So I went on a retreat last month to Wolfe Island near Kingston. It was a women’s retreat in honour of Mother’s Day and the topic for the weekend was Ayurveda.
I knew a little bit about Ayurveda from a book my good friend Sari had sent me a few years ago, after I had my first child, but I was eager to learn more. I also love learning new things, especially about living a more fun, healthy, and connected life, so I was excited for my three days of rejuvenation, rest, learning and spending time with an awesome group of people.
Ayurveda is a Sanskrit word and it has two roots: ayur, meaning life, and veda, meaning knowledge. Ayurveda is about balance, relatedness, lifelong learning and daily self care.
According to Ayurveda practices, there are three pillars of health:
- Nourishment (Ahara) – Food, Air, Company, Essence/ Spirit
- Sleep (Nidra)
- Management of Vital energy.
The foundation is that when we feel good, we look good (no matter what our age). Feeling good requires a commitment to what we take in (in the form of food, company, sounds, sites, and self care).
The Dinacharya is a compilation of daily rituals that promote balance and vitality.
Here are some of the rituals I learned about and wanted to share:
Morning Routine:
- Wake up at 6AM (with or before the sun)
- Drink a glass of warm water (with lemon) upon waking – it hydrates the system, turns on the digestive system and is cleansing before you start filling your body with the day’s food.
- Gentle exercise – Go for a walk, stretch, do some yoga to get the blood flowing and joints moving.
- Breakfast
- Awaken your senses
- Gargle warm water + sea salt – at the back of your throat
- Brush your teeth and take in the sensation of cool water in your mouth
- Rinse your eyes by pooling water up to them and opening and closing them in the water
- Put a little bit of natural oil in your ears.
- Shower
- Massage your hands, arms, face and feet with a a natural based oil (i.e. coconut oil, raw sesame oil (not toasted), or almond oil). Long strokes for the long bones and circles for the joints.
- Exercise or take a sauna (just a little bit of sweat daily is healthy)
Mid-day Routine
- Make lunch the largest meal
- Try a romantic meal with yourself now and then
- Relate to the food (what it looks like, where it came from, the texture)
- Eat in a calm environment alone or with enjoyable company
- Rest a little bit after lunch by lying on your left side for a few minutes to promote digestion
Evening Routine
- Supper – Light and early
- Rest on Left Side after eating for a few minutes
- Go for an evening walk
- Sleep “hygiene”/ pre-bed routine
- build in some rituals that you do before bed to prepare you for sleep.
- Some ideas are: light some candles, sip a cup of herbal tea for a few minutes in a quiet environment, give yourself a foot massage or get one from someone else!, take a shower. What ever works for you.
- Be in bed by 10pm.
I am sure you are thinking, I do not have time to do all of these things. Things move fast and I have a million things I want to do, kids to put to bed and lunches to make. It is harder now with how fast things move. The instructor on our retreat reminded us to be gentle with ourselves. To do what we could. That we did not need to do everything, but just to pick a few rituals that we could do and wanted to do and to carve out a little time for such self-care. It is also helpful to know them in the back of your head in case some free moments un- expectantly arise or who knows they may guide you in how you flow through your day.
