Top 10 Tips to Prepare for Spring

1) Clean and Purge Your Living Space.

Doing a deep clean and ventilating out your home rids it of any stagnant energy from the winter season.

Get rid of old leftover food, ingredients, clothing, cleaning supplies, stationary and more that no longer serve you and have been collecting dust for the past season. Being reminded of clutter from old experiences does not serve you into inviting lighter energy into the Spring season.

2) Write down a few Intentions.

Write down a few intentions on mini scraps of paper. Go outside and plant them deep into the Earth, beside a garden or an existing tree.

This practice works! Get really clear on the intentions that you hope to focus on these next few weeks as we watch our own seeds germinate in our backyards and parks.

3) Go to bed earlier.

Set an alarm for a time when the sun would normally come up. Try to get in 7-8 hours of deep, quality sleep.

Allowing your circadian rhythm to follow the natural cycle of the rise and set of the sun allows you to feel more energized throughout the day. In addition, you may also see an equilibrium in your metabolic rate and stress levels, according to the amount of sunlight that you are exposed to.

4) Get plenty of Vitamin D

Whether it's through natural sun exposure for 20 minutes or through supplementation, seek advice from a nutritionist or RD if you are not getting enough.

Vitamin D is a natural happiness booster and can help with regulating your metabolism, which in turn, helps maintain your stress levels and the quality of your sleep and rest.

5) Stay Hydrated.

Aim for 6-8 glasses of water or fluids to keep your body hydrated throughout the day. 

6) Start a regular dry-brushing or exfoliation routine.

Dry-brushing is amazing to boost circulation, which in turn gives your complexion a rosy glow on a daily basis.

After the dry winter months, it is recommended to regularly exfoliate to remove the dead skin cell layers that has accumulated over the skin's external surface. Dry-brushing is an inexpensive way to exfoliate and remove dead skin cells, improve blood and circulation, and move lymph throughout the body for detoxificaion. The best part is that you can do it everyday gently before hopping into the shower!

7) Air out your Laundry.

Open up your windows and start hang drying your laundry - your bedsheets, comforter, blankets, pillows.

Using fresh air to dry out your heavily-used garments and products helps to remove airborne bacteria that may have been stuck indoors during the winter months.

8) Opt to eat fresh fruits and vegetables.

While many produce start to become in season in the Spring season, look to support local farmers and buy organic when you can. 

Look to incorporate a well-balanced diet with colorful fruits and vegetables that will enhance your vitamin and mineral intake. Many dark green, leafy vegetables for example are potent alkalinizers of your blood, which can help reduce inflammation in the circulatory system and give you a boost of natural energy.

9) Go for a walk in nature.

Disconnect from your mobile devices and go for a walk in a forest, park, or greenspace. Take in the new buds, birds, and fresh dew on the foliage. Notice all the signs of birth that come up as you walk.

As you walk, state out loud a few things that you are grateful for as you enter a period of brighter, longer days. Be mindful of each step that you take and consider how each of your ecological footprints makes an impact on your environment.

10) Incorporate a grounding practice.

Whether it's Qi Gong, Yin Yoga, or a standing meditation series, find an opportunity to get barefoot and root down into the ground. 

There is something incredibly powerful about rooting down and using the grounding energy of the Earth to support your breathwork, movement, and conscious thinking. As we grow our own roots into ground, we can feel more steady and purposeful of our efforts over time.

Read also:

10 Reasons Why You Should Exercise and Practise Yoga Outdoors

In light of recent events and being cooped up indoors for the past 3 months in quarantine, here are some reasons as to why you should consider working out and practising yoga outdoors in nature can improve your physical and psychological well-being during this time.

Doing yoga on the green rooftop at 401 richmond IN TORONTO, ON.

I want to mention that many of my favourite yoga classes and functional fitness training sessions were hosted outdoors in parks, beachside and in the woods in uncrowded areas. If you didn’t know, I first became inspired to teach yoga after practising outdoors at sunrise and sunset on the beautiful cliffsides of Melides, just steps away from the Pacific coastlines of Portugal. There is a magical connection with nature when we match our breath, energy, and intention with the environments around us. If you have been missing your favourite gym, recreation centre, or personal trainer, you can adjust your workout and activities to take place outdoors.

Here are 10 simple reasons why you should get started!

1)      It Energizes You in the Morning.

When you practise with the sunrise, you move with the natural circadian rhythm of your body. After you wake up, your body’s metabolism kicks in and your bodily processes like your adrenal glands start shifting. Birds, insects, and the general energy of parks and greenspaces are generally quieter in the mornings as well, allowing you to gradually become more stimulated with the sunlight and animation of life waking up around you.

2)      You Become More Mindful of the Subtle Shifts of Energy Around You

From the rustle of the tree leaves to the echo of birdsong, you begin to take in the natural rhythms and melodies that make up the background soundtrack outdoors. At the gym or during our busy commutes, we distract ourselves or tune out of our physical surroundings with our headphones, listening to podcasts, loud music, or broadcasted news channels.

If you choose to meditate outdoors, you will start to notice how synchronized your body and breath become to the nuances of the wind and sunshine as they pick up on your body. Water and the lapping waves over the horizon are a great focus aid to assist in settling down in a seated meditation practice.

3)      It reduces headaches, stress, and feelings of depression.

The colour green, found in nature is known to enhance the alpha brainwaves, which allow you to feel more calm and at ease with yourself. It also boosts your creativity and your resilience to stress. Getting enough Vitamin D from the sun can also boost your immune system, reduce depression, and create a ‘feel good’ sensation in the body.

By closing your eyes and using deep, expansive breaths in through the nose, you can relieve symptoms of headaches and stress as the hormone, oxytocin is released, lowering your blood pressure and feeling more connected with those around you.

4)      It Challenges Your Balance and Proprioception.

Try working out barefoot in the grass or sand. Notice how the platform beneath your feet sinks in different directions when you stand only on one leg or weight-bear unevenly. While we have been blessed with supportive running shoes and flat surfaces at our commercial gyms and fitness studios, when you challenge yourself to all sorts of uneven surfaces outdoors such as grass, hills, sand, mud, and gravel, your body begins to utilize the smaller, stabilizer muscles that aren’t usually put to work when we feel firmly secure on the ground.

5)      Falling Also Feels More Fun and Liberating

To add to point #4 about challenging your balance and proprioception, when you lose your balance, it often feels fearful to fall on mysterious surfaces that your body is not used to lying on for long periods of time. Outdoor surfaces such as fine sand, grass, and even mud have cooling and exfoliating properties that a paved floor or cushy mat inside your gym could not provide. There is something about the diverse textures of these outdoors surfaces that make it more fun to land on, if you do happen to fall and roll over from a particular pose or exercise.

6)      You Lose Sense of Time Passing

Ever feel as though you are constantly checking your watch or the clock on the wall when you’re in a sterile environment such as the gym? Unless you have a very intuitive sense of the sun passing each hour in the sky, you are less likely to feel tied to the sense of time passing while working out outdoors. When the sun is out and the weather is pleasant, time seems to pass by very quickly, as the body’s expectations also begin to slow down. This sense of urgency is definitely enhanced in artificial environments and with the stimulation of our digital devices and notifications.

7)      With the Sun’s natural heat, You Sweat More

Sweat is great for the body (it cools the body down internally, it removes toxins through the skin’s pores, it cleanses the body of unnecessary bacteria.) Even if your workout is not as intense, or if you are moving through a gentle Vinyasa Flow sequence, the sweat that you build up from being out in the sunlight does not have to be vigorous on your joints. If there is a breeze, it can help cool you down rather than relying on air conditioning that sometimes blasts artificial air on your pores.

8)      It Relaxes Your Body and Mind for Sleep at Night.

Just as the sunrise perks your natural circadian rhythm down, the sunset, allows this same rhythm to slow you down in the evening to prepare for rest, digestion, and absorption of nutrients fed to the body during the day.

Getting enough sunlight during the day releases serotonin in the brain which allows you to feel calm and focused, but also enhances your sleep quality as you prepare to settle at night

9)      It’s Fun to Work Out with Friends Together

There is no lack of equipment or intensity when it comes to creative workouts, meditations, or movement outdoors that you can do with your friends. Whether you are playing your favourite sport as a team, riding bikes together along a designated trail, hiking, or doing a yoga class together, doing it outdoors is accessible for every Body, regardless of your experience or physical activity level.

10)   It’s Inexpensive and Accessible Anywhere!

You don’t require a monthly membership to access a park, trail, beach, or natural area outdoors to work out and be active. You can even designate an area in your backyard or communal terrace to work out or meditate in every day. As we move from being quarantined in our homes for ongoing weeks to walking, running, cycling, and setting up obstacle courses outside, how can we change up our environments while still keeping a safe distance from each other?

If you have not tried working outdoors already, choose a day this week to start!

As we enter hot summer days with pleasant weather, you can choose to work out first thing in the morning at dawn, during your lunch break or early afternoon in the shade, or during the evenings before dinner.

Leave a comment below and let me know what activities you try out this week!