Juice n Glo, Jamba Juice, Sip n Go...there are smoothie places on just about every street corner. Smoothies are all the rage. Easy, nutritionally packed-just look at all the ingredients. The more stuff in my drink, the better, right? Wrong, way, way wrong. That doesn't mean that you can't ever have them, but what goes in and how they are consumed is what determines good for you.
Ayurveda says that foods should be cooked, they are that much easier to digest. The fire of cooking makes the job of our digestive fire, Agni, that much easier. Fact-raw foods are harder to digest.
To add to that, smoothies are cold, and a lot are made with ice. Putting ice on our Agni is like throwing cold water on a fire, it smolders and becomes sludge. And, have you noticed at most smoothie bars you put about a gazillion ingredients in-anything you want. Pack it in, supersize it, anything goes! The problem here is that many of the ingredients don't digest well together-ever notice a feeling of heaviness after, or even indigestion? Sour fruits and dairy together is a big belly no-no. In fact, fruit is best consumed alone.
Smoothies can increase Vata, the element of air and ether in our bodies because they are raw, rough, and cold. They are also to dense for Vata's delicate and somewhat irregular digestion. Vata needs to have warm, easily digested, nourishing and cooked food and beverages. On the flip side, they can also be increasing to Kapha (earth & water)because they are often cold and dense, the opposite of what is needed. Unless you have good Pitta digestion and strong Agni, and perhaps actually need to cool down, they are actually counter productive to the result you think you are getting.
Yet you still want the smoothie, right? They look so inviting. If you make your own, they can be done to balance you seasonally according to your constitution. I like the Nutribullet, or whatever version of it you can get your hands on. It gives you control over what goes in.
First rule of thumb-less is more! Avoid ice, it will put out the fire you are trying to light. Add ginger, lemon, and turmeric. Go more vegetable, less fruit. And don't make it your everyday practice, we all need treats, but try to make it that, maybe once or twice a week. Sluuurp!
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Food is Medicine, Medicine is Food.
Blessings
Wednesday, December 10, 2014
Saturday, September 6, 2014
Change is Good
My last post talked about seasonal change, and how nature shows us the signs....the clues are there. Change , after all is good. Sometimes hard....but good, repeat.....good. Right now in the Philly area, change is happening. A cold front is coming through as we speak, thunder rolls, and tomorrow we will wake up to different weather. This mobile change is a Vata quality. Fall is a Vata season.
For those of you that don't really have a handle on this Dosha stuff, there are 3. Kapha, Pitta, and Vata. They manifest in our bodies, in the seasons, hours of the day, times of our lives.
The characteristics of Vata are mobile, light, cold, subtle & dry. The elements of Air and Ether. Vata in balance manifests in us as creativity, quick thinking, buoyant attitude, and a general lightness of being. Beautiful stuff. When out of balance it shows up as irregular appetite & digestion, nervousness, erratic moods & behaviours, dry skin & brittle nails. This shows up in nature during Autumn as well...on a good weather day the sky is light & sparkling, the colors are poetic, and we feel buoyant. As the weather changes we can become cold, dry, and feel out of balance, especially if there is already Vata in your makeup.
Even though it is still officially summer here, the Equinox is 2 weeks off, and it is time to get ready so that you can handle change with grace. It is time to prepare and cleanse the body of excess summer heat, and after the days of the beach, pool, & BBQ, time to ground and get into a routine. If we don't remove excess heat, or the fiery Pitta from the body, the winds of Vata can blow us Iinto a raging brushfire inside and set us up for imbalance. This is a great time for a mini retreat for yourself. Cleanse the liver, aid overworked adrenals, and reduce accumulated toxins from the colon. Ama is the buildup of dietary sludge in the colon that will leach toxins into the body, and eventually cause dis-ease. The colon is the house of Vata in our body, and, after all-don't you like a clean house? Let's be real, how many people do you know that get sick as soon as the winds of change blow their way?
For the next 7 days, try to follow a cleanse, using a Kitcharee fast. In the last blog, I included a recipe.( 2 meals of this daily) Start the day by rising at 6, in the soft hours of the morning. Enjoy a cup of warm ginger tea or soothing chai to stimulate digestion. Take the time for yourself to sit quietly, meditate, go for a walk, or practice some gentle yoga. Tree, forward fold, seated forward fold, gentle joint freeing movements, and legs up the wall are great. Spending time sitting and breathing deeply into the abdomen, draw up roots from the earth. Try to stay away from stimulants; avoid the coffee and the news! Take time for self care, daily abyhanga massage. Using warmed sesame oil massage the joints and skin and luxuriate as long as modern life allows before you shower off. If you are familiar with the Neti pot, use it....don't be a slacker! It will help wash away the germs that all the others are sneezing your way and aid with seasonal allergies. Try Nasya, medicated oil applied to the nasal and ear cavities to moisten and make it easier for Prana to come in. Listen to music that is soothing, use fabrics that are soft, and find beauty in the subtle change that is manifesting all around. Drink warm herbal tea throughout the day...chamomile is lovely! Consider a journal to write your ideas of where you want to plant the seeds of change for yourself, so that it will manifest in a brilliantly vibrant, healthy new you!
SOOTHING CHAI
2 cups water
1 tbl fresh peppermint or 2 of dried, or 3 tea bags full
1 qt milk of your choice
1 cinnamon stick
1/4 tsp ground clove
1 tsp dried ginger
3/4 tsp ground cardomon
1 tsp peppercorns
To boiling water add mint in a teaball, and then remove from heat and steep about 20 minutes. Remove. Add milk, spices, and steep another 30 minutes. Strain, add honey to taste, & enjoy.
Make drinking this beautiful brew a soothing ritual for yourself.
Namaste!
If you have any questions, please comment.
Visit www.facebook.com/AyurvedicApothecary, or my website www.theayurvedicapothecary.com for more info class schedule, and consultations.
If you like what you read, please follow & share!
For those of you that don't really have a handle on this Dosha stuff, there are 3. Kapha, Pitta, and Vata. They manifest in our bodies, in the seasons, hours of the day, times of our lives.
The characteristics of Vata are mobile, light, cold, subtle & dry. The elements of Air and Ether. Vata in balance manifests in us as creativity, quick thinking, buoyant attitude, and a general lightness of being. Beautiful stuff. When out of balance it shows up as irregular appetite & digestion, nervousness, erratic moods & behaviours, dry skin & brittle nails. This shows up in nature during Autumn as well...on a good weather day the sky is light & sparkling, the colors are poetic, and we feel buoyant. As the weather changes we can become cold, dry, and feel out of balance, especially if there is already Vata in your makeup.
Even though it is still officially summer here, the Equinox is 2 weeks off, and it is time to get ready so that you can handle change with grace. It is time to prepare and cleanse the body of excess summer heat, and after the days of the beach, pool, & BBQ, time to ground and get into a routine. If we don't remove excess heat, or the fiery Pitta from the body, the winds of Vata can blow us Iinto a raging brushfire inside and set us up for imbalance. This is a great time for a mini retreat for yourself. Cleanse the liver, aid overworked adrenals, and reduce accumulated toxins from the colon. Ama is the buildup of dietary sludge in the colon that will leach toxins into the body, and eventually cause dis-ease. The colon is the house of Vata in our body, and, after all-don't you like a clean house? Let's be real, how many people do you know that get sick as soon as the winds of change blow their way?
For the next 7 days, try to follow a cleanse, using a Kitcharee fast. In the last blog, I included a recipe.( 2 meals of this daily) Start the day by rising at 6, in the soft hours of the morning. Enjoy a cup of warm ginger tea or soothing chai to stimulate digestion. Take the time for yourself to sit quietly, meditate, go for a walk, or practice some gentle yoga. Tree, forward fold, seated forward fold, gentle joint freeing movements, and legs up the wall are great. Spending time sitting and breathing deeply into the abdomen, draw up roots from the earth. Try to stay away from stimulants; avoid the coffee and the news! Take time for self care, daily abyhanga massage. Using warmed sesame oil massage the joints and skin and luxuriate as long as modern life allows before you shower off. If you are familiar with the Neti pot, use it....don't be a slacker! It will help wash away the germs that all the others are sneezing your way and aid with seasonal allergies. Try Nasya, medicated oil applied to the nasal and ear cavities to moisten and make it easier for Prana to come in. Listen to music that is soothing, use fabrics that are soft, and find beauty in the subtle change that is manifesting all around. Drink warm herbal tea throughout the day...chamomile is lovely! Consider a journal to write your ideas of where you want to plant the seeds of change for yourself, so that it will manifest in a brilliantly vibrant, healthy new you!
SOOTHING CHAI
2 cups water
1 tbl fresh peppermint or 2 of dried, or 3 tea bags full
1 qt milk of your choice
1 cinnamon stick
1/4 tsp ground clove
1 tsp dried ginger
3/4 tsp ground cardomon
1 tsp peppercorns
To boiling water add mint in a teaball, and then remove from heat and steep about 20 minutes. Remove. Add milk, spices, and steep another 30 minutes. Strain, add honey to taste, & enjoy.
Make drinking this beautiful brew a soothing ritual for yourself.
Namaste!
If you have any questions, please comment.
Visit www.facebook.com/AyurvedicApothecary, or my website www.theayurvedicapothecary.com for more info class schedule, and consultations.
If you like what you read, please follow & share!
**These statements are not intended to cure, treat, diagnose or prevent any disease. Nor are they regulated by the FDA. They are not meant to supercede the orders of a qualified physician and are at the discretion of the reader.
Sunday, August 24, 2014
The Autumn Moon Lights My Way
Namaste Folks! This is the first entry of a blog designed to help us be free of dis-ease, connect to natural health and balance through education and information of Ayurveda. You will find tips on self care, recipe suggestions, ways to find balance, and I hope some humor.
In our modern world, we have been conditioned to look for the quick fix, the panacea ( dear Goddess, wouldn't it be lovely) ....all the while compromising the wisdom of the healing process within. Ayurveda connects is to the wisdom of the ancients, and the wisdom of our Mother-The Earth. Listening to the natural rhythm of the Elements and how they manifest in us can truly bring balance.
Food is medicine, and medicine is food.....
Farm-acopia vs Pharmacopia
Ayurveda teaches us Truth. Very simple Truth.........
Like Increases Like.....Opposites Cure
Pretty easy, huh? It really is , if you want to just.... be Still.....and just .....Listen.
Listen to the Seasons, Listen to your Body, Listen to your Heart.
We know the Answers.
First check in, here goes.....Have your ever heard the song...The Autumn Moon Lights My Way?
According to the calendar it is Summer; Pitta Season, full of Fire & Water. Humid, hot, .....frikkin downright Pungent. ( Or it should be. There are weather extremes everywhere.) But if you pay attention, we are getting signs of change here in the Mid Atlantic area of the U. S. It is cooler by far, windier....leaves are drying and yellowing. Spiders spin, and the angle of the sun is changing. Just take the time to listen and it is obvious.....don't be oblivious. The one certain is that change is certain, and it tells us to go with it.
You know how stores always have sales a season ahead? Seems smart to prepare, right? Bargain for sure!!
In terms of our health, applying Ayurveda, we can prepare ahead seasonally and be ready instead of finding a storeroom depleted.....seems like a real bargain to me. There are 3 big red tags..
Vata,( Air Element) Pitta, (Fire Element) & Kapha. ( Water Element).
We are moving from Fire to Air. Remember how it feels to have those few hot days in an unexpected time...it feels even more intense because you weren't ready for it. And really, you WEREN'T.
It takes about 2 WEEKS for the body to become accustomed to change. We are moving into a season that already is changeable....Autumn. Cooler, drier, erratic in nature. If we want to be out of balance, and especially if we already are a Fall Nature ( drier, lighter, cooler) we need to just keep on truckin' along just as we are. Last rose of summer! Then we get frostbite....
The Gardener has to prepare to plant the fall crops, and we have to prepare for seasonal change.
Time to perhaps cleanse the digestion, tweek the routine, and clean the pantry...of the kitchen and the life. Let go of things beyond the expiration date.
As we move towards Autumn, here is a recipe for a Kitcharee Fast. Basic dietary wardrobe. Radical cleanses can be harsh to the body, instead try something to nourish, clear, and sustain. It feels amazing to look back at a clear closet, even sweeter to feel clean & clear,
RECIPE
2 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp hingastok
2 tsp coriander cumin mixed
2 tsp cardamom seed
2 tsp peppercorn
2 bay leaves
1 stick cinnamon
several cloves
2 tsp turmeric
3-4 cloves garlic(lessen for excess Fire)
2 TBL grated fresh ginger
Saute in 2 TBL of Ghee(or if you remember The Galloping Gourmet---Clarified Butter...now available at Trader Joe)
While this is occurring have water boiling for 1 cup Basmati Rice and 1/2 cup of Yellow Mung Dal beans to be boiling.
1 cup basmati rice
1/2 cup yellow mung dal
8 cups water
To boiling water add the above, turn to simmer. Cook up to 30 minutes, adding more water if needed.
Into the ghee, add spice....when spice is hot and sauteeing, add 2 cups mixed vegetables of choice, carrot, squash, green bean....
Cook down til tender and then add strained rice/dal mixture and add water as you continue to stir and soften. When ready, this healing goulash will have a beautiful color, great soft texture, and you can enjoy it 3 times daily. Basics, remember. Stimulates digestion, warms body and enhances circulation.
The amount in recipe should yield about 6 servings. ( A serving is about the amount you can hold in cupped hands) You can make this a staple . For a cleansing and healing fast it this alone for several days. You will notice you feel better! Warming and easily digested......great deal.
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In our modern world, we have been conditioned to look for the quick fix, the panacea ( dear Goddess, wouldn't it be lovely) ....all the while compromising the wisdom of the healing process within. Ayurveda connects is to the wisdom of the ancients, and the wisdom of our Mother-The Earth. Listening to the natural rhythm of the Elements and how they manifest in us can truly bring balance.
Food is medicine, and medicine is food.....
Farm-acopia vs Pharmacopia
Ayurveda teaches us Truth. Very simple Truth.........
Like Increases Like.....Opposites Cure
Pretty easy, huh? It really is , if you want to just.... be Still.....and just .....Listen.
Listen to the Seasons, Listen to your Body, Listen to your Heart.
We know the Answers.
First check in, here goes.....Have your ever heard the song...The Autumn Moon Lights My Way?
According to the calendar it is Summer; Pitta Season, full of Fire & Water. Humid, hot, .....frikkin downright Pungent. ( Or it should be. There are weather extremes everywhere.) But if you pay attention, we are getting signs of change here in the Mid Atlantic area of the U. S. It is cooler by far, windier....leaves are drying and yellowing. Spiders spin, and the angle of the sun is changing. Just take the time to listen and it is obvious.....don't be oblivious. The one certain is that change is certain, and it tells us to go with it.
You know how stores always have sales a season ahead? Seems smart to prepare, right? Bargain for sure!!
In terms of our health, applying Ayurveda, we can prepare ahead seasonally and be ready instead of finding a storeroom depleted.....seems like a real bargain to me. There are 3 big red tags..
Vata,( Air Element) Pitta, (Fire Element) & Kapha. ( Water Element).
We are moving from Fire to Air. Remember how it feels to have those few hot days in an unexpected time...it feels even more intense because you weren't ready for it. And really, you WEREN'T.
It takes about 2 WEEKS for the body to become accustomed to change. We are moving into a season that already is changeable....Autumn. Cooler, drier, erratic in nature. If we want to be out of balance, and especially if we already are a Fall Nature ( drier, lighter, cooler) we need to just keep on truckin' along just as we are. Last rose of summer! Then we get frostbite....
The Gardener has to prepare to plant the fall crops, and we have to prepare for seasonal change.
Time to perhaps cleanse the digestion, tweek the routine, and clean the pantry...of the kitchen and the life. Let go of things beyond the expiration date.
As we move towards Autumn, here is a recipe for a Kitcharee Fast. Basic dietary wardrobe. Radical cleanses can be harsh to the body, instead try something to nourish, clear, and sustain. It feels amazing to look back at a clear closet, even sweeter to feel clean & clear,
RECIPE
2 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp hingastok
2 tsp coriander cumin mixed
2 tsp cardamom seed
2 tsp peppercorn
2 bay leaves
1 stick cinnamon
several cloves
2 tsp turmeric
3-4 cloves garlic(lessen for excess Fire)
2 TBL grated fresh ginger
Saute in 2 TBL of Ghee(or if you remember The Galloping Gourmet---Clarified Butter...now available at Trader Joe)
While this is occurring have water boiling for 1 cup Basmati Rice and 1/2 cup of Yellow Mung Dal beans to be boiling.
1 cup basmati rice
1/2 cup yellow mung dal
8 cups water
To boiling water add the above, turn to simmer. Cook up to 30 minutes, adding more water if needed.
Into the ghee, add spice....when spice is hot and sauteeing, add 2 cups mixed vegetables of choice, carrot, squash, green bean....
Cook down til tender and then add strained rice/dal mixture and add water as you continue to stir and soften. When ready, this healing goulash will have a beautiful color, great soft texture, and you can enjoy it 3 times daily. Basics, remember. Stimulates digestion, warms body and enhances circulation.
The amount in recipe should yield about 6 servings. ( A serving is about the amount you can hold in cupped hands) You can make this a staple . For a cleansing and healing fast it this alone for several days. You will notice you feel better! Warming and easily digested......great deal.
If you enjoy the info, try the suggestion, look forward to more, or just enjoy the sass..
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Follow www.facebook.com/AyurvedicApothecary or visit www.theayurvedicapothecary.com
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**Any dietary recommendations are made at the discretion of the individual, and are not meant to treat, diagnose, cure, or prevent illness. Nor has the FDA regulated these statements
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