Exercise relieves menopause symptoms

• Bouché, an executive assistant at Nickelodeon Animation, is a testament to the power of exercise over menopausal symptoms.
• That link has been noted by fitness instructors and trainers who have seen the effect on the hot flashes, insomnia, joint aches and weight gain often accompanying this phase of a woman's life.
• But it's only now starting to get a closer look from researchers and from many women looking for natural ways to ease the symptoms of menopause.
• One analysis of 12 menopausal women in an eight-week strength training program found that 40% of the women felt less anxious and half had less aching, stiffness and irritability.
• Yet the prevailing wisdom is that exercise can be a benefit to some women who experience menopausal symptoms --- if not by actually reducing the frequency of hot flashes and other discomforts, then by generally improving their health.
• "We know that exercise improves quality of life, and if you translate that into any population you see improvements," says Alysia Mastrangelo, associate professor of physical therapy at the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey and lead author of the strength training and yoga studies.
• One study, published last year in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, followed 353 women through a four-year diet and exercise program and found it was able to slow the progression of menopause-related atherosclerosis.
• "The health benefits of exercise go far beyond management of menopause symptoms," says Dr. Carol Mangione, UCLA professor of medicine and chair of the NIH panel.
• It reported that viewing menopause as more of an ailment than a normal life stage can lead to overuse of treatment programs such as hormone replacement therapy.
• It's not unusual to find women in various stages of menopause frequenting Pilates, yoga and aquatics classes; the promise of an intense workout without the pounding of high-impact aerobics is often what draws them.