Title: Functional Health vs. Medical Health: Understanding the Differences
Title: Free Ways to Track Your Hormones
Lab testing is a wonderful tool, but did you know you could check in on your hormones on your own, free of charge?
I often have clients use these tools alongside of lab data- because only you can know your body better than anyone else!
I also love the use of fertility trackers like Inito, Mira, or the Ora rings, but nothing beats free!
Here are a few ways to get started tracking your hormonal changes:
1. Track your basal body temperature: Take your temperature every morning as the first thing you do, before getting out of bed. Tracking temperature changes will help you determine cycle changes.
- Pre-Ovulation Temperatures: Typically lower, ranging between 97.0°F (36.1°C) and 97.7°F (36.5°C).
- Post-Ovulation Temperatures: Higher, ranging between 97.8°F (36.6°C) and 98.6°F (37.0°C).
- Temperature Shift: Look for a sustained rise of about 0.4°F (0.2°C) that lasts for at least three days, indicating ovulation.
2. Become educated on cervical mucus changes:
- Dry or Non-existent: After your period, you may have little to no cervical mucus.
- Sticky or Creamy: As you approach ovulation, mucus may become sticky or creamy.
- Watery: Closer to ovulation, the mucus becomes more watery.
- Egg White: Around ovulation, the mucus becomes stretchy and clear, resembling raw egg whites. This is the most fertile mucus.
- Lack of any all month long: work on your stress hormones, stay hydrates, and consume healthy fats!
- Excessive mucus all month long: Consider your liver detoxification as estrogen is most likely staying too high.
- Abnormal, or containing odor: Consider infection and microbiome imbalances.
3. Correlate your symptoms to your cycle phase:
- Example) Acne in the second half of your cycle can tell us estrogen is either too high or too low and progesterone is likely also too low. Acne in the first half of your cycle tells us your body is prioritizing testosterone.
- Example) Light cramping in the middle of your cycle tells us you may be ovulating versus severe cramping around period indicates estrogen is staying too high.
- Example) Energy shift higher in the first half and middle of your cycle tells us your testosterone is in a good place for ovulation.
Tracking these symptom changes helps us connect the dots and see patterns!
Curious about digging deeper into your own health?
Book a free 15 min phone call with me to see if functional nutrition is the right thing for you!
Always rooting for you!
- Allie CHN, FDN-P
Allie is a Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner located in Birmingham, Alabama. She helps women and men across the country online and in her hometown office dig deeper into their root health issues and find holistic healing!
