Day 8

Now is the time to wax or plucking eyebrows or other unwanted hair.  Wait what?! What does this have to do with my cycle?! A week after your period or 2 weeks before your next period is a good time for this.  Ever notice that you are hairiest after your cycle? Well if you are taking the time to schedule a waxing, you want to get rid of the most hair so you might as well work with your cycle.

Many women also feel like their skin (and everything) is more sensitive during their period. Estrogen is low at this point in the cycle and our skin is driest and doesn’t have the same elasticity.  So, this is NOT the ideal time for anything skin related such as waxing, shaving or plucking.

Did you know that the Farmer’s Almanac even lists best days of the year to cut your hair based on the moon cycle? According to the moon, the ideal time for hair removal is between full moon & new moon.

Day 9

Let’s talk sugar. Chances are, you already know that high sugar intake is “bad”. You may even know that refined sugar depletes the body of the mineral magnesium (important for adrenal function and hormone production), creates inflammation, stresses the adrenal glands, and upregulates aromatase (by increasing insulin).

The question is this: if you know that sugar is bad, why are you still having so much of it?

We often know exactly what we need to do. But our culture heavily encourages us to follow outside sources of instruction than our own internal compass for what is best for us. Instead of trying to muscle our way through a goal with “willpower”, you can actually meet your goals by having a much better understanding of why you do certain things and what you need to feel happy, healthy, and in touch with your body.

If you’re ready to start living this way, make sure to join us for our  7 day free Cycle Syncing challenge!! This won’t be your average challenge that gives you instructions on how to force yourself to say no to sugar! This is a holistic approach to making better choices for you…and empowers you to make better choices from a seat of POWER.

Operating from a space of deprivation and lack DOESN’T WORK. Stop trying to beat your mindset into submission and learn a new way of thinking where good choices come NATURALLY!

Day 10

You’ve probably heard by now that the gut and skin are connected. So if you’ve been dealing with cystic acne or blemishes that crop up at certain points in your menstrual cycle, this post is one you’ll want to listen up for!

One reason that our gut and skin health are connected is because the lining of the intestinal tract and the skin both develop from the same tissues when we are a developing fetus. Anything that irritates or causes dysfunction in the gut will end up also showing up at the surface of our skin.

By removing irritating foods and focusing on nutrient density/nutrient variety, we can begin to decrease inflammation and see visible healing over time with our skin.  It’s pretty powerful stuff! This is why at this point in the feminine cycle, we see the best outcomes from doing an elimination diet.

There are times in the cycle where you are going to naturally have more willpower and fewer cravings…and that time is now!

Day 11

Ovulation is coming soon! But do you know that your ovaries actually take turns taking charge of your cycle? It’s true!

The first half of the menstrual cycle is characterized by both ovaries developing multiple eggs at a time. One egg, however, will ultimately take charge…and how that egg gets developed will dictate hormonal levels all the way up until the end of that cycle.

You may notice that your cycle is different depending on which ovary makes the dominant egg that month. If you notice that you have some months where everything looks and feel great and then all of a sudden there is a month or two that are more problematic, it could signal that there are differences in the functioning of your ovaries.

For many of us, lifestyle, food, and supplement modifications will help balance out the functioning of both ovaries and lead to the evening out of your cycles. By having a very good understanding of your body, your ovaries, and your cycle in general, you put yourself back in the driver’s seat of good health!

Day 12

Do you have anxiety that comes and goes?  #cyclehack If so, make sure to read this. Today is the start of the ovulation window.  This is a time of elevated hormones such as estrogen. As Alex and I were starting to analyze everything we do, drink and eat in relationship to our cycle, I found out something interesting about my relationship with caffeine.  Sometimes I seem to be able to drink a cup (or 3) of black tea and be just fine. And at other times I am jittery and my anxiety goes through the roof. What gives? It appears that caffeine has different effects on
 estrogen at different stages of the menstrual cycle (sometimes decreasing 
estrogen and sometimes increasing estrogen levels).

I noticed that during the first week of my cycle and up to about a day or 2 before ovulation, I felt just fine with my chai tea.  Then all of a sudden, BAM! I had the same chai tea as the day before and my anxiety immediately skyrocketed. It felt like a heart racing, high cortisol physical kind of anxiety and it didn’t go away… for a couple of days!

Right before ovulation is when estrogen is highest.  Since the liver is in charge of getting rid of excess estrogen AND is in charge of metabolizing caffeine out of the body, this is putting double load on the liver.  In Traditional Chinese Medicine , an overburdened liver is associated with anxiety and I know this to be true in my life! Too much alcohol, caffeine or sugar will make me anxious as will a viral or bacterial infection that my liver also has to deal with the byproducts of.

Caffeine can trigger hot flashes by increasing stress hormones. So, if you are struggling with hot flashes, fibrocystic breasts, painful menstrual cramps, mood swings, and anxiety, then try cutting out caffeine.

I’d love to hear if you have ever experienced this variation in reaction to coffee or caffeine depending on the time of the month!

Day 13

Yesterday we talked about anxiety and caffeine.  Well, today let’s hit up another common cause of anxiety.  Your phone! Social media! Email!

Day 13 of your cycle (or a few days leading up to ovulation)  is a good day for a social media detox. I know it is ironic we are posting this on social media, but the cool thing about this series is that you can always come back to our page and check out the day of your cycle that you are on.

If you check out Day 12 post you will see that right before ovulation is when many ladies in our tribe are prone to anxiety.  Sometimes we have a physical reason for anxiety (liver, caffeine, indigestion) and then we feel like that means that there must be something wrong going on in our life.  So we look around and attach our anxiety to the the next email, social media post or interaction with a friend. In order to avoid a really nasty and often totally unnecessary spiral, try unplugging.

FOMO is at it’s highest at this time as is comparisonitis.  It is hard to tap into the logical side of your brain and remember that everyone online  has their problems too and they aren’t actually perfect.

If you aren’t ready to completely unplug for the day, try temporarily deleting the Facebook or Instagram (or whatever App tends to cause you the most anxiety) Apps from your phone. And you can set an autoresponder in your email and your text messages saying you will get back to them in a few days.   Don’t worry, all the craziness will still be there in a couple of days!

Day 14

Today is the most common day of ovulation for those on a 28 day cycle. This is often in sync with the full moon for many ladies (it’s tomorrow!) According to one book I read our ancestors ovulated during the full moon because that was the most likely time to pick the best partner, when you could see them at night! Ha. Ha

Note that even If you’re not trying to get pregnant, you still need to ovulate because the tissue left over after the egg is released is called the Corpus Luteum. It makes progesterone. Progesterone is our happy hormone that help minimize PMS!!

Day 15

We’ve come to a NEW part of our cycles! The focus of the first half of the menstrual cycle was on optimizing inflammation, but it’s now time to start time to start focusing on detoxing. To kick this off, we wanted to share a special new detox support tool that we feature in our upcoming 4 Phase Cycle Detox program! (Keep your eyes out for when that program becomes available!)

Cilantro Liver Compress

This works well to stimulate good natural detoxification during the Plateau (3rd) and Pause (4th) phase of the menstrual cycle.

Here’s how to do it:

• Brew a cilantro tea with either 1 tablespoon of fresh cilantro in 8 oz of hot water or 2 tablespoons of dried cilantro in 8 oz of hot water.
• Let steep for 15 minutes.
• Then let cool for 20-30 more…or until you can dip a finger into it without it being too hot.
• Gently dip a clean washcloth into the tea and then squeeze out the excess liquid.
• Apply to right upper abdomen (right below the ribs on the right side) for 5-10 minutes.

Note: Make sure to check your skin regularly to make sure it’s not being irritated by the cilantro! Decrease the amount of cilantro you use or leave the compress on for shorter periods of time if that’s the case.