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Monsoon wellness
How to cope with the grey hues and a little blues
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Like wind chimes waiting for the wind... India expects heavy rainfall each year. And like a twang of a chime, our entire day-to-day routine and system seems to go for a toss. If you were the type of person to go for a daily walk, or the type to play an outdoor sport regularly, you had to turn inwards... and go indoors. So how does one cope with the grey hues and a little blues that the relentless constant rains pour into our lives drenching our thoughts and our activities? Do people change their behavior in the monsoons…are they moodier, more irritable or zapped of energy and the usual joie de vivre....?
Or does life chug along a normal pace and settle into the rhythm of the wind, weather wily and willowy, bringing cheer and bloom, bright and green against the misty maudlin mauves dewy drops puddling through the avenues of our existence and presence from our physical to spiritual well-being?
ShaadiTimes caught up with an actress, a beautician, and a mother-daughter team (personal trainers) to find out how to enjoy the monsoons.
Gayatri Patel, from the eastern coast of USA, is no stranger to rain due to the annual coastal rains in the US. Back now in India, Gayatri is actively pursuing her aim to become a Hindi film actress.
"Most of my activities are indoors so the monsoons don't really bother me," says Gayatri. She can be found in an actor's studio most days or on the sets of two short films, which are currently under-production. When not on the sets she enjoys yoga and meditation.
Despite hailing from a small town in the US outside of Atlanta, Gayatri has embraced the lifestyle and culture of Mumbai enthusiastically. She points out, "Most Indians who live abroad, in many ways, are more particular of their culture than Indians in India. Perhaps it's due to the proximity of distance, which makes them more aware of their heritage, thus striving harder to maintain it," she muses.
In other words, she loves Mumbai rains and all, and that's what matters the most.
 The extraordinary mother and daughter team of Kala Soni and her daughter, Poornima, are both professional physical trainers in Mumbai's suburb of Juhu. Kala, a former Olympian, represented India in the sixties. Today both are physically and mentally in top form.
Kala says,  "Exercise and diet are really an individual concern and for me to give counsel and guidance to the public at large would be unfair." She qualifies, "If you have been exercising regularly and find that due to the rains you would rather shift your routine indoors, you can achieve a good work-out on the treadmill. If you feel you need supervision then the best choice would be to join a gym, " she advises. Exercising and television has really taken India by storm, yet Kala warns, "Following television exercises could be hazardous so you do have to be careful and exercise in moderation."
The best way to conquer the blues and the daily stress that seems to be associated with the rains is, "A suryanamaskar - the salutation to the sun." She continues, "It's the perfect blend of the spiritual and physical, it gives you outer strength and inner peace. But you need to be taught the routine by someone and then practice."
Stretching is something that we tend to forget, believes Kala, "A wonderful way to loosen up is stand on your toes and try and touch the ceiling and than bend forward loosely brushing your arms and hands to the floor. If you have flexibility you will be able to keep your elbows on the floor." She continues, "Front stretching and touching the toes works all the muscles in your body and is known as the "Trikonasan ".
Sometimes even staying with some traditional stretching exercises and a simple workout on a regular basis will fill the expected void of less physical exertion expected during the monsoons.
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