Align with the Season - Summer
June 2024
As we prepare to welcome the long, hot days of Summer, now is the perfect time to check-in with ourselves for important feedback about our current physical, mental and emotional energy levels. A good question to ask is, how am I feeling and what could I use right now?
In Ayurvedic wellness we use seasonal change as a reminder to adjust our routines for improved balance and optimal health.
Summer is hot enough, so it is not the time to increase the intensity of our physical or mental activities. But it is a good time to finish big projects, prioritize nutrition and stress-relieving practices like meditation, yoga and good sleep, and find more outdoor fun with friends and family.
One of the best ways to reconnect with ourselves, find greater balance and improve our wellbeing during a seasonal change is through a gentle cleanse which promotes natural detoxification and elimination of any stagnant energy that has accumulated. Occasional cleansing encourages the mind, body and spirit to shift into rebalancing, healing and thriving.
What is an Imbalance?
Whether in response to lifestyle choices, external pressures, stress or trauma, we are constantly moving in and out of balance. Imbalances may start out as subtle or barely noticeable changes in the mind and body. But left untreated, even subtle imbalances can lead to more and greater distress which manifests as illness and disease.
Common signs of imbalance are gut inflammation and digestive issues, unexplained muscle or joint pain, feelings of bloating or heaviness, stubborn weight gain, redness and skin irritations, headache, frequent sleep disruptions, emotional reactivity or irritability, anxiousness or indecisiveness, lack of focus, sluggishness, withdrawing from people or things we love.
Sedentary lifestyles, overwork, excessive exposure to screens, chronic stress, heavily processed foods, unhealthy eating habits, sleep deficits, difficult relationships and emotional turbulence, can all contribute to imbalances and increase the potential for illness and disease. Knowing where we are prone to imbalance is the key to making adjustments and shifting towards a place of flow and wellbeing.
If I am not sick why does it matter?
Ayurveda is a 5,000 year old life science that focuses on a holistic and preventative approach to overall wellness. By cultivating and strengthening mindful awareness, we can prevent many illnesses before they take root.
Using food, movement, sleep, conscious breathing, meditation, emotional regulation, and other healthy daily practices as our pharmacy, we can heal, maintain and improve our overall wellbeing.
Cleansing doesn't need to be complicated. Try these 5 tips for a gentle Summer cleanse and find greater balance and vitality.
Start by setting your intentions. How do I want to feel? Then create a daily routine that aligns with your intentions. Start each day by getting outside and expose to natural light. Exercise in the morning and enjoy the benefits all day.
Cleanse your spaces (your office, kitchen cupboards, refrigerator, closets, your heart and mind) and consciously untangle from the foods, ideas, relationships, habits and things that do not serve you.
Practice mindful eating. Put the phone down. Eat when hungry, stop before you are full. Mostly vegetables. Buy what is in season. Visit a Farmers Market. Cook at home. Hydrate often. Sip detoxifying CCF Tea (see below for my recipe) during the day.
Find more moments for laughter, play and for “chilling”. Meditate. Breathe. Connect with nature. Take your shoes off. Dip in the cool lake. Sit beneath the shady trees. Spend time with your people. Find awe and gaze at the stars. Do yoga.
Liberate your heart and spirit. Give something away every day to live happier and sleep better (more than ever the world needs your gratitude, kindness and compassion). Smile at a stranger. Hug more. Complain less.
Then wait for the magic to happen….As we shift our experiences, our biology shifts too.
Recipe for Detoxifying Cumin, Coriander and Fennel (CCF) Tea
This tea is super easy and inexpensive to make. CCF tea contains three of Ayurveda’s most celebrated spices and provides an excellent gentle daily detox. Known to improve circulation, reduce gas and promote digestion, CCF tea can be sipped all day.
Make your CCF tea using one tablespoon of each whole seed: cumin, coriander and fennel. Add 4-6 cups of water to a pot with the seeds, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Strain your tea and discard the seeds.