How to Keep Healthy This Winter
The Yin and Yang of Winter
Everyone is usually familiar with the Yin and Yang Symbol but do you know what it means? The shaded area of the symbol represents yin and the white area yang. Yin and yang are opposing but also complementary in their nature and are always found together. One cannot exist without the other. For example:
• Yang is the sun, the sky, fire, light, heat, activity.
• Yin is the moon, the earth, water, darkness, coolness and inactivity.
So, to understand the symbol we can think of the white circle within the dark aspect is yang growing into yin and the dark circle growing within the white aspect is yin growing within yang.
If we view it from a seasonal perspective Yang is Summer and Yin is Winter. Spring and Autumn can be seen as the transformation of yin into yang and yang into yin.
But even before spring, within the very deep yin of winter, yang begins to grow. As soon as we reach the shortest day, winter solstice, the change occurs and the days begin to get longer. This is when winter is at its coldest and yin is peaking. The warmth of yang is not felt for some time but it is there germinating within us.
In this deepest and coolest of winter we are drawn to yang things – warm fires, warming foods like lamb or the roasting of root vegetables. We want to hibernate and stay inside or travel to warmer places. We are constantly trying to bring a balance between external coolness and internal warmth.
Unlike some animals we cannot hibernate from our lives. Whilst this is the time of year for rest we need a balance between rest and activity. Too much time sitting can stop our energy from flowing but strenuous exercise can open up our pores and release to much of our internal warmth, our internal yang. As the coolness of winter limits our capacity to receive external yang or be powered by external yang we are reliant on our internal resource. So gentle exercise that opens and stretches and moves our qi without exhausting us or causing us to sweat too much is good activity for winter – yoga, pilates, walking or swimming and exercising until you are warm but not hot. This can seem contrary to social norms around exercise but is a more beneficial approach to your health and wellbeing than “going hard” all year.
The Water Element
The water element is the most yin of all the elements and the nature of its movement is inwards and to the lowest place it can find. It is the most fundamental of all the elements. Water covers 70% of the planet and comprises 69% of the human body with more in babies and less in aged bodies as it declines over time matching the decline of our vitality and health. Without water the body cannot survive.
Water is changeable and adaptable. It can be liquid, solid or take the form of gas. It can change from a gentle babbling brook into rapids and waterfalls, from a meandering river into a deep ocean. It can be a puddle, a pond, a lake, a well, a cup of tea, a bath or a swimming pool and each variation has different characteristics – moving/still, shallow/deep. Water can be yin and yang.
The water element is most easily observed in winter. Like ice freezing the energy has contracted meaning there is little or no growth and plants/animals are resting, hibernating and waiting for the warmth of spring. In us we may observe more of a desire to spend time in doors, more reluctance to get out of bed when it is cold and putting on extra layers of scarves, gloves and hats etc.
The Kidney and Bladder
The kidney and bladder are the yin and yang organs of the water element. They have direct influence on the balance of water in our bodies and are the ‘gate’ that controls the function of urination.
In western medicine the kidneys are two bean shaped organs that lie towards the back of the body, above the level of the waist. They eliminate the toxic waste of metabolism and control the volume and composition of blood. They retain or expel water and minerals and remove surplus materials. The kidney’s also participate in the activation of vitamin D.
In Chinese Medicine their importance is profound as the kidney’s store the root of life itself. They store our essence. Essence produces marrow which fills the spinal cord and brain and so influences intelligence, memory, concentration and thinking. The kidney’s control all fluids in the body.
Water is the deepest yin and so is linked to the deepest part of our body – the bones. Strong kidney energy and essence makes for strong bones. Things like osteoporosis is evidence of a decline of essence and kidney health.
The bladder is a hollow muscular organ located in the pelvic cavity. It’s function is to store the steady drop of urine that flows from the kidneys and release the urine through the urethra.
In Chinese Medicine the energy of the bladder has a wider range than just storing and excreting. It is also involved with the transformation of fluids for the production of urine.
The bladder meridian is the longest meridian and has more points than any other. Some of its points that run parallel to the spine directly relate to each of the 12 meridians and their corresponding organs.
Key Resonances of the Water Element
Hearing – this is a sense of rapid response that happens ten times faster than what you respond to with your eyes. The Kidneys open into the ears so when kidney energy is healthy the hearing is healthy. Tinnitus or repeated ear infections are a sign there may be kidney weakness.
Blue/Black – Water in large quantities appears blue because the water reflects the blue of the light spectrum and also reflects the sky which is often blue. Deeper down where light doesn’t penetrate the water is black. Blue is often regarded as a peaceful colour that brings calm to the spirit and draws down the frantic energy.
This relates to the descending nature of the water element. Having the blues is often a euphemism for sadness and depression. States in which there is often too much sinking energy. Blue or black at the sides or under the eyes is often an indication of a water imbalance.
Groaning - is the sound of the voice that represents the water element. It is a sinking or falling tone and often indicates stress or strain. It is deep with little variation. It carries with it the emotion of fear as though the person is expressing what they dread in the tone of their voice – Neil from the Young Ones with his classic Oh Noooo! The sound reflects an imbalance in the kidneys which store the essence of life – our jing. When there is insufficient energy a groan effect is the results.
Putrid is the odour that emanates from a person’s skin when the water element is constitutionally imbalanced. The bladder and kidney are not doing a good enough job of managing the fluids and they are stagnating so there is a strong smell of urine or ammonia.
Fear – This is a deep visceral emotion that is experienced low down in the body and affects the lower back and legs. This matches the natural movement of water – it sinks down and contracts. Our expressions of fear also relate – a chill down the spine, break into a cold sweat, blood turned cold, frozen with fear.
We all experience fear at some point or another but when fear becomes extreme, goes beyond a reaction appropriate to circumstances or is traumatizing, it imbalances the water element. On the other extreme a lack of fear that leads people to engage in risky behaviors without regard for safety can show an imbalance in the water element.
The spiritual component of our water element is our ‘zhi’ or ‘will’. This is not the driven will power of the ego that exerts effort to achieve its own end. ‘Will’ is a force that underpins our life – it is the will to live and is immensely powerful. Will is our yin – it is steady, solid, dependable and determined. It is a feeling of being a mountain with deep roots, solid and immovable and is felt as a substantial presence in the lower body. Will is perseverance and persistence, the ability to keep moving forward and rolling along. True will is our purpose. As we align with this, moving through the world becomes effort less. This helps us to conserve our kidney qi and have a healthy water element.
Transitioning in and out of winter
The mother of water is metal (related to autumn). As we transition from autumn into winter these two energies dance with one another. Cold days are interspersed with the last of the bright days of autumn and the sun dips lower and lower towards the horizon as we move to winter solstice. Whilst the thought of chillier days can be difficult, this transition is an invitation to withdraw, to rest and rejuvenate and recharge our internal batteries ready for the next round.
The wood element (related to spring) is the son of water and as winter draws to a close there is a transitional period in which we can feel the energy reawaken and begin to rise to the surface. Even though the nights can still be quite cold the days are warmer and the invitation is here to journey outside once again and soak up the sun. The pace of life begins to quicken and as the energy yawns and stretches, shifts and changes the weather can be erratic and our own movements can feel more jerky.
Yoga for the Water Element
In water we want to utilise poses that activate the kidney and bladder meridians so that we can restore balance to the organs and bring in warmth and emotional courage. This is a list of poses you can practice at home to strengthen and balance the bladder and Kidney meridians:
Child’s pose
Cat and Cow
Downward facing dog and extended puppy pose
Standing forward bend – uttanasana
Warrior 1
Triangle pose and reverse triangle
Extended side angle stretch
Dancers Pose and Eagle Pose
Boat pose
Head to knee pose
Wide leg seated forward bend
Reclining bound angle pose
Savasana
Foods that Support the Water Element
As blue/black are the colours associated with the water element eating fruits and vegetables that are darker in colour provide support for this element.
Fruits such as blackberries, blueberries, black grapes, black currants, plums, figs, prunes, raisins.
Vegetables such as eggplant, black beans, purple sweet potato, blue corn and black rice.
Other foods which are dark include miso, soy sauce, tamari. They also contain the salty flavour of the water element and a moderate amount of salt is important in a healthy diet. It is best to get this from naturally salty foods rather than adding table salt. Most processed foods contain high amounts of salt but the flavour is often masked by high amounts of sugar. If we have too much salt we can cause imbalance such as increased blood pressure however working with naturally salty foods like seaweed or adding a pinch of sea salt to meals helps balance the water element. Blood closely resembles the composition of sea water so by adding sea salt we help bath our body in the ocean from which it came.
It has been discovered that these darker more blue foods can reduce the risk of diabetes, lower blood pressure and waist size. They also help to prevent infections that affect our water works eg cystitis.
Here are some easy ways to add darker foods into your diet:
Add a handful of blueberries, blackberries or raisins to your porridge.
Create smoothies adding in blueberries and blackberries
Bake half an eggplant in the over covering it with crushed garlic and salt after scoring it with a knife.
Have stewed black plums with yoghurt
Use black grapes or raisins in your snack nuts and seeds.
Cook a rataouile with lots of eggplant
Use black beans in Mexican dishes
Create a hearty stew of black beans and root vegetables.
Having a Healthy Back
The Bladder Meridian runs all the way down the of the body from the top of the head to the feet and it’s Yin partner the Kidney meridian runs from the ball of the foot up the back of the body to the waist and then moves internally up the front of the body. The Bladder meridian has acupoints that connect into all the other meridians and organs of the body so pain and discomfort in the back can be a sign of imbalances in other parts of the body. It is important to maintain a healthy back. Here are some easy ways to maintain a strong back:
- Breathing into the belly builds energy and strengthens the lower abdomen and lumbar spine
- Building core strength with pelvic tilts and lifts
- Pilates exercises that engage the abdominal muscles pulling them down and in
- Engaging the abdominal muscles when you lift anything that has weight and bending your knees so that you don’t make your back do all the work.
- Spinal twists exercise all the vertebrae, ligaments and nerves of the spine helping to maintain the health of the discs.
Massage in Winter
Shiatsu massage is a deeply relaxing treatment to help nourish your body, mind, and soul. It improves your overall health and wellbeing helping you get better sleep, feel less stressed, and have more energy. Having Shiatsu massage during Winter can bring balance to your water element and support you to feel healthier, calmer, more grounded in yourself and less cold.
Our general Shiatsu treatments are tailored specifically to your needs and will change with every session. Shiatsu treatments are effective in alleviating irregularities in menstrual cycles, sleep issues, mood swings, stress, pain, chronic illness, headaches, gut health, and more.
You can visit us for a one-off appointment, or many of our clients choose to come in every few weeks or months as a part of their overall wellbeing strategy. Wherever you are, we are here to support you.