Photo by Julie Johnson on Unsplash
Trying to get healthy and stay healthy isn’t easy.
It’s downright frustrating when you keep hearing conflicting health information that leaves you confused.
One day carbs are good for you and the other day they are bad.
Exercise is good for you but don’t over do it.
How do you know what applies to you and your body?
What if there was a way to filter through all the fads and get to what your body really needs to be healthy?
The ancient wisdom of Ayurvedic medicine may have your answers in it’s theory on doshas.
Ayurvedic Medicine’s Three Body Types (AKA Doshas)
According to ayurvedic medicine the three body types that exist are vata, pitta and kapha.
The three types are made up of different amounts of the 5 elements – space, air, fire, water and earth.
Body types can overlap based on they body type you are born with, known as the prakriti and the body type that you have acquired, known as the vakriti.
Depending on your lifestyle and habit choices you can create excesses and deficiencies in your body type.
Each body type has distinct characteristics that you can use to identify which body type best resonates with you.
Body Type 1: The Vata – Full of Space and Air
Personality: anxious, stressed, loves something one day and hates it the next, hungry one day and not the next, changes ideas like the wind, erratic behavior
Body Type: dry skin, cold hands and feet, stiffness in the body and joints, craves fresh air
Best Careers for This Type: Musician, Artist, Multiple jobs or a job with variance to not get bored
Best Food for This Type: Warm, moist, use oils, well cooked, warming spices black pepper, cayenne, cinnamon, decreased variety, avoid overeating, soups, porridge, rice, dal
Stress Management: Slow down, do less intense exercise
When Under Stress: crumbles with anxiety
Body Type 2: The Pitta – Full of Fire
Personality: passionate, ambitious, driven, angered easily, aggressive, cutting language, harbors resentment,
Body Type: Red hair, red skin tone, flushes easily, develops rashes easily, prone to ulcers, tendency toward acid reflux, can have ravenous hunger and irritation when hungry
Best Careers for This Type: Leadership roles, CEO, Elite athlete
Best Food for This Type: Cool, easy to digest, green smoothies, protein shakes, cucumbers
Stress Management: Meditation, breathing, washing the face with cool water a few times a day, cooler temperature environments, no meetings before lunch
When Under Stress: Takes charge and assumes the leadership role
Body Type 3: The Kapha – Earth and Water
Personality: grounded, moves slow, forgives easily, creates strong bonds with friends, sedentary, likes structure and routine, tendency to be overweight or obese, givers, caregivers, looks out for friends
Body Type: oily skin and hair, bigger boned, moves slowly, tendency to develop cysts, tumors and boils, sleepy after meals
Best Careers for This Type: Horticulture, farming, physicians, nurses, caretaking
Best Food for This Type: Spicy, light, crunchy foods such as raw foods with spicy dressings
Stress Management: Stimulating activity – jogging, HIIT exercise, no meetings after meals, deliberately break out of structured habits and go with the flow
When Under Stress: Grounded
What Dosha Are You?
Did you identify a dosha that resonates with you?
Chances are you felt you could easily fall into more than one category.
If you identify with more than one dosha don’t worry, that’s common.
It’s possible to have overlap when you are out of balance.
For example, you may identify mostly with being a kapha; very grounded and slow to move most of the time but lately you’ve been stressed and now you are struggling with anxiety.
The overlap is common due to modern society pushing you to have a little vata characteristics.
Go back to what dosha, or body type you resonate with the most and start to follow the basic exercise, stress management and dietary guidelines.
If you are unsatisfied with your career consider looking into careers that align with your dosha.
See how you feel following what’s best for your body type.
What More Can You Learn About Your Dosha?
Ayurvedic medicine holds many keys to your body type that you may have overlooked.
Imagine no longer questioning what is best for your health and instead knowing what to do to keep your body balanced for life.
Ayurvedic medicine has been around for thousands of years compared to the fads that come and go on social media.
If a few easy tips helped you to become closer to identifying what your body needs, what would taking a course that dives deeper into the details of each dosha and imbalances that occur do for you?
Click here to learn more about Ayurvedic Awareness Center’s in depth courses on doshas, and get 20% off your first course by entering “welcomeoffer”, so you can finally learn what’s best for your body!
If you enjoyed this blog post, guess what?
I have a podcast where I interview Neerja Ahuja, the director of the Ayurvedic Awareness Center and the creator of many advanced courses in Ayurvedic medicine.
Click HERE to listen now!
