BRING ON THE MELTDOWN

Namaste Yogis and Yoginis,

This morning I walked out my door and was greeted by a patch of little white flowers determined to bloom. How they burst out of the frozen ground always amazes me. This is what I love about nature. It's a constant reminder that we can rise and grow even in challenging conditions.

That change is always possible. In fact, change is the norm; just as the ebb into darkness is always eventually followed by a flow into lightness. Nothing is fixed. Winter's heaviness will soon melt and be washed away by spring.

While spring's transformative energy is no doubt on its way, we will first walk through the threshold where these two seasons mingle; weaving their qualities in and out of each other. Since spring is a time of increased warmth and wetness, and winter is predominantly cold and damp, we move through more muddy conditions (Kapha) before we can begin to bloom. And, what we do with the mud, will determine how we bloom.

How we care for ourselves now can help us optimize spring's regenerative powers. So in this Yogalicious newsletter and in each weekly blog on jillianpransky.com this month, I will share tips from my daily Spring Renewal routine. You'll receive recipes and recommendations to warm up your digestion, self-care routines to promote detoxification and elimination, and tools to perk up your mood and your mind. These simple practices will help you to begin the shift — and make room for change in your own daily routine as well as in your body and mind!

It’s been an intense winter — in so many ways — and I know we can all enjoy a boost of spring’s brighter energy.

With Warmth!

Jillian

MELTING IN THE MORNING

WAKE UP

According to Ayurveda self-care daily routines, setting your alarm for 6 is ideal to help begin the process of melting winter from your body and mind. Sleeping later will encourage a feeling of sluggishness and heaviness in your body and mind. Don't snooze, wake-up right up, brush your teeth, scrape your tongue, and drink some warm water first thing in the morning.

SCRAPE DOWN

Tongue scraping helps to remove the toxins and bacteria and eventually helps to support better digestion.

Use a stainless steel or copper tongue scraper (available at health food stores).

The instructions are usually on the package. Here are the basics:

Scrape gently but firmly
Go as far back as possible without gagging
Scrape forward several times, rinsing the white film off the scraper between each scraping
Clean and dry your scraper

DRINK UP

Follow your mouth routine with a cup of warm water with lemon.

Lemon water is known to help cleanse your digestive track and help initiate elimination. The sour taste helps to initiate your digestive fire first thing in the morning. To help me stick to my routine, I prepare my water with lemon before bed and put it in my bathroom, so it is there for me when I wake up.