The Ancient Art of Ayurveda
When it comes to New Years resolutions, and lets face it we all make them (albeit mostly in secret to ourselves just in case we don't make it), you cant go far wrong with taking on a little bit of what our ancient ancestors knew about life balance health and well being.
I'm referring to the ancient medical science of Ayurveda (science of life). Ayurvedic holistic medicine was born some 5000 years ago in ancient India. It is the oldest science of self healing known in existence and is still the primary health care regime offered in India and other Eastern cultures today. Ayurveda is the less well known sister science of Yoga.
Why I hear you ask would I want to adopt an ancient health regime? Well, believe it or not, all modern medicine is based on the precise and universal knowledge afforded by Ayurveda.
I have read many articles published this year from renown and not so well known so called medical practitioners and health gurus from across the globe. To my surprise there is nothing new in what is being churned out. To make matters worse, the "advice" being offered is generic at best and ill informed at worst. In contrast to all other health & fitness regimes that are being offered in today's modern society, there are none that considers you as a unique individual. Ayurveda on the other hand treats people as individuals and looks at what is going on as a whole for that person physically, mentally, in relationships, career-wise and spiritually. Not only that, but it seeks to "root out" the cause of any disease or imbalance and cure this as opposed to modern medicine which simply treats symptoms with artificially manufactured drugs.
If you really want to make a change to your fitness levels, your body shape, diet, emotional well being, stress levels, and overall mental and physical health then look no further than Ayurveda.
Here's my top tips for getting into shape this 2012!!
EXERCISE
* Type
Sorry folks but its not one size fits all. We are not all built to run or jog. We are not all built to cycle or swim. We are in fact unique! How is that for a medical revolution.
The real trick to getting the best out of your exercise is to “know your body type” !!
Check out the 'whats my dosha' questionnaire to get a general idea of your unique body type. Once you have a feel for what your body type is, then take a look at this table for examples of the best exercise for you:
Vata's: speed walking wearing lots of layers to get up a sweat! trampolining, dancing, Hatha, Yin or Iyenga yoga (dont overdo it Vatas take it nice and easy)
Pitta's: team sports, water sports, swimming, hiking, jogging, mountaineering, rock climbing, Yin yoga (avoid overly competitive sports)
Kapha's: trekking, basketball, water sports, dancing, rowing, active sports, bikram yoga, Asthanga yoga (get up off the sofa and get into some heavy duty exercise)
*How
So now you know what exercise suits you best but that's not the end of the story.
The key to making all exercise effective is to sweat! Yes that's right! Getting a good sweat up during exercise is the secret to weight loss, boosting metabolism, improving digestion and energy levels, boosting your immune system etc etc.....
So a good 15 minutes of sweating as often as possible will have more effect than hours of exercise where no sweat is formed.
DIET
Yes you guessed it...not one diet fits all !!! That's why fad diets work for some people but not everyone.
* Food - what to eat
A specific food programme according to your body type and any current imbalances is the only way to shed those pounds and keep them off for good without dieting at all.
With my individualised Ayurvedic food programmes you will learn what food types to favour and which to steer clear of to allow your body to fully and naturally detox and shed those unwanted pounds. Its not about the number of calories you have a day. You can have 2 people eating exactly the same things and still weigh differently. Its about what foods will increase or decrease your metabolism and the strength of your digestive fire (agni)
* How To Eat
Slowly! Chew eat mouthful until it becomes liquid before swallowing. Why? its simple, this starts the digestion process much earlier which in turn lessens the work for your stomach. This has the effect of increasing your metabolism and your body can properly digest the food you eat and transform it into energy and waste materials rather than storing it as fat and toxins.When eating do nothing else. Avoid watching TV, staring at your computer screen, working, walking, driving (yes Ive seen this with my own eyes) or doing anything else whilst eating. Your body cannot digest and do another activity at the same time. So if you eat and continue other activities you will not be able to properly digest your food.
* When to Eat
Lunch should be the largest heaviest meal of the day. Why? Because this is when the sun is at its peak in the day. This translates to the time of day when your body is at its peak in terms of digesting and metabolising food. Later in the day the body slows down.
* Avoid artificial stimulants
I get quite horrified at the amount of self medication that goes on in our Western so called 'modern' society. I'm not just talking about sleeping pills and over the counter antacids (which only serve to mask symptoms of an underlying imbalance and go now way to fixing the actual problem) but also things like coffee, alcohol, fizzy drinks, sodas, sugar loaded 'health drinks', high energy drinks etc etc.If you wake up feely groggy and start your day on coffee or energy drinks to get going, then you put your natural body balance out of whack. If you do this consistently, the body eventually becomes too confused to be able rectify the problem and naturally get back to normal balance. Ultimately this will lead to dis-ease be that physical, emotional or mental.
I offer personalised diet, fitness and health programmes at my clinic in person and by Skype. Contact me direct for all bookings:
p/ text: + 61 2 423550668
e: initiate.ayurveda@gmail.com
