If yang is deficient, the person doesn't have energy, and feels tired, listless, apathetic, and possibly unconfident. There may be no "get up and go" in the morning. Yang deficiency is common after people retire; they may feel they haven't accomplished anything important and that their lives have no purpose.
"To increase yang, spend more time in active, ambitious, pursuits. Cultivate your outer expression, physical strength, firmness and personal interactions. Initiate projects. In your home, use warm colors - yellow-green, yellows, oranges, and reds.
Yang deficiency
Quinoa, mustard greens, cherries, strawberries, shrimp, chicken, and lamb are good to tonify Yang. Cold and raw foods are especially important to avoid if you are Yang deficient.
Duck and beef, warm spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger, alcohol, nuts such as almonds and peanuts, eggs and glutinous rice are considered yang foods.
The back of the body including the neck, shoulders, back, and the outer parts of the arms and legs are yang. The front of the body including the face, chest, abdomen, and inner parts of the legs and arms are yin. The upper back is yang and the lower back is yin.
The disturbances in the Yin-Yang dynamical balance may result in stress, inflammation, and various disorders including insomnia, Alzheimer's disease, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, skin disorders, and cancer.
The yang energy makes one feel warm and like to do things. The yin energy makes one feel cold and makes one feel like he or she would like to rest.
When the Kidney Yang is deficient, fluids are not metabolized efficiently and edema may result. Generally, body metabolism slows and it is easier to put on weight and harder to shift it. Kidney Yang-deficient patients often show signs of: Puffiness or overweight.
A common example of excess yang is high blood pressure. This can manifest with heat/redness in the face, dizziness, headache, irritability, bitter taste in the mouth, and red eyes. All of these symptoms are hot in nature and indicate an excess yang pattern.
Epimedium, Eucommia, and Cistanche are the three primary herbs used in Restore the Yang to replenish and vitalize the body's sexual, physical, and creative energies.
Positive, or yang, polarities are fire and air signs: Aries, Gemini, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius, and Aquarius. Negative, or yin, are water and earth signs: Taurus, Cancer, Virgo, Scorpio, Capricorn, and Pisces.
Common examples of Yang energies are things like up, the sun, light, mountains, fast running water, a tall tree.
Yang deficiency causes coldness and clamminess of the skin. This is because coldness affects the function of the skin (Lung Qi) to open and close when required, i.e. the skin should open, causing sweating and elimination of heat, when the body is hot; and should close and retain the body heat when it is cold.
Foods to avoid
Caffeine, alcohol, sugar and strong heating/ pungent spices all belong in this category. Note. Yin building foods like yin tonifing herbs have a tendency to be congest the spleen and promote stagnation if large amounts are consumed.
Foods that are thought to contain a harmonious balance of yin and yang are: whole grains, cereals and millets — brown rice, oats, rye, buckwheat, whole wheat; fresh fruits; nuts and seeds; vegetables and pulses.
If striking a balance of yin and yang energy is not achieved, then we have disharmony, which can lead to anxiety, lack of focus, worries about the future, depression, stress, and over or underweight, etc. Stress and illness are nature's way of telling you that you're out of balance.
Five major Yang organs are Small intestine, Triple Heater, Large intestine, Gallbladder, and Urinary Bladder.
It does not matter whether we are male or female. In Chinese philosophy Yin refers to the female energy and Yang refers to the male energy. This is the energy of conquest, power and achievement. Its not necessarily a bad energy, it brings discipline, structure and focus.
Attributes of Yang Energy
A yang person has high energy levels and is constantly on the go. There is a strong creative streak that demands expression. The yang energy can become overwhelming if not balanced with yin energy. Too much yang energy will make the person very aggressive and demanding.
Avocado is a sweet-tasting food where the elements of earth and water are heavy, making it grounding, cooling and nourishing to balance any excess pitta.
Avocado – Avocados are high in monounsaturated fatty acids, said to nourish the yin in the blood.
Yin foods include asparagus, cucumbers, tomatoes, bananas, watermelon, tropical fruits, raw fruits and vegetables, soy products, many types of seafood and pork. They are bitter, salty and light. They are also 'cooling' on the body. Yang foods have a warming effect on the body.