Stay on Track with myFLO!

I wanted to let you in on a super amazing tool for helping to track your monthly cycle… 

myFLO! 

This app is legit. It’s designed by Alissa Vitti who a leading voice in menstrual health and education. 

Most cycle-tracking apps simply tell you when you are likely to ovulate and bleed… But the myFLO app gives you so  much more information and opportunity! 

When you download this app, it gives you access to: 

• Foods to eat based on the phase you are in 

• Best exercise options based on the phase you are in 

• Practical information about your hormones 

• Sex tips based on the phase you are in 

• Options available to put your PMS symptoms and root causes of those symptoms 

• A Notes tab where you can log your temps and emotions each day 

And so much more! 

I have been using this app since I was 20 and it is the best one I have found. I love how simple the design is, and how educational it is along with its practicality! 

If you are more interested in learning about the four phases of your cycle and ready to expand your education and connection to your cycle, check out our website and sign up for the next DGFlo class! We will cover everything that you can find in this app plus so much more!

Love you gals!
Caitlin

It's Time to Let Control Out of the Box!

The need for control will have a direct impact on how much you trust yourself…

Losing your balance is a part of getting stronger. It’s a part of learning to trust parts of yourself to show up! I know losing your balance can feel humiliating or make it seem like you don’t know what you’re doing. And sometimes thats the truth, especially if its in front of people. 

Losing your balance can look like, literally falling on your face or simply falling off a curb. It can be when you’ve had a few too many drinks and made decisions you normally wouldn’t have. It looks like a struggle to find your center and, you lose the struggle. 

Sometimes losing you balance effects others and some times it doesn’t. Losing your balance is a part of life, yes. You need to acknowledge that fact and know that when you do lose it, you have identified a weakness and a need for growth. The shame you feel in those moments is an opportunity to let people into your struggle and to be vulnerable. It’s here, you become more connected and can lean on others while your balance gets better. You need others to grow. We can’t  be the best versions of ourselves without each other. 

When is the last time you trusted yourself to do something knowing there would be a consequence for your failure?  

Practice trusting yourself. And then, practice trusting more of yourself. Invest in yourself, and then, invest some more! To say it simply, trust yourself to do something differently. Put yourself in a similar situation, and trust yourself to do something differently this time. Little bits at a time, thats all it takes. 

Be courageous enough to lose your balance every now and again… Find your weaknesses and address them. You’ve got this! Control is keeping our best in a box, it’s time to let it out.

Much love, 

Shantell

Shut Yo' Mouth Foo

Years ago I began using a small piece of tape over my mouth to sleep.  

At first, I would find the tape on floor in the morning.  Some nights I would wake up from a dream where I was trying to blow a bubble, then I would realize it was the tape….hahahaha.  

Sleeping with tape on your mouth has so many benefits: 

- Less Snoring: Sleeping with your mouth closed and using your nose to breathe will decrease if not eliminate snoring. You could even drop a hint to your snoring significant other…”hey baby, here’s some tape” 

- Increased REM Sleep: REM sleep is your deepest most restorative sleep. REM sleep is also the stage of sleep where you dream. Tape will help you enter this stage of sleep for longer. 

- Decrease Dehydration: Sleeping with your mouths open creates more moisture loss which can lead to dehydration. Keeping the mouth closed will prevent that fluid loss. 

- Peeing Less: Sleeping with your mouth open decreases the level of CO2 in the system which can create more frequent urination in the night.  When the mouth stays closed we do not push off so much CO2 so we will pee less frequently. Let’s be real who likes getting up in the middle of the night to pee…I know I don’t.  

- Balanced Nervous System: When you breathe in and out of your nose you activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which is your resting and digesting system. Mouth breathing activates the sympathetic nervous system which is the fight and flight part of your system.  You want to be resting during the night not in a sympathetic, fight or flight state.  

Now, this may seems very stressful to sleep with your mouth taped closed. If it creates some anxiety in you maybe do some shorter time framed things around the house with your mouth taped to get used to it.  You could try this while you are reading, doing the dishes, taking a nap, etc. Smaller time frames that can help you feel less anxious about the whole thing.  

Often times I hear, “My nose is too plugged to breathe out of it.” cool thing is, the more you breathe out of your nose the more you clear up your nostrils, it’s a win-win baby.  

If your tape ends up on the floor night after night, no worries, just keep at it.  

What type of tape should I use?  

I like to use kinesiology tape, it has a little give to it and it’s got some good stick that I can use the same strip a few nights in a row.  

You can buy some mouth tape online but it seems a little expensive to me.  Try some out and see, but don’t try duct tape, gorilla tape, scotch or painters tape, some work WAY to well and you’ll rip your lips right off and others just don’t do the trick…believe me I tried.  

I hope this little tip helped, let me know how it goes.  Feel free to email us back if you have any questions about this topic.  

How FAT am I “supposed” to be?

In a world surrounded by health and fitness “experts” and “influencers” there are many opinions about what to eat and not eat and how often to eat. How fat is too fat? How skinny is too skinny? How much muscle should I have? How much muscle is too much muscle? If you ask 10 different people they will have 10 different ideas. If you’re following someone on IG, the question should be who is paying them and what are they selling? 

Good fat, bad fat. Yes sugar, no sugar. Macros or Keto? Intermittent fasting or taking supplements until your pants fall off! So, many, options and so many ideas. What do I do!!!

I have found what most people want is to look good and feel good. Here are some questions to ask yourself to help you see the health and reality of your choices.

1 - Who am I looking at as a gage for what I am “suppose” to look like? Age, lifestyle, body type… Do they “fitness” for a living?

2 - Is it sustainable? Do I enjoy these changes and can I see myself doing this for a long period of time?

3 - Is what I’m doing with my fitness and nutrition a season or a lifestyle?

4 - Am I partnering with the lifestyle/seasonal change that I’m choosing? Do you use language like, “I’m not allowed to eat this.” Or “They are making me do this.”

Those are just a few questions we should keep in mind as we step into making changes with our fitness and nutrition. Questions that bring us back to reality. Questions to bring us back to ourselves.  You know, that beautiful woman looking back in the mirror at you, yea her! She is your friend and you should treat her as such. 

Often we choose things that are ALL in or ALL out and we want to look like the 20 year old Instagram fitness model who is just that, 20 years old!! Or the woman who is 70, and looks like a 20 year old and you tell yourself, “if she can do it, I can do it” which, is not true. We use that phrase as motivation and are inspired by their hard work but you are not the same person. Start with you!! With reality!

Women’s bodies are curvy, naturally. This is how we were designed. The design is to bear children and to do so we NEED fat on our body. Whether we were able to have children or not, it’s our design. I am very aware that not every body is the same. Some women are genetically more slender, others heavier set. If you want sustainable change, you have to start with your relationship to YOUR body. Acknowledge the places where you have fallen short and need a change. Give yourself some grace and understanding. Choose a nutrition and fitness plan that’s is healthy and sustainable for you. It’s important that you are friends with YOU and YOUR body first!!! That is and excellent place to start. 

8 Ways to Power Boost Your Immunity Against COVID-19

Here at Dropgym and Camp17 we often talk about plot twists, something else happening, things not going according to plan. I think it’s safe to say that all of the above are currently a reality. Situations that incite fear of the unknown call us to attention. It’s unfortunate that it takes something like COVID-19 to wake us up to taking better care of ourselves, but in times like these we value our health more. We think about the people around us. Well, hopefully we are not only thinking of ourselves. (Like maybe I shouldn’t buy out the store of everything since there are other people in the world who might need supplies too.)

These times test us, they expose us, and they show us that which is buried deep. They can also wake us from our slumbers and compel us to take action in our lives in areas where we’ve been dragging our feet. I know this has been the case for me.

I want less chocolate and more greens. I want bone broth instead of pizza.

I am choosing to go outside and get the sun on my face instead of staying inside and scrolling on my phone.

I’m exercising because it’s important, knowing that the sweat is releasing toxins, increasing endorphins, and keeping me strong and my body capable of stress management and building immunity.

Below is a simple (and of course, free) guide to encourage and remind you of ways to take care of you. It’s filled with tips to boost your immunity and enjoy being alive, even/especially when things feel scary.

Inside the Power Boost Guide, you’ll also find a little gift for 30% off any of our online workshops, so you can stay connected and resourced from home.

Get the Power Boost Guide

Keep breathing. Remember that there’s much to be thankful for, and so many reasons to enjoy being alive. We’re in this together.

"Do I really want what's on the other side?"

Are you willing to reshape, restructure and rebuild what you’ve always known? Some of the greatest formulas, theories, products, policies and structures surface during times of hardship or uncertainty—not because these great things just show up or because someone strives for them but because of a choice. The choice is to do what needs to be done. It takes us moving and doing to uncover what is there.

When we feel resistance, we begin to ask ourselves, “do I really want what is on the other side?” We question whether or not we are in the right place, if we are married to the right person, if we have the strength or if our life even has purpose. The truth is your life has so much purpose, far beyond living for the weekend and consuming people and things. But what is that purpose and how do you find it?

The question I have for you is, are you willing to do something different to keep what you’re doing alive? Are you willing to do something different to keep you alive?

Who are you? Ask yourself. Are you worth doing something different to keep you alive? Your life matters! You matter.

What you do is important for the world. So, what are you doing? Are you doing? Are you living from your unique ability to change the world? If your answer is yes, I encourage you during times of resistance, to shift. Sometimes we need to shift to find the next step. Depending on the season, it may look like a down shift or shifting into higher gear. Whatever it is, I encourage you to believe that your life is bigger than this difficult moment in time. It’s bigger than the voice in your head telling you you’re not strong enough to make it through this. Press into what is difficult and scary and have the courage to do something different. You can do this. We can do this. We are doing this!

And if your answer is, “No. No, I’m not.” Then I challenge you to answer these questions:

What am I good at? What makes my heart sing?

If time and money were no object what would I do to change the world?

Take some time to honestly answer these questions and see what sparks inside of you. You may surprise yourself.

You see, it’s kind of like a glass of milk. When you spill it, it makes a mess: spill it again and the mess will be different, each and every time. Never ever will the spill make the same mess twice. A struggle is very much the same way. If the struggle looks the same, you need to do something different. Different doesn’t always mean moving. It may mean asking yourself some questions, or simply being honest with yourself. We will spill milk and others people will spill our milk—that’s life. It’s what we do about it that matters. The same thing applies in times of resistance or uncertainty. Let’s not become casualties of uncertainty, accidents, mistakes or cruelty. Let us become the ones who take risk, and make choices to fight for what’s on the other side. Because you really do want what’s on the other side, you just don’t know if you have what it takes to get there.

Learning to Feel

What if you were present in all your moments? Not just the easy ones, all of them. The exciting, mundane, crappy, sad, joyful, hard and uncomfortable moments of life. What would happen to your perspective?

How do you start being present? You feel.

If you’re not sure how, start by slowing down. Take time to pinpoint, acknowledge and name your feelings. Allow yourself to feel each one of them.

Do you have the courage to feel all of your life, past and present?

What is the hardest for you to feel?

Food for thought.