As ice drips off the branches and tender buds start to peek through the remaining patches of snow, nature reminds us that spring is (finally) upon us. It’s Kapha season and that means it’s time to shed all the things that may have been weighing us down since winter. We recently talked with integrative neurologist and author of The Prime, Kulreet Chaudhary, MD, about why she recommends an Ayurvedic spring cleanse.

1. It’s the perfect time of year to shed toxins, according to your body’s internal clock.

We’re all familiar with spring cleaning, the annual ritual of tidying up our living space when winter subsides, but did you know that your body naturally wants to detox during this time of year, too? “One of the things that we are finding out more and more in science is how important it is to be in sync with natural cycles,” says Dr. Chaudhary. “As the snow is melting from winter going into spring, that’s an analogy to how toxins melt in our own system from winter to spring. We’re basically just aligning ourselves with the cycles of nature so that we get the most support in our detox.” Therefore, spring—the season of “regeneration, rejuvenation, and rebirth,” according to Dr. Chaudhary—is the ideal time to shed any impurities that may have built up in your physiology.

2. An Ayurvedic cleanse goes deep but can be done simply.

While most cleanses will remove superficial toxins, explains Dr. Chaudhary, Ayurvedic cleanses “release the kind of toxic buildup that has been there for years” by igniting agni, your body’s digestive fire. Without rekindling that fire, she says, you will just accumulate toxins once again.

The advent of a new year provides a chance to hit the “reset button”, wipe out the gunk of post-holiday indulgences and detox for optimal physical and emotional health. But how? Detoxification is a natural part of our body’s daily functions. As living organisms, we are constantly taking in fresh forms of nourishment and eliminating the components that have been used up, as well as those that were not beneficial to begin with. But does this process always work efficiently?

The liver and the kidneys are our main detox organs, literally crafted over millions of years to be stalwart expungers of harmful metabolic byproducts and exogenous toxins. The liver prevents pathogens from passing into the bloodstream, detoxifies environmental toxins, and processes excess nitrogen left over from the breakdown of protein. The kidneys sift through blood and filter out extra water, urea (a toxic metabolic byproduct of protein catabolism), and other wastes, which exit the body in the urine.

Whether you are motivated by the onset of bikini season or the calling of your next level of spiritual growth, dietary cleanses are back on the collective agenda. When the idea of a cleanse becomes attractive to you, it is time to purify. Usually this will cut out all wheat, cane sugar, alcohol and caffeine in your diet to allow your body to repair itself and heal.

After a couple of decades of studying nutritional and dietary wellness, I found myself at about a 70/30 percentage. 70% of eating for the nutritional benefits of my body and 30% guilty pleasures and recreational eating. I was perfectly happy with that ratio until just recently.

Something shifted and I felt a strong pull to revisit eating salad for dinner and moving away from the need to cook my veggies. While I’ve indulged in a little vanity in my day, this inner calling was not about the approach of bikini season. Though I do consider losing a few extra pounds a plus!

Many people do not realize that the fear and resistance that comes with dietary changes or starting a cleanse, is not as much about giving up the foods they love. It is the fear of re-experiencing the repressed emotional pain that remains below the surface is kept in place by the junk food we consume regularly.