The relation between eating and imbalances is quite simple. According to Ayurveda, diet is just as important as your digestion. The second you overeat or consume any food or drink in excess, you have just set yourself up for an imbalance in your physiology.

Ati is Sanskrit for excess and this in itself, excess of anything, will ultimately be the cause for any imbalance. Eating an excessive amount of any food will disturb your Agni, or digestive fire. When your digestion is disturbed, this leads to ama, or the build up of toxins. Ama is undigested food. This will cause Ajirn, or indigestion. And it is indigestion that will lead to the imbalance.

When you have overeaten, your stomach will have a tough time digesting and metabolizing the food. You should only eat about 2/3 of your capacity and leave some room in your stomach for your stomach muscles to work and digest the food. For example, when you completely stuff your mouth with food and you barely have any room to chew or swallow, a similar thing happens in your stomach as well when you stuff yourself. With no room for effective digestion, you will create ama in your physiology.

To sum up this process, Ati disturbs your digestion, which leads to ama, which causes Ajirn, and this ultimately leads to an imbalance in your physiology, which will cause the illness or disease. This is a chain reaction, one leads to the next, with excess being the root cause.

Ati (Excess) à Affects digestion à Creates Ama à Ajirn (Indigestion) à Disease/imbalance

To avoid any imbalance or disease, have everything and do everything in moderation. For example, do not overeat, do not overindulge, and do not stay up too late.  Anything in excess means that you are burdening your own physiology. Prevention is key, so avoid anything in excess and have everything within your limits.

Enjoy everything in moderation!

Varsha

Tackling weight and excess body fat is a constant battle for many people. When it comes to weight control, there is no such thing as a miracle pill that will help you to lose that excess body fat. Before I discuss ways to “lose weight,” I would like to briefly discuss the role of body types and weight.

According to Ayurveda, there are three bodily humors or energies known as doshas. These three doshas are Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. Each of the them play a role in the functioning of our physiology, but they also make up our constitution or body type. An individual can have one of or a combination of two, or all three as their body type. An individual whose body type is primarily Vata, for example, will generally be on the slimmer side. Those who are primarily Pitta tend to be of a medium size, yet they look physically fit. And those with a Kapha constitution may be on the bolder side. However, a person with a Kapha structure and built does not mean that they are obese or that they need to lose weight and a skinny individual does not mean that they are healthy and in perfect shape.

A good tool for measuring how much excess body fat you may have is to calculate your body mass index. The body mass index will calculate your levels of fat based upon your height and weight. If in doubt, go see your doctor and they will let you know whether or not you need to lose weight.

Diet and exercise are the two most important factors for maintaining a healthy weight. Exercise means at least 30 minutes of cardiovascular workout, such as running, dancing, and biking every day. Furthermore, you should do another 30 minutes of strength training and flexibility. That is a total of one hour everyday, in which you dedicate to your health and your physiology. Cardiovascular exercise will help burn the calories and the fat. Strength training will help with turning that excess fat into muscle.

Like the classic saying, “you are what you eat,” is very important when considering your diet. Losing weight isn’t about which 10-day diet scheme you utilize. It is about permanently establishing a healthy diet. I guarantee you that if you go on a 10-day diet that you might lose some weight, but after the diet is over, you will gain that weight right back. If you seriously want to lose the weight and keep it off, then watch what you eat. Eat lots of cooked vegetables in olive oil with spices such as cumin, fennel, ginger, cinnamon, turmeric, and cardamom. Green leafys are excellent. Pulses, lentils, and legumes, are a great source of protein, eat those with very little rice. Minimize your intake of carbohydrates. Have meats such as chicken and turkey, rather than beef and pork. But all in all, whatever you eat, make sure you can digest it. Avoid snacking in between meals and only after your previous meal has digested should you eat something. Favor healthy snacks such as fruits and nuts over the cookies and ice cream. Also avoid caffeine, processed sugars, and high fructose corn syrup. All of these will slow down digestion and will create excess fat.

In order to lose weight, you must have a proper diet along with a regular exercise routine. You cannot effectively lose weight by following only one or the other. Our physiologies do not work like that. They need a balance of both. Also do not skip meals if you are trying to lose weight. You want to eat and eat regularly. Keep in mind though, that everyone has some fat because you need some fat for your physiology to function. According to Ayurveda, one of the main functions of fat is to lubricate. It lubricates your joints, and keeps the unctuousness and luster of the skin. When you adapt a healthier routine to lose weight, be sure to continue with the healthy diet and routine. After losing that 10 pounds, don’t go back to your old habits, or you will gain all of that weight back.

Happy healthy eating!

Varsha

Our world is filled with worries, stress, noise, pollution, and many other disturbances. You often hear people saying that all they want is some peace. Everyone has their own definition of peace. For some people, its world peace, and for others, its their boss not giving them more work, or its parents wanting their children to quiet down. Regardless of your definition of peace, true peace comes from within. Peace comes from inner stability and inner satisfaction. You can often tell when people are at peace within themselves.

One of the best ways to be peaceful from within is through meditation. The Sanskrit word for meditation is Dhyana. There are many scientifically proven benefits of practicing meditation such as reduced stress levels and blood pressure. However, I am not recommending meditation simply because of its scientific basis. Meditation has its roots in almost every culture of the world, from culturally to religiously, meditation is a part of history and there is a reason for why it was there.

Meditation is a time to explore yourself in silence. It is a time to release stress and discover your inner beauty and strength. These days, meditation is considered to be a spiritual practice and has no relation with religion, which allows everyone from all walks of life to find a type of meditation that suits them. Furthermore, meditation brings the inner peace, the inner stability that is needed for a healthy life. You cannot always control your external environment, but you can control your reaction to your environment. You have control over how you handle and cope with a situation. And of course, from the Ayurveda standpoint, meditation balances all the doshas, improves digestion and sleep.

For many people, their daily meditation is their time to themselves and their time for peace. It is a cleanse for the heart, mind, and soul. Especially for those with an overactive Vata and those who think a lot, meditation is highly recommended. One of the purposes of sleeping at night is to rejuvenate your body and clean out the toxins that have accumulated. Meditation has a similar effect. Meditation in fact takes it a step further, because it not only rejuvenates, but it also helps relax the heart and mind, thereby paving a smoother path towards a healthy life. Again, there are many different kinds of meditative practices out there and it is all about finding the right one for you.

Happy meditation!

Varsha