How to feel your best when the planets are against you

Whether you’re into astrology or not, speaking to friends this week there seems to be no escaping the dramatic impact that the Mercury Retrograde has had on us all, from disrupted sleep to heightened emotions. It doesn’t help that there is also a mugginess in the London air that feels like a real weight on our shoulders.

Apparently the Mercury Retrograde is associated with communication, information, electronics, travel, and even clear thinking, so when it's retrograde we have to be ready for a slowdown in all of those areas. Things break. Projects stall. We lose things. Schedules are thrown off, we get frustrated, we lash out and more breakdowns in communications follow.

So with all this emotion running wild, I thought now would be the perfect time to share my top tips on feeling your best when it feels like the planets are against you.

1. 1. Do a Gentle Detox - I know that to some people the idea of a detox is intimidating, and the first thing you assume is that you will have to deprive yourself of all the things you love for days or weeks. But if done right a detox can transform the way you feel in just a few days. By gently helping your body to remove toxins and cleanse your digestive system so that it can work at its optimum, you will start to feel clear-headed, lighter and energised. I have five ways of approaching a detox, so whether its a three day cleanse after a long weekend or a two week transformation to really reboot your system, these trusty techniques will help you complete your detox in the most natural, delicious and effective way possible.
      • Load up on real food - I find the easiest way to do this is to identify a list of 10-20 whole ingredients that you love and fill your fridge with just those ingredients. Mine would be red lentils, cauliflowers, bananas, oats, fresh peas, radishes, tomatoes, aubergine, kale, broccoli, green beans, puy lentils, brown rice, cashews and pumpkin seeds. Buy all of those ingredients and only eat those ingredients for your detox. Make sure you make them as delicious as possible by combining them with fresh herbs and spices because if you make it delicious it will bring you equal measures of joy and nourishment.
      • Stick to your simple list of ingredients - By focussing on these ingredients, it means that you won’t be focussed on ingredients that might be having a negative impact on how you feel. Intuitively we all know that heavily processed foods aren’t great for our health, so taking a break from them for short period can break an addictive cycle. Refined sugar, alcohol, dairy, wheat, processed oils and processed meat, are a good place to start.
      • Make one meal a soup - Whether its lunch or dinner it doesn't matter, the point of having a soup is that it gives your digestive system a break and allows it to reduce the workload on your digestive system so that energy can be better used to properly remove toxins in your gut. From my list above I would make a few batches of green soup using a base of red lentils, broccoli, kale and fresh peas whizzed through at the end to lock in nutrients.
      • Take a probiotic - There are over 500 different species of bacteria living in your gut. The bacteria is essential for efficient digestion and also helps to digest antioxidant polyphenols (shown to help reduce the risk of disease) and synthesise vitamins such as B12, D, folic acid and thiamine. Probiotics help to balance the levels of good and bad bacteria in the gut and can have a significant impact on the efficiency of your digestive system.
      • Prioritise rest - There is nothing that can improve your energy levels more than a long period of rest. As our lives become more frenetic, it's hard to justify just sitting and not doing anything but during a detox its even more important to allow your body to divert its energy to detoxifying effectively.
        
        
   2. Spring clean one area of your home - Honestly, when I feel that my life is becoming a little overwhelming I will always find some time for a little spring clean, whether its sorting out my wardrobe, organising my spice cupboard or tackling the dreaded under-the-stairs cupboard. There is something refreshingly satisfying about creating a little order in your home.
      
      
   3. Do something for someone else - I often find in times when I feel exhausted, doing a small act of kindness for someone else somehow seems to magnify a feeling of contentment that overpowers the exhaustion. And yes I know, when we’re exhausted the last thing we feel like doing is helping others. It could simply be making your colleague a cuppa, helping someone on a project that has a tight deadline or popping over to your nan’s with a cake and some flowers (my personal favourite).
   
   
   If you’re feeling like you need a bit of a reboot this summer our packages are designed to make you feel great, to energise you, help with your mental clarity and improve your general health and well being. To find out more visit our packages page.