Did you know that your body changes throughout your cycle and that these changes are not just limited to your female reproductive system? Your energy also changes throughout your cycle. Keeping track of when you ovulate (because this changes from cycle to cycle!) can help you be aware of when you are best suited for certain activities, including certain types of exercise. Johnna Wilford, personal trainer, fitness instructor, SymptoPro instructor, and FEMM instructor-in-training, tells us how fertility awareness can be used as a tool for your fitness.

Johnna and I also talk about learning about different natural family planning / fertility awareness methods, what feminism really means, how our husbands have become more open to discussing cycles, the harms of putting weight loss on a pedestal, and how your cycle chart can give you so much information about your health.

Here are the main take-aways:
-Fertility awareness is a more pro-woman way of dealing with fertility than the pill
-Different methods work for different women - know your options
-Fertility awareness can help you rethink the relationship between contraception and feminism. Taking birth control is like asking yourself, how can I be just like a man? Fertility awareness is like asking yourself, how can I be just like a woman?
-Tracking your cycle can help you know when to do certain types of exercises. During your pre-ovulatory phase, you can do any kind of exercise. In the ovulatory phase, it is best to transition from high-intensity to endurance exercises. After ovulation, try doing moderate exercises and then take time to rest at the end of your cycle and especially during your period
-Birth control can mask symptoms / health conditions
-Celebrate your whole womanhood by thinking more about your pelvic floor

Tag Johnna (@johnnawilford_) and me (@nfppharmacist) on Instagram and let us know YOUR take-aways!!

Resources mentioned:
ROAR by Stacy Sims
No period, now what? By Nicola Rinaldi
Wholly a Woman Episode 48: Fertility awareness for health - featuring Mary Nordahl, FEMM instructor

To work with Johnna or take a virtual fitness class, visit www.johnnawilford.com

Access my FREE “Know Your Body with Natural Family Planning” virtual workshop ANY TIME - click on the button on my homepage at www.nfppharmacist.com

What did you think? I want to hear from you!
Email me: emily@nfppharmacist.com
Instagram: @nfppharmacist
Facebook: NFP Pharmacist