For optimal winter wellbeing, it is important to move with the seasons, rather than trying to continue the pace of the warmer months. Winter is a time for hibernation. Give yourself permission to spend a little more time curled up on the couch reading a good book and eating hearty warming meals.

Rest and nourishment are essential for maintaining the inner fire and although sometimes difficult to get out of the house, it is also important to keep the body moving throughout the cooler months to keep your immune system firing and allowing you to remain healthy.

There are some extra things you can do to assist your body through this season. Here are my quick and easy top tips for winter wellbeing; [Read more…]

My mum called the other day, starting off our conversation telling me she would need to stop jogging on the treadmill. She had only recently progressed from walking to jogging and was really enjoying the change of pace. However it seems her body didn’t agree. She was troubled with excessively swollen knee joints and discomfort in her lower back. I could hear her disappointment; her body was failing her in completing the task that her mind requested. Mum is a very healthy, fit and active 64 year old, however you don’t need to be in your sixties to experience this type of response from your body when beginning a new type of movement, it can happen at any age.

Swelling (inflammation) and pain is a sign of injury and your cue to rest, take things slowly and reassess if what you are doing is beneficial to your physical wellbeing. As we age the smooth tissues and liquid (synovial fluid) that cushions joints and helps them move more easily, naturally deteriorates and when there are changes in routine, chores and exercise this challenges the body and recovery can take longer than in younger years.

In my previous post “Finding a healthier way of being” I talked about being quiet enough to listen to the body, this is also relevant when doing any physical activity. Being present and mindful when you exercise can allow you to receive the message that your body is needing you to slow down before you find yourself in pain. [Read more…]

I’m often the “person to talk to” and I often wondered what it was about me that brought people my way for support and advice. It became apparent that I had something to offer, a way of life or an understanding of ‘being’ that didn’t come so easily to others.

Yoga has been a way for me to share that. To help and guide others to find ‘their way’ of being -happier, healthier and more fulfilled.

My key to ‘being’ is connection and union with the physical body. I believe that most illness and injury is generally a result of this union being in disconnect or in severe cases the connection not even being recognised. [Read more…]

“Perhaps I am a bear or some hibernating animal underneath,for the instinct to be half asleep all winter is so strong in me”

Brrr winter is certainly here, the days and nights are much cooler and naturally its gets more difficult to climb out from under the covers and out of bed or move off the couch.

A time for internal hibernation and regeneration, winter is for calming and stilling the mind, maintaining internal warmth, nurturing and storing energy for the cold months ahead. As in nature the trees have become skeletal,  plants dormant, but internal work has not ceased, energy is gathered and stored within preparing to burst forth into new growth for spring. [Read more…]

Clear the clutter – clean out your drawers, go through your wardrobe, donate what you no longer need to charity.

Incorporate fresh Metal rich fruit & veg into your diet, promoting energy circulation like; brown & white rice, raw onion, garlic, ginger, cauliflower, spinach, pumpkin,  mushrooms, tofu, celery, leek, parsnips, pears, apples & kiwifruit [Read more…]

As the nights draw in and the air breathes crisper we enter the season of Autumn and the element of Metal. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, Autumn is a time for letting go, releasing the old and no longer useful and creating space for renewal.

As the trees shed their leaves to the earth, enriching the soil for the next growing season,  so too we release the fire of summer and retreat indoors to find comfort in reflection of the past, a time to let go of what no longer serves us, negative thought patterns and behaviours. [Read more…]

Summer is here, or so the calendar would have us believe although we are experiencing our coldest December for more than 40 years. In reflection of the Spring which has seen days of rain, thunder, lightning, intense heat and unusual cooler temperatures making it difficult to shake colds and coughs. It would seem we are desperate for the summer to arrive and shine upon us its healthy glow.

Fire is the element of Summer, where the young energy of Spring has grown into an abundance of powerful energy allowing us to see the seeds of our thoughts and plans maturing and blossoming to their full potential.  [Read more…]

Spring has sprung! Although you would be forgiven for thinking we
were still stuck in winter with the current weather we are experiencing!

Signifying new life and growth, spring is the season of change and transformation as displayed in nature in just one day we can experience sunshine, wind, rain, warm and cold. The ever changing energetic rhythm of the season. [Read more…]