Tips For Staying Healthy This Winter

Winter will soon be upon us here in Austin! In Traditional Chinese Medicine, every season is associated with an energy, body part, element and organ. There are many ways that you can change your lifestyle and habits to live more in harmony with the Winter season, which prevents sickness and irregularities.

hibernate

TCM teaches to live in harmony with the seasons. Winter is all about yin energy. Yin is the dark, cold, inward, slow energy. Think of animals hibernating in the winter! It is important during the winter season to rest, revitalize, and go inward. Take time to meditate, journal, or do restorative yoga. Any activity that helps you relax and rest is great to support you during the winter season.

Keep Your neck warm

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the back of your neck is your Wind Gate, the entry point for so-called Evil Qi, which is the cause of many ailments, colds, flus, sickness, fatigue, etc. Keeping your neck covered and warm will help you protect you from Evil Qi and from picking up common colds or flu-like symptoms.

eat Warm foods and avoid cold foods

In many traditions, not just Traditional Chinese Medicine but also Ayurveda, it is said that the cold weather affects your body temperature and the heat in your digestion. Avoid cold foods during the colder months so that you do not slow down your digestion even further. Eating warm foods will boost your digestive fire and keep your body temperature up!

Give yourself a kidney massage

In Chinese Medicine, Winter is associated with the Kidneys, which hold our most fundamental and basic energy. When you start to feel cold, give yourself a massage on the low to mid back (at the bottom of your ribcage). Massage it with short and quick strokes. This area will generate heat and you may start to feel warmth spread through the body, especially into your abdomen.