As a woman who lives a pretty busy lifestyle (who doesn’t these days), a lesson I am CONTINUALLY learning (and re-learning) is that I am simply not designed to live my life the way men do. Whenever I try to, I inevitably always end up burnt out, with my hormones out of balance, and it tends to land me flat on my back, usually just before my period is due.

If you, as a woman, can relate to this – I’ll explain why below:

You know how men can appear to structure their lives a certain way, and consistently maintain that schedule week in and out, without burning out? Even if that schedule involves an early wake up, a heavy gym class, a full day at work (potentially involving manual labour depending on the job), and a social event on in the evenings)?

This is because one of the main hormones that dictates the way men go about their lives, is the hormone testosterone. Testosterone runs off a 24-hour timeline, which runs in sync with the circadian rhythm. Men are literally designed to structure their lives based off a 24-hour cycle, which means they are more than able to repeat the same intense day consistently without consequence.

Women, on the other hand, are dictated by the hormone estrogen. Estrogen runs off a 28-day cycle (approximately four weeks) which is referred to as an infradian rhythm. This infradian rhythm is intrinsically linked with our menstrual cycle, our bleed, our period, our fertility cycle (whatever you want to call it), and it very much governs much of the way we operate within and throughout each month.

Within each monthly cycle, women experience dips and trophs of estrogen along with other hormones that are also involved with the menstrual cycle. These hormonal shifts lead to shifts in the way we think, in how creative we are at any point in time, how intuitive we are, how social we feel, our energy levels, how hungry we feel, and how much we can physically manage at any point in time.

You may have noticed that during, or directly after your period, you feel really energetic, quite social, and have a better sense of self love towards your body. This may feel directly opposed to the week or so before your period during which you might feel lethargic, grumpy, and crave an entire packet of chocolate multiple times a day. You may have even noticed that you tend to be more susceptible to getting sick just before your period.

Put simply, because men complete a full hormonal cycle within each day, they enter each and every new day feeling brand new and ‘hormonally refreshed’. Women, on the other hand, complete a full hormonal cycle approximately each month, which means the shifts and changes that take place are slower and can feel more extreme (especially if our hormones are out of balance, which sadly is not uncommon).

Just to be abundantly clear here, both men and women contain both the hormones estrogen and testosterone. What I am referring to, here, is the ratio within which these hormones are present within each gender. Men are dominant in testosterone, whereas women are dominant in estrogen.

So what does this mean for you, as a woman?

• First off, understanding these shifts can allow you to be compassionate and kind to yourself as you experience any shifts you experience throughout each month. This is also where keeping track of your menstrual cycle is great, because it allows for that clarity and understanding of what to expect energetically and physiologically at any point in time.

  • Keeping a journal of how you feel across each week – both emotionally and physically;

  • The ‘MyFLO’ app is a great app to use if you prefer to log things on your phone.

• To thrive as a woman, one of the best things we can do is to align our lives to the shifts we experience each monthly cycle. This doesn’t need to mean you need to give anything up, it merely means understanding what your body needs each week:

  • You may want to replace the HIIT classes you do so effortlessly just after your period, with lower intensity pilates or yoga as you come into your bleed.

  • You might plan your social events so that you have more room for rest when you need it.
    

If you are interested to learn more, my ‘Guide to Living in Feminine Cycle Flow’ PDF guide is available here or through my Products page. 

This 46 page ebook dives into:

• More ways in which your menstrual cycle governs your life as a woman, and what that means for you;

• An array of ways in which you can easily align your life to each phase within your cycle, so that you can easily thrive as a busy women, such as:

  • Workouts and a stretch routine you can follow throughout each phase;

  • Nutrition tips and tricks to function at your best;

  • How to connect with your innate femininity;

  • How to connect with your body at any point in your cycle;

• And so much more!

Check it out here, or head to my ‘Shop’ page, to purchase. 

Mon xx