Grounding Into Fall

Who doesn’t love fall, especially September?! An absolutely amazing time of year where the fading summer sun collides with the cool fall nights 🙂 The skies are often clear and days and nights are coming into an equilibrium

But this is also a transitional time of year bringing dry air, wind, and change… and not just seasonal change. It also brings darkness as the days begin to shorten. With fall comes new routines and it can be a great time to focus in on new inspirations and creativity!

According to the Ayurvedic wisdom fall is the time where we transition from the fiery summer heat of pitta energy to the cool, airy, qualities of vata energy. In order to balance the airyness, activity, busyness, cooling, and drying energy of fall, ayurveda recommends balancing it with grounding routines to keep us directed, connected, and true to ourselves. 

As we enter into this cherished fall season, we can make the most of the creative and exploratory qualities that come with the airiness of fall, but to do so we must be grounded! 

A routine tailored to your lifestyle and energy will keep you grounded, engaged, productive, and healthy. Read on for lifestyle and nutrition recommendations that will help to keep you grounded during this transitional time.

Read on for both nutrition and lifestyle tips to help your body adjust to the changing of the season and make the most of this beautiful time of year!

Fall Routine : Sleep and Morning Meditation

Honoring Bedtime

Restoration and grounding starts with sleep routine and quality! When we are sleeping, our body switches into a restorative mode where we rest our muscles, bones, and mind while repairing all the cells in our body that have accumulated damage during the day. This time is also critical for our mental health and sleep is the time when the brain’s detoxification system is activated so that inflammation can be cleared from the brain!  [1] 

It has been well documented that when our sleep is misaligned with our circadian clock, not only do we have lower energy, and cloudy thinking, but we also become more susceptible to disease whether it’s the latest common cold or in more chronic cases, poor sleep can contribute to the onset of more serious disease [2] 

Misaligned sleep is something that we all experience. Some people stay up hours later on the weekends and then return to an early morning schedule for Monday through Friday. This is constantly disrupting your circadian rhythm! Of course sometimes, life happens, but try to set your bedtime to 10pm and stick to it. After just 2 weeks, I’m sure you will notice a difference in your energy levels and sleep quality!

Another important factor to be aware of is the time of the sunset. Living organisms are very sensitive to light, and not just in humans, all plants and animals react to the cycles of light and dark in their environment. In fact, the absence of light is just as importance as it’s presence. Darkness actually stimulates the release of our sleep hormone and home-made antioxidant melatonin. This hormone is important for regulating metabolism and balancing our stress hormone, cortisol. 

Unfortunately, in modern life we don’t experience nearly enough darkness! The good news is, there are things that you can do to change this! After about 7pm it’s time to dim the LED lights (or turn them off) and enable blue light filters on your devices – phone, computer, and TV. Plan on winding down and going to bed by 10pm.

Daily Grounding Meditation

I recommend doing this in the morning, but anytime of day that you can commit to will do!

Prepare a comfortable position for yourself. This meditation can be done in any comfortable, seated position. Some people prefer to be supported in a chair, others prefer a bolster on the floor. 

For an added effect of earthing, sit outdoors and contact the ground directly with your bare feet. We are electrical beings – our neurons and muscle cells rely on electricity for communication – and because we are so insulated from the environment with our houses and our cars and our shoes, we rarely contact the ground. But our bare skin is actually very conducive and if we allow ourselves to rest in direct contact with the earth, unbound electrons will be drawn to the earth, quite literally ‘grounding’ our excess charge!

Set a timer for about 10 minutes. Make sure that the alarm is soft and subtle. If you have more time, 15 or 20 minutes would be great and will help to deepen the effects. However, regular commitment is more important that irregular duration. 

Focus on your breath, slowly counting to 5 on an inhalation, holding the breath for 5 seconds, and release for a count of 5 seconds. Repeat this counting breath for a few cycles. Allow your breath to continue at a naturally slow pace.

Draw your attention to your feet and your sit bones, supported by the chair and the floor. Feel yourself aligned through the spine, and supported through your base. Take a few more breaths with your focus on those points of contact and support. 

From here you may choose to continue with a breath meditation, keeping the attention on your breath or counting 10 cycles of breath at a time. Or, you may like to repeat a mantra, either out loud or in your head. Here are a few that we love for fall

I embrace the light, I embrace the darkness

I receive light and love, I radiate love and light

I am enough

Of course, these are just starting points. Feel free to personalize these or make up your own. In general, it is best to pick a mantra and stick with it for a couple of weeks rather than jumping around too much day to day. Consistency 0f mantra reinforces the mind clearing effects of meditation. Whereas if you are constantly searching for the perfect mantra, you may be fueling the fleeting and grasping qualities of the mind.

When you hear the subtle sound of the alarm, take another gentle breath with your eyes remaining closed. Bring your focus back to where we started with the heaviness and support of your feet and sit bones.

Gradually open your eyes, turn off your alarm, and sit a moment longer to notice how you feel. As you build this into your daily routine, you will also start to notice that you engage differently with your life and with other people, and you tap into your own invaluable intuition.

Fall Foods

To balance out this transitional time, opt for foods and beverages that help to ground you.  The general focus is on comforting, cooked foods, warming spices, and smooth textures.

Seasonal fall starches such as winter squashes, carrots, beets, sweet potatoes, and heirloom potatoes are all grounding foods that are soothing and easy to digest. The smooth texture and mild taste are also emotionally grounding. Try to increase consumption of these foods, starting with small portion sizes and noticing how it makes you feel. 

Nuts and seeds provide a subtle sweetness as well as a good dose of healthy fat, help to both balance our cravings and metabolism. Add plenty of healthy fats such as olive oil, olives, avocados, wild fish, and an Ayurvedic favorite: grass-fed ghee. You may need to double down on healthy fats if you difficulty gaining weight or suffer from excess dryness during fall. 

High quality animal proteins are another staple category of grounding and satiating foods. These include wild fish, bone broth, grass-fed beef or game, pastured poulgry. They help us to feel full, and if we are opting for pasture raised and wild animals, they are very nutrient dense.  To support digestion during this airy time, it ist best to braise or cook them into soups and stews. Moist, low and slow cooking methods are the most grounding, and make for the easiest digestion.

Cook vegetables until tender, or even longer in soups and stews. Vegetable variety is still a valuable component of a nutritious diet, and it is important to continue to get some green in your diet, but because the digestive heat dwindles in the fall, it’s time to transition to cooked options such as roasted broccoli, stir fried asparagus and bell pepper, sauteed greens, etc. 

Love salads or smoothies? No problem, but try to have these and other raw foods around lunch time when the sun is highest and your digestion is strongest.

Fall Ritual : Abhyanga Oil Massage 

This is an amazing treatment that you can do for yourself at home! You need only a few household ingredients and about 35 minutes.

It is moisturizing and nourishing for the skin, plus it enhances lymphatic movement to prevent stagnation in tissue. The oils make the practice very grounding and fall and winter are great seasons to treat yourself to this decadent practice. If you are feeling very dry and ungrounded, you could do this weekly or even daily. 

• Extra Virgin Sunflower Seed Oil or Olive Oil
• Old Towel
• Glass Jar
• Boiling water
• Large bowl

Pour about 1 ½ cups of oil into the glass jar, Put the glass jar into the large bowl and fill the large bowl with boiling water until it reaches about ½ way up the jar. Allow the oil to heat for about 5 minutes in the hot water. Meanwhile, lay out an old towel near your shower or tub.

Once the oil is warmed, start by massaging a bit of oil into the crown of your head. Move down through the temples, scalp, base of the head, ears, face and jaw. The head massage is very important to the self care aspect of this treatment, so make sure to be thorough, spending 5-10 minutes here. 

Next move down the front and back of the neck to the chest and arms. Move back and forth in firm, long sweeping motions in the direction of the muscle fibers such as the neck, biceps, triceps, and forearms, and move in circular motions around the chest and joints including the shoulders, elbows and wrists.

Massage each palm, back of the hand, thumb, and all fingers.

Move down the chest to the abdomen moving clockwise in a circular motion. Massage the back as you are able to reach in firm, long sweeping strokes.

Massage the legs and feet as you did for the arms. Moving in straight, sweeping motions on the long bones and in a circular motion around the hips, knees, and ankles

Massage the entire foot, sole, front, heel, and toes. 

Once you are covered in oil, take 5-20 minutes for meditation to let the oil soak in. Then while hair is still dry, work in shampoo. This helps to better clear out the oil. Then take a warm shower (not too hot) to rinse off the excess oil only using soap as needed

Fall Recipe : Purple Potato & Vegetable Kitchari

This recipe combines lots of amazing warming spices, smooth soothing textures, and bright colors from seasonal fall produce. It is comfort in a bowl and is perfect for a balanced and grounding meal. Makes about 6 servings, and leftovers can be freeze well in wide mouth pint mason jars.

• 2 ribs Celery, sliced
• 1 large Carrot, sliced
•  1 medium Purple Potato, about 12oz, cubed
•  3-4 cups Green Beans, ends removed and halved
•  2 cups Shiitake Mushrooms, sliced
• 2 tbsp Shallots, roughly chopped
• ¾  cup Mung Beans, halved, dehulled and soaked, or use Sprouted Lentils
•  1 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
• ½ cup Rice – White, Wild, Brown, or some combination
• 2 tbsp Ghee or Coconut Oil
•  1 tbsp Fennel
•  1 ½  tbsp Cumin
•  ½ tbsp Coriander
• ½ tbsp Cardamom
• 2 inches Fresh Turmeric
• 4 inches Fresh Ginger
•  1 tsp Black Pepper
• 3 cups Bone Broth
•  2-4 cups  Filtered Water
• garnishes: Cilantro, Lemon, Goat Kefir

1. Soak rice and mung beans in 3 cups of filtered water and 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar for 4-6 hours or overnight to improve digestibility. Rinse and drain before cooking. If you don’t have time to soak your mung beans, opt for sprouted lentils instead.
2. Preheat ghee or coconut oil in large soup pot and add fennel, cumin, coriander, and cardamom and heat until spices are lightly toasted.
3. Add shallots, celery, and rinsed/drained rice and mung beans to pot and stir fry until coated with toasted spices. Add 3 cups of bone broth and about 1 cup of water to start.
4. Bring to boil, cover, and allow to simmer, partially covered for 30 minutes
5. Add potato and carrots and 1-2 cups of filtered water. Cook for 30 minutes.
6. Add green beans, turmeric, black pepper, and ginger and cook for another 20 minutes until all vegetables are tender and mung beans have a porridge like consistency. Adding water as needed to achieve desired texture.
7. Garnish with your choice of cilantro and lemon or goat kefir. 

Sources:

1. The Glymphatic System – A Beginner’s Guide https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4636982/ 
2. Circadian Neurobiology and the Physiologic Regulation of Sleep and Wakefulness https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31256784