It is important to regularly detoxify your body throughout the year, and Ayurveda traditionally recommends cleansing at natural transition points like the change of seasons. Springtime is the most important time of the year to do this - spring is nature's season of cleansing, detox, and rejuvenation. In Ayurveda, the human body is a microcosm of nature - and when you look around at your environment during springtime, you will notice that the earth is rejuvenating itself - and so is the body.

We know that the three doshas – Vata, Pitta, and Kapha – correspond to our minds and bodies. But did you know that they also correspond to the seasons?

Pitta season occurs during the hot, humid summer months. This makes sense, as Pitta essentially represents the fire element. Vata season begins as soon as you feel that first fall breeze, and Vata (represented by the air element) dominates all fall and winter long, during the driest and coldest months. Kapha season lasts from approximately mid-February to early May, when the body is transitioning out of a long winter - into the lightness of spring and eventually summer. It is the transition from heavy winter into spring - think of that sluggish, damp, cold time of slushy winter snows into spring showers. We often feel heavy physically, mentally and energetically, and have excess mucus at this time. If we don't take care to balance Kapha during Kapha season, we might end up depressed, congested, and lethargic.

Throughout the year but especially in the winter, toxic buildup accumulates from poorly digested food and exposure to toxins in our food, water, and environment. These toxins inhibit proper performance of the body's tissues and organs, right down to the cellular level – and need to be cleansed. Signs that toxic residue has accumulated in your system include a white, heavy coating on the tongue, sluggishness after eating, foggy thinking, joint and muscle aches. The ama, or toxins, that have accumulated all winter long in our system need to be flushed out. Here are some ways to cleanse both internally and externally during Kapha season:

· Exercise at least 30 minutes daily to improve circulation in the lymphatic system.

· Follow an anti-Kapha diet. Limit intake of sugar, dairy, cheese, butter, eggs, fatty meats, lard, and salt during this season.

· Use a light and stimulating plant-based oil, such as grapeseed, mustard seed or almond on your skin daily, during an Abhyanga, or self-oil massage. Oils mobilize toxins from the tissues, helping with the body’s natural cleansing process. Take it a step further and try our Kapha - Detox Body Oil, specifically formulated for this.

· Eat plenty of organic fruits and vegetables with warming and stimulating spices to detoxify the body from within.

· For skincare during this time, you want to be thinking light and stimulating. I would recommend a green clay mask. Green clay is one of the best detoxers for the skin, and has the ability to remove impurities from the basal layer of the skin.

DIY Purifying Face Mask

2 tsp green clay
1 tsp arrowroot powder
½ tsp honey powder
½ tsp castor oil
Blend with one egg white

Apply on face, keep on for ½ hour, and you will cleanse your skin from the inside, out.

Drink this Detox Tea daily, throughout Kapha season:

Detox Tea (Cumin Coriander Fennel -CCF)

Bring water to a boil. Add add a mixture of the below seeds in equal quantity to the water, bring to a simmer, let simmer on low for 10 minutes with the lid on the pot.

Whole cumin seeds
Whole coriander seeds
Whole fennel seeds

Strain out the seeds and pour the liquid into a thermos.

Proportion: use 1/2 teaspoon of the spice mix per every 12 oz of water. It is best to make 3-4 cups of the tea in the morning, take the tea in a thermos with you and drink throughout the day to flush toxins out of the body. Add a licorice tea bag to a cup of the hot tea mixture to add sweetness. Alternatively, add raw honey.

Because this tea detoxifies the entire system, it also can help with digestion, acne, weight loss, immunity and generally unclogs channels in the body. If you drink this tea regularly for at least 3 months, you will notice many benefits in your overall health.