Ayurveda

Mornings aren’t for everyone, and for some, getting out of bed requires immediate caffeine consumption! However, how you begin the day plays a very important role in how you feel and how you tackle the rest of the day, so hold off on that first cup until you’ve warmed up the body! Ayurvedic philosophy emphasizes the importance of morning rituals in your overall health and wellbeing, and sticking to a few of these rituals can align and cleanse your body, helping you gain energy and release toxins, balance your doshas and commit to a practice that can have a huge impact on your life.

In Ayurvedic medicine there are three identified doshas, or basic constitutions: Vata (air), Pitta (fire) and Kapha (earth & water). A person is generally predominant in two doshas, sometimes one main one, though everyone contains all three in varying degrees. It is the goal of Ayurvedic practices and diet to balance the doshas, no matter which is more active, in order to bring a person into optimal health.

Summer is in full swing here in the Northern hemisphere, which brings mixed reactions: some revel in the long, warm days, enjoying innumerable outdoor activities, while others seek cooling respite from the sun's rays and thick humidity. In the ancient practice of Ayurveda, summer (particularly late summer) is the season of Pitta—the firey, transformative energy at work in both nature and the body. Pitta is the fire that digests food and thoughts or ideas, so it's essential, but can easily get too intense as things heat up.

According to the philosophy of Ayurveda, anxiety is the manifestation of an imbalance in the body that originates in the mind, causing psychological changes similar to the body’s inherent response to stress. The core belief is that the body has an inherent wisdom and is able to  return the body, mind and spirit to a healthy, balanced state. It is truly amazing when we think about how immensely resilient our bodies are, despite the difficulties we often tend to impose upon them.

In the west, adhering to “western medicine” does not necessarily equate to health. Yearly trips to the doctor’s office and allopathic treatments rarely bring a person closer to wellness, nor do they contain the necessarily elements to inspire an individual to take powerful control over their personal well-being and bodily health.

Ayurveda is one of the most ancient scientific approaches to holistic healing in human history. As one of the first collected systems of medicinal practice, the roots of Ayurveda can be found in Tibetan, Traditional Chinese, and Early Greek medicine. Originating in India between five and six thousand years ago, Ayurveda is a holistic form of medicine fundamentally based upon the laws of nature to treat the body, mind and spirit.

Seasonal eating: It's become a major buzzword over the last few years, and there are now countless articles declaring the unending benefits of eating seasonally. And for the most part, those articles are right. Many years ago, I had no idea what seasonal eating even meant. Intuitively, I ate hearty soups and stews during the winter, green onions and sprouts during the spring, ice cream in the summer, and pumpkin in the fall. An ice cream cone and a pumpkin latte aren't exactly the heart of seasonal eating, but that's okay.