Daily Tools to Put Into Practice To Keep The Sickies at Bay
Daily Tools to Put Into Practice To Keep The Sickies at Bay
A quick round-up of preventative practices help you stay healthy this fall + winter
A quick round-up of preventative practices to help you stay healthy this Vata + Kapha Season
It’s that time of year again….and I’m feeling it 🤧. The last few weeks have been go-go-go over here. Despite last week being a beautiful week (inside and out) , it was filled with late nights, early morning, packed days and being around a LOT of people. A perfect recipe for catching a little cold bug— sore throat, tired and overall feeling of malaise. Nothing serious, but still has the ability to put a damper on the week :).
So, as we transition into Fall (Vata Season) and soon after Winter (Kapha Season), I thought this week it would be helpful to do a quick round up of best daily tools to put into practices to keep the sickies at bay this fall and winter— and especially during the holidays.
Remind me again…
What is Vata Season? What is Kapha Season?
In the science of Ayurveda, our bodies are a specific make up of the qualities of nature — earth, water, fire, air and space—which are known as the doshas—Vata, Pitta, Kapha. In addition to our individual constitutions, the seasons are also classified using the same system— because as the configuration of elements change, they produce a new season.
Vata Season (Fall to Winter):
The Air Element is more prevalent
Think crisp, windy, and changeable - like autumn leaves blowing in the wind
Characteristics: dry, light, cold, and mobile
An increase in the Vata element can leave you feeling scattered or anxious, depending on your dosha and how it affects the balance of your elements.
Kapha Season (Winter to Spring):
The Water Element is more prevalent
Imagine heavy blankets of snow (rain) and cloudy days
Characteristics: cold, heavy, damp, and slow
An increase in the Kapha element can leave you feeling sluggish or congested, depending on your dosha and how it affects the balance of your elements.
Understanding these seasons helps us adjust our habits to stay healthy as the weather changes. It's all about finding balance!
Daily Tools to Put Into Practice To Keep The Sickies at Bay (and boost your immune system)
1. Practice a Daily Routine
Creating a daily nourishing routine can help balance the scattered nature of Vata (and the wind element) because the sense of predictability and safety can calm the body and nervous system.
★ Start small just by making a few commitments to yourself; like going to bed and waking up at the same time each day or eating your meals at the same time each day. As that becomes a natural part of your routine, you can then add another nurturing practice. It’s better to start small and be consistent, rather than trying to do everything at once which can get overwhelming and just end up aggravating your vata.
2. Stay Hydrated
Drinking enough water daily is important because water helps us on so many levels. On a physical level, it helps regulate our body temperature, delivers nutrients to cells, helps digestion, keeps joints lubricated and our organs functioning properly. And, in terms of our overall well-being, it helps improve sleep quality, cognitive functions and our mood.
★ Ayurvedically, sipping on hot water is one of your most powerful tools in your daily medicine chest. While it’s recommended for every season, it’s even more so recommended in the fall and winter as it can help balance the light + cold of Vata and can help break up the cold, heavy (congestion) of Kapha.
To make your mug of hot water that much more effective, you can enhance it with herbs & spices. My favorite is turning my hot water into fresh Ginger, Turmeric and Lemon Tea.
Lemon — high in vitamin C— it’s a great natural immune booster and helps reduce inflammation
Ginger — antibacterial + immune booster — a great way to protect/ fight against infection, as well as boost your immune system.
Turmeric — rich in manganese, zinc, B vitamins and iron — which helps strengthen the immune system, while providing a level of protection with its antioxidant and antiviral properties.
3. Balance / Strength / Movement Regularly
Since Vata Season embodies windy, light, mobile characteristics, it’s helpful to balance regular exercise (cardio) with slow, gentle and strengthening forms of exercise as well.
★ Hatha Yoga is a great option! Especially Sun Saluations because they help warm us and tap into an element that helps balance Vata.
4. Get Enough Sleep
Despite the daylight hours lessening, as the season gets busier, it’s inevitable that our days (schedules) get longer and more packed. So, where possible, being able to prioritize sleep is such a simple yet powerful way to counterbalance Vata. Sleep is a time when our body needs redirect its energy to repair and rejuvenate us on a cellular level. Without it, well I think at this point, we’ve probably all felt the domino effect of sleep deprivation— we can feel lethargic, we can get constipated, we might get fuzzy in the head and we can be more susceptible to getting sick.
★ In my opinion, sleep is one of the most underutilized tools out there.
5. Bundle Up
Dress depending on the weather. Wear enough clothes to keep yourself warm throughout the day. And most importantly, when you go into the elements, bundle up!
★ Especially, cover your head and ears to protect them from the chill of the wind, cold and whatever elements are out to play.
6. Eat Warm + Nourishing Foods —
Your diet is a powerful way to soothe fall! Tastes to favor foods that are warming, grounding and moisturizing. So, cooked grains for breakfast and soups, bakes, kitchari and other warm grain bowls for meals is a great way to ground.
★ Ghee is a great fall/winter condiment as it contains good essential fatty acids that help strengthen the immune system, helps keep the body warm, improves digestion, nourishes the skin and helps enhance nutrient absorption…among many other things.
7. Meditate
It’s not only good for all seasons, but it’s beneficial to all dosha types. It’s a tool that naturally calms the nervous system, strengthens the mind and rejuvenates the spirit. Something we all need— all year around :).
★ My number one self-care tool!
Need Help Creating A Fall Wellness Plan, specific to your dosha?
With everybody having a different body — there are many dosha (unique mind-body constitution) specific things you can do to support yourself through the fall. If you’d like to learn more about your specific dosha and how you can adapt your specific diet, self-care rituals and exercise to support your wellbeing — I’d LOVE to help you! Sign up for a Dosha Consultation and let’s co-create a fall plan — specific to you.
For a limited time, all Dosha Consultations are only $99 😊.
Here’s to staying healthy + full of energy this fall (and winter)!
✌🏽❤️,
Kajal