Category — Health & Wellnes

Many of us find that we are not performing our best at certain sports, sports that come easier to others, may present quite a challenge for us.  One thing to make note of here is your dosha.
Dosha refers to three basic metabolic principles connecting the mind, the body and biological humour.  These three doshas are often described as the manifestations of natural forces at work in the body. Each dosha is defined by two of the five natural elements: space, air, fire, water and earth.

• Vata is the space and air principle and is embodied by ether. It resides in the spaces of your body, filling empty airspaces and channels, helping to govern the function of the nervous system.
• Pitta is the fire and water principle and exists within your body mainly as bile and acid, and is most closely associated with the digestive and elimination systems.
• Kapha refers to the water and earth principle, relating to the respiratory system and mucous membranes, governing the majority of our physical composition.

Take the quiz and find out your dosha.  Once you know this key bit of information, start thinking about what type of exercise routine serves you best: [Read more →]

Yoga has benefits that are both preventive and therapeutic. Proven to offer both mental and physical benefits to the mind and body, there’s no time like the present to get started. Yoga is very different from other forms of exercise, as it generates motion, without straining your body.When done with focus, hatha yoga can be an extremely rewarding exercise. Involving almost every muscle in your body, hatha yoga stresses quality of movement, over quantity.Yoga done routinely works to quiet the mind and refresh the body. Bringing you better health, relaxation, and happiness.

Looking to get started? Come to the free yoga festival in NYC to celebrate the Summer Solstice.

Where: Times Square
When: Saturday, June 21st, 2008
Time: 8 am - 9 pm

Details

I have soap on the mind. I love all health and beauty products but soap has always been my #1 most-purchased beauty product. I have favorite soaps but lately I’ve been rethinking my big box store soap purchases. I’m not entirely sure what goes in to making mass produced soap but I am realizing that organic soap seems to be made with love, passion and bicycles…what?!

Justsoap.com’s soap line

In my eternal quest for the perfect soap, I turned to the internet because I wanted to see if my old standards would come up or if I’d discover new soap companies by typing in “ECO SOAP”. Wouldn’t you know that the first link that comes up is for www.justsoap.com and their company makes soap with a bicycle! A guy literally sits on a bike and churns the ingredients to make “Lemongrass Ginger”, “Lavender Rosemary” and “Sage Fir” soap! Haute couture soaps made by a Huffy. Well, actually - the bike looks pretty complex but you have to really appreciate someone who creates delectable soaps while conducting his own spin class. The soap is $2.95 per bar, a bargain at any price… [Read more →]

If there is a perfect food, I’d have to guess it would be the golden banana. Providing an instant energy boost, bananas contain fiber, plus three natural sugars, sucrose, fructose and glucose.

The true origin of Bananas, world’s most popular fruit, is found in the region of Malaysia. Bananas traveled from there to India where they are mentioned in the Buddhist Pali writings dating back to the 6th century BCE. In his campaign in India in 327 BCE, Alexander the Great relished his first taste of the banana, an unusual fruit he saw growing on tall trees. He is even credited with bringing the banana from India to the Western world. According to Chinese historian Yang Fu, China was tending plantations of bananas in 200 CE. These bananas grew only in the southern region of China and were considered exotic, rare fruits that never became popular with the Chinese masses until the 20th century.

Eventually, [Read more →]

Swimming is such a splendid form of exercise and so perfectly adapted to summer that the increase in swimming pools in all communities is to be welcomed.

But Chlorine used to disinfect swimming pools is a health hazard and may trigger asthma in children. Among adults it has been linked with other health problems including bladder and rectal cancer and may increase the risk for coronary heart disease. [Read more →]

The ayurvedic approach is rising in popularity because it is comprehensive and gentle. Rather than looking for instant cures through prescripition pharmaceuticals, Ayurveda seeks to correct the source of the problem. For those who can commit themselves to the process, Ayurveda offers effective, cumulative health benefits. Believe me, I’m just as skeptical as the next guy, but after suffering with severe ulcers for the past few years and finding no relief from over the counter options, I decided to give Ayurveda a try. All I can say is, “Why did I wait so long?” [Read more →]

Having evolved among the Brahmin sages of ancient India some 3000-5000 years ago, Ayurveda is a holistic system of healing that is a complete medical system. It recognizes that ultimately all intelligence and wisdom flow from one Absolute source (Paramatman). Health manifests by the grace of the Absolute acting through the laws of Nature (Prakriti). Ayurveda assists Nature by promoting harmony between the individual and Nature by living a life of balance according to her laws. [Read more →]

Summer is in full swing and you’re skin knows it. Before you rush out to sample the joys of summer sun worship, make sure you are following a diet and a routine that will help keep your Pitta dosha in balance.

According to ayurveda, every individual is a unique combination of the three doshas: Vata, Pitta and Kapha. Vata is mainly air and space, Pitta fire and water and Kapha water and earth. These doshas govern the seasons of the year, with Pitta, the fire element, ruling the hot summer months. During the summer, even if you do not have a lot of Pitta in your make-up, you may find that you need to take steps [Read more →]

Morning Yoga

Growing up in an East Indian household, I took much of the beauty and the traditions of the Hindu culture for granted. From simple things like my mom’s freshly made naan, to the rich and colorful saris that she wore, to the classic literature of Rabindranath Tagore she enjoyed reading to me as she sipped on her steaming cup of chai — I never fully appreciated all that this rich country had to offer.From practical traditions like using honey instead of constantly seeking out over-the-counter cough relievers to practicing yoga regularly, I didn’t recognize the benefits until I moved away from it all.

Did you know, according to Ayurvedic medicine, honey can be used to improve eyesight, relieve coughs, sore throats, when combined with black pepper powder and ginger juice, it acts to relieve asthma, mixed with garlic – it has been known to reduce high blood pressure, taken with water and lemon juice, it helps to purify the blood and my favorite, [Read more →]

Since the start of 2001, Paris has seen an increase in bicycle use of over 48%. July 15th, 2007 marked the starting point of a major transformation in the way people will travel around the French capital. With the setting up of Vélib, the world’s most ambitious program aimed at facilitating bicycle access — now thousands of bicycles are available from hundreds of stations close to major public transport hubs spread out across the city.

The membership fees of 29 euros/per year increase with each 1/2 hour added, the first one being free, rendering the ride virtually free if you consider a report from”L’observatoire des déplacements dans la capitale” dated from 2005 estimating the average ride to last for 25 minutes .

The system is accessible to ages 14 and up. At the stations, the computer terminals enable you to:
- obtain one-day and seven-day subscriptions
- recharge your account (long duration)
- obtain information ( particularly which other stations are nearby and whether they are available).

Once you have finished your journey, all you have to do is deposit the bicycle back at any Vélib station.

Enjoy the ride!