Hey there, fabulous 40-somethings! Feeling like your body's playing hormonal hopscotch? You're not alone. As we navigate this exciting decade, our hormones can sometimes feel like they're on a roller coaster. But fear not! Exercise is one of our best tools for bringing balance back to our bodies. Let's dive into five key exercises that can help you feel more like yourself again.

Why Hormone-Balancing Exercises Matter

Before we jump into the moves, let's talk about why this matters. In our 40s, hormones like estrogen, progesterone, and cortisol can fluctuate wildly. This can lead to mood swings, weight gain, sleep issues, and more. The right exercises can help regulate these hormones, boosting your mood, energy, and overall health.

1. Strength Training: Your New Best Friend

What it does: Boosts metabolism, increases muscle mass, improves insulin sensitivity.

How to do it: Start with bodyweight exercises like squats, push-ups, and lunges. As you get stronger, add weights. We have three strength training workouts each week in the FASTer Way.

Pro tip: To maximize our time, we focus on compound movements that work multiple muscle groups at once for maximum hormone-balancing benefits.

2. High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT): The Metabolism Booster

What it does: Increases human growth hormone production, improves insulin sensitivity, burns fat. We don’t advocate for daily cardio workouts at the FASTer Way. They often put more stress on your body. Instead, we have effective but efficient HIIT routines twice a week for maximum fat burn.

How to do it: Alternate between short bursts of intense activity (like sprinting or jump squats) and brief rest periods. 

Pro tip:Listen to your body. HIIT is powerful, but it's also intense. It’s important not to overdo it or you could make things worse not better.

3. Yoga: The Stress-Buster

What it does: Reduces cortisol levels, improves sleep quality, enhances mood.

How to do it: Try a variety of yoga styles to see what works best for you. Even 10-15 minutes of daily practice can make a difference.

Pro tip: Focus on restorative poses like Child's Pose and Legs-Up-the-Wall for extra stress-busting benefits.

4. Pilates: The Core Strengthener

What it does:Improves posture, reduces back pain, strengthens deep abdominal muscles.

How to do it: Start with basic Pilates moves like the Hundred, Roll-Up, and Plank. Aim for 2-3 sessions per week. FASTer Way offers a core circuit every Friday that can generally be done with bodyweight only.

Pro tip: Pilates can help with pelvic floor strength, which is especially important as we age.

5. Walking: The Underrated All-Rounder

What it does: Reduces cortisol, improves cardiovascular health, aids in fat loss.

How to do it: You can put walking under the ‘daily movement’ headline. We like to encourage clients to get their daily steps but beyond that, walking isn’t about getting in an extra cardio workout, it’s about stress busting, gentle movement and digestive health. 

Pro tip:Make it social! Walking with friends can boost mood-elevating hormones even more.

Putting It All Together

Here's the FASTer Way client workout schedule with exercise routines 30 minutes or less every day:

- Monday: HIIT 

- Tuesday: HIIT 

- Wednesday: Total Body Strength

- Thursday: Back, Biceps, Triceps 

- Friday: Core Circuit 

- Saturday: Leg Day

- Sunday: Recover with Yoga, ISO Stretch or a long, leisurely walk 

The Bottom Line

Hormone-balancing exercises aren't just about looking good (though that's a nice bonus!). They're about feeling energized, strong, and like yourself again. The FASTer Way can help you do that along with our pro trainers and clinically proven app. Here's to embracing our 40s with strength, grace, and well-balanced hormones. 

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