cycle syncing, feminine rhythm, and cortisol slander
cortisol is not evil!!!
show notes
hey bestie! today’s topic has been much requested by the girlies and i’m so excited to share my thoughts, vibes, readings, and findings regarding our cycles. we still have a long way to go in achieving parity in scientific research especially when it comes to understanding the female body.
for decades, women were excluded from clinical trials altogether, with researchers citing hormonal fluctuations as too “complicated” to study. it wasn’t until the early 1990s that the inclusion of human female subjects in federally funded clinical research became mandatory in the US. and it wasn’t until 2016 that that research designs in animal and cell studies were required to consider sex as a biological variable.
this means much of what we consider foundational medical knowledge was built without us.
we’re still playing catch-up, trying to retroactively understand how everything from drug metabolism to disease progression to exercise performance plays out in a body with a menstrual cycle. so when we say “the data is incomplete,” it’s not a small oversight. it’s the result of centuries of scientific omission. and while progress has been made, parity is not just about including women—it’s about designing research that respects the full complexity of female physiology, not treating it as an inconvenient variable to control for.
so yes, cycle syncing might sound like a trendy, “woo-woo” wellness concept, but the truth is, it works for a lot of women. and that alone makes it something worth taking seriously and exploring with curiosity.
as we have talked about before:
“When women flock to something, it points to wisdom.”
transcript
On today's episode, we are talking about the magic and science of cycle syncing.
I know it's one of those hot button topics. Either you believe in it or you don't. But for a lot of women who have tried cycle syncing aka living according to their biological rhythms as women, there is no going back.
And I am one of those women.
The overarching theme of today's class is if it works for you, you do you.
You are the source. You are the power. You are literally the powerhouse of the celle.
Feminine longevity, wellness, and health is all about knowing yourself, believing in yourself, accepting yourself, and embodying yourself so whatever helps you personally have a better experience of life. Whatever improves your health, you do you.
One of the biggest lessons that I've learned in my past life as a scientist was the humility to accept that we may not know everything. As long as something isn't harmful, why yuck other people's yum?
In our desire to be seen as worldly and scientific. Asking women disingenuously “You're balancing your hormones? Name five hormones” as a way to invalidate women's desires to be more connected to themselves, to get to know their rhythms better, to live according to their rhythms better so that they can have a better experience of life…
a mini rant to start us off
All those people attacking women for wanting to be more in touch with themselves, it's not giving science-based wellness. It's giving willful ignorance.
I saw this one Instagram reel of this nutritionist who makes content for PCOS girlies and it says “protein packed breakfast to balance your hormones” and then the comment section was filled with people asking “oh yeah? balancing your hormones? name five hormones”…
when it's literally an educated nutritionist who makes food content, who put out that content for PCOS girlies.
It drives me absolutely insane that we have now swung onto the other side of the pendulum.
Before, we were just eating up every nutrition fad that came our way and we weren't questioning anything. We were just blindly accepting everything, but I fear we have now moved on to the other side of the pendulum where we are now attacking anything and everything that women do to improve their health.
Not everyone has a biology degree. Not everyone has that privilege. So for women who just want to “balance their hormones” and maybe feel less sluggish and maybe no longer deal with a lot of the symptoms of PCOS, which if you have PCOS, it's not a great experience.
So it's like I fear we have now moved on to the other side of the pendulum, where we are now questioning every single little thing that women do to improve their health and now we're on this super hyper critical side of the pendulum and we’re putting down everything.
Can we like, get to the middle?
That comment section irritated me so much when I saw it, I was like, you do know what page we're on right? Like, this is a nutritionist making food content for PCOS girlies.
I'm pretty sure the nutritionist knows what hormones need balancing.
And then they're like, “well, they didn't say that in the reel.”
It's a 30-second reel. Are we supposed to detail the pathways of insulin activation and glucose uptake every time we make a balancing your hormones recipe, like, no. We are in the stage where people are now blindly hating on everything even though certain things actually help people with actual problems, with actual hormonal problems to balance their hormones, and the people who need their hormones balanced, they may not have the language to express what is wrong, but something is wrong and that's why they are drawn to this type of content.
In my time in academia, one of the things that really ticked me off a lot is this kind of superiority vibe (OF SOME PEOPLE) that like, “We're in academia. We're here (up). You guys are there (down.) Everyone else is so stupid, and we're the smart people.” But time and time again, study after study disproves whatever was studied before or expands on what was studied before.
One of the traits that I admired the most in the most intelligent people that I have ever come across in academia is humility. It's saying, I don't know yet, but that's very interesting. It’s the openness… And can we just be a little bit more open and be more understanding of other people? If women are looking for ways to balance their hormones, it's because something is wrong and they may not have the language to express what is wrong, but they know something is wrong. Obviously this doesn't apply to women who have a disordered way of perceiving themselves and their bodies. Obviously, no nuance nellie, it doesn't apply to those women. But just for the regular degular woman who feels like she can do better for herself, who feels like she wants to get more in touch with herself, why not?
Why can’t she eat a carrot salad to balance her hormones? Like, what is the harm in eating a carrot salad? What is the harm in eating eggs and protein for breakfast instead of waffles? If you want a protein packed breakfast to balance your hormones, what is the harm?
Like that really ticks me off.
It's like I have the science degree. I know the pathways that these hormones take and what stimulates them and what down regulates them. I have the knowledge but what about the women who don't? And it's become like this superiority kind of play. Whenever people are like, “oh, you're balancing your hormones? name five hormones.”
These women are looking for guidance because they know something's wrong and you're invalidating that desire for women to help themselves. So what? So you can get brownie points on the internet like give me a break. Like that really ticks me off. And like this one comment section that really ticked me off, there were PCOS girlies in the comments and they were like, “well, this is for PCOS girlies. We need this.”
So yeah, that's my rant for today.
Anyway, the more you dive deep into these areas of knowledge, the more you find out that we actually don't know a lot about a lot. And that's the beauty of it. We get to discover new knowledge. we get to expand on existing knowledge. And like I said, it's this humility to accept that you don't know everything.
we don’t know a lot about a lot
You would be surprised how many medications are in your local pharmacy. And we do not yet know the medications’ full mechanism of action, or their specific molecular target. They're in the pharmacy because they work and because they work and they are safe and the benefits outweigh the risks, the doctors prescribe them to patients.
For example, lithium and metformin. we know their general mechanisms of action, but we don't have their full molecular pathways mapped out, but at the end of the day they work.
This is how we go about medication approvals: the first priority is efficacy and safety. Do the benefits outweigh the risk? And if we don't know yet how they work fully, then we find it out later so that we can figure out what other problems they can solve, and then we can repurpose them for those purposes later.
Long story short, there's a lot that we don't know about a lot so can we get a little bit of humility?
And I'm so passionate about this because it's usually women who are on the receiving end of these comments: “Oh, you're balancing your hormones? Name five hormones.”
So annoying.
Like I said, I get questioning things that you see online. I do that all the time, but when there's this popular trend of invalidating women's desires to be healthy, invalidating women's desires to feel better in their bodies, that's where I draw the line.
Who are women hurting when they eat a carrot salad? Who are women hurting when they have eggs for breakfast? Who are women harming when they cycle sync? Who are women hurting when they draw stronger boundaries during certain times within their cycle? When they draw boundaries in their work, their social lives, in how they move their bodies, in how they eat?
Who are women hurting when they draw boundaries period?
No one, except for the people who are taking advantage of women for not having these boundaries in the first place, that's who.
If we are to cultivate a culture of scientific research and translational media that listen to women and follow women's lead, then we need to create a culture that amplifies women's voices and experiences within their own bodies.
If women say that x, y, z thing is working for them, then it might be worth looking into. Case in point: cycle syncing.
So what even is cycle syncing?
cycle syncing
The term cycle syncing was coined by functional nutritionist Alisa Vitti in her 2014 book Woman Code, and her book introduces a five step system aiming to, number one address the underlying reasons for hormonal balance, and number two, focus on using medicinal food and lifestyle changes to sequentially bring the endocrine system back to optimal functioning so women can fix their periods successfully, get pregnant, and supercharge their s drive,
Vitti writes.
I call it cycle syncing—think of it as a form of embodied time management—where your hormones create structure. This practice comes back to the idea of using your body as a tool—harnessing your hormones to perform better, smarter, and more proficiently every single day. Doing so will also continue to heal your hormonal symptoms while preventing additional symptoms from developing.
—Alisa Vitti. WomanCode. 2014.
And in the book, Vitti goes through each menstrual phase and recommends a certain lifestyle, diet and exercise recommendations based on where you are within your 28 day cycle. This book in 2014 really was the catalyst of cycle syncing as we know it today, especially as we are exposed to it today on social media.
Now, while Vitti’s system hasn't been studied in a clinical setting, there hasn't been a clinical study done on her five step system. The science is clear, though, on how there are marked differences between women's physiology and psychology during the four menstrual phases. And we're getting into those changes in a little bit. So stay tuned.
But the main point I want to drive home today is that cycle syncing is not a cure or a clinical treatment, but it can be part of a holistic, empowered approach to well-being. so definitely consult your medical professional.
We can't get into cycle syncing without talking about the menstrual cycle.
the menstrual cycle
This is the menstrual cycle in a snapshot.
There are four main key players in this dance. Are there other players in this dance? Absolutely. But we're going to focus on these four. And I also like to think of the different phases as a dance. There's an intro, there's a climax, and then there's the outro.
At certain time periods, certain hormone levels drop and some elevate, and it is the precise timing of this dance that ensures the precise timing of the cycle. So if any of the hormones are off in their levels, they're doing a little too much, a little too little, a little too early, a little too late, if the timing is off, then things go wrong. Things happen too much. Things happen too little. Things happen too early or not at all.
And that's why the topic of women's hormones is so, so complex.
But here's what we do know: There are four phases: there's the menstrual phase, the follicular phase, the ovulation phase and the luteal phase.
So let's get into the menstrual phase.
the menstrual phase
Menstrual PhaseMantraRest and resetDays1-5BiologyHormones at their lowest. Body is shedding the uterine lining.HormonesEstrogen and progesterone are at their lowest.SymptomsFatigue, cramps, poor sleep.DietFocus on iron-rich and warming foods; comfort and nourishment.ExerciseGentle movement — yoga, stretching, walking.WorkIdeal time for reflection, evaluation, setting intentions.SocialLess outward energy, permission to say no, create boundaries.
When I was learning about the different cycles, it intrigued me that the menstrual phase is day one.
Like, wouldn't this be the end result? But then I realized that it is one of those things that we can measure right away, like the first day of your period = day one of your cycle. Whereas compared to the other phases, you would think that day one would be your follicular phase because that's when everything's beginning. But then how do you really know that? But in real life application, the first day of your period, that's day one of your cycle. It’s just so much more tangible
It's like, do you begin the week on a Sunday or Monday? It depends. Like certain calendars, they start a week on Mondays and some start on Sunday. It is pretty subjective in that way, but for our purposes, day one is the first day of your period.
The menstrual phase is the phase where your estrogen and progesterone are at their lowest. And during this time women may experience fatigue, cramps and poor sleep. And if you are a busy woman, you're booked and busy, it's easy to feel like this is the time when your body fails you, or you have all these big plan: you're traveling, you have a lot of work to do, in these times when you want to be at peak performance and you're not because you're on your period, it's easy to be really disappointed.
And I've heard it from my girlfriends, like whenever we're planning something, we're planning a trip or we're planning like an event or something, and they look at the calendar and they say, I'm having my period that week.
And since we're all cycle syncing girls like, we get it, either you reschedule or you redo the whole day so that it's a lot less strenuous. Especially for the girls who get painful, debilitating periods, a lot of them have to cancel plans and take time off of work because it is very debilitating.
It's totally okay to restructure your life, to prioritize your health. And I know it's hard to see, especially when it is super inconvenient, but periods are literally our body's way of telling us to slow down and go inward. It's okay to cancel plans. It's okay to reschedule. It's okay to take some time off for yourself.
And obviously, it's so easy to say that from a biological perspective. But reality can be a different matter. It is an absolute privilege to slow down work or take time off of work, or cancel commitments, or say no. So we as women living in these current times under these systems, we have to hold both truths at once: that biologically, rest is necessary but structurally, rest isn't always accessible.
And that's where the deeper conversation begins, not just about honoring our bodies, but also about reshaping the systems around us. Because it shouldn't be a luxury to listen to your body. It should be the standard. So if you can cancel, reschedule or exist at a slower pace, do it unapologetically. That's resistance. And if you can't right now, just know that your body's whispering wisdom. Even the tiniest act of restoration. Taking a longer shower, saying no to a phone call, breathing deeply between tasks. All of that counts. Every time you choose yourself, even in the smallest ways, is revolution, is reclamation… in a world that rarely pauses for women.
And another small step we can take is to honor other women's time of rest. If your friend has to cancel because she's on her period and she's in pain, literal pain, don't begrudge her. Let her take time off and take some time off for yourself too or spend time with them at home so that you could both rest. Can we normalize prioritizing your and other women's cycles?
Anyway, today's topic of cycle syncing was actually much requested on Instagram. I did a poll on my story about what future topics the girlies would want to see from the powerhouse of the celle, and a lot of people asked for cycle syncing. and I think one of the biggest reasons why women are so interested in cycle syncing is figuring out what to eat and how to exercise during the different cycles.
So for every phase we're going to have a diet and exercise recommendations based on cycle syncing experts. We're actually going to get into the validity of these recommendations based on scientific research, and if we should or shouldn’t follow them, that's the vibe of today's class.
So let's get into the diet recommendations for the menstrual phase.
The Cleveland Clinic's article titled Nutrition and Exercise Throughout Your Menstrual Cycle, recommends iron rich foodto replace iron lost from bleeding. Examples include green leafy vegetables, lean red meat, lentils and beans.
And if you've ever wondered why a lot of women take iron when on their period, or why iron deficiency is largely a female feature, it's because of the blood loss experienced during the menstrual phase. Iron is like the magnet inside your red blood cells that attracts and holds onto oxygen, and this bond is strong enough to carry it through your bloodstream and loose enough to let it go where it is needed.
Without enough iron, oxygen can't hitch a ride in your red blood cells and go to where it is needed. That's why iron deficiency causes fatigue and brain fog. You're essentially not getting enough oxygen.
And obviously consult your doctor if you want to take iron supplements. But if it's a matter of eating your greens and beans and maybe having a steak if you eat meat, this isn't revolutionary. It's not groundbreaking. We should be eating these things anyway.
If you're not into vegetables, here's what changed it for me. When I was little, I did not like vegetables. And then as I grew up, I found out that it's more of a texture thing. I don't know who made this way of cooking vegetables popular: boiling it and removing all texture. Like, no. Now that I'm grown and I cook my own vegetables, like, there's texture, there's roughage… I feel like I'm munching on vegetation. That's how I want to eat my vegetables.
So if you're having a hard time eating your vegetables, try not cooking the texture out of your vegetables because that helps a lot. It is now enjoyable I actually appreciate vegetables now. The article also recommends eating vitamin C rich foods such as citrus berries, broccoli, and red peppers to increase iron absorption, and this has been the common belief since 1980.
But a 2020 paper, albeit on a smaller sample size, shows, that there was no difference in serum ferritin levels between the iron group and the iron and vitamin C group. But nonetheless, if you're a crudite girlie, you're probably eating citrus berries like all these vitamin C rich food anyway, so whether vitamin C rich food enhances iron absorption, it's not going to matter anyway.
Okay, maybe the vibe is crudite and salads?
And maybe a steak. If you eat meat.
Do you see how simple it is? These are probably food that you're already eating already.
And also, you know what? Here's another vibe: integrative medicine.
Integrative medicine is a care model that blends evidence based conventional medicine with complementary therapies, including traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), ayurveda, acupuncture, nutrition, mind body practices like meditation, herbal medicine, and more.
And I know we've all heard this joke: what do you call alternative medicine that works?
And it's medicine.
Okay, funny, haha.
But we've come a long way.
Even institutions like the Mayo Clinic have integrative medicine departments, and many health insurers also cover integrative medicine treatments like acupuncture and chiropractic care so it's not this fully woowoo thing. These are real modalities that help real people with real problems.
And speaking of traditional Chinese medicine or TCM, TCM recommends warming food during the menstrual phase.
We want to focus on encouraging the flow of “qi” and blood to ensure the lining can be fully removed. Blood stagnation and internal cold can be seen with clotting and cramps, therefore warmth is essential.
Foods: Increase spices such as ginger, cinnamon, chilli & ensure your foods are slow-cooked or at the very least warm meals! Avoid ice/iced drinks, smoothies, salads, raw foods.
— “The Menstrual Phases According To Chinese Medicine.” Haynes Acupuncture.
And if you're coming from the Western allopathic perspective, it kind of makes sense. Women put hot compresses on their abdomen during this phase to alleviate menstrual cramps so eating hot food with warming spices kind of tracks.
The vibe is homey. The vibe is warm and cozy. The vibe is restoration… especially when it comes to exercise.
TCM also recommends gentle exercise only, such as yoga and walking. But instead of prescribing certain exercise as things that you should do or should not do, The focus should be if you want to exercise, you should go for it. But if you lack the energy or motivation to do so, or if you're in literal debilitating pain that you can't exercise, you need to take it easy on yourself, okay? This is a time of restoration, of rest and repose so don't fault your body for wanting to rest at this time.
Just listen to your body and don't feel bad about not being able to exercise during this time.
McNulty et al., writes.
… it is recommended that a personalised approach should be taken based on each individual’s response to exercise performance across the [menstrual cycle].
—McNulty et al., “The Effects of Menstrual Cycle Phase on Exercise Performance in Eumenorrheic Women: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.” Sports Med. 2020.
In short, know yourself, accept yourself, believe in yourself, and embody yourself. Period.
And if you're not feeling doing anything more than a walk during this time, just honor that and don't beat yourself up over it. Also, honor that this time may be a time of rest from work or social engagements, or at least dial it back a little bit and prioritize yourself more.
And it's only a couple days… like it's basically a long weekend when you really think about it.
And like I said, this advice of resting during the menstrual phase, it is laden with privilege. But every act of rest and restoration on your part is resistance.
Female rest is resistance in a world built around male biology which informs a lot of the constant productivity rhythms built on the rise and fall of the sun, and not the revolutions of the moon.
A world that rewards constant output linear energy and 24/7 availability. Systems that ignore the cyclical nature of the female body entirely. So when you choose to slow down, even in small ways, you're not just caring for yourself. You're challenging a structure that tells you your worth is tied to your performance.
Female rest is not indulgent. It is radical, it's restorative, and it is deeply necessary.
And this is how necessary rest is and how biology informs society:
Men essentially function on a 24 hour hormone cycle, and they call it “the diurnal variation of testosterone”, or “the relationship between testosterone and the circadian rhythm.” It's basically men's 24 hour hormone cycle.
Why can't we just call it that? Why do we have to have all these other names for it? It's men's 24 hour hormone cycle.
And if you look at these sources, it's been known since the 70s.
It's 2025, and we're still operating in systems informed by this male hormone cycle where we're supposed to wake up full of energy, we get tired towards the end of the day, and we wake up the next day and do it all over again, no matter what time of the month it is.S o do you see now how much the exclusion of women from the workplace, from positions of power in society, has informed this culture of prioritizing the 24 hour hormone cycle over the 28 day.
As much as I want to focus on just the biology, it's so hard to ignore the social aspect of it all.
All these papers and studies and articles that we talk about, they have real world implications for real people, for you, for me, for all of us so the next time you're not allowed or afforded rest at a time when your body demands it, it's because we are still under a system that wasn't built for us. So take it easier on yourself and give yourself more grace.
And while we're on this topic, I also wanted to touch on how in certain mythologies, whenever it's a sun god, it's a male god, and whenever it's a moon god, it's a female god, a goddess. Isn't that interesting?
[the sun is personified as Helios (later Apollo), while the moon is Selene (later Artemis)]
It's like even mythology understood what science is now only confirming: that men are tied to the rise and fall of the sun and women are tied to the revolution of the moon. Neither is better than the other. But they speak to different kinds of wisdom. They speak to different versions of embodiment.
Neither is better but in a world built for the sun, living like the moon is revolutionary.
It's a return to rhythm, to remembering, and maybe a reclaiming.
We already did a class on feminine restoration, so watch it if you missed it.
Long story short, the menstrual phase is your permission to do less, to do nothing. Say no thank you, draw boundaries and prioritize yourself. You may already be doing these things if you're watching this video, but it's even more important during the menstrual phase.
Now let's move on to the next phase.
the follicular phase
Follicular PhaseMantraSpring awakeningDays6-14BiologyEstrogen rises, energy increasesHormonesEstrogen risesSymptomsCreativity bloomsDietLight, fresh, vibrant foods (salads, smoothies, fermented foods).ExerciseCardio, HIIT, trying new fitness routines.WorkBrainstorming, creative planning, big-picture thinking.SocialIncreased sociability, great time for first dates, collaboration.
Next is the follicular phase, which can be thought of as your spring awakening. From day six to around day 14, estrogen starts rising and your energy starts building. So why do women seem to have more energy during the follicular phase when estrogen starts to increase?
It's because estrogen plays a large role in energy balance. Estrogen acts on the hypothalamus, which is a region of the brain that controls appetite and energy expenditure. And here, estrogen influences food intake and metabolic rate. Estrogen also enhances glucose transport and utilization in cells to support energy production, as well as promoting mitochondrial function, which is the powerhouse of the cell.
Estrogen also helps regulate body fat distribution and maintain lean body mass, and it also influences adipose tissue distribution to favor subcutaneous fat storage over visceral fat. And this favoring of subcutaneous fat over visceral fat is linked to better metabolic health because visceral fat is basically the layer of fat in your abdominal cavity, and it's a type of fat that wraps around your organs. Because it does that, it has been tied to a slew of metabolic diseases.
Basically, you do not want an excess of visceral fat.
So let's get into the diet recommendations:
The Cleveland Clinic recommends choosing food like lean proteins and complex carbohydrates that support increased energy levels, especially if you're doing more high intensity workouts. They also recommend cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and kale, and fermented foods like kimchi and kombucha, and food with healthy fats such as avocados and also leafy greens.
Once again, aren't these things food that we should be eating anyway?
But one thing I wanted to emphasize here is the complex carbohydrates part.
the glycemic index and sugar balance
As you can see here, complex carbohydrates are more… complex versus the simple carbs that contain only 1 or 2 sugar molecules. And when it comes to metabolizing these carbs for the simple sugars, they're metabolized faster because they can be broken down faster. It's like taking apart a Lego structure, if there's only 1 or 2 parts, it’s easier to break down. But if it's a more complex Lego building, then it takes longer to take them apart.
So when you eat simple sugars, your blood sugar spikes faster than if you ate complex carbohydrates… in general. There are exceptions, of course. There's food that's technically complex carbohydrates, but they still cause a rapid blood sugar spike. And these foods are usually highly processed, like instant mashed potatoes, white bread, or puffed rice cereal. On a molecular level. Yeah, they are complex carbohydrates but they have a higher glycemic index aka they're more bioavailable because the processing breaks down the natural fiber structures that encase these more complex carbohydrates so now they're just more free to float around.
So yeah, even though something technically is complex carbohydrates doesn't necessarily mean that they will be lower glycemic index. And what even is the glycemic index?
The glycemic index is basically the ability of food to increase your blood sugar over a period of time. So a high glycemic index food will spike your blood sugar faster, and a low glycemic index food has a more delayed blood sugar elevation property. And okay, what's even wrong with having blood sugar spikes? Why is that a bad thing?
When you eat something high in sugar or a high glycemic index food, your blood glucose rises quickly, and in response, your pancreas releases a large amount of insulin, the hormone that helps bring glucose into your cells for energy or storage, and out of your bloodstream where it can cause damage if levels stay too high for too long. And that's why you see a lot of diabetics with microvascular issues. They're losing toes, they're losing legs, and it's because of the excess of sugar in the bloodstream. So having this excess sugar in your bloodstream is definitely a no, and where else will the sugar go if not for within your cells?
So that's the job of insulin: to tell your cells to open up and accept the sugar molecules so that they don't wreak havoc in your bloodstream, in the tips of your fingers, in your toes and also your brain.
So insulin is very important.
But if this cycle happens frequently, if you're always having sugar spikes, you're always telling insulin to do its job, and you do this all the time, all day, every day, your system can get fatigued. Your system can go haywire. It can lead to blood sugar dysregulation and insulin resistance.
It's like being nagged. Insulin keeps telling the cells,
Hey, open up, take in these sugar molecules
And then the cells are like,
Stop telling me what to do, okay? I've been doing that. Like, shut up, shut up.
And in the beginning, insulin will be like,
Well, I'm just going to put more pressure on you. I'm just going to send more of my minions to get you to open up.
So now there's more insulin telling these cells to take in the sugar from the bloodstream. And then over time the cell also adapts to that. They're like,
Well, now we're going to be stronger. We're not going to let these sugar molecules in.
And it just becomes this competition. And at a certain point, your cells become insulin resistant. No matter how much your own body makes insulin, your cells have been immune. They have blocked and deleted insulin’s phone number. And then you get type two diabetes and all the problems associated with that.
So do you see why blood sugar balance is so important? And it's not a matter of “balancing my hormones.” This is real. You can get type two diabetes if you don't balance your sugar, if you constantly elevate your blood sugar like that.
A lot of the conversations online are like, Why do you even want to balance your blood sugar? Nothing's wrong with you.
Nothing's wrong with you yet.
There's people who don't ever balance their blood sugars, and they never get sick. They never get diabetes. Good for them.
But if in your family history, you have type two diabetes, your grandparents have it, your parents have it. It's not directly a genetic component per se, but it's a lifestyle component per se, so the way that your parents eat influences you, and you are now at a higher risk of developing type two diabetes so that's why on your medical record, it says “family history of type two diabetes.” That's because the way that your family has been eating causes type two diabetes. I have that in my family history: type two diabetes. I don't have it, but I may.
And like I feel like that's a very Filipino thing like type two diabetes, metabolic diseases. That's why I'm so passionate about blood sugar balance is because I do have a family history of it. It's always living in the back of my head every day that I cannot be spiking my blood sugar like that. And do I love a sweet treat? I love a sweet treat. Okay. I love a sweet treat but I also know that type two diabetes runs in my family, so I need to be balancing everything. I may have a sweet treat, but I can't be doing that all day, every day.
And it's all about just being mindful of what you put into your body because I do not want to have type two diabetes. It is not a fun time. I've also worked in a nursing home. It is not fun having type two diabetes when you’re older. Some people get occlusions in their eyes and it can cause permanent blindness. And like I said, you can lose your toes, your fingers.
And also type two diabetes has been linked to an increase in prevalence of dementia because when you think about it, diabetes causes microvascular disease. And where do you have microvascular structures? In your brain?
See? This is so important. So whenever people say “oh you're balancing your hormones? Name five hormones.” It really ticks me off because the more people know about “balancing their hormones,” insulin is a hormone, the more they can better take care of themselves, the more that when we hit 40, 50, 60, we won't be having type two diabetes because we have been balancing our blood sugars since we were in our 20s. you get what I'm saying?
Okay, I may have kind of a little bit went off script, but here's what was on the script:
the dysregulation of insulin is a precursor to diabetes, and these high insulin levels can stimulate androgen production such as testosterone, which contributes to acne, hair thinning, and irregular periods. And that's why one of the biggest advice too when you are trying to alleviate your acne is to balance your blood sugar. And it doesn't mean cutting out sugar entirely completely because your body needs sugar.
Also, blood sugar crashes after the spike trigger a stress response in your body. Your adrenals release cortisol to bring blood sugar back up, which can increase inflammation, worsen PMS, and lead to cycle irregularity over time
And in Vitti’s book, the first step, literally in The Woman Code is to stabilize your blood sugar.
Long story short, blood sugar stabilization is crucial to your hormone health.
And that's why skipping meals or prioritizing high glycemic index food, simple sugars. It's simply not good for us. And I want to emphasize that: skipping meals is not good for you.
Okay, so how do you even stabilize your blood sugar?
On top of just avoiding simple sugars and high glycemic index food or just not eating a lot of them, if you're going to have a high glycemic index food like white rice, you can combine it with like protein fats and fiber so it's not the only thing that you're eating for that meal. The more physical scaffolding that you provide around the simple sugars, that could slow down how your body metabolizes the sugars so it doesn't cause that huge blood sugar spike.
And we've already talked about this: have a protein rich breakfast. You start the day with protein instead of simple sugars so that you once again don't have that blood sugar spike. You start your day balanced and level. And also, having a high protein breakfast just helps you keep fuller longer and gives you a more, like I said, level source of energy so you're not experiencing that crash pre lunch time and you're already tired. It's only 10 a.m.. Get it together!
And as we mentioned earlier, sugar crashes they trigger the release of cortisol. And cortisol has been demonized. It's like this evil hormone. She's so misunderstood and underrated. And I feel like our negative perception of cortisol on the internet is largely due to this term called cortisol face where people describe it as being bloated and puffy and just being really inflamed in your face.
A lot of people call that cortisol face, and it could very well be that, but in general, cortisol isn’t evil. It’s not an evil hormone. It's not plotting against you. Cortisol has a real job to do in your body… so the problem isn't cortisol itself.
Cortisol is actually a very necessary hormone. It's the hormone that wakes you up in the morning. It helps you respond to danger and helps keep your blood sugar stable when you're starving. The problem is the excessive, unnecessary stimulation of cortisol. It's the poor sleep, skipped meals, chaotic blood sugar over exercising, chronic stress, and the caffeine overload that keeps your body in fight or flight mode all the time.
The overstimulation of these pathways is what isn't good for your health. Cortisol isn’t an evil hormone, like you're just working her too much… she's overworked and then she causes all these problems because you overwork her. So cortisol, not a bad hormone.
Cortisol isn't the problem. The dysregulation of it is.
Sources
Tsigos C, Chrousos GP. "Hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis, neuroendocrine factors and stress." J Psychosom Res. 2002. DOI: 10.1016/S0022-3999(02)00429-4
Fink G. "Stress, definitions, mechanisms, and effects outlined: how stress affects the body." Encyclopedia of Neuroscience. 2009.
Let's move on to exercise.
the follicular phase pt.2
Since the follicular phase is associated with the rise of estrogen, you may find that you have a lot more energy to do the exercises that you want to do. You may feel like you're ready. You're locked and loaded. You're going to go do your HIIT workouts (high intensity interval training), you could go to Barry's Bootcamp, Core Power, Lagree, whatever the high intensity workouts that you like to do, you may find that you have more time to do that.
So yeah, this is the time. This is your moment. Can you do these other workouts in the other phases of your cycle? Absolutely. But this is the time when you might have the energy to do that. Like I said, it's a very personalized approach. If you feel like it, go for it.
Now let's move on to ovulation
the ovulation phase
From day 14 to around day 17, estrogen is at its peak. She's on top of the world. No one can tell her anything. This is her time.
Estrogen doesn't just regulate your reproductive system, it also boosts serotonin and dopamine, which are the neurotransmitters responsible for mood and motivation. And it's not about performing or forcing yourself to show up. It's about recognizing that your biology is supporting you to step into the spotlight. During this phase, your body is wired for connection so if you feel like showing up, popping out, saying yes to that invitation, go for it. Because if you feel like it, then you're going to do it.
There's not much in the way of diet and exercise during this phase. Like if you feel good doing and eating XYZ, then go for it. Now, after this brief window of the peak of estrogen, it then starts to drop. And with that comes certain changes… and this gets us into the luteal phase.
Sources
"Ovulatory cycle effects on women’s social behavior" → Haselton MG, Gildersleeve K. Current Opinion in Psychology, 2016. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2015.11.004 – Discusses how ovulation may subtly influence flirting, sociability, and mate selection.
"Hormones and interpersonal trust: The role of menstrual cycle phase" → Derntl B, et al. sychoneuroendocrinology, 2013. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2012.11.002 – Shows how cycle phases influence emotional perception and trust.
the luteal phase
The luteal phase is around day 18 to day 28 aka the phase before your period. Your body starts to prep. She's a little prepper. She's asking, did we get pregnant or not? Okay, don't lie to me.
Progesterone starts rising. And for many women, this is when PMS or premenstrual syndrome symptoms show up. And these symptoms include mood swings, irritability, bloating, fatigue, headaches, trouble sleeping. If you don't feel like a baddie during this time, give yourself more grace.
Let's talk about exercise during the luteal phase. If you feel like you're sluggish for like no other reason, it is for a reason. Your estrogen levels are dropping and since it's implicated in a lot of pathways, especially when it comes to energy balance, it's also implicated in pleasure, mood and motivation. It kind of tracks how you will experience changes during the luteal phase when estrogen is on its way down, but if you don't experience that letdown in energy, good for you. You go, Glen Coco.
And with this phase or any other phase, the bottom line is listen to your body and just honor what it wants at that time. So during this phase, if high intensity workouts are not it for you, that's totally fine. You can do more low intensity movement like Pilates or yoga or walking like walking is exercise. Did you know that walking is exercise?
Here’s a quote from Carmichael et al.,’s paper titled “The Impact of Menstrual Cycle Phase on Athlete’s Performance: A Narrative Review”
Studies examining perceived performance consistently report that female athletes identify their performance to be relatively worse during the early follicular and late luteal phases. Studies examining objective performance (using anaerobic, aerobic or strength-related tests) do not report clear, consistent effects of the impact of menstrual cycle phase on physical performance.
—Carmichael et al., “The Impact of Menstrual Cycle Phase on Athletes’ Performance: A Narrative Review.” Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health. 2021.
Once again still inconclusive so the women, they may report that they have worse performance during certain phases of their menstrual cycle, but when it is observed, there's not much difference. But that doesn’t mean that women's perception of their worst performance doesn't matter. It still exists. It's still true for these women. Long story short, there's still no consensus on whether women's athletic performance objectively is reduced during certain phases of their cycle especially the early follicular or the late luteal phases. But the women still report it—the women still feel that way, and that basically sums up science.
Even when it comes to something as fundamental as the female body, the data is still incomplete and often contradictory, but what we do know is that while scientific objective studies matter, subjective experience matters as well. Some women feel amazing during ovulation and sluggish during their period, while others feel totally unaffected. The science hasn't caught up to the complexity yet, but that doesn't mean your experience isn't real.
And if cycle syncing aka honoring your body's cues work for you, then who's to say it's a myth? Maybe it's magic. After all the women the witches once burned for their magic, for their herbs, their healing, their medicine. We now recognize as midwives, herbalists, healers. So maybe magic is just science not yet discovered.
Maybe. Maybe not. Only time will tell.
That's all I have for you today. I just want to let you know that your greatest power lies in you knowing yourself, accepting yourself, and embodying yourself fully. And remember, protect your energy ✨
tysm. bye!