First of all, let me clarify what I mean by "healthy" because I don't mean skinny, toned or even just fit.

To me "healthy" means vibrant, full of energy, confident, at home in your body, radiant skin, a resilient mind, positive emotional balance, and - you may have guessed it- a rocking fertility which means having a regular, painfree (yup!) cycle without emotional ups and downs!

Our menstrual cycles really tell us SO much about our state of health the way I defined it above, which is why I think it is such a wonderful assessment tool for the general health of a woman.

Looking at health through this holistic lens, it's pretty clear that it's all about our hormones, which is why in today's post I want to give you 3 simple ways that anyone can implement in order to boost your hormonal health (& psssttt, maybe even up your libido).

*Note: there is obviously a lot more to health than these three steps, but we gotta start somewhere and overwhelm in my experience only creates stuckness and leads to non-action. I believe that these three steps -if you implement them consistently- are absolutely key and will make a massive difference.

1. Add a healthy fat to each meal.

Why? Fat is the building block for our hormones so we need to make sure we get plenty of high quality ones.

For example, add chia seeds, flax seeds or hemp seeds into your morning breakfast bowl or smoothie. Add avocado and olive oil into your lunch. Try salmon for dinner once a week or start cooking your dinner with coconut oil. The point here is not only to make meals more nutritious but to make them more delicious too.

2. Rest more.

Why? Your adrenals cannot run in overdrive all the time. If they do and your body uses up all its cortisol, it will affect your fertility because your body will turn progesterone (necessary for a healthy cycle) into cortisol to survive. And trust me, you don't want that!

Fall is the perfect time to give our adrenals a good ol' rest. Many of us cruise through summer living the high life but now as the weather changes and we are welcoming colder temperature our energy becomes a bit more introverted as well. Use this time to slow down, scratch things from your to do list, and spend time reading in bed rather than being tied to your phone screen or TV (I bet you'll get far better sleep that way!). Need some book suggestions? Click here.

3. Reduce your toxic exposure.

Why? Toxins are endocrine disrupters. Excuse me what? Endocrine disrupters are essentially disrupting your normal hormonal household causing havoc on all sorts of ends. A big no no.

A good place to start is your skin care since your skin is your biggest organ and will absorb chemicals you put on it. To start, look out for chemicals from the phthalate family (DBP, DEHP) as well as paraben preservatives (methyl, propyl, butyl, ethyl) in your lotions and skin creams, foundations, concealer, deodorant, and nail polish.

Is there something you pay special attention to when it comes to your health from which you've seen massive results? I'd love to hear about them in the comments below.

xo,

Caroline

PS: Becoming educated in hormonal health and seeking out true experts in the field as my mentors has been revolutionary not only for my personal health status but how I now coach and teach other women around me how to optimize their inner and outer well-being.

One of my mentors is the amazing Nicole Jardim who led me through her Fix Your Period Apprenticeship Program, which truly kicked-off my deep dive into the beautiful world of hormonal health. Nicole is releasing a FREE 3-part email series called "How to Become A Women's Health Coach" for anyone who would like to learn about what it takes to be a successful health coach today.

In her video series, she wants to talk to you about ALL of this:

What it takes to be an awesome health coach + the type of training you really need
Why women's hormonal health is an important and growing specialty
A day in the life of a successful health coach - you'll get a sneak peak into Nicole's business and personal life
The good, the bad and the ugly sides of being a health coach and business owner (oooh!)

Check it out here.