Episode 006 Show Notes: My Ayurveda Journey So Far
/In this episode, I’m giving you an update on my Ayurveda journey so far — what I’m loving, what I’m struggling with, and how I’m moving forward. Would love to hear about your journey so far as well! Share with me over on Facebook.
So what’s my dosha constitution?
Coming out of episode 3 with Malia, I was curious which dosha was most prominent in my basic nature. Chatting with Malia and hearing her talk about the doshas, I definitely felt like I knew which one was probably most prominent in my life, but I wanted to also take a quiz to see what it said.
So I took the quiz on The Chopra Center’s website. It told me that my mind-body type is Vata. Take it with a grain of salt, but I was VERY surprised by how accurate the quiz seems to be.
My dosha constitution is made up of:
50% Vata
20% Pitta
30% Kapha
This means the Vata dosha is predominant in my basic nature. Vata is the principle of movement and change, so Vatas tend to always be on the go, with energetic and creative minds. Definitely true for me! I can’t seem to sit still and am always working on some kind of passion project or side hustle.
As long as Vata is in balance, I’ll be lively and enthusiastic, with a “lean” body. If Vata becomes imbalanced, I’ll start to feel out of control. This is — I believe — where a lot of the anxiety I struggle with comes through.
How to balance the Vata dosha:
I love this simple description from The Chopra Center:
Vata is considered cold, light, dry, subtle, flowing, changeable, irregular, rough, and clear. Therefore, excess Vata requires warmth, moisture, grounding, calm, and stability.
From an approach that includes all five senses, this means warm colors and aromas, soothing music, hot and nutritionally-dense foods, grounding activities such as yoga and meditation, and soothing body treatments that help restore equilibrium.
The Chopra Center also provides very specific guidance, like avoid becoming chilled (since Vatas typically have cold hands and feet), perform a daily self-Abhyanga massage (yes please!), drink ginger tea, favor aromas that are sweet, heavy, and warm, eat fats and oils, favor sweet, heavy fruits, eat cooked vegetables, and lots more.
I learned from Malia that the beauty of Ayurveda is that there aren’t hard and fast rules. While the above guidance is exceptionally helpful in better understanding our core, we must give ourselves grace to flow with the seasons and life stages we’re currently venturing through. And that’s how we’ll be able to keep the best balance for our unique selves.
Where have I won in my Ayurveda journey so far?
I’ve won in dry brushing and Abhyanga self massage and in food!
Abhyanga Self-Massage
Malia spoke to Abhyanga self-massage in episode 3, and also suggests it as part of her ‘Building a Morning Routine’ guide. Sign up for her guide at maliawright.com to get a great tutorial for how to practice this type of self-massage — you seriously won’t regret it.
I tried it for the first time a few weekends ago and Malia wasn’t kidding when she describes it as life changing. One of the most powerful benefits I’ve gotten from it so far has been growing my self connection and self love.
Food
The second place I’ve won (a smaller win, but still a win) is food. One example of this is how I switched up my morning breakfast routine. I made the change from breakfast smoothies (although delicious, just too cold for me in the mornings) to warm oatmeal with banana. This simple shift made all the difference in me savoring and enjoying my first meal of the day on a whole other level!
Where have I “failed” in my Ayurveda journey so far?
I don’t even really like saying “where did I FAIL?” in my Ayurveda journey so far because that’s just it — it’s a journey and will take consistent practice to build these routines. BUT, the two areas I know I can improve are general self care and technology cut-off times.
To me, general self care means keeping a gratitude journal, getting regular exercise, reading daily, and not eating dinner at 9 p.m., among other practices. And I know as a Vata that it’s important to keep a regular lifestyle routine. But somehow schedules and motivation continue to be my biggest battles when it comes to cultivating a fulfilling routine in my life.
And ohhh technology cut-off times… can you relate to using technology to wind down and decompress? My goal is to get to a point where I’m not using technology past 7 p.m. or before 7 a.m. But it’s a definite work in progress.
Check out these great Ayurveda resources:
If you’re interested in finding out what your dosha constitution and make up is, I did like the quick and short quiz I took on The Chopra Center’s website. And if you simply search for Ayurveda quiz on Google, you’ll find lots of other amazing resources as you start digging in.
Check out the book Malia recommended, Healthy Happy Sexy: Ayurveda Wisdom for Modern Women, and self-care products to help you kick off your Abhyanga self-massage journey.
And of course, as you’ll remember from episode 3, if you want to learn more about Ayurveda, Malia graciously created a FREE simple guide to Ayurveda — check it out here.
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