Well, he's done it once again. My good friend Jesse completed his 30 day
cleanse, this time integrating some Ayurvedic wisdom and he has reported back
on how it went. I'd like to share some
of his experience. . .
* After a week
without caffeine and sugar, his energy level remained constant and stress level
remained low. He was better able to hear
when his body was hungry or thirsty and found himself not eating or drinking
when he really didn't need it.
* He is off the caffeine in the morning!!! Those are his exclamation points, not
mine. He's grown quite found of the
delicious master cleanse drink, a concoction of lemon, cayenne and some
sweetener, that he claims helps with phlegmy-ness in the morning and has been
drinking fresh ginger slices and hot water as an alternative to coffee. Both fantastic ideas for anyone wishing to
substitute coffee and/or move Kapha phlegm out in the morning.
* Jesse mixed up some Ayurvedic herbs, following my
instructions and found them painful to drink.
This is a common experience as many Ayurvedic herbs have a very bitter
taste that us Westerners are not used to in our diets. After taking Ayurvedic herbs on the regular
for the past several years I can say that you get used to the taste :)
* He tried three Ayurvedic daily rituals, the neti pot,
tongue scraper and abhyanga (oil massage before shower). While the neti pot is not his cup of tea due
to a general uncomfortable with water in his nasal passages and excessive
dampness, Kapha, he is sold on the tongue scraping and abhyanga. He did note that yes, morning ritual is time
consuming and I completely agree. My
philosophy: pay now or pay later! Also,
as you get more attuned to how you are doing on a daily bases, you know which
parts of the morning ritual you can skip and which ones you need to include to
stay in balance.
* As Jesse eschewed processed foods, he noticed that
sweetener is in all processed vegetarian food.
He says he is cooking a lot more with all fresh ingredients and this
helps him stay aware of the food he is actually eating, power of choice as well
as proportion.
* Finally, he thinks that it sounds like a good idea to have
a cleanse at the beginning of a season and I couldn't agree more!!! He says he
will definitely have this routine in January, and maybe again around the change
of seasons for summer. You go!!!
P.S. If you are
feeling the need for some Ayurvedic inspiration, Jesse recommends Tastes of Ayurveda
and The Modern Ayurvedic - both by Amrita Sondhi
