| Day | Workout |
|---|---|
| Monday | Full Body Strength |
| Tuesday | Low Impact Cardio |
| Wednesday | Lower Body Strength |
| Thursday | Yoga |
| Friday | Upper Body Strength |
| Saturday | HIIT |
| Sunday | Stretching |
Overview
Goal: Strength, Bone Health, Hormonal Balance, Longevity
Suggested Duration: Indefinite
Weekly Split: 6 training days, 1 active recovery day
The Solstice Workout Plan is designed specifically for women in perimenopause and menopause. Built on the latest research in women's hormonal health and exercise science, it prioritizes what matters most at this stage of life: preserving and building muscle, protecting bone density, supporting cardiovascular health, managing cortisol, and maintaining flexibility and balance. Every session in this plan earns its place for a reason.
What to Expect:
✓ Strength as the Foundation: Three dedicated strength sessions per week to counter muscle loss, boost metabolism, protect bone density, and reduce hot flash frequency.
✓ Low Impact Cardio: Gentle cardiovascular work to support heart health - a key concern post-menopause - without spiking cortisol or stressing joints.
✓ HIIT Once a Week: High-intensity work is included for its metabolic and cardiovascular benefits, but limited to one session to allow full recovery in a lower-estrogen environment.
✓ Yoga as Training, Not Just Recovery: A dedicated yoga day supports bone mineral density, reduces anxiety and depression, improves sleep quality, and helps manage vasomotor symptoms like hot flashes.
✓ Stretching to Close the Week: Flexibility and mobility work on Sunday prepares the body for the week ahead and supports joint health over the long term.
Who is This For?
- Women in perimenopause or menopause who want a structured plan built around their changing physiology;
- Those experiencing symptoms like hot flashes, sleep disruption, fatigue, or joint stiffness who want exercise to help manage them;
- Anyone who has been told they need to protect their bone density or muscle mass;
- Women returning to exercise or looking to train smarter rather than harder.
A note from the DAREBEE team: This plan is not generic advice. It was designed and tested by women in perimenopause and menopause, including DAREBEE's founder, a woman in her 40s currently going through perimenopause herself. We built it because we needed it, and following it has genuinely improved our quality of life. If you want a structured, guided version of this approach, try our dedicated 30-day program: SOMA 40+.
Instructions
- Use the database filter to find a workout that matches the type assigned for the day.
- Set the difficulty level (1 to 5) to match your current fitness level. Start at level 1 or 2 and progress gradually.
- Pick a workout and complete it on Level I or II. Listen to your body - on high-symptom days, pull back without guilt. Rest is part of the plan.
- If you own dumbbells, select workouts with equipment "Dumbbells" on strength days for maximum bone and muscle benefit.
Monday
Focus: Build total-body strength and set a strong tone for the week.
What To Do:
✓ Full Body Strength Workout. If you own dumbbells, select workouts with equipment "Dumbbells".
Why? Strength training is the single most important exercise intervention for menopausal women. Research shows resistance training can increase bone density by up to 41% at the hip, counter the 3-8% per decade muscle loss that accelerates after menopause, reduce hot flash frequency, and improve insulin sensitivity. Starting the week with full body strength primes every major muscle group.
Tuesday
Focus: Support heart health with gentle, sustained cardiovascular work.
What To Do:
✓ Low Impact Cardio Workout
Why? Cardiovascular disease risk rises significantly after menopause as estrogen's protective effect on the heart declines. Regular moderate cardio helps manage blood pressure, improve cholesterol profiles, and maintain a healthy weight. Low impact keeps cortisol in check - important because declining estrogen makes the stress response system more reactive, and chronically elevated cortisol worsens hot flashes, disrupts sleep, and promotes abdominal fat storage.
Wednesday
Focus: Protect and build the muscles and bones of the lower body.
What To Do:
✓ Lower Body Strength Workout. If you own dumbbells, select workouts with equipment "Dumbbells".
Why? The lower body contains the largest muscle groups in the body, and training them directly stimulates bone density at the hip and spine - the sites most vulnerable to fracture post-menopause. Strong legs and glutes also improve balance, reducing fall risk. Wednesday placement ensures full recovery from Monday before loading the lower body.
Thursday
Focus: Restore, balance, and support hormonal wellbeing.
What To Do:
✓ Yoga Routine
Why? A 2024 systematic review in the Journal of the Menopause Society found that mind-body exercise including yoga significantly improves bone mineral density, sleep quality, anxiety, depression, and fatigue in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women. Thursday is deliberately placed between two strength days as a recovery session that still delivers measurable physiological benefit. This is not a rest day dressed up as a workout - yoga is an active part of this plan.
Friday
Focus: Develop upper body strength for function, posture, and bone health.
What To Do:
✓ Upper Body Strength Workout. If you own dumbbells, select workouts with equipment "Dumbbells".
Why? Upper body strength supports posture changes that often accompany menopause, protects the spine, and maintains the functional strength needed for daily life. Training upper body on Friday keeps the three weekly strength sessions well spaced across the week, ensuring adequate recovery between sessions - essential in a lower-estrogen environment where muscle repair is slower.
Saturday
Focus: Boost metabolism and cardiovascular capacity with one high-intensity session.
What To Do:
✓ HIIT Workout
Why? HIIT offers significant metabolic, cardiovascular, and body composition benefits for menopausal women, but daily high-intensity work is not recommended - declining estrogen and testosterone slow muscle repair, and too much HIIT can elevate cortisol, break down muscle, and worsen fatigue. One session per week, placed at the end of the training week before Sunday's recovery day, is the evidence-informed sweet spot. Keep sessions short and stop if you feel unwell.
Sunday
Focus: Recover, restore flexibility, and prepare for the week ahead.
What To Do:
✓ Stretching Routine
Why? Joint stiffness and reduced flexibility are common symptoms of perimenopause and menopause. A dedicated weekly stretching session improves range of motion, reduces discomfort, supports circulation, and helps the body recover fully from the week's training. Stretching also has a measurable effect on stress and relaxation, helping to regulate the cortisol levels that affect so many other menopause symptoms.
Important: This plan is designed around general exercise science research for perimenopausal and menopausal women. Every woman's experience of menopause is different. Consult your doctor or healthcare provider before starting this or any new exercise plan, particularly if you are managing specific symptoms, bone density concerns, or cardiovascular health issues.
