June Intentions + Maca Protein Shake

Just like that, it’s June. In a lot of ways, I shouldn’t be surprised. Time is flying. When life is busy, and you enjoy what you do (read: work, go to school, take care of your kids, etc.), time seems to move at warp speed. And while I love this notion, it also makes it difficult to live in the present moment. Especially during the summer. Between weddings, graduations, and vacations, weekends are stacked. And despite feeling grateful for the ability to travel and see loved ones, I also feel like I live in this perpetual state of packing and unpacking my suitcase.

I’ll come back to the suitcase analogy in a minute. But to segue, let’s talk about intentions. Right off the bat, I’m going to make this a monthly occurrence on the blog. I’m hoping that my intentions will encourage you to think about your priorities as well. Also, selfishly, posting about my monthly intentions is a form of accountability. Without a doubt, there’s something about writing down your priorities — it makes them appear that much more attainable, right?

In any case, back to the suitcase analogy. The hustle of planning and organizing for an upcoming trip, while still unpacking from a prior one, leaves me in this constant state of limbo. It’s sort of like…do I continue to dwell on the last few weeks and how wonderful they were, or focus on the exciting things ahead? I suppose (read: I know) there’s a way to live in between. It’s called the present moment. So, my first intention for this month: BE MORE PRESENT. I know, I know. This is a bit cliché. But I want to make presence a priority this month. When I’m working on particular tasks, projects, or even having conversations with friends and family, I vow to be focused. I’ll be turning my phone on airplane mode more often, deleting Instagram when necessary, and using my notebook to stay organized AF. Side note — I’m currently enjoying writing down my to-dos instead of plugging them into Google Calendar.

My second intention: WEAR SUNSCREEN. Admittedly, I have never been great about this. But the older I get, the more I care about my skin, and I know I’m not alone in this mentality. Credo Beauty and the Beautycounter are my go-tos for skincare products. That said, I’d love to know what some of your favorite skincare lines and sunscreen products are!

My third intention: HORMONE BALANCE. I was recently on What Cait Ate’s podcast, and we talked all-things hormones, PCOS, body acceptance, and more. Interestingly, I got my blood work back from my naturopath yesterday, and while my thyroid, vitamin D, estrogen, and testosterone are all in a much better place, my progesterone is still on the lower end of the spectrum. If you didn’t know, I was diagnosed with PCOS by three separate health care practitioners back in early 2017.

Ever since then, I’ve been working to holistically find balance in my body. And while my menstrual cycle is back — hallelujah — it’s still not quite as normal / regular as I would hope. Therefore, moving forward, I’ll be working to continue lowering triggers that cause low progesterone. I’ll also be incorporating more foods that help boost the body’s natural production of this particular hormone. Now, there are no foods that actually contain progesterone, but there are key nutrients that help to support the luteal phase (which is when the increase of progesterone is necessary). If you also have PCOS, irregular / absent cycles, prominent PMS symptoms, etc. I highly recommend checking out these three books: No Period, Now What?, Period Repair Manual, and WomanCode. Anyway, I’ll be sure to keep you posted on my PCOS journey! Feel free to reach out if you have any questions or concerns about your own hormone imbalances.

Last but not least, I’m leaving you with one of my favorite morning concoctions. 🙂 You can drink this post-workout, to tide you over until your next meal, etc. Enjoy!

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Maca Protein Shake

Refreshing, nutritious, and hormone-balancing, this is one of my favorite ways to keep my blood sugar levels stabilized, my metabolism humming right along, and my sweet tooth satisfied.

Ingredients

• 1 cup milk (or plant based milk)
• 2 tbsp protein powder (I use 1 Up Nutrition's vegan chocolate protein powder)
• 1 tsp unsweetened cocao powder
• 1 tsp gelatinized maca powder
• 1 heaping tsp coconut butter  (or coconut oil)
• 1 date
• 2-3 ice cubes

Instructions

• In a blender, add all ingredients and whirl away for 1-2 minutes (or until frothy). If you're a coffee drinker, feel free to swap half of the milk with coffee. Pour into a glass and enjoy immediately!

Notes

If you make any of my recipes, please tag me (@wellnesswithedie) or use #wellnesswithedie on Instagram! That way, I can easily see your creations. For more recipes visit the wellnesswithedie.com.