LADIES: your period and working out?

Like a lot of people on here, I find that exercise helps with cramps and the other stuff. But also, you need to listen to your body and not push too hard.

Grab some chocolate (dark if possible), a good movie and take it easy.

Eh. I can go either way on this. I have pretty bad periods and they usually involve embarrassing wardrobe malfunctions, so I am very self-conscious about working out. Also, pain. The pain.

However, physical activity does make you feel better. You don't have to go to Zumba or run six miles, but I would take a short walk, maybe do some yoga stretches or a few weight training moves at home. You will feel better and you will have gotten some physical activity in.

But, if you do need to skip it, I understand 100%. BUT tomorrow is a new day, and you have to get back to it.

I always tell myself I'm just going to commit to 10 minutes.
If I do the 10 minutes and just can't stand it then I pat myself on the back, make myself a cup of tea, and put on a sad movie to cry over.
But 99.9% of the time, that 10 minutes fires me up and I do my regular workout and feel better for it!

I hear you its hard... but I always work out every single day! if I feel crummy I take a theromgenic on my um "cycle days" not for every body but it help me keep off the water weight during my cycle and has little boost. but I do typically give in one day during my cycle to eat bread. but that's it

TOTALLY understand. I get horrible symptoms, but I really thing that exercising helps ALOT. I love doing something hard as well! My spin Tabata class works wonders on my symptoms! Go for a light walk, drink a glass of wine and hit hard when you feel better!

You didn't say if you work out at home or the gym. If its usually at the gym, try putting your favorite motivational music on at home and see if it makes you want to move. You could do your workout, or just dance around the house, where you can look and feel as gross and be as grumpy as you want and not worry. The exercise and good music might even make you feel better. Good Luck! Feel Better!

this last month I worked out for the first time on my period, and it actually helped me feel a lot better. Even just a walk or something to get you moving might help!

^^This definitely helps me. I pop a couple of Advil to dull the pain and then start with a walk. If I'm feeling up to it, i turn it into a light jog. Yoga is good, too. I always feel better after than when I start.

Unless I am feeling bad to the point that I can't be at work, can't play with my kid, etc, then yeah, I do my workouts as planned. If you're an athlete/team member, you can't pick & choose the dates that you train/compete; you can't tell your teammates, "no guys, today I'm not gonna train with you, I'm not gonna be there to support you and spot you & get your back because I really just feel like taking a nap & eating junk food." Obviously if you are truly in pain, truly sick, truly CAN'T do it, then that is one thing, but in that case you better be going to the doctor.

When I switched BC one time, the 1st month was HORRIBLE - I mean I remember being at my desk at work, head on my desk, eyes shut & teeth grinding together, and trying to figure out how to tactfully tell my boss I need to leave (without actually explaining the particulars of the situation - let's face it, that's TMI for a lot of people) and wondering if my doctor could work me in for the day without an advance appointment. If I'm feeling THAT bad, then no I'm not going to the gym. If I'm sick to the point that I have to tell my daughter that she's going to stay with her Nana & Grandpa so that I can sleep & take some meds & I'm worried that I'm contagious and I don't want to get HER sick too, then no, I'm not going to the gym. Otherwise? Maybe reduce volume/intensity or something, dial it back a notch or 2 cause you can't be 100% all of the time, but for the most part it's "suck it up, buttercup" (to be clear, that's me telling that to myself, NOT me trying to being mean to the OP) and "practice like you play" blah blah blah

But that's just my $0.02...as an aside, if you're regular enough that you know your exact start date & when it's the worst etc, why not just arrange your workout schedule (assuming you don't have team responsibilities or anything like that where it's not your choice) so that your "off" days or recovery/light days are your TOM and therefore whether or not you go to the gym is pretty much a non-issue? Just make it less complicated overall?

Save your period days for yoga and stretching

I behave while on my period almost exactly as I would when not.

I have incredibly debilitating periods. Been back and forth between doctors and hospitals for years but apparently there is nothing wrong with me - that's just how mine are. Mine leave me bedridden, rolling around on the floor in agony, crying, clutching my stomach and vomiting. I skip LIFE around those days, so to hell with the goddamned gym.

I have incredibly debilitating periods. Been back and forth between doctors and hospitals for years but apparently there is nothing wrong with me - that's just how mine are. Mine leave me bedridden, rolling around on the floor in agony, crying, clutching my stomach and vomiting. I skip LIFE around those days, so to hell with the goddamned gym.

Please go see a gynecologist if you haven't already, preferably a female doctor who has experience in treating endometriosis and similar pelvic disorders. What you're going through is not even remotely normal and you deserve to be treated properly. My sister has endo, and I probably do too (it's often hereditary). It took almost 3 years for them to take my sister seriously. I was tentatively diagnosed at my first appointment (the only official way to diagnose endo is surgery). Over 5 million women in the US alone have endo, and that's not including all of the women who have been misdiagnosed. There are plenty of other disorders that can cause severe pelvic pain, too. Please please don't give up and accept that this is just "how your periods are." Find a doctor who will take you seriously.

I have incredibly debilitating periods. Been back and forth between doctors and hospitals for years but apparently there is nothing wrong with me - that's just how mine are. Mine leave me bedridden, rolling around on the floor in agony, crying, clutching my stomach and vomiting. I skip LIFE around those days, so to hell with the goddamned gym.

Please go see a gynecologist if you haven't already, preferably a female doctor who has experience in treating endometriosis and similar pelvic disorders. What you're going through is not even remotely normal and you deserve to be treated properly. My sister has endo, and I probably do too (it's often hereditary). It took almost 3 years for them to take my sister seriously. I was tentatively diagnosed at my first appointment (the only official way to diagnose endo is surgery). Over 5 million women in the US alone have endo, and that's not including all of the women who have been misdiagnosed. There are plenty of other disorders that can cause severe pelvic pain, too. Please please don't give up and accept that this is just "how your periods are." Find a doctor who will take you seriously.

Second this. I had drop-you-to-your-knees cramps 10-12 years back... Accepted them as "within the range of normal" and went on with things... I was very fortunate that it was only fibroid tumors, something I found out just last year. Those original fibroids were calcified and I was full of newer ones - so much so that they bulged in an unusual place and I was thought to have an abdominal hernia for a couple of years. Had I let it go on longer than I did, I would have had to have open surgery to remove them. "Female problems" don't improve with age.

Re the original question: I found exercise to be good for cramps, but only for cramps. Without a uterus, I no longer have bleeding or cramping. But I still have monthly cycles because I kept my ovaries, and that includes one or two days of headaches, weakness, dizziness, and nausea that make a serious workout pretty unthinkable. On those days, I have no qualms about calling an impromptu rest day. I'll walk if I feel up to it, but that's about it. Bottom line: Do what feels right for you.

This content has been removed.

I have PCOS, and really painful periods.

Last month I did leg day on the first (worst) day of my cycle. Full squats and deadlifts. I survived

However, if I'm vomiting (happens from pain sometimes) I'l stay home to spare the other members.