VATA

 
 

vata

Managing a Vata Constitution

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Vata Daily Routine 

Qualities of VATA - vata prakriti


The qualities of Vata are DRY, LIGHT, COOL, ROUGH, SUBTLE, MOBILE.

Having a vata-predominant prakriti means that these qualities express themselves generously throughout your mental, emotional, and physical make up.

  • DRY and ROUGH manifest as dry or brittle skin, lips, hair, nails, or bones (osteoporosis), as constipation, or as feeling “dry” emotionally (emotionally overextended and exhausted by one's work).

  • LIGHT manifest as giving you a tall and thin physique (excess lightness may manifest as being underweight), having muscle wasting(Muscle atrophy), light bones, insomnia, or feeling “spacey” &/or insecure.

  • COLD may lead you to feel cold easily than others, cold hands and feet, and crave warmth.

  • SUBTLE introverted, creative, and living in an active fantasy life.

  • MOBILE ability to “multi-task” or, in excess, to scattered attention, a moving about restlessly, tremors, and nervousness. Vata goes to extremes easily (being drastically different weights at different times in your life).

Decreasing or Balancing Vata

Like Increases Like - love increases love

Increasing the inherent qualities of vata will increase vata in your body, mind, and spirit.

VATA IS VERY COOL

TO INCREASE VATA: cool weather, cool foods, the cool seasons and times of day, and even cool emotions. Likewise, dry seasons, foods, environments, or emotions will increase the dry quality and thereby increase vata.

One of the qualities of vata is dryness. In this example you live in a dry climate (Arizona desert, Colorado Mountains) and you snack on dry nuts daily. The situation around this example is increasing your VATA. All this added drying conditions, is leading to hyper VATA situation, adding constipation and dry skin. There are things you can control and others that you can’t. In this example, you may not be able to move to an area that has a less dry environment, or more humidity. But you can add food and change your daily routine, to accommodate you life style and balance your VATA prakriti at the same time.

Tastes That Increase and Decrease Vata

INCREASE VATA: Pungent, bitter, and astringent (by increasing its drying and cooling qualities). Example of the pungent taste is chili peppers. Bitter and astringent tastes are common in most leafy greens.

DECREASE VATA sweet, sour, and salty by bringing moisture and warmth to the body (which are opposite qualities of vata). Example: is sour: pickles; of salty: seaweed.

using Diet as Medicine

A VATA does well to have warming, freshly cooked, nourishing, mushy foods, (soups, stews, and one-pot-meals). Because of the LIGHT quality in vata, you may think that the opposite HEAVY foods would nicely balance that quality but actually too much heavy food is too heavy or too much for the lightness of the vata digestive system.

Sweet, sour, and salty tastes decrease vata, and should be predominant in your diet.

When selecting SWEET foods, note that naturally sweet foods (many grains, squashes, and most fruits). NO processed foods high in refined sugars, they are not are not good for balancing vata. Refined sugars offer a quick burst of energy, but followed by a “LOW,” This is one of the common vata patterns that should be avoid.

VATA Herbal Support

Ashwagandha, shatavari and vidari Kanda are three of the primary herbs used to remove excess vata from the body and maintain balance.

Climate and Lifestyle as Medicine

The ideal environment for a vata: warm and wet, like Florida. Sweet Essential oils scents, sweet music, and sweet emotions are good “medicines” for vata. A daily routine, 10–20 minute, gentle self-massage with warm sesame or Almond oil can positively change. See daily vata routine CLICK HERE

MOBILE quality of vata can drive vata-types to do 100 things at things at one time. Leading to nervous system exhaustion, which in turn causes emotional and physical restlessness and eventual we go to sickness. This is when the daily routine can START the change. For vata, a delay routine to stop and take your time without thinking ahead, for example. Is a huge shift for just the day, and if getting it into your schedule changing your week, month, year.

Yoga for Vata

Visit the vata yoga routine section and learn how to customize your yoga practice to help balance vata.