{"id":184326,"date":"2025-10-08T01:47:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-08T01:47:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/184326\/"},"modified":"2025-10-08T01:47:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-08T01:47:09","slug":"switching-spin-and-hiit-for-walking-and-weights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/184326\/","title":{"rendered":"Switching Spin And HIIT For Walking And Weights"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Estimated3 min read<\/p>\n

Kate Rowe-Ham<\/a>, 48, is a menopause fitness coach and member of the Women\u2019s Health UK Collective<\/a> expert panel. After years of going hard in multiple HIIT and spin classes per week, she now manages her perimenopause symptoms with a combination of walking and strength training.<\/p>\n

I was in my early 40s when the crippling anxiety, breathlessness, and joint pain descended. It was the year after my third child was born\u2014and at first, I put the symptoms down to being a tired mum, along with teaching five Spin and six HIIT<\/a> classes a week. It was only when I started doing some dedicated research into my exhaustion that I landed on the cause: perimenopause. <\/p>\n

Age 44, with every resource directing me towards strength work, I took up weightlifting, building to three to four sessions each week, and dropped from six HIIT classes to one per week. The change was almost immediate; within a month, my energy levels had soared and my anxiety levels plummeted. But it wasn\u2019t until I added walking to my workout week\u2014a shift necessitated by the lockdowns\u2014that I noticed a real difference in my pain levels, too.<\/p>\n

\"exercise<\/p>\n

@katerh_fitness\/\/Instagram<\/p>\n

When the gyms closed in March 2020, I started strength training at home, but craving nature, I also started walking for an hour a day. Hip joint pain had always been my most crippling symptom (estrogen reduces inflammation in your body by limiting cortisol, and my estrogen levels had nosedived). Walking increases the circulation of synovial fluid\u2014the liquid between your joints; after a few weeks, the pain had all but disappeared. But walking also grounded me like nothing else; maintaining a steady pace and breathing slowly activates the parasympathetic nervous system, making me feel calm. <\/p>\n

Today, I have a deeper appreciation for exercise. In weightlifting and walking, I\u2019ve found a routine that brings me back to my body, while future-proofing it for the next stage of life. If ever I needed proof of the value of working with your aging body, it came when I ran the London marathon. When I ran it the first time, at 21, I was doing several long runs per week. More than two decades later, I combined runs with weight training and walking, and yet I finished with the exact same time: 3 hours 47 minutes. Perimenopause<\/a> doesn\u2019t mean exercising less, it simply means exercising differently. <\/p>\n

\"exercise<\/p>\n

@katerh_fitness\/\/Instagram<\/p>\n

What are the benefits of walking and strength training in your 40s? <\/p>\n

As a menopause fitness coach herself, Rowe-Ham says: “Estrogen\u2014essential for muscle growth\u2014declines, so muscle mass decreases. Strength training offsets this by promoting hypertrophy\u2014where your muscles break down, then grow back stronger. As for walking, research<\/a> suggests that regular walks could reduce hot flushes by decreasing cortisol levels in your bloodstream, while other studies<\/a> show that just 10 minutes of brisk walking could help you sleep more deeply, by balancing your hormones. <\/p>\n

Related Stories<\/p>\n

“Strength training and walking in combination can stabilize blood sugar levels, too. Estrogen is responsible for secreting insulin; low estrogen means low insulin, which means excess glucose in your blood as insulin signals to your body to use glucose for energy. This can increase weight gain, and the risk of diabetes and heart disease. <\/p>\n

“Resistance training and walking have also been shown to build bone density<\/a> by stimulating osteoblasts through impact as you step. This is important, as low estrogen means low vitamin D and calcium, which means weaker bones. Recent research<\/a> found that walking 4,000 steps daily could reduce your risk of osteoporosis.”<\/p>\n

\"menopause<\/a>How often should women in their 40s walk per week? <\/p>\n

“Aim to walk for 30 to 40 minutes per day, or around 4,000 steps. But know that anything is better than nothing. Also, it\u2019s worth remembering that perimenopause isn\u2019t linear; 40 minutes may feel do-able one day, while 10 minutes may be all you can manage the next day.”<\/p>\n

How often should women in their 40s strength train per week? <\/p>\n

“Plan for one upper-body, one lower-body and one full-body strength session per week, lasting 35 to 45 minutes each. Any more than that and you may inadvertently exacerbate symptoms by increasing cortisol levels. Alternate workout days with walking days; walking can ease DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness)<\/a> by encouraging blood flow.”<\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

As Women\u2019s Health UK\u2019s fitness director (and a qualified yoga teacher), Bridie Wilkins has been passionately reporting on exercise, health and nutrition since the start of her decade-long career in journalism. She secured her first role at Look Magazine, where her obsession with fitness began and she launched the magazine\u2019s health and fitness column, Look Fit, before going on to become Health and Fitness writer at HELLO!. Since, she has written for Stylist, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Elle, The Metro, Runner\u2019s World and Red.<\/p>\n

Now, she oversees all fitness content across womenshealthmag.com.uk<\/a> and the print magazine, spearheading leading cross-platform franchises, such as \u2018Fit At Any Age\u2019, where we showcase the women proving that age is no barrier to exercise. She has also represented the brand on BBC Radio London, plus various podcasts and Substacks \u2013 all with the aim to encourage more women to exercise and show them how.<\/p>\n

Outside of work, find her trying the latest Pilates studio, testing her VO2 max for fun (TY, Oura), or posting workouts on Instagram.\u00a0<\/p>\n