According to fundamental principles of Ayurveda, our eating habits and daily routine should flow with the season. By regularly adjusting our lifestyle and eating habits, we can live in harmony with the cycles of nature. Here are 12 Ayurvedic tips to help you keep in balance this summer:
1. Avoid heating spices like cayenne, garlic, chilies, fennel, and black pepper in summer. Choose cooling herbs instead such as coriander, cardamom and cilantro in your preparations.
2. Avoid hot, spicy and sour foods in summer, as they will increase the heat in your body and make you feel hotter. Add sweet and cooling foods in your diet such as white or red rice, wheat, okra, mung beans, snake gourd, winter melon, summer squash, coconut, and ghee (clarified butter).
3. Avoid drinking ice-cold carbonated drinks, flavored juices, milk and yogurt based fruit smoothies as it disrupts the digestion process and creates toxins in the body leading to low immunity.
4. Avoid sour fruits instead eat ripe and sweet fruits such as grapes, pomegranate, sweet mangoe, apple, pear, peach, figs, and black raisins. Remember not to eat fruits within 30 minutes of consuming any other food.
5. Summer is the best time to enjoy the fresh coconut water from young coconuts. These are great cooling drinks that can beat the summer heat. Click here to buy coconut water.
6. Avoid fermented foods such as yogurts, pickles, breads, fermented cheese and soy-products in summer as sour foods increase heat in the body and can lead to indigestion and heartburn.
7. Avoid direct sunlight and excessive activity during the hottest part of the day as it can be draining. If you prefer biking and running, try to save it for the early morning and evening when the temperature is slightly cooler.
8. Drink room temperature water everyday to stay hydrated. You can add a sprig of fresh mint to the water or a teaspoon of pure organic rose water.
9. Wear loose-fitting, light cotton clothes to protect your skin. The best colors to wear in hot summer are the colors that reflect the sunlight, such as whites, grey, blues and greens. Avoid red, black, dark yellow and orange shades of clothes in summer as they tend to absorb and retain the heat.
10. Massage your skin with unrefined coconut oil 20 minutes prior to shower in the morning. This classic remedy is as cooling as it is rejuvenating.
11. Avoid prolonged sitting in front of computers and T.V. at night before going to bed. Sleep is the time when our mind and body goes through repairs and rejuvenation.
12. Listen to soothing sounds of water or take moonlight walks in the evening. It will be both relaxing and soothing for the mind and body.
Try these Ayurvedic tips to beat the heat and make it an Ayurvedic summer. Enjoy this wonderful time of the year inside out. Happy Summer!
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