Daily Routines To Keep You Healthy All Year Round

No matter what your unique body/mind constitution, (Ayurveda dosha) is, there are healthy habits that are good for everyone to help keep their mind and body balanced.

One of the keys to healthy balance is healthy digestion.

Another key is a healthy outlook or state of mind.

And there's a lot that one can do to promote a healthy digestion and a healthy state of mind that will work no matter what your dosha is.

Let's discuss a few.

Daily Routines To Keep You Healthy All Year Round:

• Having a consistent nighttime ritual - This consists of going to bed at the same time, or close to it, every night, with 10:30pm being the latest time if possible. It also means shutting your tech stuff down a good 30-60 minutes before you go to bed. You could incorporate a calming breathing practice or light stretching practice before you slide into bed.
• Having a consistent morning ritual - This means getting up at the same time every day, or close to it, by 6am or 6:30 the latest if possible. Then tongue scraping to get the toxins that built up during the night off your tongue which also ignites your digestion.
• Drink a room temperature or warm glass or 2 of water in the AM - After you scrape your tongue, drink a glass or 2 of water (not cold water - cold water will put out your digestive fire) to signal your body to start the elimination process. It's best if we can eliminate in the AM to keep the steady movement and flow of the junk our body does not need, out of our body.
• Eating your main meal at lunch  - Eating your biggest meal between 11am and 2pm is best because this is the time of day is when your digestive fire is at its peak.
• Eating an early light dinner and not eating after 7pm - It's best for your digestion not to eat too heavy at night when the digestive fire is not as strong and also better not to not eat 2-3 hours before going to sleep. This will allow your body to do the work that it needs to do while you are sleeping and you will also sleep better as well.
• Eating at the same times every day - Eating your meals at the same time daily brings more structure into your day and gets you into the habit of not skipping meals and for being more prepared for your meals. It will help you not to be as stressed when you eat and according to dietary studies, regular meal times also reduce weight gain and other health issues that can manifest when your eating routine is more scattered which disrupts your body's internal clock.
• Eating Slowly and Mindfully - Digestion starts in the mouth. If you want to have good digestion, eat slowly and chew your food. It's basic but it's the truth. If you eat fast and gulp your food down, it signals to your body that you are in a 'fight-n-flight' mode and that disrupts digestion, which in turn disrupts how your body takes in the food and receives the nutrients. Take a deep breath before you begin to eat, be grateful for your food and end with a nice deep breath when you're finished. Your digestive system will thank you for that!
• Take a slow leisurely walk after you eat - Try this after whatever meal time works for you. This also helps with digestion and with clarity of mind, especially if you can walk out in nature.
• Practice some form of movement daily -  5-30 minutes of daily movement will make a huge impact on your state of mind and on your digestion.
• Practice stillness daily - Just sitting somewhere quiet for 5-15 minutes daily will also make a huge impact on the quality of your mind and will also positively impact your body. Sit outside. Listen to nature. Just sit in a chair and breathe. Your body and mind will really thank you for this!

These are just a few things that everyone can do to help stay healthier all year round.

Many are quite simple, yet not always easy. We need to take small steps each day so that these small steps turn into new habits and create big shifts down the road.

Of course there are specific daily routines for each dosha that will impact your health even more, for the better.

Whether your unique natural constitution is mainly Vata, Pitta or Kapha, or a combination of 2, there are certain foods, teas, herbs, movement, breath work, mantras, meditations and more that you can specifically apply to help you stay balanced. And if you have an imbalance, then you work on that imbalance until your constitution starts to come back into its natural unique state of balance.

Ayurveda is so interesting and simple, yet deeply intricate at the same time. I love it so much and has helped me feel better, have more energy, create strong digestion and be much more aware of my unique tendencies and how to work with them so to live my life with that much more fullness and ease.

If you are interested in learning about how you can use Ayurveda and yoga to do the same, check out my services here.

To your radiant health and vitality,

gina