Holistic wellness is about mind-body-community wellness. Explore our thought pieces on a number of important lifestyle topics that we hope may spark some inspiration on your journey.
2018 was a year of exploring ayurveda & wellness basics, cleansing and routines. Since then, there’ve been some requests for a few other specific topics which have now become sessions for 2019!
The topics we plan to cover this year will range from ayurvedic philosophy, ayurvedic lifestyle tips and routines, beauty care, gut health, general wellness, mindfulness as well as an all new set of workshops on stress management using ayurveda and yoga.
Read MoreThe start of a brand-new year brings with it the promise of new beginnings, growth, change and good times. While our personal perspectives of the times we’ve left behind may be very different based on the experiences leading to them, most ‘bags’ of experience come with a mix of good, bad, ‘meh’, bizarre or more (insert your word here!)… and the natural tendency afterwards is to push ourselves to increase/ replicate/ decrease/ erase these experiences.
The sentiment to consider in this instance is ‘push’. When we push, we force our energy into what I call the ‘must-have’ zone. The issue with this is if that one thing isn’t reached, it typically creates a sense of lack or disappointment (or similar). That’s not to say that purpose, direction and goals aren’t important; rather, it’s our approach that makes the difference.
With this in mind, instead of the ‘must have zone’ or that one thing, I have decided to take on the yogic approach of adopting a ‘sankalpa’ for 2019, which is similar to an intention. For instance, when life becomes about managing a whole lot of moving parts – family and friends, jobs, relationships, finances, bucket lists (in no particular order!) - most of us tend to multitask for efficiency in juggling these. The end result (typically) is less presence, more detachment, more anxiousness and lesser enjoyment of the ‘journey’ and the task. So this year, I intend on doing less, to do more.
Check out this blog post below with a few more of my thoughts on how to get more done in a day while staying balanced, relaxed and content..
Read MoreAh, Melbourne. Just when we prepared (and hoped for) for a warm, crisp summer, the days become erratic and unpredictable, leaving us all guessing and on our toes. Hot and dry days followed by humidity and wetness, stormy days and jacket weather, and then sunshine again.
How do we adjust to this? I’ve had clients come in with headaches, dry skin, flaky scalps, skin eruptions, feeling frazzled and then other feeling sluggish, heavy and lethargic. It’s challenging to know how to stay balanced when things are all over the place.
The trick is to take it day by day. E.g. avoid kapha aggravating foods on the wet and cold days – e.g. heavy, cold and overly sweet or oily (smoothies, avocado, ripe bananas, rich desserts)…. And avoid vata and pitta aggravating foods on the hot and dry days (popcorn, chilli, too much coffee)…
Then, to manage the erratic energy around you:
Gift experiences and not things this season, with an Ayurvedic Health consultation, uplifting herbal massage or oil treatment, Private Yoga Classes or some Ayurvedic herbal goodies. Give the gift of wellness 🤲🏽
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Contact us to place orders and we will be happy to post these pretty little cards out to you or the recipient. Messages can be customised, to include description only plus greeting.
Read MoreBalancing asanas can bring an amazing sense of freedom, strength and discipline but can be challenging – mostly for the mind. We pick a point to focus on but then the mental commentary starts, and rattles us!
Quite often we hear a lot of utterances of annoyance and frustration around us at this part of the practice too. Digging a bit deeper, this reveals a lot about our mental commentary or sense of ‘ahimsa’ (non-violence) toward ourselves, not just in practice,` but also in daily life. Practicing Ahimsa is one of the foundations of a well rounded yoga practice, and bringing our awareness to how this can be tested helps us develop not just our practice but also our inner peace and resilience.
Ayurveda reveres fire or agni - it is the metaphor for all metabolic functions in the body. Agni plays a vital role in our digestion, perception, taste, touch, hearing, sense of vitality, mental clarity and alertness. When agni and the functions it supports are balanced it brings about a beneficial state of health. We are sharper, clearer, more energetic and strong and feel more cheerful, confident and optimistic. When agni is imbalanced we typically feel an imbalanced state of health – heavy, slow, congested, sluggish, dull and experiencing frustration, anger, and fear.
A typical summer season in Melbourne brings intense heat and dryness mixed up with days of cold and rainy weather. This erratic weather can lead to aggravations of your doshas (elemental balance) particularly vata and pitta in your body, leading to fatigue, dizziness, inflammation and headaches with the heat and patterns of dry skin, dry lips, flare-ups of dry eczema, dry coughs and cracked soles of the feet with the dryness.
Ayurveda teaches us to live in unison with this time of year rather than fight it by adjusting lifestyle, habits, food and drink, exercise, yoga and breathing to bring about major shifts to well being.
Here are some key things to remember in keeping the doshas in check from a dietary and lifestyle perspective…
Read MoreOne of the pillars of the ayurvedic philosophy is following a routine of daily activities (dinacarya) to facilitate regular clearing of accumulated toxins from the body and optimising health on a consistent, daily basis to avoid large scale build ups. Let’s look at how some of these good daily habits can be incorporated in to our lives in alignment with the current Spring season.
Spring in Australia takes place during the three transition months between Winter and Summer running from September to November. It is typically a time of increased warmth and wetness mixed with the residual cold of winter, as it thaws and melts away. Generally, the early stage of Spring is colder (on balance) and the middle to end of Spring is warmer as it edges closer to Summer.
Read MoreWe've had a number of chats about back, neck & shoulder aches and pains with clients in the last few weeks. Aside from being due to a specific injury, this may be due to an accumulation of tension in the area over time, stemming from poor posture. This includes how we sit, stand, sleep and carry our frames in general.
During colder months in particular, posture is impacted by us tightening up and contracting muscles to protect it from cold. The next time you are walking outside, pay attention to your shoulders and back. Many of us move the shoulders up towards the ears, ‘balling up’ and pulling inwards. This moves our upper body and neck area out of alignment leading to back and neck pains over time.
One of the core principles of ayurveda is that 'like increases like'. Winter and that time in-between Winter and Spring when the cold is ‘melting’ is a time of year when the water and earth element are most dominant in nature - this is why we feel cold, heavy and blue and the incidence of phlegm, mucus, coughs and colds increase. If you are prone to these ailments and are thinking of a more natural route to healing this year, here are some handy guidelines…
Read MoreMelbourne experienced an erratic autumn with very hot days and smatterings of cold, wet and windy days. This weather may have led to aggravations of Pitta and Vata in your body and we may have experienced everything from migraines, dizziness, inflammation and fatigue on the hot days and dry skin, dry lips and eyes, cracking joints, flare-ups of eczema, dry coughs and bloating and constipation in the peak of Autumn, leading to more colds, phlegm, runny noses, headaches, fatigues, lethargy and weight gain as we get closer to winter.
Why does this happen? How do can you prevent it in the upcoming Winter Season and stay balanced and healthy all year round?
Consultations and ayurvedic wellness plans
Massage and specialised treatments
Yoga and Meditation
Workshops and classes
Read MoreFeeling heavy, tired, lack energy, muzzy headed, have dull aches/pains, joint inflammation, gas, indigestion, bloating, skin blemishes, poor circulation, foul smells (breath, sweat, urine) or tired after eating?
If yes to a combination of these, and you're told nothing's wrong you may be experiencing a build of a toxic substance called 'ama’. In Ayurveda this is defined as a build up of undigested waste from food, emotions, or the environment.
Embracing a rare bit of sunshine on a winter's day is a simple way to remain present, connect with and pay respects to nature, and get yourself a healthy dose of vitamin D! This is known as the Sunshine Vitamin, helping to maintain bone health, protect against heart disease, diabetes, and reduce pain, depression and bring about better sleep. 🌞
Read MoreAround two years ago I had a full time corporate job, taught yoga on some weeknights and worked at a busy Ayurvedic clinic on the weekends and felt unfulfilled. I am a naturally energetic person and had very full days but I felt like I was not doing enough despite feeling exhausted at the end of the day. This unrest led me to look inwards, and I had a sense that my ‘dharma’ - my purpose - was starting to beckon me to change things up and pursue something bigger than myself and my ‘Five Year Plan’.
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