Feeling Vital and Balanced This Summer Season
Welcome to Summer! Living in the northeast, this is my absolute favorite time of year. There’s something about this season that gives you that extra nudge to have more fun and play while at the same time permssion to savor more and slow down. As the natural world comes into full bloom, summer’s invitation is to be more fully awake, engaged and open to everything around us.
Summer is Life itself and as we know all too well, life is precious and moves way too fast!
Summer invites us to communue with nature and revel in simple outdoor pleasures, feel the wind and sun on your face, take a walk at dusk, gaze at the moon, or eat outside. It calls me to go on long hikes but most of all to be on the water sailing on the Hudson. .
And conversely, summer is the season to DO LESS and just BE. Laying in a hammock, sipping cold beverages, casual reading. The wisdom of the summer heat encourages us to be lazy (without the guilt) and savor these pleasures.
For good health and vitality, it’s so important that we practice attuning our bodies to the season we’re in. As our inner energy shifts with seasons so does do our nutritional needs. In the summer heat, our appetite changes and we naturally desire lighter, cooling foods to balance our physical and mental constitution in the summer heat.
Examples are sweet juicy fruits like melons, coconut, peaches, mangoes and pears. Vegetables like carrots, cucumbers, avocado, leafy greens, zucchini, broccoli, asparagus and cilantro can keep us feeling balanced during this season.
While increasing cooling items in our eating, there’s also benefit to limiting your intake of foods that create heat, i.e. foods and drinks that are salty, sour, or spicy. In other words, we just want to be more mindful of overdoing it on the chips, salsa and margaritas! Don’t stress too much though…it’s all about finding what works for YOU!
Bottomline, now’s the perfect time to re-commit and re-focus on how you would like to feel this summer season.
What small steps can you take to intentionally nourish your body and mind to achieve that feeling?
How can you bring more fun and laughter into your day?
Where can you break up up your work week with more conscious relaxation time?
What would it be like to give yourself permission to say “no” to demands on that are simply draining and say “yes” to what you want?
Summer is the annual permission slip to be lazy. To do nothing and have it count for something…Regina Brett
