Top tips to be healthier with Ayurveda

If you’d have asked me several years ago not to eat Mexican on a hot summer day, I would have told you, “Uhh… why…?”

I didn’t understand or care about the relationship between the foods I ate, the surrounding environment, and my state of health.

Now it all makes sense because I know what Ayurveda is and how it affects my life positively.

Today, I’ll share with you my best tips to be healthier with Ayurveda.

WRONG THINKING

To be honest, several years ago, I did not see a relationship at all between my body and mind and my diet and lifestyle.

I would have still eaten the spicy Mexican dish in a super hot summer day, and probably have added a margarita.

Just for fun.

Crazy now to even think about that combination!

Before knowing about Ayurveda, I had severe acne, and I was overexercising and following what I considered an optimal diet: six meals per day packed with protein, drinking milk-based protein shakes, and having cheese and milk regularly.

After trying traditional medications with no result, I started searching for an alternative.

Naturally, I felt very interested in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and kept searching for more options and ideas to heal and reverse the damage I had done to my body.

Unfortunately, I didn’t know at that time I was the one responsible for the damage.

I seriously thought it was bad luck or genetics.

And then, fortunately, I found Ayurveda.

WHAT IS AYURVEDA?

So, let me tell you a few facts about this wonderful ancient healing system, before going deeper into my best tips to be healthier with Ayurveda.

• Ayurveda is a sophisticated medicinal system originated in India, that focuses on helping people get connected to their bodies to avoid disease and imbalance.
• Ayurveda has been around for thousands of years. Sometimes, people say 3000. Others say 5000. To me, just being around 1000 years and still being relevant and applicable for everyone is pretty incredible!
• Ayurveda is a way of healing. You can be healthier by following its principles.
• Ayurveda considers the whole person. This is an important distinction from western medicine, where they see you more like body parts.
• Ayurveda focuses on the prevention of disease, not the cure of disease. However, it helps you cure the imbalances you are already have.
• Ayurveda believes in Prana or life force. Learn more about Prana.
• Ayurveda believes that all things in the universe, you included, are made up of a combination of five elements.
• You don’t have to be a “Yogi” to practice Ayurveda!

THE FIVE ELEMENTS

In Ayurveda, there are 5 Elements that are uniquely combined for all living things.

The five elements and their qualities are as follows:

• Ether — This is the most abstract of the elements, and it is very subtle.
• Air — Dry, light, cool
• Fire — Hot, fiery, wet
• Water — Smooth, fluid
• Earth — Heavy, slow

WHAT IS YOUR CONSTITUTION?

We all have that friend that can literally eat like there is no tomorrow and still not gain any weight, right?

Or that cousin that seems that just by looking at food, they are heavier.

Ayurveda explains this phenomenon very elegantly.

According to Ayurvedic principles, this comes down to our constitutions or Doshas, which are associated directly with the 5 Elements we just talked about.

Now this is important.

To follow my best tips to be healthier following the Ayurvedic principles, you need first to determine your body constitution.

There are 3 main Doshas or constitutions: Vata, Pitta and Kapha.

But remember that you have your own unique combination of the 5 Elements.

I like to think of it like the Ayurvedic DNA.

However, you normally have one or two dominant Doshas, for example, I’m Pitta and Vata Dosha dominant.

Discover your Dosha (body type)

AGNI – THE DIGESTIVE FIRE

We all have in different amounts of Pitta dosha within our body.

Pitta is responsible for the biological changes that our body creates.

As you will see, Agni or digestive fire plays a crucial role in the Ayurvedic tips I’ll share, so you can feel healthier.

Pitta dosha depends on Agni to perform those changes which means digestion is governed by Agni and we, of course, want Agni to be strong, in order to digest well all we eat.

This is the energy than digests our food and experiences.

LIKE INCREASES LIKE AND OPPOSITES

Good health, in Ayurveda, means that your own individual combination of Doshas is balanced.

This balance is reflected in your overall health and well being of your mind and body.

But, living in the modern world that we do, with such availability of food (which is for the most part not always healthy!), pollutants, chemicals, an overambitious view of how life should be lived, over stimulation of our senses, and sleepless nights… can seriously disturb our bodies.

Therefore, by making small changes, one at a time, in your diet, exercise routine, and lifestyle, you can go back to your natural state of health and live a more balanced life.

These are important principles in which my best tips to be healthier with Ayurveda are based upon.

Don’t forget the rules of Like Increases Like and Opposites when deciding what to eat.

At the beginning, it’s necessary to have a list of the general guidelines to keep your constitution healthy, but to me, it is not about having a set list of foods that you put in your fridge and then forget about it.

I think of it as a moment-to-moment awareness of how I am feeling and how food can help me get or keep my balance which is reflected in my mood, emotions, thoughts, and body.

ENERGETIC QUALITIES OF FOOD

Also, you need to know before we go on, that according to ayurvedic principles, all foods you eat have a chemical and energetic nature.

Normally, they are categorized according to their taste: sweet (no referring to candy here! but foods like carbs, proteins, and fats), sour, salty, pungent, bitter and astringent.

The principles of Like Increases Like and Opposites basically say that factors of a similar nature to being healthy, will increase health.

Like wholesome food, meditation, and Yoga.

On the other side, practices of different nature to what health is, will foster disease, like junk food, not enough sleep, and alcohol.

My point?

Ayurveda teaches us that to balance a disease, we must use qualities than are the opposite to the illness characteristics.

If you are feeling constipated, dry, and cold, the best treatment would be to use medicated oils and heat therapy.

That’s why one of the first changes I did to my daily routine, was to eliminate my strenuous gym workouts (not forever!) and do Yin Yoga instead to calm myself down and reduce the hyperactivity my body was used to.

Now, that I’m healed, I’ve returned to the gym but in a more moderate fashion.

See? Eating Mexican in that hot summer day wasn’t such a good idea.

Put it simply, all of these factors: Mexican food, hot weather, and alcohol, were all sharing the same qualities of the acne I was experiencing: Hot, Sharp, and Oily.

All of them seriously aggravated my Pitta dosha.

One of the best tips to be healthier with Ayurveda is being aware of the moment and noticing factors that can aggravate your Dosha.

BEST TIPS TO BE HEALTHIER WITH AYURVEDA FOR EACH DOSHA

Here is the deal.

The more sustainable and consistent changes in your life are the ones you do little by little.

So, start with just one of the following Ayurvedic Tips and once you feel comfortable with it, go to the next.

These are my best tips to be healthier today with Ayurveda!

They will foster a state of health in your body and calm in your mind.

VATA

This dosha is a result of the combination of Ether and Air. (Think wind, fast, dry)

If a person has Vata constitution is thin, tall, and creative.

They hate being cold.

Their skin is dry, and their hair is scarce, dry, and brittle.

They tend to suffer from constipation and have very unpredictable appetites.

They don’t have a good memory. Emotionally, they tend to stress.

Therefore:

• Eat at regular times each day. Create a habit.
• Don’t overeat.
• Drink warm liquids always.
• Go for cooked and warm meals. Oatmeal, quinoa, couscous, even rice. You can eat good carbs with no fear.
• Avoid raw foods.
• Because you tend to be “dry” go for good fats that lubricate your system,  like olive oil, coconut oil, nuts, and avocado.
• Vata is already “quick” in nature so avoid coffee. Coffee will make you over hyped up. You don’t need more stimulation.
• Choose sweet, sour, and salty tastes.

To start pacifying your Vata dosha, follow my FREE Ayurvedic meal plans for Vata.

PITTA

This dosha is a result of the combination of Air and Fire. (Think Fire, hotness, oily)

A person with pitta constitution is very intelligent and quick to learn.

Their faces and eyes tend to be reddish, their body temperatures are hot.

They are of medium size and weight, often hungry with giant appetites.

Normally suffer from inflammatory conditions, like acne. Emotionally, they tend to be angry.

Therefore:

• Eat at regular times each day. Create a habit.
• Don’t overeat.
• Drink warm liquids always.
• Go for a balance of cooked and raw foods. Take into account the climate where you live. I live in the always warm Florida so I try to choose foods that cool me down like fruits, salads, and raw vegetables.
• Go for “drying” foods (to pacify the fire) like granola, beans, oats, and vegetables. Eating a good amount of healthy carbs is good for Pitta.
• You still need good fats, but avoid overdoing them. That will aggravate your constitution. A little goes a long way.
• Avoid alcohol.
• Choose sweet, bitter, and astringent tastes.

To start pacifying your Pitta dosha, follow my FREE meal plans for Pitta.

KAPHA

This dosha is a result of the combination of Water and Earth. (Think heavy, fluid, and oily)

A person with Kapha constitution is good looking (we all have a little of Kapha dosha, don’t worry 😉

They have bright eyes, beautiful skin, abundant hair, and are inclined to be loving and have stable minds.

They gain weight easily and like to sleep a lot! Emotionally, they tend to be depressed.

Therefore:

• Eat at regular times each day. Create a habit.
• Don’t overeat.
• Drink warm liquids always.
• Go for light foods. Try not to eat “heavy” foods like pasta, or bread.
• Eat a lot of fruits and vegetables! (a lot!!!). Favor cooked foods over raw foods. If you have a Kapha tendency, chances are you don’t have a lot of “digestive fire” so help your digestion with this useful tip.
• Use good fats but use as little as possible.
• Avoid sugar.
• Choose pungent, bitter, and astringent tastes.

To pacify your Kapha dosha, follow my FREE meal plans for Kapha.

In addition, you probably know this, but just a reminder to stay away from processed foods like donuts, cakes, ice cream.

Everything in moderation!

I still do all things I love in my life, like weight lifting or even have a glass of wine once in a while, but I do those things from an ayurvedic perspective, so I keep my balance.

I hope you love these tips to be healthier with Ayurveda, and also feel more grounded and balanced!