meet your workout needs.

Jogging

If you need to satisfy your cardio cravings or feel like walking isn't intense enough, jogging is the answer. Throw on nice shoes, make sure you're not soaked and jog lightly. If at any time you feel exhausted, slow down and finish up with walking.

Calisthenics

You may want to avoid the dumbbells and bars during your period and stick to body weight exercises. If you need a little intensity, do more reps, go more rounds or incorporate jumps. 

Exercises like Squats, push ups, lunges, side bends, glute bridges, step ups, jump squats are excellent body weight exercises that will get you moving and sweating during your period.


After your workout

Shower, put on fresh undies, sanitary wears and clothes. Also get some rest and if you need to work, avoid strenuous activities. You don't want to be fatigued after your workout.

You see, there's absolutely no law that says women should or should not workout during their periods. It all depends on you. 

What's required is for you to take necessary precautions, monitor your body's reaction and don't forget to take care of yourself.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2020: Reflections

I had an idea of what my year in review would look like when I penned my goals. What I didn't envision was the performance 2020 was going to put up. The draft was in my head. I imagined ticking off items on my list, laughing and patting myself on the back for a job well done. Now, all I have are reflections. My thought process has changed, my perception on several issues altered and that is way more interesting than what I planned earlier. These are what I had in mind for 2020 1. Learn web development 2. Write more 3. Earn more from my side gig. 4. Create more streams of income. 5. Get my masters degree 6. Use Duolingo daily 7. Get a mentor especially for my coding. 8. Workout at least 10mins daily. 9. Get a great job. 10. Take at least 20 online courses. 11. Read at least 12 books this year 12. Apply for & get at least 1 foreign opportunity( internship or fellowship). 13. Be more aggressive about my goals. 14. Celebrate every win and step taken towards my goals. Did I achieve ...
1 comment
Read more

A Simple Guide to Using Content Marketing to Build a Brand or Business

  Content Marketing! Can't stop seeing or hearing about it everywhere, can you? Sounds like some complex concept that can make your business a powerful, money-minting machine. No, it's not that complicated. Yes, it can do a lot for your business. For starters, what's content marketing? Content marketing is creating, publishing and promoting relevant, useful content to a defined audience to build a relationship with them - with the ultimate aim of turning prospects to customers. It can also be defined as using storytelling to sell a product. Content marketing however, is a long-term strategy and the goal is to build a solid relationship with your customers. This is what easily separates content marketing from traditional advertising.  The attention and relationship with your customer is prioritized over just selling. For most businesses, the goal of content marketing for them is to: Increase brand awareness Achieve better SEO rankings Engage with their audience Increase cust...
Post a Comment
Read more

How to Build Self Confidence

There are two main things that can have a profound effect on self confidence: Money Looks And a third one that many don't realize: HEALTH - both physical and mental. Look at ads selling beauty and fitness products. A lot of them offer products that promise to build or restore your confidence. It is usually said explicitly or heavily implied. That's how much of our self confidence we attach to our looks. Anti-acne ad... see the C-word written boldly What about money? It's self deceit to ignore the ways money improves our self confidence. Money-boosted confidence manifests in many ways: Walking boldly into a restaurant or store to order without questioning your pockets, Boldly approaching the woman of your dreams, Being choosy about projects to work on because money isn't a problem, etc. I mean, how many times have you imagined being able to do these things? The problem is, we don't want to derive our confidence from money and looks. Those are transient. What happens ...
Post a Comment
Read more