Releasing Stress and Tension in Savasana

I grind my teeth at night and have apparently been doing it for a long long time. This became apparent a few years ago when I noticed that the inner sides of my front teeth were worn down. I was concerned about it and eventually got a mouth guard to wear at night. Okay, so taken care of, right?

The thing is, it bothers me that I continue to grind my teeth and can't seem to do anything about it. It is like my body is high-jacked while I am sleeping and I don't have any control. I have done some experimentation of my own to see if I can somehow unlearn this habit. 

Before falling asleep I literally command myself not to grind my teeth. I have also written "don't grind your teeth" down on paper and read it over and over again hoping that it would leak into my subconscious, and I have tried to purposely loosen up my jaw before sleeping. And though I can't be sure if any of my magic tricks have had any effect, I am still fairly certain that I grind my teeth.

I am also certain it isn't just me who does this. For one, I have actually heard my boyfriend grinding his teeth (so hard it actually squeaks) and tons of people have admitted to me that they do this 
too.

Ok, so why do we do we grind our teeth?

It seems fairly clear. Stress/Tension. However, even when I am not feeling particularly stressed, I grind my teeth. So, it seems that it is not caused by especially stressful situations but more to a constant state of a low level of stress and tension that I have stored in my jaw. So, how do I get rid of it??

Where do I start? I think (surprise surprise) that yoga provides an excellent method to rid yourself of the stored stress and tension that causes harmful behavior like grinding your teeth and that prevents us from fully relaxing. Yoga encourages us to practice deep relaxation.

Savasana is the perfect pose for releasing stored tension

At the end of almost all yoga classes, teachers announce the last pose, Savasana, or corpse pose, and all of the students sigh with relief. Class is finally over and all they have to do now is get through the next 10 minutes lying on their backs with their eyes closed. In this time they can plan dinner or mull over a problem at work. 

Then the students hear the teacher claim that this is the most difficult asana and he might even say that the entire class was in preparation for this pose. The students consider this for a moment and then either shrug it off as one of the goofy things yoga teachers say or they might even attempt to relax their body and clear their mind of any thoughts.

But, Savasana is an extremely important pose and though it is the easiest to do, it is the most difficult to master according to pretty much any reliable yoga resource available. The reason is that in this pose you are meant to release all tension held in the muscles. This seems like an easy task but most of the time we are completely unaware of the tension we are holding and are thus unable to release it. This is why yoga teachers often instruct students to tense muscles and then release them so that they can recognize the difference.

In addition, maintaining the body free of tension is directly linked to the state of the mind. If our mind is agitated we will see our body reflect this in tiny movements, which prevent us from fully relaxing. Therefore the mind has to be cleared as well for the student to get the full benefits of Savasana. 

Of course, we practice yoga and we are all students, which means that each time you do this pose with the intention of entering into deep relaxation (which by the way does not mean sleeping) we have the opportunity to improve. It is completely normal to have wondering thoughts and to react to these thoughts both mentally and physically, the trick is to practice non-reaction to these thoughts as well as recognize places of held tension and consciously relaxing those muscles.   

Enjoy your next corpse pose! It's not as easy as it seems.

Learning the Hard Way: 3 Things For After the Fast

The one-day liquid fast went fine; it was the following day that didn't go so well.

On Friday, the day of the fast, there was only about a half an hour or so where I started to feel energy-deprived and slightly disoriented. So, I went to the store, got some vegetable juice and chugged down half of it (not exactly recommended), which only took about 15 minutes to kick in. Then I felt fine. The rest of the day I was hungry of course, but it was bearable. I mostly just craved food and found the greasy, salty fair food that was paraded past me later that night especially enticing. But, I survived.

Side note: On the liquid fast, it is recommended to thin out vegetable/fruit juice with water and to avoid overly sweet juices.

The next morning was a different story.

I woke up sweaty, disoriented and even a bit nauseous. So, figuring that I was dehydrated and had low blood sugar, I sat myself down and drank a glass of water and ate some dried Goji berries and chocolate. That was a bad idea because I was sick about a half an hour later and the damn Goji berries came right back up. Three euros worth of Goji berries literally down the toilet. Not fun!

1. Don't Break The Fast With Chocolate Or Any Other Hard-to-Digest Foods

There is definitely a lesson to learn here. As I already kind of knew and should have planned for a little better, once you end your fast/cleanse you need to slowly introduce normal food back into your diet. You cannot go from zero to one hundred and eat everything you have been fantasizing about without feeling the very severe consequences.

2. Research What Foods Are Easy On Your Stomach and Eat Them Slowly

In the end, the morning that I had been fantasizing about, complete with a giant coffee and breakfast burrito, didn't happen. About a half an hour or so after defeat I ate a mashed banana, which tasted delicious, and then followed that an hour and a half later with a pureed carrot soup. After that I was right as rain and started to eat freely. Perhaps even tempting fate a little bit.

I did notice that for a short while, food tasted better. I was very sensitive to flavor and consistency and really enjoyed the rest of the day.

I have learned from some experienced fasters that a peeled apple that has either been grated and left out to turn a bit brown or that has been steamed is a great way to accustom your stomach to solids again. Peeled apples are apparently easy to digest.

Please learn from my mistake and remember to introduce foods that are harder to digest very slowly once you finish your fast. Do some research before the fast to find out what your options are.

3. Prepare For Your First "Meal" 

Once you have decided how to ease yourself back into a normal rhythm, make sure you have the food available and at hand so that temptation does not take over. It will still take some self-discipline to not reach for the chocolate.

Plus, if you start to feel really terrible on the fast, perhaps it isn't the best time for your body. I would have no problem breaking a fast if I was getting some severe or abnormal distress signals from my body.

Although I won't be doing another fast in the year future, I am determined to do it once again, perhaps using different techniques. In any case I now know how to introduce normal solid foods slowly back into my diet afterward.

I hope that I have saved you from a similar fate. You're welcome.  

One-Day Liquid Cleanse

I am a breakfast person.

I eat breakfast every day and waking up in the morning, making some coffee and putting some bread in the toaster is one of my favorite parts of the day. Today, however, is not one of those days. I am doing a one-day liquid cleanse and have started my day with hot water, the juice from about half of an organic lemon and honey. 

To make this yourself just heat up the water, squeeze in the lemon juice and then wait 5 minutes for the water to cool before stirring in the honey as honey is not meant to be heated.

Side note: organic lemons should be used for the lemon water due to the fact that a cleanse/fast enables the body to remove toxins and of course adding any additional toxins to the body during the fast is counter-productive. Organic lemons tend to look greenish as opposed to normal supermarket lemons that are sprayed with a yellowing agent.

The rest of the day I will abstain from food, and drink only herbal tea and water. I have a recipe for a special Ayurvedic detoxifying tea but I have decided to just use the organic herbal tea that I already have, which contains Greek mountain herbs (whatever that is), fennel and sage. It is delicious and you can find it under this link with the name Total Reset.

My stomach has already started complaining about this fast but I am sure we will get through it together.  I chose today because I have things to do and therefore won't be sitting around thinking about all the delicious food that is sitting just 10 ft away in my kitchen. I am going to do some yoga shortly and am working this afternoon. I have also decided not to meet up with friends which usually revolves around eating and drinking.

Lastly, I am abstaining from coffee today because I don't think the caffeine is good on an empty stomach and it is not recommended in any of the fasts that I have seen. This by the way is a double whammy because I have coffee every day, so not only do I miss the rich creamy taste, but a headache is probably also going to kick in soon.

Anyway, I will keep you posted.

Health Benefits of Fasting

From personal experience I found fasting to be very beneficial because it helped me to realize the roll that food plays in my life beyond the basic need of satisfying hunger. Although that is a strong argument for fasting again, I was curious about the physical effects of fasting. So, I have attempted to answer some questions I had by doing some quick and dirty online searches. I have summarized my findings below with the supporting links. 

Comments and/or additions to this information are more than welcome.

Should fasting be applied as a method for weight loss?

For short-term weight loss, fasting works because without any calories coming into the body, it will start to burn stored fat deposits for energy. This will lead to short-term weight loss, however for people who fast sporadically, they will gain the weight back once the fasting period is over and they return to their normal diet. Thus when applied sporadically, fasting cannot be used as a long-term weight-loss solution.

However, regular intermittent fasting seems to have health benefits that could contribute to weight loss (if that is something that your body would benefit from) and overall health improvement.

What are the health benefits, if any?

In addition to the mental/spiritual benefits, fasting appears to offer many physical benefits. Abstaining from food or reducing calorie-intake makes the body more sensitive to insulin and helps to maintain normal blood sugar levels. Some animal studies also suggest that fasting can reduce the risk of cancer by slowing down the growth of abnormal cells as well as slowing cognitive decline in diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease (more in the Los Angeles Times). Additionally, one study cited in an article in the New York Times suggests that those who fast regularly have healthier hearts and a lower chance of cardiovascular disease due to metabolic changes caused by fasting (read more).

Among other schools of thought, Ayurveda recommends fasting as a way to detoxify the body. You may also have heard of some of the many cleanses that are popular today like the master cleanse, which I did on a yoga retreat, that follow a similar principle. The fasting frees the body from normal digestion to flush out toxins from food that wasn't properly digested as well as any chemicals and additives that we ingest as a part of our normal every day diet. When we fast and use up stored fat deposits, the toxins contained in these deposits are then released and eliminated or neutralize by organs such as the liver, kidneys and colon.

Can fasting be harmful?

So it seems that fasting can offer health benefits. Of course, it is always recommended that you consult your doctor first to make sure it is the right method for you. Prolonged fasting can have some strong adverse effects especially for those with compromised health. Low sugar levels can also lead to dizziness and nausea.

Also, when you have decided that fasting is right for you, you should do some initial research about what fast would be suitable for you and your lifestyle. Remember that the intermittent fasting, that was referred to earlier, means periodically eating 25-30% fewer calories than is recommended for that particular size, gender and age. Fasting does not necessarily mean totally abstaining from food. Lastly, don't cut out water / liquids. This is necessary for staying hydrated and flushing out the toxins.

Click here for a general overview of fasting.

I hope this was helpful. Of course this was just some preliminary fact finding. I would encourage you to take it further.

Anyway, in conclusion I have decided to fast this week for 2 days on a liquid fast from my Ayurveda cook book. I will be sharing the experience.    

Humming To Relax

This little nugget was given to me by a student of mine and all I have done to fact check is compare it with my own experience. He told me that singing and humming can relieve stress because to do it you are using a completely different part of your brain than you need, let's say, to crunch numbers or cram for a test.

I love to sing... always have. I am not any good and I will sometimes sing only the refrain of a song over and over again, even if that is only 3 or 4 words. While doing it I am totally oblivious to what I am singing or how often I repeat the line, to the misfortune of those in earshot. I even sometimes sing lyrics that relate to my emotional state like some bad, private musical that my fiancé can't seem to escape. 

But singing I only do when I am feeling grounded and free. It is a sign that I am doing well even if I am not necessarily in a good mood.

So, it stands to reason that purposely taking myself to that place of groundedness by singing or humming would relieve stress, taking my mind off the present task and providing an outlet for any pent-up emotions.

In any case, I am going to try it out. The good thing about humming is that you can do it at work without drawing too much attention, whereas belting out a ballad might not be totally work-appropriate.

I apologize in advance to the neighbors because belting out ballads at home however, must be tolerated. Hmmm... today is feeling very "Total Eclipse of the Heart - ish"

Fasting to Savor Food

The longest time that I went without eating was 2 days.

I did it on a yoga retreat as I was getting my teaching certificate. Three times a day we drank a water, lemon juice, cayenne pepper and maple syrup mixture and that was it. Over the two days I fantasized more or less constantly about food, imagining giant burritos and greasy oversize pieces of pizza on parade. I even went so far as to imagine what it would be like to take a bite, relishing the thought of biting into the hot pizza feeling melted cheese and and tomato sauce squish between my teeth and the pull of softened crust ripping apart. My imagination was definitely busy, however I also had some rare quiet moments where I wasn't thinking about food and my stomach was quiet.

On the way home I was so desperate for food that I scarfed down the first thing that was unfortunate enough to get in my way, which happened to be a super-processed blueberry muffin from the gas station. So that was obviously a bad choice, but even still I was surprised at how disappointed I was after the first bite so I kept trying it until the whole thing was gone. Despite ample amounts of sugar and fat, the muffin left me feeling completely unsatisfied. And it wasn't just the muffin; lots of things that I tried just weren't what I remembered. The real thing wasn't living up to my fantasies and I wasn't as starved as I had thought I was.

It wasn't that I couldn't enjoy food anymore, far from that in fact, but I was suddenly aware of how craving food wasn't the same as enjoying it. I noticed that when I had cravings, I was building up all kinds of expectations around the experience of eating the food and these expectations clouded the actual experience of tasting, chewing and eating. On top of that the experience didn't satisfy the craving. Eating the muffin left me just as unsatisfied as the pizza would have. 

Fasting helped me to enjoy and savor food as it was and also realize how much time I spend thinking about food, which I guess isn't a bad thing in itself but can be distracting. I was amazed at how much just a couple of days of only ingesting liquids would change my perspective.

However not long after the fast, I reverted to old habits. I have to say that I don't always take time to savor the food I eat and still cave in to cravings.
So I think it is time for another go.
I am curious to see what the next experience will bring.

I plan on researching some different fasts and cleanses to see which one is best for me and I will be posting during the process. 

Until then, bon appétit!

Ahimsa: Non-violence

It's summer and just like us humans, taking walks in the park and lying in the sun, most living things are thriving right about now. For the most part we appreciate this. Sweet regionally-grown strawberries. An orchestra of tweeting birds waking us every morning. Soft grass to walk barefoot in.

There are unfortunately some pests which also thrive in the summer. Uninvited they find their way into your bedroom at night and buzz around your ear, bite you and laugh at you as you clumsily try to slap them away only hitting yourself. Mosquitoes! I would normally have no problem swatting a mosquito. Its you or me buddy. But, after a few years of practicing yoga and delving deeper into the practice, I look at this scenario in a new light.

Yoga is the result of thousands of years of people using themselves as guinea pigs to finally liberate themselves from normal human suffering. Yoga is broken down into eight limbs or stages of which only the third stage is asana (posture), or the part yoga which we most often practice in the western world. The first stage is actually yama, universal moral commandments, and the first of these commandments is ahimsa, or non-violence. So, the very first thing we can start doing to riding ourselves of suffering is clearing violence from our lives.

If you are like me, you are probably not very violent. You probably don't get into fist fights regularly and you probably don't kick your dog, but according to B.K.S. Iyengar, one of the world's foremost teachers, violence is more than just an act, but also a state of mind. It can be inflicted with words or intentions directed towards others or oneself. Additionally, non-violence is not just a negative or passive state, but also includes active love and compassion.

Some yogis take ahimsa to an extreme and live in isolation, doing everything in their power to make sure that their lives do not cause any violence or death to any other species, even wearing a clothe over their mouths to prevent insects from dying in their mouths. I can't say that I agree with that interpretation but I do think that practicing non-violence and having love and compassion for all other living things (or at least trying) will make your life better. So, I try to do that in how I treat others (including animals/plants) and myself and I feel better for that.

Now back to that pesky mosquito problem... I ended up getting a mosquito net to hang over my bed, but I can't say that the spiders, who have also moved in, follow yogic teachings. Good luck little guy! I sincerely wish you the best, now that I can get some sleep.

For more on the eight limbs of yoga and ahimsa in particular, you can check out B.K.S. Iyengar's book Light on Yoga for a good overview. In his book he also demonstrates something like a million poses which will amaze and mystify you.

Side Note: In Germany its not that common to put screens on your windows so in summer my apartment becomes a lively ecosystem of buzzing, flying and biting friends.  

Capellini Pasta with Peppers Recipe

It was hot today! Im talking 30 degrees celcius HOT (86 degrees fahrenheit)! Some of you might not be that impressed (especially my sister who lives in the dessert), so please keep in mind that for 80 percent of the year Hamburg has pretty shitty weather. It is the kind of humbug weather that might drive someone to go to the tanning bed just to heave themselves out of a deep rain/cloud/drizzle-induced depression.  So here we are with gorgeous weather and we don't have the slightest idea what to do with ourselves.

I am hungry and tired of eating bread and butter. Hmmm. In this kind of weather cold pasta dishes sound great to me. I flipped through my Ayurveda cookbook, Heaven's Banquet by Miriam Kasin Hospodar, and found just thing, Capellini with Peppers (p.263). My boyfriend was already in the process of making a pizza for lunch so I took advantage of an already warm oven to roast the peppers early in the afternoon and then give them time to cool. With the peppers roasted, the rest of the preparation only took about 20 minutes.

The recipe is intended for 6 to 8 servings (definitely the case) so it makes a lot and it tastes sensational. It really allowed the natural flavors of the fresh summer vegetables and herbs to shine through. It is definitely not my fault if I am forced to binge eat... it's just too damn good. Below is a slightly adapted version of the recipe found in the book.

Ingredients:

Roasting the Peppers
4 bell peppers (mix and match)
Olive oil
Salt

Pasta
12 ounces dried Capellini

Sauce
3 tablespoons ghee or butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove minced garlic
8 oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and finely chopped
1/4 cup (60 ml) torn fresh basil
1/4 cup (60 ml) minced fresh flat-leaf parsley (FYI parsley is good for all three doshas. Click here for more information on Ayurveda doshas)

Topping
1/4 cup (25 g) grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
Salt and black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Coat bell peppers with olive oil and a bit of salt and then spread them out on a baking sheet. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring once or twice and removing once tender.
2. Cook the pasta al dente and drain.
3. Melt the butter or ghee and with the olive oil in a sauce pan. Add the garlic and saute for about 30 seconds when the garlic is fragrant. Then turn off the heat and add the tomatoes, roasted peppers, basil and parsley.
4. Toss the vegetables and Parmesan with the pasta in a serving bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately or chilled.
5. Take a picture with your phone and post it on Instagram!

Enjoy!!

Simple Ingredients for Home-made Cleaning Solutions

After moving to Germany and starting a graduate program at the university, I was pretty broke... well, real broke. So, of course I tried to cut expenses as much as possible and opted for the cheapest thing on the shelf instead of the eco-friendly andor higher quality products. 

The day I impulsively grabbed an all-purpose cleaner in a bright, and I mean bright, pink plastic bottle off the shelf, I felt a little guilty and even slightly alarmed by the way the obnoxious color seemed to hint at the toxicity of its chemical contents. I used this cleaner for months, despite its nauseating artificial scent (comparable to likes of pine tree air fresheners) and the fact that my skinned burned after using it.

DIY Cleaning Solution: Vinegar and Water

Finally, I'd had enough. With a little searching online I quickly found a wonderful solution. Vinegar. Vinegar is an amazing liquid with a variety of uses in addition to making salads and pickling veggies. I soon started making a vinegar and water solution that I have used to clean the kitchen and bathroom. 

A friend sent me a link to the Zero Waste Home blog some great recipes for all kinds of things, and that recipe includes castile soap to cover up the sour smell that vinegar can leave. Due to my laziness perhaps and an only half-way attempt at finding castile soap in Germany I decided to just use vinegar and water. It works fine for me and it is cheap! The smell sticks around for a day or two but I barely notice it anymore.

Vinegar Also Kills Mold :)

An added bonus of using a vinegar/water solution in your bathroom is that it is the arch enemy of mold. As a person living in Hamburg, Germany, this is a god-send. For some reason, the humid and cool weather make it some kind of paradise for all varieties of mold. As somewhat of a self-made mold exterminator I have come to appreciate vinegar on a whole new level.

Use Gloves When Cleaning

The one draw-back of vinegar is that it does dry out your skin so feel free to use gloves when cleaning and then a healthy portion of hand lotion (coconut oil) afterward. 

Coconut Oil: Moisturizing + Better Stir-fry

We know that the additives and preservatives, added to our food and cosmetics to give them a longer shelf-life, are if not out-right toxic, unhealthy and unnecessary. We don't want to ingest or absorb toxins and so sometimes we are motivated and patient enough to read the ingredients at the supermarket or drug store. Then comes the inevitable moment when you are on your third tube of hand cream and you still find at least three or four words you have never heard of and couldn't even begin to pronounce. AND those were sadly the 'natural' brands. Hey, it's not their fault... to give these manufacturers the benefit of a doubt, they are shipping these products hundreds of miles to sit on a store shelf for days or weeks or months and want to make sure you get a fresh product. But, hey, this isn't working.

Like many others, I like finding simple, pure alternatives and luckily there are loads of websites out their offering tips and recipes for pretty much any kind of concoction you are interested in making. Because it's summer and because I have skin that tends to be dry I have been very much interested in finding a natural moisturizer. For the last three years or so I have used jojoba oil, which is wonderful because it is easily absorbed by your skin (i.e. you won't look like a body builder), it washes out of clothes and you can even use it sparingly on your hair.

All was well, but then I found a new concoction, Shea Body Butter, that I have every intention of making. It looks and sounds delicious and I kind of want to eat it, but who knows when I will actually get around to making it. A friend then suggested that I just buy some coconut oil and use that instead. She could say from experience that it was really good moisturizer. So, I bought some cooking coconut oil and have since used it for both moisurizing and cooking. The cooking coconut oil is by the way cheaper than the stuff intended for the skin even though both should be 100% coconut oil.

The result is that my stir-fry is tastier and my skin softer. Aside from the fact that I want to eat my arm when I put it on I can see no downsides. The jar was about 3,50/4 euros and looks like it will last a long-time in the fridge. Chilled coconut oil will melt in your hand as you rub it in and it seems to be a little thicker than jojoba oil and better for drier skin. And in case I haven't emphasized this enough... it's delicious!

Rapunzel Kokosöl is the brand I bought (I live in Germany).
  

Getting Back on the Horse

Its not Monday and you are still having a tough time getting out of bed. You are tired even though you think you are getting enough sleep. You are eating right and exercising consistently, but something isn't exactly right.

I have had the opportunity to take yoga classes with some teachers that I respect a great deal both as teachers and as yogis. These teachers have trained for years in not only Hatha yoga, or the postures and movement we commonly know as yoga, but also in exercises of the breath and the mind including self-restraint and meditation. They radiate peace and contentment and serve as sources of inspiration for their students.

As students we tend to see these yogis as perfect, as the end game. However they all seem to agree on the fact that even at an advanced state of their practice they are not left in an unwavering state of peace, and that they sometimes still 'fall off the horse' or go through difficult periods in their lives. The difference that years of yoga has made is that it just doesn't take them as long 'to get back on.' The world will still throw us off our horse. We will still experience pain, loss and suffering but we do yoga in order to have the mental and spiritual resiliency to come back to a place of contentment quicker and with fewer bruises.

So, we cannot expect to be free of low points. We just have to learn how to be present with these moments and patient with ourselves. Our yoga practice (or whatever it is you do to exercise your mind, body and spirit) is there to leave us better equipped to handle all kinds of challenges.

P.S. I realized that this post started out sounding like a Prozac commercial... woops... my real intention couldn't be farther from that.

Releasing Tension in the Upper Back

We sit sometimes for 8 hours straight without taking even a few minutes to take a walk or stretch the arms and legs. We know that this is unhealthy and even though we are really aware of it when we are on an airplane, we totally ignore this unhealthy lack of movement while in the office. Ok, your office is not at 20,000 ft but still, you need to get your blood moving and you need to somehow counter any tension that is due to stress and/or just plain bad posture. By bad posture I mean while sitting in front of your computer your upper back is rounded, shoulders hunched, neck extended and chin jutting out (your body looks like a 'c'). I know this posture from experience and it will leave some aches and pains.

So get up. Take off your high heels or loafers and place your feet parallel and hip distance apart. Make sure you have a wall close behind you so as to shield yourself from any unflattering or unprofessional displays of your backside. Then bend your knees slightly and fold over your legs so that your arms and head are hanging loosely. It is important to make sure that your head and arms are heavy (shake your head 'yes' and 'no' to make sure your neck is loose) so that you can  relax the place between your shoulder blades and feel a wonderful release of tension. You can hang here for about 30 seconds or as long as it feels comfortable and then slowly roll your body up into a standing position. You can repeat this calming stretch throughout the day.

The standing forward bend as described above (known as Uttanasana in Yoga) is great for releasing tension in the back especially in the upper back, shoulders and neck. Keep the knees bent if your fingers do not reach the floor or straighten the legs if your fingers do reach the floor and the lower back is able to release. If straightening the legs is not comfortable for the lower back, keep the knees bent.

This is just one of many stretches that will help to improve your work day. More to come.... and always remember to breath!

For more information on Uttanasana click here. FYI this is a yoga website and those in the picture are usually abnormally flexible.    

What the Hell is a Burnout?

Living in Germany, I get the opportunity to learn some new English vocabulary. Crazy, right? I have not just learned English words I have never heard before ('handy' as a noun), I have learned new definitions for words that I thought I knew ('shitstorm').Whether or not this should or shouldn't take place is irrelevant, as I am sure this is taking place all over the world as we speak. In any case it is a 'mind-fuck,' as I personally like to call it, for any native English speaker.

'Burnout' is one of these words that I started to hear a lot that didn't sit right with me. Of course I am not the ultimate authority on English but where I am from we almost always used this in reference to sports. When a player has played a sport too often and no longer enjoys playing, he or she is burned out. I suppose it could also be used in reference to work but with the same underlying meaning. In Germany I have found that the definition has expanded significantly. It can encompass sleep disruption, depression, dizziness, depression and anxiety among other symptoms. As far as I gather it is a relatively new concept and it includes a variety of symptoms with the cause most often being the job. 

This was really interesting to me because a burnout, though of course undesirable, is seen as an acceptable condition that must be treated. It does not mean that someone is then forever labelled as crazy. It is actually a legitimate reason for someone to take time off of work to improve their mental health and then later return as a rejuvenated and healthy person. 

The best translation I can think of for this is a mental break-down. However a break-down is not something that you can easily come back from. You have crossed a line that may label you forever as an unstable person. Thus the options are limited for an American experiencing anxiety and depression. If we absolutely must take time off of work to treat these things, it is shameful so we would never tell our co-workers or boss. So we are forced to continue on with our everyday lives, often abstaining from treatment that might make us healthier happier and better workers/partners/friends etc. 

The reason for this disparity is of course not the vocabulary, but rather different cultural perceptions of mental health. I think that Americans in general are not totally on board with whole body health. We often ignore the mental factor completely, which is unfortunate because I believe that this keeps us from contentment. Thankfully there have been quite a few health movements in the USA recently and with traditions like yoga that focus on whole-body health, I think more people will start to pay more attention to their own mental health.

  

Detox with Lemon Water

Remember when ordering lemon wedges in your water indicated to all other diners that they were in the presence of sophistication? Well, maybe we were on to something. Of course it adds a nice dash of flavour to your otherwise tasteless glass of water, but it's not just that. Lemon water is detoxifying and has numerous health benefits according to a wealth of different sources, both ancient and current.

According to Ayurveda, the ancient Indian health science, lemons are particularly healthy and even healing because they help to stimulate digestion. It is suggested to drink water with a little lemon juice and some honey (optional) daily to clean out any deposits caused by improperly digested food. Ayurveda texts make a point to highlight the fact that the lemons should be fresh and tree-ripened (lemons don't ripen after picked) to receive the full effects. Otherwise lemons are sprayed with harmful chemicals to make sure they look like we think they should.

More current sources on the health-giving properties of lemons almost all agree that lemons are antibacterial and antiviral, cleansing for the liver and aid in losing weight. It is recommended to drink a glass of lemon water the very first thing in the morning. Click here for an article on 15 health benefits of lemons.

For the last few months I have been trying to drink a glass of lemon water every morning and though I have no evidence that my liver is any happier or that I am healthier for it, but still I love it. It tastes great and I do feel better after drinking my morning lemon water. It is refreshing and if it is a placebo than it is a damn good one.  

Growing Things

If you can remember back to second grade when you grew a bean sprout in a plastic bag with a wet paper towel, maybe you can remember the sheer amazement of seeing the white head poke out of the bean. You found it so magical that you checked it multiple times a day. Growing Seeds in a Bag and More

As an adult I still get that feeling, but living in the city with only a balcony as immediate access to the outside world and  'nature,' my growing possibilities are limited. However I am absolutely satisfied with my indoor plants (a banana tree and its offspring) and my indoor/outdoor potted herbs. 

I love to stick my nose in the herbs, take a big whiff and think, "wow, that smells just like basil!" It is pretty silly but I was only introduced to fresh herbs in my adult years and am still amazed that these things exist in nature and were not concocted in some factory. Anyway, I love to cook with the herbs and use them for tea all while knowing how healthy and organic they are. In addition to that, the fact that I grew something brings me a feeling of accomplishment and responsibility. I even get worried when my plants don't seem to be getting the right amount of sunlight or water. 

Maybe those are some nurturing mother instincts in me or maybe someday you will see me, the grumpy old woman shouting at little kids to stop playing ball on her lawn. In any case, growing things makes me feel good and I'm gonna keep doing it.

Lay Off the Jalapeños - Giving Your Body the Diet It Wants

I love food. I love talking about it. I love learning about it and I love tasting it. Over the last few years I have also learned to value it in a way that I hadn't before. I want to know how food makes me feel and what kind of lasting effects it has on my body.

As a yoga teacher I have trained myself to be attuned to the mental and physical fluctuations of my personal health and to become my own little mad scientist. I have an experimental spirit so it comes easy to me to play with food combinations and observe my physical reactions to them. Plus, there are some things that I already know about myself that I have known for a long time, like No Jalapeños! However sometimes, I still ignore my own hard-won knowledge and have a second cup of coffee or add a couple dashes of hot sauce. The thought is so exciting it is irresistible, but inevitably it is a Bad Idea.

This kind of close attention to your body can get you pretty far in terms of learning what your body needs and what it only begrudgingly digests. But you are not on your own. There are plenty of sources of wisdom to guide you including your doctor, Ayurveda (the ancient Indian health science), innumerable websites and your aunt Sally. Much of the time these sources all happily agree and sometimes they totally don't, which is why the first step is to get to know yourself first so that you can follow your internal compass and lay off the jalapeños!