Discernment Spiritual Growth For Your Healthy Mind

Discernment helps grow us and protect mental health that’s so needed in our world. I learned about discernment in a confusing time in my life when I didn’t feel aligned.

Life can be like these two baked corn tortilla that look similar. But the one with craters and holes is healthy lime-treated, while the one with the pretty lines you’re more used to is not. You could be fooled by looks into believing which is better, and more discernment could help you choose the healthier and tastier choice on the left. 🌱

Early adult years, I was living out my old life daily with old ways I had learned. I was also blending in a newer life with a new group of mature adult friends I could bond and confide with.

…And you can probably relate with the different sets of circles you hang out in.

But unlike feeling well-rounded, I felt like I was living two separate lives at the same time during those seasons… because I had to leave the old ways that I shared with my former friends to move closer to the new ones.

Gossiping wasn’t a part of this new way that I had grown up around.

And the transition put me at odds for fitting in either groups. That’s how it can be when you’re not quite ready to leave an old identity and adopt a new personal growth one in front of you.

I had many brewing questions…

Discernment was an area of spiritual growth that kept coming up and I was curious about.

…So delving deeper, I soon discovered discernment and wisdom came from the same place that I was missing back then.

Wisdom was another area I was hoping to develop more of… wisdom is getting higher insight than what’s in daily headlines.

Leaning into the miracles and blessings of this world and Godly teachings grows us closer to our spirit.

And you can choose a different choice or path in life than the one you started in. That was my story as I started out with no religion in my life… but the journey of life showed me a spiritual path.

Wisdom vs. Smart Moves

Choosing another path led me to more wisdom. I started out doing the smart things I was influenced to do like get good grades, go to college, and start a career.

Looking back, I also remember when “work smarter, not harder” was a catchy phrase I grew up to in simpler times. But cutting corners isn’t wise. And years later, the cultural zeitgeist went back to hard work as good work, and good for realizing longterm dreams.

…That’s wisdom.

So from then, I separated the two: smart vs. wisdom. You need both for a great life you won’t regret and where you don’t wish you did most of it differently.

Misery is a choice and some sadly make.. But these days we have so many better choices available.

Using personal discernment and wisdom helps achieve those better desires, while smart is practical and gets the right things done.

With smarts, you use your daily thinking skills, while discernment uses your heart, gut, and spiritual mind.

If it’s easier to picture, you can think of being smart as using your frontal and left part of your brain and wisdom on the right side where your intuition is.

…Growing wisdom is one personal growth area that helps you with your better life outcomes you won’t regret. It’s an area that most of us aren’t developed in. But something you can develop (like a skill) and get better at when you use the deeper mind muscle.

The more strengthening discernment exercises you do in your daily life, the stronger the wisdom muscle becomes. This article is about how to exercise and practice better discernment in your daily life (that can be a good life skill tool you can have at your hip!).

Cultivating Discernment

Because remember with improved discernment, you get better at making wise decisions for yourself in your unique life.

Find quiet time and practice discernment.

And discernment is quiet like the wind. You look for it in your quiet moments, feelings, and thoughts. It’s not in your face.

When making a decision when you’re busy or distracted, listening to a noisier source like culture influences can be the deciding factor. Screaming headlines and popular trends are hard to miss while internal-gut feelings are easy to miss.

Practice discernment by thinking what’s a wise, longterm choice for forks in the road. And sleep on ideas or decisions you get to make. Find quiet time balance like you had when we were all in quarantine.

Let discernment be as natural for you as scrolling social media.

One effective way to grow discernment is to remove the blocks.

Discernment can be at odds with smart, popular cultural opinions and trends that often block out the whispering and opposing wise thoughts.

Popular culture doesn’t often reward wisdom that’s countercultural especially in younger cultures.

I know when I was younger and very easily influenced, I would listen to what everyone was doing first before listening to my own internal guide.

I thought: if everyone is doing it, how could it be wrong? But over years, I learned that was the wrong belief.

And yes, everyone (groupthink) can be wrong so it’s good to use your own judgment and developed discernment.

And that can be for any area in your unique life. If you live out your one-of-a-kind, good, and authentic ways without giving up, you will succeed in your life that you’re the star in. 🌟

Grow patience.

Another common block stems from wisdom-discernment being slow to show rewards. Being individually thoughtful is part of discernment which creates uncertainty because you’re not sure on your own.

It’s like making a long-term investment that you let sit on the sidelines versus making quick buys and sells for short wins. Then years later you see the abundance of fruit from your earlier decisions you were then-unsure about.

Those that take action and wait, win. They don’t miss out.

Waiting is part of the process for anything great. Slow cooking makes for a great stew over microwaving soups.

And yet in modern culture nobody wants to wait in areas where they’re eager to move forward in if they don’ have to. With more practice and confidence in your discernment skills, you can also get better with patience that helps your daily joyful temperament.

Invite in good thoughts.

Good discernment comes from wittling through your thoughts and only letting the good ones pass through. Reject the trashworthy thoughts after you figure out if they have any useful message for you. Sometimes that takes just a split-second decision.

Like a self-pity woes-me thought. You can just put those away.

Every day you have thoughts that enter that you have no control over. And you can decide what you do with them so they don’t decide for you.

You have complete control over rejecting thoughts. You can simply walk away in self-awareness. Or self-talk back saying, “I reject this thought.”

You can rewrite the thought narrative ending and your entire day! You can heal yourself in the moment if it was a hurtful memory.

And if unsure on a thought, you can sit on it to see how you feel later about it. You don’t have to do anything with them as they go nowhere unless you take action or have a reaction.

Write off thoughts (from your ego)

And for those ego thoughts that don’t serve you or others, you can write those off. You’re best to catch those often and not waste any more time than it takes to discern that those thoughts are not helping you.

They provide zero benefit to your life. And can add to the fear and irrational actions. And that further pushes your Fear buttons (aka false evidence appearing real).

If they’re truthfully there to serve as a warning, you will get more clues in your life. It won’t just be one thought that keeps pestering and doesn’t go away. You’ll see and hear it from various sources that build up the facts. Be like a jury trying to determine fact from fiction.

And sometimes warning thoughts are helpful. That’s where discernment comes in handy. You can decide for yourself if they are meant for you for a reason you can’t yet decipher.

…Sometimes out-of-the-blue you may get thoughts that are good reminders or new ideas that you can credit the Universe for in trying to help you.

What you let impact you, you also have degrees of control over. An example of this is what you let into your mind from what you watch on media.

You can flip the channel or walk away. You always have a choice in the matter. And there’s always headphones for noise barriers.

This can help you find your quiet time and mind peace as we enter a season of peace, Lenten peace, and Easter around the corner. 🐇

Enjoy this sour cherry bun recipe you can easily make into Hot Cross Buns.

sour cherry buns.

Print Recipe

Yeasted Sour Cherry Buns

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine American

Ingredients

bread dough (flour yeast, salt, water)
cinnamon
sour cherries

Instructions

Make bread dough. Add in cinnamon.
Let proof for 2 hours.
Add sour cherries to dough.
Roll into even shape balls.
Cover and let proof for another 30 minutes on the baking pan (approx. double in size).
Bake at 350°F for 20-25 minutes until medium or golden brown.
Let cool and glaze with maple syrup or honey (optional).

Plow Pose For Stress Ease and Back Pain

Plow pose yoga is one of the best stretches for releasing stress and back pain. You don’t have to love yoga to love what this pose can do for you! And when you have surrounding healthy inspiration in your life, then you breathe in balance.

Plow pose and healthy living are a great combination.

Do you have a healthy inspiration board? I think it’s a fun way to bring more of that intentional energy and balance into life. 🌱

And Plow pose fits right in. Like the name “plow” implies, Plow pose loosens your body up. In farming, plowing is essential prep-work so seeds can be planted. And in your back’s case, plowing for a loose and limber back will support your daily movements…

If any of these apply, you may just need some restoring Plow Pose love in your life 🧡:

✔️Sit in a chair most the day

✔️Hurt your back doing daily activities

✔️Are as tall as a baby giraffe that towers over most of us

…And in those cases, doing this pose often, you may never cry again to go see a back specialist. The easy pose may be all you need in your wincing daily back pain that can come from accumulated tension.

Some of us already do this pose regularly to restore our backs.

And below I get down to the nitty-gritty of how to get in the pose with ease… and not hurt yourself, that’s a point not to miss!

Because warning: you can hurt yourself. And I’m emphasizing that because people think yoga is just light movements, but some of those movements come with intensity.

That goes for other yoga poses too, but in Plow Pose especially because you’re carrying most of your body’s weight with your upper body half. It’s pretty cool-phenomenal when you think about it.

Yoga is awesome in this way because you don’t need equipment or weights to do weight lifting that’s also good for building strength.

Body weight is self-equipment and you want to use what you have! And like any weights, you want to use good form.

That’s not to scare you away because yoga does good for your body, health, and wellness. And it’ll only help you on your journey!

Sometimes “use it or lose it” can be a good motivator. Or one I heard recently was that if you don’t make time to exercise (or do yoga), then plan to make time for illness. Sad, but true. And you have a chance to use that mantra as a gentle reminder. 🧡

…We all need reminders to take action today.

Sometimes a new perspective or healthy kick in the pants, works (as it has for me, ha!). I look at it as investing in yourself now, so that you can have lasting healthy habits and good results in later years that creep up and you start to feel your joints and parts you never felt before. 😭

You have a chance to Plow now for benefits tomorrow..

For starters, I’ll begin with… in one of the first few times I did Plow Pose, shifting my neck in the pose taught me an unforgettable lesson you can avoid in aches.

But done properly, the pose is a life saver!… Just keep your mind focused on good form and you’ll be in great shape. 😊

And if you have ceiling exposed beams or a ceiling fan you can stare at one spot easily, that’ll do the trick. Or turn your popcorn ceiling into a positive feature.

…And more recently when I relocated and had to sleep on a floor mattress for a month before my bed furniture arrived, Plow Pose saved me and my back. I had used the lessons I learned from Plow Pose yoga years back to revive my back… and restore me back!

The simple restorative move over the course of a week provided the much-needed relief. It was very little effort that’s always a crowd pleaser plus. So if you tend to get the lazy Kaphas or consider yourself a tired Kapha, Plow Pose can be a huge problem solve. You can restore yourself without leaving your digs.

The area where the pose feels best is in the mid-back and some lower back if you dig deeper into the pose when your toes and parts of your feet are planted on the mat.

You can use that as a metaphor for getting deeper in your life. Even just a few seconds feels sooo good.

The other benefit is you can do this pose anywhere. If the travel bed you’ve slept on gave you trouble, you can lay a towel down on the carpet-padded floor or yoga mat on floor or flat ground. You could even do this on the therapeutic beach sand. 🏝️

…So, ready to get your plow-on?

You can do this while waiting for your easy recipe to come together.

This is an easy and healthy oat blueberry waffle great for weekends and brunch. Recipe below. 🫐

Always start with a warm-up move to loosen you up and also get in the mood.

Do a stretch before the stretch. If you’re feeling lazy, you could rest a block behind your mid-back and another block or folded blanket under your head if you’re at home or at a yoga studio. This stretches your verterbrae without much energy.

But the one move I like that’s portable is…

Seated, and with arms wrapped around bent and tucked knees like a tight ball of yarn, roll back down to the floor and then back up. Keep doing this several times to warm up your vertebrae so you’re more back limber.

…I like to call it the roly-poly move (…would make a good pose name, yes?). That’s actually a protective interior move for isopod insects that have the nickname. And you can look at it as protecting your body from any snaps from not warming up.

And then when you had enough of that, lay flat back on your mat or towel. Scoot down on your mat quite a bit, leaving just enough room on your mat above your head where your feet will land on the mat (if they do). If your buttocks is about at the 1/3 mark of your mat, you’re good.

It can be hard to imagine if you’re new to the pose, but you’ll be glad you did when you’re in Plow. When you’re new to yoga, figuring out space on your mat is interesting.

….The good news, it’s not that important as everywhere you land is flat and you’re low-grounded already.

So if you don’t care so much, you can let your free spirit lead you!

What’s a universal agreement is you don’t want to have your devices or anything else damageable around you, so you can relax!

…Now you’re ready and on your mat, can go into a pause pose like Shoulder Stand that grounds your shoulders and keeps your legs straight

Or, a hugging Upside Down Child Pose like a Happy Baby for a few breaths.

Or go straight into Plow Pose by gently throwing or lifting your legs straight up in the air and then slowly lower back them behind your head. Try and get your legs over with mindfulness and control, one verterbrae at a time.

But however you get there is good. You can use your hands to help guide your buttocks and body.

And in good form, stare at one point on the popcorn ceiling 👀 or above. And maybe you have a nice view so that lowers your blood pressure to look at in addition to the release in body tension.

Avoid shifting your neck.

Do keep your shoulder blades down on the mat helps. You can move your eyes. but if you want to keep your focused gaze (Drishti) still 😳, that’s up to you. Just remember to keep your neck still. And remember to breathe naturally and not hold your breath.

I think those last points are worth remembering. 📝

And then you’re doing your pose!

You can decide if your toes or parts of your feet touch the mat. Those moves are the deeper pose that’ll stretch parts of your upper back.

But if you don’t go that far back (on your back), you’ll still get a good stretch in your lower and mid-back, that works in the beginning. And that’s where most of us have back pain in the mid-lower area sitting in a chair.

Plus, there’s always next time to practice…

Next time will be when you’ll be more prepared and your body cells will remember the pose that makes the pose easier as you do it more times. And that’s why you can go deeper and further with less effort as you get more comfortabe.

Enjoy yourself and let time melt in your mat. Even a few breaths is beneficial for your back… and adding moments longer is good for de-stressing.

When you’ve been in the pose long enough, then slowly roll and unwind your spine, vertebrae-by-vertebrae. You may have done that with self-control getting into the pose and balancing the move out of the pose. This time use patience as your mantra.

That’s another point to not miss: yoga teaches us good lessons in character alignment we need without long trials and hard lessons.

And right away you’ll feel rewarded with a better feeling back as you roll out of the pose. And when you sit back up, you should feel less back tension.

If you feel the stretch in a good way, then that means you need to do it again more often. When you don’t feel the stretch, that’s when you can focus on other best yoga poses. There are hundreds to choose from on our planet for the amazing creature you are.🧘🏻‍♀️🐶🐬🐪 🐗🐱🐦‍⬛🐇

If you’d like you can pair your yoga with these aligned waffles… and even better make these waffles in the time it takes to get in your Plow Pose. 🧇

Easy No Egg Blueberry Waffles

Short on eggs, you can make this easy recipe in 3 minutes.

Course Breakfast, brunch

Cuisine American

Ingredients

1 tbsp blueberries, frozen
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup milk
1 tbsp whole wheat flour, plain flour, or gluten free flour
1 tsp neutral oil

Instructions

Mix ingredients and add to your medium hot waffle maker. This is a liquid-y batter. Add more oats to fill in if it becomes too liquid in spots. This is a very forgiving recipe and great for lazy weekends!
Cook for about 3 minutes or until easy to pull in one piece off the waffle iron with a fork.
Flip the bottom for the top as often that's better cooked.
For healthy version, dust collagen powder on top instead of powdered sugar.

Indecisive Vata Traits Keeping You Stuck

Indecisive Vata is one way to describe how Vatas act often. This could be new news to you. It was new to me too up ’til 2008 when I learned about Ayurveda.

Indecisive Vata often is confronted with this or that path choices that can create anxiety. — Indecisive – which path will you take?

…That’s when it clicked and made sense as to why I had indecisive and other Vata tendencies.

You can read my back story here about when I went to go get help for my immediate Pitta mind-body symptoms. And I also came out with knowledge and awareness on why certain Vata ways were natural to me. I’m naturally a Vata with some dominant Pitta mind, but like all of us… sometimes tired Kapha kicks up.

…And whether you tend toward uneasy, annoyed, or listlessness it all ties back to your balance.

If you’re wondering if you have Vata traits, this article shares more and how you can benefit from knowing.

Growing up, I always felt hesitant about small decisions. Do I want an orange or crackers? Do I want pink or blue to wear? This could easily be chalked up to the fact that most of us like more than one food or color. …or I’m a female, so being indecisive is typical.

But in reality it’s not about the color, food, or gender. Or even about how you were raised.

It’s about our natural makeup, that’s unisex. We have Ayurvedic orientations called Vata, Pitta, and Kapha inside us. Or wind, fire, and earth if that’s easier to remember. 💨🔥🌎

Earth, Wind, and Fire is already taken. 🥁🎹🎺

And we’re more dominant in one or two of those names in body. And same goes for the mind. Putting those two parts together, you get the mind-body connection that affects so much of our lives and behaviors.

Indecisiveness is one way that’s mostly a mind situation that you can easily pinpoint from an Ayurvedic lens.

When you can do that, you can restore the healthy balance back in awareness to your calm and confident decision-making.

Being decisive all around not only saves time, but leads to better decisions and outcomes.

How Being Vata Indecisive Can Hurt

At the heart, indecision is second guessing your first decision that comes from gut instinct and clear minded processing. So in a way, being Vata indecisive is being confronted with a brain fog moment.

Indecision can lead to worry that Vatas lean into already. And that state of mind can lead to staying stuck in a cycle of unproductive thoughts playing as an undercurrent in the back of your mind. 🌊That’s added stress that doesn’t need to be there.

Feeling anxiety also can cause indecision as body symptoms make it more difficult to clearly process thoughts.

Vice versa, indecision can lead to anxiety (that’s another common Vata trait).

Depending on the body symptom severity, anxious feelings lead to poor decisions and outcomes.

It numbs awareness of what is real.

And making matters worse, that pause can linger and keep you frozen from making a decision or in “fight or flight” that can cost.

For small things like daily preferences, that’s not such a big deal… but if it’s deciding on taking a right or left or making a quick life threatening decision, that can be concern- elevated.

Vata indecisive traits can compound into feeling uncertain about other areas in your day when those moments could be better spent enjoying yourself or even better… being in the moment in peace and mindfulness.

That’s when stress melts away for whatever is in your life eating at you. Those anxious feelings are traded in for feeling calm and joyful.

That’s the ticket for your healthy and happy life. 🎟️

And that can be your norm or new norm! I know because my life did a 180-turn from stress to peace when I got rid of the triggers. I became self-employed.

And I became more clear-headed… more like a human and less walking around like a busy Bot. There are too many of those already roaming our internet spaces.

How to Get Back To Your Vata Mind Balance

And in learning from my balanced seasons where I could disconnect and detox, I’m more decisive.

I’m my balanced Vata (the way that is naturally greater and my optimal best) 🧘🏻‍♀️

I don’t teeter back and forth. I can catch myself in the act of hemming and hawing and doing what I know to do to restore any Vata imbalance that tries to creep back in.

It’s not difficult or unnatural. It’s simply being intentional daily doing the specific balanced steps that turn the tide around for a better life. 👣

No one is doomed to the “I’m just indecisive” label. That’s putting a stamp of acceptance that’s not the way it has to be or stay.

And you can start by doing these two balanced healthy steps:

1) Get self-awareness in the moment so you can be next step-intentional.

2) Then, breathe the calm back into your mind-body as soon as you can so you can feel the calm pause in the next moments.

Finding ways to have a calmer life, I believe is underrated. And not what Western culture aims for although we’ve wised up post-2020.

As mentioned, calm allows for clearer, confident decisions.

Calm is also better for your healthy outcomes.

But if you don’t have that life now because of situational triggers you can’t avoid, then restoring daily when you can with what you do have as calming resources will be the next best way.

Use your surroundings: calming activities and scents, music, yoga, and a nature walk.

Do this daily and often.

They’re not time wasters. It’s like taking care of your teeth. It’s always minutes well spent investing in your daily smile. 😁

If you feel you’re daily Vata indecisive for what to do (such as jumping from task to task), get back to your breathing awareness.

We often forget, yet another Vata common trait. Not picking on Vatas as we’re a creative, enthusiastic bunch… but in your remembering moment (or in the slight gap pause), recall there is calm balance and no anxiety.

Let the weight of the world you live in go by letting all that out in deep inhale and exhale breaths. That’s an activity you can do anywhere, anytime… and wise to do all the time.

Set a reminder if that helps. ⌚️

And when you do your breathing exercise, you’re able to work your way out slowly in the gap or one moment at a time.

And this date recipe that you can make for your daily self 😊 can help restore your Vata especially if you add the orange and cinnamon tastes.

Print Recipe

Date Cookies

You can make these ahead of time and in any oven including an apartment oven. And enjoy.

Ingredients

coconut flour and plain flour combined
a few pats of butter (or coconut oil)
chopped dates
water as needed
orange zest and cinnamon (optional)

Instructions

Prepare and chop dates filling. Tip: since dates are sticky, it's easier to use a serated chopping knife with edges. Add cinnamon and orange zest if you'd like more Vata sweetness.
Mix cookie ingredients: flour, butter or oil, and water as needed to make a cohesive cookie dough disc. You can make this in advance and freeze the dough if you like.
When dough is slightly cooler than room temperature is the ideal temperature to work with this dough. Roll out cookie dough to about 1/4 to 1/8 inch thick (doesn't have to be too thin).
Add date filling to center of dough.
Roll up and cut into small, even pieces.
Bake on 350°F for about 12 minutes or until golden brown.

7 Healthy Meal Prep Points to Enjoy

Healthy meal prep is rewarding like pizzas you can make and bake at home. This recipe is below. 🍴

healthy meal prep with homemade wood-fired pizza with mushrooms recipe.

Like this wood fired -inspired pizza you can make and bake in your apartment oven or home.

It’s no secret that healthy meal prep is the way to eat healthier meals and save time. But doing any type of meal planning enjoyably can be work and a challenge.

…And I remember the 10 years I breathed in event meal planning day and night as a professional career with the tasty outcomes it produced… and smiles on faces.

The happy event memories produced were lasting. And in home meal planning talk that’s like healthy foods to body cell memories.

I share tips below on how to gain the joy in the process of healthy meal prep.

I share from the lens of baking that can be applied to savory meals. Baking isn’t just for sweet tooths 😉

And you can tweak to your cooking methods whether it’s stovetop or grilling (too).

So here we go!

The first point for healthy meal prep is get your self-serving mindset on.

If the idea of meal prep or healthy meal prep sounds daunting to you, instead of looking at cooking and healthy meal prep as a chore, you can reframe to these enjoyable perspectives:

Use meal prep and cooking as a way to relax. 🍽️ The finished meal is the cherry on top. 🍒

Baking or cooking is a great way to detox from work or a stressful day. You can let ideas percolate as you listen to music or a show in the background. You don’t have to stare at your food cooking. You can use your low-key energy.

Listening to audio is a great use of 20-40 minutes. It’s my fave way to listen to music, podcasts, and have even recorded my own weekly. 🎧

While you’re waiting for your cooking to be ready, you can do your clean up exercise, so after dinner you’re smiling with your Houdini magic clean up job (…where poof! it’s gone). ✨

And you can do stretches, side bends, and exercise.

That’s how baking can be superior (because you don’t have to watch the stove or grill). The timer does the watching in the oven so you can take up other light activities.

Healthy meal prep and cooking is made easier.

Healthy generally means cleaner and simpler, less frou-frou embellished ingredients and sauces. The more whole ingredients and fewer processed ingredients, the better.

With healthy foods and fewer ingredients, meal prep time and cooking minutes are shorter because there are less steps.

And they’re easier steps. Adding a spice or two can be the anti-inflammatory flare needed, that’s less time than creating a roux or using multi-step French recipes. Save those for days where you have more relaxed time.

For most days, you can think of healthy meal prep as a new hobby. Didn’t consider it like that, did you? 🤔

Adding to the hobby idea… one great way to rid of racing thoughts is by getting distracted with a new hobby, creative pursuit, project, or passion that baking and cooking can be.

Healthy meal prep can be a part that inspires your new hobby.

Like most hobbies, you get to try new techniques and the result is your finished product version (aka meal). There’s no right or wrong. Just reward. 😋

Whatever you like and prefer will always be popular with you. And always trending on your food board, so it’s a win all around. And if you take up cooking as one of your regular hobbies, then you not only get a life skill that can serve you well and daily… you’ll also have one that others can enjoy in taste and photos if you document and share. 💖

Cooking is entertaining.

That’s what I know planning catered events working with the chefs in upscale hotel and foodie restaurant kitchens. And letting those vibes transcend into my own working kitchen.

What I like most about baking is the entertainment factor in the entire process. You get to watch the bake from scratch, in production and then placement on the plate and table.

That brings me back to my roots. But you can find your own version and maybe you enjoy food shows like I do. Who doesn’t love Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives?

Thank you, Great British Bake Off and weekend cooking shows for showing me that I’m not crazy!

When you watch inspirational and aspiring food shows like those, they can make the meal prep look easy on the set. They fast forward to the main steps. And that’s how it can be for you…

You can skip the multi-layer processes, waiting, cooling, and decorating steps and get to the main steps in healthy meal planning with less hassles.

Slip meal prep into your day.

And instead of doing everything all at once, you can take 10-minute breaks before your meal prep to pull out room temp ingredients, clean tools off, and mince foods. Or, do it early in the day or late at night when your mood fancies.

This will linger in your back burner as a sub-priority and prime you for happy meal prep mood.

As a creative at heart, I don’t believe you should be robotic in the kitchen and dicing perfectly if you don’t have to.

Finding what works for you, works.

As a Vata, I like to go off script and outta routine.

To balance, I put my planner hat back on and get back to a routine.

It’s like playing ball against a wall where you toss and catch. And the balance is that is that the ball is still in the air and you’re still enjoying yourself!

Then after doing other work or activities, you’re prepped to come back to preparing your meal.

Snack while you’re preparing.

Enjoyment doesn’t have to be at the end either. Try a few items while you’re prepping. The benefit of being in the kitchen is being around all the goodies.

Develop your bonding relationship with food loves and new variety foods, as healthy. You’ll love your dishes even more when they’re ready.

Standing points.

When you’re meal prepping or cooking, you’re standing. If you sit most the day, you win points that you may be tracking. If a standing desk doesn’t work for you, then cooking is one activity that allows you to stand without feeling awkward.

Being relaxed and standing has its benefits.

And in between you can do a few more baking yoga stretches like yoga squats to win move and exercise points. Baking allows you to get into your bending yoga squat if you want to be at the level of your oven food.

Cooking and baking are also great ways to unwind from a stressful day where you’re not quite ready to sit down or retire for the night.

And finally, I saved the best for last…

Meal prep can be your meditation.

That’s how I see it as I let thoughts enter. And with eyes open, allow my mind to show me new areas that I haven’t thought about… places to have gratitude that come from my day… and how to relax while aromatic cooking is in the process. That’s food meditation🧘🏼‍♀️

Then to keep the balance and flow, I fast on certain days and hours where I intentionally stay away from the kitchen. That’s my second form of meditation that helps me set my work week and healthy meal prep week.

If you want to learn how you can get free healthy meal plan recipes to align with your healthy weight intentions, check out the free intermittent fasting guide.

Print Recipe

homemade wood-fired pizza with mushrooms recipe.

Mushroom Neapolitan-Style Wood-Fired-Inspired Pizza For An Apartment Oven

You can make this delicious umami mozzarella pie in your home!

Course lunch, Main Course

Cuisine American, Italian

Ingredients

bread flour (or 00 flour)
salt
water
instant yeast
toppings (mushroom, buffalo mozzarella cheese, and sauce).
extra virgin olive oil
semolina for bench flour

Instructions

Mix ingredients and knead until a cohesive pizza dough ball can be formed. If with a bread dough hook, about 5 minutes and double time by hand.
Add some olive oil to a container with a lid or can be covered.
Place dough in container and let proof for at least 2 hours. Can be left overnight.
Then add some bench flour (semolina flour is classic for Neapolitan pizza).
Flatten into shape except for the airy crust you'll make. Try to not smush down the crust at all with your hands.
When you're happy with your pizza shape, then place in oven and bake for about 20 minutes on 350°F oven. Then add toppings such as sauce, cheese and mushrooms.
Then add to top shelf at least 8 inches away from the oven heat coming from the top of the oven. Bake on broil (caliente hot!) setting for 2-5 minutes until crust is slightly charred giving the wood-burned fire "effect." Watch the broiling effect the entire time, so you don't set off the apartment alarm and to be safe.

Kapha Body Type Obvious Signs

Kapha body type is found in those with hearts… yes, that’s all of us, but not all of us are natural Kapha bodies. Gaining Kapha obvious signs and awareness-knowledge helps us in our daily lives.

Raspberries are good for heart health and even mimic heart shapes 🫀These whole wheat raspberry pop tarts celebrate heart health month. 💗

Whether you’re a natural Kapha body type or or another ayurvedic body type (that you’ll learn more about in this article), you can have a Kapha imbalance as all of us have some Kapha in us.

Kapha dosha is the earth and water 🌎 in us (that sometimes carries mud and creates sluggish seasons in our lives!). The other elements are wind, fire, and air to complete the five elements.

Pittas are fire and water and Vatas are wind and air (or space). So as you can see with the water commonality, Pittas have more in common with the Kapha constitution than a Vata dosha body.

One area that’s a common distinction is that to naturally balance Kapha, this usually involves weight loss while Vata balancing is on the other end of the spectrum.

It doesn’t take a lot to find someone close to you that you can determine is a natural Kapha. You may have friends and relationships with many Kaphas who in-balance make great friends, but outta balance can rub off in not-so-great ways you’ll learn more about below.

…But for the most part, Kaphas are loving people at heart so we can lean toward those positive traits. 💕

Backing up just a ‘lil, you may not be so familiar with the Kapha body type description because it’s part of our newer age and Ayurveda today is a common approach among eastern way cultures where it started.

Thousands of miles away in America where I grew up and live, it’s catching on, but not everyone is aware. There, we learned about pear and apple body shapes as descriptors.

And endomorphs (Kapha) 🍐, mesomorphs (Pitta) 🍏, and ectomorphs (Vata) ⏳ body types… sound familiar? Body types were often illustrated with doodle images in magazines.

Today, a sturdy planted elm or a full fruit blossomed tree can be another Kapha body type description if you want to take it outside for nature descriptors or into your Ayurveda Tree yoga pose that has caught on like wildfire in the Western hemisphere.

And, of the three dosha ayurvedic body types (Kapha, Pitta, and Vata), Kaphas can usually withstand and endure tougher conditions like palm trees, that you can mimic in Swaying Palm Tree pose.

A Kapha body type is more like a palm tree that can endure and thrive in an ecosystem where they're planted.

Kaphas are like palms 🌴 that are enduring in nature.

Or, you can show off your Kapha body soul with firmly planted feet in a majestic Mountain Pose if balance poses a challenge in your Ayurvedic moves. ⛰️

Other obvious Kapha body type characteristics:

Kapha body type can be described as solid and larger frame (compared to the Pitta and Vata body types).

But there are other natural characteristics, like: dewey skin (moist) and a colder internal body thermostat. They share cooler body temps in common with Vatas.

That’s why it’s good to have a thick, comfy hoodie or warm blanket close by that comforts especially on wintery nights, wet days, and dreary weather outside.

Often, Kapha lazy sides rule. Hibernation during the colder months warm the soul, along with deep sleeping.

A Kapha body type can carry a daily sinus life and a regular cough-as Kapha. Sleeping with breathing difficulties is also common, along with waking up with sinus or chest to head congestion since the body was laying flat.

And these are other noticeable common signs (tell-tale even amongst strangers):

A Kapha body type gains weight easily. Kaphas tend to have larger frames. And most noticeable on the outside to a Kapha body, is the tendency to add weight and fit in larger clothing. They also tend to digest slowly and store more fat easily as another sign.

Kaphas tend to walk slowly. Others (Pittas and Vatas) walk faster ahead. It’s easy to chalk this up to longer legs, but the Kapha slower pace is not just body-part related. It’s also Kapha mind connected to the way each likes to do lifein their Kapha body type if Kapha dominant overall, and taking life in stride. Think of the relaxed coastal lifestyle vs. fast city dweller life.

Which btw, a natural Vata mind and Kapha body is more anxious and a Pitta mind in a Kapha body takes life faster.

How these traits complement good Kapha body type sides:

As already mentioned, Kaphas prefer to embrace a relaxed, slower paced life that’s healthy and less stress to the body. So that can lead to a longer life if other health and wellness areas are self-care maintained.

…And this leads to a Kapha body type who lives more calm ☺️ than anxious Vata types 😦 or competitive Pitta Type-A’s. 😠

Mind you, none of the body types are better than the other per se, but being overall healthy is the best of all dosha worlds.

Kaphas also have a higher tendency to forgive other people as being sympathetic. And they have good memories (…a memory like an elephant 🐘), so they can make good reminders. Other types like Vatas, not so much as more forgetful.

And these help to support the idea that Kaphas often make great friends because they’re nice at heart, supportive, loving, and likable.

Kaphas are common among us and are often our funny, light-hearted entertaining friends we like to have fun and laugh with.

We love our balanced Kapha friends because in those moments they let things roll off their back and not bother them. They don’t take life too seriously like score-counting Pitta counterparts or worry wart Vatas.

Other body types wish they could be like the Kapha body type. They can get their superpower things done in ease. They don’t sweat the small things.

Now, these are the downsides that an imbalanced Kapha body type can exude:

Kapha people can be clingy in relationships where too much of a good thing can be cloying and smothering.

And as mentioned they tend to metabolize slowly, and accumulate pounds easily (“look at food and gain weight”).

Accumulation can also carry into their lives as hoarding, clutter, or disorganization. When someone has too much Kapha (or imbalanced Kapha), these are typical signs.

A Kapha body type can also tend to hold in feelings and not express sad or other hurtful feelings that eat on the inside. This can stay as trauma to the body and mind in the mind-body connection. They can be more sensitive to criticism than Vatas and Pittas.

But the great news is an imbalanced Kapha from an accumulated seasonal situation (and not a health triggered one) can be restored with specific lifestyle tweaks using the 5-senses.

Our human bodies are intuitive and have built-in natural preferences. To optimize our lives, we can learn the internal body language and uncover what those are to restore ourselves and our lives. You can do this better when you know whether you have a Kapha (Pitta or Vata) body imbalance or a combination, and know what to do when imbalanced for each for starters.

You can also complement Ayurvedic lifestyle tweaks with hormonal or aging health imbalances. Solutions (such as healthy foods) are both headed in the healthy direction, so there are overlaps in natural prescriptions.

Taking small action in those healthy guided directions help turn the tide sooner to get back to the happy-go-lucky and calm temperament that is natural to a Kapha body type and the sides everyone around you loves…

And by taking care and nipping-in-the-bud accumulating imbalances that accrue easily in our busy Western and comparing cultures, you can avoid unnecessary potential depression, infections, and obesity. ❣

Awareness, daily restoration, and prevention can change the trajectory toward better healthy outcomes, daily life enjoyment, and longevity.

Since the body communicates with us through feeling-good and healthy vs uncomfortable (or body symptoms), we can use those clues to gather more information from our bodies.

Here are some habit examples that can restore the 3 most common Kapha imbalances:

Clear sinus problems, nasal congestion, or excess phlegm. Mucus is actually a way for your body to protect you from foreign body invaders like allergens (and sometimes over protect with daily allergies).

One natural symptom remedy is: you can breathe in ACV steam like our older and grandmother generations taught. If you feel the sting in your passages, then it’s working.

Shower steam is also good. You can also use and sniff essential oils like peppermint and eucalyptus that will help open up the passages.

A neti pot is also a good way habit that cleans out your passages naturally. You may want to do this regularly during heavy pollen season or year-round weekly (or bi-weekly). Use warm water and sea salt for best cleansing effect. You can prevent nasty sinus infections from this one cleansing move if you keep up with it!

Prevent weight gain and maintain a consistent healthy weight. When it’s colder, warm comfort foods are desired. Use healthy ingredients and consider making your own homemade soups and stews. Balance with plant-based foods such as beans, alliums, and indole veggies. And start the day with fiber like asparagus, bananas, oats, and whole grains.

You can have cook prepared veggies and salads ready-to-go on the side. You can also decide to have something “green” at every major meal.

And still focus on healthy proteins as the star of your meal that’ll keep you feeling full longer so you don’t feel the need to snack all day.

🌱 If healthy intermittent fasting is something you would like to learn more about, get the free comprehensive guide to start and sustain your IF or fasting lifestyle that works for all body types in bio-individuality.

Beating tiredness. Start your day with water. Get caffeinated and enough sleep. Intake enough Vitamin D and sunshine especially during colder months that doesn’t do Kaphas any favors.

Lessen blue light at night from devices and wear blue light blocking glasses that our grandmother’s ages didn’t have. Listen to uplifting and get-you-moving music ring tones that can also be your wake-up alarm.

And if you want to optimize sleep and lose weight, intermittent fasting is one biohacking trick that helps in those areas and many other health longevity areas especially if you’re living and adjusting to your beyond 40s new normal body.

Fasting would’ve been frowned upon in our grandmothers’ eras where that would’ve been seen as starvation. But we’ve wised up to know our cultures are abundant in food and we’ve grown beyond the “exercise more and eat less” mantras.

Print Recipe

Here is a Whole Wheat Raspberry Pop Tart recipe to brighten up any tart days and sweet cravings. 💕

Easy Whole Wheat Raspberry Pop Tarts

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Ingredients

Raspberries
Whole wheat flour
1 tbsp or 1-2 pats of butter
Warm water (enough to make pastry workable enough to shape a disc that can be rolled out about 1/4" thick)
Homemade raspberry Jam or your favorite jam

Instructions

You decide how much you make.
Make the pastry dough and roll out to about 1/4" thick.
Cut out rectangles.
Add jam or fruit filling to bottom and cover with top rectangle like a sandwich.
Use a fork to crimp the edges together.
Bake on 325°F. For wheat flour, it's best to take a listen or tap to see if baked done as color stays consistent throughout baking process.
For jam: crush raspberry with bowl and spoon or mortar and pestle and add a small amount of water.