Sunday, January 17, 2016

Establishing a Healthy Daily Routine: Try Something New for the New Year

Have you resolved to add some healthy habits in the New Year?   Ayurveda practices can help you out. 

By aligning closely with nature's natural rhythms the daily rituals of Ayurveda can help you restore balance to your body and improve your health.   A daily routine, called dinacharya, provides stability and an anchor to your day and allows you to integrate healthy habits into your routine.    Start slowly, by adding 1 or 2 things to your morning routine. 

Begin with simple practices that do not take a lot of time.  Try 1 for a few weeks and see if you notice any changes.    Here are a few:

1.  Wake before dawn.  Waking before sunrise lets your body start the day in sync with nature's light.  It is the most auspicious and calming time to wake up.    If this is difficult and way out of your comfort zone, try to wake up 15 to 20 minutes earlier than usual.  This also might mean that you need to go to bed earlier.

2. Say a prayer or express gratitude for something in your life and for Mother Earth before leaving bed.  This helps you start the day on a positive note.

3.  Splash your eyes with cold water a few times, and blink your eyes.  This helps wake up the senses.

4.  Use a stainless steel tongue cleaner to scrape your tongue.  You scrape back to front 5 to 10 times.  This removes harmful bacteria and debris, it is good for the breath, and it stimulates digestion. Here is a picture of my tongue scraper.  They are available at Whole Foods and other health food stores.

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