Menopause Tips - Exercise and Hormone Replacement Therapy

Getting exercise is an important part of daily life; it helps keep us fit and well and makes us feel better. Growing older should be no excuse for stopping an exercise regime, and in fact it is more important than ever to exercise as we age.

While taking hormone replacement therapy, getting exercise is particularly valuable; taking extra hormones such as HRT can sometimes have adverse effects. For example they may feel irritable with associated mood swings or they may feel they are gaining weight, all because of the relentless fluctuation in hormone levels. Although there is no definite research to prove taking HRT makes a woman put on weight, getting exercise can often make certain she feels better about herself.

Our metabolism usually slows down quite significantly as we get older, which means that even if we have always been slim naturally when younger, we often find it more of a struggle as we get older. Women who have never had this problem may find adjusting their calorie intake to suit their body difficult.

Exercising when you are taking HRT doesn't need to be strenuous. You don't have to join a gym, have the mindset of a triathlete, or get obsessive about it. All you need to do is get in a positive state of mind and tell yourself you are going to take a small amount of exercise every week or, even better, every day.

Walking can be one of the best forms of exercise, and establishing some walking in your everyday routine lets you get a surprising level of exercise.

Walking to work, if possible, is a good way to integrate exercise into your daily life. It's most effective if it takes at least twenty minutes, but any amount is great. If walking to work is not a good option, and you own a dog, walking the dog is not only good for you but also your dog.

Swimming is also a high-quality exercise to do when taking hormone replacement therapy. Swimming exercises almost all of the body. You'll find your body and energy tones up quickly, if you can make do with fitting in a swimming session three times a week,

Taking even a small amount of exercise will also help smooth out mood swings or feelings of depression you may be experiencing, since exercise releases natural feel good chemicals, endorphins, into the blood stream, that make us feel much better. Working out also lowers your risk for osteoporosis and high blood pressure, so why wait? Start this week and reap the benefits.