When I first moved to Tokyo, I was 40 pounds overweight and anxious to understand why Japanese women were so slim despite eating a wide variety of foods. In my quest to understand more about the Eastern way of thinking about diet, I came across a Japanese holistic healing diet called macrobiotics.

I found diagrams of foods and portions in books that looked exactly like how I had been eating since arriving in Japan, with explanations of how this method of eating was supposed to bring “balance” to the body. The diet seemed to suggest that our health was directly affected and guided by nature, and that eating and living in a way that harmonizes with nature would create balance and harmony within our bodies.

Huh. Interesting.

I had nothing to lose (except my butt), so I decided to give it a try. As a result, I discovered more emotional and physical fulfillment from this way of eating than anything I had ever come across before.

What Is Macrobiotics?

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Macrobiotics is a diet concept promoted to the world by Japanese author George Ohsawa. It involves eating a variety of whole foods that are energetically balanced between yin and yang. According to Eastern beliefs, everything in nature is made up of energy, described as having “yin” or “yang” characteristics in varying proportions.

For the seasons, hot weather is considered to be “yang,” and nature offers us “yin” foods like watermelon to help us cool off and stay hydrated. Cold weather is considered “yin,” and we are offered “yang” root vegetables to help us feel warm and grounded.

Yin Foods

Yin energy describes foods that grow upwards and outwards, like leafy greens, which grow in an upwards direction, and fruits, which grow on taller plants like trees. It also represents foods that make us feel uplifted, so it includes refined sugars and grains too. When eaten in balance, you’ll feel awake, alert, and light in your body. In excess, you’ll experience a high followed by a crash.

Yang Foods

Yang energy represents the opposite: foods that have centripetal energy that moves inwards and downwards. You can visually see this in foods like root vegetables, which grow down into the ground and become pointed towards the ends (i.e., carrots, daikon, etc.). Animal products are also considered yang as they are a concentration of the nutrition consumed by the animal. When you have foods with more yang properties, you feel warm and relaxed. In excess, you can easily feel lethargic.

By eating a meal with foods that are considered both yin and yang, you’re feeding your body a wide variety of nutrition while also supporting its needs during that season.

What Is In A Typical Macrobiotic Meal?

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Whole grains—brown rice in particular—are considered to be the most energetically balanced food item in macrobiotics, so they are considered to be the most essential starting point in a macrobiotic meal. In addition to brown rice, a typical macrobiotic meal consists of other moderately balanced foods such as:

• Leafy greens
• Round vegetables (like pumpkin, cabbage and onion that are literally round in shape)
• Root vegetables
• Beans
• Miso soup

The best way to think of a macrobiotic meal is to think of a whole-food Japanese teishoku—the meals consist of a little bit of everything to balance energetics, flavor, nutrition, season, and appearance.

Is the Macrobiotic Diet Vegetarian?

The macrobiotic diet isn’t strictly vegetarian, though many who follow it do choose to eat mostly plant-based. Animal products are generally considered harder to digest and are thought to place extra stress on the digestive system. The idea is that by minimizing this strain, your body can focus on restoring and maintaining digestive health.

That said, some macrobiotic practitioners do include small amounts of fish or seafood in their diet. Ultimately, the goal of macrobiotic eating is energetic balance—so when animal protein is consumed (a more “yang” food), it’s typically balanced with “yin” foods like vegetables.

Macrobiotics Ingredients & Where To Buy Them

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The most important ingredients you can start with in macrobiotics are brown rice, miso soup and seasonal vegetables. Technically, since macrobiotics are based on whole foods and a natural lifestyle, you can eat macrobiotics simply by buying organic produce. However, there is an ingredient found in macrobiotic cooking that is unique to the concept.

Tempeh

One of them is tempeh, a fermented bean block excellent for grilling. It has all of the nutritional benefits of natto but without the stinky, slimy consistency. Tempeh is really popular for beginners looking to try macrobiotics who are nervous about giving up animal products.

You can also try a variety of pastas made with non-wheat flour (brown rice flour, amaranth, kamut, etc.). These can be found at natural grocery stores such as Natural House and Bio C’Bon in Azabu Juban.

Restaurants To Try A Macrobiotic Meal in Tokyo

I definitely recommend trying out macrobiotics at a restaurant before you start experimenting at home so that you can get a complete experience. You really can’t go wrong with any of these restaurants. They offer really excellent quality macrobiotic-style meals that will leave you happy, satisfied and curious to try more.

Brown Rice

• Address: 5-1-8 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo (Google Map Link)
• Hours: 11:30 a.m.-6 p.m. (Closed Tuesday)

Chaya Natural & Wild Table

• Address: Hibiya Chante B2F, 1−2−2 Yurakucho, Chiyoda City, Tokyo (Google Map Link)
• Hours: 11:30 a.m.-4 p.m., 5:30 p.m.-9 p.m.

Mominoki House

• Address: 2-18-5 Jingumae, Shibuya, Tokyo (Google Map Link)
• Hours: 11 a.m.-3 p.m., 5 p.m.-11 p.m.

Cooking Classes You Can Take in Tokyo

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If being on the consuming side alone is not enough for you, you can also try learning Macrobiotics more in-depth from experienced professionals. Here are a couple of classes that teach the concept to beginners.

Lima Macrobiotic Cooking School

Lima is a bigger cooking school and macrobiotics organization located in Ikejiri-Ohashi. I believe they only offer classes in Japanese; however, their classes are also extensive if you’re looking to learn in depth.

Macrobiotics School Japan

This learning center, based in Nara, offers online courses, Zoom workshops and in-person intensives about macrobiotic cooking and lifestyle. Run by English-speaking chef Patricio Garcia de Paredes, the school covers everything from foundational macrobiotic principles to advanced cooking techniques.

You have an amazing opportunity to live in Japan, where you can not only learn more about your health from a holistic standpoint but also develop a deeper relationship with your body and nature. With that in mind, I recommend you give different things a try so that you, too, can reap the benefits I’ve enjoyed during my time here. In time, you’ll feel the difference yourself!

This article has been republished for 2025.

Walking outside in Japan during the summer is like walking through a sauna with your clothes on. You can feel the sunburn forming on your skin while waiting at a crossing for the light to change. Taking a shower sounds like a refreshing idea until you wind up feeling sticky again, 10 minutes later. Perhaps you’re feeling too tired to move, yet for some reason, it’s too hot to fall asleep. But the worst part is the summer fatigue, where you look outside your window and see a beautiful day, but you can’t seem to get off your sofa because all of the energy has drained from your body.

In Japan, there’s a word for this condition: natsubate. “Natsu” means summer, and “bate” comes from the word “bateru,” which means you have trouble moving from being so exhausted. Symptoms of this condition include:

• Appetite loss
• Lack of physical energy
• Unwillingness to do anything
• Minor depression

Luckily, there are ways to help prevent summer fatigue from happening—and with even hotter days on the forecast, it’s best to implement these tasty ideas before the going gets tougher.

Eat: Foods To Beat The Heat

1. Seasonal Fruits

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There are two things you want to keep an eye out for this summer: foods that are easy to digest so your body doesn’t have to expend more energy on digestion, and foods that are going to help you stay hydrated since you’ll be sweating a lot. “Hydration” in this case means two things: replenishing water content and replenishing minerals lost through sweat.

The fruits that have the most water content and electrolytes are also the ones that grow in very hot climates. It’s no wonder—Mother Nature provides you with the right kind of nutrition to stay balanced during this time of year. Watermelon, peaches, bananas, lemons, limes and mangoes are your friends that will not only replenish your body with fluids but also potassium and magnesium lost through sweat.

2. Seaweed

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For an extra boost of minerals to keep your muscles from cramping, start adding more seaweed, like wakame and nori, to your diet. Seaweeds are high in calcium and magnesium, which are perfect for making your body feel less tight, especially if you feel swelling. They’re also known to help lower blood pressure, which is essential during this time of the year if you have any heart trouble.

3. Tofu

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Soybeans are considered a “cooling” food in eastern holistic nutrition. Have a fresh order of silky tofu topped with scallions, dried bonito flakes and a drizzle of soy sauce, and you’re in summer dining heaven. They’re an excellent source of protein served in a form that’s easy to digest, thus giving your body a break from working too hard on digestion.

4. Soba

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Buckwheat noodles (soba) are another cooling Japanese dish that is popular to have in the summertime. Soba is known for helping the body lower cholesterol and blood pressure, and it’s also high in fiber. The best part of soba is that you can eat them cold—pop into a noodle shop and order the zaru soba, a refreshing cold noodle dish to keep you cool this summer. You can even find 100 percent buckwheat noodles if you’re looking to go gluten-free.

5. Heart-Healthy Fats

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In Eastern holistic nutrition, your heart is the organ that is said to take on the most stress. It’s working extra hard to pump blood around your system and help you stay cool through sweat. Luckily, tropical fruits like avocado and coconut are in season and high in heart-healthy fats to help lower cholesterol.

6. Infused Water

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Believe it or not, your body stays more hydrated when having infused water rather than just water alone. Lemon and cucumber are perfect for keeping you cool, detoxing your body, and aiding digestion.

Don’t Eat: Foods That’ll Make You Feel Worse

1. Baked Goods

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Summer fatigue can mainly come from dehydration, so the last thing you want to do is eat foods where the liquids have been baked out. Having bread is like sticking a dry sponge into your water-hungry digestive system. If you really want to have bread, opt for the steamed version. Rice and noodles are better choices since they’re cooked in water.

2. Caffeine

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Caffeine is a tough one. On one hand, coffee grows in tropical climates, which means it’s designed to help us feel uplifted and energized on hot days. However, any caffeine can be dehydrating to the body. If you’re having natsubate, then I would stay away from caffeine and instead focus on hydrating your system without it. If you’re generally feeling okay and need a bit of a boost to make it on your hot commute, then having some iced coffee or green tea can be suitable.

3. Alcohol

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I know you probably can’t wait to go out for cocktails or a nice cold beer on a hot day, but if you’re feeling fatigued and dehydrated, then alcohol can make you feel worse. Most people are aware of the dangers of having alcohol just before stepping into an onsen—your body will have trouble regulating temperatures and feel fatigued, possibly passing out. Considering the fact that the peak temperatures outside nowadays are quite close to hot bath temperatures, you can see the correlation of why it’s dangerous to have alcohol when you’re experiencing natsubate.

General Tips To Help You Stay Cool

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Use A Parasol: It’s not uncommon in Japan to carry a parasol to keep cool on hot summer days. Simply staying in the shade and avoiding direct sun exposure can help you maintain your energy levels.

Cool Stick-On Sheets: If you visit the nearest convenience store or drugstore, you’ll find 熱さまシート (netsusama shito) or cool sheets that you can stick onto any part of your body for some cooling relief. Some people like to put it on their neck, forehead, lower back or legs. For more affordable cooling products, check out our listicle of 100 yen shop summer must-haves.

Wear Long Flowy Skirts/Dresses: Most people think that shorts or short skirts are cooler to wear in the summertime. However, long flowy skirts or maxi dresses actually help ventilate air up your legs while you’re walking, keeping you much cooler than having less fabric.

There you have it—the hot days are yet to come, so prioritize enjoying summer foods and you’ll have no problem beating summer fatigue this summer. Stay safe and cool!

This article has been republished for 2025.

Recently, I had the opportunity to ask a large group of foreign women living in Tokyo if they usually research health information in English (or their native language), Japanese or both. It was almost unanimous that they researched health tips in English, even if they had a good understanding of Japanese. I found this to be interesting because Japan has such a different culture around food. Tailoring Western advice to an Asian lifestyle seemed a bit redundant, especially with the differences between Japanese and Western diet approaches.

Reading an article from someone living in the United States while living in Japan makes me feel like I have to search for uncommon Western health foods, like quinoa and kale. I also feel like I have to scout out a green juice shop that opens before breakfast hours or figure out a way to bake foods when it’s not that common in Japan to even own an oven. So, for this article, I felt inspired to share the exact differences between the Japanese and Western diet approaches. I hope to give you a new perspective and raise your confidence in Eastern methods.

1. The Japanese Diet Is Broad, While The Western Diet Is Detailed

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There was a time when we didn’t have “diet science” to help us explain what was nutritionally sound for our bodies. In the East (countries like Japan, China and India), people developed a way of looking at nature for clues on how to stay healthy and how to rebalance ailments in the body.

Eat Seasonally

The most obvious one would be to eat according to the seasons. The idea is that the earth offers us exactly what we need to acclimate our bodies to our climate. You’ll easily notice this in a Japanese teishoku (set meals). While the main set is the same throughout the year, with some animal or vegetarian protein, vegetables, rice, soup and pickles, the vegetables are always interchanged as the seasons change.

Other broad attributes of the Japanese diet would be considering things like:

• How fast or slow foods digest in our body.
• Whether they make us feel uplifted or relaxed.
• If the foods cause our body to contract or to expand.

In other words, they look at properties you can understand with your senses.

In The Details

Westerners, on the other hand, like to discuss the nutritional makeup of individual foods in detail. They use language like “protein,” “carbs,” “calories,” “vitamins,” “minerals” and “fiber” to discuss the best way of eating.

The pro of thinking in this way is that you can get very specific on how to make a change to your body. However, the big con is that almost none of it is intuitive. You can’t feel or sense in your body just how much Vitamin A you got from eating a carrot. You’d only be able to know the information in numbers after Googling how much of it you ate.

So, while the scientific way of looking at diets is specific and logical and can be really beneficial for someone like an athlete who needs these specifics to improve their performance, it’s not really instinctive or something you can naturally keep up with.

2. The Japanese Diet Includes A Variety Of Everything

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Continuing on about Japanese teishoku, you’ll also notice that the Japanese eat a variety of foods. Instead of having larger quantities of two or three food items (like steak with potatoes and a side salad in the West), they eat smaller quantities but with more varieties of foods (e.g., fish, soup, rice, pickles, green vegetables, root vegetables and a side salad).

In Western culture, people usually try to diet by cutting out one kind of food group or highlighting another, be it limiting carbohydrates and sugar or increasing protein. However, the Japanese and many other Eastern cultures choose to have a variety of everything that helps them maintain an overall balance.

When you eat a bit of everything, you’re providing your body with a wide spectrum of nutritional content. Plus, you get a variety of flavors to satisfy your palate.

3. The Japanese Diet Combines Foods To Optimize Digestion

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The Japanese are very conscious about combining foods to optimize digestion. Whenever you have oily or fried foods in Japan, you’ll notice them served with grated radish or cabbage. Having these as a garnish helps the body digest fatty foods.

Other fermented food items like pickles and miso soup contain healthy bacteria that help our body digest foods from our overall meals, too. So even if you’re having something heavy like animal products, or something refined like white rice, the bacteria from fermented food items can help with digestion.

Even if you’re having Western fried foods, creamy foods or hard-to-digest animal proteins, aim to add foods that ease digestion. This includes mushrooms, burdock, radishes, leafy greens and citrus such as a drizzle of lemon juice.

4. Hydration In The West Is Achieved Mainly Through Water

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The most common solution to “staying hydrated” in the West is to drink more water. I often hear of people frustrated that they didn’t get in their recommended eight cups of water per day. Or that they would drink more if it didn’t feel so uncomfortable having water sloshing around in their stomachs. Instead of thinking about getting hydrated solely from drinking more water, why don’t we take a look at whether our meals themselves are hydrating or dehydrating?

In the West, if you have a sandwich with coffee for lunch, the bread itself is dry (because the water is baked out). Cold cuts have zero water content and the coffee is dehydrating. In a Japanese teishoku, however, the rice is cooked in water, the vegetables themselves have high water content and traditional meals include hydrating soups. Instead of trying to hydrate your body by drinking a lot of water, it’s important to eat more hydrating meals.

5. Japanese People Don’t Drink Much Water With Meals

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Stemming off the previous point on hydration, you might also notice that Japanese people don’t really drink a lot of water with their meals. If you go to a Japanese restaurant for lunch, you might receive a very small cup of water or tea. However, in the United States, for example, you’re usually provided with a large glass of ice water that constantly gets refilled.

In Eastern health philosophies, water is believed to “douse” your “digestive fire.” That’s code for “water will make it difficult for your body to digest foods.” However, dietitians around the world seem to have opposing views about this. There seem to be no concrete studies proving that excessive water can interrupt the digestive process by diluting your stomach acid.

A common view that many Japanese dietitians do have, though, is that drinking a lot of water during your meals makes you chew your food less, which may contribute to bad digestion. They say that slugging down water while eating tends to make you rely on it to push your food down and, hence, make you chew it less. Chewing food is very important for digestion and bettering your metabolism—especially if you’re looking to lose weight—so the point of this isn’t to say you should never have water with meals. It’s to help you recognize that having a little bit if you’re thirsty is fine as long as you’re not glugging down glass after glass.

As I mentioned in the previous point, instead of simply adding water on the side to your meal for hydration, it may be ultimately best to choose hydrating foods that contain high water content, like soups.

Taking Notes

As you can see, there are some important aspects of how Japanese people eat that aid in health and digestion. They go beyond just looking at food from a scientific perspective. Eastern philosophies help us understand how to rebalance our bodies using our senses. It can give you a lot more confidence in the choices you make in your daily food life.

What do you think about the differences between the Japanese and Western diet approaches?

I closed the door behind me, dropped my bag on the floor and collapsed on the sofa. I had just arrived home from a farewell party for a dear friend who was getting ready for a new adventure to Africa. I’ve felt sad when friends leave Japan before, but this time was different. For the first time, I felt more than an emptiness in my heart—I could feel a physical soreness in my chest. Within the same month that my friend left, another girl I had also grown close to moved back to the US with her husband after he had completed his military service.

I spent the following weeks wandering the streets of Tokyo, feeling like each road and shop looked so familiar yet somehow missed a feeling of “home.”  Thoughts kept racing through my head at full speed: Should I leave Japan, too? Am I ever going to find long-term relationships in Japan?

Forever Alone?

I knew that I would eventually be able to make new friends. But I also knew that I was beyond tired of questioning my life in Tokyo every time someone left. I was going to have to make a change. This change would help me find a strong purpose and confidence in Japan regardless of the relationships that I will encounter while living here. A change that would help me continue to be curious about meeting new people and bittersweet when they leave (instead of just bitter).

I decided to reach out and ask other foreign women in Japan who have lived here longer than I if they had any advice for me. In the process of gathering feedback, I was surprised at how many other women—new to Japan or permanent residents—were quick to voice that they, too, have wondered what to do. Each person shared a commonality of feeling heartbroken, devastated, abandoned, envious and lonely when friends left. And they couldn’t help but ask themselves time and time again:

Why am I here? Or, more importantly, why am I choosing to stay?

Here are seven pieces of advice I found from long-term residents in Japan to help you build more confidence and purpose in your experience here even after our support group is gone.

1. Decide That Japan Is Your Home, Now

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One of the reasons I questioned what I was doing in Japan every time someone left was that I hadn’t made a clear decision that this was where I now resided. Until now, I’ve approached all new relationships or activities (or even business) with an idea in the back of my head that one day I might leave.

But one thing I’ve learned from women who are married to Japanese men is that they already know that they are in Japan for the long haul. When you make a clear decision that Japan is your home—even if you do suspect that you might leave somewhere down the line—your perspective changes and your effort to connect with the community becomes deeper.

Don’t let the idea that you “might leave Japan one day” get in the way of you making the most of your time while you are here. If you haven’t made a decision nor have any clear plans to leave just yet, then make your future decisions on what you know right now: that Japan is your home at this very moment.  

2. Get Clear On Your Goals

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What are your priorities, values and goals beyond living in Japan (if any)? Keeping those goals and aspirations clear will help you stay focused, but also keep in mind that having a priority or goals doesn’t necessarily mean thinking too far into the future.

I find it really fun to reinvent myself every five years. First I was the American wife. Then the school substitute. Then I got into essential oils and created fun activities I love with like-minded people. My kids are going to leave the house so the next cycle for me is to think about what I will do when they leave. —Kendra

For me, my current goals as a health and wellness coach are business oriented. I know that focusing more of my business on women in Japan will help me develop a stronger connection to the local community while also serving my values.

3. Accept That Change Happens… All The Time

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Even though it might be more frequent for people to come and go in your life as an expat, the fact that things change is something that happens anywhere all the time.

When I was here for the first three years, the transitory state of Tokyo was so surprising and devastating. I would make a group of foreign friends through work and once all their contracts were up, I’d suddenly have no friends. I grew to hate the turbulence of this life and went back to America. When I went back to Boston, the same experience happened and I realized running from my goals and ambitions in Tokyo had not changed my situation. —Elizabeth

I understand that even in Korea (my home country), the same thing happens. Even though we are or will be apart some day, our memories and emotions that we shared are alive as part of my life. —Soyoung

I have cried a lot of tears at Narita, Haneda and Karuizawa Station. Goodbyes are always hard, but for every goodbye, it seems like a hello came into my life as well. —Judy

As much as we’d like to think that living in another country would make the process of keeping friendships easier, that might not necessarily be the case. Instead, it’s time to think about how you can value the friendships you do have with the time you do have together.

4. Get Out & Meet New People

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When you feel you’ve reached a deeper connection with a friend, it’s easy to settle into a pattern of seeing only that person on a regular basis. But if you don’t continue to build other relationships, you’re risking being alone if that one close friend leaves.

I have learned not to depend on one person to fulfill my social/friendship needs. I think you learn if you do that and move, then you will really be isolated. —Alaine

Keep trying new things. Don’t become reliant on your current job or friends [as the only close relationships]. —Svenja

While it may take longer to form new friendships in Japan, it is certainly not impossible if you keep trying.

5. Be Part Of An Activity Or An Organization

Having a job or activity that is a constant routine in your life is another way to build rhythm and find your purpose in Japan.

I think the turning point for me (between struggling and finding confidence) was really starting a job I liked and being part of a team where I felt useful and valued, thus finding my own little niche in society. —Cathy

Church has always provided me with a community of like-minded people, so when people have moved away from Japan, it hasn’t left an empty space in my life; there’s always a network of people who genuinely care about me. —Gabriel

One of the best things that have encouraged me throughout my time in Japan is being a member of cultural exchange groups. I’ve met so many wonderful Japanese women that celebrate holidays and life events with my family and I and that have been a wonderful constant in a life of so much change. —Connie

Volunteering is also a great way to feel that you are helping others and staying connected to the community. If you are looking for some opportunities, check out these volunteering suggestions. The annual Spartan Race is also an event (a tough one, for sure) that has helped many women boost their positivity and feel part of an ever-growing team in Japan.

6. Start Your Own Social Group

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If you can’t find a hobby or organization you love, why not start your own group instead? I took this advice to heart and started a Tokyo Entrepreneurial Book Club for people who like to read about business and personal development.

I started activities for essential oils, quilting events, knitting events and even a Tokyo Foodie group with the aim of finding other like-minded crafty people. There is a need for people to lead activities, but know that there is also work involved. —Kendra

When I decided it was better to separate my personal life from work, I had to become more outgoing to make new connections. I joined many Meetup groups and found people with similar interests and goals. I invited people to my own events to cultivate real friendships. —Elizabeth

The most rewarding thing about these groups is developing new connections with people, even if you’re not in search of your next best friend. It’s a great feeling to have a network of people who share an interest in a topic you’re passionate about.

Savvy Tokyo also has a Facebook group for sharing feelings, asking for advice and suggesting meetups. Feel free to join and add a post to the group page!

7. Keep In Touch & Remind Yourself That You Have Friends All Over The World

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If there’s one thing that I heard repetitively through talking with fellow expat women, it’s that social media has made it so easy to keep in touch with people who have left. Some women reported that their dear friends who left Japan wound up coming back years down the road, or they’ve made efforts to visit each other in different countries.

There are no friends like Tokyo friends! We traveled far and wide over summers and spring breaks catching up with all these great friends. Still do! —Laura

I remind myself that now I have incredibly close friends all over the world, which is in itself really amazing but also opens up all kinds of opportunities for travel and new experiences. And with all the amazing technologies that we have literally at our fingertips, it’s easier than ever to stay in touch and still feel like we’re a part of each other’s lives. —Kelly

Just because your friends are no longer physically in Japan doesn’t mean you can’t connect with them online or in person in the future. Keep the relationships strong, and you can even enrich your own life by visiting them outside of Japan.

Whether you’re new to Japan or have been living here for years, know that you, too, can find your purpose and confidence here. Embrace your opportunity to live in this unique culture, embrace the relationships you have when you have them, and embrace something constant in your life that you can take pride in to help you weather the ever-changing changes.

Have you ever had all your close friends leave Japan while you stayed? How did you overcome those feelings? Share your tips in the comments.

This article has been republished for 2024.

When I first moved to Japan, I was concerned about my weight gain. Desserts are always on my mind, and Japanese cafes and department store food emporiums make them hard to ignore. To my pleasant surprise, I found a variety of healthy Japanese sweets low in calories and fat.

The desserts I’ll share with you here do contain sugar (they are desserts, after all). However, the ingredients used in these desserts have amazing health benefits. These range from lowering the impact of sugar on your blood sugar levels to improving your digestion. What a win!

Here are seven ingredients and common desserts made with them to keep an eye out for if you’re health-conscious.

Kanten (寒天)

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Kanten, also known as agar, is a hardening agent used to make jellos. This calorie-free seaweed is clear in color, high in fiber and contains calcium and iron. Japanese women love to eat this when they’re looking to shed some weight but still have a sweet tooth since it’s filling, calorie-free and tasty. You can find kanten in fruit jellos or in traditional Japanese sweets such as yokan (羊羹), which is a jello made with red bean paste. This article has a few recipes for making your own kanten coffee jelly, matcha soy milk pudding and blueberry rose jelly.

Kuzu (くず)

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Kuzu is an amazing thickening agent that’s high in fiber. It’s also known to reduce high blood pressure, regulate blood sugar and relieve tension such as in migraines and muscle cramps. One of the most common Japanese desserts using kuzu is called kuzukiri (くずきり) and looks like long clear noodles dipped in a cold sweet “soup.” It’s another filling dessert that’s amazing for your digestive system.

Simple kuzukiri desserts are available in most convenience stores and Japanese-style cafes. Kuzu is also used in some puddings, giving them a nice thick texture.

Black Sesame (黒ごま)

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Another amazing ingredient that many consider a superfood is black sesame. In Eastern holistic health, black sesame seeds are considered warming to the body, which is really important for healthy blood circulation. They’re also high in fiber, vitamin B, iron and magnesium.

If you see black sesame ice cream as an option at the parlor, definitely give it a try. It has a wonderful “nutty” taste that counterbalances the sweetness of the ice cream. Plus, since ice cream is cold, it’s great to have some warming properties from the sesame seeds themselves. As for more Japanese sweets, you’ll find black sesame in puddings—another delight with a great texture.

Azuki Beans (あずき豆)

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We can’t have a list of healthy desserts in Japan without including azuki beans! These red beans are a Japanese favorite. They are high in fiber and low in calories, so they really fill you up. The beans are also high in protein, which helps slow down sugar absorption so you aren’t left with a big spike in blood sugar. Azuki beans are found in many traditional desserts, especially daifuku (大福) which is a round soft ball of mochi (pounded rice) filled with red bean paste. You can typically choose between tsubuan (where not all beans are blended) or koshian (where the bean paste is smooth).

Yomogi (蓬)

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If you want to improve your health one step further when looking for a mochi or daifuku to try, try the green-colored yomogi (Japanese mugwort) flavor (pictured above). This type of mochi is called kusamochi, which literally translates to “grass mochi.” Yomogi-flavored kusamochi can be enjoyed on its own, sweet or savory, and can be enjoyed in other sweets like hishimochi (diamond-shaped rice cake) eaten on Hinamatsuri (Girl’s Day), kashiwamochi (rice cake wrapped in Japanese oak leaves with sweet bean paste) eaten on Kodomo No Hi (Children’s Day).

Soybeans (大豆)

© Photo by iStock: MielPhotos2008

Soybeans are an amazing source of protein and fiber and have low cholesterol. They’re especially great if you’re looking for a dairy replacement. You’ll likely find controversial opinions on whether or not soy is truly healthy, but I personally find soy to be a good source of nutrition. Especially since Japanese soybeans are of better quality and have less processing than the ones feared in areas such as the US (the source of most controversy). As long as you’re using it as a dairy replacement, the options for tofu-based desserts in Japan are endless. Some of my favorites here in Japan are tofu puddings and soy cheesecakes.

Kinako (きな粉)

© Photo by iStock: Phira Phonruewiangphing

Last but not least is kinako, a light brown colored powder made from soybeans. Of course, it has all the health benefits of soybeans, such as isoflavones, protein, fiber and calcium. It has a nutty flavor, and you’ll often find it sprinkled on top of Japanese desserts. You can even combine it with some other ingredients mentioned, such as kanten or kuzumochi, to get an extra punch of nutrition. It can be used as a topping on kakigori (shaved ice), yogurt and even toast if you wish!

If you’re looking to improve your health but can’t quite kick that sweet tooth just yet, then definitely look for desserts like these or use these ingredients to make your own healthy Japanese sweets.

Which of these healthy Japanese sweets and ingredients do you enjoy?

I sat there nervously, my palms sweating as I awaited Robert Alfa to come into the meeting room for my first-ever professional financial review. 

As a young business owner who had prioritized reinvesting money into my business instead of my personal goals, I had many thoughts racing through my head. Did I have enough cash on hand to start investing? Will I be given a judgmental look when I say I haven’t started planning for retirement yet? Will I follow any of the financial jargon and clearly understand what strategy is best for me?

Argentum Wealth is a licensed financial planning firm located in the Roppongi area of Tokyo. They have advisors with decades of experience helping foreign residents in Japan with international and portable investment accounts and managed portfolios. They also advise on solutions for U.S. nationals such as 401K pension transfers, individual retirement account (IRA) and brokerage account portfolio management.

7-phase financial planning life cycle

© Photo by Argentum Wealth Management

Robert Alfa and Lloyd Danon of Argentum Wealth Management.

I learned from visiting Argentum Wealth that they specialize in investments, real estate and insurance, and they can support you at any stage of your financial planning.

The folks at Argentum described these stages as a life cycle that has seven phases that help both you and your advisor identify what stage of life you’re at in relation to the kinds of investments you’ll be making: 

1. Childhood
2. Young and unmarried
3. Newly married
4. Married with young children
5. Married with older children
6. Pre-retirement
7. Retirement

This life cycle is a loose framework; you might remain single, go through a divorce, have a bicultural relationship with someone with different money values or any other kind of personal situation that affects your decisions around money over the course of your life. The advisors at Argentum Wealth have extensive experience working with clients with different backgrounds and circumstances, from expats and business owners in central Tokyo to residents in rural areas of Japan. 

When I asked what kinds of backgrounds their clients have, they described these profiles:

Young professional

The young professional is someone who is around 25 to 35 years old and single. They’ve been living in Japan for an extended period and are earning more money. They want to speak with an advisor so they can start investing some of their savings, usually on a monthly basis. The monthly investment usually starts from a few hundred dollars, or ¥20,000 to ¥30,000, per month.

A couple planning to have kids

Typically, when couples plan to have kids, they seek support in four areas: life insurance, buying a house, saving for a kid’s education and retirement. It’s also not uncommon for one partner to take time off from work for child-rearing, affecting how they strategize their money.

Mid-career professional

Clients who are at this stage of the life cycle are typically earning quite well. They already have some assets and have accumulated money to widen the scope of their investments to grow wealth. Most people at this stage already have investments but are looking to clean up their portfolio and restructure it. 

Pre-retirement

These are people who are sending off their youngest child to college and expect to retire in about a decade. Most clients at this stage already own property and have protection but are starting to think about their financial needs after retirement. They might also be at the end of saving for their kids’ education and have paid off their mortgage, so there is an opportunity for them to shift their focus. 

It’s helpful to consider where you are before your financial review so that your planner can better navigate the conversation with you. If you are a couple, it’s recommended that you understand your priorities and are on the same page before your review. The costs to work with a financial advisor will vary depending on the scope of what they will assist you with.

Financial review process 

© Photo by Argentum Wealth Management

A financial review is a three-part process that includes the review, a proposal of beneficial solutions and an honest conversation about how to move forward with your goals.

The review took about 45 minutes. Alfa took out a four to five page questionnaire that covered various topics including my current financial situation and my future goals. I shared with him that I’m at the Young Professional phase of the life cycle which gave us a great starting point. We went through each question together, and I was pleasantly surprised to hear that they were pretty simple and straightforward. For example, how many years from now would I be thinking of buying a house? How much money would I like to have each month when I’m retired? 

After hearing my aims, Alfa helped me calculate how much I should be investing each month for retirement so that I could meet my goals in the next few decades. He was helpful in answering my questions; when I asked how much money I would need to have saved in order to have a home, he explained how I could simply finance a mortgage through a bank loan. Obtaining a bank loan for a mortgage in Japan is possible depending on your residence status and annual income. In my case, what had felt like a distant dream of being a homeowner was a lot closer and more real than I had imagined! 

Moreover, as a business owner, this financial review was an excellent opportunity to gauge how much to be paying myself from my business to meet my personal money goals. 

I left the conversation feeling clear about my financial standing, how much money I’d need to invest each month to reach my goals, and how soon I would be ready to start. And I realized that having a conversation is nothing to be nervous about and is a lot more approachable than I had realized!  

The financial review at Argentum Wealth is a free, three-part process that includes the review, a proposal of their solutions, and then a conversation about their service options to see if you want to work together. If you’re thinking of building your wealth, no matter what stage you’re at, it can’t hurt to consult with them to increase your support and investment options while you’re in Japan.  

The Deets

Argentum Wealth Management

Location: Argentum Wealth Management, 601 Hinoki Azabudai Building, 3-1-5 Azabudai, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0041
Email: advice@argentumwealth.com
Phone: 03 5549 9099

Japan isn’t such a great place to visit if you’re self-conscious about your body or on a losing weight journey. I remember the first few days I spent settling into my Tokyo apartment. Door heights were short, the hallways narrow, and I was a head taller than the crowds of Japanese women who walked in front of me on the way to the train station.

I was already self-conscious about my size and had been on countless diets in the US prior to arriving in Japan. I had tried everything from calorie counting to eating lots of salads, to Weight Watchers and exercised for 1-2 hours per day, but I wasn’t able to get my weight to budge.

was there some piece of secret information about healthy eating and exercise that Japanese women knew, but I was missing?

I also felt horribly excluded in Tokyo when venturing into retail shops only to discover each store only carried clothing in a “free size” (one-size-fits-all). It seemed that the only fashionable items I could pick out were jewelry and shoes, and I started migrating to international shops like Zara and H&M to find pieces I could wear.

Me at a fruit stand in Japan. 

How are Japanese women so slim?

I couldn’t understand why Japanese women were so slim despite eating all of the things I was told to avoid when wanting to lose weight. Noodles, rice, afternoon cake with a friend—the Japanese seemed to know how to have a bit of everything without the consequences.

I also didn’t see any Japanese women power-walking in spandex with a 2-liter bottle of water tucked under their arms. They seemed to maintain their slim bodies just fine by walking around the city and doing yoga, instead of hitting the gym and doing high-intensity training like what I was used to seeing women do in the US.

It made me wonder: was there some piece of secret information about healthy eating and exercise that Japanese women knew, but I was missing? Had what I been learning in the US about losing weight been wrong?

I didn’t know how they were able to do it, but I knew that I wanted what they had: to be able to eat a variety of foods, exercise less, and not worry about my weight. And after some careful observation and practice, I discovered three things that turned out to be exactly what I needed—and what led me to lose weight while having a balanced diet and still having chocolate—or sweets.  

1. Acclimate your body to your climate

One concept of staying healthy that jumped out at me when I arrived in Japan was the notion of keeping your body warm. I couldn’t understand why this was one of the first pieces of advice I had heard when it seemed that learning about protein and carb ratios was more viable.

Oden: traditional autumn and winter food in Japan. 

In the US, people spend a lot of time focusing on nutritional density, but they don’t pay a lot of attention to how the food is prepared or how it affects our circulation. You’re bound to find many people in western countries trying to get healthy by eating raw foods, salads, and juices because of their nutritional content, but these aren’t commonly eaten in Japan in comparison.

Instead, the Japanese cook most of their foods and prepare them with flavorings like ginger or miso which help the body with digestion and circulation. They also stick to eating seasonal vegetables, for the benefit not only of the peak flavor but also for keeping our bodies acclimated to our climate.

I couldn’t understand why Japanese women were so slim despite eating all of the things I was told to avoid when wanting to lose weight

While raw foods might be more nutritionally dense, they can also be a lot harder for our bodies to digest, and they’re considered to be cooling to the body by holistic standards. And the most important thing is not how much nutrition you’re consuming as much as how much nutrition you’re absorbing.

So, making sure that your food is easy for your body to digest and that you have strong circulation and warmth is important for body balance. When you do have raw foods, it’s ideal to have them in the hot summer months when our bodies do need to cool off in the heat.  

2. Body care is just as important for body balance

Taking a bath on a regular basis instead of a shower is common in Japanese culture. But what you might not know is that taking a bath can help you with your weight.

In Japan, it’s common for women to do a “half-bath” which is where you fill the tub to just under your chest level, and soak for about 20 minutes in water between 38-42 degrees.

As it turns out, taking a bath can help your body burn as many calories as taking a half-hour walk. It can reduce blood sugar levels, lower inflammation, and help you have better quality sleep—all of which are great aids for weight loss and body balance.

Making sure that your food is easy for your body to digest and that you have strong circulation and warmth is important for body balance

According to research studies on taking baths for passive heating, you can achieve these results by raising your body temperature by one degree Celsius. So, while the Japanese recommend 38-42 degrees to be the perfect bath range, you’re going to reap the benefits as long as you set your bath to at least 37 degrees.  

3. Hard exercise isn’t necessarily going to help you slim down—but light exercise, can

Within the first few months of moving to Tokyo, my weight started coming off naturally, and I was really confused because I hadn’t been exercising nearly as much as I had been when I was in the US.

Instead of visiting the gym almost every day for 1-2 hours doing intense, sweat-inducing workouts and lifting weights, I was only walking consistently to run errands.

I couldn’t understand how doing less was producing more of the kind of results I was looking for until I learned that physical stress on your body can affect the kind of energy your body chooses to use.

When you put your body into a state of stress by doing really intense workouts, your body will utilize the energy from your last meal. Not only that but once you’ve finished your intense workout, your body wants to quickly replenish energy, so you’re likely to feel hungry after a tough workout and also crave more sugar than after a calming workout.

I never imagined that simple walking, stretching, and yoga could make my body leaner. I think it’s common to believe that if you want to lose weight, you need to put in more effort into your workouts to reap more reward. But instead, doing calming exercises that reduce stress can influence your body to use the fat that is on your body for fuel instead of your last meal. That means more results with less effort.

Give it a try

Even though we all have access to plenty of health information, the way we interpret and act on that information is what makes a difference in results. And the Japanese really have it figured out: if you want to adopt their ability to enjoy food and still be slim, then start off by incorporating seasonal vegetables into your diet, take a hot bath on the regular, and pick exercises that make you stress less. You’ll be surprised at the results! 

This article was originally published in 2017 and edited on June 17, 2020. 

Most New Year Resolutions related to health fall into two themes. One is to undo the effects of our holiday festivities of dinners with multiple courses, one too many cocktails and all that sofa time. The other is to arm ourselves with resources for wellness and accountability to help us create lasting change to our physical, emotional, and mental health.

So whether your aim is to reset or revamp, here are a few ways to jumpstart your health this year and make it the most successful one yet.

1. Get started with a cleanse

Overconsumption throughout the holidays can leave your body sluggish. While your body already has its own detoxification process, you can rejuvenate the process by doing a juice cleanse. To do a juice cleanse, you drink around 5-6 bottles of fresh-pressed vegetable and fruit-based juices over the course of a day, and you can opt to do your cleanse for a 1-7 day time period.

Drinking fresh pressed vegetable juices is a great way to infuse your body with plenty of nutrition, boost your immune system, aid in weight loss, clear your skin, and leave you feeling energetic. Most cleanse plans recommend drinking only juices for a fixed period. That said if you’re thinking to avoid solid foods for more than 24 hours you should talk to your doctor to make sure that your plan is safe for you.

Looking for a place where you can do a juice cleanse? Tokyo Juice is an English-friendly juice and smoothie shop located in Omotesando. Owned by husband and wife team Jeffery Muromatsu and Yesenia Garcia, their mission to serve the community with healthy offers started from their own experiences of healing and is inspired by the health scene in California. Their signature juice cleanse includes 5 bottles of freshly pressed juices for each day, and you can opt for a 1, 3, 5, or 7-day cleanse. Plus, they can deliver it right to your door.

2. Become acquainted with fermented Japanese superfoods

Your gut has trillions of bacteria responsible for helping us break down and absorb nutrients. If you’ve overconsumed foods or eaten too many processed foods that have created digestive stress, your body might find it hard to absorb the nutrition it needs, leading to a domino effect of inflammatory-related health conditions.

To get your gut back on the right track, give yourself a dose of healthy bacteria by adding in fermented foods to your diet. Japan has easily accessible fermented foods such as pickles (tsukemono, お漬物), miso (味噌), natto (納豆), shiokoji (fermented seasoning 塩麹), amazake (sweet rice sake 甘酒), and kombucha (昆布茶), which are great items to get started with. You can find most items in regular Japanese stores, but I recommend visiting the Natural House organic grocery store in Omotesando for amazake and Elle Cafe for some great kombucha.

3. Opt for hot baths

You might think that getting healthy requires putting in more effort, but there are actually ways to improve your health by doing less—and taking a bath is the best place to begin. Studies have shown that by taking a hot bath, you can burn around the same amount of calories as a 30-minute walk, decrease your blood sugar levels, and reduce inflammation. The key is to raise your body temperature by at least 1 degree Celsius, but not to take a bath too hot as to induce stress. A temperature of 37-42 degrees Celsius is the best range for optimal effect, and you can easily set your bath to the right temperature if you have an electronic system.

Plus, if you add Epsom salts (エプソムソルト) to your bath, your body can absorb magnesium which will help relax your muscles and aid in digestion—a great way to reset your digestive system after holiday overconsumption.

Speaking of baths, Japanese hot springs (onsen) and public baths (sento) are great places to visit during cold weather. Here’s a list of breathtakingly beautiful onsen resorts to visit for inspiration.

4. Join a fitness community

© Photo by Mom in Balance Tokyo

Creative and fun workouts with Mom in Balance | Photo courtesy of Mom in Balance Tokyo

The perks of joining a fitness community go beyond the exercise; you can gain new friendships and feel motivated through accountability. One of the most common emotional health issues foreigners face in Japan is loneliness outside the workplace, so joining a community is a great way to boost your health both emotionally and physically.

SOGO Fitness is an active workout community where men and women come together to experience everything from boot camps to bouldering to running to yoga and more on their daily fitness schedule. They offer a boot camp every Sunday morning in Yoyogi park where you can do group exercises, partner work, and running according to your own fitness level of beginner, intermediate or advanced. The participants are mostly working professionals with a passion for fitness, both new and long term residents of Japan. The best way to find out the latest information and their scheduling is to check out their Facebook Page.

Mom in Balance Tokyo is another warm community of international mothers who gather to exercise together in parks. They have an on-site babysitter at every session so moms can exercise without distraction. The workout programs include options for pregnant and postpartum participants with educated trainers who can help modify exercises for safety. Each session consists of group exercises and pair work to help you stay motivated and make friends. To find out when the next session takes place, visit their website.

Looking for a specific kind of exercise? You can also find fitness communities from hiking to cycling and more on Meetup.com.

5. Take care of your mental health

You might feel that you’d be able to get healthier if you weren’t living in Japan. If only Japan were more keto-friendly, more vegan-friendly, more eco-friendly, had more CrossFit gyms… The health goals you might have set for yourself based on cultural norms in your home country don’t always translate to life in Japan. These challenges are not necessarily a reflection of a lack of resources, but of your mindset around your ability to get healthy in a location that isn’t your home country.

Positive mental health is crucial to helping you take care of all other areas of your health and life. “You can’t think your way out of negative thinking”, and having a therapy session for your mental health is like “a massage for the brain”, says Vickie Skorji, Lifeline Director at TELL Japan, a mental health clinic that serves the international community.

If starting the New Year in Japan has made you question your purpose for living abroad, heightened your feelings of homesickness or feelings of a loss of identity, then having an opportunity to talk through these challenges can help you gain a more positive outlook on life in Japan and make the most out of your experience here.

You can find excellent English-speaking therapists to suit your needs at TELL, International Mental Health Professionals Japan, and Tokyo Counseling Services.

With these resources and support under your belt, you’re bound to make 2020 your healthiest year yet!

Ever since I moved into a bigger apartment and found myself wasting away my precious weekend hours doing multiple loads of laundry and scrubbing the floors clean, I started wondering if it was time to look for a housekeeper. 

But I discovered the process of finding a housekeeper to be a little more nerve-racking than I had anticipated. How would I know if I was selecting a reliable, qualified cleaner? Would they clean in the way that I preferred, or would I have to spend some time training them? How could I feel safe with allowing a stranger into my apartment without my being present? 

Luckily for me, my worries were put aside when I learned about Kurashinity, Tokyo’s premium housekeeping services. I got to experience their professionalism when they visited my home in Omotesando for a mini trial cleaning service, and the outcome was beyond my expectations. 

Read on to find out why you need to try Kurashinity housekeeping services, stat.

What is Kurashinity?

Kurashinity is a Japanese housekeeping agency run by their parent brand, Pasona, a leading human resources enterprise. All of the housekeeping staff are nationally qualified professional housekeepers from the Philippines who undergo more than 400 hours of training over a three-month period prior to working for the company. “Kurashi” is the Japanese word for “living”, and “Nity” (ngiti) means “smile” in Tagalog, so their concept is to support your lifestyle and leave a smile on your face. 

The brand originally started when Pasona aimed to empower Japanese women to work outside of the home by easing their cultural burdens and responsibilities within the home. Since Japanese women were the original target market, Pasona developed a system to train professional Filipino housekeepers on how to clean Japanese-style home features (such as the bathrooms and tatami mats). As the brand grew and evolved, it now services the Tokyo and Kanagawa regions in Japanese and English with about 40 percent of its clientele being foreigners in Japan.   

How does the housekeeping system work?

Kurashinity has three types of courses within their regular plan: Light Course, Standard Course, and Luxury Course. All courses include standard household cleaning services such as servicing the kitchen, bathroom, toilets, dusting, vacuuming, mopping, laundry, ironing, cleaning kitchen appliances, and more. The household cleaning service is offered as a 3.5-hour service or for seven hours. Your housekeeper will visit you one to five times per week, and the system works on a subscription basis where you are charged monthly via credit card. They also have one-time service options for house cleaning for people who are moving into or out of a home. 

Here’s an overview of each course:

1. Light Course (This is the most basic course for clients looking only for house cleaning)

• Laundry and ironing
• Bed making
• Cleaning household items such as kitchen appliances
• Putting items back where they belong and tidying up
• Yardwork (weeding, watering plants, etc.)

2. Standard Course (Most recommended for foreigners in Japan who need help with errands)

• All of the features of the Light Course
• Shopping for groceries
• Shopping for detergents and household goods
• Taking your clothes to the drycleaners
• Prepping food ingredients for you to cook
• Standard table settings for home parties

3. Luxury Course (Best for clients looking for a housekeeper to perform additional tasks that require more skillset)

• All of the features of the Standard Course
• Professional table settings
• Serving houseguests
• Assistance with home parties

Personally, I got to try their “mini” service which is the trial service you receive when you have a consultation. My housekeeper cleaned my bathroom, toilets, sink area, mirrors, and made the bed. During your trial, you also have the option of having your housekeeper to clean the kitchen area, instead. 

How are the housekeepers trained?

The parent brand, Pasona, partners with Magsaysay, a global training and staffing services company for housekeepers in the Philippines, to ensure they are hiring top-notch professionals. A Japanese simulated home has been set up in the Philippines where housekeepers learn about unique Japanese household features such as mizumawari (any water-drainage areas such as the bathroom, bathtub, sink, and kitchen), how to clean tatami mats, how to use standard Japanese cleaning products, trash separation, and how to use Japanese machines such as washing machines and bath dryers. 

The result? Japanese-grade quality services  

Because of the extensive training Kurashinity conducts for its staff, I was keen to hear from users if the services are effective. I spoke with a Kurashinity client, Ochi-san, on her experience using the service.

Kurashinity housekeepers are also excellent with time-management and can complete work that would normally take five to six hours in only 3.5 hours.

“Before using Kurashinity, I had tried at least three housekeepers from other companies. The housekeepers were almost always late, had questionable methods of cleaning my apartment, and would surprise me with things like sharing information about their personal lives which in Japan, is not considered professional. With Kurashinity, I can always expect the same level of quality even if I receive a different housekeeper. 

Kurashinity housekeepers are also excellent with time-management and can complete work that would normally take five to six hours in only 3.5 hours. Between the quality of work, consistency, and trust system through communicating with Kurashinity, you really get the value for the price.”  

How do you get started with a housekeeper?

By this point, I was excited about the services but I still had more questions. Do I leave my key with the housekeeper? Do I need to supply detergents? What if something in my home is damaged?

The first thing that happens when you sign up for Kurashinity is that a representative from their parent company, Pasona, and a housekeeper will come to your home for a consultation and a one-hour cleaning service (¥5,000). The representative will explain to you how their system works, you can inquire about special requests, and you can experience the cleaning service to see if it’s a good fit for you. 

Things you’ll need to prep ahead of time

Pasona has a key center where they manage all of their client’s house keys. Once you provide a spare house key to Pasona, your assigned housekeeper will pick it up from the key center before work and then return it to the key center after work. You are required to be home for the trial service (Kurashinity Mini), but after that, it is not necessary for you to be home when your housekeeper is scheduled to work. 

Between the triangles on my toilet paper to my carefully made bed, I felt like I had hotel-grade services delivered to my apartment and I can’t wait for them to come back.

Housekeepers do have their own cleaning tools that they will bring with them including gloves and rags, but clients are required to supply detergents and larger tools such as a duster and a vacuum. Housekeepers are experienced with working with non-Japanese detergents or natural cleansers if you have any of those on hand, and if you want them to pick up Japanese cleaning supplies then you can opt for the Standard Course and a housekeeper will gather items for you. 

Communication is a breeze

One of the great benefits of working with a housekeeping agency is the communication you have with the company. You can do all of your scheduling, arrangements, and housekeeper feedback via the Pasona representative in English or in Japanese. If on the rare occasion something was to go wrong and an item breaks, your household possessions are protected by insurance.

How do the housekeepers feel about Kurashinity?

Given that Kurashinity provides extensive training and housing for their workers, I was curious to hear from housekeepers about their experience working there.

Here’s what Marifel had to say: 

“Prior to working for Kurashinity, I worked as a housekeeper for a few years in Dubai and Kuwait. The culture and lifestyle are very different and I found that living in Japan has been an easy adjustment. I love working for Kurashinity because they provide very good training, especially time-management and Japanese education lessons that will prepare me for a life beyond my time with the company. Also, because we work standard business hours from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays only, I like feeling like a professional employee. 

When it comes to housekeeping, I want to clean as if this is my own house. I am careful when using each item, including cleaning tools and machines. The most rewarding part of the job is when I receive positive feedback. After my three-year visa has expired, I hope to renew it and come back to Japan for more work.”

The results speak for themselves

By the end of trying out Kurashinity services, the areas worked on were spotless. My drains were as white as when I first moved in, dust was missing from areas I typically forget (like the flaps on toilet paper holders), and my bed magically looked crisp even though I hadn’t pre-ironed the sheets. I was most impressed with how the mirrors in my bath area were rid of stubborn water stains that I couldn’t figure out how to remove on my own.

I was also impressed with the professionalism of the housekeeper; she treated me with the same kindness you receive when you’re a guest at a hotel. Between the triangles on my toilet paper to my carefully made bed, I felt like I had hotel-grade services delivered to my apartment and I can’t wait for them to come back.

Special offer for Savvy readers

Ready to try Kurashinity’s housekeeping service? For our Savvy Tokyo readers who select the Regular Plan, Kurashinity will wave the initial ¥5,000 consultation service fee. Just complete the registration form through the below link and be sure to add the campaign code!

Registration form: Click here.
Campaign code: SAVVY

I found Flavia’s cozy home tucked away on a quiet back street of bustling Shimokitazawa. It was a freezing cold and wet day, yet I instantly felt warmed and welcomed as she greeted me with her beaming smile, a hot cup of chamomile tea, and a fun conversation about her journey. We giggled as she explained to me how ikebana teachers receive a flower name upon certification, with one of the kanji taken from one’s flower teacher. Her flower name is Senran (Fountain of Orchids). 

Flavia starts off her ikebana lessons with a demonstration.

Smooth jazz played softly as I watched Flavia demonstrate our ikebana lesson. We were going to use fragrant eucalyptus branches, light green balloon plant milkweed, and light purple Eustoma. I watched her with intrigue as she accurately measured her flowers, placed them delicately at specific degrees, bent branches to achieve the angles she desired, and trimmed leaves for a sharper effect. Every now and then she’d take a step back to observe her composition, then make additional bends and snips until her artistic arrangement was complete. 

What inspired you to learn ikebana and to become a teacher?

I have always had an interest in flowers from a young age. I grew up in the countryside of Brazil, and I remember at around age 10 or 11 that my friends would tease me for buying flowers because they thought that flowers were expensive and only lasted a short time. But for me, I always found joy and inspiration in flowers and arrangements. My grandfather is Japanese and when I visited Japan once in 2005, I became intrigued by ikebana. But I couldn’t speak the language well enough at the time to learn about it. So when I moved in 2014, I decided I was going to do it and I dedicated myself to learning and became a teaching master with a degree. In 2017, I started teaching my own classes, Ikebana Experience, through Airbnb Experiences to share the beauty of ikebana with guests from around the world, and my classes have been growing ever since. 

© Photo by ikebanaexperience

How long did it take you to become a teaching master?

It took me about three years to become a teaching master. There are five books within the curriculum and each takes a minimum of seven months to finish. Right now, I am a Level 4 teacher and am studying to become a Level 1; it takes about two years to achieve each level.

Did you face any challenges along the way?

I stipulated my own challenges. Every opportunity I had to learn from my master, I would try to do at least two or three ikebanas with different materials within our two-hour sessions. Most students only make one arrangement, because doing more does not make you progress faster in the curriculum. But it is very important to practice and the more I could practice with my master, the more I could have access to different materials, techniques, and my master’s point of view. So the challenges I faced were when I pushed myself, even on my off-days when I was not in the mood. 

What is ikebana and what does it mean for Japanese people?

Ikebana, also known as kado, comes from the words ikeru (to arrange, to live), and hana (flower). It is one of the three classical Japanese arts of refinement (the other two are kodo, incense appreciation, and chado, tea ceremony). Ikebana originated from India through Buddhism because flowers were used as an offering to the gods. Then, the Japanese took the flower arrangement concept and made it into what it is today. Today, there are thousands of schools teaching different styles of ikebana across Japan and millions of people practicing the art worldwide. 

Ikebana is a reminder to enjoy the little things in life and what we have now.

Ikebana is a philosophy about harmony and appreciating life. Japanese people always have flowers in their homes and the flowers serve as a reminder of the shortness of life and the importance of enjoying the present. You put your passion into making an arrangement but it will soon be gone, so you need to enjoy it now. Ikebana is a reminder to enjoy the little things in life and what we have now.

You mentioned there are many different schools of ikebana. What kind of ikebana do you teach?

I teach the Sogetsu curriculum where we believe that flowers can be arranged by anyone, at any time, and anywhere, with any kind of material. It can be placed anywhere in any room, whether it be your at the front door of your home, in the living room, or in the middle of an office. In Japan, there are over 5,000 Sogetsu schools.

 

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A post shared by Flavia Nishimura (@ikebanaexperience) on Feb 18, 2019 at 3:26pm PST

Is there meaning behind each part of an ikebana arrangement?

To create a three-dimensional Sogetsu Ikebana flower arrangement, you need a moribana (a shallow, wide-mouthed vase), a kenzan (a weighted base with dozens of spikes placed within the vase to support the flowers and stems), the flowers, and three stems of different heights called shushi. These three stems are the main branches called Shin, Soe, and Hikae. Shin is the longest stem and represents heaven. Soe is the medium stem and represents human. And the last one, Hikae, represents earth.

How is ikebana different from Western forms of flower arrangement?

What is interesting about the ikebana style of flower arrangement compared to Western arrangements is that it is a blend of both logic and art. On the one hand, there are rules to how you can arrange the branches and flowers according to specific angles and heights, but on the other, you are free to select materials you find beauty in and to create your own design. 

© Photo by ikebanaexperience

In ikebana, less is more. Westerners think of flowers in volume whereas in ikebana, you can create an arrangement with only a few elements creating a minimalistic piece where you can enjoy the simplicity of each individual branch and flower. 

Also, while Westerners might only consider the arrangement, we have to think about the relationship and balance between the flowers and the container. Once you have created an ikebana arrangement, we say that the flowers have become you, because none of the flowers are what they once identified as before you started. 

Why should people consider an ikebana lesson?

You can use ikebana to learn more about yourself. For example, if you are finding yourself fearful of cutting branches or removing leaves, it might be that you are also fearful of letting go of something in your personal life. Once you trim and cut flowers, you cannot go back, so decisions feel more final and scary. You will also learn to feel calm as you need to be comfortable and patient when working with living things.

Once you have created an ikebana arrangement, we say that the flowers have become you, because none of the flowers are what they once identified as before you started. 

Is there anything else you would like to share with us? 

I welcome anyone, from those who want to simply experience ikebana to those who want to become a professional. I would like to challenge anyone to try no matter your age—don’t be afraid to learn a new art and culture and feel free to come with your partner or your child and have fun learning together. Once you start, you won’t want to stop!

For more information about Flavia’s ikebana classes, check out the official website here or Instagram page.

Making plans when there are so many unknowns and complexities around living internationally felt like a gamble. How could I manage investments when I have savings in multiple currencies? What would happen if I made investments in Japan but decided to move to another country? How could I make the best decisions when I didn’t understand how laws and taxes even worked here?

I started wondering if and how I should financially prepare for my own future as a woman living outside of my home country. 

All of these questions were swarming in my mind and I found myself trying to do research on my own—and promptly giving up. 

And it seems I’m not alone. When I posted on my social media asking other women and men if they had ever done any kind of financial planning, many people replied with similar concerns. “How should they maximize their retirement savings if they’re not planning to take the Japanese pension?”, “Should they invest in Japanese real estate while here?”, “Isn’t investment risky?” they commented.

A financial planning firm designed for foreign residents

The team of expert financial advisors at Argentum Wealth.

I sat down with Argentum Wealth, a financial planning and advisory firm for the foreign community in Japan, to find out what we can do to take control over our financial future as foreign residents.

Argentum Wealth is based in Minato-ku, just a few minutes’ walk from Tokyo Tower. They are the largest locally licensed firm in Japan focusing on the expat community.  The company was founded in 2007 by Lloyd Danon and Martin Zotta, two financial advisors who each have 20 years of experience serving the international community. They advise and manage a wide range of areas, from general financial planning to investments, private pensions, insurance, and real estate.

Of course, both Zotta and Danon agree that there are tons of ways that you can benefit from having a financial planner but here we’ve whittled it down to the top five.

1. You can maximize your money wherever you are in the world

If you’re worried about having to move your investments when life takes you to another country, it doesn’t have to be that complicated. You can establish investment accounts that are based internationally, which means you can move from one location to the next without having to constantly move your investment accounts. Argentum Wealth designs portfolios for people who are mobile, allowing clients to access their portfolio from anywhere.

This means that you don’t have to worry about having an exit strategy with your investments if and when you decide to leave Japan. Argentum Wealth works with multiple currencies, so you can easily make international investments even if you have savings and income in different currencies. 

Argentum Wealth has decades of experience working with international clients, they have access to examples of what other people have done in your situation to help guide you in decision making.

“In many cases, our clients will rotate through Tokyo. Once accounts have been set up, they can be managed and accessed from any country in the world. A lot of our clients are living back home or in another country following their careers and we continue to help maintain their investments,” says Danon.

You don’t even have to find a new financial planner if you move. Argentum Wealth continues to manage clients through Skype, telephone, and email, so the quality and range of services can be maintained even if you are abroad. The only thing that changes is what time you set up your meeting based on your new time zone. 

2. You can build your own knowledge of financial options in Japan and beyond

One of the Managing Directors at Argentum Wealth, Lloyd Danon (left), has been financially advising international clients for 20 years.

There are a few reasons why foreigners do not make local investments in Japan but one of the major ones is the many banks will turn you away if you can’t read and write Japanese. Language and cultural barriers can make investing your money feel like a leap in the dark.

If you’re not sure how the tax system works in Japan, whether or not you should invest in local assets or if your money is better off in investment abroad, then speaking with professionals can help you confidently make the right choices based on your situation. 

“We work together with trusted local partners that specialize in offering services in English to make it very easy for foreign clients to acquire investments like properties, and then have them managed,” says Zotta.

Note: If you are a US National, they also assist with pension transfers and 401Ks. 

“We are one of the only firms with access to onshore US solutions for Japan residents,” adds Danon. 

3. You’ll have access to a wider variety of options for where to invest your money

Each stage of life comes with a new set of investments to consider. Argentum Wealth can help you with a wide range of strategies from retirement planning, children’s education, lump sum, regular savings, portfolio management, life insurance, health insurance, inheritance, and tax planning, so they can meet you where you’re at when you’re ready.

They also have a property management side that covers everything from single units, houses, multi-units, and apartment buildings. This also includes mortgages, loans, property management, and managing rents.

Most of the international women in Japan who have worked with Argentum Wealth have decided that they want to be financially independent regardless of whether they are with or without a partner.

“Normally when a foreigner purchases an investment property, they might not get hands-on with management. An estate agent or management company will manage all of the billings and mortgage payments and pay the owner what is left at the end of the month,” says Danon.

Argentum Wealth will oversee your assets and make sure that they’re offering the right return.

4. You can invest independently from your partner

Most of the international women in Japan who have worked with Argentum Wealth have decided that they want to be financially independent regardless of whether they are with or without a partner. For some women, the income stream might change during their life due to having kids. However, while their considerations might vary, their basic financial needs and goals are not so much different from men’s.

“We do a financial review to look at assets or objectives and each situation is case by case.  Every client is different, and so the planning has to suit them.  For example, some couples want all the financial planning and investments done together, while others feel more comfortable keeping everything separate and confidential.” says Zotta.

5. You can start wherever you’re at

Financial Advisors at Argentum Wealth, Jack Lowe (left) and Robert Alfa (right).

There isn’t a minimum budget required to getting started. While many people have the perception that you need to be rich to have a financial planner, Argentum Wealth has a range of solutions for people who are just starting out as well as for people who have accumulated wealth and are looking to reinvest or to place that wealth somewhere more efficiently. 

“You can start with a simple, monthly investment plan. There is something for everyone,” says Zotta. 

“You can start with a simple, monthly investment plan. There is something for everyone,” says Zotta. 

There’s no handbook to being a foreign resident in Japan, which is why it can be hard sometimes to assess where you’re at in your life and how to make decisions about your money. Since Argentum Wealth has decades of experience working with international clients, they have access to examples of what other people have done in your situation to help guide you in decision making. 

“We learn a lot from our clients, and are in a position to pass on that valuable knowledge to our client base,” says Zotta.

How can I get started with a financial planner?

Martin Zotta, one of the Managing Directors at Argentum Wealth.

If you’re new to working with a financial planner, the first step is to have a conversation. You can do a complete financial review with Argentum Wealth and share your goals and priorities, and they will conduct a follow-up meeting with you to share solutions and recommendations. Even if you don’t have an idea of what you want to do before you speak with them, a simple conversation can open your mind to options. 

My biggest takeaway from our interview was this: As international residents, we might feel hesitant about creating a plan when we don’t know exactly how our lives will pan out. But if you think about it, life planning—marriage, divorce, kids and so on—is never certain, even for people who haven’t ever left their home country. 

Having a financial planner will help you make the best decisions for what to with your hard-earned cash and how to ensure a secure future. That sounds like a sure bet to me.