Tips for Rejuvenation by Sebastian Pole

As the majority of health imbalances come from some sort of deficiency or weakness, when you get run down this invariably affects your immunity. When you have some ‘deficiency’ you can feel tired, stressed and look washed-out. It’s the natural result of living a busy life where you give out more than you get back. It happens to all of us, but the trick is knowing how to replenish. In essence, you need to reverse this process of decline with regular top-ups that help you to rejuvenate. This can be a holiday, a yoga class, a massage or nourishing time with friends and family. You can also optimise your rejuvenation on a daily basis by regulating your lifestyle, diet and herbs.

My favourite at-my-fingertips ways to rejuvenate are through yoga, breathing, a colourful diet and herbs.

Yogic rejuvenation

At its heart yoga is the epitome of rejuvenation as it uses the body and breath to seek peace of mind and fullness of spirit. As you practice it can bring you a greater awareness of your energy levels, your stress levels, how you breathe and how your digestion works. There are multiple varieties of yoga to follow today. I’ve even heard it said that there as many types of yoga as there are yoga teachers. Whatever style you choose to practice, experiment until you find a style and a teacher that suits you best.

The insights and inner connection that practising yoga have brought me over the last 20 years are integral with my thoughts about health, sustainability, ecology and what the perfect cup of tea is. I usually practise yoga in the morning after drinking some Revitalise tea that is made with cinnamon, ginger, elderflowers, orange peel and licorice. These all nourish your digestive fire and kick-start your system. I’ll then stretch, pull some postures and do some breathing. It's a wonderful way to start my day grounded and refreshed before I start my work.

Rejuvenation with your breath

So after a good cup of tea, what next? Surely a big deep breath. Breathing is quite simply one of the best practices to learn to stay healthy. Its remarkable that we so easily forget something so precious but as we get older we can breath more irregularly and this can imbalance our health. Regular breathing exercises help to bring prana into the system and regulate the flow of vitality throughout your entire being. Prana is yoga-speak for a subtle vital energy pervading all of life. Learning how to breathe properly empowers us to be able to personally adjust how we feel and think.

Rejuvenating herbs

Herbs are an essential part of our diet and are finding new respect throughout our world as we recognise their central role in our planetary and personal vitality.Think of rejuvenating herbs as special micro-nutrient-tonics for supporting your wellness.

Herbs like ginseng, ashwagandha and shatavari are world famous rejuvenators. An amazing feature of most rejuvenating herbs is their ability to help us adapt to stress, hence many of them are known as adaptogens. They often grow in extreme climates where they acquire the energy to adjust to a stressful environment. Their excellence manifests from their non-specific nature. Adaptogens are proficient generalists; they perform multiple actions on diverse organs and tissue systems at the same time. Sometimes they nudge us, sometimes they push us but they always support us.

Sebastian Pole is an Ayurvedic practitioner and co-founder and Master Herbsmith of Pukka Herbs. For more information about the wonders of organic herbs, see www.pukkaherbs.com.