Ayurveda.

Can't find a thread about Ayurveda but forgive me if there already is one :).

I've been interested in the Ayurvedic system of health management for a while now, and am presently reading a book about the Sattva program for health and weight loss.

A lot of it makes sense to me, how we have different body types and constitutions, and how, when we are out of balance we can become ill either mentally or physically or both.

Now I do want to go the full distance with this and really start eating for my Kapha constitution, but a little part of me is doubtful about somehow limiting my choices and being drawn into someone else's belief system (if that makes sense :confused:).

I already do Yoga which I learnt when I was in my teens, but I would like to make a stronger commitment to practising every day. I also Neti every day which helps clear my sinuses and improve my mental clarity (in fact i do forget to do it some days but feel a lot worse on those days! :eek:). I also need to get back to daily meditation because its a daily struggle for me to keep calm and centred :o.

Anyway, instead of just yarping on about myself I really want to know if anyone else here is into Ayurveda and how far you incorporate it into your life?.

Good to see you again Cobweb. I don't know anything about Ayurveda, it sounds interesting. Since reading 'Mindfulness in Plain English' by Hénépola Gunaratana I have been meditating every day, for a month now and really feel a positive effect. I had reached a bit of crisis point and this has helped a lot.

i know just a little bit about it...my mom's the expert :p
i do try to more or less keep stick to the diet that's best for my constitution, but not all that actively. in any case, i also find that it all makes a lot of sense, and would like to some day read more about it.
have you noticed that the whole science doesn't seem to be very pro-meat at all? i thought that was rather interesting..

yes, piggy it actively promotes a vegetarian diet, and also cutting back on the dairy as it's an Indian based philosophy, which is an added bonus!. If it didn't i suppose i wouldn't have read as much as i did about it anyway.

Does your mum feel her health benefits greatly from the Ayurvedic system?.

I don't know anything about it, but you've reminded me that I read about an Ayurvedic restaurant somewhere in London where instead of you ordering from the menu the waiters have a look at you and tell you what to have :eek:

Yes, this was it http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,1327851,00.html Wonder if it's still here.

he-he Harpy, i like it!

I have some friends who are really into yoga and swear by this site:

http://ayurvedahc.com/

nobody is 100% kapha, vata or pitta. so u dont really have to limit your choices. if u're 60% kapha, 20% vata and 20% pitta then u will need to balance your diet accordingly. but your best bet would be to see an ayurvedic doctor who would advise you of what type of diet to follow and give u some ayurvedic medications to help balance doshas and/or treat some obvious conditions and usually it can be done in one visit or at least this is what my friends had had here in toronto. when u need to limit the consumption of something that u r used to eat for long time u need to remember that its not actually u who is craving for certain foods but either your brain which is hooked up on something in a way similar to drug addiction (for instance sugar) or the bacterial culture living in your stomach/intestines i.e. when u eat certain foods then in order to digest it certain bacteria are needed. when its been processed and digested these bacteria 'ask' for more of their fave food and the cycle goes on.

^ thanks - i have no idea where i could find a practitioner, i am sure there isn't one anywhere near me, sadly.

i agree with you, it's more complex than at first i imagined. the more i read the more i see than when in balance i am probably more predominantly 'vata' which is quite opposite of kapha - but my kapha dosha is out of balance. because of this i have become very overweight, depressed and lethargic, and have quite possibly made things worse in some ways with what i was trying to do!.

i am wondering if i can find a genuine practitioner who gives online advice :confused:.

I've read a few things about Ayurveda. I'm not sure I want to limit my eating options for what someone thinks will suit me. I suppose it could help people if they hit the right balance, but I'm not sure theres anyway to know if it's right. It sucks that it didn't work for you. Eh, I have no idea about a practitioner that could do this, but maybe do a google search for NDs in your area?

Btw, what is neti? It seems really interesting since I have so many sinus and headache problems.

ah, Neti is one of my pet subjects! :).

I got my neti pot from health and yoga online - it's a little pot (personally i like the stainless steel type) with a spout that looks a bit like a small watering can. you fill it with boiled water and let the water cool to warm, add a little salt, and then wash out your sinuses with it. they are FANTASTIC!. it really clears my head, i used to get sinus infections regularly but never do anymore, i cannot recommend them highly enough!.


yes, i also agree with the eating according to what other people say, etc, though ayurveda is a holistic system so covers much more than eating. i think i have some deeper issues to thoroughly sort out before tackling the eating anyway :o.

I also highly reccomend the neti pot. I use it once or twice a week. Before I did, I had chronic sinus infections and nosebleeds. Now I am back to normal.
I think I'm going to look into ayurveda after reading this thread. There was a seminar about it at my local whole foods the other day but I didn't attend. It got me thinking, though...