PLEASE NOTE: The next section are foods for late winter & spring. Take what resonates and leave what does not. These routines are meant as guidelines to deepen your embodiment with the Earth’s seasons. It does NOT need to be perfect. I certainly do not adhere to all of these things. I recommend choosing 1-2 to really integrate into your life this season so that it is truly embodied. The following year, you could add 1-2 more. This season is about slowing down to regenerate, and it’s only through slowness and presence can we truly integrate and embody something.
Spend time outdoors
Plan new projects, new purchases, as springtime is the season for new beginnings, rebirth and renewal. Redecorate a room. Start a garden.
Try waking shortly before or with the sunrise.
Stay warm, particularly in the beginning of spring. You may feel tempted to bare it all out of the sheer joy of feeling the sultry sun on your wintery-white skin, but think twice. Spring brings a tendency for cool dampness to build up, particularly in the lungs.
Exercise: Spring is the season where a more vigorous exercise routine makes the most sense. It is a time when the body naturally wants to shed excess winter blubber. Your lymphatic system will love a fluid yoga class, jumping rope, a bike ride or a brisk walk.
Primarily, diet should be seasonal and local. Secondarily, eat from the kapha-reducing food list (see previous post).
In the late winter and early spring, the water element is predominant, although it is accompanied by the warming aspect of the sun (fire element). When we are in balance in the springtime, we feel the inherent enthusiasm, rebirth, seed planting, cleansing and creativity of the season.
Spring is the season extraordinairy for doing a dietary cleanse. I am not a fan of unguided, “do-it-yourself” cleanses. While a daylong cleanse is safe for most people, any longer cleanses should be done with the help of a reputable Ayurvedic practitioner. Why? Because while the cleanse may seem mellow, it is designed to “bring shit up”—literally and figuratively. I encourage you to meet with an Ayurvedic professional (like me!) that can work with you to make sure you remain healthy and balanced during and after this life-changing undertaking.
Clean out your heart (and your garage). Spring is not just the time for cleansing the physical vessel. It is also a good time to let go of unhealthy habits, lovers, and let’s have a big old yard sale for all that junk in your basement.
Honor your desires—spring is when we are intuitively most attuned to our deepest driving desires. This is especially true during late spring when the fire element builds. We may find ourselves with more hunger (sexually, in regard to food, as well as our drive and ambition in the world.) This is a good thing. It’s almost as if Mother Earth were giving us some big birthing pushes, and if we can ride Her contractions, we can use the natural rhythm of spring to move forward in activity and accomplishment.
Source: Shakti School & my own embodied experience and wisdom :)
Next post will offer a Spring Equinox embodiment ritual...Stay tuned!
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