Women - exercising during that time of the month?

I used to have terrible cramps- wake me up in the middle of the night kind of pain. Running has actually helped immensely, and the last time Aunt Flo visited I ran 24 miles. (you know, substitute one pain for another lol) Seriously, though, TOM has become much easier since I started running, and even though it's hard at first, it gets easier as you exercise, and you will feel better afterward!

i tried everything. i eat low salt anyway, don't drink tea or coffee, work out.
i've tried heat pads, evening primrose, various vitamins & minerals, changing my diet.
i've tried more birth control pills & jabs & such than i can keep count of.

my doc told me that the tranexamic & mefenamic acid are often the one thing that prevents hysterectomy for many women in my situation. nature really does give us a bit of a bum deal! it must be hellish to have to go that far just to live a relatively normal, pain free life.

I've heard of a temporary solution. No cramps for 9 months.
Lots of cramps at the end of those 9 months though, so you must decide if it's worth it for you.

When I started out I could never train during my period. It made me feel awful and made my period heavier!!! That was really annoying as I would not excercise for up to a week! But Ive now lost 5 stone and have now, in the last couple of months, been able to train all month. My symptons have got so much better, I assume its because my body is getting closer to a health weight and is working better! :happy:

Yes, I do, it would be counterproductive to not exercise 25% of the month. Try Midol or asking your doctor about BC options that help with heavy cramping.

Working out does help!

I don't have the extreme problems you do, but I agree that a banana will help and even try some dark chocolate.

I agree ^^ maybe talk to your doctor about some BC or anything that could help regulate the problems you're having. That would be terrible to deal with every month.

I've never had really bad periods so it's never been an issue for me and even if I'm tired and crampy exercise makes me feel better.

I don't personally think that birth control is the "end all be all" for periods unless you talk to your doctor and it really is something that YOU think will work as well. There are other things that a doctor can suggest that have nothing to do with taking birth control. I got off the pill a little over a year ago and it was the best thing I ever did. I am no longer a fan of the pill nor will I advocate it because of how screwed up the hormones made me and in all honesty the hormones that are in the pill aren't exactly good for you because they suppress your natural hormones so your levels are actually lower which isn't good.

As far as exercise helping your issues I think you need to just keep doing what you're doing and hopefully it might help you out in the long run.

I honestly suggest speaking to your doctor about your problem and hopefully he/she can come up with a solution that works for you and that is what YOU want.

I just rest no pressures

The older I get the worse my cramps get. Unfortunately, I cannot take birth control or ibuprofen in any form. After I had my daughter I was put on BC and a blood clot formed that went to my brain. Since I was young it took a couple of weeks for anyone to take me seriously that I was in a tremendous amount of pain. Even dim light made me throw up. Finally a CAT scan revealed the blood clot that was causing my brain to swell. So, no birth control ever for me. When I was 21 or so, I suffered a perforated stomach ulcer that also almost killed me. Since I had no insurance at the time, the ER doctor tried to send me home even though the morphine drip didn't take away the horrible pain. Eventually, they did exploratory surgery which revealed the hole in my stomach. For those reasons, I cringe when thinking of BC or ibuprofen. After many years of suffering through horrible periods, I found that Evening Primrose oil and Black Cohosh work well for me if I start them 3-4 days before. Everybody is, of course, different.

I get hopped up on midol and go for a brisk walk until it kicks in. I also drink lots of tea and make sure to get my potassium. And I remind myself that if I do a little exercise, I'll have a better time fitting in that chocolate I've been craving

For me there is no pattern. About every 6 months I get cramps bad, and I mean bad. So bad that I sometimes pass out. Once it started when I was running and I barely made it home before I started blacking out.

I have learned to recognize the "special feeling" of these mega cramps beginning. It is different than regular cramps. So if I get that feeling I immediately take two ALEVE and lie down if I can. Usually the meds kick in and then I'm fine. Maybe that would help you.

I'm interested in trying the banana too!

And for you non believers out there, it's not that we're not as tough as you it is a real ( non serious) medical issue called a vagal response to pain. It causes a sudden drop in blood pressure that re sets itself as soon as you hit the floor. But hitting the floor without warning is no fun!!

Do you do it? How do you get comfortable?

I'm the painful cramps / 2 maxi pads and still leaks through kind of person. I cramp for 3 days around ovulation and 5 days around AF. Every single time around that time, I start cramping 20 minutes into my workout. Yesterday I stopped to take an ibuprofen and it wasn't too bad so I kept going, today is day 1 so I took some ibuprofen one hour beforehand, and still managed to start cramping (bad ones) after 20 minutes. I had to stop. Now after a shower it's slightly better.

It's so frustrating! I thought exercise was good for pain. I've been working out pretty much every day (minus 2) for 30-45 minutes for 5 weeks now. Surely my body would be used to it by now? Today was my day 'off' anyway so it wasn't a big deal, but I don't want to go through the same thing for the next 2 days again. Last month wasn't too bad but I had to stop early a couple times too because of cramps.

How does it work for you?

I don't have cramping while I'm exercising, but I rarely actually think about my body when I'm exercising. I used to have terrible cramping, as I've lost weight I also lost the cramping. I'm 10 pounds over where I'd like to be right now, and this month was the first time I've had any cramping in 18 months. Keep at it, hopefully it will get better. Oh, and I never want to work out when I have my period, I just get my *kitten* in gear and do it anyway.

The see a doctor advice is all well and good, but when I was a teen and curled up in pain, it was still commonly believed that women got cramps because they were rejecting their womanhood. And a lot of doctors still just throw birth control pills at you if ou complain about cramps, and they don't have much else to suggest. And 25% of women have libido loss on the pill. Yay!

For context? I had two huge babies with no drugs, because childbirth never got as bad as my worst cramps, I don't get them that bad anymore (since having kids, actually) but I remember how awful they were.

I worked with a woman who would pass out sometimes, and that was on hormones.

I use those days as my lighter intensity days. I choose a level 1 or 2 exercise or just plain walk those days. I completely relate to what happens to you and am not interested in going on bc.

I avoid things like burpees, lunges, squats, and any heavy lifting. It just makes things worse. Cardio does tend to make me feel better.

Do you do it? How do you get comfortable?

I'm the painful cramps / 2 maxi pads and still leaks through kind of person. I cramp for 3 days around ovulation and 5 days around AF. Every single time around that time, I start cramping 20 minutes into my workout. Yesterday I stopped to take an ibuprofen and it wasn't too bad so I kept going, today is day 1 so I took some ibuprofen one hour beforehand, and still managed to start cramping (bad ones) after 20 minutes. I had to stop. Now after a shower it's slightly better.

It's so frustrating! I thought exercise was good for pain. I've been working out pretty much every day (minus 2) for 30-45 minutes for 5 weeks now. Surely my body would be used to it by now? Today was my day 'off' anyway so it wasn't a big deal, but I don't want to go through the same thing for the next 2 days again. Last month wasn't too bad but I had to stop early a couple times too because of cramps.

How does it work for you?

I don't have cramping while I'm exercising, but I rarely actually think about my body when I'm exercising. I used to have terrible cramping, as I've lost weight I also lost the cramping. I'm 10 pounds over where I'd like to be right now, and this month was the first time I've had any cramping in 18 months. Keep at it, hopefully it will get better. Oh, and I never want to work out when I have my period, I just get my *kitten* in gear and do it anyway.

^^ THIS