The shift is so predictable…sometime mid to late March I begin to hear countless women declare new intentions for eating, exercising, a craving for health and wellness that is almost biological. Just like spring returns at the Vernal Equinox on the 21st of this month, we are naturally ( I believe) wired to begin to crave the lightness and the clearing of the heavy winter energies that we needed to get through the colder dormant months.
For me, for the first year ever, I literally had an aversion to salads and cold food. And it started early. I decided not to fight it, since it was so physical I really wanted to trust my own IntuitiveBody (I do TEACH this stuff, try to actually follow it too..) and so it was just about 10 days ago that I found myself wanting to eat greens again. Like really wanting missing them. Even putting them in my smoothies (which I would NOT make during the winter, too cold, not an intuitive match)… you seeing how this works?!
What if you really CAN trust your body to know what’s best for you. And what if there is no perfect diet that works every day through every season for every person (uh, there’s not, by the way). If you know me you’ve heard me rant and rave about the recent bestseller “Crazy Sexy Diet” , not because it’s a bad book but because seriously, don’t we all know that we need to eat our vegetables by now? This makes me crazy. Eat lots of vegetables, eat whole foods, stay away from things in boxes and bags and with labels. Eat good fats and make time for pleasure and living in your senses and get some exercise and spend some time outdoors in the gorgeous natural world… there, that’s kind of what you need to know in a ridiculously simplified early morning rant about what helps.
Uh.. back to our topic. So if you’re paying attention you WILL feel a shift in your body wanting to throw off the heaviness of winter. If you’re not feeling it, you may need to really look at what’s going on as sometimes our intuitive guidance gets mucked up or overridden by too much stress, too much overstimulation (noise, media, turn off the radio and the computer and the tv and the phones and let your mind have a break please). You may also be missing cues if you’re so loaded up on sugar and processed junk that you’ve lost part of your connection (it’s still there but harder to feel/hear/sense) in which case seasons can be a very good way to structure yourself back into a natural rhythm.
In springtime, it WILL feel good to move towards growth and expand your energy. You want to nourish yourself most beautifully now with lots of whole foods, and especially greens and vegetables and fruits and seeds. I love buying pretty oils like truffle and basil and chili to spritz on salads and asparagus and things to liven things up a bit. It’s nice to treat yourself to a beautiful cookbook to give you some ideas, or maybe splurge on a new appliance like a blender to get into green smoothies (will write about this later) to get all your greens and fresh things into a glass if that’s easier.
Just like you may be wanting to pull out your sandals (even with a little snow on the ground) and toss your winter coat until next year (I always do this prematurely but I just need to move out of winter at a certain time), you may want to move out the feeling of heaviness and lethargy physically. It’s definitely a good time seasonally and energetically to explore this, but please do it gently. There’s no need to do anything extreme- so many are tempted to try something really spartan that they won’t be able to stick with, which could lead to binge-eating as a rebound and I am pleading with you to be really careful about this.
Small changes are so valuable, and feel so good and let you keep your promises to yourself day in and out without crashing and burning and having to start over and over and over again. When you feel yourself longing for a little lightening up of everything, make it beautiful and make it work for you. Try adding vs. taking away for example- you could ADD salads and fruit at 2 meals, just for example. You could ADD a green smoothie to breakfast. You could ADD an extra workout or 10 minutes of stretching.
These are foundational things that you can live with, that you’ll sustain and that will shift your identity into feeling successful as somebody who can make positive changes that last. SO worth it beyond thd quick fix of something extreme that may not last…
I hear woodpeckers and all sorts of songbirds outside my window and truly that lights me up. I am celebrating spring with a pitcher of “Moon Water” (see my post on my FB page)that I charged under the “super moon” two nights ago and am going back to yoga this week to stretch and slow my busy brain down.
Spring is my favorite time of all.. more life expressing everywhere. The tips of rhubarb predictably pushing up in our yard, the daffodil and tulip shoots coming up, so many little green things everywhere underneat what was over 4 feet of snow for most of our winter… I am feeling more life flowing through me and love this time of honoring it in daily healthy sustainable rituals.
I want that for you too.
With love from my heart to yours-
Lisa
PS–would LOVE you to check out my new page on Facebook… been adding all sorts of photos, and sharing good stuff and connecting with lots of interesting women, so come over and while you’re there please “LIKE” me (feels so junior high ..) and let me know what’s top of mind for you. Love and thanks. xox
Am also all over Twitter these days, chat me up, I am @IntuitiveBody.… of course.
Farah says
This was a refreshing start to my day, Lisa! I definitely experience a shift during the spring – I start wanting cooler, cleaner drinks, simpler foods, less layers!
Your advice on how to make slowly and easy changes make a lot of sense. I tend to be very emotional about change, you know…. all or nothing. That works great at first, but then after the novelty runs out I tend to struggle and flounder and ultimately give up. Hoping that some gradual changes (in diet and elsewhere) will lead to more sustainable progress.
Happy Monday!
Lisa Claudia Briggs says
hi Farah!
See? Knew you were tuned in when I met you, makes sense you're feeling the shift! Let the natural leanings carry you, it's easier than anything forced, right? I think many of us go into the emotional all-or-nothing that comes from when we feel badly in our bodies, it's more reactive than intuitive and therefore changes that come that are short-lived and uncomfortable.
Tune into your body and your senses and literally ask yourself in a quiet moment what would feel good, what change (small) is calling to you? You'll know… that's the one to move towards… gently.
So good to see/hear you here!
Love to you sweetie pie,
Lisa