Let’s talk sweat!!!
For years, we’ve been sold this idea that unless you’re gasping for air, soaked through your top, and questioning your life choices by the end of a workout… you’re not doing it right.
Spin classes, HIIT, bootcamps, burpees ‘til you cry – all in the name of fitness, fat loss, and strength. And hey, if you genuinely enjoy that stuff – power to you. We’re not here to shame your endorphin buzz.
But if you're in perimenopause and dragging yourself to high-intensity workouts because you think you should, it’s time for a little reality check. Our bodies are changing – hormonally, physiologically, emotionally – and what worked in our 20s and 30s might now leave us wiped out, wired, and wondering what the hell just happened.
Let’s break it down.
It doesn’t guarantee fat loss.
In fact, cortisol (a necessary stress hormone) can increase with intense exercise – especially if you’re already stressed, underslept, or underfed. And high cortisol can lead to more fat storage around the middle. Yep. Rude.
It doesn’t always build strength.
If your HIIT sessions are all cardio and chaos, you’re not necessarily building muscle. And muscle is what keeps us strong, stable, and metabolically supported through perimenopause and beyond.
It doesn’t help when your nervous system is fried.
Constant intensity without enough recovery can lead to burnout, sleep disruption, and mood swings. (As if we need more of those.)
It doesn’t account for hormonal fluctuations.
We’re not men. (Obviously.) Our hormones change weekly, daily, hourly. Men’s hormones follow a 24-hour cycle; ours are more like a rollercoaster with no safety bar.
Mobility, balance, proprioception, and strength. (Sexy? Not always. Essential? Absolutely.)
💪 Strength training helps preserve muscle, support bone density, and regulate blood sugar – all key players in managing menopausal symptoms and long-term health.
👈 Mobility work keeps joints juicy and movement smooth. Think stretching, yoga, or just foam rolling while swearing at the ceiling.
🦶 Balance and proprioception (your body's ability to know where it is in space) help prevent falls, improve coordination, and keep us feeling confident and steady – physically and mentally.
🌿 And let’s not forget recovery. Rest is not weakness. It’s strategy.
A well-rounded routine could look like:
2–3 sessions of strength training (no, you don’t need to “tone” – you need to lift)
Daily walks or light cardio for heart health and headspace
Mobility/stretching most days, even 5–10 mins
Balance work (standing on one leg while brushing your teeth totally counts)
One fun or silly movement session – dancing, gardening, hula hooping – whatever lifts your soul
And if you still love the occasional sweaty, high-intensity class – that’s fine! Do it because you enjoy it, not because you’ve been guilted into it by a culture that tells us we need to shrink and punish ourselves to be healthy.
We’re not here to grind ourselves into the ground. We’re here to move well, feel good, and build bodies that can carry us confidently into the next chapter – menopause and beyond.
So no, you don’t have to be red-faced and wrecked after every workout to “earn” your health. You just have to be consistent, intentional, and kind to your body.
She’s doing her best. So should you.
Want help figuring out what movement works for your changing body? Keep following Planet Pause – we’ve got you 💪