Y for Yin Yang : Systems View

You know how certain recipes add both salt and sugar? Or how the saying goes that muscles are built while you sleep? Classic examples of YinYang

Take the case of a #plant. The top - leaves and branches are always attracted towards the sun and grow upwards and outwards. The roots on the other hand grow in darkness.

Two behaviors that are opposing, but they contribute holistically to the plant.

Similarly with our bodies, opposing behaviors of rest and activity, night and day, changing cycles of season, all have a role to play.

This existence of duality - opposing forces that are in fact complementary in nature is called #YinYang.

This week we explore how this applies to #wellness.

Here are more ways it can influence your wellness:

1. The quality of your night time sleep determines the quality of your day time, high energy activities.

2. Foods with opposing tastes can be combined to increase bioavailability as well as curb cravings. Eg : Cooling cardamom combined with warming properties of Cinnamon is a winner in taste and immunity boosting properties.

3. Issues that crop up in one part of the body could actually be connected to another in a non-obvious way. A classic example would be skin issues that crop up largely owing to digestive disorders.

Stay tuned for tips to balance your YinYang!

Holistic wellness is often times reduced to exotic spa treatments, vacations or yoga retreats. But in fact it has almost 9 science-backed pillars. The medical health of our body is at the centre driven by gut health, hormonal balance, environmental factors and stress management amongst others.

One of the most common questions I get is around how to manage stress better? And almost always I recommend working on getting more restorative sleep, to begin with. Because poor night's sleep means your daytime activities like mood, digestion, stress management will remain compromised.

Where to begin?

Building a night time routine is a good start. For example, listening to the right kind of music can have a powerfully soothing effect on the brain. I specifically recommend binaural beats that allow your brain to wind down and move into slumber.

We have developed an app 'Deep Sleep' that uses binaural beats and solfeggio frequency tracks to help your brain unwind. It is 100% free atm!