By in Ayurveda
“ Because we cannot scrub our inner body we need to learn a few skills to help cleanse our tissues, organs and mind. This is the art of Ayurveda”
-Sebastian pole
This old as time science : Ayurveda in Sanskrit translates as the science of life i.e. ayur for life and veda for science. The origin of this more than 3000 year old science is traced back to the ancient healing techniques used in Varanasi. In ayurvedic philosophy it is believed that all creations comprises 5 basic elements : fire, air, water, earth and space which are represented in our body by vata (air and space), pitta (fire and water) and kapha (earth and water). Ayurvedic lifestyle focuses on prevention of diseases by maintaining a healthy lifestyle and maintaining a balance between our body, mind and soul. Nowadays many factors affect this balance whether it is mental work stress or a stress in a relationship or physical trauma or strain in family relations etc. which manifests as various diseases in the body. And hence Ayurveda encourages to maintain that balance. But how is one supposed to do that? Easy! With daily efforts and a little bit of changes in our day to routine we can lead a healthy and long life. Here's a list of few little things that can make a big change in your lifestyle.
It always comes down to the food we eat. Our diet plays a vital role in our well being : physical as well as mental. The type of food we eat, when we eat and how we eat mirrors a lot and well we all have heard : “when the diet is wrong no medicine is of use and when the diet is correct medicine is of no need” keeping that in mind Ayurveda focuses majorly on the food we intake. Ayurvedic diet varies from person to person depending on the doshas of a person and on seasonal changes but the underlying principle is to eat timely and fresh. Here are a few tips to follow -:
Drink plenty of water
Eat a light dinner
Add wheat products in your daily routine
Reduce sugar and salt intake
Avoid skipping meals
Avoid having iced products
Drink herbal tea
Increase protein and dairy intake
Avoid uncooked food
Reduce oil intake
Fresh air, nature, good weather, what's not to love about an early morning stroll adding to the bonus it's great for our health so, try including a walk in your schedule it helps in maintaining the doshas without much of an effort or try light exercising during the cooler part of the day for around 30 min daily. Apart from this one can always try yoga, yoga and Ayurveda are two very closely related sides of ancient sciences having the same origin : Varanasi. Yoga helps to enhance physical as well as mental strength.
“Early to bed early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise” is a saying we all know all too well but what we didn't know was how pertinent it is too. Ayurveda highlights the value of a good sleep. One should have quality sleep to ensure the beginning of a good day and a healthy mind. Waking up with sunrise and having around 6-8 hours of sleep is advisable. Here are few tips to ensure a relaxed sleep-:
Avoid sleeping during the day
Turn off devices 30 min before sleep
Avoid sleeping too much or too little
Fix a bedtime routine
Avoid caffeine before sleep
Have a cool and comfortable sleep environment
Tired of your hectic schedule and a break from your stressful life? Well try meditation. Just close your eyes and try to sit back and relax disconnecting oneself from the outer world even if it is for 30 min daily. A healthy mind and a healthy body are co dependent disturbance in one can manifest in other therefore one should try to practice meditation for healthy states of mind as Meditation promotes wellness of mind.