Balancing Hormones Naturally

Get Unstuck masterclass is January 9th at 7 pm eastern: https://bit.ly/getunstuck26

Episode 286: What Happened to My Ovulation? Why It Gets Delayed, Late, or Goes Missing
with Leah Brueggemann, FDN-P

Okay, so you usually ovulate somewhere around day 13 to 16, and now you are sitting on day 30 going, where did my ovulation go? This one is for you. In this episode I am breaking down what ovulation actually is, why it can show up late or disappear altogether, and what your delayed ovulation is trying to tell you about your health.
How interesting, right? Because ovulation is not just about getting pregnant. It is your monthly report card. It is how your body produces progesterone, your keep calm and carry on hormone. So when ovulation goes off track, it is a yellow flag we want to pay attention to before it turns into a red flag. Grab a beverage, check your step count, and let's dive in.
What You'll Learn
•        What ovulation really is, and why day 14 is just an average (a 26 to 36 day cycle is totally normal)
•        Why your follicular phase length is what actually determines your cycle length
•        The hard truth about ovulating after day 21, and why irregular ovulation is a health signal worth listening to
•        Why you cannot get pregnant without ovulating, even when it feels like you skipped your period
•        Why "hyper fertile" is not a real thing, and the myth that you ovulate multiple times in one cycle
•        What cervical mucus is telling you, from thyroid clues to low vitamin A, dehydration, and low estrogen
•        The most common reasons ovulation gets delayed: stress, nutrient deficiencies, blood sugar and insulin resistance, PCOS, thyroid, and over-exercising or under-eating
•        How to figure out which category you fall into, and simple, doable first steps to support your ovulation
Key Takeaways
•        Ovulation is what brings your period. When you ovulate, the follicle forms the corpus luteum, which produces progesterone. When that progesterone drops, your period comes. No ovulation, no true period.
•        Your cycle length is normal anywhere from 26 to 36 days. The range comes from how long your follicular phase is. Ovulation to period should stay in that 12 to 14 day window to support enough progesterone.
•        Stress is the number one cause of delayed ovulation, and it is not just emotional. Internal stress like inflammation, food sensitivities, heavy metals, and parasites all count. You cannot out-supplement a full stress bucket.
•        Nutrient deficiencies matter. Magnesium, B vitamins, zinc, and selenium all support ovulation and egg quality. When minerals are tanked, testing helps you see it, and then we ask why they got depleted in the first place.
•        Blood sugar and insulin resistance can shut down ovulation, and this is especially true with PCOS, where blood sugar spikes drive up testosterone.
•        Both an underactive and overactive thyroid can delay ovulation, and stress, gut, and liver health all impact your T4 to T3 conversion. Birth control can deplete the nutrients and disrupt the microbiome you need for this.
•        Over-exercising and under-eating send a famine signal to your body, and ovulation is one of the first things it shuts down to conserve energy.
•        You ovulate once per cycle. You can release a second egg within 24 hours, but progesterone then suppresses any further ovulation. "Hyper fertile" is not multiple ovulations.
Resources & Links Mentioned
•        Free Hormone Training, learn Leah's three secrets to balancing hormones naturally: freehormonetraining.com

•        Book a free consult call for the Hormone Reset Program: bit.ly/HRPfreecall
•        Follow Leah on Instagram: @leah_brueg

Ready to Get to the Root of Your Cycle?
If you are tired of guessing whether it is stress, your thyroid, nutrient deficiencies, or PCOS behind your delayed ovulation, this is exactly what we do inside the Hormone Reset Program. We run your testing, hand you a step-by-step map, and pair you with an accountability coach so you are never wondering "is this me?" again. You just implement and trust the process. Book your free consult call at bit.ly/HRPfreecall to see if it's a good fit.
And if you found this episode valuable, share it with a friend and post it to your stories. You never know who in your circle is praying for this exact information right now. Tag @leah_brueg so we can keep getting this message out.

Disclaimer

The information shared in this episode is for educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. It is not meant to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease or health condition. Please consult your qualified healthcare provider before making any changes to your diet, supplements, exercise, or wellness routine.

Get Unstuck masterclass is January 9th at 7 pm eastern: https://bit.ly/getunstuck26

Cycle Syncing 101: How to Eat, Move, and Live in Sync with Your Hormones

Balancing Hormones Naturally Podcast with Leah Brueggemann

Okay, so here is the thing about cycle syncing: it is not just another wellness trend to add to your already overflowing to-do list. It is the actual tipping point. The thing that finally helps your last bit of stubborn weight come off, your cravings calm down, your moods even out, and your energy stop crashing at 2 p.m. every single afternoon.
In this episode, I am breaking down cycle syncing 101: how to use nutrition, workouts, and lifestyle to support the natural rise and fall of your hormones through every phase of your cycle. Because here is the truth, you are not built to run on a 24-hour male hormone rhythm. You have a beautifully designed 28-ish day rhythm, and once you start working with it instead of against it, everything starts to click.
How interesting, right?
What You'll Learn in This Episode
•        Why cycle syncing is the missing piece for stubborn weight, mood swings, and cravings
•        The four phases of your menstrual cycle and what is happening hormonally in each one
•        Menstrual phase: the iron, mineral, and vitamin C rich foods to prioritize while you are bleeding, plus the Chinese medicine principle of warm versus cold foods
•        Why beef liver is a powerhouse during your period, and the chili hack that makes it taste good
•        Follicular phase: cooling proteins, cruciferous vegetables, resistant starch, and why this phase is a goldmine for insulin sensitivity
•        Ovulatory phase: antihistamine support, chia seed pudding, and the eleganic acid in berries that helps neutralize estrogen quinones
•        Luteal phase: low glycemic carbs, warming proteins, magnesium-rich foods, and why blood sugar balance matters even more here
•        How to adjust your workouts through every phase without sacrificing strength gains
•        Seed cycling 101: the exact seeds, amounts, and timing to support estrogen and progesterone
•        What to do if your cycles are irregular, if you are postpartum, or if you are on hormonal birth control
•        How to actually start cycle syncing without overwhelm (hint: one habit per cycle)
Quick Cycle Syncing Cheat Sheet

Menstrual Phase (Days 1 to 7, bleeding phase)
•        Hormones: at their lowest
•        Vibe: rest, reflect, gentle movement
•        Workouts: yoga, Pilates, stretching, walks, lower weight with higher reps
•        Foods: iron-rich, mineral-rich, potassium-rich, vitamin C, warming foods like stews, chili, bone broth, sweet potatoes, ginger, wild rice, beef liver
•        Skip: ice cold drinks and smoothies (cold brings pain, warm takes it away)
Follicular Phase (post-bleeding, estrogen rising)
•        Hormones: estrogen rising, testosterone starting to climb
•        Vibe: creativity, planning, networking, new projects
•        Workouts: cardio and weight training, this is when you get strong
•        Foods: cooling proteins (chicken, turkey, white fish), cruciferous veggies, sprouts, soluble fiber, resistant starch (cooled potatoes), liver support
•        Bonus tip: finish eating by 6 or 6:30 p.m. to support insulin sensitivity overnight
Ovulatory Phase (estrogen and testosterone peak, LH surge)
•        Hormones: estrogen peaks, testosterone peaks, LH surges
•        Vibe: magnetic, outgoing, empathetic, perfect for hard conversations and big projects
•        Workouts: high intensity, heavy lifting
•        Foods: antihistamine support (vitamin C, nettle), berries (eleganic acid for estrogen detox), colorful peppers, kiwi, citrus, chia seed pudding
•        Non-negotiable: pooping daily heading into luteal
Luteal Phase (ovulation to period, progesterone dominant)
•        Hormones: progesterone rising, estrogen dipping with one mid-phase bump
•        Vibe: reflective, slower, checking things off your list
•        Workouts: strength training continues, lower weights and higher reps, Pilates, walking
•        Foods: low glycemic carbs (lentils, beans, chickpeas), warming proteins (beef, salmon), magnesium-rich leafy greens, ginger, cinnamon, turmeric, well-cooked everything
•        Critical: blood sugar balance matters more than ever, especially if you deal with PMS or pre-period anxiety
Seed Cycling Made Simple
Period to ovulation: 1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds + 1 tablespoon flax seeds daily
Ovulation to period: 1 tablespoon sesame seeds + 1 tablespoon sunflower seeds daily
Buy them whole and grind before eating (they go rancid fast), or grab them pre-ground from Funk It Wellness, where they are ground right before shipping. Use code LEAH15 to save.

Your Homework
•        Pick ONE habit from this episode and start it this cycle. Just one. That is how this works.
•        Share this episode with a friend and invite her to do it with you. Send it and say, hey, I love you, do you want to do this with me?
Episode Sponsors

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Funk It Wellness Seed Cycling
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Want to Go Deeper?

Get Unstuck masterclass is January 9th at 7 pm eastern: https://bit.ly/getunstuck26

Pelvic Floor Therapy: Why Kegels Aren’t the Answer and What Actually Heals Leaking, Pain & Prolapse
Balancing Hormones Naturally Podcast with Leah Brueggemann

Seventy percent of people in nursing homes are there because of urinary incontinence. Read that again. The leaking you keep brushing off as “normal” after kids? It is the same thing that lands women in long-term care decades later. And almost nobody is telling you that.
In this episode, Leah sits down with pelvic floor physical therapist Koleen Adams (Awaken Pelvic Therapy in Lapeer, Michigan) to unpack the real reason so many women are walking around with leaking, pain with sex, low back pain, constipation, and prolapse, and being told it is just what happens after babies. Spoiler: it is not normal, it is not your fault, and Kegels are probably the worst thing your doctor could have prescribed you.
Okay, so. If you have ever been told to “just drink a glass of wine before sex”, if you skip the trampoline park because you might pee, or if you went to one pelvic floor PT and decided it didn’t work, this episode is the one to send to every woman in your life.
What You’ll Learn In This Episode
•        Why 90% of pelvic floor issues are caused by tightness, not weakness, and why Kegels can make them worse
•        How your pelvic floor is wired into your fight or flight nervous system (and why it clenches when life feels unsafe)
•        The wild client story of “sister poops” and how a phone call can trigger fecal incontinence
•        Symptoms you would never connect to pelvic floor: low back pain, hip pain, headaches, prolapse, chronic constipation
•        Why over 90% of jaw clenchers are also clenching their pelvic floor
•        The exact questions to ask before booking your next pelvic floor PT so you don’t waste another appointment
•        Why insurance-based clinics often miss the root cause and how direct pay changes the game
•        What recovery should actually feel like and the two-to-three visit rule for knowing you’ve found the right practitioner
•        How to advocate for yourself with your OB without feeling rude or pushy
Your Pelvic Floor Is Holding More Than Babies
Koleen calls the pelvic floor a “perfect little bowl” for holding trauma. And once you hear it that way, you can’t unhear it. Your pelvic floor is not just a group of muscles. It is part of your fight or flight system. Anytime your body has registered something as unsafe, whether that’s a hard conversation, a traumatic birth, an unwanted touch, or a stressful phone call from your sister, your pelvic floor automatically tightens. That tightening is supposed to be temporary. The problem is most women never come out of it.
This is why “just do Kegels” is such terrible advice for so many women. If your muscles are already gripping at a 9 out of 10, contracting them harder is not going to help. You need to learn how to release first. Without that, every other intervention is fighting uphill.
The Symptoms Nobody Tells You Are Pelvic Floor Related
Most women think pelvic floor therapy is only for peeing your pants and painful sex. Those are real reasons to go. But Koleen also treats:
•        Chronic constipation and diarrhea, including fecal smearing in kids
•        Low back pain and hip pain that won’t resolve with regular PT
•        That “sitting on a softball” pressure feeling (often prolapse)
•        Tension headaches connected to neck and vagus nerve dysfunction
•        Jaw clenching (over 90% of jaw clenchers are clenching their pelvic floor too)
•        Erectile dysfunction and testicular pain in men
•        Postpartum issues from any kind of birth, including C-sections
How interesting that one set of 26 muscles, none of which you can reach without an internal exam, can be silently driving symptoms across your entire body.
Why “It’s Normal” Is Costing Women Their Lives
Koleen shares the math on one client who leaked from age 40 to age 60. Wearing a size 4 pad, changing it four times a day, 24/7. Total spent on pads in those 20 years: $25,000. And that is just the financial cost. She skipped vacations, was anxious about every bathroom, and almost packed an extra suitcase of pads for a European trip.
Then there is the nursing home statistic. 70% of nursing home admissions involve urinary incontinence. Women fall trying to make it to the bathroom in time. They break hips. They lose independence. The thing everyone told them was “just part of being a mom” is the same thing that ends their ability to live on their own. Why are we fighting so hard to keep symptoms that don’t belong to us in the first place?
How To Find a Pelvic Floor PT Who Actually Knows What She’s Doing
Not all pelvic floor therapists are created equal. If you have been to one and felt like nothing changed, you probably went to the wrong one. Here is what Koleen says to look for:
•        They listen. You should leave the first visit feeling truly heard, not rushed through a script.
•        They take a whole-body approach. Posture, range of motion, balance, jaw, neck, sleep, stress, gut, all on the table.
•        They do internal work. This is the gold standard. Skipping the internal exam means guessing.
•        They ask permission before every touch. “Can I touch your inner thigh? Can I touch your labia?” Consent every time.
•        They use real sheets, not paper drapes. The environment should feel safe and respectful.
•        You see improvement within two to three visits. Not full resolution, but a clear sense that you are on the right track.
Interview them. Ask about success rates. Ask how long they have been doing this. Ask if they have treated your specific issue before. You are not being difficult. You are being a good steward of your body.
Action Steps From This Episode
•        Notice when you clench. Throughout the day, check in with your jaw, your shoulders, and your pelvic floor. Awareness is step one.
•        Stop fighting for your symptoms to be normal. If something feels off, it is information, not an identity.
•        Find a pelvic floor PT who does internal work and treats the whole body, not just the symptom.
•        If you have done Kegels and they made things worse, that is a sign of pelvic floor tightness. Stop. Get assessed.
•        Advocate for yourself with your OB. You can ask for a pelvic floor PT referral at your six-week postpartum visit. You don’t have to wait six months to “see if it gets better.”

“Pelvic floor issues can ruin your life. And I have the ability to help them get their life back.”

— Koleen Adams, Awaken Pelvic Therapy

Connect with Koleen Adams
Koleen Adams is the founder and owner of ...

Get Unstuck masterclass is January 9th at 7 pm eastern: https://bit.ly/getunstuck26

The Truth About Fasting for Women: Why Most Studies Don’t Apply to Your Cycle
Balancing Hormones Naturally Podcast with Leah Brueggemann

Everyone keeps telling you to fast. Skip breakfast. Push your eating window. Drink coffee until noon. And somewhere along the way, fasting got marketed as the secret to weight loss, balanced blood sugar, and longevity for every human on the planet.
Here is what nobody mentions in those reels: most of the research behind those claims was done on men or postmenopausal women. If you have an active cycle, applying that data to your body without context can quietly tank your hormones, flatten your energy, and wreck your periods.
In this episode, Leah breaks down what fasting actually does to a cycling woman’s body, when it works in your favor, when it backfires, and the one fasting style most women can use safely without sending their adrenals into a tailspin.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode
•        Why fasting research done on men doesn’t translate cleanly to menstruating women
•        How estrogen and progesterone change your insulin sensitivity across your cycle
•        The connection between aggressive fasting, LH pulsatility, ovulation, and progesterone
•        Why intermittent fasting can become a fancy way of chronically under-eating
•        What circadian fasting is, why Leah loves it, and how to do it
•        Follicular fasting: the one-day-per-cycle window where a longer fast may serve you
•        How melatonin and your circadian insulin sensitivity should shape when you eat
•        Why your minerals and vital reserve matter before you ever consider a fast
•        How to break a fast without spiking your blood sugar into the stratosphere

Key Concepts From the Episode
You’re Not a Small Man
Men run on a 24-hour hormonal rhythm. Women run on a 28 to 36-day rhythm. Their dominant hormone is testosterone, which doesn’t tank under stress the way progesterone does. Stretching male fasting protocols across a cycling woman’s body ignores all of that.
Insulin Sensitivity Changes Throughout Your Cycle
Estrogen increases insulin sensitivity. Progesterone decreases it. So depending on where a woman is in her cycle, the same fasting protocol can produce wildly different results. One snapshot in a study cannot capture that.
Aggressive Fasting Can Suppress Ovulation
Calorie restriction taken too far has been shown to lower LH pulsatility within just five days. Lower LH means a weaker ovulatory surge, which means a weaker corpus luteum, which means less progesterone. That cascade shows up as irregular cycles, thinning hair, irritability, low energy, and insomnia long before it shows up on a lab.
Sometimes Intermittent Fasting Is Just Under-Eating in Disguise
Slapping a name on a tiny eating window doesn’t change the math. If the calories aren’t there, the body reads starvation. The early energy boost most women feel? Usually adrenaline. Eventually the bill comes due in the form of stalled fat loss, blunted thyroid function, and worsening cycles.
Circadian Fasting: The Safer Default
Stop eating after dinner and don’t eat again until morning. Roughly a 12-hour window. This honors your natural insulin rhythm (you are more insulin sensitive in the morning, more resistant at night) and supports digestion and blood sugar without spiking cortisol. Most cycling women can use this safely.
Follicular Fasting (One Day Per Cycle)
Pick one day in your follicular phase and pull your final meal earlier (say, 3 pm instead of 6 pm). Estrogen is rising, insulin sensitivity is on your side, and the impact on stress hormones is minimal. One day. Then back to your normal circadian fast.
Mineral Status and Vital Reserve Come First
Fasting on top of depleted minerals and a chronically dieted body is pouring gas on a fire. Replenish first. Mineral-rich foods (yes, including beef liver, not only vegetables) build the foundation that any fasting strategy needs.
Practical Takeaways
•        Eat within 30 to 60 minutes of waking
•        Aim for 30 grams of protein at breakfast
•        Get fiber and low-glycemic carbs in early
•        Never eat a naked carb (pair the apple with a hard-boiled egg or a handful of nuts)
•        Build a dinner that can actually carry you through the night: protein, fat, fiber, low-glycemic carbs
•        Break your fast with protein, not sugar and coffee
•        Prioritize nourishment before restriction every single time
•        Pay attention to mineral intake, especially if you’ve been chronically dieting

A Line Worth Saving
“You don’t need to starve to heal. You need to support your hormones, not suppress them.”

Episode Sponsor: Aversio Wellness Maitake
Mushrooms are everywhere right now, but most products use a fraction of the dosage that was actually studied. Aversio Wellness uses real therapeutic dosages and a strong extraction ratio, so one or two capsules do the job (instead of swallowing a pile of pills).
Their newest standalone product is Maitake, which Leah is calling the new starting point for women who want a mushroom that delivers visible results. Maitake supports blood sugar balance, ovulation, and immune function, and since blood sugar drives basically every hormonal pathway in your body, this one earns its place.
Shop at aversiowellness.com and use code LEAH for 15% off.
Want to Go Deeper?
Grab Leah’s free hormone training and learn her three secrets to balancing hormones naturally:
freehormonetraining.com

Connect With Leah
•        Instagram (personal): @leahbru
•        Instagram (podcast): @balancinghormonesnaturally
•        Free Hormone Training: freehormonetraining.com

Disclaimer: This episode is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Please work with a qualified practitioner before making changes to your nutrition, fasting practice, or supplement routine.

Get Unstuck masterclass is January 9th at 7 pm eastern: https://bit.ly/getunstuck26

If you've been breaking out for years, have tried every cleanser, serum, and spot treatment out there, and still can't figure out why your skin won't clear, this episode is going to be the conversation you didn't know you needed. Leah sits down with Kayleigh Christina, certified holistic nutritionist and co-founder of ClearStem Skincare, who went from cystic acne so severe she stopped leaving the house to completely clear skin in two months, once she identified the 12 triggers no doctor had ever talked to her about. What they cover is not what you're going to hear at the dermatologist's office.
In this episode:
Why "clean" skincare does not mean acne-safe, and how ingredients like beef tallow, shea butter, coconut oil, algae extracts, and avocado oil are some of the most notorious pore-cloggers you can put on your face, even though they're non-toxic
What physically happens inside your pore when a pore-clogging ingredient gets stuck, why coconut oil turns into a waxy ball that has nowhere to go, and why clearing those clogs is what actually makes your pores look smaller
Why your hair conditioner might be the reason you can't clear your skin, and where to look if it's the culprit: your hairline, the side of your face you sleep on, the back of your neck, and your back
How randomly taking "hormone-balancing" supplements like Vitex and He Shou Wu without running labs can directly worsen your acne by disrupting the very hormones you were trying to support
Why B12, vitamin D, and zinc show up in so many supplements, multivitamins, and "immune-boosting" beverages at levels that can spike testosterone and trigger androgenic acne, often without you even realizing you're taking that much
The real reason food and beverage companies dump cheap, non-bioavailable forms of zinc and biotin into their products, and what to look for instead so you're not creating a toxic overload while thinking you're doing something good for your body
How compromised gut health connects directly to jawline and neck breakouts through albumin protein from egg whites building up in the lymph system, and why food triggers are different for everyone depending on what's going on internally
What mandelic acid actually does inside the pore, why it's effective for both active acne and aging at the same time, and how to build a simple four-product routine that heals your skin without stripping it
How ClearStem's acne lab test screens over 86 blood markers, including heavy metals, liver and kidney function, parasites, and cell hydration, to find what conventional labs and standard doctor visits keep missing
Your skin is not broken. There are real, identifiable reasons your breakouts keep coming back, and most of them have nothing to do with how well you're washing your face. This episode gives you a completely different way to look at acne so you can stop spinning your wheels and start actually getting clear.
Use code LEAHB to save 15% at ClearStem Skincare: clearstem.com
Find Kayleigh Christina: Website: clearstem.com Pore Clogging Ingredients Checker: clearstem.com/free-checker Instagram: @clearstem_skincare and @kayleighchristina
Leah's Favorite Things: https://www.leahbrueggemann.com/favorites
I'm Leah Brueggemann, a Functional Diagnostic Nutritional® Practitioner and Hormone Health Coach, helping you balance your hormones in effective and realistic ways so you can live a healthier, happier life.
Through the Balance Hormones Naturally podcast, you'll discover why your cycle is so important to your everyday health and how you can use nutrition to help support the rise and fall of your hormones and finally feel truly amazing. We dig deep to understand and heal the root causes of your symptoms so you can achieve lasting results through manageable and realistic lifestyle changes, allowing you to live a healthy and balanced life without a long-term pharmaceutical prescription.
Let's connect: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/balancinghormonesnaturally/
Personal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leah_brueg/
Website: https://www.leahbrueggemann.com/
Email: [email protected]
The recommendations presented in this podcast are not a substitute for medical advice from a qualified doctor. Before making any changes to your diet and lifestyle, please consult with your healthcare provider.