Rachel Robinson

Each Dosha governs certain areas and functions of the body. 
💨 Vata is responsible for communication, movement and transport. Its main location is in the colon. 
🔥 Pitta is responsible for digestion, metabolism and transformation. Its main location is the small intestine. 
🌎 Kapha is responsible for cohesion, lubrication and structure. Its main location is the chest. 

The Doshas are present in nature and rule different times of the day, year and seasons of life. And as they’re a part of nature, they’re also in foods, which is why an Ayurvedic practitioner gives dietary suggestions to bring the Doshas back into balance. Keep an eye on this series to learn which Dosha you need to balance and how to do so. 

Characteristics

💨 Vata has the properties of being dry, rough, cold, light, subtle and coarse, with movement and clarity.

🍁 Its season is autumn/winter – think of dry leaves being blown about by a cold wind.

🕑 Its time of day is 2 to 6, both am and pm – thank you afternoon slump.

👵 And its season of life is from age 60 onwards – did somebody say brittle bones?

• A regular daily routine with a good night’s sleep will do much to ground your flighty tendencies.
• Avoid cold, light foods (hello constipation!) and favour hearty soups and stews at regular mealtimes. Nourishing foods and drinks with sweet, sour or salty tastes are especially good for Vata.
• A massage with warming sesame oil is very settling for Vata and will lubricate the joints
• Gentle exercise and meditation are a must to stop the mind from racing

Characteristics

🔥 Pitta has the properties of being hot, sharp, sour, pungent, slightly oily, with flow and a liquid quality. 

🌞 Its season is summer and its time of day is 10 to 2, both am and pm – when the suns is strongest. 

💃 Its season of life is generally from age 20 to 60 – usually when you’re burning the candle at both ends!

🥵 Pittas can’t stand the heat and common problems are anything to do with heat eg. IBS, heartburn, rashes, inflammation, excessive sweating.

• Reduce heating and spicy foods (hello diarrhoea!) A good rule of thumb is to avoid foods with ‘hot’ colours like red, pink and orange eg. tomato, radish, carrots.
• Favour sweet, bitter and astringent tastes like wheat, rice, oats, green veg and sweet fruits. Cook with ghee, coconut oil or olive oil.
• Water sports keep you cool and team sports make good use of your leadership skills – just remember to share the load and not do everything yourself.
• Avoid rushing around and taking on too much, both personally and professionally. Taking one day off a week to recharge, preferably in nature, will reduce the tendency to burn out.

✅ Favour:

• Green and yellow veg but also sweet potato and aubergine
• Spices such as coriander, cumin, turmeric, fennel, cardamon and small amounts of ginger and lemon juice
• Ghee, olive or coconut oil for cooking
• Room-temperature water

❌ Avoid

• Salty and sour tastes including salty cheeses, sour cream and sour fruits
• Spices such as mustard seed, black/cayenne/chilli pepper, sea salt
• Nuts and red meat (difficult to digest), caffeine, anything fermented (too heating)
• Red, pink or orange veg
• Sesame in all forms – oil, seed, paste

🛏️ Bedfordshire

And for the love of God, if you do nothing else, get to bed by 10pm. Why? Because Pitta time starts then (10 am and pm) and that second wind of email answering and kitchen cleaning you’re experiencing is just the hustle and bustle associated with Pitta. So dim the lights, try not to get too excitable, and catch an early train to Bedfordshire. 

Characteristics

🌎 Kapha has the properties of being cold, soft, oily, sweet, sticky, stable and heavy. 

🌱 It has to do with growth and structure, so accordingly its season is spring and the season of life is from birth to around 20 – times of growth in both nature and people.

🌅 Its time of day is 6 to 10, both am and pm, which is why Ayurveda suggests getting up by 6am, when Kapha time starts. Otherwise you may feel heavy and lethargic, even after a long sleep.

🤧 Sinus congestion, asthma, slow digestion, obesity and depression are common Kapha problems.

• Get out of bed by 6am as that’s the start of Kapha time and sleeping late will make you feel heavy and lethargic. Just do it 
• Avoid dairy, heavy foods and large meals, especially in the evening, along with anything sweet, sour or salty.
• Favour foods with pungent (ginger, mustard), bitter (rocket, spinach) and astringent (sprouts, broccoli) tastes.
• Get out of a funk with vigorous exercise and by including warming spices in your diet like ginger, pepper, cinnamon and clove.
• Help your metabolism by scraping your tongue with a copper or steel scraper every morning.
• A brisk full-body rubdown with raw silk gloves will stimulate metabolism and lymphatic drainage. 

Tips for Balancing Pitta

🥬 First and foremost, adopt a Pitta diet. Why? Because hot flashes, waking in the middle of the night, emotional outbursts etc are signs of Pitta imbalance. See the previous Pitta posts for what to favour and what to avoid or email me for a more comprehensive list.

🪷 When dealing with strong emotions and outbursts, a regular meditation practice, like Transcendental Meditation, is helpful. It’s easy to learn and very effective.

🧘‍♀️ A few minutes of Pranayama (alternate nostril breathing) helps regulate blood pressure and relieve stress. You’ll find a tutorial on YouTube.

🩸 For heavy menstrual bleeding, there are several Maharishi Ayurveda herbal preparations that will help. Contact your Ayurvedic practitioner for advice as Ayurveda is not a one-size-fits-all approach!

🌿 Several essential oils are especially useful for calming the emotions. Consider investing in a diffuser and use lavender, bergamot, patchouli or cedarwood. 

🛏️ Jatamansi essential oil is excellent for promoting sleep and is also very grounding. Put a drop on the temples around bedtime in case your sleep tends to be disturbed.

• Measure 50g fennel seeds, 50g cardamom seeds, 25g rose petals and 25g coriander seeds into a glass jar.
• Put a teaspoon of the mixture into 2 cups of water and reduce down to 1 cup.
• If you don’t have time for this, put a teaspoon of mixture into a 50-80 ml thermos flask and let it brew for an hour.
• Have this after dinner to cool the body before bed if that’s when the sweats tend to happen. Or drink it throughout the day.