If you want to optimize your energy, quality of sleep and ideal weight, "when" you eat matters as much as what you eat. In this episode, learn when to eat the largest meal of your day and why, according to Ayurveda.
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Welcome back to The Ayurveda Glow Podcast, a place to discuss how the ancient wisdom of Ayurveda can be applied to your modern, everyday life to help you feel vibrant in mind, body and spirit, enjoy optimal health, and glow from the inside out.

I’m your host, Katrina, an Ayurvedic Health Counselor & plant-based nutrition advocate based in Santa Monica, California. Through this podcast, I’ll be sharing with you what I’m learning in the areas of plant-based nutrition, sleep, yoga, meditation and a variety of holistic mind-body approaches to optimal health. I aim to explore each of these areas through the lens of Ayurveda.

In this episode, I want to share an Ayurvedic practice that has been a game changer for me. Specifically, the practice of aligning with the rhythms of nature. And, even more specifically, the daily practice of having an earlier, lighter dinner – which means, for me, making lunch the main meal of the day.

An earlier, lighter dinner can help you to sleep better at night, feel more energized and lighter when you wake up in the morning, and feel better overall throughout the day.

So in this episode, I want to go more in depth on these two areas.

Here’s what we’ll cover:

Why staying in sync with the rhythms of nature is important when it comes to optimizing your health. Ayurveda was founded on this principle and an exciting new branch of science called Circadian Medicine now supports this as well.
Also, you’ll learn why an earlier, lighter dinner can help you to align with nature’s rhythms and support your overall energy, quality of sleep and ideal weight.
Finally, I’ll share a few quick and easy dinner ideas to help you shift to an earlier, lighter dinner.
Let’s dive in!

#1: Align with the rhythms of nature to optimize your health and longevity

Okay – so as mentioned, one of the fundamental principles of Ayurveda is that we can support our optimal health and longevity by aligning with the rhythms of nature.

This is something that Ayurveda has been teaching for thousands of years and the good news is that an exciting new branch of science called Circadian Medicine has emerged that supports Ayurveda’s ancient wisdom.

In fact, in 2017 the Nobel Prize in medicine was awarded to two scientists “for their discoveries of molecular mechanisms controlling the circadian rhythms", otherwise known as our biological clock.

Circadian Medicine reveals how the light and dark cycles of the day affect our digestion, sleep, hormone production, cardiac function, innate immunity, neurophysiology, body temp, activity and rest.

All living organisms on Earth have an internal clock, known as the circadian rhythm. In humans, this is why we are awake during the day and sleep at night. Our biological clock also helps regulate eating habits, hormone release, blood pressure and body temperature.

The biological clock responds to darkness by triggering the brain’s production of melatonin, a hormone that promotes sleep. When the sun goes down, our brain begins to produce melatonin.

In our modern world, we’re no longer limited by the setting of the sun for light. We can simply turn on lights when the sun goes down. Many of us spend time after sunset watching movies, reading books, working or Facetiming via a variety of screens whether it’s a laptop, tablet or phone.

It’s important to be aware that the bright light we’re exposing ourselves to suppresses melatonin production and this can disrupt our ability to experience quality sleep.

Circadian Medicine also explains that an imbalance between lifestyle and rhythm can lead to increased risk for a number of diseases including metabolic diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity and cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease.

The Ayurvedic Clock: 6 Time Periods of the Day:

As mentioned, Ayurveda has long recognized the importance of aligning with daily, monthly and seasonal cycles to create ease and flow in our lives – as well as a way to support optimal wellbeing.

To continue reading, see the full transcript: https://katrinah.com/the-perfect-meal...

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