Skin Care

Finally, we make our way back around to part five of our series on The Five Senses and the five sense organs. Scroll down the posts to find the first four on the eyes, nose, tongue and ears. Which leads to us to the body’s largest organ—our skin.

What’s cool about yoga and the skin is that there are so many ways that our yoga practice makes us aware of our skin. We feel the bottoms of our bare feet standing on the mat. We feel pressure on our skin as we kneel, lie on our side, press into our hands, stand on our head, touch our nose during a breathing exercise, or give ourselves a big hug.

You can take this awareness into your day too:

Pause during the day to feel skin sensations. How does your foot really feel inside of a shoe? Do you like the feel of different types of clothing against your skin? You can notice the way different foods feel on your hands when you cook or the touch of paper, yarn or wood when you enjoy your favorite hobby.

Oil massage to calm the nervous system. If you’re feeling anxious or over-stimulated, massage oil into your skin to create a healthy barrier between you and the outside world. Once I learned about oil massage, I completely gave up all the chemical-laced lotions I used to use. Did you know that those chemicals are absorbed into your bloodstream through your skin?! Now I use all-natural sesame oil, coconut oil or sunflower oil on my skin when I get out of the shower or bath. The oils also feed your skin microbiome to support a healthy mix of good and bad bacteria.

Eat a healthy diet and drink enough water. There’s a reason why you can tell a person is sick by looking at their skin. Is the complexion just right or is it too yellow, too red or too brown? All of these are signs of disruption inside the body. The best way to be well inside and out is to eat a healthy diet (for your dosha if possible) and to drink plenty of fresh, pure water. According to Ayurveda, eat two hands full of food at each meal and drink one-half of your body weight in ounces of water each day.

If you follow this path, then when we meet you in town we will know you by your healthy skin glow.