Health Status Quiz

The western definition of health is basically the "absence of disease."  What this means is that you can go to the doctor when you are feeling bad, have a ton of tests run, results come back normal and the doctor looks you in the eye and honestly tells you that they can't find anything and nothing is wrong with you.  This is no fault of their own, it's just the way we view health in America.

An Ayurvedic perspective of health is much more rich.  Health is viewed as having balanced doshas or energies of the body and mind, perfect digestion, appropriate metabolism for time of life, healthy tissues, the ability to discern and...drum roll...happiness.  

So, are you healthy from an Ayurvedic perspective?  Here's some questions you should be able to agree with:

I sleep well.

I wake up feeling fresh each morning.

I do not need to nap.

I eliminate daily at least once and not more than twice.

My elimination is easy and without effort happening at an appropriate time each day.

My joints are loose.

I am not suffering from inflammation.

I can focus, listen and understand.

I am able to make decisions that benefit self and others.

I enjoy other people.

I find that I am compassionate and nonjudgmental most of the time.

I am tolerating the summer heat and not suffering in excess from it.

I choose the more nourishing choice for food 95% of the time.  That means when choosing between and apple and a cookie, I choose the apple.

I have time in each day to relax and take care of myself.

I am of an appropriate weight and like my body.

My skin is clear, soft, and subtle.

My eyes sparkle.

 If you answered yes to these, you are in good shape.  If you answered no, what changes can you make in your routine, diet and life to allow health to blossom.  You might consider participating in The Elemental Cleanse. This course is offered online as an ecourse to be done in the comfort of your own home.  It's a 28 day immersion into Ayurveda that results in health!  

You can learn more here>>>

The In Person Elemental Cleanse Experience starts on Monday at 6 pm in the Montgomery Studio.  You can work with me and receive special attention!  email>>>

 

Om Shanti, Pamela

Change, changeable and fall

It seems that everyone gets motivated to get in shape and lose weight in January, but fall has always seemed to make the most sense to me. Perhaps its because I personally tend to overindulge during the summer months...cookouts, chardonnay and lots of time at amusement parks and baseball games. I can't resist a snow cone on a hot summer day. During the summer I tend to put on a few ponds, not to mention my routine gets disrupted with the kids time off from school. I always feel a little out of it by summer's end. Honestly, I get a little grumpy.

Perhaps too, it's that the fall brings in The Wind or Vata season. The natural accumulation of Ama, toxic ick, wants to move with the push of the Wind. (Do notice that lots of people get light coughs this time of year). It seems much easier to me to embrace the normalization of routine and nutrition because the Wind gives me the energy of change and creation. In the fall, I want to learn. It just feels right.

I think the other thing about the Fall that makes me want to really get in shape and be my best is that I know the holidays are coming. Going into them looking good and feeling great makes and keeps me happy. Over the holidays I tend to go to more parties in cuter outfits. (read skimpier) I tend to see some people only around that time and I always want to look my best. (read I want to show off the benefits of yoga and meditation...okay fine, I just want them to think I still look hot at age 41).

If you are interested in shifting some pounds, learning to meditate, learning to relax or just learning consider signing up for the Elemental Immersion. It's a 5 week program that teaches you about meditation, mindfulness, stress reduction, life purpose and nutrition in the form of Ayurveda. It's a very gentle cleanse that allows your body to efficiently release accumulated ick. We've sold out on Tuesday and Thursday, but there is still room on Mondays and Saturdays. Monday starts the 13th at 7 pm in Cincinnati and Saturday starts the 18th at 11 am in Cincinnati. I know it's last minute at this point, but if you have to miss Monday this week, you can go to Saturday and then jump into Monday. I make it as flexible as I can.

LEARN MORE

The energy of Fall...take advantage!

Yogis,

It's that time of year again when the heated energy of the Fire (Pitta) summer starts to shift to the energy of the Wind as fall approaches. It is a natural time of change that may feel abrupt and chaotic just like the Wind. This season can come in as an opportunistic breeze or a full on hurricane if you don't plan well and take advantage of the shift. Depending on your choices, you will shift into Winter (Kapha/Earth) healthy and vibrant or not so healthy; still carrying a few extra pounds, feeling lethargic, sleeping poorly and perhaps a little down.

Plan for fall. It's time to clean your body, mind and soul of the debris you have accumulated over the summer, over the year (if you did it last year) or over a lifetime if you have never taken the time to clean yourself out.

What do we do? We establish a meditation practice. This program helps you to seal the deal on that practice. For 5 weeks, we will meet and discuss your meditation, your experiences and how you are advancing. You are held accountable by your group and by me. You will be highly motivated to force yourself to sit down in that chair each morning and do it. I don't have to go on and on about the benefits of meditation anymore. If you are watching Oprah, reading magazines or listening to the news, then you know that 90% of disease is caused by stress. Notice that I did not say by staying up late, eating cheeseburgers and sitting on your buddhi watching TV. Stress. It's so easy to manage and get rid of.

We establish a moving practice. You don't have to be able to bend yourself into a pretzel to do yoga. In fact, I highly encourage a more nourishing and gentle practice for the 5 week period. If you have been killing yourself in hot vinyasa flow for the last year, take a break! Your body (and especially your mind) can actually become quite imbalanced from hot yoga depending on your predominant element....think FIRE doesn't need more FIRE. We will walk, spend time and nature and heal our bodies without effort. That's how God intended.

We establish new nutritional habits. Some of what you are doing every single day is destroying your digestion, causing sleep disturbances and weight gain. You will learn some powerful tricks of the trade to get that Fire in your belly lit up. If you have hit that sweet spot of 40 and over and are a female, I've got some new tricks up my sleeve for you! (I had a busy summer studying, researching and being over 40 myself.)

Lastly, we do a ton of emotional work and goal setting. I've taken it to a whole new level bringing in teachings form other traditions that I am absolutely passionate about.

This series is going to be filmed. I'm in production on DVDs and a subdomain that is all educational. You will not be filmed if you choose not to be and honestly, the focus will be mostly on me anyway. I need your help to make this a huge success!!

Call me with questions. 513.315.5042 or email @ elementalom@mac.com. Visit to learn more CLICK HERE.

I was driving in my car this morning listening to National Public Radio and was absolutely shocked to learn that the number of states where nearly one-third of the adults is obese has tripled. CLICK HERE FOR STORY. That's 1 in 3 adults! It's an epidemic of poor choice making and to be quite honest, lack of choice.

It's hard to eat healthy in America. We don't even know how to do it. Let's not even mention how stressed we are and pressed for time. It's easy to grab fast food for lunch, a candy bar from the vending machine at 2pm when we crash and processed food for dinner. Manufacturers are very convincing that we are making good healthy choices buying their packaged crud fortified with vitamins, minerals and "fiber". It makes me so mad.

It's outrageous. Fast food is not food. I don't care if you choose the salad or the baked potato. I was an auditor with a major accounting firm for 9 years before I was a mom and a yogi. I've been through the manufacturing facilities of major fast food chains. The lettuce is shipped in on a truck, shredded in a factory, packaged in an enormous plastic bag, stuck on a shelf and finally shipped to your local fast food chain. When that lettuce hits your mouth, it's dead or what we call "tamasic" in Ayurveda. You don't even want to know about the hard boiled eggs or the juice that the cheeseburger patties float around in until they get to you.

There is no love in that food and let's be honest, we eat to feel a sense of love. We eat to feel love especially when we are stressed. The reason a cheeseburger, fries and a milkshake taste so good and we crave them is because they are considered a "sweet" taste in Ayurveda. They ground you. They make you feel loved. It's a temporary fix for whatever it is you are going through in the moment.

I would like to teach you a different way to manage your stress levels. I would like to teach you a different way to ground yourself and to realize love. Join me this fall for the Elemental Immersion. I will take you on a 28 day journey that will radically change your view of yourself, your world and food. You will lose weight, connect with your soul and fell absolutely vibrant at month's end. It is one month of your life that will change your entire life. You will never be able to look at things the same again. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION.

If you have a friend or loved one in need of stress management, weight management or simply "life management", forward this blog to them. Give them the opportunity to learn how to make better choices.

The toxicity of Summer.....

Oh my....what a super fun summer!

My kids were home from school. I couldn't effectively get to my yoga practice and puke on the Roller Coasters at Kings Island at the same time.

I intended to work out of my home to be flexible for my kiddies. I couldn't effectively WORK, meditate, spend time in silence or enjoy nature because those little guys clearly DON'T GET IT!!

I intended to eat really really healthy, but who can resist a hot dog at a Reds game, a barbecue of chicken and ribs in the back yard or a gorgeous Turtle Sunday full of chocolate and pecans.

I intended to drink lots of mint waters and teas, but have I mentioned how good a cold crisp Chardonnay tastes on a summer evening? Not to mention a minty mohito or a salty margie....mmmmm.

Anyhooooo, I've gained 5 pounds, my skin looks rough and sallow, I'm irritable, grumpy, moody...think road rage. My thoughts have become human again. Worried about the future; regretting the past; I have lost myself.

Time to clean up this toxic mess. I started the Ayurvedic Cleanse that I administer (the Elemental Immersion) on Friday. I'm sitting in Monday and have already lost 2 pounds. I woke up this morning bright eyed and bushy tail and ready to kick some yogi buddhi! I went cold turkey on alcohol, meat and processed foods. I did have some cheese and have done this enough to know that I must wean from coffee or I will get headaches. I went back to my meditation chair, turned off all the noise and distraction, started journaling and created Mantras for use throughout my day. I'm intensely working on my intentions and desires to manifest my future. It's magic. It works.

I will be offering the Elemental Immersion to you this fall beginning the week of September 13th. I'm very excited because it will be offered in three different sessions in Cincinnati on Red Bank Road as well as in Lebanon. CLICK HERE to learn more and to sign up. I've tweaked the program even more over the summer to incorporate additional relevant nutritional studies and will be offering each participants two paths....do you want to really lose weight and get all the other stuff or do you just want all the other stuff because you don't really need to lose that much weight?

Have fun the rest of your summer. Clean it up this fall!

The Elemental Immersion is a 28 day course that teaches the ancient science of Ayurveda in simple & elegant step-by-step process. The 5 week course empowers individuals to replace limiting thoughts, beliefs & addictions with habits & practices that support their holistic well being. As a result participants experience greater health, energy and vitality in their 
everyday lives. Other benefits of this transformational program include, natural weight
loss, a deep sense of groundedness, spiritual connection & mental clarity.

FALL SESSIONS FORMING!

The Elemental Immersion,

Mondays in Cincinnati at 7 pm

Tuesdays in Lebanon at 6 pm

Thursdays in Cincinnati at 9:30 am

Saturdays in Cincinnati at 11 am

Weekday eating.....

The Elemental Immersion is well under way. Many are already on a vegetarian diet and others are starting that shift. Weather you are participating or not, shifting to a vegetarian diet will facilitate weight loss, lower cholesterol and prevent many diseases including cancer.

A simple way to make the shift to better health is to change the way that you look at your food habits during the work week. Approach eating as your job Monday through Friday. Choose simple foods that are whole including lots of fruits, vegetables, beans and whole grains. Avoid processed foods and do stay away from the USDA's top picks for the most calorie laden and most consumed food items in the American diet: soda, donuts, hamburgers, pizza, chips, white rice, breads, cheese, beer and French fries.

A great way to get through our busy and hectic weeks which contribute to our choosing "easy" foods is to simply plan a little bit. On Sunday, make a big pot of mixed grain brown rice and a big pot of your favorite beans or lentils. Load both up with spices and chopped veggies. Simply store in individual containers and when it is time to hit the door for work or for the soccer practice, throw them in your car. Instant health!

Save your splurges for the weekend and special events. Remember, Ayurveda and the FDA recommend no more than 2 - 5 servings of meat each WEEK! If you are The Earth, or Kapha, avoid meat entirely. It adds to weight gain. Choose lighter meats such as fish and chicken. Ayurveda views pork to be a red meat...not the "other white meat". Avoid red meat entirely. It's really hard to digest.

Healthy eating this week! Namaste