LADIES- what do you do for exercise when you're on your period and feel like dirt??

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  • bababs89
    bababs89 Posts: 307 Member
    Moving makes me feel better than taking a rest day, so I do my usual workouts. If my cramps are bad, I'll do a lighter workout but still make sure that I'm staying active and drinking lots of water.
  • tomatoey
    tomatoey Posts: 5,446 Member
    HappyCampr1 wrote: »
    I just keep doing whatever my routine says to do for the day. And I tell myself..."there is no such thing as a bad workout." And it's the truth. You're better off whatever you do than if you did nothing at all. 100%, 50%, 25%... They're all better than 0%.

    Sometimes 0% is what you can do (e.g. if you have some complicating thing going on). No one should beat themselves up for that. One or two days off is not going to completely upset the program, easy enough to just make those rest days.
  • epido
    epido Posts: 353 Member
    I do the same workouts I do any other time of the month. I should also add, I am fortunate that I don't typically get cramps, and the exercise helps with the bloated feeling.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    When i don't feel like exercising because of TOM, I do it anyway - it always makes me feel better! I take less Advil now than I ever did before. If it's strength day, I do weights; if it's run day, I go for a run. If it's a particularly "bad" day on a run day, I might just do a shorter shorter run, out and back from home to avoid any problems. Pushing through exercise even when I feel yucky ALWAYS makes me feel better!
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    Right now I'm ovulating late for some reason, and feel almost worse than when I have my period. I went in today, exhausted, and had kind of a crappy work out. Don't regret it though. Better luck next week.
  • FatFreeFrolicking
    FatFreeFrolicking Posts: 4,252 Member
    arditarose wrote: »
    Right now I'm ovulating late for some reason, and feel almost worse than when I have my period. I went in today, exhausted, and had kind of a crappy work out. Don't regret it though. Better luck next week.

    You're not alone. I know exactly when I'm ovulating because I feel like *kitten*. Terrible cramps, nausea, and abdominal pain. Oh, the joys of being a woman...
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    FatFreeFrolicking wrote: »
    arditarose wrote: »
    Right now I'm ovulating late for some reason, and feel almost worse than when I have my period. I went in today, exhausted, and had kind of a crappy work out. Don't regret it though. Better luck next week.

    You're not alone. I know exactly when I'm ovulating because I feel like *kitten*. Terrible cramps, nausea, and abdominal pain. Oh, the joys of being a woman...

    Right? Sometimes I'll be out in public, standing in a store and just FEEL it. I'm also psychotic during ovulation, more so than period.
  • katycombs33
    katycombs33 Posts: 1
    If she is anything like me, the cramps are nothing compared to the extreme sleepiness I get during my cycle. I get seriously down for the count. Exercise is the last thing I want to do...sometimes being a woman truly stinks :(
  • shinisize
    shinisize Posts: 105 Member
    I don't usually get cramps, but I do feel flu-like with a full body achiness for the first three days. I've found that the more I keep my heart rate up, the more condensed my period is--by days if I really keep active all day. Most months I do whatever my regular work out is, and then lots of deep cleaning around the house just to keep me moving and distracted from how totally crappy I feel.
  • kelly_e_montana
    kelly_e_montana Posts: 1,999 Member
    I am fine with cardio during TOM but my heavy lifting really suffers. I work out 2x per day most days per week so I can afford to take a day off or just do yoga one or two days per month, so if I feel tired, I rest and let my muscles rebuild.
  • kmccann357
    kmccann357 Posts: 91 Member
    FatFreeFrolicking wrote: »
    I do the same thing I do when I'm not on my period.

    I have endometriosis and PCOS. With that being said, I get extremely painful cramps. I still manage to get a walk or lift in because exercise helps with cramps (for most people).

    Gotta love the unholy combo!
  • tomatoey
    tomatoey Posts: 5,446 Member
    katycombs33 wrote: »
    If she is anything like me, the cramps are nothing compared to the extreme sleepiness I get during my cycle. I get seriously down for the count. Exercise is the last thing I want to do...sometimes being a woman truly stinks :(

    Have you tried upping your iron & vit B?
  • runningagainstmyself
    runningagainstmyself Posts: 616 Member
    I take a couple of Tylenol and hit the pavement and do around 5km for a run. I find that because I have to work my lower core that running really helps lower the cramping factor, and ups my energy levels.
  • astrocosmiczoom
    astrocosmiczoom Posts: 86 Member
    Skip the first day and roll around in bed moaning, then continue as normal for the other five or so :smiley:
  • acquilla30
    acquilla30 Posts: 147 Member
    My AF is an evil evil tyrant that brings extremely horrible cramps, nausea, stuff flying out of all exit/entrance points, bloating, backaches, dizziness, hot flashes-basically the works, so that first day or two I'm usually crying in bed. I don't force myself to do anything, because exercise seems to make it worse. After two days though, break over and I am back in the gym.
    I say listen to your body, if it says move and you will pay, give yourself a break for a couple days.
  • acquilla30
    acquilla30 Posts: 147 Member
    edited March 2015
    arditarose wrote: »
    Right now I'm ovulating late for some reason, and feel almost worse than when I have my period. I went in today, exhausted, and had kind of a crappy work out. Don't regret it though. Better luck next week.

    I hate ovulation time, it has gotten worse since I hit my 30s. Its like my body goes into overdrive to push out those decaying eggs so I can help populate the world and sends me painful signals so I know lol. Than after I'm an exhausted weepy mess. The joys of womanhood.
  • MimiLovesLosing
    MimiLovesLosing Posts: 1
    I do some gentle yoga. I have PCOS and Systemic Lupus. I tend to do some yoga or do something with resistance bands or something that will help me with relaxing my crampy muscles.
  • deeksha_s
    deeksha_s Posts: 79 Member
    acquilla30 wrote: »
    My AF is an evil evil tyrant that brings extremely horrible cramps, nausea, stuff flying out of all exit/entrance points, bloating, backaches, dizziness, hot flashes-basically the works, so that first day or two I'm usually crying in bed. I don't force myself to do anything, because exercise seems to make it worse. After two days though, break over and I am back in the gym.
    I say listen to your body, if it says move and you will pay, give yourself a break for a couple days.

    This! Though I tend to keep away from heavy exercising for all 5 days
  • SerenityGrace
    SerenityGrace Posts: 53
    "my body goes into overdrive to push out those decaying eggs so I can help populate the world"

    I laughed entirely too loud at 5 in the morning over this. I think I'll have a smile on my face for a while now. Thanks for brightening my day!
  • yesimpson
    yesimpson Posts: 1,372 Member
    I had no idea people can tell when they're ovulating. This is fascinating, in a biology-geek way.
  • msladydee79
    msladydee79 Posts: 2 Member
    I can relate... walking , stretching and lots of water always does the trick.

  • madmaddox719
    madmaddox719 Posts: 84 Member
    edited March 2015
    I focus on weights more than cardio, light weigh high reps, mainly arms and back
  • crystalnichols395
    crystalnichols395 Posts: 68 Member
    a few days before my period I tend to bust my *kitten* doing leg workouts and ab workouts and then on the first two days when I cramp the most I tend to work on my arms and cardio (i.e. walking elliptical bike). Hope this helps you out!!!
  • sunglasses_and_ocean_waves
    sunglasses_and_ocean_waves Posts: 2,757 Member
    Day one maybe just a walk because I'm so miserable ... maybe a run. The rest is business as usual.
  • Graceious1
    Graceious1 Posts: 716 Member
    I always do something. If I feel any pain I take a painkiller then get on with it. Martial arts and taekwondo are a major part of my life now and the only time I don't do it is if I am really, really ill or travelling. How important is doing exercise for you in the first place?
  • Jtorres326
    Jtorres326 Posts: 157 Member
    On my most crampy days usually day 2 and 3, I do light cardio and yoga. Otherwise, I workout normally.
  • silverarcheress
    silverarcheress Posts: 125 Member
    I suffer from PCOS but not the cramps. I get extreme dizzyness and nausea the day before, Day 1 and sometimes into Day 2. Those days are also ridiculously heavy so I tend to not want to be away from a bathroom for more than an hour or so (I really wish I was exagerrating with that). Those days I tend to curl up and work on relaxing all my muscles. By the end of Day 2 I'm normally okay to do things like Pilates and Yoga and after that I do a reduced intensity cardio or strength training. I tend to feel really good once I'm doing them. I've started tracking which days of the month are best for which type of training. I know that the 3rd weekend after my period is brilliant for endurance challenges so I tend to cycle massive distances and do hill climbing.
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
    I just - you know- continue doing what it is that I do. Nothing changes.
  • AblazeRiver
    AblazeRiver Posts: 47 Member
    I love hooping! It puts me in a good mood and helps activate the muscles supporting your uterus to reduce cramps. Blast the good music and go! There's so much more you can do than just spin it on your waist. Good luck, and feel free to friend me if you want to learn more about it!
  • rawstrongchick
    rawstrongchick Posts: 66 Member
    I push through, I always find I feel much better for doing a proper workout than I don't. It seems to relieve the cramps and lighten my mood.
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