We were chatting last month in my Ayurvedic Health Counselor class about the subtle signs that we notice when we start to go out of balance…basically the little things that begin to shift before an all out physical, mental, or emotional fall out happens within our body, minds, or hearts.
Some really great noticings got mentioned: people start to get headaches more frequently, anxiety heightens, patience wanes, maybe you start reaching for your comfort food (as opposed to your nourishing food) day after day and night after night.
After the last month and a half of non-stop motion (we traveled twice internationally and once domestically, which is A LOT for us in a short period of time), holiday parties and festivities, and leaning wayyyy more into the comfort foods rather than the nourishing ones, I observed the biggest tell tale sign that I’m, indeed, on the verge of going out of balance: my poop.
Now, I apologize in advance if this is way too much information (most of us are mere internet acquaintances, after all;-) but as an Ayurvedic Health Counselor in training, I think it’s pretty important to feel comfortable discussing elimination with clients, so I’m just gonna lay it all out there!
When I’m in balance, I can pretty much predict the size, timing, and even color of my poop to a tee (long and log shaped, around 10am EST, and a light chestnut hue.) The week between Christmas and New Years, however, something strange happened. I didn’t eliminate for FOUR DAYS. Interestingly enough, this didn’t cause any pain or even discomfort, but the simple task of NOTICING that I was not pooping led me to examine what was happening with my food/drink/schedule.
Indeed, we were in London and my main meal of the day consisted of scones and clotted cream and a plethora of pastries and tea loaded with sugar cubes. Oh, and it was the holidays so glasses of bubbly were being used to wash it all down. Besides the few cucumbers on my miniature white bread sandwiches, I was consuming no vegetables, no fruit, no whole grains, and no protein. Sleep-wise, I was jet lagged, so staying up until 3am and waking up at 11am in quite the London fog. No wonder there was no poop!
Now, I can say with confidence that if I had kept this schedule of over indulging up for much longer, I would have probably slipped into low immunity and caught the flu, covid, strep throat, or whatever other bug happened to be circulating on the airplane on the way back to New York. But thanks to my knowledge and training with Ayurveda, I was quickly able to take note of the lack of elimination and make quick changes once stateside.
These changes included: getting back onto my normal sleep schedule (10pm to 6am), cooking at home and focusing on meals heavy with veggies, legumes, and whole grains (as well as fruits in place of sweets and herbal teas in place of sugar teas!), and saying no to things so I could say yes to spending more time grounding and nourishing myself.
Would love to hear—do you pay attention to your poop? Is it telling you anything interesting? Email or, if you’re feeling extra brave, leave your thoughts in the comments!:-)
A Hygge Haiku From My Week
One last walk in the
London fog. Mist on my face
makes me feel dewey.
Announcements
—Save the date for Tuesday, January 24th at 7pm EST. We’ll be meeting virtually for a community discussion on Tips + Tricks For A Hygge Winter. You can join the Hygge Yoga Community to participate!
—Noticing a change in your own poop pattern? A wonderful way to address it (as well as keep any impending illnesses at bay) is to do our 7 Day Ayurvedic Cleanse! It will lead you through a proper and traditional Ayurvedic cleanse, and provides details on the simple foods you will be eating (as well as how to prepare them), daily journal and meditation prompts, daily Ayurvedic lifestyle tips, and daily yoga videos.
A Cozy Quote To Leave You With
“Very few things in life can be so exhilarating as a cabin in the middle of the forest and loving life effortlessly while enjoying the smell of freshly ground heaven in your hot cup, in front of a fireplace...Sweet Solitude, you have taught me to live with very little. So very little it turned out to be a luxury.” ―Efrat Cybulkiewicz
Yeah.... I am a poop freak! 😂