Most women have experienced pain in the lower abdomen when the menstrual period comes. Period pain, also known as dysmenorrhea, usually occurs before or during the menstrual period. The pain can sometimes interfere with your daily activities, although some women only experience mild pain.

There are several things you can do to reduce period pain, such as compressing the stomach with warm water or taking painkillers. It turns out that physical activity such as walking, aerobics, or jogging can also help reduce the pain. Based on the results of a recent study published in Contemporary Clinical Trials, treadmill exercises can help relieve period pain.

In his study, the researchers analysed 70 women with an age range of 18-43 years. The researchers divided the participants into two groups, where the first group was asked to undergo aerobic exercise that was monitored for four weeks and continued with doing treadmill exercises for six months, unsupervised. In the first four weeks, the participants underwent training three times a week, starting from the first day after the menstrual period is complete. Meanwhile, the other group continue to undergo the usual treatment they always do.

As a result, the researchers found that exercises undertaken by some participants could reduce pain by 6% in the first four weeks of training. After that, the participants also felt a decrease in pain up to 22% during the six month-training period. The participants also felt the benefits of the exercise after seven months of follow-up, with most of them reporting an improvement in their quality of life.

Text by Anggie Triana
Stock photos from Getty Images

Source(s):

• Kannan, P., Chapple, C.M., Miller, D., et all (2019). The effectiveness of treadmill-based aerobic exercise intervention on pain, daily functioning, and quality of life in women with primary dysmenorrhea: A randomised controlled trial. Contemporary Clinical Trials, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cct.2019.05.004.
• Medical News Today - Can treadmill exercise relieve period pain? (2019). https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/325690.php, 10 July 2019.