When I individually meet with clients for an Ayurvedic consultation, I often ask them, “How much water are you drinking?” Unfailingly the response from the majority of people is, “I’m sure I’m not drinking enough!” This comes regardless of their age, weight, and specific health concerns. My point in asking is to ascertain how their […]
Creating a Feast in the Kitchen!
Common complaints that I hear are, “I can’t cook” or “I don’t have time to cook”. We can ALL cook, we just don’t all choose to do so. Granted, some people are more naturally talented as cooking than others, but they all had to start somewhere. Many people see cooking as a chore; it may be […]
Think Before You Eat!
People often say that they don’t know how to cook and thus tend to eat out. Or, they complain that cooking is too difficult and too time consuming, so they eat out or skip meals or eat junk food. Both are common justifications which I hear in my Ayurvedic practice. The old adage, “ You […]
Ayurveda and Jyotish: An Astrological Approach to Well-being
I previously wrote about how the sister sciences of Ayurveda, Jyotish (Vedic or Eastern Astrology), Yoga, Sanskrit and Vaastu Shastra. Two sciences which are inexorably woven together are Ayurveda and Jyotish. While astrology can take a lifetime to truly master, people inevitably are curious about “what my chart says” and “how my future looks”. The […]
All Things in Moderation
One of the greatest challenges we have as humans is making changes. Even if there are situations in our lives that we are discontent with, it can be safer, more secure to continue repeating patterns of behavior that reinforce the existing situation. Yet, we simultaneously complain about the situation to just about anyone and everyone. […]
Moving Flexibly Through the Winter
Winter is usually not anyone’s favorite season. It gets dark early, it’s cold, we experience dryness, and feel less energetic. All this manifests both physically and mentally in many cases. With each season, there are specific methods to keep healthy in Ayurveda. With Ayurveda and winter, there are some health promoting regimens. With darkness setting […]
Sister Sciences
The word yoga means union. When we typically use the word we mean yoga asanas, or poses. Asana is one of the limbs of Ashtanga (ashta = eight and anga = limbs) Yoga as described in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. The word sutra means thread, that which ties everything together. We know that everything in the […]
You are what you eat!
We’ve all heard the saying, “You are what you eat.” What does this really mean? Basically, everything that we take in impacts us – both physically and mentally. Food can be used as medicine and it can also that which requires us to seek out the correct medicine. Food supplies essential nutrients to our body […]
Be Irregularly Regular
In the system of Ayurveda, there are three doshas or body types: Vata, Pitta and Kapha. Vata, the principle of movement, is aggravated by an erratic lifestyle. The more that Vata is out of balance, the more that an individual engages in irregular regimens. So, the cycle perpetuates itself. We must learn strategies for balancing […]
Add some spice to your life!
While Indians do have lower life expectancies than people living in the West, and they suffer from diseases like malnourishment and malaria, it’s a well-documented fact that they don’t suffer from some of the same dis-eases as Americans. They have lower rates of heart disease, cholesterol, and diabetes. One reason that Indians do maintain their […]