I am fascinated with Ayurveda.  Often referred to as the sister science of yoga.  The science of life, longevity and vitality.  An Ayurvedic lifestyle is all about living in alignment with nature.  The nature that surrounds us and the nature within us. 

Dear sweet mother nature.  Notice the emphasis on sweet…has custom built-in to the natural order of things… ways in which we can combat the summer heat.  In Ayurvedic wisdom the belief is the world is made up of the 5 elements.  Air, Ether, Fire, Water and Earth.  And everything in nature is an exquisite formula of these elements.  The element of Fire and Water is called Pitta.  And we are smack dab in the middle of the Pitta season of the year.  It is hot, it is intense and if you have some of that elemental quality in you…in any quantity… this time of year is especially intense for you.  My dear pitta southern friend says  “if I am not careful this time of year I get so intense I can lose friends”!

And…Yes… I have a lot of Pitta qualities in my own true nature. 

Guess what?  Nature gave us beautiful seasonal foods and activities that we can enjoy that also help us keep our cool.  And a side note here my dear sweet Pittas.  Ice cold drinks ain’t gonna cut it.  You are asking your body to work even harder or more intensely when you put those ice cold drinks down the chute.  It might feel cool at the start but it doesn’t really cool you down in the end. And if you add those ice cold drink while you are eating you are giving the old digestive system a really tough time. We need to consume things that are cooling in nature. (think sweet fruit, mint and lime). And choosing activities less intense will also will help keep a cool head.

So here are my favorite 5 ways to keep cool in the intense summer heat:

1- Watermelon.  Eat a plate of it and skip dinner.  Cut it up and put it in the blender without the seeds and add a little water and make a nice cooling watermelon water/juice.  We keep jars of this on hand in my homew and enjoy a tall glass daily in this season

2- Water.  Get into the water. Whether it is a cool shower, hanging your tootsies in a stream, walking in the sprinklers or jumping in the ocean. A sweet rose water spritzer that you spritz on your face and neck throughout the day works miracles.

3- Coconut.  Coconut water, coconut on top of your foods, Coconut milk in your stir fried veggies. Coconut is cooling!

4- Doing less.  That is right.  How about a nap?  Or legs up the wall in the afternoon.  Moderation in activities and duties.  Say no to extra and yes to slowing down.

5- Eating less and lighter and less intense.   That also means slow down on that picante and hot sauce too. Seasonally, this is the time to enjoy lighter foodsm less pungent spices and take the pressure off an already overworked body.