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Menopause & Your Hormones: How to Reactivate Adrenal Function through Sprinting
- Mark Lambert
- Jun 3
- 3 min read
Updated: Jun 8
When menopause hits, your body goes through a seismic hormonal shift. Your ovaries—once the primary producers of estrogen and progesterone—step back. That’s when your adrenal glands are supposed to take over as your hormonal support crew.
But here’s the catch: If your adrenals are already burnt out from years of stress, poor sleep, and overtraining, they struggle to do their job. That’s when symptoms like fatigue, belly fat, mood swings, poor sleep, and low motivation show up.
But there is hope, your adrenals can be reawakened through the right kind of stress: short bursts of high-intensity activity followed by deep recovery.
This method helps stimulate DHEA (a hormone precursor to estrogen and testosterone), without overtaxing your system.
Let’s break down how it works—and the sprint and gym routines that make it happen.
🧠 Why High-Intensity Followed by Rest Works
When you do short, intense bursts of exercise—like sprints or powerful gym lifts—you trigger a controlled rise in cortisol and adrenaline, which helps stimulate the adrenal glands. But it’s the rest afterward that allows the body to bounce back, heal, and shift into DHEA and sex hormone production.
This pattern (brief stress → recovery) is biologically intelligent. It mimics how we’re wired to operate—responding to challenge, then recovering with purpose. For menopausal women, this method is one of the most powerful natural ways to regulate hormones without drugs or long, draining workouts.
💥 The Menopause Hormone Workout Plan
(A sprint + gym system built for your adrenals)
1. 🏃♀️ Sprint Intervals (2x/week)
These workouts stimulate fast-twitch muscle fibers and boost natural growth hormone.
Workout example:
Warm-Up: 5 mins walking, mobility, light drills
6 x 15-second sprints (flat or uphill)
Walk 60–90 seconds between each sprint
Cool down with 5 minutes of deep breathing and stretching
2. 🏋️♀️ Strength Training for Hormone Health (2x/week)
Use compound lifts and explosive movements. These stimulate testosterone, growth hormone, and DHEA—vital for fat loss, strength, and mental clarity.
Gym Routine:
Trap Bar Deadlift Jumps – 3 x 5 reps @ 30–40% 1RM
Romanian Deadlifts – 3 x 8 reps (glutes + hamstrings)
Step-Ups with Dumbbells – 3 x 8 each leg
Kettlebell Swings – 3 x 20 (posterior chain & cardio)
Front Plank with Deep Breathing – 3 x 45 sec holds
Keep sessions under 45 minutes. Focus on power, not burnout.
3. 🧘 Recovery Days (3x/week)
These are just as important. They bring cortisol down, activate the parasympathetic nervous system, and help your body rebuild hormones.
Adrenal-Supportive Recovery Options:
Nature walks or grounding barefoot
Gentle yoga or deep stretching
Infrared sauna or cold plunge
Magnesium Epsom salt baths
Breathing: Try 4–4–4–4 box breathing
🥦 Adrenal-Friendly Nutrition Tips
To fuel the hormonal recovery process:
Eat whole foods, healthy fats, and high-quality protein
Add Vitamin C, B5, and magnesium daily
Use unrefined sea salt (helps adrenal signaling)
Consider adaptogens like ashwagandha or Rhodiola
Avoid sugar, excess caffeine, and alcohol—they stress the adrenals
✅ Sample Weekly Schedule
Rest Between Sprints: 60 to 90 seconds of full rest (slow walk or stand still breathing through nose)
Why? You want your nervous system to fully recover between sprints or sets so you can repeat high-quality efforts without building chronic fatigue. The goal is maximum intensity, minimum burnout.
🌟 Final Thoughts
Menopause isn’t the end—it’s a biological recalibration. And your adrenals are the secret weapon to thriving through it.
By combining smart high-intensity sprints, power-based strength training, and focused recovery, you give your body the exact signals it needs to continue producing vital hormones naturally.
This is how you build lean muscle, drop fat, stabilize your mood, and feel strong again—without hormone therapy or endless cardio.
Train smarter, rest harder, and let your body do what it was built to do—adapt and thrive.
