Gifts of the Summer Season

The worlds spins on, seasons change, our beautifully adaptable bodies and distracted minds keep moving in our own routine ways. Nature is always going to keep creating - we can tune out, or we can lean in.

Summer is reaching out to me this year and pulling me into its flow, and I’m leaning in. Or maybe my practice is “working.” Or a bit of both - either way, as summer speaks, and I am listening. I feel aware of the subtle day to day changes as the solstice draws near. The fireflies danced in my front yard in Tennessee for the first time on May 27th. I went for a walk at 8pm last night. I feel kinda hot and heavy all of the time. The fruit tastes sweeter. Play, creativity, and inspiration are alive.

Elements, themes, and gifts of summer + how to align with them to optimize health and energy |

Ayurveda

Ayurveda is an ancient study of life that implements healing treatments, practices, and diets to align your body with nature. It is a vast practice and approach, its own universe really. Aligning and healing your body with nature starts with self-awareness and understanding your dosha -your body’s unique energy, your digestive fire. Maybe you thrive in the summer, or do you feel like you can never cool off or escape the sun? Understaning your bodily make up through Ayurveda helps keep you balanced in the elements of each season. There are three doshas: Vata, Pitta and Kapha and each has its own elemental association. Summer is Pitta season.

Vata: air and space - typical for agile thinkers and busy bodies.

Pitta (summer !!): fire and water - represented in dynamic, productive, impactful individuals.

Kapha: earth and water - seen in those with a deep, steady, natural, flowy energy

Every person has one dominant dosha, and a little bit of the other two. The balancing of doshas with nature impact healthy digestion, energy, sleep and mind, and allows you to build an awareness and responsibility of your own health. Knowing your body’s energetic state can help you prepare for seasons of balance and imbalance. For example, summer is Pitta season, so if you are Pitta dominant, you’ll want to implement habits and diets that will help you enjoy summer qualities rather than over-accumulate them. It’s one of those health modalities that just makes so much sense. There’s no “woo woo” to Ayurveda, it’s a science that has been used for over 3,000 years.

There are so many layers to health and wellness, and it always comes down to your own body/biological individuality. Ayurveda isn’t a guide of dos and don’ts, it’s a guide in balance. It’s about working with your body, your life, and the seasons to increase energy and immunity, naturally.

Take this quiz to learn your dosha. I know a new wellness practice can feel overwhelming at first, so remember to start small and stay consistent.

Podcast on Ayurveda - Why isn’t Everyone Doing This? by my meditation teacher, Emily Fletcher, featuring Ayurveda expert Amish Shah.

Sun & Fire

With the sun providing longer days this season, we are gifted warmth, nourishment and what feels like a few extra hours in the day. Try shaking up your routine to follow suite! Pick up an evening hobby, weekly gathering or sport, or enjoy more post-dinner walks (so good for digestion). Be sure you’re hydrating with cool or room-temperature water (ice disrupts digestive fire and is not as hydrating).

Movement/Energy

Pitta is balanced with grounding and relaxing when it comes to energy. The summer season is already requiring more of our energy, so avoid over-exertion, and balance your work outs and movement practices with ease like meditation and un-heated yoga (I know a girl for that). If you can, plan for your highest exertion in the early morning when the air is cooler and crisp.

Seasonal Foods and Digestion

To best align with the nature of your digestion this season, have slightly smaller meals. Lean toward cool, mineral-rich, liquid/hydrating, even slightly oily foods like fresh fruits, greens, and sweet dairy products such as milk, butter, ghee , cottage cheese, and fresh homemade yogurt. I always say, “do what you can in the season that you’re in.” Organic, whole foods is ideal, but do what you can with what you have.

Lifestyle

Love your body, get outside, sweat, swim, dance, eat from the earth, put your feet in the water and on the ground, enjoy life.