TAKING ACTION: ✅Tell me how you plan to spend your rest & recovery day? Will you take advantage of the yoga/mobility workout today? Take a walk? Something else? **workout in comments*** It’s Rest & Recovery Day, and you know what I’m going to say, don’t you? Taking proper rest & recovery days from working out is critical when it comes to balancing your cortisol rhythm. Here’s why ⬇️ Exercise briefly raises cortisol to help your body handle the workout, which is normal—but skipping rest days can keep it high for too long, making it harder for your muscles to repair, leaving you more open to getting sick, and messing with your sleep. Taking recovery days lets cortisol drop back to normal so your body can heal, get stronger, and avoid burnout. ⬇️OPTIONAL READING⬇️ Why recovery days matter: Balancing cortisol levels — Summit Physical Therapy & Performance _________________________________________________ Don’t forget - you can earn monthly recurring commission by inviting friends with your unique code in the app! 💗 Share it with some friends and encourage them to join!!

TAKING ACTION: ✅When do you normally get your workout in? Morning or late afternoon/evening? ✅Crush your leg day workout today! Workout in comments! Another morning tip we briefly mentioned last week was in regard to working out in the morning vs later in the day. Similar to what we said about caffeine, the timing really is the most important thing to consider. Working out in the morning hours is beneficial when it comes to balancing your cortisol because, again, the goal is to have our cortisol higher in the morning hours. When it’s higher, we naturally have more energy to crush our daily workout. Conversely, we want our cortisol to be lower in the later afternoon/evenings, and working out in the evening hours can disrupt the overall rhythm/balance. That’s not to say you shouldn't exercise in the later afternoons if that’s your only option. If working out in the mornings is not an option for you, try implementing at least a few of the other cortisol-balancing protocols we’ve mentioned this week. 👌

TAKING ACTION: ✅New Clients: Skip straight to the bottom of this post and check out the ⭐️ NEW CLIENT INFO! ✅I’d love to see everyone—old and new clients—post a sweaty HIIT day selfie in the comments below! 🤳 To caffeinate or not to caffeinate…☕️⬇️ There’s a lot of controversy when it comes to caffeine, but generally speaking, a little caffeine probably isn’t harmful. However, when you consume it absolutely matters when it comes to balancing your cortisol. ⚖️ ☕A little caffeine in the morning can actually benefit your natural cortisol rhythm. Remember, your body’s natural cycle is to have cortisol higher in the morning. The important thing to note is that you should hydrate with water first. You’re slightly dehydrated upon waking, and coffee dehydrates you further. Water first, then coffee. ☕The goal is to have your cortisol levels slowly decrease later in the day so that you can develop a healthy sleep/wake cycle. Since caffeine is a stimulant, it’s best to stop consuming caffeine around 2:00-3:00 PM if you typically fall asleep between 9:30-11:30 PM. This isn’t a hard rule for all, as some of us are more sensitive to caffeine than others. However, if you suspect you have an imbalanced cortisol rhythm, this is a good strategy to adopt. Also, when you’re stressed, your cortisol increases. With caffeine being a stimulant (and a cortisol booster), it’s best to consider this before reaching for a caffeinated beverage during times of stress. 👌 Check out these healthy, caffeine-free drink recipes to enjoy during times of stress or in the evenings! 8+ Healthy Caffeine-free Drinks - Food By Mars **WOROUT IN THE COMMENTS** ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ ⬇️⭐️NEW CLIENT INFO and TO-DO’s⭐️⬇️ Last week, I gave you the freedom to practice carb cycling—but this week, you’re going to learn the HOW and the WHY behind this excellent fat-burning strategy! 🔥

This book has been SO good! 📖💖 I’m almost finished, and it has really made me stop and think about how much our thoughts can affect us and how important it is to take control of what we allow to stay in our minds. Next up is the study guide, and I’m excited to dig even deeper!

TAKING ACTION: ✅New Clients: Skip straight to the bottom of this post and check out the ⭐️ NEW CLIENT INFO! The ⭐️ NEW CLIENT INFO at the bottom of each day’s post will be your go-to! ✅Which of the evening cortisol practices listed below do you need to implement into your lifestyle? Yesterday, I gave you some morning tips to help elevate your cortisol early in the day—when cortisol should be at its highest. As the day progresses, the goal is for our cortisol levels to lower as we prepare for sleep and recovery. The problem is that many people are struggling with chronically high cortisol (even at nighttime) due to stress, cell phone/artificial lighting, caffeine, etc. If you want to balance your cortisol rhythm naturally so it will work for you, here are some late afternoon/evening suggestions ⬇️ 😴Reduce amount of light exposure (overhead lighting, cell phones, and other devices, etc.) 😴Limit caffeine intake. If you go to sleep between 9:30-11:30 PM, it’s probably a good idea to stop consuming caffeine between 2:00-3:00 PM. 😴Limit stress (deep breathing is a very potent strategy that helps lower cortisol levels—which is why we’ve included breathwork into our programming this month) 😴Consume a small amount of starchy carbs a couple of hours before bedtime (rice, potatoes, yams…) Again, you may not be able to tackle all of these, but as with everything else, something is always better than nothing. 💯 Next week, we’ll take a deeper dive into each of these tips and also discuss why chronically high cortisol affects your ability to burn unwanted fat. Be sure to show up for yourself! **leg day workout in comments** ___________________________________________________ ⬇️⭐️NEW CLIENT INFO and TO-DO’s⭐️⬇️ You’re now part of a lifestyle that allows you to eat more while getting healthy and burning fat and crushing goals! Not only that, but we also enjoy TREAT DAY on Saturdays! I mean, is this the life or what? 😉 Feel free to enjoy your treat of choice (without a side of guilt)! One tip is to track your treat first, and work the rest of your day around it. This gives you some freedom while also keeping you within some boundaries.