Honour Your Cycle

Follicular Phase

The Follicular Phase follows your menstrual period and lasts around 7-10 days. During this time your hormones are at low levels and starting to rebuild in the body. You can think of this as the time of creative beginnings. Much like the new moon, follicular a great time to focus on manifesting, creation, planning and intention setting.

Supporting your cycle through practice:

• During this phase you might find yourself open to new ideas and practice, so give a practice you haven’t tried before a go!

• As you find your creative flow and more strength and stamina during this time, mix up your routine and focus on energising practices that support the building of those feel good hormones we all love!

• You might like to get clear on your intention for the month, something you can work with in your Sadhana.

Ovulation Phase

The Ovulation Phase takes place around the mid point in your cycle and usually lasts around 3-5 days. Here you will find that your hormones begin to reach their peak in supporting you to feel confident, energetic and sexy! This is a perfect time to work into some of the more intense practices, spending time focusing on self pleasure or lovemaking and jumping into the important conversations while your confidence is high.

Supporting your cycle through practice:

• Your energy reaches it’s peak in this phase so take hold of the high vibes with strong vinyasa, pranayama and kriya practices.

• While you are feeling super sexy and feminine, try out a Shake and Release or get dancing to your favourite tunes!

• If you are working with an intention, see how you can start to really bring it to life in your practice

Luteal Phase

After ovulation we move into the Luteal Phase for the next 10-14 days. Once hormones have reached their peak they slowly start to taper off again until they find their low point right before menstruation. At the end of this phase many women begin to experience PMS symptoms and energy levels tend to drop. As our bodies start to slow down and prepare to bleed this is a great time for us to also start to slow down. It’s also a great time to complete any outstanding tasks and see how we can bring our creative intentions to fruition.

Supporting your cycle through practice:

• The first half of this phase you may still feel quite energetic and full of life-force. You can continue to practice in ways which help to build strength and resilience in the body and mind.

• If you find moodiness or anger arising, self regulate with releasing practices.

• As you move into the second half of this stage and you have lower energy levels support yourself with gentler practices.

• This is a time when your intuitive powers are building, use this to guide your practice, notice your dreams and listen to your body.

Menstrual Phase

The menstrual phase is the time in which we bleed and our hormones reach their lowest levels in the body. Low concentrations of hormones can leave us feeling tired and increase our need for rest. Although we may feel tired during this phase, this is actually a period where our initution is heightened and we are able to think with clarity. Take this time to reflect on your cycle, your intentions and listen in to what the feminine wisdom of your body is telling you.

Supporting your cycle through practice:

• Be gentle with yourself, if your body is craving rest listen in and honour her!

• Soothing yin and meditation can be very supportive during this phase, as you can still softly move energy around the body, but continue to calm the nervous system.

• There is a strong movement of releasing, detoxing energy in this time. Allow gentle movement and practice to release anything stored physically or emotionally.