stop fighting against your cycle and start living in alignment with it

Do you know what phase of your cycle you’re in? As I write this, I am in my Ovulatory Phase. I’m on Day 14 of my cycle and yesterday I saw the first little inkling of cervical fluid, so I know I’m in my fertile phase and approaching ovulation. 

I love knowing exactly where I am in my cycle so that I can plan my business and my life around the energies of each cycle phase.

If you’re curious what the four phases of the menstrual cycle are and how to use the strengths of each phase to create magic in your biz and life, check out my last blog article on this very topic.

Here is an example of what this looks like: during my ovulatory phase I feel energized, creative, confident, and social. I use this ovulatory energy for tasks that are more outward-facing, such as connecting with colleagues or having 1:1 client sessions. I’m also batch-creating content for the blog and social media so that I don’t stress trying to create content during my period when I’m not in the mood.

This is just one of the ways I’m working on aligning my life and business with the phases of my menstrual cycle. 

But how do you know which phase of the cycle you’re even in? Don’t worry, I got you! 

If you’re a nerd like me and want to deep dive into your hormones throughout the menstrual cycle and how you can track your signs of fertility to know where you are in your cycle, check out my video on The Importance of Ovulation.

Otherwise, keep reading. I’ll walk you through the basics of the physical changes as well as the energy shifts of each phase of the cycle.

tracking your cycle

If you’re getting into cycle tracking, you will want somewhere to store your cycle info. You can either go analog with paper charts or digital with an app. There are so many apps to choose from and you have to choose what works for you. I talk about charting in paper charts vs. apps in my Cycle Tracking 101 e-book. It’s free to download here! 

I have to give a shout out to my charting favourite app: Read Your Body. Read Your Body is a not-for-profit organization and they will never sell off your personal data (which, unfortunately, many other fertility tracking apps do). 

Read Your Body is also completely customizable to the type of cycle tracking you’re doing. Whether you’re tracking to be more aware of your cycle and the phases, or if you’re going ovaries deep, charting your signs of fertility and using FAM to prevent pregnancy, you can customize the app to your needs.

Clients who work with me 1:1 in Nourishing Cycle Magic or in my FAM for birth control group course, get three free months of the Read your Body app! 

Now that you’ve chosen how to store your cycle info, let’s figure out what cycle day you’re in by counting forward from your last period.

Ok, is it just me or have you noticed that once you start hanging in circles filled with your menses besties (the girls who get it and are tracking their cycles) you constantly hear everyone sharing what day of their cycle they’re on?! It’s a fun way to get a quick read on where someone is in their cycle and how they might be feeling that day. 

To figure out what cycle day you’re on, start by finding Day 1 of your cycle. Day 1 is the first day of your last period, not including any spotting. From there, simply count forward to today and you can now confidently say, “I’m on Day ___!”

Now, let’s go through each phase of the menstrual cycle and talk about the physical and energetic shifts you might experience. Keep in mind that everyone’s cycle is unique to them. The length of each phase varies from person to person and cycle to cycle. I’ll talk about the commonly observed energetic shifts, but yours may be completely different, and that’s 100% okay! 

Building menstrual cycle awareness means tuning into the energies of your unique cycle. Once you get a feel for your cyclical rhythm, you can start planning your life, business and creative projects around your cycle in a way that works for you!

The Menstrual Phase

The menstrual phase usually lasts for 3-7 days. Anything shorter or longer than that may be a sign of a cyclical imbalance with your hormones, and we should talk! 

Physically, it’s the most obvious to observe. I think you’ll know when you’re in your menstrual phase because of your endometrial lining flowing out of your vagina. LOL. So, yes you will observe blood. 

You may also experience some discomfort like cramps or bloating. Now I just want to say that some discomfort is okay, but if you have debilitating pain during your period that is not normal! You can reach out to me to have a free 20-min convo about how we can work together to heal your period issues.

If you are taking your basal body temperature, you will notice your temps go down just before or during menstruation to the preovulatory range of 36.11-36.5℃ (97-97.7℉).

At this time, all of your reproductive hormones are relatively low and your energy will be lower as a result. You may feel inward-focused, self-reflective, and grounded. The tendency is often to cozy up at home with a good book or your favourite TV show, rather than to go out. Use this time to rest, reflect, and set intentions for the cycle ahead.

The Follicular Phase

As your period comes to an end and you transition from lighter, spotting days to nothing, you enter your follicular phase. The follicular phase is the most variable in length. It depends on your overall hormonal health, stage of life, and any stressors happening in the current cycle. All of these can impact ovulation and either shorten or lengthen your follicular phase. 

Physically the follicular phase is characterized by “dry days”, where there is little to no moisture at your vulva or in your undies. The main thing to note about the follicular phase fluids is that the pattern stays the same day after day.

With basal body temperature, your temps will stay in the low pre-ovulatory range of 36.11-36.5℃ (97-97.7℉).

You may feel your energy increasing at this time and the shift from an inward-focused to an outward-focus phase. I call this the “get shit done” phase, because of the drive and ambition to plan, check things off the to-do list, and set the intentions from the menstrual phase into motion. 

Use this time to make a plan for the cycle ahead, reach out to people you want to connect with and schedule meetings for during your ovulatory phase. 

The Ovulatory Phase

You’ll know you’ve entered the ovulatory phase when you notice any cervical fluid, either at your vulva when you wipe, or in your undies. This is the tell-tale sign you are approaching ovulation. Cervical fluid can be clear or white, creamy, wet, or may have a stretchy, egg-white quality. No matter the colour or consistency, if you notice a change from the same day after day pattern of your follicular phase, then you have entered the ovulatory phase.

You may observe cervical fluid for around 3-5 days. If you only see scant cervical fluid or if you have excess that lasts for days on end, it could be a sign of some kind of hormonal imbalance that is impacting your ovulation. 

Your body temperature will remain in the lower pre-ovulatory range of 36.11-36.5℃ (97-97.7℉). You may even notice it dip even lower within the range under the influence of high estrogen. 

Energy-wise you may notice an increase in libido, confidence, and an overall more outward-facing energy. It will feel very natural to connect with others and socialize. You may even find you’re more eloquent and easily able to put your thoughts into words. I recommend scheduling meetings, presentations, and client calls during your ovulatory phase because of this! 

The Luteal Phase

In the luteal phase, you’ll notice a drying up of cervical fluid. It will usually return to a similar “dry days” pattern as the follicular phase. 

If you’re temping, you will notice your temps rise and remain high for the rest of your cycle until your next period starts. Postovulatory temps rise to 36.55℃ (97.8℉) or higher under the influence of progesterone.

The luteal phase can be one of the most challenging energetically. Follicular and ovulatory energy has us outward-facing in a way that aligns with the expectations of society. However, during the luteal phase you turn inward. The focus shifts to details and administrative tasks that you want to tidy up before your period comes.

This can feel like quite a big change from the BOE (Big Ovulatory Energy) of the previous week. In addition, when hormones are imbalanced, we can experience mood issues during the luteal phase such as increased anxiety or depression. If your PMS is getting in the way of you being able to fully live your life, you should definitely talk to your healthcare provider because this is not okay or normal. 

You can honour the inward-focus of this phase to start preparing for your menstrual cocoon. Complete any last administrative tasks that have been nagging at you. You will have a keener eye for detail in this phase, so use this time to clean house – both physically and metaphorically. You can clean and prepare your home for a cozy menstrual phase, and also clear up anything in your life and biz (think clearing out that inbox). 

So now you have the tools for figuring out what phase of the menstrual cycle you’re in. You can check your fluids, take your temps, and tune in to the energies of each phase. Also, keeping track of what day of the cycle you’re in will give you a rough idea of where you’re at, though bear in mind the days of the cycle don’t always line up exactly with the phases. 

If you want to dive deeper into tracking the phases of your cycle, download my free e-book Cycle Tracking 101. 

Thanks for being here in my little corner of the internet!