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Beat the rainy day blues with Ayurveda

Fri, 27 Feb 2026 15:29:29 GMT

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How to Deal with Rainy, Cold and Gloomy Weather with Ayurveda

We had one beautiful warm and sunny day this week - tempting us with the summer days that are still to come! And then it went back to being cold, gloomy and rainy. I know Spring and Summer are just around the corner, with brighter and longer days ahead, but it's so hard to stay upbeat and positive while the outside is the complete opposite.

So what does Ayurveda have to say about rain?

Rain is characterised by being cold, wet, grey, damp and heavy. These are the palpable qualities in the air on most rainy days. And according to Ayurveda, the external environment directly influences our internal environment. When it’s cold and heavy outside, we often feel cold and heavy inside — physically and emotionally.

Low mood. Sluggishness. Cravings for carbohydrates. Comfort eating. Sleeping more. Withdrawing a little.

Sound familiar?

From an Ayurvedic perspective, this is not random. It’s the principle that “like increases like.” When we’re surrounded by cold, damp and heavy qualities, those same qualities increase within us.

So what’s the solution?

Bring in the opposite qualities. Think: warm, dry, colourful and light.

Below are simple, practical Ayurvedic tools to help you beat the rainy-day blues — and even support yourself through symptoms similar to Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D).

Rainy Weather & Kapha: An Ayurvedic View

Many of the symptoms associated with gloomy weather — including those recognised in modern medicine as Seasonal Affective Disorder — overlap with what Ayurveda describes as a kapha imbalance in the mind. Kapha energy is heavy, slow, cool and stable. In balance, it gives us calmness and resilience. Out of balance, it can feel like stagnation, dullness and emotional heaviness.

Common signs of excess kapha in the mind:

Sadness or low mood
Low energy or fatigue
Cravings for carbohydrates
Weight gain
Difficulty concentrating
Sleeping more than usual
Withdrawing socially
Loss of interest or motivation

The good news? Ayurveda is beautifully practical. When we understand the qualities at play, we know exactly how to respond.

1. Move Your Body (Even If It’s Raining)

Movement is one of the most powerful ways to counteract heaviness and stagnation. Even if you can’t see the sun, it’s still there. It rises every morning without fail. Honour that steady rhythm by moving your body at the start of the day. One of the most effective practices is Surya Namaskar — Salutations to the Sun.

This simple flowing sequence:
Invigorates your muscles
Stimulates your cardiovascular system
Supports lymphatic drainage
Kindles digestion
Awakens the nervous system

It brings warmth, circulation and lightness — the exact opposite qualities of a damp, grey morning.

And if yoga isn’t your thing, because it isn't always mine! Put on a rain jacket and go for a brisk walk anyway. Movement opposes stagnation. And when you move your body, things begin moving in your mind too!

2. Eat the Opposite of the Weather

When it’s cold and gloomy, we tend to reach for “comfort” foods — heavy, creamy, sugary treats that satisfy the tongue but burden the belly. Ayurveda suggests a different approach.

To balance cold, wet and heavy weather, favour foods that are:

Warm
Light
Gently spiced
Easy to digest

Instead of:

Hot chocolate → try a decaf spiced chai
Chocolate cake → try date and cacao goodie balls
Cheesy pie → try a veggie stir-fry with cashew sauce

Spices like ginger, cinnamon, black pepper and cardamom are especially helpful in damp weather. They warm the body, stimulate digestion and lift the mood. When digestion feels lighter, the mind often follows.

3. Wear Bright Colours (Yes, It Really Helps)

When I moved to England from Australia, I tried to make it a point to own as little grey and black clothing as possible. It's already so grey and miserable outside - wearing the same colours would only exacerbate that! We perceive the world through all five senses — and every one of them affects our mood.

If the sky is grey, bring the colour yourself.

Red. Orange. Yellow. Gold. These colours stimulate warmth, vibrancy and visibility. They cut through the heaviness of the day — for you and for everyone who sees you.

And if bold clothing feels like too much? Add colour to your scarf, socks, notebook, workspace or home décor. Even small changes like this will compound and make a bigger difference in your mind.

4. Do Something Different

Kapha stagnation can build when life becomes repetitive.

If you’re feeling stuck, heavy or uninspired:

Take a new route on your usual walk
Try one new recipe this week
Start a small creative project
Rearrange a room
Begin a new hobby

Doing something new and novel brings lightness into your routine, and changing things up - this creates movement. Just like adding colour into your day, small shifts like this can ripple into big energetic changes.

5. Step Outside (Yes — Even in the Rain)

It’s tempting to hide indoors when it’s wet and cold. But fresh air and natural light — even through cloud cover — are powerful mood regulators.

Wrap up warm. Walk briskly. Let your body generate heat from within. There's so many times when doing something simple like a walk outside can help me feel warmer in my body, and more energised in my mind.

The Bigger Reflection

Sitting and watching the rain can be a beautiful reminder of how much our environment affects us. Compare your mood on a string of rainy days to how you feel on a bright sunny one. Rather than fighting this reality, Ayurveda invites us to work with it.

When the weather is:

Cold → bring warmth
Damp → bring dryness
Grey → bring colour
Heavy → bring lightness

This is the beauty of Ayurvedic wisdom. Simple, practical yet powerful suggestions to create a ripple effect in your body and mind. You don’t need to overhaul your life, just choose ONE simple habit to introduce in your day:

A warming drink.
A bright jumper.
A brisk walk.
A few rounds of Surya Namaskar.
A new recipe.

Small, consistent shifts create noticeable improvements in mood and vitality.

My favourite verse from the Bhagavad Gita uses the changing weather seasons to help inspire internal stability and calm:

O son of Kuntī, the nonpermanent appearance of happiness and distress, and their disappearance in due course, are like the appearance and disappearance of winter and summer seasons. They arise from sense perception, O scion of Bharata, and one must learn to tolerate them without being disturbed. (BG 2.14)

And it's up to us to bring that light into our own day, whatever the weather outside.

Ayurveda and Protein: A Different Way to Understand Nutrition

Fri, 20 Feb 2026 11:08:04 GMT

Ayurveda and Protein: Why One Size Never Fits All

Protein is everywhere.

High-protein breakfasts. High-protein snacks. High-protein desserts.

And like with anything these days — once one person starts shouting from the rooftops, everyone starts shouting from the rooftops.

But is protein really as important as it’s made out to be? And more importantly — what does Ayurveda actually say about protein?

Does Ayurveda Talk About Protein?

Here’s the truth: Ayurveda doesn’t talk about protein at all. If you search through the classical Ayurvedic texts — the Charaka Samhita or the Ashtanga Hrdayam — you won’t find the word protein anywhere.

Not because it was overlooked. But because Ayurveda looks at nutrition through a completely different lens.

Two Very Different Models of Nutrition

Modern nutritional science defines good nutrition by numbers:

proteins
fats
carbohydrates
vitamins
minerals

Adequate nutrition is measured through quantities, daily requirements, and population-specific recommendations.

Ayurveda, on the other hand, doesn’t assess food this way at all. In Ayurvedic nutrition, good nourishment means including all six tastes in each meal:

sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter, and astringent.

These are two entirely different systems — and when the foundations are different, it’s not fair to judge one through the rules of the other.

The Moment That Changed How I Saw Nutrition

When I studied nutrition at university, we were taught that health depended on meeting specific nutrient targets — how much protein a child should eat, how many milligrams of vitamin C an adult woman needed, and so on. In my final year, I attended a one-hour lecture on Ayurvedic nutrition (outside of university). The teacher said something simple:

Ayurvedic nutrition means having all six tastes daily.

That was it.

No calculations. No tracking. No nutrient charts.

My mind was blown.

For the first time, nutrition felt intuitive. We didn’t need external tools — we already had one. Our tongue. Ayurveda allows each of us to become the custodian of our own nutrition, guided by digestion, taste, and how food actually feels in the body.

Ayurveda and Protein: Are They Opposed?

Not at all. Ayurveda isn’t anti-protein. It simply doesn’t organise nutrition around protein. Classical Ayurvedic texts don’t categorise food as high-protein, low-carb, or macro-balanced. Instead, food is understood by:

its effect on digestion (agni)
how it is prepared
how it is combined
and how it is assimilated by the individual

This is why Ayurveda doesn’t need a “view” on protein — its nutritional framework is already complete.

Why High-Protein Diets Don’t Suit Everyone

A dietary approach that works beautifully for one person may not work the same way for another — even if it’s trending or widely recommended. High-protein diets may feel grounding, strengthening, and stabilising for some people. For others, the same foods can overwhelm digestion, leading to: bloating, heaviness, sluggishness and fatigue.

Ayurveda teaches self-understanding before self-experimentation.

Before increasing protein intake, it’s important to observe:

your digestive capacity
how food makes you feel
what supports or disrupts your digestion

Because nourishment depends less on what is praised — and more on what you can digest and assimilate.

What works for one body won’t work for every body.

Appreciating Ayurveda on Its Own Terms

Both modern nutrition and Ayurveda have value. They are simply different systems. Problems arise when we try to super-impose the measurement tools of one model onto another. Ayurveda doesn’t need to be validated by protein numbers. It doesn’t need to explain itself in modern scientific language to be legitimate. Science isn’t only about lab results and research papers — it’s also about what has stood the test of time. And despite being thousands of years old, Ayurveda continues to flourish today. That, too, is evidence.

If You’re Tracking Protein, Let Ayurveda Support You

If you do choose to measure nutrition through protein intake, Ayurveda can still help you do so more gently and intelligently.

Some Ayurvedic-aligned tips:

Favour whole, unprocessed protein sources such as beans, legumes, tofu, and tempeh
Use protein foods that are familiar and traditional to you
Soak and sprout beans and legumes where possible
Cook protein with healthy fats and digestive spices
Stick to 1–2 protein sources per meal — too many can burden digestion
Be mindful with yoghurt: commonly used to boost protein, but excess can lead to mucus and congestion
Seeds and nuts (hemp, pumpkin, sunflower, almonds, pistachios) are protein-rich — moderation matters

Most importantly, listen to your body. Do you feel clear and energised — or heavy and sluggish? That feedback matters more than trends.

The Bottom Line

Ayurveda has a completely different way of looking at nutrition — and it is enough on its own. Good nutrition in Ayurveda is about digestion, balance, and the six tastes.

Modern nutrition focuses on nutrients and quantities.

Neither is wrong. They simply ask different questions.

And when we allow Ayurveda to stand as the complete science it is — without forcing it to justify itself through modern frameworks — that’s when we truly begin to appreciate it.

Ayurveda and Fruits: When, How, and If You Should Be Eating Them

Thu, 12 Feb 2026 13:49:28 GMT

Discover what Ayurveda really says about fruits. Learn when to eat fruit, how to combine it, why you may not crave it in winter, and how to adapt Ayurvedic fruit guidelines to modern life.

I can go days without eating fruit in winter—and I think that’s completely okay.

Hear me out.

Growing up, I was always told how good fruit is for you. Eat it every day. Don’t skip it. It’s essential. And honestly, I did. I grew up in Australia, where the climate is warm, fruit is abundant, and craving it felt natural.

Fast forward to now: I live in the UK, it’s 9°C outside, and my body doesn’t crave fruit the way it once did. Do I eat fruit every day in winter? No. And according to Ayurveda, that actually makes sense.

Ayurveda, Climate, and Cravings

Ayurveda teaches that your digestion adapts to your environment.

When it’s cold outside, your body fires up digestion internally to keep you warm. A stronger digestion naturally craves heavier, richer, warming foods—the classic “comfort foods” of winter.

Now think about nature.

How much fruit do you actually see growing in winter?

Not much.

Almost as if nature is gently telling us: you don’t need as much fruit right now.

Ayurveda isn’t about blindly following universal nutrition rules created for huge populations. It’s about learning to listen to your body, your appetite, and your digestion—especially in relation to season and climate.

Why Ayurveda Has So Many “Rules” About Fruit (And Why They’re Not Really Rules)

If you Google Ayurveda and fruit, you’ll probably feel overwhelmed very quickly.

Don’t mix fruit with dairy
Eat melons on their own
Don’t mix too many fruits
Eat fruit separately from meals

And suddenly, something as simple as eating fruit feels… complicated.

Here’s the important thing: Ayurvedic texts don’t say “eat fruit like this or don’t eat it like that.”

They describe the properties of foods, how digestion works, and what supports or hinders it. From that understanding, guidelines are derived—not rigid rules.

The Key Ayurvedic Principle to Remember

In Ayurveda, it’s not what you eat — it’s what you digest.

Fruits are generally light and quick to digest. Most other food groups—grains, dairy, proteins—are heavier and digest more slowly.

When fruit gets trapped behind slow-digesting foods in the stomach, it tends to ferment, which can lead to bloating, gas, acidity, and discomfort. This is why modern Ayurvedic practice often recommends eating fruit on its own.

Ayurvedic food guidelines exist to fine-tune digestion, not restrict enjoyment.

1. Eat Fruit on Its Own

Best eaten as a snack, between meals
Avoid eating fruit immediately after heavy meals

2. Avoid Mixing Fruit with Dairy - Common problem combinations and gentler alternatives

Milk or yoghurt-based fruit smoothies →Use plant-based milk or yoghurt
Watermelon + feta → Remove melon from mixed dishes
Fruit-flavoured yoghurt → Plain yoghurt with mango, avocado, or dried fruits
Fruit milkshakes and fruity desserts → Flavour with cinnamon or vanilla instead of fruit

Exceptions:

Ripe, sweet fruits like mango, avocado, figs, and dried fruits are traditionally considered more compatible with milk.

3. Avoid Mixing Fruit with Heavy Foods - Mixing fresh fruit with grains and other heavy foods often leads to poor digestion and discomfort.

4. Cooked Fruit Is Easier to Digest - Cooking fruit changes its qualities, making it gentler on digestion. Use ripe, sweet fruits, avoid combining cooked fruit with dairy (choose plant-based alternatives if needed)

5. Eat Similar Fruits Together - Many fruits = many properties = different digestion times → bloating and acidity. An easy way to group fruits:

Berries
Stone fruits
Melons
Citrus

Seasonal and Local Fruit Matters

Your digestion doesn’t exist in isolation—it responds to season and geography.

Winter: digestion is stronger, cravings lean toward warm and heavy foods; it’s normal to want less fruit

Summer: digestion is weaker, and fruits shine—they’re light, cooling, and refreshing

Whenever possible, choose local and seasonal fruits, visit farmers’ markets to see what’s naturally available near you

Ayurveda isn’t about eating fruits based on your prakriti from a list—it’s about eating what your digestion can handle, where you are, right now.

Fruits Repeatedly Praised in Ayurveda

Some fruits appear again and again in Ayurvedic texts:

Āmalakī (Indian gooseberry) – balances all three doshas
Dadima (Pomegranate) – extremely digestive-friendly
Drākṣā (Grapes/Raisins) – nourishing and cooling
Kharjūra (Dates) – strength-building
Bilva (Bael) – medicinal for digestion
Badara (Jujube) – grounding and balancing
Nārikelā (Coconut) – deeply cooling

Take This as Guidance, Not Dogma, think of these suggestions as gentle guidelines, not rigid rules. Take stock of how you currently eat fruit: Maybe you already eat fruit on its own—great, maybe that daily banana-protein smoothie needs rethinking

Don’t try to change everything at once. Move at a pace that will make the biggest difference to your digestion and daily life.

Ayurveda isn’t asking you to eat perfectly.

It’s inviting you to eat intelligently, seasonally, and in conversation with your body.

Ayurveda and Intermittent Fasting: How to Personalise Fasting for Your Body

Thu, 05 Feb 2026 12:01:44 GMT

Discover how Ayurveda views intermittent fasting. Learn how to personalise fasting for your digestion type, boost immunity, and support overall health with safe fasting practices.

Intermittent fasting is one of the hottest health trends today—but is it right for you? Ayurveda, the ancient Indian system of medicine, has been guiding people on fasting for thousands of years. Known as kshut nigraha , or “holding hunger,” fasting in Ayurveda is designed to ignite digestion (Agni), remove toxins, clear bodily channels, and enhance immunity.

Before jumping on the fasting bandwagon, it’s essential to ask: How does fasting suit me and my digestion? Not every type of fasting is beneficial for everyone, and doing the wrong kind can cause more harm than good.

Who Should Fast According to Ayurveda

Fasting can help if you experience:

Indigestion, bloating, or irregular digestion
Diarrhea or dysentery
Fever, severe cold, or congestion
Excess weight or high levels of toxins in the body

Fasting is not recommended if you are:

Very young or elderly
Pregnant or breastfeeding
Menstruating
Underweight or undernourished
Living with chronic illness, hypoglycemia, low blood pressure, anemia, or extreme fatigue

Personalise Your Fasting According to Digestive Type

Ayurveda recognises three main digestion types, and fasting should be tailored accordingly:

1. Erratic/Airy Digestion

If your digestion is light, irregular, or airy:

Try: Mono-diets like khichdi, vegetable soups, or steamed vegetables
Frequency: Once a week or a few days per month
Caution: Avoid prolonged water fasting—it can deplete energy

2. Strong/Fiery Digestion

If you have strong, fiery digestion:

Try: Fruit or vegetable juices, steamed vegetables, mung dal
Frequency: Once a week or up to five days per month
Caution: Avoid complete food abstinence; honor your appetite with light meals

3. Slow/Sluggish Digestion

If your digestion is slow:

Try: Fruit or vegetable juices, soups, herbal teas, or warm water
Frequency: Weekly or up to seven days per month
Note: You may initially dislike fasting, but these types benefit the most

Rethinking Fasting: More Than Just No Food

Fasting isn’t only about abstaining from food—it’s about giving your digestive system and senses a break.

Limit visual, auditory, and sensory stimulation (less screen time, noise, and clutter)
Avoid heavy exercise, late nights, or mental overexertion

Creative Ways to Fast:

Make dinner vegetable-only
Have herbal tea for breakfast
Eliminate processed, fast, or frozen foods
Reduce meal portions to ¾ or ½ of your usual intake

Intermittent fasting, eating within an 8-hour window and fasting for 16 hours, is the safest option for most people. Ideally, keep your eating window during daylight hours and break your fast with something warm, like soup or ginger-spiced water.

Water fasting is only advisable for slow digestion types, for no more than 24 hours, to prevent metabolic depletion.

Signs Fasting is Beneficial

During fasting, you might feel temporarily tired, hungry, or irritable. However, positive signs after fasting include:

Increased energy and mental clarity
Stronger and more regular appetite
Enhanced immunity

Make Fasting Your Friend

Whether you do dedicated fasts a few times a month or gentle daily fasting, the key is personalization. Ayurveda teaches that fasting’s benefits come when it is aligned with your body type, digestion, and lifestyle.

“The best of all medicines are resting and fasting.” — Benjamin Franklin

By understanding your digestion and adapting fasting to suit your body, intermittent fasting can become a sustainable practice that supports energy, clarity, and overall health.

Ayurvedic Protocol for Colds and Flus

Wed, 14 Jan 2026 17:29:06 GMT

Whenever I get sick, this is the exact protocol I follow

I started off the New Year in a less-than-ideal way - lying horizontal for most of January 1st and then moving between the couch and the bed for the rest of the week. Here are a few things I did to help me recover.

Know your illness. We are all unique and we each follow a different pattern when we fall sick. Once you know what your pattern is, and you can start to notice the signals your body is sending you - it's easy to treat yourself from there. Primarily it's about listening to your body. For me I know I'm about to get sick when I experience a few of these: a 'sick' taste in the back of my throat, digestion slowing down (not much appetite) and general lethargy. It then progresses into congestion in the head and I'll get an extremely runny nose, low energy and no appetite. This is my progression - you could manifest with other signs like chesty cough, sore throat, fever etc - the point is, understand your body and recognise the signs of when things are going off balance. Figure out what is the pattern of illness when YOU get sick, and implement herbal remedies to suit that.
Lighten your digestive load. Illness begins because our digestion gets impaired - our ability to metabolise food into nutrients and waste becomes compromised and our whole digestive process slows down. So make things easier for your digestion with light meals. If you are experiencing a fever, the first line of treatment should be to fast (according to your capacity). Once your fever breaks and you start sweating then you can slowly introduce light meals. Here are a few examples: brothy vegetable soups, khichdi, roasted/steamed veggies, yellow or green moong dal, raab (a sweet millet based drink).
Make herbal teas. I generally make one for the whole day and use the following ingredients: 1 cardamom pod, 3 cloves, small piece of cinnamon, 5 black peppercorns, 1 inch piece fresh ginger, pinch turmeric powder and honey to taste. Crush the cardamom, cloves, black pepper, cinnamon and fresh ginger in a mortar and pestle. Add to 1.5-2 cups of boiling water - reduce to a simmer and keep on the heat for 3 minutes. Add 1 pinch turmeric powder and allow to simmer for a further 2 minutes. Take off the heat, strain into a mug. Once the tea is at a drinkable temperature, add a teaspoon of raw, local honey and sip! All the ingredients in the tea are warming which help to liquefy and melt the mucus. Honey has a special scraping effect which helps to pull everything out of the body. Sip this tea once a day when you feel a little under-the-weather or have a lot of mucus and congestion in your body.
Herbal support. Herbs should always be taken under a prescriptive measure - while it's easy to get many Ayurvedic herbs and formulations over-the-counter, they should always be taken after consultation with an Ayurvedic doctor or practitioner. This list is something I have taken since childhood (so my body is used to it) or after consulting with an Ayurvedic doctor:

Echinacea tablets - these are great at supporting the immune system when you have a cold or flu
doTerra OnGuard essential oil blend as an extra immune support - I add a few drops to a cup of hot water and sip on this
Sudarshan + ajwain decoction - Sudarshan is a bitter Ayurvedic formulation that is great when your body is showing signs of a fever. It's something that I have taken since I was a child so my body is used to it.

Foods to avoid. Cold dairy, avocados and bananas. One of Ayurveda's basic principles is that like increases like. One of Ayurveda's other basic principles is of 20 qualities, and these are used to describe everything around us - and they're simple adjectives that all of us are used to: cold, hot, rough, smooth, dry, moist, light, heavy etc. And how can we use these qualities to make sense of everything around and inside us? By using our senses. Let's take mucus for example - if I had to describe it, I would say it's cold, sticky, slimy and heavy. Now if there's already an overabundance of these qualities in my body - if I eat things with the same qualities then my mucus production will be on overdrive. So use your senses to figure out what foods could be considered mucogenic - or creators of more mucus - foods that are heavy, cold, sticky and slimy in nature. And bananas, avocados, and heavy dairy like cheese, yoghurt and cream; are some of the biggest culprits. So if you have a runny nose, a lot of phlegm or mucus then leave these foods out of your diet to speed up your recovery process.
Lifestyle changes. Lots of rest - let the illness take its course (if symptoms persist and don't get better - then please see a doctor). Getting sick is generally a sign that your body needs to rest and slow down. I also do steam inhalation with eucalyptus oil to help with the congestion in my head - first thing in the morning and last thing before I go to bed.
Exercise/Movement . This recommendation should be based on each individual. For me, I generally have low energy or get breathless when I fall sick - so I avoid exercise during this time. When I start to feel a little better - I'll go out for short and gentle walks. Your body is generally using most of its energy to fight off infections, improve your digestion or simply work on restoring balance in your body - this then means that little energy is available for excessive exercise. As a general rule, I'd recommend avoiding anything excessive while you're unwell - if you do want to move your body a bit, then a gentle walk should suffice.

Tips to stay warm in winter

Thu, 11 Dec 2025 05:38:52 GMT

Simple lifestyle practices to implement this season

As we enter into the peak of Winter, it's easy to feel overcome by the heavy and dense energy of this season. Of wanting to lay in, laze around and just generally be lethargic. Of course, slowing down and doing less is natural and also beneficial to do at this time of year, but sometimes we can slow down too much - and being introspective can quickly lead to complacency. To make the most of this season and utilise its natural rhythms to your advantage, here are some simple tips to stay warm (in both your body and mind) in Winter.

Honour your increased hunger - it's completely normal and natural this season!

Our bodies work so intelligently - cold weather constricts the skin pores and superficial connective tissues and this prevents heat loss. Heat that would normally escape is then pushed internally in our bodies, to our stomachs so that our digestive fire becomes stronger in Winter . This warrants us eating foods that are a little heavier during Winter - and we can see this all around us. Comfort foods like mac and cheese, hearty pies, cakes and hot chocolates are popular during this time, and we allow our selves to indulge that little bit more. Our body's digestive fire naturally accumulates in our core over the winter - so it's strong and capable of digesting heavier foods which would normally be difficult for us to metabolise. But make sure you choose foods which are naturally heavy rather than artificially laden with energy.

Rather than choose a cheesy pasta, choose a tray of roasted root vegetables garnished with spices and nuts; rather than go for a rich chocolate cake, choose some sweet dates filled with natural nut butters; and rather than choosing rich hot chocolate, go for a gently spiced chai.

Favour seasonal winter produce and spice it up

If you think of what's in season at the moment - sweet potatoes, beets, parsnips - it's mostly root vegetables. And they've been busy all year growing and storing energy in their roots - protected from the cold and rough winds of Winter. So take your energy from them - a most natural and unprocessed form and you can guarantee you'll be filling your body with the right things.

Utilise warming spices when cooking these vegetables to bring in extra warmth into your bodies: add extra nutmeg to your bechamel sauce, more cracked black pepper in your mac n cheese, cloves to your curries, and cinnamon and ground ginger to your sweets. These warming spices will help break down the heaviness of these traditionally richer foods and ensure they don't sit all stodgy in your stomach for hours after you've eaten.

Staying warm in your mind

In Autumn, leaves falling teaches us to let things go, to create space. Like creating space in the body, it also creates space in the mind. So this winter, make sure you fill your mind with positive thoughts, intentions and perspectives . So we're not facing winter with dread and gloom, but an opportunity to fill ourselves with knowledge, radiance and light. It's easy to be caught up in work and just stay indoors. The outside environment isn't exactly the most inviting during Winter. So set small reminders for yourself every hour - you could break up your work with a ten-minute meditation practice, or practice some warming breathing techniques like Kapalabhati, or do a ten-minute stretch. The idea is to make these micro breaks so simple and effortless that it doesn't feel like you're doing much, but taking them consistently throughout the day will do wonders to keep your body and mind warm and alert this winter season.

Surround yourself with people who uplift you - because in the end we are a product of our association. Winter can often make us less likely to socialise because we may be reluctant to leave the comfort and warmth of our house. You could reach out to a different friend each week or a few times a week - either just sending them a message, giving them a call, meeting up for a quick walk or cooking a meal together - try and schedule it into your diary so that it's less difficult for you to get out of the commitment. It may be a chore getting out of the house in the first place, but experiencing the company of your friends will warm you up in ways you never expected!

Best Spices for Winter

Wed, 10 Dec 2025 15:30:53 GMT

Learn to befriend your kitchen pharmacy

Different parts of a plant have different properties which work and help heal various parts of our bodies. But the seed is the most crucial part. From the seed, the entirety of the plant is grown - the roots, trunk, branches, leaves, flowers and fruits, and so this tiny little seed contains in unmanifest form, all parts of the plant. And the seeds are what we use in our cooking - as a tempering to help flavour our dishes or simply brewed in some water for a comforting mug of herbal tea. Learn to reach out for your spice cabinet - not just for flavour, but for medicine as well. This Winter, favour the following spices: ginger, cinnamon and cloves . They are all warming spices, perfect to help keep your insdes warm as the outside cools down in preparation for winter.

Let's start with ginger . There are two types of ginger - fresh ( adraka ) or dry ( sunthi ). When you think of fresh ginger, think of better circulation, clearing congestion, igniting digestion and nourishing reproduction. Dry ginger is a little hotter and is great at clearing away toxins, warming you from the inside and reducing inflammation in arthritic conditions. If you have excess heat in your body, live in a hot climate or are pregnant, always be careful about excessive (more than 2g/day) ginger use.

Here are a few ways to use them in your kitchen:

grate a bit of fresh ginger into your spice tempering (in an oil or ghee) to use in curries, dals, marinades, soups or stir-fries
make pickled fresh ginger as an appetite boost by mixing sliced ginger with lime juice and salt
use a pinch of dry ginger when boiling milk for desserts, hot chocolate or chai to help break that mucogenic quality of milk
use dry ginger like you would cinnamon in certain cakes or biscuits

Cinnamon isn't just a popular spice for Autumn desserts (think apple pie, pumpkin pie ��) but it's also a great medicinal herb. It's great at clearing out excess mucus from the lungs to help with colds, coughs, sinus congestion and bronchitis. It's also excellent at clearing out toxins from the body during fevers by encouraging sweating. If you have a sluggish or cold digestion, cinnamon helps to increase agni (digestive fire) and also aid in removing wind and treating colic. Cinnamon helps with poor circulation by helping to push vata (responsible for circulation) to the joints, plus the it's warm, dry and light qualities help to clear excess fluid or toxins from the joints

Add cinnamon to your sweet treats and bakes, to a soothing cup of hot chocolate, even as a spice rub for roast vegetables.

Clove is the dried flowerbud fo the evergreen tree. It's full of effective antiseptic anti-fungal properties that benefit digestion. It helps build up a weak and sluggish digestion with pain, flatulence and a lack of interest in food. It's also great at helping to settle nausea. Similar to cinnamon, it helps expel phlegm in coughs, asthma and bronchitis. It's also used widely to relieve toothache - the essential oil is applied to the gums or tooth. The oil can also be used for external application to relieve headaches, arthritic pain, areas of poor circulation and back pain.

Cloves taste great in a gingerbread mix to add to hot drinks, in the tempering of a curry or dal, or simply brewed in water to make a herbal tea.

Self Massage Guide

Thu, 21 Nov 2024 15:39:12 GMT

The best self-care practice!

There's one simple daily practice that can transform your wellbeing.

It's nourishing, it delays old age, it removes fatigue, it's strengthening and it calms the mind.

Want to know what it is? Massage!

I know your next question is going to be - 'Who has time to go and get a massage everyday?'

And you're right - going to get a massage from someone else everyday is highly unlikely, but what is likely, is taking the time to give yourself a massage!

Self-massage is a treasured practice within the Ayurvedic guidelines - but there's always a lot of ambiguity around how to do it, when to do it, what oils to use etc etc.

And I'm here to clear that up for you - after massaging others for over 10 years, I'm beyond excited to bring you my Self Massage Guide - a self-paced, pre-recorded video resource that goes through exactly how to do a self massage. You'll understand which strokes to use, the importance of various marma points, the best oils, the best time to massage and how to make this practice work for you in your current lifestyle.

Make this theoretical practice into a reality and get your self massage guide now! You can purchase the guide here: SELF MASSAGE GUIDE.

Summer And Holiday Travel Tips

183:738809909 (Niti Sheth) — Tue, 23 Jul 2024 19:44:46 GMT

Stay healthy while you travel this Summer!

We recently went on a week-long holiday to France, and while holidays are fun, there is a tendency to let your health slide and go for a holiday too! The older I get, the more I realise that while you may be on a break from work and household duties, don't be on a break from your health - it will just take more time to get back on track, plus even though you've been on a holiday mentally, your physical body will suffer. So whether you're flying or driving, staying in a 5-star hotel or a budget Air BnB, here are some tips for you to ensure you stay healthy on your holiday:

Find balance through your day's meals: we love to indulge in delicious food while we're travelling. Whether it's sampling the regions local cuisine, or enjoying the hotel's breakfast buffet - if you know that breakfast/lunch/dinner is going to be a big meal that's heavy to digest - then keep the other meals of the day light. Just have some local fruits for breakfast, or opt for a simple soup/salad for the other meal. For us, because we were generally out and about for the day, our lunches ended up being the heaviest meal which we generally got from a cafe or restaurant nearby. Then back at our Air BnB, I would make some dal and rice for dinner, or roast up some veggies in the oven.
Maintain routine while on holiday: we often love to see holidays as a time to let loose - eat whatever we want, sleep whenever we want, wake up whenever we want. But the truth is that our bodies don't know we're on holiday, and so when we do things that throw off our normal routine (in terms of our eating, sleeping and waking times) our bodies get confused. We thrive on routine, and letting this go in the name of relaxing can do us more harm than good. So stick to similar eating, sleeping and waking times - no matter where you travel to.
Foods to help keep you regular �� new places and new foods can sometimes throw your digestion off track a little and result in constipation. Remember to use these foods as medicine to help keep everything moving smoothly. Try one remedy at a time:

4-5 prunes as a snack anytime during the day
9-10 raisins soaked in water and kept overnight, to be consumed first thing in the morning.
Local and seasonal fruit as a snack during the day. Especially: bananas, prunes, pears, apples, papaya, soaked figs and raisins.
1 teaspoon ghee in half cup of warm water at bedtime.
1 teaspoon triphala in half cup of warm water at bedtime.
Lots of water and movement during the day.

Do your food research before you travel: we visited a few small French towns that were very limited in their vegetarian options. So we travelled with provisions to cook our own meals a few times while we were away. I packed all the spices I would need for one dish in a small container, some dried lentils and rice, ghee and my trusty pressure cooker. And these few things helped us have healthy, delicious and quick meals while we relaxed in our Air BnB. Another night we bought some local veggies and roasted them with olive oil and a herb blend for a lighter dinner. If food options are limited where you're going, think of these foods that you can quickly make in your accommodation: dal + rice, kichdi, soups, roasted veggies, pasta or stir-fries.

Ayurvedic Tips for Spring

Tue, 14 May 2019 08:05:54 GMT

Using the change in seasons to your advantage

Ever feel like you just need a bit of a pick-me-up in time for Summer?
Still carrying some of that Winter warmth on you?
Feel like your mind is foggy and you can't seem to think straight?

These are all normal occurrences during the junction of two seasons - a phenomena predicted by Ayurveda over 5000 years ago. And along with giving these predictions, Ayurveda also gave us the cure! The ancient texts tell us that the 7 days at the end and commencement of seasons should be used as a transition period for our health. We should gradually give up the seasonal practises of the preceding season and gradually adopt the practises of the coming season. And the best way to do this is through a cleanse!

We often speak of a Spring cleanse for our homes - reorganising cupboards, clearing out old things and making space for the brightness and lightness of Summer. Why not do the same to your body?

The Winter to Spring transition and Ayurveda

During Winter, the energy known as kapha is predominant. When you look at the qualities of kapha (cool, heavy, slow, soft, smooth and unctuous) you'll notice that this is exactly what is prominent during Winter. Cold temperatures; the heavy energy that we feel around us (and often characterised by the heavy foods we eat to keep us warm); and the slowness that seems to permeate the environment (notice how even animals hibernate or retreat inwards during the Winter months, subsisting on what they've harvested over Summer).

As the days get longer and the sun shines brighter, we see Winter slowly transition to Spring and then into Summer. While heating the environment outside, the sun also heats the environment inside our bodies, and everything we've accumulated over Winter slowly starts to melt. And we see this melting through a build up of mucus in the body - evident through a high incidence of colds, flus and runny noses.So this transition period is the best time to give our body a good clean out, and be prepared for the coming Summer months.

Through a combination of dietary changes, lifestyle recommendations and the addition of medicinal herbs - you can see yourself through an Ayurvedic Spring Cleanse. Here are 3 easy-to-follow tips to begin your own Spring cleanse journey.

Now cleansing on the inside always begins with your gut, your digestion. Use this inter-seasonal time to give your digestion a bit of a break from your normal diet, and rekindle your digestive fire. For those heading into Summer try this digestive tea: 1 tsp fresh grated ginger, 1 tsp fennel seeds: Bring 1 cup of water to the boil with the ginger and fennel, and simmer for 3-4 mins. Strain and enjoy! If you find the fresh ginger too heating, then swap it for 1 teaspoon of dry ginger. For those heading into Winter, sip on this: 1 tsp fresh ginger, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, 1/2 tsp fennel seeds, 1/2 tsp coriander seeds: Bring 1 cup of water to the boil with the spices, cover, simmer for 3-5 mins, strain and enjoy!
As important as it is to cleanse our insides, we also have think about cleaning our surroundings. So this week, take the opportunity to do a Spring Clean of your house - your room, your kitchen, your office, your study - whichever area you think needs it the most. It's called Spring Clean for a reason ;) Whether you use the Marie Kondo method, or simply sort your room out into things you need to throw away and things you need to keep and organise - rearrange the cluttler outside. You'll be surprised at how cleaning the clutter on the outside will help clean the clutter inside your mind!
To help you choose these foods, Ayurveda characterises diet and nutrition according to the 6 tastes (sweet, salty, sour, bitter, pungent, astringent). Winter into Summertime is the best time to consume foods which are predominantly bitter, pungent and astringent. As you head from Summer to Winter, favour foods that are sweet, salty and sour in taste.

If you want to go even deeper, then contact me now to arrange your own personalised Spring Cleanse.

3 Tips To Avoid Overeating This Holiday Season

183:738809909 (Niti Sheth) — Mon, 10 Dec 2018 12:43:47 GMT

The above image is exactly how some organs in our body think when we're faced with too much good food! And this scenario plays out in our lives a few times too many - especially around Christmas and New Years when our diaries are filled with work parties, social drinks and family get-togethers. Our eyes are faced with lavish spreads and we're forced to make very difficult decisions - do I listen to my tongue or do I listen to my stomach? Should I just get one appetiser so I can eat two desserts?

But this holiday season change the way you approach all these social functions with a few tactics to help your body and mind have a good time.

Balance Your Day - Christmas events are often planned and written in diaries weeks in advance. It gives us time to prepare ourselves. We know when we get to these functions that there are often more delectable food items than we can imagine - and we come under the control of our tongue rather than our mind! If you know that parties and dinners are a weak spot for you, then plan your day accordingly. If you have a big Christmas dinner with your work friends on Friday, then begin on the Thursday before. Have a light dinner on Thursday night - a simple vegetable soup or steamed veggies. Do the same on Friday - eat a lighter breakfast and lunch than you normally would. And on Saturday - fill your day with lots of hot herbal tea to help flush out any extra toxins and lethargy from your body.
Sweat It Out - Social functions are a chance for us to accumulate a lot more than we are used to. So practise the opposite to balance yourself out - find a way to increase your exercise this holiday season, so you can help counter all that excessive eating. We eliminate toxins from our body in three ways: through urine, faeces and sweat. Increase your cardiovascular activity to sweat more and hence release toxins from your body. Join local gym classes for the month of December, try a new class with a friend, if you're a member of a gym - then spend some extra time in the steam room or sauna.
Choose Wisely - when you're at your social function or work party, choose wisely from the spread placed in front of you. Allow yourself to get full from the healthier options, so you're less likely to choose the fatty, dense, high-card or high-sugar options. Choose the soups or vegetable-based options. Vegan and gluten-free options are so popular these days, that it's easy for you to choose something from this menu.

If you follow these 3 simple tips, then you're sure to have a happy AND healthy time this holiday season!

What is Ayurveda?

183:738809909 (Niti Sheth) — Wed, 03 Oct 2018 09:36:30 GMT

Behind the oldest medicine system in the world...

I thought we'd begin right at the very beginning and understand a few of the key foundational concepts of Ayurveda. Ayurveda literally means 'the science (Veda) of life (Ayur)', and is a wholesome and all encompassing way of looking at health. It incorporates the physical, sensory/emotional, mental and spiritual dimensions within a person , and looks at each as an integral component of an individual's health. This is one of my favourite parts of Ayurveda - that it looks beyond the physical body and into other aspects of the individual's life. So don't be alarmed if you come in for a massage and you get asked questions about your sleeping patterns, bowel movements or what you eat - it's all inter-connected.

Ayurveda is as much about the promotion of good health , as it is about treating diseases. One of the Ayurvedic texts ( Ashtanga Hrdaya by Vagbhata) is organised so beautifully - one of my teachers once said, if you know, apply and live out the first four chapters (which are about daily routine, personal conduct and seasonal routine) then you don't need to know about any of the latter chapters (which are all about diseases and their relevant treatment protocol).

It relies on both objective and subjective methods to determine the root cause of an individual's ill health . This root cause is viewed in terms of imbalances, and so to bring a person back to good health, means to correct those existing imbalances. This is vastly different to more modern models of healthcare which predominantly address the symptoms with medication or surgery - and this often becomes a 'quick-fix' solution. On the other hand, Ayurveda determines WHY your symptoms are occurring and attempts to address this root cause using a variety of methods: diet, lifestyle, herbs, meditation and physical therapies.

One of the other distinguishing features of Ayurveda is that it looks at each person as a unique individual to determine their prakruti , or natural constitution. This constitution takes into account a person's physique, emotional and mental tendencies and is very important as it helps each individual understand their unique mind-body type and live in accordance with that. Going against this or just following blanket healthcare recommendations is like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole.

And so, I leave you with this brief snapshot of Ayurveda - hopefully the beginning of many more nuggets of wisdom to come!