This post is all about the simplicity of taking a break in order to tune into your own body and mind with refreshed awareness.

Since the beginning of my journey with Ayurveda + Yoga, I said I wouldn't lead a cleanse. I've shed many layers around toxic diet culture and my idea of a cleanse doesn't look much like what's usually presented. My version of Ayurveda is simple, joyful and dances down the middle path of not too much or too little of any one thing.

After sending students and clients elsewhere for the past few years, they have returned to me asking for support in something simpler and more doable. And so I gave into creating and facilitating an Ayurvedic reset that is based off of what I actually do myself at home when no one is watching.

It is shockingly simple, yet very powerful.

If you're not interested in any sort of cleanse, perhaps you might change your mind when you hear how simple the suggestions are. If you are looking for an in-depth full-on cleanse with lots of steps laid out in specific ways I will happily point you toward detail-oriented practitioners. But if you are overworked as it is, dealing with kids at home during the pandemic or just need some simplicity in your life- well then I’m happy to be your guide.

At the most basic level, an Ayurvedic cleanse serves to clear out clutter, waste, toxins, ama… whatever you want to call it… so that there is enough clearing to allow the body to do its thing. In ideal conditions, the body doesn’t need much in the form of dedicated cleansing practices. The body has been brilliantly designed and will detoxify on its own. However, modern life does in deed expose us to all sorts of “toxins” from food products to relentless advertisement.

A cleanse serves as a break from exposing ourselves and consuming toxins. As we abstain from the excess, we give our body a chance to clear away that which is not creating wellness and in the process we also create a sort of energetic emptiness. This is the part of cleansing where we are vulnerable as we have stripped something away, even if it was a layer that we didn’t need. In this state, Ayurveda would advise us that we require the appropriate kind of nourishment to replenish. Many practitioners would argue that the sole purpose of a cleanse is to create the optimal conditions to re-nourish. In simple terms, the body is primed and ready to receive that which will rejuvenate it.

For this reason, a cleanse is about much more than what you eat or don’t eat. It’s also about the information, stimulation and activities that you are exposed to. It’s about giving your digestive system a break, but also your mind. In this sense, I have had to put some thought into what supporting you virtually through a reset would look like because the biggest piece of advice I have is to take a break from technology as much as possible.

What feels like the middle path is to offer a basic set of guidelines with the traditional Ayurvedic approach for when you are able to go all in, and then suggested modifications for real life struggles. A reset does not need to be all or nothing. Any sort of rest and rejuvenation serves to help the body return to homeostasis.

It feels damn good to declutter the kitchen even if you can’t get to the rest of the house. In the same way, limiting technology and eating very simple meals for a few days will still support you even if you’re not going all in with kitchari and a complete break from email.

Below you will find a simple shopping list to help you get started. The kitchari recipe is over here.

The full template to do it on your own is available anytime in The Simple Ayurveda Collective.

If you plan to take a full or partial internet break I suggest you start scheduling that now. Likewise, choosing the dates ahead of time also gives space to slowly reduce certain things before the actual start so that “detox” symptoms are at a minimum (guess what, if you really aren’t going to quit coffee for the week I won’t be nagging you about it… this is a do what you can, we’re surviving a pandemic kind of reset).

I will not be sending emails or posting on social media for the guided option because I know the rabbit hole of checking one thing and getting sucked into a gazillion others. All support will be in the Simple Ayurveda Mighty Networks Community since there are no ads, distractions, videos, flickering lights, etc. Hop on, check in if that’s helpful for you to keep accountability and then get back to your relaxation.