Megan Hively Yoga and Ayurveda

Getting a little rosy this summer. 🌹
Last week’s experiment was your built-in air conditioning (Sheetali breath). This week is its sidekick.
(New to the summer series? Catch Episode 1 first → meganhively.com/try-this-summer)

THE PREMISE
Rose is one of Ayurveda’s most Pitta-pacifying ingredients. It’s cooling, it’s calming, and it works on two levels at once: physically lowering heat AND gently calming your senses. A spritz of rose water is basically a tiny pause button. 🌹

THE METHOD
✦ Keep a rose water mist nearby: bag, desk, nightstand
✦ First thing in the morning: spritz your face
✦ Anytime you feel overheated, irritated, or need a reset — close your eyes and mist again
✦ Seven days. Keep it close. Use it often.

WHAT I USE
I love and use both Shankara and Pratima rose water mists - Ayurvedic skincare lines, both gorgeous. Linked in bio if you want to try them. 🌹 (affiliate links)

WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Notice the immediate cooling sensation. Notice whether it shifts your mood — even slightly. Notice if reaching for it becomes a little ritual by day seven.

Drop a 🌹 if you’re trying this. And how did Sheetali breath go last week?
Seven days. See what happens.
Your body is always talking. This is how you start listening.
CoolingRitual AyurvedicSkincare PittaPacifying SelfCare HolisticWellness WomensHealth

I built you something. 👀
Ten weeks of experiments and they now all live in one place: meganhively.com/try-this. Videos, methods, free trackers, everything.

And my favorite part? Those little cards on the page… click or hover on whatever is calling to you most right now and I'll point you straight to the right experiments for YOU.
Digestion. Sleep. Energy. Stress. Brain fog. Your starting point is right there waiting.
Go explore.

AND ONE MORE THING 👀
Next week we're starting something new. Summer is Pitta season in Ayurveda and your body needs something different right now. I'll see you Tuesday June 9th.

Seven days. See what happens.

Your body is always talking. This is how you start listening.

The medicine in your spice cabinet. 🤗

Go look. Do you have cumin, coriander and fennel? Because you already have everything you need.

(New here? Head to meganhively.com/try-this to start from the beginning.)

WHAT DID YOU OBSERVE LAST WEEK? Last week’s experiment was oiling your feet before bed. 🌙 Did sleep feel different? Did your mind feel quieter when your head hit the pillow? Drop a comment 👇🏽

THE PREMISE CCF tea (coriander, cumin and fennel) is one of Ayurveda’s most beloved daily tonics. It’s tridoshic: meaning it balances all three doshas and works for almost every body and every constitution. It stokes your digestive fire, reduces bloating and gas, calms inflammation, and supports your body’s natural ability to absorb nutrients.
Three seeds. That’s it. That’s the medicine.

THE RECIPE
✦ 1 tsp cumin seeds (decrease or omit if too heating)
✦ 1 tsp coriander seeds
✦ 1 tsp fennel seeds
✦ 2 cups pure water
Simmer all seeds over medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Strain. Drink warm. Optional: a touch of maple syrup or almond milk. 🫖

THE METHOD
✦ Drink 15 minutes before a meal to boost digestive fire
✦ OR after a meal for digestive support
✦ Either works — let your body guide you
✦ Seven days. That’s the experiment.

WANT THE EASY VERSION? Banyan Botanicals makes a perfectly balanced ready-made CCF tea blend that I love and keep in my own kitchen. Link in bio. 🌿

WHAT TO WATCH FOR Notice your digestion before and after meals. Notice bloating, gas, and heaviness..does anything shift? Notice your energy after eating and whether your appetite feels cleaner and more consistent throughout the week.

CONTRAINDICATIONS Cumin is the most heating of the three. if you tend to run hot or notice any aggravation decrease it or omit it entirely. Coriander and fennel alone are still very effective and wonderfully cooling. 🌿

Drop a 🌿 if you’re trying this. And tell me how did foot oiling go last week?

Seven days. See what happens.

Your body is always talking. This is how you start listening.

Sleep like Parker Rose! ☺️🐾
What if the secret to better sleep is at the bottom of your feet? 🌙🌿

(New here? Head to meganhively.com/try-this to start from the beginning.)

WHAT DID YOU OBSERVE LAST WEEK? Last week’s experiment was no ice water. 🧊 Did anything shift in your digestion? Did that heavy feeling after meals change at all? Drop a comment!!

THE PREMISE: In Ayurveda the soles of your feet are one of the most powerful places on your body. Packed with nerve endings that connect directly to your nervous system.
This practice is called Pada Abhyanga. It calms Vata (the energy of scattered, restless thought) and builds Ojas (your deep vitality and resilience).
Think of it as telling your nervous system: we are done for the day.

THE METHOD ✦ Right before bed, make it the last thing you do ✦ Warm a little oil in your hands: sesame, coconut, whatever you have ✦ Massage the soles of your feet for 2-3 minutes ✦ Put on a pair of socks ✦ Get into bed ✦ That’s it. Parker Rose approves. 🤗🐾

WHAT TO WATCH FOR Notice how quickly you fall asleep. Notice whether your mind feels quieter when your head hits the pillow. Notice your sleep quality — do you wake less during the night? Notice how you feel when you wake up.

CONTRAINDICATIONS Skip this one if you have any open cuts or skin irritation on your feet. And if you run hot or have a Pitta imbalance coconut oil is your friend (it’s cooling). If you tend toward cold and heaviness sesame oil is more warming and grounding. Either works beautifully. 🌿

Drop a 🌙 if you’re trying this. And tell me — how did the ice water experiment go?
Seven days. See what happens.
Your body is always talking. This is how you start listening.
Ojas Vata

It might not be what you’re eating. 👀

Ayurveda has been warning us about this for thousands of years and most of us do it every single day!
(New here? Head to meganhively.com/try-this to start from the beginning.)

WHAT DID YOU OBSERVE LAST WEEK? Last week’s experiment was 100 steps after lunch. 🚶‍♀️ Did that afternoon slump shift? Did you find yourself marching around your kitchen? 😄 Drop a comment with the deets, please!

THE PREMISE In Ayurveda your digestive fire (Agni) is literally a flame. Every sip of ice water or cold drink during a meal pours ice directly onto that flame before digestion even begins. That bloating? That heavy sluggish feeling two hours after eating? It might not be the food at all.

THE METHOD
✦ Swap ice water and cold drinks for room temperature water
✦ Do this with meals, between meals, all week
✦ Seven days. Give it a whirl!

WHAT TO WATCH FOR Notice your digestion after meals. Notice the bloating, the heaviness, the afternoon fog. Notice whether something quietly shifts when the only thing you changed was the temperature of your drink.

CONTRAINDICATIONS If you’re exercising or overheated cold water is completely appropriate and your body will tell you. This experiment is specifically about meals and everyday drinking habits. Always listen first. 🙏

Drop a if you’re trying this. And tell me: how did 100 steps go last week?🚶🏻‍♀️

Seven days. See what happens.
Your body is always talking. This is how you start listening.

👀Look out for this week’s co-star!! 🐶

This week’s Try This: 100 steps after lunch. 🚶🏻‍♀️🤗

Five minutes. Easy pace. Quietly life changing.
(New here? Head to meganhively.com/try-this to start from the beginning.)

WHAT DID YOU OBSERVE LAST WEEK?
Last week’s experiment was dry brushing. 🪥 Did you feel that tingly alive feeling stepping into the shower? Did your energy shift? Drop a comment with what you noticed!

THE PREMISE In Ayurveda this practice is called Shatapawali (literally translated as a hundred steps). It gently stokes your digestive fire after your biggest meal, helps move food through your system, and prevents that heavy sluggish feeling that makes you want to face-plant on your desk by 2pm.

And modern science? Completely agrees. Even a short walk after eating helps regulate blood sugar, improves insulin sensitivity, and kickstarts your metabolism.
Ayurveda and science high-fiving each other. 🙌

THE METHOD
✦ After lunch, take about 100 steps (roughly 5 minutes)
✦ Easy, gentle pace — this is NOT a workout ✦ Outside, inside, around your kitchen… it all counts
✦ That’s genuinely it

WHAT TO WATCH FOR Notice your afternoon energy. Notice that post-lunch slump… does it shift? Notice how your digestion feels compared to days you just sit back down. Notice if your 3pm coffee craving quietly disappears.

CONTRAINDICATIONS Keep it gentle and slow. Vigorous exercise right after eating actually pulls energy away from digestion. Easy is the whole point. If you have any issues with mobility just do what you can. Even standing and swaying counts!

Drop a 🚶🏻‍♀️below if you’re trying this.

Seven days. See what happens.
Your body is always talking. This is how you start listening.

This week’s Ayurvedic experiment!

This week’s Try This: Dry brushing. 🤗
Your full body wake-up call.
(New here? Head to meganhively.com/try-this to start from the beginning.)

WHAT DID YOU OBSERVE LAST WEEK? Last week was a recap week and a chance to revisit your favorite experiment so far. 💧👅🔖☀️🍽️ Which one did you go back to? Drop it in the comments. I want to know what’s sticking.

THE PREMISE In Ayurveda dry brushing does three things at once. It moves your lymphatic system (which has no pump of its own and needs manual stimulation to drain). It wakes up your circulation…you’ll feel it immediately. And it stimulates Prana, your life force energy. Think of it as turning the lights on in your body before your day begins.

THE METHOD ✦ Do this on skin, before your shower ✦ Start at your feet, work upward toward your heart ✦ Long sweeping strokes on limbs, circular motions on joints ✦ Gentle circles on your belly ✦ Skip your face ✦ 3-5 minutes. That’s it.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR Notice your skin, your circulation, your energy when you step out of the shower. Notice if you feel more present in your body before your day has even started.

CONTRAINDICATIONS Skip if you have signs of a Vata imbalance (feeling overstimulated, dry skin and/or dry constipation). Use a natural bristle brush, not synthetic. Go gently on sensitive skin and skip any areas that are irritated, sunburned, or broken. Less pressure than you think. This isn’t exfoliation…it’s activation.

Drop a 🙌🏽 below if you’re trying this. And remember to tell me which recap experiment you went back to last week.

Seven days. See what happens.
Your body is always talking. This is how you start listening.

Previously on Try This... 👀🌿

Five weeks. Five experiments. One tiny Ayurvedic practice at a time.

In case you missed any of these — or need a little nudge to revisit one:
💧 Ep 1: Warm water first thing in the morning
👅 Ep 2: Tongue scraping
🔖 Ep 3: Bookending
☀️ Ep 4: Morning sun
🍽️ Ep 5: Eating without distractions

No new experiment this week. Just a chance to catch your breath. And maybe return to something that called to you!
Which one are you going back to? Drop it in the comments. 👇
Your body is already working on you. Let it.

To be continued... 😄

Your body is always talking. This is how you start listening. 🌿