Myth vs. Fact: How Yoga Helps Detox Your Body

The body’s detoxification systems are designed to run without any external forces. A regular yoga practice, including vigorous asana and pranayama, as part of an overall wellness plan, can help the natural detox system run more efficiently

Other ways to help your body run at a prime level include:

Limit your intake of high-fat foods and alcohol to maintain a healthy liver.

Drink plenty of water to help the digestive tract flow smoothly and to eliminate waste.

Replace prepackaged food with whole food.

Limit or avoid chemicals in self-care products such as lotion and makeup.

Participate in a regular exercise routine.

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6 Tips To Eat & Drink Your Way To A Healthy, Hydrated Body

As I write this, it is 97 degrees outside with a heat index of 109. The National Weather Service has issued excessive heat warnings for the past week with no end in sight. Even by Memphis standards, it’s hot outside.

Like other extreme weather events, excessive heat has caused numerous deaths in the past few years. People who are at greater risk from excessive heat include children, elderly, those already ill, women who are pregnant or breastfeeding, diabetics and athletes who train outside.

Lean body mass contains up to 75 percent water while fat only contains between 10 and 40 percent water. Therefore, those who are overweight are also more prone to dehydration.

Since for most of us it’s neither possible nor desirable to stay inside air-conditioned buildings full time, the best defense against the heat is to stay adequately hydrated.

Water not only maintains a safe body temperature during excessive heat or exercise, but it also carries heat away from the internal organs before serious damage can occur, which can lead to heat stroke and even death.

Click here to read 6 Tips To Eat & Drink Your Way To A Healthy, Hydrated Body

Sweating It Out

I've done enough crying this year. I still cry too often. Earlier this year I was lucky enough to spend time sitting on the beach, under the big moon, the smell of salt air filling my senses. All the crying purges the pain inside me. The ocean soothes me. I was still missing the sweat though. 

Then today, after almost a year of not doing yoga, I walked into a hot yoga class. This was my first led class since the whole "husband of 25 years walks out on his family" saga of the last year. The last led class I attended was just as I was plunging into my major depression/almost suicidal realm so no matter what happened on the mat, this class had to be better than that last one.

It's been a tough haul this past year getting myself back together. Baby steps forward and then a bump back. Just recently my body began shouting at me that it was time to get moving again. I actually forgot how much I enjoyed a good sweaty workout. iPod in, heart pumping, breathing heavy - it's good for me. It feels right.

I remember a couple years ago a friend saying to me he noticed that when I was exercising more I was definitely happier and had less bouts of depression. Yes, that whole exercise as a mood lifter thing is true. I've also noticed that when I'm exercising more I get more creative and have the urge to write again. It's pretty common for me to write out a blog post in my head while I'm breathing and sweating. 

My baby steps to creating a new, happier post-divorce life had conquered my fear of returning to the gym, but now it was time to get serious and get back on the mat. I actually had intended to go to hot yoga last week, but a bout of sun poisoning from falling asleep in the pool had me confined to bed all weekend covered in aloe and watching marathons of The Newsroom on HBO. (Yes, I actually fell asleep in the pool long enough to be sunburned so bad I got sun poisoning. However, in my defense, sleep is sometimes still illusive and that 1 1/2 hours in the pool was the best sleep I've had in a long time. So, skin cancer risks aside, it was worth it).

I was honestly nervous about going to class today. Much of my strength is gone. My flexibility and my stamina have also gone into hiding. It's only temporary I know. But, still, I miss it. I checked the class schedule a few times and gave repeated reminders to my kids that I was going out for the afternoon and no you can't go with me.

After the tuna fish before hot yoga incident of a few years ago you'd think I'd know better than to eat a Lenny's Italian sub for lunch, but no, I actually did it anyway. I did have enough sense to drink plenty of water before class though.

And why do I always decide my body needs hot yoga in the middle of a Southern summer heat wave? A high of 95 degrees outside, with heat indexes easily reaching 100, and I decide it's perfect to spend an hour and a half in a 90 degree room. 

My plan to just take it easy and accept what I was able to do quickly went out the window when we began class in padmasana (lotus pose).  My hips used to do this and they will do it again today! And they did! Admittedly I had to rest my head on a block instead of the floor as we folded forward but, ahhhh, there's that deep hip opening.

Actually, the physical practice went much better than I expected. Yes I was dripping sweat like a hooker in church, but so was everyone. My body acclimated quickly to the heat and soon found that yoga groove I've missed for too long. My body had been hinting at some imbalances in my body lately and they were obvious today, perhaps to no one else but definitely to me. My left knee is still a little weak from last years surgery so that made balance poses a bit more challenging. 

But the part of today's class I'm most proud of is that I got my mind to quiet. My mind is never quiet. Ever. It's constantly reviewing my financial worries, concerns about my future, worries about my kids. But today, for just a brief bit, it quieted. My body sweated and my brain relaxed. 

Tonight I'm exhausted. Not really physically, more so emotionally. I didn't cry during class, but I know that some energy that had been blocked was released. I know the sweat purged some negativity I had been holding on to. 

I know in order to reclaim my life I had to get back on the mat. It feels good, really good, to have taken that sweaty step back to finding me again.