How "Same old, same old" can save your skin

In the last week or so, I have decided that I need to muster up some discipline and establish a routine. As a single mother, my mom would constantly tell me about the importance of routine throughout my childhood to more efficiently get ready in the morning....I was a bit of a dawdler.

But, like the theme of our modern-day sentiments, my motto has always been: if the results are good, who cares about the method? If I'm at my commitments on time, get my work done and keep myself fed, what's the problem, right? Well, the problem is that our bodies need regularity.

Waking, eating and sleeping at consistent times helps us establish habits - and like little planners, our bodies can expect when to be stimulated, nourished and rested. This helps our digestion immensely, helping our skin and bodies immensely as well. Poor digestion has been tied to rosacea, eczema and cellulite. I, myself, have had my share of digestive issues and its no coincidence that I eat on the run wherever and whenever it has fit into my inconsistent schedule. This is why Vatas (those with an abundance of air in their constitution) tend to have poor digestion and bloating. Vata governs inconsistency - whether it is in the mind or body - and when this happens, our systems do not know when digestive fire should be enkindled, and this also creates erratic hunger patterns.

But routine does not only help with digestion, but also with our metabolism. If we do not eat regularly, our bodies do not know when they will be fed again, and often enter "starvation mode" in which they hang onto nutrients in fear of not receiving more. It is proven fact that those of us who eat consistently, avoiding swings of being too ravenous and overly stuffed, also regulate our blood sugar and metabolic function. Many clients who seem like they cannot lose weight despite reasonable portion sizes and reasonable food choices find that their lack of eating at the same times each day is a major factor. Excess Kapha (the earth element in our constitution) is related to this, and Kaphas who have a habit of over-indulging themselves also lack discipline and structure. Establishing a strict regimen of waking, eating and sleeping is one of the best ways to reduce excess Kapha.

And our waking/ sleeping patterns are of the utmost importance. Waking early each day clears out Kapha lethargy. According to Ayurveda, we should be using the sunrise to help wake and stimulate us - and we should not be eating after sun-down (as our bodies naturally slow down). I have blogged about circadian rhythm before, and this coincides with this concept.

Sleeping at the same time each day also helps us become better rested. Fluctuating sleep patterns confuse our bodies and often cause insomnia (another sign of excess Vata). And we all know that a good night's sleep not only prevents the feeling of fatigue, but also under eye circles, skin dehydration (lack of sleep taxes our kidneys which regulate water) and water-retention (due to dehydration).

So, while it isn't as glamorous as a luxurious skin renewing facial or provides the instant gratification of a nourishing body massage, establishing a strict lifestyle routine may provide the most powerful total health and beauty make-over.

Estrogenic Beauty - Part One of the Hormone Series

I don't know if there is something in the water, but so many of my clients, colleagues and team having been asking a lot of about hormones lately - Actually, there may be hormones in our water. But I will save you the tirade on the marine species in the St. Lawrence River having both egg and testes like I did at the FGI panel. That was embarrassing. What was I thinking going on a self-righteous tangent about what we absorb passes through our urine and affects our Eco system to a crowd of the most fashionable people in the city while the charming rep to my right spoke about cute cosmetics which smell like pastries? I may as well have been wearing hemp.

Anyway, I was all set on doing a posting today about dry brushing, but instead I have decided to abandon that plan and start my new series on hormones and the skin. I think its important to talk about hormones because while most of us understand how important they are and how much they influence every action within our bodies, yet we know little about their nature or how to balance them. So today I will be starting with a hormone that is very dear to me: estrogen. I, myself, have high estrogen which makes my menses very irregular (did I really just post that on the Internet?).

Estrogen also has a lot of sex appeal because it is what makes women women and what decreases dramatically when we go through menopause so it can also be connected to youthfulness. This drop in estrogen has be said to accelerate signs of aging in our skin and has spurred much fuss about how we can artificially sustain it.

But while this is a very popular view amongst beautologists, I think its very interesting to note that it is estrogen which breaks down collagen in our skin. Confused? Well, while estrogen does break down collagen, it also enhances the hyaluronic acid in our skin (hyaluronic acid helps our skin hold water and promotes a smooth texture). But as we all know, collagen is probably the most important player in keeping our skin pump, moist and healthy.

This is why estrogen also contributes to cellulite as it breaks down the strength of our cellular walls, making way for lumpy, bumpy fat. You will see many cellulite-reducing body products will focus on increasing collagen so our fat cells can retain a firmer structure. Furthermore, estrogen dominance will also result in water-retention also contributing to cellulite. This can also answer why some women have cellulite despite being slim and fit (comme moi) as well as why many women taking the birth control pill are predisposed to it.

So what do we do?
Eating for estrogen dominance: Well, we can start with avoiding estrogenic foods such as soy and hops (what beer is made out of - and also why men who drink too much of it grow man breasts). And we should consume only organic meats which are devoid of disruptive hormones if we choose to eat animal protein. We should also start to eat more estrogen decreasing foods like citrus fruits, broccoli, cauliflower cabbages, avocados and nuts. It has also been said to be important to examine your digestion because if digestion is impaired, hormone filtration will also be. This is interesting as Pitta governs digestion, and I find many estrogen-dominant clients also have Pitta imbalances.

Balancing Self-care: Topically, we should avoid chemicals which mimic estrogen in our skincare. Numerous chemical sun screening agents (why we are such sticklers about natural, mineral sunblocks despite their powdery texture and white-ish hue) as well as chemical preservatives imbalance our hormone levels as we absorb them into our bloodstream.

Another topical treatment I have done is use prescribed progesterone cream to limit estrogen production. Again, this demonstrates how deeply what we put on our bodies affects us. But while it did regulate my cycle, I still think of hormone creams as a band-aid solution (but a very useful band-aid).

Clear the mind as well as excess estrogen: This may be the most important factor (and hardest for me). Relax. High estrogen tends to occur in high-stress people (Pitta) and also contributes to more stress as it usually is coupled with low progesterone which helps regulate anxiety and stress levels... If you need a good RMT, email me. Remember, its not self-indulgence, its for your hormonal health.

Cupping battle: Me vs. Gwyneth Paltrow

Gwyneth Paltrow and I are in competition to see who is more alternative.

A few years ago when I decided to become an Ayurvedic-inspired vegan, she went Macrobiotic. My neighbour Kat and I got really into the Hot Yoga studio up the street, she and her best friend Madonna became spokespeople to the yoga trend and were shot by the paparazzi on their way to downward dog together. I started stewing apples as a healthy breakfast option, she named her first born after one (she wins the last round). But when I saw the photo of Gwenyth's back after cupping on the Internet, I thought to myself "those small cups? I can beat that - no problem."


Now since becoming an Ayurvedic Practitioner, I have become a little obsessive about my blood. Sounds odd, but, since the blood nourishes and transports waste away from all of our tissues and circulates our entire body, the its quality is extremely important. While, heat in the blood will cause skin sensitivity, impurities in it can contribute to acne.

So, many a time, I have gotten a treatment touted by Traditional Chinese Medicine called "cupping" in which glass cups are made into suction cups as fire is applied to the air within them, and these suctions are placed on our fleshy parts - most popularly the back. This draws up impure blood, promotes the circulation of fresh blood, clears heat and stagnation as well as opens our channels. Its also good for pain relief as it draws toxins and turbid fluid away from the muscle area.

Ayurveda also has a treatment similar to this, but instead they use leeches for suction. But I opt for cupping because I cannot find a practitioner in the city who uses leeches, as well as I would have to do many grounding mantras to get over the idea of those slimy slitherers being placed all over my body. Shiver.

So, determined to top a turbo celeb, I went to the Xiaolan Health Centre to get another round of cupping. And while I paid double what I usually do for acupuncture and cupping, stepping into this clinic is like stepping into Shangrila. And my body thanked me too -- as my CMD, Amanda, applied the cups, they didn't hurt but felt good in a squeezing, stimulating way. Now I won't lie and say it is a relaxing treatment, but it definitely is satisfying (like how a deep massage can be uncomfortable but relieving). I also asked Amanda if this could be good for cellulite as cellulite is simply toxic fat that has impeded circulation and therefore water-retention, and she cheerfully replied absolutely! I note that I should try a series on my thighs.

Cupping also gives you insight to your internal body. Where the suction marks are darker indicates which organs need the most help. For me, it showed that my lungs and kidneys were weakest as those cup markings were a deep red on the back where my kidneys and lungs are. Now, the only downside to this service is that you should only do this when you are not planning to wear any backless dresses or you will look like you have rows of perfectly circle-shaped hickeys down your back. We could call them Hickeys for health - sounds like a charity I could support. But as they usually only last 3-5 days, its not a major inconvenience.

Check out my pic below. Take that Gwyneth, I think I won round four.

How Hot Yoga Saved My Life

I have a confession to make: I hate doing yoga.

Now it hasn't always been this way, but in the past two years, I find practicing yoga frustratingly slow. Its not as bad while I'm away and I'm nice and relaxed (in India I did yoga daily and when I was in Byron Bay, Australia I even participated in medication circles) but in the city, I end up thinking about tasks I've neglected at work and this week's meal planning while in lotus position. And I usually walk out of class annoyed.

But I feel like a hypocrite because I recommend a good Hatha class to my clients for stress management, but ignore the fact that I, myself, am so ungrounded that I can't hold enough focus to so do myself. But when my Ayurvedic doctor told me that my muscle quality was low and that the only exercise he recommends is yoga -- I had to re-evaluate how I felt in downward dog.

You see, according to Ayurveda, most of us do not have the constitutions for intense cardio or heavy weight lifting. Those of us with high Vata (air) get easily depleted, while those of us with high Pitta (fire) promote internal inflammation with too much stimulation. And slower paced work outs like weights without ample cardio are actually said to push toxins into our muscles and disrupt our muscle metabolism. I recently saw a lecture in which the Ayurvedic doctor speaking plainly said that weights-only fitness regimes were just stupid (atypical lingo for an Ayurvedic doctor, so it had me thinking).

So when a new hot yoga studio opened up less than two blocks away from me, I decided it was an omen.

Now, I had been feeling so cold this winter and there was much heaviness and swelling in my body - what we refer to in Eastern medicine as "dampness" -- so the idea of heat actually appealed to me as I figured that it would help enkindle my body to decrease this imbalance.

I enrolled in an unlimited introductory week for only $20 at I AM YOGA and spent that first week in high planks and chaturangas (which seem to me to just be push ups) in a 40 degree room with lovely hydrating humidifiers.

After my first class I was hooked - my body immediately felt lighter and as if I had better circulation - almost like a tingling sensation. My edema had gone down and I felt deflated but activated. And it was grounding to feel this way without having to exert myself to the point of panting. I really liked how you felt like your body was still engaged even when you are in child's pose as your blood is pumping and your pores are sweating. I also loved that you are much more flexible as your muscles are moist and warm. And with this comes a sense of accomplishment as you can get into the positions and release much deeper than usual. As a Pitta I am highly competitive and detest most things I do not excel at.

I will mention that after that first class I broke out in a rash all over my body. But oddly enough since that initial reaction, I have had no problems since. Perhaps is was simply purging (?) because now I even apply a heating concoction of sesame oil and mustard seed oil to the back of my thighs and tummy (as this oil is good for cellulite and the heat will help push it deeper into my tissues) without any inflammation.

And not only does my body feel better, but my new warming work out also has helped emotionally. As Linda the founder of the studio said "Yoga helps bring you back to the present. We spend so much time in the past or the future that we often find it difficult to just be". (That's me! I wanted to exclaim) "...But how can you think of anything but being in your body when your body is being challenged and your thighs are killing you? Yoga is meant to strengthen that connection between body and mind". She also said that the more we practice being in a peaceful place, the easier it will be to call upon it during stressful situations and therefore we would be less reactive. I really appreciate her very spiritual yet straight forward approach.

And I have actually found it very helpful in how I deal with stress. Any of our staff can vouch that I am very particular and that can make me very high-strung.

But last week we ran out of sample containers, and unlike my usual agitation, I simply saw it as it was - an oversight that we need to prevent from happening in the future. They were ordered before the problem was even presented to me, and we would simply have to deal with this for the next week. There wasn't a lot that my moaning and stomping would do about it. I know you may think this is common sense, but eventhough I know better, it is easy for me to become very attached to these mishaps.

I think that now I can start to re-incorporate regular yoga again, and doshically will have to as heat in the summer climate will not be conducive for my body type (I will probably alternate with Kula Yoga in the Annex for this as they do both hot and not hot yoga).

But with a newly grounded perspective and a re-introduction to stretching out my body, hot yoga has not only helped my regain clarity of thought, but probably kept the worry wrinkles on my forehead at bay. A true life saver.