After my reverse diet update post went live, I received numerous questions about restoring my cycle, balancing my hormones and so on. I thought it was time to fill you in on how I have been doing and what I did to get my cycle back.
Before I get into the details here’s a little back story on my journey. I lost my cycle about a year ago and continued to not have one for just over nine months. At that time I knew it was time to heal whatever was going on within me. A women cycle is a sign of health. I began seeing a holistic doctor along with my family care physician, both of these women have been amazing throughout this process. Of course, we first had blood drawn to rule out anything serious. All of the test came back normal except my estrogen was quite low, which explained a lot. I was advised to either reduce/eliminate cardio or up my calories. I knew this was coming. But, at that time was eating 2300 calories, which is a lot for my 5’2″ frame, but I guess still wasn’t enough. I decided to eliminate extra cardio.
It was easier mentally for me to reduce cardio instead of trying to eat more. At the beginning of August I cut out all excess cardio. My days are rather busy, so I was still getting over 10,000 steps per day, but I wasn’t adding in extra cardio or HIIT. Which actually helped with inflammation A LOT. I began to turn my focus even more towards my Pure Barre practice. I started implementing 6 days a week of Pure Barre workouts, my body loved it, my body craves it, my body loves Pure Barre.
How I Healed My Body from the Inside Out
- Stopped intermittent fasting. Shortly after I began intermittent fasting is when my cycles stopped. I cannot say for sure that was the reason, however, I began to connect the two together. Low and behold shortly after I stopped intermittent fasting (IF) I regained my cycle. I know there is differing opinions on IF, but this is my story and how my body reacted. I must admit I loved IF, however my body did not.
- Stopped all excess cardio. I say excess because as stated above I was still getting approximately 10,000 steps per day, there was simply nothing I could about that; mom life is busy.
- Low impact workouts only. At the same time I eliminated excess cardio, I started solely practicing Pure Barre, my body loves low impact workouts. Trust me these workout are intense, but low impact and don’t cause inflammation within my body. Once I changed my workout routine to strictly Pure Barre, I felt a huge a difference in the way my body held onto stress when compared to HIIT workouts or other intense cardio programs. I felt amazing.
- Kept my macros/calories high. I have been eating 2300-2400 calories each day for the past couple of years. Therefore, even though I was cutting out cardio I still needed to keep my calories the same. My body needed the rest, the time to recover.
- Upped my fat grams. I kept my overall macros the same, but I upped my fat grams and lowered my carbs just a little. Not a huge change, but it seemed to helped. Fat is very important for hormonal balance.
- Epsom Salt Baths. Easier said than done. As a busy mom there is not a lot of time to take baths. However, epsom salt has so many benefits, from reducing soreness, to a reduction in inflammation, promotes better sleep, helps manage stress, quicker recovery, the list goes on. All of these benefits help heal hormone levels.
- Saying no to things that don’t contribute to creating the life you want. Learning to say no is a big one. You cannot do it all, one day you will crash. Added stress has a negative impact on hormones, therefore it’s important to better learn how to handle stress.
- Figure out your priorities. This one goes with #7. You have to decide what needs to be done and what can wait. There is no way to do it all, especially doing it all well. Take a deep breath and focus on the here and now.
Remember everyone’s journey is different. This is what worked for me and my body. In the end, if you are having hormonal issues please see a doctor and begin to heal yourself from the inside out as soon as possible. You deserve to feel your best. You only have one life, make it your best life.