A recent article in Alive magazine got me thinking. What is self care? The medical definition refers to a patient’s ability to follow through with doctors’ orders. How will they be able to take the steps necessary to build health.
In modern marketing, self care has been used to peddle spa treatments, luxury shoes and exotic travel. Are these items, for example, necessary to health? They may be very pleasant and desirable but they don’t have any direct benefit to your organism.
This is where it is important to understand that self indulgence (what’s a little dark chocolate between friends?) is lovely but it is not self care. By defining self care as those luxuries, we leave out huge swaths of individuals who can’t afford them or who don’t have access to them (maybe they’re tied down with family responsibilities or travel is unsafe).
And I’m in the business of supporting self care. Yoga therapy is not something that is done to you, like massage. Yoga therapy is the active process of evaluating where we’re at now and deciding what simple techniques can be employed (ie self care) to bring more balance. Almost anyone, anywhere can practice yoga therapy. As a yoga therapist, I spend considerable effort to communicate the tools clearly and freely. In this, I hope to include as many as are interested in the self care rituals.
When you are evaluating your lifestyle and thinking about improving your mood, physical health or mental abilities, please consider your responsibility in making that happen. Ultimately, no one practitioner can “fix” you. It’s up to you to take responsibility for your own self care. It’s not a “luxury” to hit your yoga mat or take time to therapeutically relax. It’s not something that goes on the “to do” list only to be outmuscled by shopping or travel (something more fun). Yoga is self care … health care.
Please try some of the free video resources on this site. It takes as little as 10 minutes a day, and can be absolutely free, to practice true self care.
As many of you know, I enjoy escaping and embodying a “hippie” sort of lifestyle for several months a year. My refuge is a 17′ travel trailer that we have outfitted with all the comforts necessary. When you spend that much time on the road, you need to make a commitment to healthy lifestyle which means you’re not really “on vacation”. That means eating healthy, bringing my yoga mat along and maintaining a meditation practice.
In this video, I try (with my little iPhone) to give you a sense of the space inside the trailer and I demonstrate preparation of a lovely Thai style shrimp stir fry. It’s always fun to peak into someone else’s kitchen, I think, and this one is unusual… about 50 square feet or less. Let me know if you try the recipe and send me your tiny kitchen tips.
Our modern lives are permeated with advanced chemicals. Compounds that would be unrecognizable just 100 years ago abound in everything from foods to fabrics to manufacturing processes. Although each of these compounds has been tested for safety, I sometimes wonder about the cumulative exposure.
In laboratory settings, research scientists expend due diligence to create a test environment where most things stay the same so they can study variability of the factors under study. The real world isn’t like that. The mercury in my dental fillings is probably safe on its own but what if my toxic exposure is increased by my personal care products, living next to a factory and drinking from the heavily industrialized great lakes?
It makes sense to reduce your chemical exposure wherever possible. Cleaning vinegar is a relatively recent discovery in our household but has quickly become popular as it eliminates so many other cleaning and household products…. all of which have complicated chemical backgrounds.
By contrast, vinegar is really just watered acetic acid which is produced by the fermentation of ethanol or sugars by acetic acid bacteria. It has been around for millennia. Cleaning vinegar is a stronger solution than that we use for cooking, usually 10% or more. It costs about $4 for 2.5 litres at your local grocery or hardware store making it a very economical choice.
And what can you do with cleaning vinegar? There are probably so many more uses but here are a couple occurring in our house regularly:
Clean the bathroom. Use full strength on a micro-fibre cloth to clear soap scum, disinfect and polish. Rinse with clear water. To sanitize, leave on the surface for 10 – 30 minutes before rinsing.
Clean your floors. Use ¼ cup vinegar to 1 gallon hot water and dissolve grease, stains and sticky gunk. I don’t rinse but if you have a shiny finish, your floor might need one.
Polish mirrors and glass. Prepare a spray bottle with ½ cleaning vinegar and ½ water. Use like Windex.
Dissolve hard water calcification in the washing machine or coffee maker. The vinegar is acidic and can be corrosive if used too frequently. I just add about ¼ – ½ cup full strength to the machine (in the fresh water container of the coffee maker or the drum of the washer) and run the machine through a normal cycle. Run two or more clear water cycles afterward to rinse thoroughly.
Add as a laundry rinse to brighten. Dullness in clothing can be due to soap residue. Adding ¼ vinegar through the fabric softener dispenser can dissolve that scum and brighten fabrics. Test any precious pieces first in a discreet area because vinegar can fade.
Kill weeds! Use full strength in a spray bottle directly on weeds. It will kill all plant life so take care when using in the lawn. Use a very directed spray, right into the base of the plant. It’s not as long lasting as herbicides and deep rooted plants like dandelions can recover, but it’s much safer for pets and kids.
Unfortunately, it is has not proven effective on Coronovirus so other disinfectants (like 70% rubbing alcohol) can be sparingly used on high touch surfaces.
Time to get ready! Step into the shower and look at the variety of products awaiting your ritual. Shampoo, conditioner, body wash, deodorant soap, shaving lotion and many other products have become a supposed necessity to modern hygiene. But are they? Was it all those ads during the soap operas that convinced us that our natural body processes were horribly smelly and disgusting requiring immediate intervention with chemicals?
Let’s step back and re-evaluate. Why does shampoo have to lather? Why do we need to deodorize our belly skin? Why do we need a separate cleansing agent for our scalp? Isn’t it skin too?
Just as in cleaning our homes, cleaning our bodies has become a toxic soup of artificial, and probably unnecessary, chemicals that could be seriously harming our bodies and our environment. The David Suzuki Foundation identifies the worst offenders (https://davidsuzuki.org/queen-of-green/dirty-dozen-cosmetic-chemicals-avoid/). It might be interesting to go on a treasure hunt in your bathroom to see what you discover.
This issue came into my awareness during a conversation with a friend years ago regarding menopause. The poor thing was in the thick of hot flashes and other indignities when her doctor offered relief in the form of a skin cream. It worked! And she was having a tough time. So I got to thinking… if a skin cream could affect her hormones enough to fix those serious issues, what am I putting on my skin that is affecting my hormones indiscriminately? Hormone disruption with environmental toxins is a serious concern for me as it has been linked such diverse problems as breast cancer and obesity (*1).
Shampoo Alternatives
Mix one part baking soda and one part apple cider vinegar. Shake well and apply about 1 or 2 teaspoons to hair once wet. Work into scalp. Rinse well.
2. Use a shampoo bar
instead of a bottle. It’s great for travelling as there are no liquids to pack in your carry on. It can also be used on the body. There are several options online. Check the ingredients to be sure you understand each one and it is a natural substance. The ingredient list should be under ten items.
3. A special nod to dandruff shampoo users. The harsher chemicals in traditional shampoos strips oils excessively from the skin (scalp) causing dry patches and opportunities for irritation. Switching to softer cleansers creates healthier skin less likely to break out. As a prescription for break out times, try rubbing in coconut oil to scalp and leaving it for about 10 or 15 minutes. Wash as usual. The coconut oil is nourishing, anti-fungal and cooling.
Conditioner Alternatives
Unless you have very long, fine hair that tangles a lot, chances are you can skip purchased conditioner. Conditioner was never intended to work at the root but nearer to the ends of hair. Try applying a little argan or coconut oil to the ends (be extremely sparing) and then rinsing out excess under warm water in shower. The myriad of products we apply to smooth, straighten, plump or control hair is dizzying. I bet your family and friends would still love you if you let your hair go a little more natural.
Deodorizing Soap Alternatives
You’re honestly not that smelly everywhere. There are a couple key areas where things can get a little funky. You know where they are. All other exposed skin is fine for water only unless you have ground in dirt or axle grease to clean. Consider using the hair cleanser on the smellier bits (they usually have some association with hair follicles as well so that makes sense, doesn’t it?).
For the dirtier places, like after changing your oil or planting the garden, try a castile based soap (like Bronner’s). It is oil based and the oil helps dissolve the grease on your body that might be holding the dirt.
Moisturizer Alternatives
Raid the kitchen for olive oil. Slather on oil before shower then let the warm water rinse the excess. Pat dry gently with a towel after and your skin should be silky smooth.
Make your own body butter.
In a glass 2 cup measure, add ¼ cup coconut oil, ¼ cup olive oil, ¼ cup cocoa or shea butter and a few drops of essential oil for fragrance. Melt slowly in the microwave, stirring frequently until well blended. Pour into a clean storage container. The liquid will harden to the texture of butter fresh from the fridge. To apply, warm a little in your hand until liquid again.
Your pocketbook will thank you and the fish will thank you. And you will still be beautiful as a more natural you.
This is one of my favourite poses from the old days. Hips, back, shoulders and wrists all pulled into severe stretches right to the end of range of motion. I like this pose. It’s not hard for me and it makes me feel like I’m super good at yoga. But I don’t do it anymore.
It’s a common myth that stretching builds flexibility. This article will attempt to explain the difference between healthful movement in a joint and pushing movement to a potentially harmful point.
When our bodies were new, the connective tissue (ie fascia, tendons, ligaments, pericardium, etc.) was almost liquid in its fluidity. It slid and glided around all the bones, muscles and organs of the body like Bambi on ice. As we experienced the physical world, took lumps and bumps and formed movement patterns, the connective tissue began to stiffen, even harden, in order to facilitate more efficient dynamics. For example, our cervical spine didn’t form its shape until we were old enough as babies to hold our heads up alone. Our lumbar curve formed as we started crawling and walking. Those spinal curves create an architectural support for our whole skeleton and serve us well. But some of the connective tissue adaptations are not helpful.
One of my teachers (Leslie Kaminoff) tells a story from his youth. He had a girlfriend for several months. They loved to stroll around Soho in NYC, his arm around her. They broke up. He got a taller girlfriend. They like liked to stroll around Soho. His shoulder began to really ache! Why did he not have pain with the first girlfriend? His connective tissue surmised that the angle at which he was holding his shoulder joint with the shorter girl was where he needed to be. The tissue began to stiffen up to reduce the load on the muscles. The taller girl challenged that assumption, so the joint began to give him pain. “Really, buddy? Are you sure you know what you’re doing? Our experience is such that the first position is the safest one because we know it better.”
Most of your chronic aches and pains have a similar history. Nothing was inherently “wrong” with Leslie’s shoulder joint but his body was nervous about changing patterns.
Leslie was smart enough and was learning about connective tissue in his yoga practice, so he respected the tissue’s calls for tenderness. If he had pushed into the stretch pictured above to stretch out the tension in his shoulders, he could have damaged the connective tissue. This is a common cause of frozen shoulder or more increased pain.
While it is a common practice to use equipment (like straps or weights) or outside assistance (such as a physiotherapist) to push further into a stretch, the odds of creating injury, and more pain down the road, increase dramatically. This is because it’s not tight muscles that are causing your stiffness, but nervous connective tissue. How often have you had an adjustment at the chiropractor or a good deep yoga stretch, but then feel even tighter the next day?
What could Leslie do to adjust to the new girlfriend? Movement! Movement in new planes of motion and through novel patterning. But not pulling or pushing the joint. And lots of movement. The absolute best way to alleviate stiffness is to move more every day, in ordinary ways. Walk instead of drive. Choose to take the stairs. Bake bread or clean your house. All these normal duties are representative of the types of duties our bodies evolved to do.
It’s instinct to stop moving when we experience pain but searching for a range of motion that doesn’t make you gasp is really important. If you don’t keep the connective tissue sliding and gliding, it will stiffen more. The movement generates lubrication and educates the brain that this is safe to do.
This video is a great beginning place. The Joint Freeing Series greets each moving bit of your body in a particular order and in a gentle way. Try practicing morning and evening for a week. Let me know how your sore parts are feeling after that time.
We’re not strictly vegan at my house, although the preference is for vegan mayo for the taste actually. But it can get pricey, and availability during the lockdown has been limited. Going to the larger grocery stores means longer lineups and greater traffic flow. Our local markets don’t always stock this item.
So… this recipe evolved from necessity. It uses soft tofu and a high powered blender.
Ingredients. 1 block soft tofu (use non-GMO and organic if you can find it. There are some tetra-brick tofus on the market that would be shelf stable to order online)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice.
1/4 teaspoon salt.
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon agave
Process in a high powered blender for about 60 seconds until smooth.
Variation: Spicy Mayo
add 1 tsp smoked paprika and 1/4 tsp smoked, ground chipotle pepper to mixture.
Keep in covered container in fridge for up to two weeks. May separate slightly as there are no commercial emulsifiers in this. Just stir prior to use.
It’s a Sunday tradition around our house to go out for breakfast. During lockdown, it’ s one of those treats that I am really starting to miss. A couple weeks ago, I worked on a recipe for a tofu based sausage and this week I figured out bacon! For my vegetarian and vegan friends, finding that salty, spicy, oily and slightly sweet flavour punch is a big win!
Here we use extra firm tofu sliced into thin, uniform pieces. The thinner, the crispier the final product. Thicker slices turn out more like peameal (Canadian) style bacon. Use these yummy bites alongside pancakes or french toast, in a BLT or as a topping for salad. Pure, complete protein and much healthier than the real thing!
You can find smoked spices at Bulk Barn here in Canada or shop online. Smoked salt and paprika also make a good addition to potato salad, barbecue sauce, chilis and mayo.
During the quarantine, we need to find new ways to feel complete. I really wanted breakfast sausage! But our normal Sunday morning “out for breakfast” is no longer an option. Years ago, at Kripalu, I had some really yummy tofu based ones but couldn’t find a recipe online at this time. So it was time to get creative!
“June”
(name has been changed to protect her privacy) has always been active. She skied, skated, cycled and played racquet
sports until her 70th birthday.
A right knee injury in her 30’s occasionally flared up but it was only
since that birthday that walking became troublesome. Eventually there was talk of a hip replacement
due to the chronic pain that kept her up nights.
By the
time June came to yoga therapy, she had tried most other pain remedies and was
understandably frustrated. Most people
who come into therapy have tried many things and are fed up.
The
first order of business, after getting to know each other, was to give June
something hopeful on which to focus. She
pictured herself chair bound and her life closing in on her. The exercises that she had received from her
chiropractor and/or physiotherapist weren’t holding her attention – so they
weren’t getting done. June needed something
easy on the joints but interesting enough to motivate her to practice every
day. She needed a routine that would
help her deal with all the side effects of that arthritic hip.
Chronic
joint pain is about more than a knee or hip.
As you can imagine in June’s case, her worries and frustrations about
her narrowing activity opportunities were causing as much pain as the actual
arthritis. Having pain causes us to
adjust our socializing so we can become isolated and at risk for
depression. Having pain and getting yet
another round of tests makes us feel like we are at the mercy of others,
holding no power ourselves to heal.
Having pain can create a feeling of hopelessness that causes other areas
of self-care to fall away. It’s very
difficult to focus on a healthy diet if it hurts too much to stand to cook or
grocery shop, for example.
Client
after client, time and time again, I find that the Joint Freeing Series is
just the ticket. This simple series of
uni-joint movements done in a specific order helps in so many ways.
The movements distribute lubrication in the
joint, helping to reduce inflammatory compounds and to bring healing fluids to
the tissues.
The movements stretch tight places and
strengthen weaker places gently.
The movements remind the brain how to fire
muscles in an efficient and safe way.
The breath pattern is soothing to the nervous
system and can alleviate our impression of pain.
The practice is ordered in such a way as to
engage the brain, like a meditation, which helps to wire new ways of thinking
less focused on the pain.
The Joint Freeing Series of
yoga movements was helpful for June and can be utilized by anyone who is
breathing. I use it before my yoga poses
and athletes can use it before their workouts.
Tired office workers can refresh before dinner with this series and kids
can use it to build coordination and learn healthy body awareness.
The videos available here show four different versions. The first is using a chair, which means June didn’t have to get up and down from the floor. If the floor is no problem for you, try the second version or the standing series. There is even a video to show how to do the series completely lying down, even in bed. All sequences will bring energy to every cell of your body, helping you feel vibrant and mobile.
To learn how to teach others to do the Joint Freeing Series, and to understand the science and research behind it, please consider our Professional Training Course in July 2020. Yoga Teachers, other movement professionals such as kinesiologists, physiotherapists, nurses and fitness instructors will all find this additional tool kit helpful in their work.
Try this quick 20 minute practice every day for the next 21 days. It is designed to mobilizeyour joints, bring cleansing circulation to your organs and energize your thinking.It is recommended to keep a notebook or journal handy and record your impressions post practice each day. These quick notes are for you alone and will help you see the changes in real time.
Joint Freeing Series – this simple sequence of stretches prepares your body for full poses. Try one of these videos to lead you through.
2. Sun Salutations – one round of this classical combination of postures will create some heat to begin the transformation. Choose the type that best suits you physical needs (there’s even one that uses a chair so no pressure on knees!) from here.
3. Spinal Balance – from hands and knees (place hands on chair if knees on floor doesn’t work), lift one leg up and back, parallel to floor. Keep hips square to floor (this is very important!). Hug muscles into the center of your body to stabilize core. Slowly lift opposite arm alongside ear. Hold for five breaths each side. Repeat once.
4. Bridge Pose – Do the posture five times dynamically, inhaling as you lift hips and exhaling as you lower. Then hold posture five breaths. Keep knees pointing straight ahead and isometrically magnetize heels back toward your body to engage the hamstrings. Imagine lifting the hips from the back of the buttocks where it meets the legs. How high you lift the hips isn’t that important but keeping your low back spacious and comfortable is very important.
5. Wide Legged Supine Twist – lie on back. Place feet mat width apart, or wider. Inhale with knees center and exhale, drop knees to one side. Repeat to each side five times, then hold on one side for five breaths. Slide arms out away from body to open chest to deep breaths. Support legs with pillows or blankets so you don’t have a big stretch sensation anywhere but feel the earth is hugging you from underneath. This video shows the set up ( it’s the third video down – hip flexor release).
6. Alternate Nostril Breathing – this breathing technique creates a nimbleness in the frontal lobes of the brain. When we want to get creative to solve life’s challenges, or bring our “A” game, fire on all cylinders with 5 – 10 rounds of this breath. This video shows how (it’s the third video down on the page, “practice 1/6 : alternate nostril breathing”).
7. Take a few minutes to jot in your journal. These questions may inspire you:
How does my body feel right now?
What word, principle or mantra would I like to take into my day?
How may I be of service today?
This practice guideline is intended to inspire you to embrace yoga as a tool for positive change. It is very general. If you would like a personalized plan, consider Small Group Yoga Therapy. There are new sessions starting soon.
