After the rain comes the sunshine!

The rainfall today felt so pleasant after yesterday’s Saturday swelter

And to add to that cool weekend vibe – I have another one of my helpful suggestion for keeping you cool this summer.

This little concoction is the perfect Sunday tipple:

Em’s Autumnal Bliss Bombs…(NB: secret recipe!!);)… To make 10-15 bombs;)

Ingredients: 1 cup dry chia seeds – wonderfully soothing and moisturising for dry digestion which can be caused by excess Vata (air and space elements) 6-7 fresh medjool dates– sweet and juicy- nicely grounding

Festive healthy veggie nibbles (recipes divulged due to popular demand!)

CRISPY TOFU with SECRET-ZINGALICIOUS marinade:

This is for any of you who feel this time of year can get a little “intoxicating” with all the IN-PUT of food, booze, sweets and meats etc!

All THIS is FULL

All THAT is FULL

From FULLNESS, FULLNESS comes

When FULLNESS is taken FULLNESS remains

(Brihadaranyaka Upanishad)

The Spring time kichari challenge!

Sweep away the winter cobwebs and rekindle your digestive fire with

…the Springtime Kichari quest… !

A retreat testimonial from our magical Spain Yoga & Meditation retreat in Andalusia, May 2016

Dorry Golden had just landed in London from Venice Beach California. She knew barely a soul in London and ended up coming on the Spain Yoga Retreat. Below she shares her personal experience of our time on retreat in Spain.

It’s super inspiring to connect with yoga teachers who are passionate, kind, and open-hearted. London-based Emily Reed is at the top of the list! After attending Emily’s transformative retreat in the hills of Andalusia (read the review here), we asked her some questions to learn more about her personal yoga journey.

Our digestion LOVES routine. More importantly it LOVES easy to digest foods… especially if there has been travel, busy/stressful periods and during times of change in the natural environment - like a shift in season. If you find you are suffering from gas, bloating, acid reflux, constipation, loose bowels….

Learn to Manage your Energy

Why might you care about:

Managing your energy; and

UN-learning negative behavioural patterns?

What a HONKERs few weeks it’s been!

And yes I did say  “HONKERS”. And this isn’t another erroneous Emily typo ;) It’s a new word. Created by me.

A hybrid for HOLY CRAP and BONKERS. HONKERS.

Today this is ONE of my POTENT daily #selfcare solutions for summer sizzle. Yes… my grandma was right when she suggested castor oil for cooling and nourishing the skin. At the time I dismissed it as being something old people used!

WHY CASTOR OIL?

The Little Mystic – Full Circle of an Inner Child

Double, Double, Toil and Trouble – Fire Burn and Cauldron Bubble.

Flash back to childhood…I present to you- the little 7 year old Em. She is dressed head to toe in black.

Donning her self-applied Madonna-esque rouge on her cheeks and lip; Yes I LOVED to dress up.

I learnt (the hard way) that cultivating a solid stable and supportive platform through daily routine, diet and lifestyle is the ultimate way to CURBing any end of summer/back to school spin out; low moods; fatigue; physical/digestive imbalance; uncertainty etc. I want to share a section from an article I read recently. The specific lines below called out another potent point to me.

“It is a life of moderation and balance that allows us to grow most swiftly”.

(Thank you and Amen Rev John Ernst –  a snippet of his whimsical channelling of truth).

I mean COME ON! We’ve all heard it all before right? Not once. Or twice, but MANY times.

From September I was committed to spending time in London (yes for once!).  The plan was to re-igniting projects for wellness & transformation; continue to build and work with 5 Elements client wellness coaching sessions; write briefs for wellness in businesses/ organisations; co-create retreats and events. It was all going well and then…

ATAR- what? AT-AR-AX-IA.

Literally meaning: “unperturbedness”.

This ain’t no mumbo-jumbo. It’s an ancient GREEK philosophical term for what is described as:

“ROBUST equanimity”; characterised by an “ongoing freedom of distress and worry”.

Not everyone is familiar with this unctuous and totally delicious and replenishing butter. Let me tell you right now¦ used wisely it’ll do wonders for ANYONE with the slight hint of imbalance. Those who desirous of having intellect (dhee) memory (smrti), cleverness and skilful abilities (Medha), digestive power, strength, longevity, sexual vigour and good eye sight.

Sankalpa is the act of planting a special. It is a resolve, something we want to create or commit to in our lives. This is not simply an intention. Sankalpa has tremendous power to grow and create when it is watered and fed appropriately. In Sanskrit, the ancient spiritual language san kalpa is defined as: San – the connection with the highest truth kalpa – a vow.

It’s of a pose for many of us especially those who are in the early stages of practice. Some of my students have been experiencing frustrations in Ardha Mukha Savanasana (Downward facing Dog), and my students challenges have led me to consider my own journey with the dastardly mutt.

I want to share with you some of the JUICY things we discussed in my recent workshop evening- “IT’s ALL ABOUT AGNI” at the Life Centre. Getting to know and respecting your Agni is VITAL for optimum health on all levels. Cultivating a stable agni will have profound positive results on your health if followed with sincerity.