Discover 10 recommendations for keeping our energy balanced even in the summer heat.
Summer’s heat doesn’t just affect the weather. It also influences the way our energy circulates, making it easier to feel tired, irritable, overheated, or mentally unfocused.
One of the keys to staying healthy and balanced during the hottest months is maintaining the principle of Water Up, Fire Down. In this natural state, cool water energy rises from the kidneys to keep the head cool while fire energy descends from the heart to warm the lower abdomen.
During the hottest days of summer, maintaining this balance requires a little more attention. As temperatures continue to rise around the world, learning how to cool the head while keeping the body’s energy grounded becomes increasingly important. By caring for our energy, we can stay healthy, mentally clear, and comfortable throughout the season.
Here are my recommendations for keeping our energy balanced during these hot summer days:
1) Don’t turn the air conditioner up too high. Air conditioning is a blessing if we have it in our homes, but making our environment too cold in the summer can cause problems. It can throw our energy system off-kilter, especially if we are coming in and out of the indoor environment. Sitting in a very cool environment all day can make the entire body too cold, so keep the thermostat in the high 70s or higher. This is recommended to save electricity, too, which is good for the planet.
2) Keep moving and stretch often. Warm weather can make the body feel stagnant and listless, so it is important to keep our bodies moving. Whether working at a desk or just relaxing at home, we can schedule times to get up and walk around. A few times a day, we can also do some stretching to awaken all the body’s meridians.
3) Exercise outdoors in the morning and evening. In the summer months, when it is very hot outside, it can be tempting to stay inside all day. Contact with nature is very important for the mind and body, however, so let’s find some outdoor time to do light exercise, such as walking or stretching. The early morning hours, while it is still relatively cool, perhaps right after getting out of bed before taking a shower, are one of the best times to do this, and a great way to start the day. After dinner in the evening is also a nice time to take a walk and relax before ending the day.
4) Drink lots of water. If we live in a very hot, dry environment, it is important to stay hydrated. We can keep a water bottle nearby, even when at home, so we get in the habit of drinking throughout the day.
5) Drink room temperature or hot beverages. When we’ve been outside and are sweaty and red-faced, it is tempting to come inside and drink a big glass of a favorite beverage on ice. While it feels good temporarily, drinking excessively cold beverages is not good for our energy system because it makes the stomach and lower abdomen very cold. Since we want a cool head and a warm belly, it is better to drink room temperature or warm beverages instead.
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6) Use a cool cloth on your forehead. Instead of reaching for an icy cup of soda to cool down, we can use a damp washcloth on the forehead. We might even want to keep a few damp washcloths in the refrigerator so they are ready whenever we need them.
7) Eat spicy food. This might seem counterintuitive, but spicy food stimulates the sweating response even though we are not actually becoming any hotter. The heat of peppers is actually a trick of the chemical capsaicin, which fools our taste buds into thinking we are eating something hot. As a result, we get the head-cooling benefit of sweat without actually getting any hotter.
8) Eat more vinegar and less salt. As we probably know, salt tends to raise blood pressure, sending fire energy to the head. Vinegar is a healthier alternative for bringing flavor to food without the detrimental effects of too much salt.
9) Eat small meals and chew thoroughly. Digestion increases the body’s overall temperature and can contribute to a sense of sluggishness. By eating smaller meals and chewing thoroughly, our digestive tract does not have to work as hard, and our bodies can maintain their natural energy balance more easily.
10) Take warm, waist-deep baths. Rather than dousing the whole body in hot water during a shower or bath, try running a shallow, warm bath to the level of the waist. This way, the lower body remains warm while the upper body stays cool, mimicking the ideal Water Up, Fire Down energy condition.
I hope these tips help us all stay healthier and feel more comfortable during the summertime. Summer is a wonderful time when the world is buzzing with life. It is a time to appreciate the life-giving properties of the sun while also relishing the restorative properties of water. Our energy systems are part of this grand system of nature, so let’s value and care for them as the miracle they are, always keeping a cool head and a fire in the belly.
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