Why Do a Seasonal Detox?

I hope you had a fun summer. I hope you enjoyed celebrations, travel, vacation, BBQ, ice-cream, and exciting late nights with people you enjoy. know I did. Getting back into the swing of work and family life after a busy summer can be tough. If you played hard in the summer, it's possible that you put on a few extra pounds, let your healthy diet slip a little, and tended to stay up later than usual. When September comes around, you may feel exhausted rather than rested. If this is the case, then you may be starting the busy fall season from a place of health depletion rather than health abundance.

This is exactly why Ayurveda. the health tradition from India and the sister science of Yoga recommends doing a detox each spring and fall.

Even though I eat a healthy diet, get lots of exercise, and have good self-care practices, I'm not perfect. and I don’t live in a perfect world. I sometimes cut corners, especially in the summer months when I'm on vacation having fun. I don't want to be a perfect human, but I do want to be healthy. Because this is the case, I’m a great fan of doing a seasonal detox. I do a detox every fall and spring to reset my course toward higher health and get into a place of better integrity with my body and mind.

A seasonal detox in the fall is an opportunity to reset your body and your mind for health and well-being for greater health and immunity for the upcoming season.

Doing a seasonal detox will help you:

• Clear toxins from your mind and body.
• Shed unwanted pounds.
• Calm and settle your nervous system.
• Improve your digestion.
• Improve your sleep.
• Bolster your immune system.
• Rejuvenate your body, mind, and spirit.
• Set you on a course for healthier aging

Rid your body and mind of Toxins Ama is a term from the Ayurvedic wellness tradition that is defined as the undigested gunk that accumulates in the body and mind. These include physical and environmental toxins that might accumulate in our body from processed foods, poor quality foods, pesticides, environmental pollutants, and chemicals as well as mental and emotional toxins that might accumulate in our body and mind from over-busy schedules, stress, challenging relationships, too much media. It's pretty hard to lead a toxin-free life in this day and age, and that's why Ayurveda recommends detoxing twice a year.

Ama or toxins show up in a variety of ways.

• Toxins can show up in the body as creaky or inflamed joints, sluggishness, congestion, fuzzy thinking, poor memory, heaviness, weight gain or weight loss, lethargy, bloating, poor digestion, or unhealthy cravings.
• Toxins can show up in the mind as depression, worry, distraction, anxiety, or a feeling of dissatisfaction.
• Ama can show up in our behavior as emotional eating, drinking too much alcohol, drinking too much caffeine, numbing out with technology, over-spending, and getting insufficient sleep.

Did you accumulate some ama over the summer? Modern life is full of toxins, and that's why a seasonal detox is recommended in the early fall and again in the spring.

When we take the time to slow down, clean out, rejuvenate, and re-set, we can come back to ourselves and tune into who we are, where we are, and where we want to be. Taking time twice a year to reset and renew ourselves clears the ama from our systems and keeps us from living on automatic pilot, being over-busy, and perpetuating patterns and habits that aren’t in our best interest.

Hit the pause button and reset your course. A seasonal detox is a time to

• slow down
• clear your space
• focus on yourself
• get more rest
• eat more simply
• be reflective

What's involved?

When you detox, you simplify your calendar so that you put yourself first for a few weeks. During this time, you hone in on your diet, self-care, sleep and movement. You commit to eating simple, healthy, whole foods. You add in more whole grains, fruits, and vegetables and reduce or eliminate foods that can cause problems for your body such as processed foods, refined carbs, sugars, red meat, alcohol and caffeine. You commit to strengthening your Circadian rhythm by getting regular exercise, spending time outdoors, prioritizing sleep, avoiding late night device use, and generally becoming more mindful of your daily habits.

A detox not rocket science. A detox at its core is a return to healthy living. That sounds simple enough. And, conceptually it is simple. You could go it alone and be successful. But, humans are social creatures and we evolve faster in a group than we do on our own which is why detoxing with a guide and a community could make one's detox more successful.

If you are interested in joining my Fall Detox, I'd be happy to be your guide and invite you into a community of folks seeking higher health. Find the details here.