If the thought of high-intensity-anything on Day One of your period makes you want to end it all…well then, babe, you are in tune with your bod. You’re a goddess. A witch. A wood nymph, one with the flora. That’s because doing super intense activities while you’re in full bleed is actually majorly counterproductive.
Our biology knows that at this time, we are more vulnerable. We tend to have less energy, feel slower and denser, carry more water weight, experience pain, and even have heightened emotions. While this is all because our hormones are at their lowest during our period, it also makes our body go into protection mode.
This means that while you are working your ass off in the gym, despite your body’s screams of protest, you’re actually turning on fat-storing genes (holy sh*t, we know) and upleveling your fatigue to new heights…er, lows.
It’s all about slow, controlled, low-intensity movement during this time, and Bailey Brown, the founder of the Pilates- and cycle-syncing workout app Align, has just the moves for you. Follow along with the video below to calm your nerves and center your body through effective, yet gentle, toning exercises on the mat.
To learn more about what kind of workouts we should be doing for each phase, check out Bailey’s detailed explanation.