We are identical twins born and raised in Buffalo, NY but forever Carolina girls at heart. We have a deep love for neutral aesthetics and all things wellness.
If you read our last blog post, we dove into our Health and Wellness Journey. We felt it was necessary to share the back story of how we got into the health and wellness space first, before sharing what we’re doing to continue to feel our best today. From such a young age, we saw the importance of taking care of our bodies and our health. When we had our first physical transformation of losing over 20 pounds, we weren’t just hooked with the way we looked, but also the way we felt. For us, health and wellness goes beyond the physical appearance, but is part of our daily routine. We’ve made lifestyle changes to feel our best through moving our bodies daily, fueling ourselves with whole, nutritious foods, improving our overall mental wellbeing as a result. Over time, we’ve made little shifts to support our goals. This post specifically shares what small tweaks we’re making to support our body through hormonal imbalances we’re currently experiencing today. Are we doctors? No, but after meeting with our doctor at Joi Wellness, listening to hormone health experts on podcasts and experimenting through trial and error, we’ve gathered hormone-balancing tips that we’ve started to implement.
We’re focusing on these natural methods to manage PCOS and other hormonal imbalances. While medication is a preferred option for many, we wanted to address the root causes and work on treating them before turning to medication. We’re excited to share with you as we continue navigating our own hormone health journey toward better balance and well-being.
Assessed our current habits and overall health
Assessing our current habits and overall health was eye-opening. We took a close look at what an average day looked like in terms of nutrition and movement. On paper, we were doing everything “right”—eating what seemed like healthy foods and staying active. Yet, our bodies were telling a different story. We were gaining weight, dealing with persistent acne flare-ups, experiencing irregular periods, and constantly feeling inflamed. This reflection made it clear that even though our efforts aligned with common health advice, they weren’t tailored to our unique needs, prompting us to dig deeper.
Hormone Testing to understand what was going oninternally
Hormone testing became crucial in understanding the internal imbalances we were facing. The irregular periods and acne around our jawline were clear indicators of hormonal issues. To get to the root of the problem, we did hormone testing with Joi Wellness, which helped pinpoint exactly which hormone levels were out of balance. After receiving our blood test results, we met with a practitioner who reviewed them thoroughly and provided a personalized plan. They gave us a list of specific steps to start implementing, helping us address the underlying issues and move toward better overall health. Our bodies, especially as females, are incredibly complex. Sometimes, even when you’re doing everything right but not seeing the desired results, it could be a sign of hormonal imbalances. For us, recognizing this was crucial in understanding the adjustments we needed to make to address our specific hormone-related issues and better support our overall health.
Prioritizing Strength Training
We’ve shifted our focus to prioritize strength training over running or high-intensity interval training (HIIT), with a current routine of 4-5 days of strength training and an active recovery day. Strength training has been proven to be effective for managing insulin resistance, which can be exacerbated by high-intensity workouts. For individuals with PCOS, strength training and building muscle help improve insulin resistance, balance androgen levels, and reduce overall inflammation in the body.
13,000 steps per day
Movement throughout the day is important for physical and mental health. Since we spend most of our day sitting at desks, we’ve made it a priority to reach a daily step goal of 13,000 steps. To make it enjoyable, we’ve found creative ways to get our steps in, like listening to walking meditations, editing content, answering emails, or catching up on a podcast while walking. Simple habits, like finding a further parking spot, also add up and help us stay on track with our goals. In addition to hitting this step count, we’ve incorporated 5-10 minute walks after meals. These short post-meal walks are particularly effective for shuttling glucose to our muscles, improving insulin sensitivity and helping to stabilize blood sugar levels.
Focus on protein intake
Our goal is to eventually consume a gram of protein for every pound of body weight, but we’re gradually increasing our intake to reach that target. Protein plays a vital role in supporting muscle growth, which boosts your metabolism and helps regulate insulin levels—both key for managing hormone-related issues like PCOS or thyroid imbalances.
Stopped drinking coffee first thing in the morning on an empty stomach
Caffeine affects blood sugar levels and cortisol in the morning, which led us to postpone our morning coffee. As avid coffee drinkers, this change has been one of the toughest adjustments for us, but we believe it could significantly improve our hormones. Studies have shown that coffee consumption on an empty stomach upon waking can cause a spike in blood sugar levels, especially in individuals with insulin sensitivity issues. This effect may be more pronounced in the morning due to the body’s natural increase in cortisol levels upon waking. Instead, we start our day with electrolytes or bone broth before our first cup of coffee, waiting about an hour to 90 minutes after waking to enjoy it. During that time, we focus on our morning workout or getting in our steps to help our bodies wake up naturally. If we really need that caffeine first thing, we’ll make sure we pair it with a protein like collagen protein or hard boiled eggs.
Electrolytes right after waking up and before drinking Coffee
Our Joi Wellness practitioner shared the benefits of consuming electrolytes right after waking up, especially before having our morning coffee. By replenishing electrolytes first thing in the morning, we’re able to support better digestion and prevent the potential dehydrating effects of caffeine from coffee. This routine helps set the stage for better hydration, improved focus, and balanced energy throughout the day. Our go to electrolytes are LMNTs since they have the perfect ratio of electrolytes and no added sugar.
Introducing Bone Broth to improve gut health
Drinking bone broth has various benefits. One of the main reasons we started drinking Bone Broth was hearing about its benefits on gut health and improving digestion from Gracie Norton. Although we haven’t found we have any gut issues specifically, we know that your gut health impacts various parts of your body like hormones, inflammation, and metabolic function. Bone broth is also a great source of protein. Our favorite bone broth’s brands are Kettle & Fire and Paleovalley. Kettle & Fire doesn’t have any additives or preservatives and is made from 100% certified grass-fed cattle. We’ve recently been obsessed with Paleovalley’s Chocolate Bone Broth protein since it tastes like Hot Chocolate and gives us that morning coffee feel without the caffeine. It’s also great if you don’t like the taste of Bone Broth but is still 100% grass-fed Bone Broth Protein Powder with 13 grams of protein.
Eliminating or limiting inflammatory foods
We’ve always tried to limit processed foods like chips, sweets, and soda, but recently became more lenient, despite knowing they weren’t making us feel our best. Lauren and I love snacking on things like Siete Chips, Unreal Chocolates, and smoothies, but realized these were taking the place of real, whole foods. So, we cut back on processed snacks and eliminated gluten and dairy. To address more of our hormonal issues related to PCOS, we cut out alcohol for 40 days and focused on limiting refined sugars to manage inflammation, balance hormones, and improve insulin sensitivity. Since insulin resistance plays a major role in PCOS, our goal was to reduce foods that trigger blood sugar spikes.
Staying Consistent
Change doesn’t happen overnight, and we’ve faced years of frustration, thinking we were doing everything right while frequently switching up workouts and diets. As part of our consultations with Joi, we have a 3-month check-in to evaluate our progress and symptoms. This helps keep us accountable to stick with the changes for a meaningful period. In a few months, we’ll revisit this and share an update on how we’re feeling and how our bodies are responding.
We’re excited to have you with us on this health journey! As we embrace natural, holistic practices to balance hormones and transform our bodies, we hope to inspire and support you in achieving your own wellness goals. We’ll continue to update you all on how we’re feeling and hopefully can share how these tactics have improved our symptoms and hormone levels. There’s so much we’ve learned over the years and we hope we can give you a glimpse of the little things we’re doing along the way!
Health Habits to Naturally Transform Our Bodies and Balance Hormones