Hi Reader,
How has your week been? This week was my first week back on the mat after the summer break.
Apart from that, mine has been one of those weeks where something I have been thinking about for a long time has finally started to become real. Over the last few days, I have been building Back to Rhythm.
Yes, I have been working on the programme for months and have taught much of this material before. So, I know exactly what I want women to learn and, more importantly, what I want them to be able to do with it in their everyday lives.
But this week I started putting the actual course into its new home inside Squarespace, where my website lives. And somewhere between uploading the first videos, adding the food journal and deciding where everything should live, I had an idea.
I changed the structure. Suddenly, it made much more sense. Instead of thinking primarily about everything I want to teach, I began looking at the programme from the other side.
What if you were joining the programme? What would you need when you first arrive? Where should you start? What would you need to notice before you change anything? And, most importantly, how much information would you need to receive at once?
So, the first week is now called Settling In. I really like that.
Before we can understand our patterns, we need enough space to notice them. And Ayurveda and Yoga are both very much about noticing and observing what is going on inside us.
We can learn about Vata, Pitta and Kapha, about Agni, the seasons, food, sleep and daily routines. But it all comes alive when we recognise these things in ourselves.
Ah. I always get hungry at that time.
Interesting. When I eat late, I sleep differently.
I seem to lose focus at the same point every afternoon.
That meal leaves me feeling steady for hours.
Those observations gradually become knowledge of your own body. And that is where Ayurveda becomes practical and less complicated.
Glimpse into Back To Rhythm
So, what will you actually do when you arrive?
You'll start with two simple tools: a Food Journal and a How You Feel Diary. For the first few days, your job is simply to pay attention.
Then we meet for our first live call. You bring what you've noticed and your questions. We look at where things already make sense in your day, where it gets a little sticky and what you could try next.
Right at the beginning of Back to Rhythm, we'll also do the Autumn Cleanse together. It's included in the programme and gives us a practical way to start applying what you're learning as we move into the new season.
From there, each week gives you something new to explore, apply and practise before we meet again.
Back to Rhythm starts on Thursday 24 September.
Doors open tomorrow, Monday 14 September.
If you're interested but still unsure whether it's right for you, or have questions, come and join me for the live Q&A on Tuesday 15 September at 8 pm.
โJOIN Q&Aโ
Or, if you'd like to have another look through everything that's included:
โTAKE A LOOK AT BACK TO RHYTHMโ
From my Practice this Week...
My yoga practice has also been changing a little. I was sitting a lot, working with my head, so I've found myself drawn towards restorative poses. I felt more like lying down and letting go, and one of the simplest poses for this is Viparita Karani โ Legs Up the Wall.
You don't need much.
Find a clear piece of wall, sit sideways close to it and bring your legs up as you lower your back towards the floor. Maybe add a cushion or blanket underneath your pelvis, and definitely a cushion to support your head.
That's it. Then stay.
Five minutes can already make a big difference; ten minutes can feel just right.
Let the legs become heavy. Feel the floor underneath your back. Allow your breath to find its own rhythm.
At this time of year, when Vata begins to increase, restorative poses give the body something very tangible: support, stillness and time.
If your head has been busy this week, try it. You don't need to turn it into a full yoga practice. Just put your legs up the wall.
And close your eyes.
There is something about simply closing the eyes that changes how we feel. For a few minutes, there is less coming in. Nothing to look at. Nothing new for the eyes to follow. They finally get a rest too.
Which brings me rather neatly to this week's blog post, because our senses have been on my mind this week too.
This Week's Blog Post/Podcast
By the end of the day, your eyes feel tired. You look at the screen and realise you're staring at it without really taking anything in. Someone is talking to you and you've lost the thread of the conversation.
We tend to think of this as simply being tired. But who is tired? You might have spent much of the day sitting down, while your senses have been busy from morning until night.
Everything you see, hear, smell, taste and feel gives your mind something to process. Ayurveda has some very practical ways to care for the sense organs, while Yoga looks at what happens to the mind when we keep taking in more and more.
This week's article explores both โ including why I regularly look out of the window when I'm working, what a pair of shoes can teach us about Pratyahara, and a few simple ways to give your senses some care.
โRead & Listen Hereโ
From my Kitchen this Week...
My kitchen has been rather practical this week.
As the mornings already become cooler, a warm breakfast feels like what my body wants. So I really like porridge: oats, milk and water (I always mix both), spices, raisins and ghee. And I always need a teaspoon of ghee for that extra lubrication as we move into autumn and winter.
Perhaps that fits this week's theme: start by noticing what is already changing.
What are you reaching for? What feels good after you eat it? What is your body asking for as the weather changes?
And if you feel like your body could do with a little more support as we move into autumn, my Autumn Cleanse is coming up too. It's a chance to simplify your food for a few days, give your digestion some breathing space and settle into the new season.
โJOIN THE AUTUMN CLEANSEโ
Glimpse into Sacred Pause
I took this photograph at Yewfield, where we'll be holding Sacred Pause next June.
I keep coming back to the space between the two banks. They are separated by the water, with just that fallen tree reaching from one side towards the other. And beyond it, the mist makes it impossible to see very far ahead.
Perhaps there is something about a pause that feels a little like this.
For a few days, you step out of where you have been without needing to know exactly where you are going next. There is simply some space in between.
Sacred Pause โ 17โ20 June 2027, Lake District
๐ฟ Pause & Reflect
This week, is there one pattern that you immediately notice?
It could be when you become hungry. When your energy dips. Feeling tired after eating. How you feel when you eat later than usual. Or what helps you settle at the end of the day.
Just notice.
Because the more familiar you become with your own patterns, the easier it becomes to recognise what supports you.
If this Sunday Read might be helpful for someone, youโre very welcome to share it with someone who might enjoy it.
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๐ญ If you have a question, or thereโs something youโd love me to explore in a future Sunday Read, youโre always welcome to let me know.
Hereโs to carrying a little more calm and ease into your days,