Menstruation

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larali1980
larali1980 Posts: 162 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Sorry if this is a bit graphic for the forum... but I am wondering...

What do you ladies do on THOSE DAYS? Those really BAD days where you are in severe pain and bleeding your guts out?

I was going to exercise today but oh my god... I am having the worst period ever.
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Replies

  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
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    It's not going to stop me from my training, for sure. I'll probably need to binge. I'm learning to prepare for that rather than fight it.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    Exercise usually makes me feel better, although it's sometimes hard to get going. So I usually try to get the workout in regardless.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,627 Member
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    like i tell my 17 year old ..... life does not stop because you have cramps.

    take some motrin, suck it up, and carry on ....
  • tara_means_star
    tara_means_star Posts: 957 Member
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    I tend to eat less because I'm not hungry during TOM but I also don't feel like exercising so I decide to eat less and move less.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,913 Member
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    I didn't not exercise during my period until my fibroid got so big that the bleeding was so heavy that it wakes me up many times at night. Asking my body to do my regular exercise program despite extreme blood loss and sleep deprivation is asking too much.

    I will go pick up sticks in the yard or something similarly light just so I don't get stiff from inactivity.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    tara_means_star wrote: »
    I tend to eat less because I'm not hungry during TOM but I also don't feel like exercising so I decide to eat less and move less.

    I'm the same way. The combination of the cramps and other symptoms often makes it harder to eat. Of course, my appetite and cravings the days before my period starts more than balance it out . . .
  • BunnyBomb
    BunnyBomb Posts: 143 Member
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    I do two very specific things with my diet on those days, planning ahead to do them...

    1. I avoid any and all acidic vegetables and fruits, including fruit juice, citrus, etc. For me they always, always lead to more cramps! Instead I drink more alkalising juices that also work to reduce my arthritis (you'll hate it, but it's cucumber & celery juice with ginger root - I use a masticating juicer so it copes with ginger root)
    2. I soak in Epsom Salts in the bath (basically magnesium) to relax the muscles. If it's really bad I take a magnesium supplement before bed and find it stops the night cramps.

    I've been doing these same 2 things for years and darned if they don't work. I then carry on
  • sarahq81
    sarahq81 Posts: 35 Member
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    I totally disagree with the 'suck it up' approach... Hormones can wreak havoc with how you feel and be really painful. I track my cycle on an app so it doesn't catch me off guard, and then have one day where I sit around like a sloth and completely indulge myself. One day a month does no harm, and three days later I'm bursting with energy and drinking loads of water, so any added weight falls straight off. Just make sure it's only one or two days!!! Listen to your body and get extra sleep if you need.
  • brinktofit89
    brinktofit89 Posts: 5 Member
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    It really depends. I'll take some pain relievers and drink some red raspberry leaf tea (only recently learned about this stuff for cramps-best thing ever!). I try to exercise after that stuff kicks in. If after 5 minutes I'm overly exhausted, I stop and call it quits for the day. Some months I'm fine and can keep up my normal exercise routine, but other times I just can't do it for a few days. Meh, I just listen to my body. You could always schedule a rest day(s) for those day(s).
  • BoaRestrictor
    BoaRestrictor Posts: 194 Member
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    I usually bite the bullet and workout. Exercising helps my cramps.
  • CooCooPuff
    CooCooPuff Posts: 4,374 Member
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    You're the only one that can really judge. I skipped working out today because I tripped yesterday and feel too much discomfort in my knee to justify a run or my bodyweight routine. It's not just a sore muscle.

    My cramps were never bad enough to prevent me from exercise, but my anemic sister has had some really awful cycles.
  • kathakraz
    kathakraz Posts: 65 Member
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    Exercising makes my cramps and other period-associated body aches more painful and last longer. I ran my first half marathon last year and my schedule worked out so that my last long run before the race was on day 2 of my period. I literally cried when I finished that run. I won't do that to myself again. The only time I exercise now during that time is if there's a race that's already been paid for.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
    edited January 2016
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    kathakraz wrote: »
    Exercising makes my cramps and other period-associated body aches more painful and last longer. I ran my first half marathon last year and my schedule worked out so that my last long run before the race was on day 2 of my period. I literally cried when I finished that run. I won't do that to myself again. The only time I exercise now during that time is if there's a race that's already been paid for.

    Oooh. Ouch. If exercise makes it worse I might not do it either.


    I'm stubborn though. I got a black eye (literally) on the way to the gym the other week, iced it in the locker room, and still tried to work out. It didn't go so well but I wasn't leaving until I tried. So cramps are definitely not stopping me.
  • Lovee_Dove7
    Lovee_Dove7 Posts: 742 Member
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    Nothing wrong with making that an easy day or a rest day. I never have cramps, except if I try to go for a run! Then it's literally like childbirth for me. And I've had 5 so I know what that's like!
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    Very occasionally I will sofa, blanket and tv it

    Generally I will workout because it makes me feel better

    But sometimes, sometimes it is just too much and those times you need to give yourself a break
  • shadowfax_c11
    shadowfax_c11 Posts: 1,942 Member
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    I used to have periods that totally disabled me with the pain for 24 hours. I know people say that exercise can help. For me it never helped. Sometimes I had to take the day off of work because it was so severe I couldn't move. Best if you take the anti inflammatories before the pain gets really bad. 800 mg of ibuprofen every 4 hours around the clock for 24 hours generally does the trick for me.

    Add in a heating pad or one of those Icy hot heat patches on your stomach or soak in a tub as hot as you can stand can really help if the pain is already intense. Be careful this can really raise your blood pressure so don't stay in too long.
  • ErinR82
    ErinR82 Posts: 50 Member
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    It's hard for me to get motivated during that time... I'm ridiculously tired and hungry and emotional. However, I find that if I can push around that and just get moving, it makes a big difference. It's lighter, doesn't last as long, and I have a lot more energy. It's getting to that point of "just get up and do it" that I struggle with big time!
  • Lasmartchika
    Lasmartchika Posts: 3,440 Member
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    Listen to your body. There will be days that you don't want to do anything, while other days you'll actually feel like exercising. Everybody's different. :)
  • strong_curves
    strong_curves Posts: 2,229 Member
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    Some months are worse than others. If it's really bad I won't work out for a day or 2. I had my period this past week and the pain was so bad I actually called out sick from work and didn't work out that day.
  • _runnerbean_
    _runnerbean_ Posts: 640 Member
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    shadowfax_c11 wrote: »
    800 mg of ibuprofen every 4 hours around the clock for 24 hours generally does the trick for me.
    I'm a pharmacist.
    Just for the record- that dose of ibuprofen is way higher than the recommended dose for adults (normally 400mg three times a day). Don't take that dose without a doctors prescription (and even then I would question it).

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