I’m on the second time through the new Netflix documentary about Arnold Schwarzenegger. Yes, I’ve seen every movie he made. He was making movies during the growing years of my two sons and of course we had to see them all as close to opening day as possible. There are so many amazing things about this larger-than-life man who had three successful careers as a body builder, an actor and governor of California. But what really caught my attention was how he saw what he wanted—to be a body builder and movie star—and then acted to bring it into existence.

This reminds me of two concepts in the Vedic tradition that show us how to follow Arnold’s lead. In modern language it’s called “visualize and manifest.” In Yoga it’s called purusha, or latent potential, and karma, or action.

The Universe recognizes thousands of possibilities—maybe even millions—in every second. Unfortunately, we never see how much potential actually exists because we allow so many things to limit us, like how we were raised, where we live now, the education we received, fear of the unknown, failing to believe in ourselves and others, etc. If we could get real still and open our energetic field, we could begin to see what is possible for us beyond the limitations we place on ourselves. Kind of like the young Austrian who saw himself as the body builder and the actor even though there was no opportunity to do these things in his home country.

The Universe also rewards karma, the actions we take to move ourselves forward in this lifetime. In fact the Universe takes karma so seriously that we also carry with us the energy of our actions from past lifetimes. Is this possibly where Arnold got the first inspiration to follow this path? Did he bring with him into this lifetime innate abilities he had honed in previous lifetimes? It’s definitely possible. But it’s also true that he worked very hard to get where he wanted to go and sacrificed much more than many of us would be willing to do to get there.

It's time for you to get still and open your energetic field. Let go of all the preconceived notions of what is possible for you. Release the limiting beliefs like “it’s too hard,” “I’m too old/young,” “no one wants what I have to offer,” etc. What are the latent possibilities for your life? What actions can you take to see where these possibilities might take you? The world is waiting for you.

Yesterday I had a Zoom call with students in my Living Ayurveda course (check it out at www.yogaspiritonline.com). We were meeting at the transition of the seasons to talk about seasonal foods and changes in our activities that will help us feel healthy, vital and strong all year long. This month we transition into Summer, the season of fire known as Pitta.

Whether you follow an ayurvedic lifestyle or not, this information will lessen the effect of pitta’s inflammation on your body and mind. Considering how many of our physical and mental health issues are a result of inflammation, this is good information indeed.

Favor foods that are sweet, bitter and astringent. Ayurveda recognizes six tastes and these are the three that will help cool the body and mind. Enjoy apples, cranberries, dates, figs, grapes, limes, mango, melons, pears, persimmons, pineapple, plums, pomegranate, prunes, alfalfa sprouts, asparagus, bell peppers, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, cilantro, cucumber, green beans, lettuce, mushrooms, okra, peas, potatoes, squash, turnips, zucchini, basmati rice, oats, wheat, corn, granola, beans, coconut, sunflower seeds, butter, coconut oil, ghee, corn oil, sunflower oil, flax seed, olive oil, cream cheese, milk, and cottage cheese. Sweeten with fruit juice concentrate, maple syrup, date sugar or coconut sugar.

Avoid foods that are sour, salty and pungent (spicy hot). These are the foods that increase heat in the body and contribute to inflammation: chilies, garlic, onions, pickles, radishes, lentils, nuts that are roasted and salted, sour cream, salty cheese, honey, molasses, all condiments, all animal products.

My two favorite summer anti-inflammatories are lime and fresh ginger. In general citrus fruits are to be avoided in pitta season because citrus is heating. Lime, however, is unique because it is a cooling fruit. Every morning I squeeze the juice of ¼ lime into a cup of warm water and sip it as the first fluid to travel through the digestive tract. Lime also tastes great added to a cup of water or herbal tea anytime during the day.

Fresh ginger is also unique because it is tri-doshic, meaning that it supports and does not aggravate any of the three doshas. This isn’t the case, however, for dried ginger which has a heating quality and will definitely aggravate pitta. Add fresh ginger to your vegetable stir-fries and steep it in hot water for a delicious tea. Ginger is an anti-inflammatory superfood!

Ice cream. Ayurveda tells us to always avoid icy drinks because it puts out our digestive fire. This is especially important to follow in the summer, the season when our digestive fire is at its weakest. Summer, however, is the only season when Ayurveda encourages us to enjoy a sensible portion of ice cream. Get me a spoon!