---
title: Does aerobic exercise reduce stress and premenstrual symptoms during the luteal phase?
description: Yes. Women who did aerobic exercise had lower stress levels and fewer menstrual symptoms than women who did not exercise.
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/effect-of-moderate-aerobic-exercise-on-perceived-stress-during-luteal-phase-of-2018/
---

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- Does aerobic exercise reduce stress and premenstrual symptoms during the luteal phase?

Survey study, 2018

# Does aerobic exercise reduce stress and premenstrual symptoms during the luteal phase?

Yes. Women who did aerobic exercise had lower stress levels and fewer menstrual symptoms than women who did not exercise.

 Moderate study design

60 female university students aged 20-24 years

## What they did

This observational study included 60 female university students aged 20-24. Half (30) did regular aerobic exercise and half (30) did not. Researchers measured stress using a validated stress scale and tracked menstrual symptoms including pain and missed school days. They used basal body temperature to confirm the luteal phase.

## What they found

Women in the exercise group had significantly lower stress scores than the non-exercise group. Women who exercised also had less bleeding between periods, less pain, and fewer missed school days due to menstrual symptoms.

## What it means for you

Aerobic exercise may help reduce stress and ease premenstrual symptoms. The main limitations are that the study does not report how long women exercised or how many menstrual cycles they were tracked, so it is unclear whether benefits would persist long-term.

30

in exercise group

30

in control group

lower stress

exercise group had

## About the study

Original title Effect of moderate aerobic exercise on perceived stress during luteal phase of menstrual cycle in students pursuing professional course Authors Tanvi Pendse, Anuradha Rajiv Joshi, Savita Vaidya Journal National Journal of Physiology Pharmacy and Pharmacology Year 2018 Study design Survey study Participants 30 What was tested Aerobic exercise vs. no exercise Open access Yes Read the paper [doi.org/10.5455/njppp.2018.8.1146213122017](https://doi.org/10.5455/njppp.2018.8.1146213122017)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Stress](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-stress/)[Exercise and yoga](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-exercise/)[Work and productivity](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-work/)[Students and academic performance](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-education/)

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