2 Daily Practices That Make My Life Better

1. Some form of yoga practice
The most freeing thing to happen to me after many years of going to yoga classes was a home practice which kind of looked however I want it to look.

Sometimes it's active and I'll do a series of things that make my body heat up or make my legs or arms fell like they're about to fall off. This is never with a sense of needing to punish myself - more as an interesting experiment, like "can I do this and still smile and just see how it feels to go further than my body wants to do?" A kind of pushing through, with compassion. This BURN kind of practice works well to get me out of a funk or fill me with positive fire or confidence, and obviously it's not appropriate at certain times (like postnatally) or you're not exhausted.

At other times it's a 5 minute savasana (resting pose) or however many minutes I can manage before I fall asleep or need to go and make dinner. I cannot emphasise the importance of this enough, especially for mothers or anyone who is trying to juggle or achieve a million different things (i.e. mothers). Interestingly it can have the same effect of resetting my system, but is much more appropriate if I'm knackered (often).

And sometimes my practice is just trying to remember to be mindful for most of the day, or using my breath to calm me. Does that count? I think it does.

2. Cycle tracking
I thought the only point of tracking your menstrual cycle was to help you become pregnant (or avoid getting pregnant), but I've realised this is one of the quickest, easiest things women can do to feel aware of their bodies and empowered about their lives. (If you don't currently have periods because you're pregnant or breastfeeding, this will be stuff you can come back to!) I track my cycle in an Excel spreadsheet cos I'm that kind of girl, and I use an app (Clue) to enter my period dates so it can predict when the next one will come.

I have columns for mood, energy levels, cervical fluid (so I can work out when I'm ovulating) and oe for anything else I notice, like insomnia or how hungry I feel. Knowing that I can expect to feel anxious on day 5, enraged on day 15 and starving on day 20 is life-changing information. I know when I'll be likely to want to go out and socialise and when I'll want to curl up in bed and not talk to anyone for as long as possible. When I will feel like I have nothing interesting to say and when I'll feel like I am bold and brave enough to step outside my comfort zone. My partner loves it too as he knows a bit more about what to expect and why I might be bouncing off the walls or going to bed at 9.30pm ...

Information is power. I think one of the biggest shifts cycle tracking produces is changes in awareness of ourselves and our bodies, and how much compassion we show ourselves. When we know why we're shouting at our kids or feeling exhausted, we are much kinder to ourselves. Hormones are powerful things. We can't (nor should we) necessarily tame all of our behaviour, but being aware of WHY it's happening is hugely useful.

The incredible Maisie Hill, and Alexandra Pope and Sjanie Hugo Wurlitzer are your main women on this.