This year, I made a decision. I no longer wanted to dwell on excuses concerning my body and its health. I wanted to begin to be an advocate for my health instead. As a new mom still walking through that phase of postpartum last year, I noticed that I was constantly sluggish, tired, moody, and so many other emotions that did not agree with the abundance that God had promised.
The reality is that I could honestly consider what I was experiencing as "normal." According to science, history, reports, and so many other articles, how I felt was actually normal for my current season. New moms in that first year are encouraged to be patient with their journey. Their bodies have just experienced one of the most beautiful transformations, but also one of the toughest. I accepted these facts as truth, and I walked through that entire year with patience, grace, and love for this being that had just performed one of the most beautiful miracles.
Yet, can I be honest with you?
There were things I swept under the rug and made excuses concerning as I walked through those beautiful yet sometimes hard days. I honestly can sometimes even find myself today, making excuses for the different things I may experience or feel in my body.
It's easier to complain than to do something about our present experience. Doing something requires acceptance and then hard work.
So I had to accept a hard truth. Pouting about how my body felt, was not changing how my body felt (*deep sigh). I literally wanted to feel better with no changes (*side eye). The funny thing about this is that I am dead serious. I spent so many days, not changing a thing about my lifestyle but hoping that each day would present something different concerning what I was now experiencing with my body.
As much as relying on the fact that what I was experiencing, which was considered "normal" at this stage of my life, was comfortable, I knew that if I wanted to indeed continue to optimize and cherish the days I loved experiencing with my family, something within me had to change.
I could no longer accept that how I felt was normal and do nothing with the expectation that it would change. I deserved more, and I made the choice that I wanted the more I deserved.
If you've been reading my blogs or following me on social media, you know that this year, I set a goal to walk at least one mile a day. I set this goal to walk with the intention of walking outside daily, no matter the weather. I've walked over 60 miles so far this year. It's helped my mental wellness tremendously and also developed commitment and discipline in me in ways that have been long needed. Yet, walking was not the only change that I needed to make. I honestly had to take time to assess my life and understand what was working for me in this season and what was currently depleting me, and then I had to have the courage to make the necessary changes.
I am on an ongoing journey for the rest of my life. I have not mastered and will not master this lifestyle. I will always be a student growing and learning as my body changes and evolves.
I want to share with you some of the areas of my life that I assessed and changed that have been life-changing for me in this present season. Take what you need only. This is not a one-size-fits-all blog.
You deserve to live out your best days fully energetic, present, and abundant.
Three Key Areas to Assess to Live Your Best Days
Live in alignment with your Cycle. Most of us are women who have a monthly cycle. Our month, if we have a cycle, can be broken down into four phases that can be viewed similarly to seasons. One of the most significant decisions I made was to track my moods, body changes, and energy levels to understand how my days were impacted by my monthly period. This gave me the insight I needed. I began to understand when my hormones were impacting my emotions, moods, and my energy levels. Having this awareness, helped me to know when I could get my best work done, and when I needed to decide to rest. Understanding my cycle and how it impacted my body, helped me to gain wisdom on my thought process, evaluate how I responded to different things, and truly make changes that helped me to be more emotionally and relationally intelligent. At the bottom of this blog, I've included a sample chart of the four phases of our body. Please note that this is only a sample, you will have to take time to understand your body and its best days through your personal assessment. Another tool I recommend you download is Moodlight. Moodlight is an app that can be downloaded to your phone to help you track your different moods and their triggers. Being emotionally aware and intelligent is half the battle to living out our best days.
Understand what your body needs to operate in its best capacity. I've always taken vitamins, but not really out of necessity. One thing I've had to do in this season of my life is gain an understanding of the vitamins and foods that my body needs. I had to accept that I had become one of those people who was taking all the vitamins and supplements that I side-eyed others for taking previously (*deep sigh). The first thing that was required in order to make this change was an understanding of where my body was depleted. This wasn't just a self-assessment, it involved visiting a doctor for a physical and a vulnerable talk about what I was currently experiencing. It took me accepting that I couldn't lead this area of my life on my own, I needed doctoral and nutritional help. After I understood what my body needed, I began the process of changing my view of how much these things would cost to a view of how much my life was positively changing. Adding the right vitamins and supplements to my day-to-day life has been absolutely life-changing. I don't want to recommend anything here when it comes to vitamins and supplements because our bodies are made up differently, I don't want you taking what works for me, I am sharing to encourage you to do the work to understand what you need. Another decision, I had to make was that every food I was eating, was not contributing to my best health and life experience. There were some foods that I had to choose to cut back on tremendously. This is still a daily battle, but I am improving. One of my most significant areas, as I've mentioned previously, is my intake of meat. I am not vegan, nor am I vegetarian, but I do try my best to allow my meals to be based on plants and not meat, and I honestly can tell a huge difference. Changing my food diet has removed the cloudiness I used to often experience, and provided me with clear thoughts in a way that I honestly didn't know that food could impact or make a difference. I also have more energy, and my body feels a lot leaner and lighter because of these conscious food decisions.
Start Your Day Early. I will keep this one short and sweet because honestly, the formula is simple. One of the best ways to live out your best days is to get started early. Waking up an hour before you have to get ready for work or before your family awakes will allow you to be ahead of schedule and not feel like you are constantly in rush mode. It will help you to start slowly and be present. You deserve a slow, intentional start to your day. I promise you the benefits of climbing out of bed while it's still dark outside, as hard as it may be, will be absolutely life-changing for your mental wellness.
The Four Phases
Note: I have added a table below of the four phases we experience in a month. I encourage you, for the first 30 days after reading this blog:
Evaluate your life and then assess what is needed.
Take time to see where this chart may differ and document your best days and phases.
Document when you notice your moods spike and what triggered the change.
Take notice of how your body feels after you eat certain foods.
Schedule a physical, be vulnerable, and ask the necessary questions.
What adjustments will allow you to increase your energy, stabilize your moods, experience your best health and live out your best days?
Phases | Length | Time of Month | What you may experience | Suggestions for these Days |
One (Spring) | 7-10 days | Starts when period ends | Feelings of happiness, excitement, confidence | Be gentle with yourself, but open to new plans, new work projects and social engagements. |
Two (Summer) | 3-5 days | Ovulatory phase | Energetic, happy, high energy, and happy | Enjoy time out, work on that project, accept that lunch invite. Great time to work! |
Three (Fall) | 10 - 14 days | luteal phase | Calming, nesting, preparation for what's to come | Wrap up those projects, a time for nesting, just be for a few days. |
Four (Winter) | 5-7 days | during the time of your cycle | low energy, moods, cravings | Understand the times you have best energy during these days, rest, and remove as much from your plate as possible. |
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