Autumn is knocking on the door

A morning ritual doesn't have to take half an hour. Five minutes, a glass of warm water, and a few movements to get your energy flowing before the day starts are enough. I'll show you mine—and explain why it works best in August.

In my practice, I see one thing repeatedly. People come in with fatigue, heavy eyelids, swollen legs, or a feeling of just dragging themselves through the day. And when I ask about their mornings, I hear almost the same thing every time: alarm clock, phone, cold coffee on an empty stomach, rush, nothing to eat.

Yet, the body is just starting up in the morning. After a night's rest, everything is slower—fluids are stagnant, Qi energy isn't flowing yet, digestion is asleep. And what we do in the first ten minutes after waking up either supports or hinders this kick-off for the entire day.

I've been dedicated to Chinese medicine for eighteen years, and over a thousand clients have passed through my practice. From what I've seen over the years, I'm certain: small regularities do more than big, sudden changes. Drops of water carve stone through patience, not force.

Why August? The month belongs to the Triple Burner

In Chinese medicine, August is under the dominion of the Triple Burner, ruled by the clever Monkey. The Triple Burner is an unknown concept in Western medicine—you won't find it in an anatomical atlas. And yet, it's one of the most crucial systems I work with in my practice.

The Triple Burner forms after birth and is responsible for:

• transformational processes in the body, metabolism, and thermoregulation,
• harmonizing the internal and external body,
• harmonizing the right and left sides of the body,
• distributing energy between the upper and lower parts of the body,
• transporting fluids and food—more precisely, the energy from fluids and food.

This is precisely why it is fundamental for the creation of quality blood and bodily fluids. When the Triple Burner is not functioning well, we feel it as heaviness, swelling, poor thermoregulation, and fatigue that cannot be slept off.

In August, another less talked about factor comes into play. The bladder experiences its peak, while the spleen and pancreas are in decline. And this is where it's decided how you'll fare in autumn.

A summer that will take its toll in winter

Ice cream, iced lemonade, cold smoothies, raw salads three times a day. In the August heat, it seems like the most logical thing a person can do. But the spleen likes warmth and dryness—and cold weakens it.

Chilling the spleen in summer will backfire on us in autumn or winter. It manifests as frequent colds, weakened kidneys, and reduced immunity. In my practice, I see it every year: clients who come in October with recurrent colds usually created the problem for themselves in July and August.

The morning ritual I describe below is one of the simplest ways to prevent this. It doesn't even take five minutes.

Step one: a glass of warm boiled water

Immediately after waking up, on an empty stomach, drink 250 ml of warm boiled water. This helps release toxins from the stomach and intestines and gets the fluids moving that have been stagnant overnight.

You can enrich the water in two ways:

• with a drop of honey — gently nourishing and more suitable for those who feel exhausted in the morning,
• with a slice of fresh ginger — ginger aids digestion and is a strong alkaline agent, suitable for those who feel heavy and congested in the morning.

And now the most important thing: definitely not cold. Morning is not the time for icy water from the fridge. A cold drink on an empty stomach is like a cold shower for a sleepy body—the spleen has to expend energy just to warm it up, instead of using it for digestion.

I'm often asked if they should have breakfast immediately afterward. It shouldn't be an obligation. It's not necessary to have breakfast first thing in the morning—one should eat when they feel like it and, most importantly, when they're hungry. This ensures much better and faster food breakdown and digestion.

Step two: move your body from top to bottom

While the water works from within, we help the body from without. We proceed from top to bottom, and each movement is repeated three times. It's not about performance—it's about giving the Qi energy a signal that it's time to get moving.

Ears and neck

Massage the area around the ears, run your fingers over the space in front of your ears, and continue down to your neck. This is where the energy's journey from the head to the body begins.

Shoulders and chest

Tap yourself—gently, with an open palm or soft fist—on your shoulders and then on your chest. Three times. Shoulders and chest are places where energy most often gets stuck for most of us. Self-massage of the chest and rib area promotes the release of liver Qi energy.

Wrists and elbows

Move your hands at the wrists to loosen them. Then circle your elbows. Again, three times.

Waist and core

Don't forget your waist—it deserves our attention too. Mobilize the core area, which is where we have our stomach and spleen. Three times on each side. In August, this part of the ritual is most valuable because this is precisely the area we need to help the most during this period.

Step three: three breaths to conclude everything

We conclude the entire ritual with breath. The procedure is simple:

1. Inhale and raise your hands with the breath.
2. Exhale slowly lower them and place them below your navel.
3. Repeat a total of three times.

The spot below the navel is not accidental. It is the area where, in Chinese medicine, the source of our energy resides. When we place our hands there at the end of the ritual, it is as if we are depositing all the newly mobilized energy where it belongs.

Consciously exhaling tension is a simple yet deeply effective technique. It's not about deep breathing into the lungs—it's about a slow, calm exhalation during which we let go of the tension from the night.

Step four: a warm breakfast

When hunger strikes, a warm breakfast should be waiting for you. Not cold yogurt, not muesli with icy milk. Warm food that the spleen doesn't have to heat up itself.

In practice, I most often recommend:

• congee — rice porridge cooked slowly over low heat, ideally with sautéed carrots and ginger,
• millet or buckwheat porridge,
• clear vegetable broth or millet or dark buckwheat broth — especially during periods when the body needs to lighten up.

Broths hold a privileged position in Chinese medicine. They nourish, warm, and do not burden the body—and that's precisely why I dedicated an entire separate e-book to them. If you're interested in learning how to prepare them correctly and what each broth does for the body, you'll find it in the e-book Preparation of Broths and Their Importance for Our Health.

What happens if you stick with it

I won't promise you miracles. Chinese medicine doesn't work like an on/off switch.

But what I see in practice with people who stick to the morning ritual for several weeks can be described simply: starting the day stops being a struggle. The body is mobilized, energy flows, digestion has a head start. And a day that starts like this simply turns out differently than one that begins with haste and cold coffee.

Qi energy should naturally flow, move, warm, and nourish. As soon as its movement slows down or is blocked, stagnation occurs—and this is not just a local problem; it gradually affects the entire organism, physically and emotionally. The morning ritual is the simplest way to prevent stagnation before it even arises.

What's next? Autumn is knocking at the door

The end of August is a special time. Outwardly, it's still summer, but the body is already sensing a change. And precisely now, it's decided what equipment we will enter autumn with.

In September, the Rooster takes over from the Monkey, ruling the spleen and pancreas. The most intense air exchange in our lungs takes place. Our physical body and spirit reach their second peak in performance during the year—but only if we have prepared the body for it.

If you're interested in consciously embracing autumn—how to support immunity, what to eat, how to prevent colds, and what to do if they do occur—I've compiled it all into the e-book Autumn in Balance. You'll find tips on autumn nutrition, simple exercises and TCM techniques, advice for allergy sufferers, as well as recipes and small rituals for every day.

And if you want to go even further and understand how the body changes throughout the entire year—which organs have their peak at what time, when to detox what, and how to create a seasonal diet—all of this is in the e-book Weight Loss and Body Cleansing in the Rhythm of the Seasons. It's my most comprehensive work: 304 pages, over 200 recipes, and meal plans for all four seasons.

Frequently Asked Questions about the Morning Ritual

How long does the morning ritual take?

The movement and breath themselves take three to five minutes. You can incorporate drinking water anytime within the first ten minutes of waking up.

Do I have to drink the water completely hot?

No. It just needs to be pleasantly warm—something you can easily drink. The important thing is that it's not cold.

Can I have coffee in the morning?

You can, but not as the first thing on an empty stomach. Let a glass of warm water and ideally something warm to eat precede it. Coffee on an empty stomach unnecessarily irritates digestion and dries out the body.

Does the ritual work outside of August?

Yes. The basic elements—warm water, movement, breath, warm breakfast—are suitable year-round. In August, I just recommend it a bit more because supporting the triple burner is most effective during this month.

What if I don't have time for it in the morning?

Then just do one thing: drink warm water. Even that alone is more than nothing. Small steps every day bring big changes over time.

I wish you a wonderful time and hope that some of you will incorporate this ritual into your mornings.

Your guide to Chinese medicine
Renata Lien