Feb
Articles, Health & Wellness
Have You heard of Cycle Syncing [and would you try it?]
Do you ever wonder why some days you wake up inspired, energised, and on top of your game productive, and other days you lack the motivation to go to the gym, have low self-esteem and all you want to do is curl up in bed and watch Netflix?
Introducing: Cycle Syncing
Cycle syncing is a practice where you learn to align your lifestyle with the four phases of your menstrual cycle. By doing this you’ll improve your productivity, confidence, moods, energy, period health & every area of your life.
It’s time to become more connected to your cycle and use it to your advantage instead of fighting against it.
Our hormones fluctuate from week to week creating 4 very distinct phases of our menstrual cycle:
• Day 1 to 5: Menstrual Phase
• Day 6 to 13: Follicular Phase
• Day 14 to 24: Ovulatory Phase
• Day 25 – 28: Luteal Phase
Each phase brings shifts in our bodies physically, mentally, and emotionally impacting our energy levels, mood, motivation, libido, creativity, ability to communicate, appetite & hunger, drive for life..the list goes on.
Simply tracking your cycle on a calendar, along with some details of your bleeding and symptoms can help you understand your cycle.
Record when your period starts and ends, what the flow was like, and describe any pain or other symptoms (bloating, breast pain, etc.), changes in mood or behavior that you experienced. Over several cycles, you will be able to see patterns in your cycle or identify irregularities that are occurring.
WHAT IS THE AVERAGE LENGTH OF THE MENSTRUAL CYCLE?
This depends. For context, the length of your menstrual cycle is calculated from the first day of your period to the day before your next period starts. That said, every woman’s body is different and the length of each phase can differ from woman to woman, and it can change over time.
How to sync your life with the four phases of your cycle:
Phase 1: Menstrual phase [Day 1 of the period to end of period around day 5]
- Productivity: Your period is an invitation to release all expectations on yourself, press the pause button, and allow time to rest and reset.
- Nutrition: Eat warming, iron-rich, anti-inflammatory foods such as soups, stews and slow cooked meals, and curry. Skip the coffee as it may worsen cramps and drink a soothing adaptogenic Turmeric Latte instead.
- Exercise: Rejuvenating exercises such as yoga, walking, stretching, and pilates. If your body needs to rest here, rest!
- Common symptoms: Abdominal cramps, fatigue, and brain fog.
- Skin: During this stage, estrogen and progesterone levels are low, so your skin may appear dry, dull, and tired. Up your moisture routine – increasing hydration internally and externally is key.
Phase 2: Follicular phase [Day 6 to 13]
- Productivity: As your hormones rise, your energy levels rise too. This is the phase to make to-do lists, embrace creativity, and plan for the month ahead.
- Nutrition: Support estrogen metabolism and blood sugar regulation by eating more leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli and cabbage, as well as sprinkling seeds over your meals. Blood sugar imbalances can disrupt approaching ovulation, so be mindful of refined sugars, processed foods, and alcohol.
- Exercise: This is the best phase for high-intensity workouts, HIIT, & heavy weights.
- Common symptoms: The change in hormones during this time will affect your energy levels, strength, and mental focus.
- Skin: During this follicular phase, directly after your period, your skin is in a great place. Estrogen levels start to rise, bringing a natural glow to your complexion. You’ll likely notice improvements in your skin. Good skin days’ on the cal because the forecast looks clear and bright!
Phase 3: Ovulatory phase [Day 14 – 24]
- Productivity: This is the phase where energy, motivation, confidence, mood, and sex drive are at their highest (when hormones are balanced). Collaborate, initiate new projects, run meetings, solve problems, and be assertive. Go after your dreams and get things done!
- Nutrition: Eat lighter foods such as fresh salads, fruits, veggies, juices, and smoothies. Eat foods high in vitamin B & zinc which will support ovulation – whole grains, nuts, seeds, meat.
- Exercise: Do things that make you sweat. Dance, run, skip, do burpees, get your PB!
- Common symptoms: During this phase, we are at our brightest, energetic, and social. However, some women also report experiencing ovulation cramps and depression.
- Skin: When estrogen and testosterone levels are high enough, they signal a dramatic increase in the luteinizing hormone. This surge occurs directly before the onset of hormonal acne, so prevention and control over breakouts is key. To prepare for upcoming oil production, deep-clean pores with a detoxifying mask and exfoliate with lactic acid to keep pores free from buildup. During this phase, testosterone levels ramp up which causes your oil production to increase.
Phase 4: Luteal phase [Day 25 – 28]
- Productivity: This is the last phase of your cycle before you enter menstruation again. Begin to wind down, do solo deep work, finish up projects, and increase self-care as you’ll feel less likely to socialize during this phase.
- Nutrition: Increase healthy fats such as avocado, salmon, olive oil, nuts, and seeds. You may be prone to mood swings, anxiety, and period pain during this phase so increase magnesium intake by eating rich foods such as spinach, legumes, cacao, and banana and by spraying magnesium oil onto your belly. Ditch the coffee which may exacerbate premenstrual mood swings and cramps, and sip on herbal teas such as raspberry leaf and cramp bark instead.
- Exercise: Aim for gentler exercise such as swimming, bike riding, brisk walking or running, or pilates.
- Common symptoms: 80% of women experience PMS symptoms during this time. These may include mood swings, irritability, fatigue, bloating, breast tenderness, and sleep disturbances.
- Skin: An imbalance of testosterone increases oil production, which may result in clogged pores and more breakouts. Your battle plan should focus on eliminating excess oil without triggering your inflamed skin. The best course of action is to cleanse frequently with a gentle foaming cleanser. Increase exfoliation to two to three times a week and incorporate a purifying mask to counter congested skin.
Syncing your nutrition, exercise, and productivity with your cycle should feel fun and a new way of living not stressful or another thing to do.
Cycle syncing leads to less stress and burnout and welcomes more flow and long-term health!
Moms, will you try cycle syncing or are you already using this brilliant system?
Comment below to let us know x
Most definitely.
Will definitely be trying the cycle syncing. Its quite interesting and it will help me to stay on track with the different stages of my cycle.
I would love to try it, it’s interesting
It is my first time hearing about syncing .i will gladly love to try it
I would like to try this cycle syncing as my period is eregular and im suffering from the cramps
I will definitely try the cycle syncing and recommend to my family and friends to help with the cycle to make life easier.
I will definitely try to cycle syncing.
Will definitely be trying the cycle syncing. Its quite interesting and it will help me to stay on track with the different stages of my cycle.
I’ll try cycle syncing it’s my first time to hear about it. I haven’t been taking note of what I eat during my cycle especially with coffee I can attest it does really worsen the cramps. The article is very informative
I will definitely try it out. I’m usually tired days before my periods ànd during my menstrual period , I’m a mess..This shows your never too old to learn.
I really like to try this cycle syncing is my first time to hear about this.
I like to try this cycle syncing is the first time to hear about this
This has been very insightful.
I often wondered why is struggling through my workouts during different times of my cycle.
I am looking forward to trying out cycle syncing and seeing how it works out for me.
Very insightful. Lately i have been going through it all when i get my period. I’m glad the things mentioned here i am already 80% of them.