Food, all aspects of it, has always had an important place in my life. I hear you, being French, it is not such a big surprise. Hence my little blog section “yoga in the kitchen“. And also because yogis too take their food very seriously! Not only what they eat, but also how they eat. It is common sense that both what and how you eat will influence the digestion process and your ability to receive the nourishment your body and mind need, while discarding the waste products. This ability to process food is called agni or “digestive fire”. In Ayurveda, the power of your digestion is the most important determinant of your health and longevity, while inefficient digestion is the root cause of most of the diseases. Have a read of this article to better understand agni and how you can stoke your digestive fire by altering the way you relate to food, the ancient way.

Agni is the focus of our practice in the classes that I teach this week, because besides making informed decisions on what and how you eat, yoga (yes of course!) is an easy way to support your digestive system. Yoga coupled with conscious mindful breathing…

Breathing brings life force into the body and cleans the body of toxic materials formed due to wrong diet, unhealthy lifestyle & accumulated stresses. It improves agni, creates body balance and longevity rejuvenating the whole system.

Here are a few yoga poses that aid digestion:

  • Trikonasana (Triangle Pose) – Improves digestion, stimulates appetite and alleviates constipation.
  • Paschimottanasana (Seated Forward Bend) – Relieves digestive problems like constipation.
  • Pavanamuktasana (Wind-Relieving Pose) – Improves gastrointestinal problems.
  • Matsyendrasana (Half Lord of the Fishes Pose) – Massages the abdominal organs, alleviating digestive ailments.
  • Ustrasana (Camel Pose) – Stretches the stomach and intestines, alleviating constipation.

Remember that every time you do yoga, you are gifting yourself an opportunity to enhance your health and well-being. Feel free to contact me to start making yoga part of your everyday life or address a specific need!

For the anecdote…the funny thing from this morning in one of my private yoga class after exploring agni, is that Monique – a friend of mine, loyal yoga student and heavily involved in organic and biodynamic agriculture – offered me a kilo of local biodynamic brown rice! Hilarious and awesome!! I am still having a think of how I can honour my gift tonight at dinner time, all suggestions welcome! :-)