- 18
- MAY
Summer Regimen :
Summers are dry and hot. Naturally our digestive fire (Agni) slows down. So we don’t feel much hungry as compared to winters. We get dehydrated, lethargic, exhausted, often feel thirsty and low on energy levels.
What should be our diet?
- Diet should be such that helps to cool down your body and keeps it hydrated. Include sweet, bitter and astringent food in your diet.
- Intake of rice, green gram, ghee,buffalo milk, curd with sugar and pepper is recommended.
- Seasonal fruits like mango, watermelon, muskmelon, mashmelon, javaplum (jamun), karwand (Carissa carandus), iceapple (tadgola), litchi, and jackfruit. Other than these you can have local seasonal fruits.
- Drinks such as coconut water, buttermilk, seasonal fruit juices, palmnectar (neera), kokam sharbat, solkadhi, aam panha and lemon syrup.
Ayurveda recommends having following drinks :-
1. Panak:
Take 30 grams of jaggery, add 1litre of water ,add pinch of powdered dry ginger, cardamom & cinnamon, mix it well. This drink is soothing, cooling, nourishing and quenches thirst.2. Mantha:
Take equal quantity of dried grapes, dates, fig and soak in water for an hour. Then put it in mixer & churn well. Add adequate quantity of water to it and store in earthen pot. Drink after it cools down.3. Raga:
Diluted syrup of following is recommended- Ananta (Hemidesmus indicus)
- Kamal (lotus)
- Gulab (rose)
- Draksha (grapes)
- Chandan (sandal)
- Ushir ( khus, Vetiveria Zizanioides)
- Jambhira (lemon)
4. Saktu:
Fine powder of dry roasted barley- 2 spoonPowder of roasted chick pea – 1 spoon
Powder of cardamom and cumin -2pinch
Mix the above ingredients with adequate quantity of water and jaggery. Store it in earthen pot and drink when it cools down.
This drink is easy to digest, provides instant energy and quenches thirst.
5. Ragi soup:
- Heat 2 and 1/2 cups of water in a pan.
- Meanwhile, mix ragi flour in the 1/2 cup of water. Make sure there are no lumps in the mixture.
- Once the water comes to a rolling boil, slowly add the ragi mixture in the boiling water. Cook it for 2-3 minutes, stirring continuously to avoid formation of lumps.
- Remove the pan from heat and let this mixture cool completely.
- Slowly add the cooled ragi mixture in buttermilk and whisk nicely. Add salt, roasted cumin powder, heeng, curry leaves and onion to it and mix well. Store it in earthen pot for few hours before serving. Garnish it with fresh coriander.
Lifestyle in summer:
- Stay in cool place.
- Wear light cotton clothes.
- Have nap in afternoon.
- Don’t exert yourself.
- Avoid alcoholic beverages.
- Avoid salty, sour and pungent food.
- Avoid sun exposure.