Exercise and Movement

Exercise for Women’s Health

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Hey everyone! From PMS through menopause, physical activity offers powerful payoffs for us as women. 💪 Let’s talk about those benefits––and if you feel like you don’t have time or hate to exercise, we’ve got some hacks for that. 🌸

 

EXERCISE BENEFITS for WOMEN

• Aids in relieving hormone-related sleep trouble: Whether your sleep is challenged by PMS or menopause, one of the best supporters of a good night’s sleep is regular physical activity. [1]

• Helps you manage stress and mood: From PMS to menopausal moods, regular exercise can help with depression and anxiety while promoting mental well-being.[2]

• Supports a healthy weight: By helping to boost your insulin sensitivity, calorie-burning, and metabolism, regular workouts support healthier numbers on the scale.[3]

• Helps reduce your risk of disease: In supporting a healthy weight, it helps reduce your risk of obesity-related conditions such as heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. This is especially valuable after menopause when our risks increase even more.[4]

• Assists in preventing osteoporosis: Healthy muscles help support healthy bones, which is vital when our osteoporosis risk goes up significantly, especially in the first 5 years after reaching menopause––and to help young women reduce the risk of osteoporosis later.[5] 

• Can help reduce the risk of broken bones: Because of bone mass loss, post-menopausal women are more at risk for fractures if they fall. Mindful exercises like yoga and qigong may help prevent falls by building balance and coordination.[6]

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How much exercise do we need?

The Office of Women’s Health recommends that all women get at least 150 minutes each week of moderate-intensity physical activity. When you think about it, that’s only about 20 minutes per day. Or 30 minutes x 5 days a week. 

 

Hacks to Make Exercise Easier

Sometimes getting a sustainable workout routine going is the hardest part.

 

We’ve got some tips for that!

• Start small. Don’t try to fit in all 150 minutes at once. It’s safer for your body (and motivation) to build up gradually. 

• Try squeezing in shorter workouts more frequently. This is a lifesaver when time is tight, or you can't commit to an hour-long class. You can find great 10 to 20-minute workouts online. 

• Consider waking up 20 minutes earlier or carving out time right before lunch. With so many short workouts available online, sneaking in 20 minutes helps you fit in a hassle-free workout.

• Prep everything the night before. Make it effortless by laying out your exercise clothes, weights, mat or whatever you need. Fill up your water bottle and put everything where you can’t miss it. 

• Multitask while exercising. Listen to your favorite (or even work-related) podcasts, audiobooks, etc while you're on the treadmill or out for a walk or run.

• Find a workout that makes you happy. When you enjoy what you're doing, it's much easier to prioritize and squeeze it in.

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Tip! You can stream classes for strength, yoga, Pilates, and more for FREE on the Shaklee Wellness on Demand site: https://go.shaklee.com/wellness-on-demand/

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HAVE YOU JOINED THE CHALLENGE? Complete the quiz to activate!

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➡️ Do you have any other favourite online workout sources or YouTube channels? Please share in the comments in the circle!

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1. Crispim, C. A., Zimberg, I. Z., dos Reis, B. G., Diniz, R. M., Tufik, S., & de Mello, M. T. (2011). Relationship between food intake and sleep pattern in healthy individuals. The Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine 

2. Rebar, A. L., Stanton, R., Geard, D., Short, C., Duncan, M. J., & Vandelanotte, C. (2015). A meta-meta-analysis of the effect of physical activity on depression and anxiety in non-clinical adult populations. Health psychology review

3. Daley, A. (2008). Exercise and depression: a review of reviews. Journal of clinical psychology in medical settings

4. Donnelly, J. E., Blair, S. N., Jakicic, J. M., Manore, M. M., Rankin, J. W., & Smith, B. K. (2009). American College of Sports Medicine Position Stand. Appropriate physical activity intervention strategies for weight loss and prevention of weight regain for adults. Medicine and science in sports and exercise

5. Warburton, D. E., Nicol, C. W., & Bredin, S. S. (2006). Health benefits of physical activity: the evidence. Canadian medical association journal, 174(6), 801-809.

6. Sherrington, C., Tiedemann, A., Fairhall, N., Close, J. C., & Lord, S. R. (2011). Exercise to prevent falls in older adults: an updated meta-analysis and best practice recommendations. NSW public health bulletin

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PART 2: NEAT for Women’s Health

We talked about how exercise benefits women’s health, but did you know there is another type of movement that helps you burn extra calories and stay healthy?

 

It’s called NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis), and studies suggest it’s the most important factors to predict whether you lose weight and keep it off! One large study found that people with higher levels of NEAT experienced less cardiovascular disease and a lower mortality rate. REGARDLESS of how much intentional exercise they were doing.* 🤯 

 

So, what  is NEAT? It’s basically all movement that isn’t intentional exercise. In other words, things like gardening, standing, walking to the store, cooking, cleaning, and taking the stairs. 

 

People who move throughout the day are more likely to achieve weight-loss goals than those who have one intense exercise session but are sedentary the rest of the day. Crazy, right? Even small increases in your NEAT activity can burn hundreds of daily calories. 🔥

 

 Check out the graphic below for ways to increase your NEAT.

 

🤔 How would you like to ramp up your NEAT activity? Comment below what your favorite NEAT activities are. Do you have a favorite that’s not on this list?

 

*Source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24167194

 

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