Last Sunday we set our clocks back and temperatures quickly plummeted giving us a taste of winter. I don’t know about you but I wasn’t ready. I’m a spring and summer gal through and through. There is beauty in the dark/cold season but I’ll be the first to admit that it has taken me many years to embrace it. I sat down to write about what has helped me, and many of my clients, to shift our relationship with the dark/cold season. The floodgates opened when I started though and I’ve decided that this will be part one of a three part series. I want to honor your time and realize it’s tough to read a long blog in one sitting. So here’s to warmth and nourishing food and drink for today!
Warmth
I cannot stress enough how important it is to dress warmly when the temperature drops. It’s like building a house with adequate insulation so that the furnace or stove doesn’t need to pump out more heat than is necessary to keep the place warm. If our bodies have to expend a lot of energy to keep our body temperatures stable then they are taxed unnecessarily. I have come to love wrapping my neck in a wool cowl and even wear hats inside a lot. Being, predominately, a vata woman I tend to get cold pretty fast and I find I’m a lot happier when I’m nice and toasty. One of my teacher’s Dina Falconi practices and recommends wrapping the area around the kidneys with a cloth, like a big scarf. This is a traditional practice used both in cold climates and in some cultures to care for women after birth. It can be very soothing to the adrenals which sit directly above the kidneys. I recently came across a lovely website that sells wraps. The company is located in in the UK but is happy to ship to the US. You can read more about wraps or order one through Cherishing Woman.
Nourishing Food and Drink
So many of us rush through a breakfast of toast or cereal, throw down a salad for lunch and wait until dinner to eat a hearty meal. There is a primal need for our bodies to know that they are not starving and that type of eating can send “freak out” messages to the brain. There is an energy to winter that can stress our psyche about knowing if we will survive on a cellular level. Before stores existed if our ancestors had not properly stashed enough food and medicine away for the dark/cold season the reality was that it would be a lot harder to make it through to spring. In all seasons it can be very taxing if we do not keep our blood sugar balanced, but I have observed that it is much more stressful to our systems in winter.
There is a traditional Chinese saying that Paul Bergner shared with me which says “eat like a queen/king for breakfast, a princess/prince for dinner and a peasant for dinner.” In our culture we tend to turn this around as we are running through so many activities in a day that it can be hard to really feed ourselves well. I used to eat the SAD way (Standard American Diet) but I can say with much conviction that my life changed dramatically when I switched to eating whole foods, based on seasonal availability and made sure to incorporate an adequate amount of healthy fats and oils. It’s so important to give our bodies what they crave to keep up with the demands of the day, starting in the morning.
This is a time for eating foods that are cooked and warm so that our bodies can digest them easily. Consider eggs with sauteed greens and a pinch of fermented veggies for breakfast. If that is not your thing, then maybe you’d enjoy a bowl of slow cooked oatmeal with some coconut or dairy cream (if you tolerate it), cinnamon, berries and nuts. Think about replacing that lunchtime salad with soup or cooked greens paired with one of your favorite sources of protein. Dinner is a great time to check in and see what fruit and vegetable color groups weren’t represented in your day of eating and throw them into a stir fry to eat over your favorite grain or protein noodles.
I don’t want to forget to address how much we can benefit from warm drinks! Broth can be an amazing and nutritious elixir to sip from a mug in the upcoming months. I either make my own or buy it from the frozen section of my local health food store, Health & Nutrition Center. Teas made from hearty herbs like nettles and milky oats can be steeped overnight and strained in the morning. I like to make a half gallon jar’s worth at a time and store it in the fridge after steeping so that I can warm as desired. It will last a few days in the refrigerator. If you like warming herbs and spices it’s lovely to drink ginger, cinnamon, cardamom–think traditional chai spices. They encourage good circulation and digestion, not to mention they are fragrant and delicious. Wrapping your cold hands around your favorite mug, hot from the delicious beverage it holds, is the perfect antidote to the dark and cold.
I hope these ideas help you to nourish yourself in the cold. If you need recipes, herbal teas or tinctures or crave some one on one time to co-create a plan to help you fully embrace your health goals please reach out. It’s still possible to sign up for the Seasonal Wellness Package if you’d like to have more structured monthly support to bring you through to spring. I’ll be in touch soon with some more of my favorite ways to keep your light shining when it’s hard to feel the sun. Until then, take good care!
With Love,
