Workouts for Perimenopause & Irregular Periods
In this blog, we’re taking a look at exercise during perimenopause which is the sometimes tricky transition between your fertile years and postmenopause.
Additionally, if your phase shifts are hard to pin down because of irregular periods or acute life stress, you can use the workout approach that we’ll discuss below.
Reproductive Stages
If it’s been a while since your last health class, we’ll start with a quick refresh that covers reproductive stages for women.
Much like your menstrual cycle, your reproductive life, shown in the timeline below, has three unique stages (childhood, reproductive years, and postmenopause) that are bookended by transitions (puberty and perimenopause) and marked by distinct events (menarche and menopause).
More on Perimenopause
The duration and symptoms of the perimenopause transition will vary greatly from woman to woman, but in general, there are two phases:
Phase I is when your period is regular, but it’s changing i.e. getting shorter or longer. You still experience predictable phase shifts with your menstrual cycle, but you may need to adjust the length of each phase to mirror your new personal rhythm.
Phase II is when your period becomes irregular or unpredictable as a result of high, fluctuating estrogen and decreasing progesterone. You’ll experience more anovulatory cycles and less reliable phase shifts.
Exercise During Perimenopause
Phase I Workouts
In early perimenopause, you can continue using your menstrual cycle as a map for workouts with added discretion around energy levels. For example, if you’re feeling sluggish in your follicular phase, there’s no shame in jumping into the luteal roadmap for a few days!
Plus, it’s never too early to start implementing strategies that will improve lean muscle mass for long-term health. Perimenopause is an opportune time for early intervention when cortisol levels and insulin resistance are slowly on the rise.
Incorporate more (and shorter) anaerobic and high-intensity training (like sprint intervals and total body resistance days) followed by intentional recovery and fuel.
Focus on heavier loading and explosive efforts during strength sessions.
Increase protein intake to combat muscle-protein synthesis decline.
Perimenopause Pro-Tip → Consider tracking ovulation for a few months (if you aren’t already) to understand your new pattern and phase lengths as your cycle begins to change.
Phase II Workouts
When your cycle becomes irregular, your phases will be less predictable. In addition to the recommendations above, consider the following options for programming workouts:
Use a two-phase workout cycle where you’re pushing hard for two weeks in performance mode (as you would in follicular and ovulatory phases) before shifting to lower intensity/recovery for two weeks in preservation mode (like luteal and menstrual). Check out this post for more on this two-part strategy!
Use the moon cycle as a map where you build effort and intensity during the waxing phase from new moon to full moon. Then shift to lower-intensity workouts during the waning phase with rest or recovery practices around the new moon.
Perimenopause Pro-Tip → As always, use your energy levels as a guide. Take into account things like sleep quality, mental energy, and life events. See more on this below.
Using lunae with Irregular Cycles
If you’re in phase II of perimenopause or your cycle is a bit of a moving target, you can think of the phases as having a unique energy profile rather than being tied to a specific time of the month. You can use the two-phase approach described above or select workouts based on how you feel using the energetics of each phase outlined below.
Sample Workout Calendar
Download a sample workout calendar for perimenopause and irregular periods with links to workouts for each day of your cycle! (Some of these workouts will require a YouTube membership to access.)
I hope you know that it is a privilege to be a part of your movement journey. Thank you for letting your body be moved by lunae!
