Stress happens when mental or physical demands are placed on a person causing tension. It is the way your body reacts to circumstances that your body believes as producing pressure or threats.

Stress fills you with cortisol and adrenaline, putting your body and mind into a reactive state. They can lead to damaging effects on your body. Luckily, there are ways to combat this tension through mindfulness exercises.

Mindfulness is when you are completely aware of both your mental and physical needs. You become aware of those needs and can focus on improvements.

Using mindfulness to combat the effects of stress has been a popular technique for hundreds of years. Mindfulness redirects your attention away from the stressors and onto fixing problems within your body.

Mindfulness can reduce stress in many ways. Keep reading to discover the positive effect mindfulness exercises have on the body.

Reduced Activity in the Amygdala

The part of the brain that creates and activates stress is the amygdala. The amygdala is the area where “fight or flight” decisions are made. Meaning, when we feel threatened in any way, our brain decides if we should stay and confront the situation or get away from the perceived threat.

Instead of automatically triggering a negative response to a situation your brain considers stressful, mindfulness exercises teach you how to maintain positivity.

Improved Focus

Focus involves concentration. It requires attention to details. This is hard to do if you are filled with anxiety or overwhelming angst related to stress.

Stress causes a lack of concentration. It becomes hard to focus on work. Acute stress can hinder short term memory. You start to feel as if your memory is just not as good as it once was.

You may even go to one room but forget why you went there. Or, misplacing ordinary items become more frequent. This is frustrating because things you wouldn’t normally forget, you are now forgetting.

Mindfulness exercises help teach you how to focus. It improves memory and concentration. With mindfulness, you can learn to use all your senses to help you maintain focus.

Improved Attitude

Your attitude reflects how you are feeling and thinking. Attitude influences how you behave based on your thoughts and feelings. Stress can directly affect your attitude.

Stress lowers the value we place on ourselves. Over time, you start to see everything through a negative perspective. We even start to use negative self-talk, lowering our esteem. Negative self-talk leads to negative expectations.

Meaning, we begin to expect dreadful things to happen to us. This is the start of a cycle and it becomes harder to change.

Mindfulness exercises can reverse negative thinking and negative attitudes.

Improves Sleep

Sleep offers healing of the body, especially during the deepest sleep stages. It restores our mental and physical abilities.

When you do not get good sleep, you can expect to experience exhaustion, lack of focus, and increased mental health problems.

Mindfulness exercises help you to receive better sleep. Practicing mindfulness helps you erase the negative thoughts and feelings from your mind. It clears your head so that you can focus on falling asleep.

Improves Mental Health

Mindfulness has been associated with improved mental health, combating the negative effects stress has on mental health.

Stress can lead to depression and anxiety, as well as other mental health disorders. Mindfulness exercises help you recognize the needs of your mind and body. It gives you the time necessary to listen to what your body needs to heal.

Mindfulness helps you manage your thoughts and feelings. You can remain realistic in your perceptions. Reports state mindfulness exercises can help you avoid relapse in both mental health and addiction type disorders.

Enhance Mindfulness Exercises with Kava

People have been using kava for centuries to promote relaxation among users.

Consuming kava before your mindfulness exercises is one of the best ways to conquer your inability to relax, focus and sleep.

You can purchase strands of kava based on your current needs. Kava also helps to improve attitude. Many report that kava makes you feel good will towards others and makes you want to socialize.

Kava also has the ability to improve sleep quality and helps you remain mentally alert and awake. In ancient times, kava was used to open the mind, so village leaders could hear from their Gods.

All of kava’s benefits help with improvement of relaxation. When combined with mindfulness exercises and techniques, you are creating a routine for yourself that can help you overcome the negative effects of stress.

Physical and emotional balance is important in everyday life. As everyday stressors of life influence you, you start to lose this balance. Emotional balance is the ability to maintain equilibrium, especially during trying or challenging times. Once faced with emotional pain, it's common for individuals to experience physical pain as well. By maintaining this balance, not only will you be more susceptible to change, but your quality of life will increase as well. 

One way to regain physical and emotional balance is with the use of kava. Kava is root harvested from a plant native to Polynesia. While it’s known for it’s sedative effects, the combination of vitamins and minerals make it a great herbal treatment for a number of disorders.

How Kava Promotes Physical and Emotional Balance

Because of kava's many benefits, it is becoming increasingly popular. Many agree that the use of kava significantly helps to promote relaxation to regain this balance.

Here are a few of the ways that including kava extract as a part of a sensible diet and exercise regimen can ease and maybe even eliminate some of your physical and emotional woes. 

A Great Anti-Inflammatory

Many people who use kava report that it helps ease various bodily aches and pains. From the stress created on the back from sitting in front of a computer all day to minor aches in the legs, a daily dose of the extract is said to relax muscles and prevent cramping. A dose of extract in green tea or any other non-alcoholic beverage you enjoy will do the trick. Using kava can not only help to regain physical balance, but but doing so, it helps with emotional balance as well.

Easing Tension

People who have a lot of stress in their lives sometimes like to add kava extract to liquids or to take a dose using a spoon. One of the more commonly known qualities of kava is the sedative effect. The nice thing is that while it does help drain the tension and everyday stress away, it does not dull the mental processes. Thanks to that attribute, kava is a wonderful way to ease physical and emotional tension without getting that cloudy minded feeling. 

Helping With Everyday Stressors

People who suffer terribly from everyday stressors but don’t tolerate prescription medication well might want to try kava extract. Among those who prefer to manage their conditions using herbal supplements, the kava is often touted as a wonderful way to slow the mind racing that’s so common after a long day filled with stressors. This is because kava allows both the body and the mind to relax, without feeling sedated or groggy. It allows you to take deeper breaths, enjoy the company around you, and helps to promote deep relaxation. This relaxation in turn promotes physical and emotional balance when consuming kava.  

More Restful Sleep

Nothing is quite as maddening as crawling into bed and finding that sleep is elusive. For people who can’t seem to settle down and get to sleep, kava a half-hour or so before bedtime could help. Enthusiasts report that along with helping ease tension in the muscles, the extract makes it easier to stop replaying the days activities over and over in the mind and drift off to a deep and recuperative night’s rest. Because your mind, and your body is relaxed and at rest, you can enter a more soothing sleep with kava. 

Dealing With Mild Despondence 

There are many reasons why an individual feels despondent. The condition creates a sense of muted emotions, lethargy, and in general having no zest for life. It can be enough to make life pretty tough. Many people find that using kava to get through the difficult weeks and months after the event helps immensely. While it doesn’t make the pain go away completely, the emotional balance that the extract can provide makes it easier to cope, heal, and eventually be able to move on. 

Recovery From Surgery

Any type of invasive surgery does mean additional stress on the body. During the recuperative phase, there can be quite a bit of discomfort. Kava is used in a number of cultures to soothe the trauma the body recently experienced and ease that discomfort. With carefully measured doses recommended by a professional herbalist, it’s possible to enjoy some respite from the stiffness, general fatigue, and soreness while the healing process is underway. The improvement of physical balance helps to regain emotional balance as well.

Kava has many benefits, and they include physical and emotional balance. This in turn can help to ease everyday tension, promote greater sleep, and improve overall quality of life. 

As with any type of natural or herbal supplement, be aware that interactions with other herbs or prescription medication is possible with kava. Talk with a medical professional who is knowledgeable about those potential interactions. Know the signs that a negative interaction is taking place. Doing so enhances the odds that you will enjoy all of the benefits associated with kava. It helps to ensure you still get the most benefit from the other supplements or medications you take as well.

According to the Yoga Alliance, 36 million Americans practiced yoga in 2016. This number is twice what it was in the previous four years. As yoga’s popularity increases, so do the reasons why people implement it in their lives. People are constantly looking for new ways to practice yoga, which is why kava yoga has emerged.

A few of the top reasons people engage in yoga is to better their health, reduce stress and because they enjoy it. Others start to lose weight, develop better habits and because they want to find ways to practice mindfulness to calm their minds.

Yoga offers all these benefits and more, and the popularity of kava yoga helps people to benefit more from yoga.

Benefits of Yoga

Yoga has been practiced for thousands of years. It is meant to join or become a union. The union is between you and the spirituality side of your life. It is a practice that can connect you with something greater.

There are branches of yoga that aid in this connection. These include hatha, mantra, karma, bhakti, raja and jnana.

In ancient times, kava was consumed by the Chiefs and Leaders of a village to help them connect with the Gods. Kava was, and still is, revered due to its ability to overcome daily stressors.

The Chopra Center reports there are seven spiritual laws of yoga. These surround positive laws such as giving and receiving, intentions, desires and even karma. You can experience these through the physical and mental movements you make during yoga.

Yoga is comprised of stretching and breathing exercises, warmup positions, physical poses to exercise your body, and relaxation periods to allow the body to cool down.

There are both physical and mental benefits of yoga. It can teach you how to relax your body so that you can have better flexibility and balance. Yoga can also teach you to be aware of what your body needs, to pay attention to every part of the body.

Yoga is also a tool to build self-confidence, encouraging you to do more for yourself, whether socially or by yourself. It can even improve your confidence in how you practice and progress with yoga.

Many people surveyed reported they didn’t try yoga due to feeling like they were inadequate or not flexible enough to participate. Others thought yoga was for a certain type of people and they are "outside" that group.

What they should know, however, is that yoga is a practice that teaches you to be non-judgmental and welcoming to all. There are plenty of positive attributes of yoga.

Yoga’s Positive Teachings

Yoga is not only for the super flexible. Instead, it is to be used at any level of physical capabilities. You can simply do the poses based on how your body can move and bend right now in the moment. Your abilities will change over time. They may even change from day to day.

Everyone who practices yoga had a starting point where they were learning and not considered professional. Some stay in this beginning stage for lengthy periods. This is what makes yoga effective, no one must to move to various levels when they are not ready.

Yoga, according to the National Institute on Health, teaches you the power of the mind and how important it is to be healing the whole body. It teaches you that you are perfectly capable of healing yourself from the inside out. And when you do, it is empowering.

While yoga on its own is beneficial, when combined with kava it can produce even greater effects.

Why Engage In Kava Yoga

Kava is an herb that has been used for centuries. Kava is extracted from the root of the piper methysticum plant that grows in the Pacific Islands. The root is pounded into a powder and mixed with water. It is then strained.

The liquid that is strained is then consumed and the effects begin to appear almost immediately. Some report a tingling feeling on the tongue before they experience an overall relaxed manner.

Soon after, a person drinking kava can feel calm, in good spirits and with complete mental clarity. These qualities can enhance your yoga practices.   

How to Take Kava with Yoga

Before you begin your yoga exercises, you want to make sure you are in the right physical and mental state. Kava can help you reach this state of mind and body.

Plan to drink kava about one half hour before your yoga exercises. There are many ways to consume kava but the easiest is to purchase ready-mix kava or instant kava powder. With this form, you can simply mix the powder with a drink of your choice and enjoy.

When you start to feel the effects of the kava, such as relaxed muscles, happy mood and an overall feeling of goodwill, begin yoga.

Kava Will Enhance the Benefits of Yoga

Kavalactones contribute to the effects kava has on a person. It can help to learn which combinations are best for you.

Stretching and warm up exercises are key to getting ready for yoga. Because kava relaxes your muscles, you will find warming up to be easier. You will be more flexible and can stretch your body further than without kava.

Kava helps you remain clear headed. This means you can focus on both your breathing and the needs of your body during yoga.

Kava helps to reduce mental worries. Yoga meets the same goals. When used together during kava yoga, you can reach this relaxed state even faster.

Building confidence and internal peace can lead to better relationships with friends and family. Combining kava and yoga can aid in this process.

Research has shown our thoughts and behaviors affect the chemicals and structuring of your brain. This is good news because if you learn to think, feel and act in a positive way, your brain will be positively rewired.

Both kava and yoga helps you to have positive thoughts, actions and feelings. When combined in kava yoga, training your brain to be positive is more easily accomplished.

You will then notice your outlook on life, the way you handle daily struggles and your relationships with others will begin to improve. Yoga is so much more than just a way to exercise. It can change your life for the better.

When yoga is combined with kava, the positivity within yourself and outwardly will increase and you will be able to enjoy the great life you deserve.

At the end of each day you can feel the tension of the day in your body. It may appear as a headache or pain where your neck meets your head. It may appear in your lower back as a tightness that burns when you bend. The “it” is tension and it can ruin your day. Because of this, people are now trying different relaxation techniques to reduce this tension. 

Tension is usually caused by everyday stressors. It leads to dull aches and pains and can even make the area of tension sore to touch. When you are psychologically overwhelmed, your muscles and joints can become rigid. You may even notice your jaw or fists clinched more than usual. Or, your body moves more with the pent-up energy. For example, many people find themselves rocking or moving their legs and feet.

Poor posture and even some medications can cause tension in the body.

Fortunately, there are many relaxation techniques reduce tension and you don’t need medication to do it. Below are our favorite relaxation techniques that allow you to become less tense.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation

Being aware of how your muscles feel while they are both tense and relaxed can help reduce tension. In theory, progressive muscle relaxation blocks stress.

This is one of the most popular relaxation techniques, and has been used since the 20s. In the late 1920s progressive muscle relaxation was founded at Harvard University. Since then this method is by many to alleviate pain caused by tension.

It is a two-step process in which you tense your muscles, focusing on the process of tensing. Then, you visualize the release of tension in the same muscles. This process makes you aware and more in tune with what your body is telling you it needs.

Benefits of progressive muscle relaxation include the lowering of blood pressure, feeling calm, helping with sleeplessness, and overall stress reduction. 

Guided Imagery

For this technique, people focus on pleasant images to replace negative feelings. You can perform guided imagery on your own, or it can be led by a practitioner or a recording. Most people prefer to be led by a professional.

The theory behind this technique is that you can train your mind to concentrate and to relax. There is a guided imagery technique for each of your senses. These include visual, auditory, kinesthetic, olfactory and gustatory.

Engaging as many senses as you can during guided imagery will benefit you more when reducing tension. You can use the power of the mind to reduce tension and heal problems within the body.

Guided imagery can also help you prepare mentally for major life events. It can also help you quit negative habits like smoking or over-eating. It allows you to be calm, even during life stressors.

Mindful Meditation

Better known as mindfulness, this type of meditation can improve general health, improve mental clarity, and help you to feel calm. There are many research studies showing the benefits of mindfulness for relaxation techniques.

It can help you cope with worry, reduce aggression and improve social and relationship skills. Mindfulness helps you regulate emotions so you can find peace and calm and ultimately, a reduction of tension.

The American Psychological Association claims mindful meditation improves memory and focus, and reduces psychological distress that can lead to tension and its negative effects.

Spirituality

According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, spirituality gives you an advantage when trying to reduce tension. It allows you to meditate with a sense of understanding and purpose.

Spirituality can have many definitions. Depending on your faith, it can mean anything from connecting with a higher power to becoming one with nature. Whatever the definition, it can have benefits for relaxation techniques when trying to reduce tension in the body.

The National Institute of Health reports spirituality has a positive connection in physical and emotional well-being. They even note that spirituality can be a great coping tool. In fact, modern therapists are finding ways to help clients use spirituality in the healing process.

Kava

Kava has been used for thousands of years, with its origins in the South Pacific. It makes you feel relaxed and calm. Other characteristics of kava are that it makes you feel sociable, with an overall feeling of good will towards others.

It has been a tradition to drink kava before ceremonies, rituals and important meetings.

Kava can take an already one of the most popular relaxation techniques for reducing tension. When consuming kava before progressive relaxation, you can concentrate better on tensing and relaxing each of the muscles in your body.

Kava is one drink that when consumed, provides you with relaxation while also enhancing mental clarity. This benefit makes kava a great asset for both guided imagery and mindfulness. When you drink kava tea, you can achieve a higher level of relaxation.

Calming the mind becomes easier with kava.

Kava, since its origin, has been used for spirituality practices. Drinking kava would open the minds of the leaders who would speak to the Gods and receive important messages. It is true that kava settles the noise and distractions in the mind so you can experience complete mental awareness.

Other Relaxation Techniques

These five relaxation techniques are just a few examples of how to reduce tension. Others include acupuncture, acupressure, and all forms of yoga. Massage therapy is becoming more popular and rather than wait until there is a physical issue, people are getting massages for preventative therapy.

When you combine kava with any of these methods, you have better chances of increasing the beneficial outcomes.

To begin mixing kava with your preferred relaxation techniques, you first need to find a supplier of noble kava. Anyone can purchase from reputable online kava suppliers. It is best to pick suppliers who are members of the American Kava Association and undergo verification processes.

Suppliers have made using kava before relaxation techniques easy. They have instant varieties that you can simply mix with your drink of choice and enjoy. Some of the best kava suppliers are even formulating their own pre-made kava drinks.

No matter which kava you choose to use, it helps you to better reduce tension when you pair it with your favorite relaxation methods.

Meditation has been used for many years to help a person reach a state of calm and relaxation. Meditation connects the mind, body and spirit and allows you to be fully aware of your senses and your body’s needs. As kava gains in popularity, many people are using kava meditation to enhance their meditation practice and practice minfulness.

There are certain factors that contribute to an effective meditation. For example, a quiet space where you can sit comfortably and where there are no distractions. The position in which you sit is also important. It is recommended you sit in an upright position either on the floor or in a chair. If this is not comfortable, however, you can lie down or find a position that is right for you.

Science has been able to prove there are benefits of meditation. It has been shown to help people reduce the tension they feel related to life stressors. Meditation also reportedly improves mood and thinking.

There are many types of meditation including: concentration meditation, walking meditation, mindfulness, Tai Chi, Qigong, and transcendental.

Meditation helps connect the brain and the body to improve health.  Reduced blood pressure, pain relief and other physical symptoms can be addressed using meditation.

To get the most out of your meditation, some people drink kava tea before they begin a session. Kava has a long history of benefits and it can enhance mindfulness and meditation practices. Below are the most common benefits of kava meditation.

Preparing the Body

Meditation goals or intentions include being calm and relaxed. When you can keep your body calm, you can improve your physical health. This is because when you are calm, you are reducing stress in your body. Stress has many negative effects and harms the body and mind.

It has been linked to heart disease, stroke, and negative mental health. Stress releases a hormone called cortisol in your body which is a known cause of weight gain. It makes it hard for you to lose weight, even when you are actively trying.

Stress can lead to depression and anxiety and negative attitudes. It can start to feel like a vicious cycle and one ailment leads to another.

To prevent this type of stress on the mind and body, you can practice meditation. One way to ensure you are calm while meditating is to engage in kava meditation by enjoying kava before your practice.

Kava has been known to provide relaxation for centuries to those who consume it. What makes kava so great is that you become relaxed, but not lethargic. Your body is calm but you still have enough energy and motivation to have a great meditation.

Eases Tension

Muscles can store tension. Tension in the body can make nerves more sensitive and can prevent nutrients from feeding the body.

The whole point of meditation is to ease all tension and relax your muscles. During meditation, depending on how deep you transcend, your body will begin regenerating itself. Blood circulates through your body and provides it with a good supply of oxygen.

Tension can cause physical aches and pains. But with meditation, you can feel these aches and pains slip away as your body relaxes. Kava meditation helps your body slip into deeper relaxation, allowing you to meditate successfully.

Drinking kava tea before you meditate can assist and speed up the process of easing tension in the body. For about three thousand years, people have been drinking kava to help them with physical and emotional tension.

Positive Mood

Kava is known to give you an overall feeling of good will. It makes you feel happy and takes away any negative emotions. Therefore, kava is used consistently before major events like weddings and negotiations.

A positive mood can improve how your body functions. It can reduce tension and the negative effects of stress. It improves memory functions in your brain.

Mindfulness meditation can help you focus on eliminating negative thoughts from your mind so you can reach a positive state of mind. It can help improve brain function and has been shown to control mood swings. By mixing mindfulness with kava meditation, you will be able to have a very positive experience. One that is relaxing and repairing your mind.

Clear and Focused Mind

Concentration meditation is associated with being able to clear the mind and get it ready for meditation. Heart centered meditation is also used to clear the mind and help you focus on the energy center of the body, the heart region.

One of kava tea’s top qualities is the fact that it allows you to be calm but with mental clarity. It gives you a sense of being completely aware of your body, your surroundings and your thoughts. Some claim to feel hyper-aware, the most aware they have ever felt, when drinking kava.

Mixing kava and meditation is a terrific way to stay focused on your physical and mental states of being. You will be able to distinguish between outside distractions and push them aside, allowing your body to repair itself.

The more you can do this, the better.

Can Be Taken Regularly

Meditation is an activity that needs to be done at least once a day. Just five to ten minutes a day for beginners can make positive changes in the body. The key is to build up how long you meditate over time.

If you can only meditate for one minute to start, that is okay. Take that minute to clear your mind of the day’s thoughts and the noise taking place in your mind. Then slowly add a minute the next time you meditate.

Kava meditation may help lengthen the time you meditate because it allows you to feel focused, relaxed, and at peace.

Fortunately, kava can be consumed every day without a fear of addiction or negative impact on the brain or the body. The mental clarity and alertness you get from drinking kava can make meditating easier for you.

Today, kava is consumed daily by both the Pacific Islanders and people around the world. There are even kava bars being established so you do not have to even worry about mixing the tea yourself.

All you must do is enjoy the tea and combine its effects with your meditation practices. You will find the benefits to be rewarding.

Kava is known for many great benefits. Taste, however, is not one of them. Fortunately, there are many ways to consume kava that make it flavorful without losing any of its effects. One way is to create delicious kava drinks to enjoy. If you plan on making drinks yourself, here are our favorite kava drink recipes to choose from.

From the original kava drink recipes of the Pacific Islanders, to new kava shakes, smoothies, and juices, there are kava drink recipes to meet every need. 

Original Kava Drink Recipes

You may be the type who wants to experience kava in its most original form, even if the taste is bad. You are not alone. Many prefer to drink kava without masking its flavor.

Unless you are currently in the Pacific Islands with access to the roots of the piper methysticum plant, you will need to purchase noble kava root powder.

This powder comes directly from the kava root plant. However, it has been pounded and crushed before packaging it and shipping it to you. This keeps it fresh for exporting it around the world.

These original kava drink recipes involve mixing kava powder with water in a kava strainer. Use your hands to knead the mixture, combining the water and the kava. The liquid created from mixing the kava and water is strained into a separate bowl. The strained liquid is what you will drink.

In these original recipes, nothing is added to strained kava. 

Chocolate Kava Milk Shake

To get your chocolate fix, use this recipe for a thick milk shake. You will need kava powder, coconut milk, unsweetened cocoa powder, sugar and ice.

If you are using kava powder, you will need to prepare it before mixing it into a shake. Add ¼ cup of kava powder to a kava strainer, preferably, but if you do not have a kava strainer, you can substitute it with a cheesecloth or nylons.

Dip the kava in water and then squeeze out the liquid into a separate bowl. Combine the strained kava liquid with 14 ounces of coconut milk, ¼ cup of cocoa powder, a few tablespoons of sugar and ice. Blend well in a blender then serve.

This recipe is delicious, and allows the person drinking it to feel relaxed, while masking the traditional flavor with chocolate and coconut.

Micronized Kava Soda

If you love sodas and the fizziness of the drink, try this kava soda using micronized kava powder. The below recipe is great for sharing with several other people.

Take one bottle of lemon-lime soda, four tablespoons of lime juice, and 8 tablespoons of micronized kava powder. Pour all ingredients into a large bowl and stir frequently. Keep chilled.

Because you are using micronized kava, there is no need to strain the kava beforehand.

Instant Kava Fruit Juice

If you are searching for a fruity drink to serve cold on a muggy day, try this recipe.

This is one of the most simple kava drink recipes, and is perfect for any juice lover.

Mix one bottle of ginger ale with a cup of fruit juice. The juice can be any type you prefer, from strawberry to pomegranate to grape juice.

Add one or two tablespoons of instant kava powder. Then squeeze in half of a lime. Stir frequently and serve chilled or over ice.

Banana Kava Smoothie

Using instant kava powder, you can make this delicious tropical smoothie. You will need crushed ice, a banana, instant kava powder, honey and coconut milk or almond milk.

Place about half a cup of ice into a blender. Add a teaspoon of instant kava powder, a whole banana, and a couple of tablespoons of honey for sweetening. Pour your choice of milk on top of the ingredients. Blend well and serve.

You may also add other fruits such as pineapple or mangos for an even more tropical flavor. Or, for a more decadent taste, add peanut butter before blending to get a chocolate banana peanut butter relaxant.

This kava recipe really allows you to add your personal taste and style to it!

Ground Kava Smoothie

You can also make smoothies using ground kava. But you will need to strain the smoothie mixture and re-blend to get the right texture. The recipe below gives you steps to make this drink.

Put equal parts ground kava and your favorite milk in a blender. People often put ¼ cup of each. Then add 1 ½ cups of orange juice.

Blend for several minutes. Using a kava strainer or filter of some kind, pour the mixture through the strainer and into a separate bowl.

Put the strained liquid back into the blender.

Add ice, a banana and other fruits you like, blend until you reach the smoothie texture of your preference.

This seems like one of the more difficult kava drink recipes, but don't be hesitant to try it out! You can always switch out ground kava for instant or micronized kava powder as well. 

Instant Kava Yogurt

If you prefer the thickness of yogurt and want to use instant kava to create a dessert you can eat, try this recipe.

Simply choose your favorite flavor of yogurt. Then, add one to three teaspoons of instant kava mix. You can mix and eat at this point, or you can add honey, granola or cinnamon for even more added flavor. Stir well and enjoy.

Kava Root Latte

This is a great alternative to your ordinary coffee drink. Just add 1 cup of almond milk, 1 teaspoon of instant kava powder, and a teaspoon of maple syrup. Mix all ingredients in a sauce pan. Heat on top of stove until hot. Do not let it boil.

Then blend in a blender or with an immersion blender until frothy. Serve and enjoy. You may also want to add a pinch of cinnamon on top of the froth for extra flavoring.

From kava chai teas to kava Kool-Aid, there are many  kava drink recipes, and many ways to enjoy this calming, all-natural root. Kava bars are popping up all over America and offer you a large variety of kava drinks. From teas, coffees, shakes and smoothies, you can get a drink prepared fresh for you right there on the spot.

Kava is even being used in food and candy recipes. Just like any other herbal root, it can be mixed into your favorite recipes. The common trait among most kava recipes seems to be how it is served, cold.

You can even use kava to replace an alcoholic drink. Kava is never to be mixed with alcohol, however. This would be dangerous due to the high sedative like results you would encounter.

But if you wanted to use kava instead of alcohol, you can expect much more positive results. The kava library offers low and highball kava recipes.

You can also make drinks like a tom Collins or screwdriver or any other mixed cocktail. Simply substitute the alcohol with a teaspoon or two of instant kava powder.

Some reputable kava suppliers are developing a kava mixed drink add-in that comes in a bottle and is ready for use.

No matter how you choose to use your kava, you are sure to enjoy the effects it offers. Each of these kava drink recipes can ease tension, relax your muscles and make you feel calm with a sense of goodwill and happiness.

So go ahead, start trying new kava recipes today.

Mindfulness, Qigong, Zen, Metta and Mantra meditations are just a few types of meditation practice to help you find peace and calm.

Meditation has been shown to use breathing to relax the mind and body. It is also used to focus on positive thoughts that can replace negative ones. Doing so gives you a more positive outlook on life and helps you handle life’s obstacles.

To practice meditation, you must first have a reason for meditating. Do you want to relax? Or do you want energy? Do you want enhanced concentration and focus? There is a meditation practice for just about any need you may have.

It is important to pick the right technique for your need. If not, you may become energetic when trying to get rest and vice versa.

There is one way to improve your meditation practice. That is with the use of kava.

Why Use Kava With Your Meditation Practice?

Kava has been around for centuries and has been used by the people of the Pacific Islands, as well as people around the world, to produce a relaxed, calm mood. Research shows it boosts dopamine in the brain. These are the feel-good chemicals that make your brain feel rewarded.

Kava allows you to feel good, but does not alter your mind or mental clarity. In fact, many claim kava makes you more aware and more enlightened.

Welcoming positive thoughts that both kava and meditation can bring to your mind, enhances your overall well-being. Positive thinking has been linked to improved health, both emotionally and physically.

Kava also relaxes the muscles in your body, enabling you to stretch longer when practicing yoga. In massage, it allows tension to escape for deep tissue relief.

Below are different kinds of meditation practice that when combined with kava, give you a greater experience before, during and after your session.

Guided Meditations

Guided meditations do exactly what their name implies; they guide you through steps to your goal. Some people use this technique for relaxation. Others use it for recognizing pain in the body or change your way of thinking from negative to positive.

You can choose from body scans, affirmation, self-hypnosis, or even guided imagery to help you attain the state of relaxation and concentration you need.

Mantra Meditation

Repeating syllables or words to keep you from being distracted is why mantra meditation works so well. By focusing on the sounds you are repeating, your mind is prevented from wandering.

Once you choose the sound or words you want to repeat, all you must do is find a comfortable place to sit and then begin your mantra. There are specific religions associated with using mantra meditation the most. However, you can adapt this technique to fit your preference.

Mindfulness Meditation

Mindfulness is very popular meditation practice today, with good reason. It trains your brain to not get attached to negative situations or events. And it can be practiced any place, any time.

For example, if you have a family member who likes to speak negatively towards you, mindfulness can teach you to maintain a healthy, positive attitude despite their negative behaviors.

Mindfulness helps you feel good will towards others, even those who do not feel the same about you. This can lead to a level of love and kindness, for yourself and for others. It can also help you have a grateful and joyful outlook on life.

Some claim Vipassana and Mindfulness are related, maybe even the same. Both help you focus on your breathing to obtain a great insight into your life and the world around you.

Yogic Meditation

According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, over 20 million adults practice yoga each year, just in the United States. And over 1 million children practice this technique. It has become a widely accepted form of alternative healing.

There are many types of yoga, some of which are general therapy and others are used to address specific problems in the mind, body or spirit.

Some of the types include gazing, chakra, tantra, third-eye and self-inquiry. Through movements and breathing exercises, you can address emotional and physical needs. There is also a deep spiritual connection for those who practice yoga.

Zen Meditation

Sometimes done with the instruction of a Zen Master, this technique is all about observing the thoughts going through your mind and the sensations going through your body. You are simply observing them, though, not reacting to them.

Zen meditation can help you become aware of the needs of your physical, emotional and spiritual states.

Most Zen meditations are done while sitting in a comfortable position, on a comfortable cushion or mat. However, there is also a walking version of Zen meditation you can do where you alternate your steps with your breaths.

How to Add Kava to Your Meditation

Kava can be taken in different forms before your meditation practice. One of the best ways is to drink it as a tea. Purchase only the best noble kava powder. You can mix the powder with water and strain the liquid into a cup.

Drink the liquid within a half hour before your meditation. This allows more than enough time for the kava to begin relaxing your mind and welcoming positive thoughts.

You will notice your muscles relaxing, allowing you to sit or move in positions that increase oxygen flow to all areas of your body.

You will experience positive feelings toward yourself and others. Stress and tension will leave the body and you will be able to practice your meditation practice with a greater focus.

Kava awakens the mind, increases concentration and gives you an overall good feeling. By taking these benefits of kava and adding them to the practice of meditation, you will be able to develop your ability to become self-aware.

You will be able to focus on what your mind is thinking and what your body is feeling. From there, you can take steps to fix those thoughts and feelings. Over time, your level of joy will increase, helping you enjoy the life you have been given.

Kava plus meditation can help you attain inner love and outward love. It can also help you to better receive love from others. This type of peace is something everyone deserves.

As the popularity of kava root supplements is growing, so are the myths. Some of the benefits of kava include being able to focus and concentrate while also feeling calm. It also reduces tension in the body, and promotes relaxation. 

Each new product placed on the market seems to be followed by a large amount of controversy. Some say it works, some say it doesn’t work. The main reason this happens is because typically there are no long-term evidence surrounding mostly man-made supplements.

With kava root supplements, however, it has been used for around 3,000 years with very few objections. And the best part, it is nature-made, with only the most beneficial parts being extracted for use by the public.

Myths about kava root supplements are what discourage many people from trying it. Below are some of the most common myths, dispelled.

Myth 1: Kava is Banned from Export

In the early 2000s, a bad batch of kava was released and created one of the largest misunderstandings regarding kava.

A batch was made from a strand of bad kava. This “bad batch” was linked to liver damage at the time. A total of 26 cases were reported. However, only three of those cases held any merit. That number is extremely low compared to the hundreds of thousands of deaths each year related to prescription medications.

But, because of this, Germany put a ban on the marketing of products with kava in them, not on kava itself. The nature of the ban was misreported and negativity spread around the world. While kava root products were not banned in all countries, the bad press about it significantly reduced the demand for kava.

Because the ban was eventually linked to the manufacturers error in how they made kava, Germany has since lifted their ban of marketing kava containing products. Kava was never banned in the United States.

Now that the ban of kava has been properly explained to the world, kava is becoming an important herbal relaxant once again.

Myth 2: Kava Causes Liver Damage

Very few people were found to have a link between their kava drinking habits and liver problems.

There have been many reports since this time showing evidence kava root supplements do not cause liver damage.

The way a farmer or manufacturer extracts the kava from the kava kava plant may determine if the drink is damaging to the liver.

The number one way to extract kava from the root of the plant is to pound the root until it is in pieces. Then mix the root pieces with water. After it has soaked for a while, strain the water through a cloth into a bowl.

The water that is strained into the bowl is then drank and shared among kava users.

If this process is altered by a manufacturer, they may be altering the effects and kava’s potency. Not to put all the blame on manufacturers, it is still always up to the consumer to ensure they are receiving and ingesting the highest quality of kava.

It is well known that kava should be extracted from the roots, not stems or leaves. It is also known the higher amount of kavalactones, the better.

Looking for these two characteristics can go a long way when consuming kava.

Myth 3: Kava is Just Like Alcohol

Scientists have studied the way alcohol makes a person think, feel and act for many years. They have learned that alcohol is a depressant. While it may make a person feel good at first, that feeling does not last.

Alcohol depresses parts of the brain including the parts that control speaking, movements, judgments and thinking. It can also alter vision and your ability to remember specific time periods.

Alcohol dehydrates you which can lead to severe hangover like effects the day after drinking. Abuse of alcohol is directly linked to liver damage. It is also linked to many deaths due to driving while intoxicated.

Addiction is prominent around the world and leads to deaths due to the damage it does to the human body.

Kava and alcohol are not alike. Unlike alcohol, kava has not been linked with certainty to any deaths. Plus, it does not have the mind-altering effects of alcohol.

Myth 4: Kava is Mind-Altering

Kava root has been used for centuries and in many distinct cultures. The reports show kava drinkers maintain mental clarity, while they also remain calm and with an overall good mood.

In some, it has even enhanced awareness. This may be the reason it is used before ceremonies and rituals in the South Pacific. It allows everyone attending an event to feel relaxed and have a good will towards others, but does not produce poor judgment or irrational thinking.

Modern day use of kava comes in a variety of forms. You can drink it as a tea, take it in supplement form, and even use oils made from kava root. The key to guaranteeing your kava experience is authentic is to buy from a supplier that only works with noble kava.

Trustworthy suppliers are eager to answer your questions and help you implement kava into your lifestyle so that you can receive the full benefits. When seeking a kava supplier, look for one who is certified by well-known agencies such as the American Kava Association.

Seek suppliers who are transparent in sharing their company information and where they get noble kava. Find suppliers who ensure their kava is tested for quality.

These types of businesses are doing what it takes to overcome obstacles such as myths and falsehoods. Finding a trusted supplier of kava root and opening a direct line of communication with them will help you dispel, or validate, any other myths you may hear about the kava products.