Regular exercise may alleviate pain and other negative symptoms before and during menstruation.[1][2][3] Regular exercise can also shorten the length of menses.[4]
Conversely, too much exercise can be detrimental to menstrual cycle health, causing menstrual irregularities or even the total absence of menstruation.[5][6] This is not a normal response to exercise and should be evaluated by a clinician. It may be a sign of relative energy deficiency in sport (RED-S), a condition indicating that the body does not have enough energy to meet its demands.[7] The consequences of RED-S are far-reaching, serious, and potentially irreparable.[8][9]