I can still feel myself defrosting from one of the longest winters NYC has ever experienced. The days have started to grow longer, and there is a little more pep in my step. The layers are finally starting to shed, and going outside in the sunshine is replacing the winter norm of cocooning myself into what I like to call a “couch nest”.
We were so eager to feel warmer temperatures that at the first sign of above fifty degree weather, people were literally shedding and wearing shorts, dresses, and flip flops. We wanted to feel the sun on our skin and breathe in the new fragrances of spring. It was so sweet!
Higher temperatures and longer days are sure to affect our physical and subtle bodies. Our physical bodies may feel looser and our overall moods might be a little cheerier. I feel like this happens every year; we have our honeymoon stage with spring and as we enter June, we still relish in the warmer temperatures. But by mid-July and certainly by August, we are over the heat waves and intense humidity that characterize a typical New York summer. We crave the AC and the only way we can sleep is in a chilled room. If you have AC in your home, the thought of going outside reminds you of visions of The Walking Dead—over-heated zombies gasping for some cool air.
But how can we use this heat to our advantage? What can we learn about balancing ourselves in dealing with yet another extreme? The practice of yoga and its sister-science Ayurveda offers tools on how to keep cool, not only physically, but emotionally as well.
FIRE
Heat and light are characteristics of the fire element. We have internal fire which regulates our digestive system, self-confidence, sight, action, and emotions. One can have too much or not enough of the fire element in each of these areas.
Not enough digestive fire will bring feelings of bloating and constipation. Too much fire in the confidence arena can translate into someone being egotistical, single-minded, and easily frustrated when things do not go their way. On the contrary, if someone has a hard time feeling good about themselves, they are lacking fire. If you suffer from migraines your eyes can be too sensitive to light, meaning you have too much fire in your system.
One of the biggest imbalances with this element relates to our emotions. I find myself getting more frustrated and easily angered in the summer time. Too much fire either from my food, activities, or the colors I am wearing in an environment that is already too hot, will cause me lash out at innocent strangers. The city term “murder heat” starts to make a lot of sense when I am waiting on the subway platform in mid-August and there is not a train in sight.
Sun salutations, twists, arm balances, and most inversions will naturally warm you up, and you will need some variations in your yoga practice to sustain a nurturing summer practice. Explore moon salutations instead of sun salutations, where instead of lowering halfway to the ground, you take a child’s pose. Cleansing and detoxing are some of the benefits of twisting poses and I invite you to experiment with open, seated, and reclined twists. Shoulderstand, Salamba Sarvangasana (All Parts Supported pose), is a cooling inversion for those who still want to feel the benefits of going upside down. An advanced practice is one that changes and morphs to suit the individual in the present moment. What felt good two weeks ago may not feel the same now. Stay aware and present with how you respond to changes in your practice.
Having a balanced fire element will allow for proper digestion, a steady stream of motivation, and a general sense of well-being. Because our external summer environment is very hot, we will feel less over-heated if we keep our internal fires at bay. We can turn to other natural elements that exist within our internal and external worlds to balance us out. The other elements of water, earth, air, and ether will help us offset too much fire and prevent us from burning out.
WATER
We want to look to things that are going to cool us down. When I think of cooling down, I think of jumping into a pool or the ocean. Our bodies are innately asking us for water. I don’t have a pool in my backyard, so I have to get creative with how I integrate water into my everyday.
Drinking lots of water is a great way to start. Sweating is an involuntary way for your body to release excess heat, so you want to re-hydrate any lost fluids. Eat more foods like fruits and vegetables that have a high water content. Cucumbers, melons, summer squash, grapes, and berries are great examples of summer-friendly foods. Fried, very spicy, and sugary foods are big no-nos for summer eating. They tax your system and generate too much internal heat.
The element of water rules the area of the hips. Explore more hip-opening poses in your yoga practice. These poses act as an exhaust for the body, allowing for excess heat to dissipate. A fantastic hip-opening pose, Eka Pada Rajakapotasana (One-Legged King Pigeon) is commonly referred to as Pigeon in class. The genius of this pose is that one hip is externally rotated and the other hip is internally rotated. So one will feel a stretch on the outside of one hip and the front the other hip.
AIR & ETHER
It’s not only the heat that is overwhelming: the humidity makes NYC summers extra burdensome. We should turn to the element of air and ether (space). A fan is essential in keeping the heavy air moving. Set up good airflow in your home and work space. Going to the beach or the country will cool down the fires by offering you more space to move and breathe. Movement is the key word here in bringing a sense of lightness to your everyday. The practice of Pranayama, breath control, teaches us how to use our breath to find balance.
My saving grace lately has been this cooling Pranayama practice called Sitali Pranayama. In Sanskrit, sita means cool. Find a comfortable seat and take a couple of inhalations and exhalations through the nose, closing the mouth. Then stick out your tongue and let the outside edges of the tongue come together, creating a taco shape. Inhale through your taco tongue, take the tongue inside the mouth, seal the lips and gently exhale through the nose. Try nine rounds of this, seeing if you can slow down the inhalation and exhalation. You can feel the cool air enter through the tongue. I call this my natural air conditioning.
Some people can not make a taco tongue. So as an alternative, make a small circle with your lips like you are about to whistle and inhale through the small hole.
EARTH
Do you remember your middle school fire drills? If you were in a fire and smoke was filling the room, you were instructed to get low to the ground because heat and smoke rise. Spend more time on the ground or close to it where it is cooler. Going to the park and sitting in the shade or lying in the grass are great ways to do this. After a long day, coming home and lying on your back on the living room floor for ten to fifteen minutes will do wonders to restore balance on all levels.
This earth energy inspires us to ground a bit more and slow down. We can overheat ourselves by packing our schedules too tightly and running to and from many places. Take it down a notch, and as the body slows down, so will the mind.
Forward bends are grounding and cooling poses to focus on during the summer. We can take advantage of the external heat that loosens our muscles and spend more time diving deep into the land of forward bending. A wide straddle stretch, Upavistha Konasana (Wide-Angle Seated Forward Bend), simultaneously releases any stagnant energy in the pelvis, stretches the back of the legs and opens the back body. Find a comfortable seat, let your legs come out in front of you, and create a V-shape with the legs. Flex through your toes so they point upwards. For more support I have been enjoying putting pillows or folded up blankets under each knee, allowing them to bend slightly. Reach your hands up and tilt forward with the finger tips touching the ground and gently walk the hands out. Let the head release and breath into the spine and the back of the chest. Stay for twelve rounds of breath. If the head needs support, stack a couple of books and place them under your forehead.
CELEBRATE!
Summer is a time of celebration and abundance. Fruits and vegetables are starting to reach their peak and be harvested—see how this can mirror your own life’s fruitions. Savor the opportunity to be outdoors and around nature. Take refuge in the company of friends and family. Outside gatherings are a fun and inexpensive way to gather people together. Use these tools to cool down so you have the energy and space to celebrate your beautiful life!
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