13. Utilizing Your Feminine Cycle To Be More Productive And Happier With Elisabeth Wygant

Ati Grinspun  0:00  

Welcome to the Be You Brand podcast, Dr. Elisabeth. I am so excited to have you. I love you. I met you in person we met through a mastermind, we have been connected since then. And I absolutely love what you’re doing in the world. And I cannot wait for my audience to learn from you.

Elisabeth Wygant  0:21  

Oh my gosh, I’m super pumped to be here. Your energy is like always so just contagious. You just like, bottle it up, bring it over here.

Ati Grinspun  0:33  

You guys, you know, she is 29 weeks pregnant. So I feel like like, that’s just crazy. I all I wanted to do and 29 weeks pregnant was asleep. I was wanting to like curl and sleep on. You have two other girls, right? You? Yes, they’re

Elisabeth Wygant  0:49  

six and four.

Ati Grinspun  0:50  

Wow, that’s crazy. That’s amazing. I am so excited to have you. Before I read your actual bio, I want you to tell people who you are what you do, because I want to kind of go a little bit on your story, right? Like, how you got to where you’re at today. But tell people who you are what you do. And then we’ll go from there.

Elisabeth Wygant  1:12  

Sure, yeah. So I am a doctor of pharmacy by trade. So started out my career as a pharmacist. And I was just on another call actually talking about this and how there’s like this similarity between a lot of us who like transition into more about holistic space from like the traditional medicine space. But we have this altruistic idea that we are going to just make this huge impact in our patients lives. And then we’re met with this harsh reality of wall. That’s just not the way it is in the traditional health care field. In Western, like Western culture, Western medicine, so I saw a lot of overprescribing. I saw patients really heavily reliant on medications, and just under Education of lifestyle modifications, like what about your diet? What about moving your body? What about working on your mindset and your spirituality? Like oh, my God, yes. Your whole being it’s not? Drugs, right?

Ati Grinspun  2:15  

For the ladies that listen to the podcast, like, can you see why I brought her in? So you know, and I feel like I always kind of have to give up preface of why I choose my guests. Like I been super picky. And I’m so blessed, because I have so many amazing people right in my network. But one of the things that is so important for me is that we look at business from a holistic perspective. Because, right we start a business, I don’t know if you you heard the intro, but it’s like, it’s to live our best life, right? It’s not just okay, we start a business. And usually we started to make money, and to leave our jobs if you want to call it but then in in that growth, we realize, oh, shit, like, now I’m ruining my life. I’m like, I’m not eating well, I’m not going to gym, I don’t have time for anything. And that’s kind of like the trajectory for everybody. And I know it was a little bit for me to even though I was already like on that health path. And then I was like, Man, I’m not making time for all the things. But the truth is that we are the model of our business. And I love that you speak to that, yes,

Elisabeth Wygant  3:27  

it’s so important. It’s funny, you bring up like your business as a holistic entity as well, because it is like this is going off on a tangent A little bit here from my story. But like when I think about my business, or you know, any woman who has her own business, you have to remember that it’s not only the strategy, the marketing, like all of these different components that are really essential for the growth of your business and continued success in it. But it also comes down to like the person.

Ati Grinspun  4:02  

So I just had my first event, right, and a lot of people asked me why they won was all about mindset. breathwork feeling safe in our bodies, like somatic coaching and stuff like that. And the reason why we did that is at least in my experience, I know that you can have a list, I can give you a little list right now I have a little little piece of paper, right? I can give you a list. I’m like, okay, Elizabeth, you’re gonna go do all of these things. You’re gonna put these, you’re gonna go on Instagram, you’re gonna do this, you’re gonna do that. But the thing is the energy when you do it, and even if you can actually go and do it goes back to having the energy feeling your best working on your mindset being fuel properly. Not being hungry, like not under eating, like your brain actually working properly. And that’s what we’re talking about today. Right?

Elisabeth Wygant  4:57  

Absolutely. Yes. So people we’re pumped, I’m super pumped,

Ati Grinspun  5:01  

I’m gonna read your super impressive bio. And then we’re gonna, like start talking about all these little things so or women can figure out because I think that part of these is women don’t even know that they’re doing it right. So they don’t even know what to look for what signs what symptoms like, they might be like, Oh my god, I’m lacking focus. I sit down to write content. And five minutes later, I just have ADHD or whatever. And like, maybe it’s their hormones. Yeah. Right. So you guys, let’s welcome Dr. Elizabeth Wygant, the powerhouse behind the firm formula. She has carved a niche in the functional nutrition industry with your current disruptive and transformative strategies. After working under the traditional model of healthcare. As a doctor of pharmacy, she quickly realized that real healing is found from within after hitting burnout and experiencing her own rate of health issues as a new mama, Dr. Elizabeth found her heart’s calling in providing tools to help women lead healthier lifestyles, now known as the women’s hormone health coach, he loved that Dr. Lisa bed has combined all her professional and personal experience to create a revolutionize approach to holistic wellness for ambitious women. And this is the thing you guys, she works with female business owners and professional working women. And I think this is so important because she understands kind of like the nitty gritty, right? Because so many times I we talk to people, and they’re like, Oh, she’s do this, just do that. But like, how does a business is different? And I feel like, people don’t get it. If you don’t have a business, you don’t get it. Can we talk a little bit about where do you want to start when it comes to hormones? When it comes to focus? I know you gave me a few pointers, but I want you to take the lead on these. But also, isn’t it today, menopause World Day or something?

Elisabeth Wygant  7:07  

It could be I don’t know. I’m like recognizing these like different days and stuff.

Ati Grinspun  7:13  

Like menopause World Day or something. So taught me how did you because I’ve done a little bit of your story, how you got to care. And what brought you to actually having a passion to working with business owners.

Elisabeth Wygant  7:27  

Yes. So what brought me here, I became a mother shortly after I started as a pharmacy manager and had a lot of mom guilt, right? Like we can all relate to that if you are a mama of being full time at a career, it was a high stress career, very high paced, very demanding. And then coming home to my family and just not having the energy or even like the desire honestly, to be really present with them, which hurt so badly. It hurt my heart so badly to that’s interesting,

Ati Grinspun  8:05  

right? Because we might say I’m depressed or I like drive or I’m not a driven person or whatever it is. But okay, so keep going. Yeah,

Elisabeth Wygant  8:15  

so I ended up in the hospital after I had my second daughter and I had mastitis I had to be put on just different antibiotics and the antibiotics made me pretty sick. And while I was in the hospital room, I just kind of had like my first awakening that I was not serving in my purpose, this burnout that I was feeling and guilt. I just was like this is not the way that we’re meant to live. And I had gone through traumatic experiences with both of my girls like with my first and second with birth and all of these things with my employer at the time, and I had the epiphany that women we are the life force of the world. We create real life. We grow human beings and our bodies. Literally, yeah, literally like it’s happening right now. Like it is so incredible and amazing and yet were still treated very poorly. And I knew that my struggles and traumas that I had gone through as a mother and a woman in the workforce they were happening and still are happening all over the world right to a lesser greater extent and I’m like gosh, I have to change this I have to change the trajectory of what it looks like to be a woman and have a career or have a business.

Ati Grinspun  9:41  

But I kind of want to like add to that is like we also feel like oh is the way it is right like if you like this burnout because obviously I went through some like traumatic postpartum depression and like I wasn’t in the hospital, but I know that I also felt like That was dinner that that’s what’s that? That’s it this is that right? And I was like, no,

Elisabeth Wygant  10:08  

no, no. And I will touch on that, because it’s really important that you brought that up. So really what my true starting point was was like hitting this rock bottom in my life. I think that’s a story many of us can tell like you hit a certain point in your life where you’re like, I have to do something now, or it’s just going to continue to go down this downward spiral. And where will I be in six months? Or a year? Whatever, right? Yes. So I decided that I had had enough of the stress and the burnout at that point, and knew I needed to change the world for my girls, right? Yeah.

Ati Grinspun  10:49  

Yeah. And it’s almost like, like, especially like, and I have a boy and you’re expecting a boy now? I have a boy. Yeah. And I never thought about that. Right. Like, when you actually have girls, you probably are like, I don’t ever want my daughter to No,

Elisabeth Wygant  11:04  

absolutely not. And that was like, my, that still is my fire. That’s the fuel to my fire, right? Of what I’m doing. And I got out of the hospital, I was on those antibiotics. And it actually made me very sick. So I had to heal my body. Yes, I was, who was in the hospital on the antibiotics. And then, you know, left, I ended up having really bad gut health issues because of those antibiotics, and started really diving into functional nutrition and functional medicine to help heal my own body. And from there, after I had success in my own body, healing my gut, I realized, oh, my gosh, my fatigue, my brain fog, my, you know, my low energy, like, all of that is gone in draw. Okay, right. And that took like six months for me. Everybody’s different, right? I’m like, That’s interesting. I’m like, This is what I need to be teaching women. Right? So then this all started my research and diving into hormones and gut health and how it all works together. So that is how I got started in my business. Okay,

Ati Grinspun  12:11  

I love that. So let’s actually I love that. In your comes back to your stories, right? This is literally what I teach people. I’m like, nothing happens because you wanted to leave your job. It happens because there was a story behind you wanting to leave your job, right, like 99% of us. So So you had the calling. Now, what? What are some of the things that you were going through from these antibiotics? What were the symptoms? Because you said like, then, like, so many women, and I hear this a lot, and it’s just so you know, like this energy, I’ve always had this energy, but I also I am almost annoying with my health. Like, like, to the point that people are like, Yeah, whatever. I don’t want to hear about it. But I feel like I hear this from people all the time. You have so much energy, like how do you focus? How can you do things for like three hours at a time? And I’m like, I don’t have an answer for that. I’m Oh, no, I’m this is who I am. I don’t know. Right? And I wonder why so many women are struggling with that. Can you send us in? What are some of the symptoms? What are what is what’s truly happening?

Elisabeth Wygant  13:23  

Yeah, so I’ll give you some examples of what was going on with me with my gut. And they were very odd at first, I didn’t quite connect them until I started researching and reading. Well, first of all, the brain fog for me, even though so yes, it was I’m a mother of two little human beings, right. I’m working full time. But it was like another next level could not even compute type of brain fog. Yeah, so that was something that happened to me. Another thing was, it kind of coupled together was like that low energy because I just was in such a haze during that time, and like trying to heal my own body and like get myself back on track. I feel like the lack

Ati Grinspun  14:09  

of focus right? the haze, the all of that. That’s the one that I hear. Like them on the energy. People say, I don’t have energy. I feel like I need to sleep all the time. I do things and I feel like I need to sleep and I’m like, How is it even possible?

Elisabeth Wygant  14:25  

I know. Yeah. So and that’s multifaceted. But in my particular case, I’m like, the only thing I can think of is these antibiotics just totally destroyed my gut microbiome. And all right, how do I start fixing that? The weird thing that happened to me is I would start getting really dizzy as well. I never

Ati Grinspun  14:43  

heard that one. That one. Okay. Yeah. And then

Elisabeth Wygant  14:47  

also just issues with like my equilibrium. So with my ears having ringing and just feeling very off balance in my brain. And like doing research, I’m like, Oh my gosh, this is, this has got to be because of my gut, right? So I ended up doing up kind of like a gut health reset with my nutrition. You know, I, I was always very conscious and aware of what I was eating, but I could do better, like we can always do better. So there were certain things that I removed from my diet for a period of time, I also started probiotics, I started taking collagen, because that does help with the integrity of your gut lining and how it’s structured and keeping it intact. And what ended up happening was like, roughly six months later, once I started doing these things, I was like a completely different person, I had more energy than I did in my 20s. Like, it was very, it was crazy. You

Ati Grinspun  15:51  

hear when you say six months, what I hear is like, as business owners, and I always want to go back to like the business owner, right? Because I think that first of all, we probably are blaming ourselves for not having focus on or having energy for or, or we’re blaming all the external circumstances, right? Like my kids, my, like, I’m no good at this. I’m not meant for business, whatever. Number two is, sometimes we go to a doctor, and we want them to like figure something out, like right now. And you want them to give you a medicine right now. And that immediate gratification is not there when you follow more holistic style of nutrition, which is what you’re talking about. So you found all these all these out. And then you started working with business owners.

Elisabeth Wygant  16:39  

Yeah, yes. So career like career women business owners, because I’m like, if I’m having these problems, they’re having these problems, right. So I’m just like, I know how I can help. And I know how this will be a complete, like ripple effect. If you think about it, when when we are lifting each other up as women and this goes back to like accepting things just as they are like, it just is what it is. Being a mom and these postpartum issues and things like that. Really what it comes down to is like not accepting the status quo, right? Do not, you have to question things,

Ati Grinspun  17:20  

especially in this world, like one of the things that I love about what you’re talking about many that one is like, you are a doctor of pharmacy, which one of my biggest hangups all the time is doctors don’t even know anything about nutrition. And I don’t want to go right, like the myth of the world. But the truth is, they’re truly not terrain on nutrition, and they’re actually not trained on the medicines that they give you. They just know, oh, this is what I gotta give you. And you are a doctor on pharmacy. So you have all these other tools to understand sometimes more than

Elisabeth Wygant  18:01  

that, I get that one a lot. Yes, I do. And it’s a huge, like, when people say this, to me, it it means a lot, right? It’s a big deal to me, because I take it very seriously. Like, if you are in my care, you’re like you are part of my little family, whether you know it or not like, Well, I wouldn’t

Ati Grinspun  18:28  

go there. If you think about what we feed our family, how we I don’t know, we handle things that happen on the everyday life, right, like allergies, or whatever it is, like even things like your ripple effect is not only helping a woman be more productive and really go like after more and having more desire, like you were talking and being more driven, but in reality is how they can care for their family, which eventually, that will turn into a different culture with years and years and years.

Elisabeth Wygant  19:03  

Absolutely. And that is the ripple effect that I’m talking about. Women were the nurturers, we are the teachers in our homes or in our communities, whatever that may look like you’re the CEO of your business of your life of your home. And once you start making changes for yourself which you need to prioritize you Yeah, in order for for that overflow to happen, and to be literally like brought out into the lives of those that you’ve know and love and you’re you’re either inadvertently or intentionally educating those that you know and love through what you’re doing in your

Ati Grinspun  19:46  

place. Okay, so I want to jump you actually like gave me a few pointers because you I hope I don’t butcher this again, like you it’s like how do you say like you were within fraidy and Reedham it Is that? Yes. So we’re within freedom and freedom. And because this is vital for business success in terms of energy preservation, and when I was going through your document that you sent me, I was like, Okay, I’m interested because I have no idea what that means. I’m all for any energy preservation. And it can you actually tell me a little bit more about these and why every woman that has a business, or it’s a high achiever, if you actually know what that is?

Elisabeth Wygant  20:27  

Yes, so I love this conversation, because we’re gonna get into some a little bit of science and a little bit of like fun, I would say. So our typical day, if you think about it, I’m just going to walk you through this is you wake up, let’s say you grab a cup of coffee, you check an email, you go out and you do your networking or your calls. And then let’s say you wrap up your day you get home, or you, you know, step out of your office, and you are just totally fried from the day, after all the things that you were doing, and you just kind of plop on the couch and sit there with, you know, little little to zero energy at all. And, you know, you call a day, right? However you want more, you want to have the ability to step out of that office or come home, and be on point for, you know, those in your home, or just, if you’re living by yourself, if you

Ati Grinspun  21:28  

you want to have a life you don’t want to share right after your work, right? Yeah,

Elisabeth Wygant  21:33  

a life outside of what you’re doing in your career in your business, right like that. I think that I’m not

Ati Grinspun  21:39  

I literally every day I walk into my office, and I’m like, let’s do this, like I pile up, right? Because most of us and most of the people that are listening to this podcast, like we are here to make an impact, we are here to make a difference. And we can all make a difference if we feel like shit. Come on. That’s just the truth.

Elisabeth Wygant  21:59  

Yeah, yeah. So that’s like a typical day for for us, right for us women? Well, that is actually the male hormonal cycle, I will air quote that men don’t have a cycle, right? So that is their typical day, when it comes to how their body actually operates. It’s the 24 hours circadian rhythm. It is also how our society has been structured in terms of the work day. Think about that, like if you’re in a corporate work environment, or if you’re, you know, an eight to five or whatever job think about what I described and how that is literally

Ati Grinspun  22:41  

on for women, like you described it. And I was like, well, but I get up. I need to take care of my kid. I need to make breakfast like there’s so many layers. Yes. Being a working mom.

Elisabeth Wygant  22:52  

Yes. So all right, we have this 24 hour circadian rhythm. However, for women, we have to, we have the ingredients rhythm and the circadian rhythm that our body operates on, and the ingredient is completely ignored.

Ati Grinspun  23:09  

Okay, I need to know, I don’t even know what it is. Yes. So I’m going

Elisabeth Wygant  23:13  

to tell you right now. So this is actually synced to your menstrual cycle. And it all has to do with your energy and hormone levels during each phase of your cycle because you have four different phases of your cycle. And each one has different hormones that are at play some higher, some lower at different times. And then that in turn, gives you different energy for each week. Yeah, so if you think about that, and the fact that most of us are ignoring this, we don’t even know it exists. Well, no wonder we’re many of us are like reaching burnout and like leaving the workforce and you know, just saying screw it, right. Like I’m over this corporate work environment. I’ve just, I’m done. You know, hands up, I’m done. So, once you tap into balancing your hormones and structuring not only your nutrition based on like, balancing hormones, but your work day, your energy will be way higher at the end of the day. So it’s literally is a cyclical pattern in your body that can be totally utilized to your benefit.

Ati Grinspun  24:29  

Oh my god, I’m like, how do you Okay, so do you teach this to women or okay? Because I Okay, so I did a lot of reading around these because I always I carry a lot of masculine energy, right? I worked in a masculine environment for so long I was you right? So when I came to work into my office, literally, me, my computer, my dog right here for hours, right? Like one of the things that I noticed was like in the afternoon I was like, Okay, I am eating healthy. I’m having my carbs. Like I was trying all these different things at different times of the day. And then I started tracking my period. And that was not happening all the time. There was only a part of the month that I was like, I would hit 4pm. And I’m like, Haha, right. But it wasn’t, I thought it was happening all the time. Yeah, right. So okay, so how are you helping women to this debt? Tell me more. This is intriguing to me. This is amazing,

Elisabeth Wygant  25:33  

isn’t it for so what I do is I teach women how to kind of structure their month based on their cycle. If you’re someone and this question comes up a lot like okay, well, I’m perimenopause, well, I’m having irregular cycles, or I just have irregular cycles. In general, I don’t have a period, either you’re postmenopausal or you just are someone who’s not cycling very regularly, I guess due to endometriosis or PCOS, you can use moon cycle phases for this whole process, because they coincide very closely with the four phases of your menstrual cycle.

Ati Grinspun  26:14  

Okay, so tell me the four cycles. And yes, for me, what are those hormones have played? And you can tell me that’s to the best too long or whatever. But that’s kind of how my brain works right now. And I’m like, what do we need to be doing in each cycle?

Elisabeth Wygant  26:30  

Yeah, yes. So I do want to go through that. And I will try to make it like, like, brief for each thing as possible, because we could go into a lot of things. Yeah. Okay, so I’m gonna go through the four phases of your cycle. And then we’ll talk about like the four moon phases and how they match up with that menstrual phase of your cycle. So I’m gonna start with Avi LaTorre phase, because this one’s the, like, most fun, your Abila Tori phase is where you are, of course, you’re going through a fertile stage in your menstrual cycle. So you’re more sociable naturally. So like, if you were wanting to do any type of networking, or calls or events planning around your ambulatory phase, because you are just that social butterfly, you’re getting out there, and

Ati Grinspun  27:20  

you’re doing which is the first week of your cycle. So that’s kind of I’m starting

Elisabeth Wygant  27:24  

in the middle, because it’s like the I love the ambulatory phase, because it’s the most fun.

Ati Grinspun  27:33  

You shouldn’t say you should just finish your period.

Elisabeth Wygant  27:36  

Yes. Okay. So if you just finished your your menstrual cycle is to your period, you would be going into the follicular phase. So follicular is first, okay, that one is where your energy, you’re going from like a low energy state, and you’re slowly building up to a higher energy state. And part of it has to do with your hormone levels, right. during that phase, I always like to say, you know, this is a great time for you to start planning your month. So start getting organized, mapping out what it’s going to look like for your month with calls and projects and things of that nature. So then, once you are done with that phase, and it takes roughly 10 days or so for that phase to be completed, you’ll move into the odd dilatory phase, which is the fun face, okay. Okay. And that lasts about three to four days. And that’s where you want to do like your socializing and networking events and things of that.

Ati Grinspun  28:37  

That is only four days to do that lady. So you have to you have to pass those four days, we calls with everything, then you’re done for the month.

Elisabeth Wygant  28:48  

Then that’s it now, you can I will give you some tips on like, Okay, if that’s not possible, like what can you do to help with your your energy and your hormones and things like that. So at this point with ambulatory phase, your hormone levels are at their peak. So estrogen is high, testosterone is high. So you’re really like feeling that good Juju. And after that point, you’re going to move into your luteal phase. So this is where you go from high hormone levels during the first half to lower hormone levels during the second half and this is like a 14 day event roughly on average for women. So this phase I like to call your get shit done phase. So everything that you write like everything you’ve planned from Philip Geller, that you’re you’ve mapped out, you know, you’ve got projects are working on what you know, you went into your Avilla Tory phase with your networking, you want to wrap everything up in a pretty little bow and you have it completed. So when you move into your menstrual phase, which is the last phase, you’re able to really like rest, reset and reflect. So that is a time in your cycle when you’re you’re on your period, where you’re very in tune with your intuition,

Ati Grinspun  30:05  

so that’s probably why they people like they tell us Yes. So what is the word that they use? So moody or you’re so You’re so sensitive? Well, we are because we usually the whatever we feel, is just get chitin. That’s kind of how I feel that it is like, I don’t feel like I have feelings that they’re not mine. I feel like more No, whatever is going on now where you can actually feel it. Yes. And it’s sort of phase

Elisabeth Wygant  30:31  

right. And it’s really important to listen to that. I always like to recommend journaling and reflecting on things that are going on, you know, in your business, and even in your personal life, because that is a direct correlation to how you’re projecting in your business. Right?

Ati Grinspun  30:47  

Well, so this is what I absolutely love about this. So a lot of what I do, and a lot of what I preach, right, is we want to do business more as we are who we are, like, be you right, like be you brand, but like I think that we try to do business as we think it is, which is that like taken at face value, right that we were talking earlier. And I think that like there is this huge movement of women like you and me and Alisa and all a lot of the people that we have in common that we’re doing business as we truly want to live our lives. And I think that that reflection part of that journaling. A lot of people tell me like I want to journal but I don’t want to I don’t even know what to journal. I’m like Shas let your hand kind of write, like see, like use it as a conduit of like getting your thoughts out. Because for me, that moment of reflection has changed my business forever. What do I truly want from my business? How do I want to build relationships with the people, not only with my clients, but with peers with strategic partnerships, whatever it is, right? And I’m loving this. Okay, so let me see if I got this. Right. We might have to cut this. So the first one is the follicular phase. Yes. The second one is the fun phase where we are ovulating right? The voluntary phase. And then I completely miss the names of the legs

Elisabeth Wygant  32:16  

to luteal, and then menstrual.

Ati Grinspun  32:20  

Okay, so your reflection time is you want to be go get shut down during the luteal. Yes. And you want to like wrap it up and really be in tune with yourself. what’s working, what’s not working? What you’re loving what you’re not loving while you have your period.

Elisabeth Wygant  32:38  

Correct? Yes. Oh, okay. Yeah, yes. So that takes things in your business, and kind of gives you that edge that I think some of us can start like lacking, especially if you’ve been kind of in a rut in your business or something like that, that can help you to really pivot and like change things in in your business and your personal life. All right.

Ati Grinspun  33:09  

We the luteal would be the creative.

Elisabeth Wygant  33:14  

Yeah. So that’s where your your projects that were, you know, coming to fruition or different ideas that were coming to fruition in follicular, that’s where you’re going to complete those.

Ati Grinspun  33:25  

The reason why is that a lot of our listeners, you know, it’s content, personal branding, like all of that. And I love that. Okay, now they can like boot all their meetings and a lot of networking than on the fun phase. And they could focus on content

Elisabeth Wygant  33:42  

hundred percent right on their content

Ati Grinspun  33:45  

on the luteal phase.

Elisabeth Wygant  33:46  

Yes. Yeah, exactly. So yeah. So you have to apply it to what you know, whatever it is, you’re doing and you know, for your business or your career, whatever it is. But it’s a way to kind of map things out and have like a big picture view of, okay, this is what I need to do. And it’s not so daunting, like, having that. Full Yes. Right. Like

Ati Grinspun  34:12  

that ongoing to the list that is looking at you from desire, like Yeah, it’s

Elisabeth Wygant  34:16  

like mean mugging you. Yeah, so. Yes, exactly. So it makes things I think, more approachable and more doable, for sure. And this allows you to tap into your femininity, it allows you to really balance like that hustle culture that we’ve been so ingrained with, it balances it out, and then with the moon cycle phases, so if you have someone who has irregular periods or you don’t have a period anymore, you can even apply this into pregnancy as well. It’s something that’s doable for you. I know every pregnancy can be a little different specifically with being tired. But with the moon phases, so they kind of coincide Add with the phases of your cycle that we just talked about. So like the follicular phase, if you were to look on a calendar, you would line that up to match the waxing moon. So from when the waxing moon begins to where it ends, which would transition into a full moon, that’s your follicular phase, and then your Abila Tori phase is that full moon time of the month? And you would give that like three to four days, right for for you to be sociable

Ati Grinspun  35:36  

or going out on full moon, you guys. Yes.

Elisabeth Wygant  35:39  

100%. No. But so then from like the full moon phase to the waning moon, that will be Abila Tori, and then from waning moon to the new moon. That’s luteal. And then once the new moon hits, you’re in the menstrual phase. That’s amazing. And so from, yeah, New Moon to waxing moon, that’s your menstrual phase.

Ati Grinspun  36:05  

Okay. Now I want to bring it back a little bit to like your own business view of all of this, because I’ve seen you like you went through like some rebranding and some stuff. And I don’t want to butcher it. I love that you literally branded yourself as the women’s hormones health coach. And I kind of want to like kind of title like, right, like people come in here to learn about personal branding. And like, what have you seen by actual because you took something very specific that happened to you. You studied it, and then you were like, You know what, this is it. This is what I want to teach people and you truly narrow it down niche down into branding yourself as this person that can help women in business because in true reality, you could help anybody any woman, Sire, but you don’t you are like, No, I’m gonna play these two women in business. And how actually, this has helped you in return. Right? So do you want to talk a little bit about that? Because I think it’s fascinating in your story, how it all comes together, which it doesn’t happen on every story, right? Yeah, no, that’s true. You know, I’m interviewing a lot of women. Like your own story. Literally. It’s shaping your own business.

Elisabeth Wygant  37:26  

110 person? Yeah, I keep saying 100%. But like, yes, like it is by on. So what like with the things that you’re saying? So, for me, I decided that I wanted to niche down and support women in business, because we are the change makers. We are like them. So I love that. Like, we I want to change the world. Well, how am I going to do that? I’m going to support the women who are out there at the frontlines. Yeah, too. Right. So this is something else that’s interesting. So more women in the workforce during COVID, I think it was like 53%, they left corporate Yeah. And more women started businesses. I,

Ati Grinspun  38:11  

I love that. And it’s still to this day, one of the things that I truly believe, is that women realized there was no other way. And once they realize the time we had, and my story was a little different. My business blew up during the pandemic. And my husband took a lot of this lag. And I spent a lot of time in my office during that time that I didn’t have when he was Yeah, so for me was a little bit different. But what I hear from so many women is like, you know, when I had to do something in my house, I was doing it. But also it was present. Also, I didn’t have to commute anymore. And I gained all these hours. And I was like, wow, this is so interesting. And women had these, there was a change of paradigm.

Elisabeth Wygant  39:00  

Uh huh. And I so if you dig into that, as well, because I love finding connections between events, right? So if you look into that more women were reporting burnout in their career, just really dissatisfied with their job had lack of support with child care, the list goes on and they’re like, You know what, screw it. I’m gonna go do this by myself. Like I’m gonna go start my own thing. Another interesting thing is the fact that now more than ever, they are finding the most beneficial skills to have as a leader in a business are what they’re calling soft skills. And they’re things like empathy, compassion, collaboration. All of these things right that are soft skills and I’m err, quoting again for those of you who are not watching the video, when any you read that and you look up feminine Lee Leadership, feminine leadership. Are all of these soft skills again, err, quoting, but they are they’re a fucking force to be reckoned with. Yeah, you’re not so. And I know for a

Ati Grinspun  40:13  

fact, for a fact that dad has been so when I started my business, I was all about doop doop doop, doop, doop, and then I have to the management to show up more. And I have to do all the things. And what I recognized in my own growth with my own company with my own business is as my Soft Skills grow, my community grows, my people grow, My people are growing themselves to a different level, because I model that, right? It’s not just like, I don’t want to be led company where I’m teaching people just to go do shit.

Elisabeth Wygant  40:47  

Yes. It’s not possible. It’s not sustainable.

Ati Grinspun  40:51  

We can do it, you guys could do it. Like they’re nice, right? Like, they don’t have a completely different way of thinking and way of like processing information. But like for us, we need these connections.

Elisabeth Wygant  41:05  

Yes. And the thing too, is like, we thrive when we are in community together. And we have to remember that again, going back to the postpartum thing, like, you think that you just have to accept things as they are. But remember to question things and remember to rely on those around you and accept help from others. Oh, my

Ati Grinspun  41:31  

God, so many layers to what you’re saying to write? Because I know Okay, let’s, let’s go back a little bit to a few things. So love the hormone thing. But one of the things that I am seeing now, in relying and asking for help, we have to grow into those people, because we don’t grow up at least I didn’t grow up understanding that my mom didn’t have a lot of help, right? Like my grandma lived far away. And my grandmother, Grandma worked and like my mom had to, like, do all the things she has to like, so she could work and she could become and then eventually she quit. Like and she stayed home. And I was like, That’s just crazy. Like, I will like, Man, I could never do that. Right, even though I am home. But I’m working I’m creating in the world, right? And like, it was so hard for me to learn that and that is 100% correlative will the feminine leather leadership that you’re talking about? It’s learning all these new ways, right? And all these like how to understand your body, how to understand how you work as a woman. Yeah. And

Elisabeth Wygant  42:43  

it’s new to us now. But it’s really like ancient knowledge, right? Like these, what we’re speaking to are things that we use to just have like that knowledge base of because

Ati Grinspun  43:00  

that’s what we that’s why we survived as a species. Yeah, it is because the women had the collective, and the men were out hunting, right. But the women were the ones that like, actually, were moving society. And people were like, the way we look at it right now. Right? Like when when I talk to my husband, and I tell him, you know, for me, I always want to support a woman owned business first. It has nothing to do with not support the man. But the thing is that we’re creating these communities. My customer was in all when he came to the event, like to my event, like we were like, actually, he got there when everybody was doing breath work. And then people had a moment to kind of like, connect and they were hanging like he’s like, how is this business? About we were talking about that I was like, women, we need that supper when men can actually do it alone. They don’t need that they is just not in their nature. Which is crazy.

Elisabeth Wygant  43:59  

Yeah. And, you know, I, I talked to my husband about this a little bit because he he he speaks to the fact that men are just kind of like these lone wolves. Like you’re just out

Ati Grinspun  44:10  

like, No, my husband to my husband. He’s kind of like a lone wolf.

Elisabeth Wygant  44:14  

Yeah, like you’re kind of just out and you don’t have a sisterhood. Like you don’t have a brotherhood. It’s just like taboo,

Ati Grinspun  44:21  

it is starting to happen. It is I feel like that is for guys that are like, but it’s almost like they don’t because they don’t share right, like their feelings. They don’t share like you think about it, right? But a women we share. We’re like, oh my god, this is what I’m going through in my business. And sometimes we feel in completely different ways.

Elisabeth Wygant  44:44  

Yeah, I think that by women coming together and like creating community, it’s, again, the ripple effect, like you’re going to see men, creating communities right and supporting one another and really, for me, it’s to change the world for women everywhere. And also like, like, that’s my mission in life, changing the world, no big deal. But also, you know, at the end of the day, we want humanity and the human race to thrive not just to survive, we want it to thrive, and for our children to be better off than where we were where we are. And in order to do that, we have to come together as a collective, like men and women,

Ati Grinspun  45:34  

for me, something you’re speaking to one of the things that this is so deep that sometimes it sounds almost like, too woowoo. But I don’t know when when you grow a business, one of the things that I at least have noticed in me, my clients, my friends, right, it’s like, you start becoming a better person. Like you overcome fears you you like for me, like, I know, I had to grow into somebody that didn’t see other people as competition. And at the time, I couldn’t really speak to it. But now I look back. And I was like, I didn’t see people as competition. I did see other I’m like, I’m not embarrassed to say like, I wonder how many people actually feel like that. And they don’t want to say it right. And I had to grow. And I know that I’m a better person for that. And I’m sure that I have so many things to work on. But don’t you feel like by you growing your business, you became a better person, you have to have better awareness, you have to look at your surroundings. You have all the things. Yes. Soft Skills, by the way. Yeah, exactly. That how do we talk to people, how we communicate all the things that I’m like, I feel like I’m a better acumen. Because I’m growing a business. So I cover like a very specific questions. So we talked about the hormones around the mountain. What about throughout the day? Is that a pain? I know that for example, for me, when I’m not hungry in the morning, this is something I read a long time ago, and I’m like, okay, something is off. Am I stress? Am I getting low sleep. So that is a cue that I’m always looking for. That is like, having that hunger in the morning for breakfast, this closure, maybe you’re gonna kill me. I used to be fast. For a long time. I used to do those 24 hours, 36 hour fast, and I felt amazing. But now like for the longest time while I was doing that, then I wouldn’t be hungry in the morning. And I was I guess this is throwing me off.

Elisabeth Wygant  47:42  

Right? So with when it comes to like hormones throughout the day, the one that I really like to focus on is cortisol. So cortisol is your stress hormone.

Ati Grinspun  47:53  

I said when I was referring like if I’m not hungry, yes. So

Elisabeth Wygant  47:57  

that has to do with cortisol. So it’s released from your adrenal glands. If you’ve heard of like adrenal fatigue, that’s kind of like a hot button phrase, right now, for a lot of people, you’ll probably hear like on social media media everywhere. But cortisol is going to be higher in the morning. And that just has to do with your sleep wake cycle. So when you’re referencing like, okay, am I stressed right now? Is that why I’m not hungry in the morning, that very well could be because it’s suppressing your your body from you know, wanting to consume any, any calories at that point. So what I like to say is in order to get cortisol balanced, because most of us, our stress levels are elevated, and it has a lot to do with hustle the hustle and grind of the every day. It has to do with okay, what am I doing at bedtime? Right? So you have a bedtime routine and you need to have a morning routine, just like a kid. It’s really important. Am I good

Ati Grinspun  49:09  

at the morning routine and so bad or the nighttime routine?

Elisabeth Wygant  49:14  

Right? It’s either a lot of people it’s like either one or the other. For sure.

Ati Grinspun  49:20  

Like I can not get a solid bedtime I have a solid bedtime I just don’t like literally our routine is like we you know we eat we’d see to watch TV for a while and then go to bed and we go to bed super early. But But um, like I can not get like you know, I would love to be those people that we turn off the TV and we chill for a while but if we go to it too fucking early to start out at 4pm Like

Elisabeth Wygant  49:52  

yeah, right. Yeah, that would be might be a little difficult but yeah, figure it out. Right? So So like with regulating cortisol, one thing I really like to make sure women are doing is eating is really important drinking lemon water actually first thing in the morning is a big deal because what that’s going to do is this going to help with decreasing your cortisol levels, because we were talking about how most people are just high all the time, and kind of came out funny, the cortisol levels are high. I’m mad. So we really want to work at like reducing those levels to to get to a more balanced state and to be feeling really well and like, you know, onpoint throughout the day. So first thing I like to say definitely the lemon water, definitely make sure you’re eating breakfast and focusing on protein. That’s another big deal. And that will help you Slyke stay fuller longer and not get hangry you know, two hours after you bleach

Ati Grinspun  51:04  

now that comes into people not having the energy not be nice, all the other things that we talk, but I feel like people are like, I’m so tired. I’m not and then they’re running on coffee.

Elisabeth Wygant  51:17  

Exactly. Yeah, you like for women, that is such a bad idea. Because you’re just perpetuating the problem waking up having coffee instead of water right away. And not eating anything is like, you are totally just destroying your productivity.

Ati Grinspun  51:35  

Do you think women need to eat because I think that that sort of thing, right? Like live like modern life. It’s just so crazy. Like I was in my previous call before I chat with you. I was we were talking like, you know, I get up at 4am I go to the gym, come back, wake my kid up while he’s in the shower. Like I’m making myself breakfast like there is from 415 that I get up until 830 that he goes to school you would think I have all this time?

Elisabeth Wygant  52:04  

Ya know? Yes,

Ati Grinspun  52:10  

I do have an hour of downtime, because it sounds like we’re paying like he goes to one school. And then he goes to the other school. And I use that time to actually meditate and journal and all of that. And that has been a gift. But most women don’t actually have that. So how do they kind of like, how do you teach them to like, put all this shit together?

Elisabeth Wygant  52:29  

Right? So really, what it comes down to is I call it habit stacking, you’ve probably heard this, this term thrown around, right? So starting with one thing and building on it over, it depends on the individual, I like to say, anywhere from three weeks to a few months for something. Okay. But once you start layering on different healthy habits into your life, it kind of just becomes routine. And then also, the other component of this is like it’s not necessarily a to do list, right? We don’t want to get caught up in those when we’re speaking to like, okay, lemon water and breakfast and all these things. It’s not a to do list. It’s like, it’s like a well being.

Ati Grinspun  53:19  

Yeah, he’s like, Who are you being right? Yeah. Because for me when I’m derailed from my actually my healthy eating and stuff, I asked myself for my bean right now. Am I being why? Why am I putting this stuff on my body and I’m not super strict all the time. I did that for a long time, by the way. And I found that that was kind of like a self or a gym that like if you’re not good. So now I’m in a more like free flowing I overall thing. And that serves me better. But I feel like it’s the question right? Who am I be?

Elisabeth Wygant  53:56  

Yeah. Yeah, for sure. So, you know, like, keep keep that in mind. Like, okay, this is really so I can truly feel really good, right? Like, from the inside out. Like, I want to feel really good. So like, that’s always something that kind of like, helps with the motivation piece of this, but giving yourself grace as the other part of it. So like, again, eating in moderation, like you were speaking about just now not being too strict with yourself like that. If you are really strict about your food, that can stress you out even more and again, cause this whole like derailment of you know your hormones and like cortisol levels being elevated again, and all these things so

Ati Grinspun  54:48  

even though you’re doing all the things now you’re stressed about doing the things.

Elisabeth Wygant  54:52  

So we Yeah, so being very aware and giving yourself that grace. Like, it’s okay to eat this slice of cake. Or it’s okay. If you don’t get to journaling today or what you know what? It is. Um, so it’s not so regimented.

Ati Grinspun  55:14  

I love that. So let me ask you these. So when you’re working in your practice, are you having women do like blood tests? Or like, how are you guys testing like the hormones and like, like, what it what it looks like for these women that they’re in your programs, because they’re all business owners. They’re all hired business owners, maybe like corporate leaders, or key moms, like what does it look like for them? Do they do this all together? Do they do this one on one with you? Like, what? What are some of the things that because I think part of that is like, all these changes take time. Also, yes, go up. And I think that the lack of immediate gratification can be very disheartening. For women, I see it in business coaching thing is take time, right. And women start getting discouraged when usually the breakthrough times right after a moment of you feeling discouraged. Right,

Elisabeth Wygant  56:10  

right. Right. Yes, that’s so true. So I have a couple of different modalities. So I have the FEM formula course. And that is a six month self paced program. And that is going through, and really honing in on mind, body and spirit connection. So we are starting at kind of like a mind and spiritual detox, along with a body detox and working on not only like your mindset, but also like detoxing your mindset. But detoxing everything, what do

Ati Grinspun  56:52  

you bring into your world? Right?

Elisabeth Wygant  56:54  

Yes, yes. So it’s an approach to your well being your wellness that combines everything together. So that is, you know, self paced course, you are in a community of women as well, you’re put into a private community of women where you support and encourage one another within there. And you’re given like very specific guidance on how to reset and rebalance your hormones through primarily nutrition. And it structured in a way where you end with like diving into that feminine leadership and really like honing in on that. I love. Yes, so that’s like one modality, the other modality is working with me one on one, and that is where we do the hormone

Ati Grinspun  57:46  

testing and all of that.

Elisabeth Wygant  57:49  

i Yes.

Ati Grinspun  57:50  

Why have you seen like the biggest like transformations? Because I think that it is probably remarkable to see like and I love, I couldn’t like honestly go on and on on this topic. Because I see it on my clients too. Like sometimes we do even I did personal branding, sometimes we’ll do a walking challenge, or we’ll do, right like, hey, for the next month, like movement, bringing movement, because a lot of these women are building their businesses on the side, right. So it can get really busy for them. Where they forget to eat, they forget to do all the things. And I love the desire map. I don’t know if you are familiar with that. It’s like when you put in your calendar, all the things that you actually want to do first, instead of like, you put all your work first, like, you know, you put your personal stuff in there first and like oh, yeah, yes. You know, it’s almost like it’s just called the desire map, because you put all the things that fill your heart first. Sometimes I’m like, and then, you know, because if you have three hours to do something, it’s gonna take you three hours, but if you have the whole day will take you the whole day. Right? Yeah. So but I love these that I will. I’m curious, what have been some of the biggest changes you can seeing in some of these women? Yeah, so

Elisabeth Wygant  59:09  

I would say it’s across the board is one word done working together. They have this new sense of confidence in themselves and like, they own who it is that they are. And they just know themselves on such an intimate and profound level that like there.

Ati Grinspun  59:31  

I’m actually like so like curious because I just started something with the moon. I shot literally with this new phase of the moon. I started with this new moon and it’s so like, it’s something that has been in my circle. People are talking about it, we are talking about it, but I’m lying and whatever, you know, I will get to that we’ll get to it. And I finally was like okay, I’m gonna do it right. And I’m like I can I can see because you’re so in tune with yourself and then you’re taking care of yourself. And that brings a complete new outlook also on how you run your business.

Elisabeth Wygant  1:00:05  

Yep. And again, it’s like that. It’s that holistic approach to your body and your business, right? Like you have to really like, discover who it is you are, take care of that person. So that it’s it’s mirrored in your business,

Ati Grinspun  1:00:22  

it’s helped me run your business, I absolutely believe in on. Like, I feel like the better I feel, the better the people that come into my circle, it’s a different kind of client with a different energy. So I have one more question for you that I actually do to all my guests. I don’t even even know if I told you this. But what is it for you to be your own brand?

Elisabeth Wygant  1:00:45  

What is it for me to be my own brand, like to be your brand, to be a brand? So it is like it’s like a homecoming, it’s coming home to her? Who are you deep within your core? Right? Like having that self discovery is vital for you to to be human. And then that once you have that discovery, to exude, who does you are, and to be that confident woman who is empowered in her own nature in her own being just by being you. Right?

Ati Grinspun  1:01:25  

So by being you with your genius, right?

Elisabeth Wygant  1:01:28  

Yes, exactly. Like that is what I see. I love that. Yes.

Ati Grinspun  1:01:35  

Love bed? Well, at least tell me where people can find you. I know you have a checklist right that you want to give all our listeners.

Elisabeth Wygant  1:01:44  

Yes. So it’s an ultimate morning routine checklist. It goes into a little bit of what we talked about, like with cortisol, and all of the things but it’s a really simple seven step checklist to get your hormones in check first thing in the morning and just have a kick ass day all throughout

Ati Grinspun  1:02:01  

the day. So I’m gonna like go check it out. I voted.

Elisabeth Wygant  1:02:06  

Yes. And there are super simple steps like you can do this. And it creates like that habit stacking too, that we talked about. So once you start, don’t stop doing it. Yeah, that will be available to everybody. And then you can go on my website. It’s Elizabeth, why can’t dot com and there’s more things there. And then I am primarily on LinkedIn, or Instagram. My Instagram is Elizabeth Wygant. Wellness. So you can find me there.

Ati Grinspun  1:02:34  

Yes. Oh my God, I am so excited for women to like dive into this episode. And to learn more about these. And I know you also host workshops. I don’t know if you have anything coming up with a baby or not. But like, they can get all the insights in your LinkedIn in your Instagram. And we’ll put all of the links on the show notes. And this also goes on YouTube. So once it airs, you’ll have all of the stuff and I am so excited that you were here today. I love you so much. And thank you so much.

Elisabeth Wygant  1:03:07  

Thank you. Thank you for having me. Yes.