Hack Your Hormones: Sakara Super Bar, Tea, and Metabolism Powder Review

For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Gia, an entrepreneur who helps other female founders in all aspects of being a businesswoman. This includes fashion, hormone health, beauty, and entrepreneurial hacks for productivity, marketing, and all things to monetize online. 

It’s important as a female founder to be your best for yourself before you can serve others. The basis of all this is our bodies and even more specifically — the tricky balance of our hormone health.

Sakara is a female owned brand who is on top of their hormone hacking and all around healthy lifestyle. I love these specific products as I’ve been sticking to most of them for over a year now and have been trying more of what they have to offer every time I replenish my health stash and grocery cart!

First things first 

This is really intimate to talk about, but women’s health needs to be main stream and common knowledge. Especially among women. People get their facts confused because they’re not properly educated with the right research and the truth is – to each their own!

There’s not one thing that works for both men and women because we have such different bodies, hormones, and even clocks. Genetic dispositions, and so many variables that affect us individually. 

Helping your hormones comes from many factors as: 

1. What you eat
2. Exercise
3. Gut health < this affects everything

DIGESTIVE TEA

I had a really uncomfortable time after having 2 scoops of ice cream on an adventure out with my husband. I don’t usually eat ice cream, but wanted to treat myself to something sweet. My stomach was killing me as I was filling up with gas from my dairy intolerance. I haven’t had ice cream in over a month or anything sweet really that wasn’t organic fruit. This entails fruit in smoothie form or as is cut fresh. I don’t drink store bought fruit juice – it’s a ton of sugar and never was into it.

Then, I came home to have this tea to relieve the bloating and tummy tension. I was holding in my farts uncomfortably for over an hour and came home to drink the digestive tea. It worked wonders. Instant relief. The peppermint and the ingredients really fixed my belly.

I had another event that night so I was extremely happy that problem was solved. If your stomach is not right the digestive tea might just help. 

I noticed a lot of people thinking it’s expensive and a fraud. As a business owner and someone who’s observed other businesses for years:

When it comes to a product that you think is too expensive for what it does, or you don’t understand many things about it – therefore you rule it out – you have to think. It’s not all just paying for the marketing.

1. The combination of herbs just might not work for you. For your genetic makeup, say your ancestors didn’t grow up in certain region that had what would be common ingredients in another place, so your body doesn’t accept it as easily. And it might take more time to absorb it.
2. There’s a lot of research and development done in this product and that time and service needs to be paid for. There’s a lot of exotic products I noticed as compared to other places that have blends with teas or even skincare that you won’t see on cheaper products with basic items. 
3. There’s also cheaper grade quality product or less percent in what they’re selling you. That’s why they say to opt for the pricier laundry detergent, because you actually do get your money’s worth and clothes clean. There’s a PhD who did her paper on this. 

DETOX TEA

My morning routine is the detox tea and nightly, especially after dinner, I have the digestive tea. 

If you look at the boxes, they’re a little bit different too. Just a little observation. I think because Detox needs more explanation. When you think of digestive tea – you know it aids your gut health. But when you say detox you have to be more specific. Like detoxing what?

Why the detox tea? It’s really helpful for inflammation. 

WHAT IS INFLAMMATION?

In case you’re wondering what inflammation is it’s when your body freaks out from something that’s not supposed to be happening. Especially long term. 

For example, if you get a cut, a mosquito bite, you eat something that your gut doesn’t agree with – inflammation is when your body reacts to heal it. When you get a bug bite, a bunch of white blood cells rush to that area and fight it off and protect you. That’s why there might be puss. Your body is under stress. 

You want your body to be as calm and not under stress as much as possible so it can function properly. You know how when you’re well rested, you can take on the world? That’s how your body should ideally be all the time, so we have to support that kind of status amap. When one part of your body is under stress, it’s connected to your adrenals which controls your hormones and sends stressful messages to your brain. So balance yourself. 

MY MORNING ROUTINE WITH SAKARA METABOLISM SUPER POWDER

For my smoothie in the morning , I have berries with the metabolism super powder here. Along with some ashwaghanda. It doesn’t kick it right away, but I feel energized so I do my workout. After my smoothie, I do my workout. 

Then have the detox tea to chill after I shower from having done a workout. 

The Taste

Just as a heads up the taste of both of these teas were quite intense at first. I had to get used to them as I was a green tea drinker for a long time. But now I’m used to these strong herbal teas. 

When I say I have been shaping my diet around Sakara, I mean it. When I know I’ll have a business meeting with a client, I pack my bag with a bar and have one in the car. In case I have a long drive, or know I have to be out, I have a bar. When I’m still hungry even after a fulfilling meal and want to skip on a sugary dessert, I have bar instead. 

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BEAUTY BAR

The one way I know the beauty bars work is because on my period or even the week before – the luteal phase aka when you’re supposed to be PMSing / if you’re PMSing you’re doing it wrong. You need to fix your hormones. The week before my period and during my period is the strongest time I am acne prone. My body is ready to f me over with acne during this time. Taking the beauty bars has helped me drastically overcome this. I slept with makeup on one night and still no acne. Didn’t need to do an extra strong cleansing mask the next day. Just cleansed normally. It works.

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DETOX BAR

The Detox bars — oh and just as a heads up — I’ve been drinking the teas and eating the detox bars for about a year now.  Idk how else to say it. The detox bars make you regular. I don’t have too many digestive issues aside from when I’m not eating properly. I think it might be help from the spirulina, because it’s so nutrient dense. They say it’s one of the most nutrient dense foods out there.

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ENERGY BAR

As for the Energy Bars, I hate the taste. It’s too bitter for me, and during a really fatigued part of my menstrual cycle, I couldn’t keep my eyes open midday and felt super weak. I had an energy bar and was ok for an hour. It could have been my period’s strength and hormone imbalance. But it worked for an hour and that was it. I was so fatigued and back to feeling exhausted, so I will not be purchasing this next time. I bought them specifically for that time of the month. I’m not usually worried about energy levels. I usually just eat something or get enough sleep to revise that.

As you can see I have about a month’s worth of bars. Enough to have at max 3 a day. I think it’s too much protein – plant protein – so it will be too much for your body and will just pass through if you have them all in one day. So don’t do that. Eat like 1 maybe 2 a day. 

If I have these all finished and see different results from what I said today, I’ll definitely create an update on how they’ve worked for me. 🙂 

My digestion hasn’t been this smooth in a while. Just be sure to drink enough water. 

My regular routine day, just so you have an idea of how I ingest these products throughout the day is 

1. Smoothie – ashwaghanda, flax, chia, hemp, berries, almond milk < will create another video for that
2. Detox tea to chill my mind and body
3. I might have a bar – 1 of the 3
4. Late lunch / dinner of high nutrient foods with a protein, tons of cooked veg – typically steamed sometimes sautéed. 
5. Digestive tea at night.

I don’t like to over eat. I feel uncomfortable eating too much and feeling overtly full. 

But am definitely looking into their meal plans and will create another video for that to try out. Just worried it’s too much as I’m quite small and eat well and enough to feel full appropriately.

Constant Updates

Every time I check their website, there’s something new added. I used to listen to their podcast, and now learning more about their brand, I’m definitely going to start listening more as my body has been changing before my eyes. But their podcast is a little bit on the “woo woo” side. I’m from LA and don’t believe in chakras or spirituality.

A little bit about the brand: 

(This is straight from their website)

LIFE-CHANGING NUTRITION

Our meals and products are backed by cutting-edge nutrition science and traditional healing wisdom to give your body what it needs to thrive.

INGREDIENTS YOU CAN TRUST

To ensure peak nutrition, freshness and deliciousness, we source all of our ingredients from trusted suppliers and organic farms that use healthy, sustainable agriculture practices.

CHEF-CRAFTED FOR PURE JOY

Classically trained chefs. Inspired global flavors. Our meals and products are crafted with love and care to provide one of the most important nutrients of all—pleasure.

Sutainability

Eating plants is good for you and Mother Earth.

At Sakara, we care deeply about Mother Earth and are committed to making the right choices for the health of our clients and the environment. From the beginning, we’ve taken a critical eye to our food waste, packaging, and sourcing practices and looked for ways to be kind to the Earth.

We welcome your thoughts and reflections in helping us further reduce our environmental impact and educate our community. The journey to sustainability is a long one, but one we are devoted to, and we are grateful for your support and participation.

EATING PLANTS TO SAVE THE PLANET

Nourish your body and the Earth at the same time. The Sakara nutrition program makes plant-based eating delicious and effortless—whether or not you’re among the 5% of our clients who identify as vegan. By helping all people include more plant foods in their diets, we are accelerating the world’s transition to sustainable eating.

Pound-for-pound, gallon-for-gallon, plant-based foods use vastly less water and emit less greenhouse gases than producing animal-based foods.

MINIMIZING TOXIC FOOD WASTE

Every year, the United States throws away over one-third of all the food it produces—133 billion pounds of food, or 20 pounds of food per person per month. This wasted food goes into landfills, where it releases methane gas into the atmosphere. It takes a head of lettuce about 25 years to decompose in a landfill. As part of our Zero Waste Initiative, we’re working to keep our food waste below 1%.

Here’s what we’re doing:

• 1. PLANNING AND BUYING ACCURATELY
  Because our clients sign up for Sakara meal programs in advance, it allows us to plan ahead, order what we need, and reduce waste before it’s produced.
  
• 2. DONATING & COMPOSTING
  Sakara ingredients that don’t end up in your meals are donated or composted through partners, including City Harvest, Roho Compost and Wilenta Feed.
  
• 3. SOURCING “IMPERFECT FOODS”
  We help others reduce their food waste by using produce that is perfectly good to eat, but is refused by grocery stores. These foods are nutritionally sound and are just as beautiful blended into a Sakara soup, sauce or salad dressing.
  

SUPPORTING A THRIVING ECOSYSTEM

Over 1 billion pounds of pesticides and insecticides enter our soil each year. Pesticide contamination poses a threat to everything from soil to plants to animals. At Sakara, we try to make the most mindful and smart sourcing decisions to support Mother Earth.

Here’s how we do it:

• 1. CHOOSING ORGANIC
  We source organic produce and support farmers with responsible farming practices. These choices help to reduce pesticide and insecticide usage in our food system, saving our planet from toxic pollutants.
  
• 2. EMBRACING BIODIVERSITY
  We incorporate over 300 unique ingredients into our menu each month, supporting a more diverse and resilient food ecosystem—one where a high variety and variability of plants, animals, microorganisms can call home.
  

CHOOSING THOUGHTFUL PACKAGING

We spend a lot of time researching the latest packaging innovations to find the best option for both our clients and the environment.

We use cardboard boxes made from post-consumer recycled materials that are curbside recyclable, and #1 PET plastic meal containers because they are the most easily recycled and commonly accepted recyclable materials nationwide. They’re also the best option for keeping Sakara meals safe and fresh in transit. The liners inside each box are made from recycled paper and corn starch and are now certified 100% curbside recyclable by the Sustainable Packaging Coalition. Unlike oil-based plastic liners, they use considerably less energy to produce (65% less than a Styrofoam cooler). Why not use compostable or plant-based plastic? Learn more in our FAQ.

Below, you’ll find detailed instructions for recycling our packaging. Please contact us if you have any questions.

Just a note on their packaging, I received to parcels – 2 medium sized boxes from them because I ordered quite a bit of product in bulk.

But they also teach you how to recycle your packaging – which I think is quite imperative as a brand sharing responsibility with its customers. It’s brilliantly helpful! More people should know this! 🙂

How to Recycle Our Packaging

The availability of recycling and composting facilities varies depending on where you live. Find your local options here and check with your local recycling program for exact instructions on how your community’s program works.

• 1. Boxes
  The delivery boxes, which are all made from recycled material, can be broken down and recycled curbside as part of standard paper recycling.
  
• 2. Food Containers
  Our clear food containers are #1 PET recycled plastic, which is commonly the easiest and most widely-accepted recycled material, and can be accepted curbside as part of standard plastic recycling. Be sure to rinse before recycling.
  
• 3. Box Liners
  Our box liners are made from corn starch and recycled paper, both widely-available and rapidly-renewable materials. The liners are certified 100% curbside recyclable by How2Recycle, a program of the Sustainable Packaging Coalition. Recycle the entire liner as is with your standard curbside paper recycling.
  
• 4. Ice Packs
  Cut open the ice pack and dispose of the non-toxic gel down a sink or into the garbage. Recycle the plastic with other plastic materials.
  

They also have a ton of resources and references online that back up their research and business.

Have you tried hormone hacking with food? I’d love to know more in the comments the efforts and strides you’re taking to balance your female hormones. Always could use the extra help myself! 😀