Exercise for menopausal symptoms, mood and bone health
Regular exercise is the lifestyle measure with the broadest benefit in the menopause: it helps mood, may improve sleep and, if weight-bearing (such as walking), helps protect the bones.
Remember
Regular exercise, with weight-bearing activity such as walking, running or dancing, supports mood and bone health in the menopause and may improve sleep, but the evidence that it reduces hot flushes (sudden waves of heat) is limited, so treat it as a general health measure.
The menopause (the time when periods stop because the ovaries make much less oestrogen) often brings hot flushes (sudden waves of heat), night sweats, poor sleep and low mood. Regular exercise is a lifestyle measure that helps several of these at once.
For the body, exercise helps prevent weight gain and can improve hot flushes, although the evidence that it reduces them is limited. For the mind, exercise together with a healthy diet helps lift mood, and regular exercise may improve sleep.
Weight-bearing exercise means the feet and legs support the body's weight, as in walking, running or dancing. Resistance exercise works the muscles against a load, such as weights or press-ups. Both improve bone density, because bone responds to the pull of muscles and tendons. That matters because bone loss speeds up once oestrogen levels fall, with up to 20% of bone density lost in the first 5 years, which raises the risk of osteoporosis (thin, fragile bones that break easily).
Aerobic activity raises the heart rate and breathing for a sustained spell. Regular exercise can reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke, which rises after the menopause. The NHS advises at least 150 minutes of moderate activity a week plus strengthening activities on at least 2 days a week.
The best activity is one a woman will keep doing, so match it to her fitness, health and preferences. Exercise sits alongside, not instead of, a proper assessment and the offer of treatments.
Key facts
- Weight-bearing exercise
- is exercise in which the feet and legs support the body's weight, for example walking, running and dancing; swimming and cycling do not count.
- Resistance exercise
- uses muscle strength against a load, for example weights or press-ups, and the pull on the bones boosts bone strength.
- Bone loss
- up to 20% of bone density is lost in the first 5 years after the menopause, so early habits matter.
- Weekly target
- at least 150 minutes of moderate activity plus strengthening activities on at least 2 days.
- Timing
- for good sleep, finish exercise at least 4 hours before bed.
- Hot flushes
- evidence that exercise reduces them is limited, so treat it as a general health measure.
Exam traps
- Swimming and cycling are good for fitness, but they are not weight-bearing, so they do not load the bones the way walking, running, dancing or resistance work does.
- Cutting back on physical activity because of tiredness does not help around the menopause, because regular exercise supports mood, strength and bone health and may improve sleep.
- Hard exercise late in the evening is likely to disturb sleep rather than improve it, because the NHS advises against exercising within 4 hours of bedtime when sleep is a problem.
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