In an effort to restore balance to her daily life, Gigi Vogel founded De La Heart to create practices and products that revolve around healing, self-care, and women’s wellness.
Today we’re sharing everything we learned at our Toronto masterclass this week, including how to best care for our Lymphatic system, how to incorporate best practices and rituals to live optimally, and how to embrace and care for every stage of womanhood.
How It All Started:
Gigi founded De La Heart after she learned how to heal her own body through eating whole foods, rediscovering lymphatic drainage, and giving her body the nourishment it was craving after years of health struggles. Her newfound perspective and way of life is the foundation on which De La Heart is built and it's all about education and giving us the power to change how we feel for the better.
I needed to share everything I learned with everyone so they could discover the magic of the lymphatic system. My purpose was to make it available and mainstream.
Gigi Vogel, founder De La Heart
What is lymphatic drainage?
Lymphatic drainage is a massage technique that encourages the drainage of lymph nodes and the movement of lymph fluids around the body. Your lymph nodes are located in your neck, underarms, chest, abdomen, and groin.
Lymph work has also been shown to help speed up the healing process by enhancing circulation and immunity. As the lymph flow is increased, lymph vessels that have been stopped are stimulated and the increased lymph flow draws away toxins, improving skin health and can even help with repairing scar tissue.
Gigi says, "Things needed to get out of my system and once they did my skin changed, my legs changed completely, my cellulite, digestion, energy levels — everything. I needed to share everything I learned with everyone so they could discover the magic of the lymphatic system. My purpose was to make it available and mainstream."
Creating the tools:
When Gigi launched De La Heart, she was passionate about making the tools accessible to everyone. With lymphatic drainage, it's important to maintain consistency and Gigi knew it was unrealisitc for people to have the massages done 4-5 times per week. But if you have Gigi's tools, then it's easy to incorporate them into your morning/evening routines and use them consistently and start to see the results of regular lymph flow.
We always want to keep our bodies flowing. Think of a beautiful river with clean, fresh water because it's always moving. When there is stagnation like in a build up of fluid, it's like a murky pond that's muddy and unclean. We want to find our flow so we can keep our glow.
Gigi Vogel
The tools:
Facial Dry Brush
What it is: Gently exfoliates the delicate skin on skin your face.
HOW TO USE: On clean, dry skin, Use soft, flicking movements to gently exfoliate and stimulate your lymphatic system—about 4-5 strokes per area. Use on face, neck and décolleté. Start with your neck and décolleté moving downwards then move upwards on your face.
Stainless Steel Gua Sha:
What it is: a sleek and cooling tool that helps to visibly smooth, sculpt and boost radiance, while reducing puffiness and fluid buildup.
How To Use: Prep your skin with De La Heart's Organic Jojoba Oil and using the flat edge, treat each side of your face separately and use light, gentle pressure dragging down to the collarbone, down to the lymph nodes. On the face, start at the center, anchor your hand and go out and up. When you reach the ear, take a pause. For extra lip plumping, use the flat edge under and around the edge of the lips.
de la heart
The Facial Dry Brush
$26.00
de la heart
Stainless Steel Gua Sha
$42.00
The Copper Dry Brush:
What it is: exfoliates and helps to counteract the energy-draining effects of digital devices (which emit positive ions), while neutralizing free radical damage and supporting lymphatic flow.
The Body Brush:
What it is: Gentle yet effective brush that stimulates the body's natural detox flow.
How to use: On completely dry skin, brush in upward motions toward your lymph nodes in the direction of your heart.
de la heart
The Copper Dry Brush
$62.00
de la heart
The Body Brush
$34.00
If you have the tools and are using them every night before bed, you're teaching your body to work in a more organized way.
Gigi Vogel
Shop All De La Heart
Shop NowThe Body Tool:
what it is: The tool that started it all! With this tool's unique design, you'll be able to release toxins, increase circulation and feel light from head to toe in just a few minutes a day.
How to use: Holding the tool in a horizontal position, begin by gently stroking 3-7 times starting at the ankle, then towards the inner thigh. Then move upwards towards the outer thigh followed by the back of the legs toward the glutial fold. Massage the arms by holding the tool in a vertical position, practice, smooth and gentle strokes as you glide the tool wrist to armpit. Repeat this motion on the outer parts of your arm.
The Body Sculptor:
what it is: A travel-friendly of the original with more rounded edges perfect for sculpting the mid-section of the body.
how to use: Use this tool the same way as The Body Tool.
de la heart
The Body Tool
$34.00
de la heart
The Body Sculptor
$34.00
Cycle 101
After Gigi became a mother, she took her love of wellness and health even further and did a certification all about hormones and women's health. Learning all about hormones and all the phases of women's cycles is what helps link everything together and helps women understand their bodies and why things are happening the way they are as well as why we're feeling a certain way.
Ever since I embraced every phase of my cycle and linking it in everyway, I've become much more compassionate toward myself.
Gigi Vogel
Gigi says, "I used to fight my body all the time and push myself to work out harder and why I would be hungry sooner after eating. We need to honor these phases and once I was able to learn about my cycle and educate myself, it all became very clear. When you understand what’s happening hormonally, you’re so much softer on yourself because it all makes sense now.
If you know what’s happening then it’s easier to understand yourself. I finally feel one with my body. I stopped dieting years ago, because I’m not concerned much with what I eat. I’m not doing it perfectly but my mindset has shifted to what’s good for me. Creating self-love boundaries and trying not to break them."
Gigi believes that everyone should understand the 4 phases of our cycle to really feel connected to ourselves.
The 4 Phases:
The Menstruation Phase: The menstruation phase starts on the first day of menstruation and it lasts 3-8 days. This phase can bring increased fatigue, lower pain tolerance and increased sensitivity.
The Follicular Phase: The follicular phase of your menstrual cycle begins on the day you start your period and lasts for about 10 to 14 days. During this time you may feel the most energized, sociable, clear minded, and happy due to the rise in estrogen.
The Ovulatory Phase: Occurs on the 13th day of your cycle and many women report feelings of happiness, attractiveness, and sexual desirability during this phase due to high estrogen levels. Testosterone also rises and is closely linked to improved mood and energy as well as the sex drive.
The Luteul Phase: Occurs after ovulation and due to progesterone, some may experience bloating, constipation, fatigue, and fluid retention. This is the time to be most gentle with yourself!
Gigi's Hormone Balancing Smoothie Recipe:
Start balancing your hormones with Gigi's Hormone Balancing Smoothie. This smoothie has ingredients like Maca which has so many benefits including how it helps regulate the menstrual cycle, enhance ovulation, and alleviate menopause symtoms. Also in there is Amla which is an adaptogen in Ayurvedic medicine, which means it helps the body adapt to stress and maintain hormonal balance.
