Food and lifestyle ideas to keep you healthy
Don’t be mad at your belly when it hurts.
In this impatient, fast paced world we live in, it can be most inconvenient to have a belly ache. If you have one frequently, you may even be diagnosed with IBS (irritable nbowel syndrome). The term sounds official, and scary, and something out of your control.
If you haven’t already seen blurbs about cleansing on social media, you’re sure to before long.
As a health coach I’ve been leading cleanses at key points of the year, each with its own objective. By far, I think a Spring cleanse is the most transformative, just as the season itself seems to be. Nature surely undergoes a transformation in Spring, sometimes visible by the hour to those of us longing for the end of Winter. .
As noted, Spring is a time of transformation. It is also a time of transition, shifting from cold and dry to warm and damp. We’ve been accustomed to eating warm heavy meals through Winter, foods that may simmer over the stove for many hours. This heats the home and the body and is an entirely appropriate and wise way to keep warm in Winter.
But you need to gradually shift to a different way of eating when Spring arrives. In the process of changing your food choices, it is advisable to do a little digestive Spring cleaning as well. The cleaner your system, the more efficient it will be at burning energy even dropping a few pounds.
Your overall health is critically dependent upon a healthy digestive system. I’ve written before about gas and other tummy troubles. We also know today that the bacteria in the gut helps regulate all sorts of body functions, so giving your digestive system some TLC in springtime us a wonderful gift to your health. Ancient traditions understood this - think Lent and Passover - and practiced austerity in the transition to warmer weather.
If you are prone to Spring allergies, now is the time to cut back on any congestion causing foods like cheese and dairy. Greens, plentiful in Spring, have an astringent quality to them and can dry up the results of mucus causing foods you may have been eating in the Winter.
In a nutshell, here’s what to do:
1. Spring clean your cabinets and refrigerator, tossing outdated or unhealthy foods
2. Make a menu plan that includes copious amounts of vegetables coming into season:
asparagus, dandelion greens, chard, kale, spring peas (notice they are all green)
3. Plan your meals by the weather: cool and rainy - soup; warm and sunny - salad
4. Get outside every day for natural Vitamin D
5. Get moving - gentle stretching, walking, playing a sport
6. Divide your weight in half; drink that much water in ounces
and You need foods that put a spring in your step!
Someone asked me the other day if a cleanse requires colonics. The answer is a definite no. You can see other questions I’ve been asked about cleansing if you’re curious about the experience.
Although Spring officially begins on March 20th here in New England Spring weather isn't consistently Spring-like until late in April. You can tell it's time to cleanse when you see a good amount of green sprouting up in the woods and in your garden, when the grass is slowly greening up, and when you see the hint of buds on your trees. The ground should be muddy, not hard, and the air should feel damp. These are classic signs of Spring.
A good Spring cleanse should show these positives:
1. Less bloating and slimmer waist
2. Reduction in phlegm in the lungs and sinuses
3. Allergy relief
4. Increased energy
My annual Spring Cleanse will begin on Saturday, April 21st. More information and registration here. I invite you to join in this transformational experience, one that you can easily work into your day to day life.
Personal development author Shakti Gawain says "Most of us are in touch with our intuition whether we know it or not, but we're usually in the habit of doubting or contradicting it so automatically that we don't even know it has spoken."
How do you use your intuition when it comes to eating? Do you stop to think about what you'd like and make your choice accordingly? Does a particular food call to you? As a nutrition and wellness coach, I closely align intuitive food choices to cravings. Intuition, or cravings, send us messages. It's important to listen.
Think about it: you're sitting at home, not feeling very well, and all you want is chicken soup! While this is often a recommended food when someone is under the weather, no one needs to tell you that. Your body knows. If you have a severe stomach bug, once the vomiting stops, you might be looking for a sugary popsicle or something salty. While not the healthiest of choices, this too is your intuition calling you to food that will rebalance your blood sugar or replace the lost sodium for balanced electrolytes. This is the brilliance of listening to your intuition.
Or perhaps you are physically fine but you are feeling lonely. Your intuition may lead you to overeat. It is a way of "filling up" the emptiness inside. Here is a place where you need to dig deeper into the meaning of this intuitive message. Is it really overeating that your intuition is telling you to do? Or is it signaling you that you're feeling empty because you are lonely? When you know this, you can discern between physical hunger and emotional hunger.
Your intuition is the perfect compliment to your logical left brain. It will give you information faster than thinking will if you listen to it. Once listened to, ask yourself if what you are feeling aligns with who you are. Often times when you shift over to your thinking brain you will understand where the feeling came from and if it is something to follow.
We don't call intuition our "gut feeling" for nothing. It is lodged in our core and has much to say about our food and our emotions. Respect its messages. It''s been living in you for all your life.
Which brings me to another concept:
It's no accident when we have feelings come upon us, even without concrete information, that we "feel" something. It's because the digestive system plays a central role in our response, internally and externally, to our surroundings.
The digestive system is a complex collection of many functions, and from start to finish is more than 30 feet long. Within that system we have up to 70% of our immune receptors and as much as 80-90% of serotonin is produced in the gut. These functions send thousands of signals to the brain, helping us process and draw conclusions. Is it any wonder in today's culture of poor quality food and inattentive eating habits that the digestion system becomes quite challenged? And when you feel a "foggy brain" feeling, you may look for the cause and solution to the problem right on your plate.
If you are ready to tap into your intuitive health needs and more fully understand the elegant way our digestive system talks to our intuition and thought process, contact me to schedule a complimentary health consultation.
