Can Exercise Balance Your Hormones?

We know that exercise is great for improving our cardio vascular health in midlife, strengthen our bones, reduce the risk of osteoporosis + boost our mood! But did you know that exercise plays a vital role in balancing our hormones. Check out these 6 ways it can help towards our hormone health!

6 Ways Exercise can help to balance our hormones in midlife.

Balancing Insulin - being more sensitive to insulin means our body can more effectively balance our blood sugar levels. Insulin is a hormone that helps regulate our glucose levels. When we are insulin sensitive we can more readily take up glucose from the blood + keep our blood sugar level balanced. More balance can help improve weight management, reduce inflammation + reduce our risk of diabetes.
Reducing Stress - Exercise is a great stress reliever + can reduce our stress hormone cortisol. With busy lifestyles it can feel like we are in constant 'fight or flight'! Reduced stress can help reduce cortisol + promote more hormonal balance.
Affecting Estrogen - exercise cannot directly influence estrogen levels, however it can help with estrogen metabolism. It has been found that exercise can improve our estrogen metabolite profile which is our bodies ability to create, process + eliminate estrogen to help maintain hormonal balance.
Weight Management - Exercise helps control body weight + the distribution of fat. Fat tissue, particularly fat around our abdominal area, can produce estrogen. By reducing body fat, we can help prevent excessive estrogen production.
Releasing Endorphins - Exercise releases endorphins our feel good hormones, which can positively affect mood + reduce symptoms such as hot flushes.
Supporting the HPA Axis - Exercise can help regulate the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. This is basically the system that regulates our response to stress. Prolonged stress can lead to an increase in cortisol levels, immune system suppression, weight gain + mood fluctuations. Exercise can help regulate this vital system!!

Of course exercise it just one lifestyle approach to hormone regulation. If you want to chat more about how exercise can help you, please get in touch!