Tuesday, 13 October 2020
Weight: 56.7 kg
I woke up at 6:15am but stayed in bed until 6:30am, practicing abdominal breathing. After the migraine attack last night I was anxious it would repeat and abdominal breathing helps to calm the nervous system down.
After my usual morning cleansing routine + face massage and warm water, I head down to my living room for my yoga practice. I am teaching a yoga class tonight so after a gentle warm up I practice tonight's sequence. I like to do this before my classes, it brings my attention to any particular nuances that I would like my students to focus on during the class. My breathing practice today is Nadi Shodhana, alternate nostril breathing. It is an amazing pranayama technique that helps balance the nervous system and hormones, infuses the body with oxygen, reduces stress and anxiety, amongst other more subtle benefits. My meditation and mantra practice take 40 minutes so my overall practice this morning was two hours.
I didn't have dinner last night so felt quite hungry this morning. Breakfast was oat porridge with a handful of raisins and a little maple syrup as sweetener at 9:30am. It was very filling and I ended up working for a couple of hours straight on my laptop after that. I had a snack at 11:30am, which was an apple but I was drinking plenty of hot liquids all morning, including the ginger immunity support elixir mixed with water, so I didn't feel very hungry. Working from home means I can be more flexible so I head for my shower at 12 noon.
My class is at 7pm today so I opt for a late'ish lunch at 3pm. Lunch is the same as yesterday - a mung bean soup. It is slightly different in flavour, however, as I make and add my home made Garam Masala spice to it.
I love roasting and mixing spices - it makes me feel like an alchemist and slightly witchy :-)
Today I am also preparing chapattis and cook quinoa instead of rice. I mix it with some greens and roasted sweet potatoes + carrots and make a quick dressing with roasted spices, lime and ginger. I end up with a spiced quinoa salad! The lunch is delicious, filling and colourful! I am having my ayurvedic herbs after lunch today - normally, I have them in the morning. It is a combination of brahmi, neem, guggul and guduchi. I take all of my herbs in powder form, I like to taste the herbs and, ayurvedically, this helps faster absorption. The herbs help support and strengthen my immune system, detoxify the body and keep my nervous system and hormones balanced and in check. I also take a daily dose of Chyawanprash, an Ayurvedic jam that has so many benefits, including immune support, rejuvenation, strength building, digestive and urinary health.
It's 5pm and it is back to work, aka back on my laptop. I am developing two new projects at the moment and I am super excited about both of them! I manage to go for a short walk at around 5pm and have a small snack of baked quince at 5:30pm. I skip dinner again today as I am teaching a yoga class at 7pm and will not get home until almost 9pm. But I do not feel hungry anyway as I had my lunch relatively late. One thing I do take before I head for bed, is a teaspoon of triphala steeped in hot water. Again, this is something that I do religiously every night and it has improved my digestion incredibly in the last few years. Thinking of my digestion now, it is hard to believe that only a few years ago I suffered with digestive issues and constipation. Triphala is considered to be one of the most important herbs in Ayurveda. In fact, Dr Vasant Lad states that if you are going to take only one ayurvedic herb in your life, make it triphala. It really is a wonder herb and I can see why.
I fall asleep late tonight, 11:30pm, which is normal for me after a yoga class. My mind gets quite active and takes a while for me to wind down. Again, abdominal breathing is something that I like to practice when I feel that my mind becomes too busy. It works every time.