PMS Management: Exercise Guidelines

To re-establish a regular, symptom-free cycle, the first step is to use Yoga, Qi Gong warm-up exercises and walking to stimulate balanced flow. Once a routine is established (daily for 30 minutes), you can expand your exercises to include aerobics such as jogging, cycling and swimming. Exercising 5 times a week, 45 minutes a day will strengthen Qi — but you should avoid exercise to the point of exhaustion or you will deplete Qi. Your total exercise time should be about 7.25 hours a week including the Yoga and/or Qi Gong and aerobics.

If you have any gynecological disharmony, weight lifting exercises should be done only 3 days a week — the process of tearing down and building up muscle tissue can cause a Spleen Deficiency, which could lead to a Xue Deficiency and increased menstrual problems.