Welfare Wednesday

Welcome back to Welfare Wednesday and our last Wednesday focusing on Women’s health.

To finish the month we are focusing on the effect that a women’s Menstrual cycle has on exercise.

Now you may or may not have just read ‘Menstrual cycle’, freaked out and scrolled on but if you haven’t - THANK YOU!

This is something that women battle with every single month until they hit menopause (if you read last weeks post you will know that’s a whole different rollercoaster)

so keep reading and help support yourself or the women in your life…

Women’s hormones change during each stage of their menstrual cycle and this affects the metabolism, energy levels and mood. All of these combined affects how a women feels and the type of exercise they might do.

Energy levels

During the first half of a cycle, women may feel more energetic and able to carry out high intensity exercise such as running, dancing or circuits. This is because their body produces more oestrogen after there period. This hormone boosts energy levels - it is at its highest near ovulation. After ovulation, the second half of a cycle, a women’s body produces more progesterone and this may cause tiredness.

Metabolism and Mood

There has been some evidence that oestrogen can affect the metabolism, as the hormone levels increase at the beginning of the cycle the body may burn more fat than usual. Towards the end of the cycle metabolism can also increase, however a women may also get carbohydrate cravings. Hormone levels also affects mood and therefore can affect a women’s motivation for exercise.

It is so important that a woman listens to her body during her cycle and takes part in exercise that is appropriate for her energy levels.

The first half of a cycle might involve:

🔸HIIT

🔸Running

🔸Dancing

Where as the second half of a cycle might look more like this:

🔸Pilates

🔸Yoga

🔸Walking

Listen to your body and take it one day at a time!

The Welfare Team 🩷