WildHolistics

22/09/2025

MOVING INTO AUTUMN marks a significant change in the Wheel of the Year. But what does living with the seasons mean? And this transition in particular?

Much like Yoga, the idea of Living with the Seasons has become fashionable in recent years but without truly adapting our attitudes and our lifestyles there is no depth to it.

Autumn is about much more than admiring the pretty coloured leaves... although that's definitely one of the highlights of the season (as well as kicking piles of them!).

Traditionally, this time of year would have been about gathering up the last of the produce, preserving it for the Winter months and preparing the home for spending more time in it as daylight hours dwindle.

We may now have electricity and supermarkets but our true cyclical nature still craves the routine.

At this time of year, letting go of what we don't need is key:

- Don't cling to wishing it was still Summer.

- Declutter the home so it is a pleasant space to spend the colder months.

- Let go of thoughts, emotions and preconceptions that are no longer helpful... nobody wants a cluttered mind either!

- It is an ideal time for a detox that is appropriate for you.

Focus on the positives of spending longer evenings indoors and plan productive activities for that time (minimal screen time!) to avoid the Winter blues or getting caught up in dreading them. Hobbies are essential. They feed our soul.

When combining the turning of the Wheel of the Year with Yoga practices, we are aligning our energy with nature's energy and clearing any blockages that get in the way.

As we bring genuine seasonal living back into our lives, it gets easier and more natural. Despite always being a summer-loving bunny, I can't wait for Autumn. Why? Because after the amazing summer we had I have spent the last few weeks harvesting and preserving. I have an amazing amount of gratitude for the abundant harvest but I'm absolutely exhausted! I can't wait to curl up indoors with a good book and my fluffy socks knowing my cupboards are full of home grown produce... just as it should be at this time of year.

18/07/2025

A few months ago, someone I had known for ages accused me of trying to force my quaint gardening hobby on other people. I have no idea if this is a common opinion or if it was just a one off but I thought maybe I should set the record straight with just some of the reasons why I try to inspire everyone to grow their own fruit and veg:

As an Ayurveda Diet and Lifestyle consultant, I know the importance of eating fresh, local, seasonal organic food. You literally are what you eat. You don't get any fresher and more local than the food you have picked off a plant minutes before you eat it. You know it's in season. And you know that no chemicals have been used.

Variety is also important and you can eat a greater variety of fruit and veg by growing things that aren't available in the supermarket.

Reduces plastic usage and food miles.

It is proven that gardening is extremely beneficial for mental wellbeing.

It's good exercise that naturally involves a range of functional movement.

Knowledge and skills to grow your own food makes you more resilient and less dependent on large corporations and their infrastructure. Did you panic at the vegetable shortage two years ago? Knowing where food comes from, what grows quickly, what has abundance from one plant and what thrives in your local area makes you independent. It's the reason I shared the petition a while back about introducing Food, Farming and Sustainability into school curriculums... the trigger for the conversation at the top of this post.

I'm not suggesting everyone grows as much as me. Maybe you only have space for a pot on the windowsill but that's enough to learn.

My intention is always to support others to be their best selves. That can be through Yoga, Ayurveda and Reiki but also everything else that supports these. They don't work in isolation.

The photo shows what you can grow in pots in a sunny spot. The patio is about 3m x 4m. After adding the text to the photo, I realised I had forgotten, Tomatillos, Ground Cherries, Lemon Grass, edible Petunia and probably a few more!

25/06/2025

One important factor for incorporating a meditation practice into your daily life is finding the method that works for you.

Japa meditation uses mantra repetitions to slow down the mind. I knew when I tried it around 12 years ago that this was the one for me and I have practiced it daily ever since.

Traditionally, Japa uses mala beads to enable you to count the repetitions of your chosen mantra. The steady, rhythmic movement of the beads passing through the fingers is an additional form of concentration.

Mala beads usually consist of 108 beads or 27 beads.

The bead that connects the chain of 27 / 108 beads which often has a tassle next to it is called the guru bead. You are not supposed to cross that bead when chanting. If you want to chant more mantras than the number of beads, then you need to turn the mala. For example, if you want to do 108 repetitions but only have a 27 bead mala, then you will do 27 repetitions and then turn the mala to begin 28 until you reach the guru bead again and so on (27 x 4 = 108).

The mala should be held between your middle and ring finger and you use your thumb to move the beads. The index finger does not come into contact with the mala as it represents your ego.
The hand not holding the mala, should be in chin mudra, keeping your energy within you and your practice.

Once you have used your mala, no-one else should touch it. This is because the mala now contains your energy.

As with other "meditations" such as Meditation on the Breath and Meditation on the 3rd Eye, this part of the practice is actually the Concentration step. It is a technique to slow the mind so it is ready for meditation so once you have completed your mantra repetitions, try to sit for awhile without becoming distracted by other thoughts (not easy!). It doesn't matter if it's 2 minutes or an hour but decide the amount of time beforehand and stick to it even if you keep getting distracted. There is a reason it is called a 'Practice'.

19/06/2025

One of the main complaints in hot weather is the difficulty in sleeping. One efficient way of cooling down when you go to bed is to spray your feet with rose water.

In Ayurveda, our feet are a Pitta part of the body. Pitta being the fiery dosha. By cooling our feet, it helps to cool our whole body.

The eyes are also Pitta so spritzing the face with rose water is also great or putting rosewater on a couple of cotton wool pads and placing them on the eyes when you go to bed.

Everything in the natural world has properties. Knowing what these properties are means we can bring ourselves back in balance. Astringent rose water is cooling so by applying it to parts of the body that store heat, we can bring our temperature down to more comfortable levels.

If you don't have any rose water, then you can also place your feet in a bowl of cool water for a few minutes and this will also have a cooling effect.

Sweet Dreams...

15/06/2025

The breath is a fundamental part of a yoga practice. It guides the pace of the movement in a Vinyasa class and each Pranayama (breathing practice) creates a different affect in the body and mind.

This is why I'm forever reminding anyone in my class to Breathe! I'm also very insistent that as a rule you breathe through your nose and not your mouth. Our noses warm and moisten the air as it enters the body and also acts as a filter for anything we don't want getting in.

It may not sound like much, but the way we breathe has a very fundamental affect on the quality of our health and our lives as a whole.

I know from experience, how much how you breathe can influence your health. I was a chronic mouth breather for around 30 years. I had a load of allergies as a child, was always coming down with something and I was asthmatic from the age of 10. A consistent yoga practice taught me how to breathe and combined with a lot of will and determination (and a pushy yoga teacher friend who knew the perils of mouth breathing), I switched to consistently breathing through my nose. I'm not going to lie, it was tough and distinctly uncomfortable. At the start, you feel like you are not getting enough air and my nose ran constantly!

But it was worth the perseverance. A year after starting yoga, I no longer suffered from asthma. Just switching how I breathe completely changed my life.

Even though I know a considerable amount about the breath both from personal experience and as part of my yoga training, this book taught me an unbelievable amount and is truly fascinating. It's also extremely readable without the heaviness of some factual books. I highly recommend it and if you are a mouth breather, it may give you the incentive you need to make the switch.

18/05/2025

If I say the words "AYURVEDIC DIET", is this what you picture?

For many, those words are synonymous with "Indian Food". Unsurprising as Ayurveda originates from this region. However, Ayurveda is based on principles rather than specific foods.

So yes, this photo shows Ayurvedic food... for me, in my current location (Southern England) at this time of year (mid-May). This is because, one of the fundamental principles of Ayurveda is to eat seasonal, locally grown produce.

So, at the moment, this is what is growing locally for me:

Rhubarb
Broadbeans
Radish seed pods
Chard
San Marzano Broccoli

The rhubarb came from my allotment and the rest from pots right outside my kitchen door.

But if you don't have your own veg growing at the moment, shopping at a farmers market or farm shop is a good way of buying local and seasonal and if that isn't an option, just checking the country of origin on packets in your local supermarket will ensure you are eating food grown in your own country.

Right now, is the "hungry gap", when we are coming to the end of winter harvests but not quite at the summer ones, but other seasonal veg in the UK at the moment are:

Leeks
Spring Greens
Kale
Cabbages
Radishes
Asparagus

As it has been exceptionally warm and dry in the UK this year, you may be able to get some June crops a little earlier. I got some lovely locally grown strawberries from [Denbies Farm Shop] yesterday.

If any of you are growing radishes this year and they are starting to grow flower spikes rather than the roots swelling due to to lack of rain, then don't throw them out! After flowering, you will get loads of seed pods on each plant that taste like radishes. They can be eaten raw or they make great pickles, which is what mine are destined for (one for another post, perhaps).

27/03/2025

CLASS ANNOUNCEMENT!

Back in August, when Yoga Ananda closed it's doors I said I would be hibernating for winter as I took a break from teaching regular classes.

Seeing as it was the Spring Equinox last week, I guess it's time for me to come out of hibernation.

I will be resuming my Tuesday classes from 1st April:

Vinyasa Flow
6:15pm - 7:30pm

Vinyasa Flow Beginners
8pm - 9:15pm

They will be running at Buckland Reading Rooms (near the deli).

The first class is £5 (even if you did classes with me at Yoga Ananda).

After that, it's £10 drop in or a 6 class pass for £48 (valid for 3 months after first use)

I haven't managed to finish building a booking system on my website yet, so if you would like to come along, message me and I'll email over a payment link.

It will be great to see everyone back in class soon!

21/03/2025

The SPRING EQUINOX marks the transition from the Yin time of year to the Yang time of year. So the resting time of year to the active.

Did you have any New Year's Resolutions that just didn't happen? Or fell by the wayside in the first few weeks of the year? If so, this is because that is absolutely not the right time to make any big changes. Our energy just isn't in the right place.

The time for putting our plans into action is starting now!

NOW is the right time for doing a detox or cleanse

NOW is the right time for being more active, however works for you.

NOW is the time for shedding that excess winter weight

NOW is the time for trying something new

NOW is the time for learning a new skill

NOW is the time for starting a new project.

So think back to those New Years Resolutions. Are they are still important to you? If they are, Go For It!

Happy (slightly belated) Spring Equinox Blessings!

07/02/2025

GOLDEN MILK encompasses the traditional way of including herbs and spices that we need into our diet.

Cultures that still have herbal knowledge ingrained into their way of life will use a pinch of this, or a pinch of that depending on what is needed by an individual on a given day.

The recipe below includes a range of spices to create a balanced comforting drink.

Ground ginger is good for digestion.
Cardamom helps to balance the heat of the ginger.
Cinnamon helps circulation
Turmeric is well known for it's abundance of health benefits, but for me, this adds a touch of grounding and earthiness to the beverage.

INGREDIENTS
1 cup of milk (dairy or sugar-free alternative but avoid soya)
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 - 1/4 tsp ground cardamom

honey to taste (optional)
1/2 tsp raw cacao powder (optional)

DIRECTIONS
Put everything except the honey into a saucepan and heat gently, stirring to ensure the spices (and cacao, if using) are combined.
Once hot, remove from hob and wait until it has cooled to a temperature you can drink before adding the honey.

12/12/2024

I certainly wish this had been on the curriculum when I was at school!

We are calling on the government to integrate comprehensive food, farming, and sustainability education into the national curriculum, making these subjects core to students’ learning from early years through secondary school.

13/10/2024

** YIN YOGA COURSE**
I will be running my Yin Yoga Intensive Course over the first 2 weekends in November (2nd, 3rd, 9th and 10th November) at Watercolour Community Space, Redhill.

This course is primarily aimed at qualified yoga teachers who want to gain confidence in this powerful practice.

Over the four days there will be plenty of time for Yin practice so that you can experience different poses and different ways of practicing. There will be an in-depth exploration of the poses covered including variations, use of props and common pit-falls.

There will also be theory sessions including an introduction to meridians and anatomy from a Yin Yoga perspective.

Plenty of opportunities for questions will be available so that everyone gets the most out of the course.

Qualified yoga teachers will receive a certificate that can be used to count towards Yoga Alliance teacher / training hours.

The course is also open to experienced yoga practitioners who wish to learn more about Yin Yoga and deepen their own practice.

Head over to my website for a more detailed course description and booking options. Feel free to get in touch if you have any questions.

04/10/2024

A beautiful sunrise on the final day of my Reiki Master Course Retreat with Bliss & Blossom Well-being.

The completion of the course gave me a sense of beginning new chapter. But equally, seeing this view was a reminder that we get to have a new beginning every single day. It is the opportunity to do something different or even just perceive something differently. We don't have to wait for the 1st January or a momentous occasion. If we want to bring a change into our lives, however small, the opportunity is always there - we just need to take it.