Spring is here and with it a perfect time to cleanse the body! I love to incorporate herbs to help with our elimination pathways. Along with that, I like to help reset the body with diet. Ayurveda, also known as Ayurvedic medicine, is one of the world’s oldest schools of traditional healing. Its name means “the science of life”.
Tracing back to India over 3,000 years ago, Ayurvedic medicine is said to promote “whole-body” healing — in contrast to Western medicine, which tends to separate physical, mental, and spiritual health.
From the book Absolute Beauty by Pratima Raichur, I wanted to share an easy diet to incorporate while we concentrate on detoxification and use Ayurveda as our guide. This is a short excerpt from Pratima’s book, anyone dealing with skin issues or looking to further reach radiant skin and inner harmony would love to read it.
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REKINDLING THE DIGESTIVE FIRE
Agni is the biological fire (also called tejas) that regulates metabolism and fuels digestion. Agni's transformative principle, along with the moving force of prana and the stabilizing force of ojas, makes up the triumvirate of life forces. When these forces are imbalanced, so are the biological functions-the doshas- which they govern. Thus, a healthy metabolism depends first on the balance of doshas. A sluggish metabolism (improper digestion indicated by symptoms such as weight gain, indigestion, constipation, gas, distention, stomachaches, diarrhea, acidity, and heartburn) is a sign of low fire and air, or low Pitta and Vata–which is the equivalent of high earth and water, or high Kapha. In either case, you can restore balance to your constitution by going on a Kapha-pacifying diet, which includes predominantly pungent, bitter, and astringent tastes. The light, dispersing and hot, stimulating qualities of these tastes increase the forces of prana (movement and elimination) and agni (metabolism), which are needed to clear out ama from the body and get the digestive fires burning again. Consequently, a Kapha-pacifying diet also enhances the body's natural process of detoxification.
A DIET TO REDUCE TOXINS AND REKINDLE AGNI
This purification routine for body and mind includes a few days of light eating on a Kapha-pacifying diet, plus mental rest. The main staple of the diet is khichadi, a nourishing mixture of rice and lentils (see recipe below). The duration of the routine depends upon your skin type:
Dry (Vata) 1-3 days per month
Sensitive (Pitta) 1-4 days per month
Oily (Kapha) 1-5 days per month
NO
Sweet fruits, juices, or vegetables; breads, cookies, pastries, sweets, dairy, cheese, fried food, canned food, nuts, alcohol, oils, salt, sugar, legumes. or grains (except khichadi).
YES
Herbal teas: Ginger, cardamom, fennel, cinnamon, aloe.
Water: At least 6-8 glasses per day.
Fruits or fruit juices: Lemon, lime, grapefruit, pomegranate.
Steamed vegetables (optional): Beets, carrots, fennel, kale, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower. Limit: 2 cup per day total. Vegetable juices: Celery, parsley.
Herbs: Triphala (½ teaspoon with warm water at night).
Khichadi: Have up to one bowlful whenever you feel hungry throughout the day. To make, wash 1 cup each yellow mung dal beans and rice and put aside. Put 3 Tbsp ghee in a steel saucepan. Heat on low flame. Add 1 inch fresh peeled grated ginger + 4 inch cinnamon bark + 5 whole cardamom seeds + 5 whole cloves + 10 black pepper or coriander or cumin seeds + ¼ tsp turmeric powder, and sauté lightly. Add rice and dal to pan, and sauté lightly with the spices. Add 6 cups water and cook until the rice and dal are soft.
MENTAL FAST: • Rest as much as possible. Avoid work, TV, arguments, discussions, meetings. • Do light reading, simple breathing exercises, and take leisurely walks. • Take a warm bath daily with ginger or eucalyptus oil; scrub the body thoroughly. • Spend time in meditation or prayer.
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After following this for a week you can follow your dosha’s balancing diet. John from Life Spa has some great seasonal diets to follow.
If you are not sure what your Dosha is (your Ayurvedic constitution), I highly recommend going through THIS or THIS questioner to find out.
If you want to do a more advanced Short Cleanse, it’s best to do this twice a year in the Spring and Fall for four days. You can incorporate the following to the above kitchari:
1) Morning Ghee:
Each morning melt the prescribed teaspoons of ghee and drink on an empty stomach.
Day 1—take 2 teaspoons of ghee
Day 2—take 4 teaspoons of ghee
Day 3—take 6 teaspoons of ghee
Day 4—take 9 teaspoons of ghee
If it’s difficult for you to drink the ghee straight, mix the melted ghee into 1/ 2 cup of warm almond, or coconut milk, or organic, vat-pasteurized and non-homogenized cow’s milk. Drink the warmed mixture all at once. If needed, add a pinch of nutmeg, cinnamon, and/ or cardamom for taste. Vegan alternatives for ghee are organic, cold-pressed, extra virgin olive or flax oil. Wait half an hour before drinking or eating anything after taking the Morning Ghee.
Reminder: If your gallbladder has been removed, or you are experiencing trouble with your gallbladder, or have difficulty digesting fat, you may need to be on a modified protocol. If you do not have a gallbladder, you may substitute and use coconut oil instead of ghee, as coconut oil is easier to digest. If you have gallbladder issues or trouble digesting fats (nausea and indigestion after eating a fatty or fried meal), please stick with just 2 teaspoons of ghee or coconut oil each morning during the Cleanse and do not increase the dosage.
2) Eat 3 Meals a Day… and No Snacking
During the Cleanse, our goal is to teach our bodies how to enter into and maintain fat metabolism. One of the best ways to kick-start this process is to eat only 3 meals a day (along with the Morning Ghee), without snacking in between.
3) Monodiet Meal:
The Monodiet Meal is comprised of kitchari only, from above recipe. To maximize your cleanse and reap the most benefits, eat only nonfat kitchari for your 3 meals each day. This will be incredibly healing to your digestive tract and extremely detoxifying. When you eat a Monodiet (comprised of 1 food), your body can focus the energy that normally goes towards digestion to cleansing and healing other systems. This meal plan is truly a transformative option for both your body’s detox process and your psychological relationship to food.
4) Final Flush:
On the evening of day 4, eat an early and light dinner. Wait 2 hours and then take a hot Epsom salt bath. If you cannot take a bath, take a hot shower and then rest with a hot water bottle on your abdomen for 10–15 minutes to warm the belly. Then, take your laxative. Choose the laxative that is best for you:
For those with sensitive digestion (like regular heartburn and indigestion, loose stools, bowel irritation, gallbladder or liver issues)
◊ Drink 1 cup of senna tea (Traditional Medicinals Smooth Move tea works well).
◊ Or drink 1 1/ 2 cups of room temperature or warm prune juice.
For those with healthy digestion
◊ Dissolve 1 tablespoon Epsom salts in 1 cup of water. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 teaspoon of lemon juice. Drink the mixture.
For those with sluggish, hard or constipated bowels and strong digestion
◊ Dissolve 1 1/ 2 tablespoons of Epsom salt in 1 cup of water. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 teaspoons of lemon juice. Drink the mixture.
You will likely experience a laxative effect within 1–15 hours after drinking the laxative (the average time is about 4–6 hours). If there was no laxative effect and you’re still feeling strong, you can repeat the same laxative therapy on the fifth morning.
Reminder: Check with your Medical Doctor before doing any laxative therapy. Do not eat anything until the laxative effect has worn off. Sipping room temperature or warm water is fine. The cleanse is now over, but on day 5, break the cleanse gently with a soup or soupy hot cereal of well-cooked veggies and grains.
Happy Cleaning,
Diana