Cyclical Yoga for Irregular Periods and Perimenopause!

Going against your natural rhythm can cause tension in the body!

In fact many of the common PMS symptoms my client's experience have been due to the cumulative effect of simply pushing at the wrong time!

Moving in sync with your cycle helps to nourish your inner ecosystem by working WITH your body rather than against it! So you use better your better energy throughout the month!

Think of it like dancing to the beat of your own drum - except this drum is your uterus, and it wants you to live your best life with more energy and balance.

But, this may not be so clear or easy to spot, so the best way to get started understanding and anticipating your energy shifts is to track them.

Not everyone's cycle is as predictable as the weather!

Maybe you're taking birth control, or you've already hit menopause, or you've had a little bundle of joy arrive. Or perhaps you're dealing with conditions like PCOS or endometriosis.

But don't worry, you can still find a little more inner harmony by tracking different moods and sensations throughout the month.

And you also have the ever-present help of the moon to lend a hand! Your energy flows in sync with the moon phases too, so you can use it as a guide to create a little more structure and regularity in your life.

If you no longer have periods, you can use the new moon energy in place of your menstrual phase and the full moon energy in place of your ovulatory phase as a starting point. Of course, you might need to mix things up a bit until you establish your own energy patterns, but using the moon as a compass can help you find your way.

The moon had a 29.5-day cycle and mirrors the menstrual cycle perfectly. It offers anyone that is without a regular/present cycle a way to work cyclically during cycling years and beyond.

And it's no coincidence that our cycles mirror the moon's cycles, think how much our bodies work with the rise and fall of the sun! We wake with the rising sun which triggers cortisol to help us get up and we rest with the setting sun which triggers melatonin to help us sleep.

Once upon a time, we used to cycle in tangent with its rise and fall. But the modern world and artificial lighting has affected the way we connect with the moon. So don't underestimate how powerful it can be even though it's not happening inside your body.

And the best way to get started in finding the patterns? Is by Cycle Charting, I have a FREE Workshop and Cycle Chart HERE so you can get started straight away.

Awareness is key when it comes to creating meaningful change!

And if you're looking for an easy way to keep track, there are tons of apps out there {I'm personally a fan of Clue and Flo}.

They'll help you make sense of the patterns in your cycle so you can learn to anticipate the changes in your energy. And there are also apps for women during perimenopause to track your symptoms such as Balance.

But even the best apps have their limits when it comes to tracking our energetic needs. That's where good ol' pen and paper come in handy! It might seem a bit old-fashioned, but trust me, keeping a Charting practice can be a total game-changer.

Just spend a quick three minutes a day jotting down your insights, and before you know it, you'll be able to plan your life around your cycle with ease! So go ahead, grab your Cycle Chart HERE and get ready for some serious self-awareness!

Tracking your cycle is like playing detective! And it's like turning on a light switch! Once you figure out the patterns, you can crack the case and solve the mystery of your body's energy fluctuations. But tracking is only the first step - the next step is rest!

Think about it, when you're on your period, your hormones hit rock bottom, so it makes sense to move your body in a way that matches your energy level. And if you don't have a period, don't worry, you still have a cycle of energy that you can track and map out.

When you take the time to move in harmony with your body instead of forcing it to do things it's not ready for, you create a more peaceful and balanced flow of energy throughout the entire month.

This can help regulate your cycle, ease those pesky PMS symptoms, and introduce you to a whole new way of living and moving. So take a break, permission to put your feet up, and enjoy some much-deserved rest!

The easiest way to understand the energy of your cycle is to relate it to the cycle of the year, so energetically speaking this is what your cycle might look like -

Inner Spring
Pre Ovulation | Waxing Moon

Inner Spring is an opportunity to cherish yourself, remember your innocence, be curious and play, especially on the mat! 

Nurture your being and allow things to unfold rather than pushing them, it’s important to create boundaries to manage yourself. Like a little sprouting seed, nurture yourself, go slow as you transition from winter to spring, and allow time for your hormones to rise and give you the energy you need.

Inner Summer
Ovulation | Full Moon

During the Inner Summer phase, you may find your energy peaks. Summer is about showing up in the world as you are, stepping into the fullness of yourself. Celebrate who you are!

You may find yourself a social butterfly, able and happy to communicate and share yourself with the world. Move the body in new and challenging ways building heat and fire in the body. This can be a time of motivation, passion and expansion

Inner Autumn
Pre-Menstruation | Waning Moon

During Inner Autumn energy starts to ground, It's time to start reserving your energy, slow it down and go inwards, and allow yourself to reflect. Autumn invites you to come back to yourself, restoring balance back to the body after the peak of summer.

Autumn can be a wonderful time of creativity and reflection, you can use that energy in your practice to get creative on the mat too. It is also the time to purge and detox the body, letting go of things that haven't been serving you.

Inner Winter
Menstruation | New Moon

Inner Winter is a time to take rest, restore and preserve energy. It is wise to match your movement and activities to how you feel with gentle movement.

What you do in this phase is key in setting yourself up in the best way possible for the month ahead and it all starts with rest. Rest is not a reward a basic human right! So resist the temptation to keep on pushing, or to keep layering expectations. It's ok to do less!

Want to find out more? Grab my FREE Cyclical Rhythm Workshop and Chart to get started!