Ayurvedic Tips to Thrive In November
The weather is a little cooler and we wake up to find frost has covered the grass, shrubs, and trees.
Nature is in get-ready mode. We see animals such as squirrels, prepare for colder months as they start gathering, storing, and feasting to prepare for the long winter that awaits them.
Our connection to nature guides us to prepare for the colder winter season. This is the time of the year when our appetites peak and our agni (digestive fire) begins to burn stronger. We may naturally accumulate and store some fat, to fortify the body as protection against the incoming cold weather and to provide lubrication against Vata season’s dryness and lightness.
Vata dosha continues to be the dominant energy in nature and within ourselves. The dry, light, mobile, rough qualities of Vata can create an imbalance in our bodies and our minds. Taking time for self-care, to balance the energy of Vata dosha will help you to ease into fall and endure the challenges of winter with its darker and shorter days.
5 Tips to Thrive in November – feel warmth, generosity, and connection this fall with Ayurveda
1. Understand Your Ayurvedic Mind-Body Constitution or Dosha
When you discover your Ayurvedic Mind-Body Constitution, you understand your strengths and weaknesses, your tendencies and habits. With understanding, you can start to love yourself deeply and create positive changes.
*Take the first step by discovering your Ayurvedic Mind-Body Constitution, take the Ayurveda Dosha Assessment.
Dosha Considerations
Individuals with dominant Vata dosha are at a greater risk of becoming out of balance and experiencing an excess of Vata energy. With the hectic pace of the pre-holiday season, Vata individuals may become sick quite easily, prone to tight and constricted muscles, constipation, gas and bloating, dry mucus, and a dry cough. Slowing down, eating warm, well-spiced meals, and maintaining a daily routine will help balance excess Vata dosha.
For individuals who are primarily Pitta and Kapha dosha, this season may be a little easier. Pitta dosha is the energy of fire and water, with qualities of heat, intensity, dryness, oily, and sharpness. Kapha dosha is the energy of earth and water, with qualities of coolness, grounding, heavy, sluggish, cohesive, lubricating, and supportive.
The colder weather helps to balance Pitta dosha’s fiery and heating energy. It’s important though to follow cues from nature, by winding down earlier as the sunsets early and becoming less intense. Pitta’s fiery energy appetite can be balanced with grounding, sweet seasonal foods such as root vegetables, squash, and dark leafy greens.
Individuals who are mainly Kapha dosha may become imbalanced by overeating during the holidays and slow way down as the weather becomes cooler and darker. They can find balance by going outside daily, walking briskly, and engaging in some form of vigorous exercise to circulate the blood and oxygen. Eating warm, well-seasoned meals, and an abundance of greens will balance the heavy, cool, sluggish qualities of excess Kapha dosha.
2. Daily Abhyanga
Abhyanga is a type of Ayurvedic massage performed with warm oil, that you practice on yourself or receive as a therapy. In Ayurveda, the Sanskrit word for oil is Sneha, which is also the word for Love. When you are giving yourself a daily Abhyanga oil massage, you are enveloping yourself with love.
Abhyanga is beneficial for everyone and balances all the doshas, especially Vata dosha. Offer yourself a quick daily abhyanga massage or luxuriate in a longer massage weekly or monthly. It’s important to use specific types of oils for each dosha. Organic oils are best.
Vata balancing oils have a sweet aroma, heavy, unctuous, and warming:
Jojoba oil
Sesame oil (light in color and NOT toasted)
Ghee
Olive Oil
Pitta balancing oils have a sweet aroma, and cooling:
Sunflower oil
Coconut oil
Olive Oil
Ghee
Jojoba oil (smaller amounts)
Kapha balancing oils are light, and warming:
Safflower oil
Flaxseed oil
Corn oil
Olive oil
Ghee
Jojoba oil ( small amounts)
Instructions found at: https://www.banyanbotanicals.com/pages/ayurvedic-self-oil-massage )
3. Nourishing and Grounding November Diet
Mother nature offers a harvest of foods that are dense, and nutrient rich. Taking a cue from her, Ayurveda recommends nourishing ourselves by eating healthy fats-sesame oil, olive oil, butter, ghee, and nuts. These healthy oils are heavy, nourishing, sweet, and balances Vata dosha.
Enjoy foods that are grounding:
- hearty whole grains such as whole wheat, quinoa, oats, rice
- root vegetables such as sweet potatoes, squash and beets.
- nuts and seeds
Eat meals that are spiced ( NOT spicy). Spices enhance flavor and support digestion. Add spices like cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, cardamom, turmeric, cardamom, fennel, and coriander into your dishes. These warming spices will ignite your digestive fire and support you in digesting the denser and richer foods that are required this month. Vata and Kapha doshas benefit from heating spices. Cooling spices such as coriander, mint and fennel are best to balance Pitta dosha. There are spices that also balance all the doshas you can enjoy daily. Find the list of foods and spices https://ayurveda.com/food-guidelines/
Create harmony in your nervous system by decreasing your daily intake of stimulating ingredients such as alcohol, caffeine, and sugar. Foods that are high in these ingredients can affect your sleep-getting to sleep and staying asleep. Since they are stimulants, your sympathetic -fight-or-flight nervous system is activated. If you are feeling restless, having difficulty focusing, having sleep challenges, or finding yourself worrying or feeling overwhelmed, then consider taking a break from alcohol, caffeine, and sugar.
It’s soup season! Enjoy foods that are cooked and warm such as soups, stews, curries, and baked dishes. If you are eating a cold salad, create balance by adding a healthy oil, spices and having a warm beverage (warm water, herbal tea) on the side.
Remember to always practice moderation, enjoying nourishing foods in the right proportions. Kapha dosha types need to follow the above guidelines with consideration and restraint. Too much healthy fat and too many hearty meals will increase Kapha dosha and throw them out of balance.
4. Take a Daily Retreat, Say Yes to Stillness
Vata’s quality of excess movement can create a whirlwind in our minds and body. You may feel overwhelmed, stressed, exhausted, forget to eat, or find yourself constantly snacking and maybe feeling your on endless treadmill.
Taking time to bring stillness into your day, even for just a couple of minutes, will create a shift in your day where you can say…aww…unclench…feel energized and refreshed.
Breathe- take time to intentionally breathe daily to calm and balance your nervous system (activate your parasympathetic nervous system-aka rest/digest)
- Alternate Nostril Breathing, Nadi Shodhana instructions:
- Sit in a comfortable position, shoulders relaxed, spine straight and supportive
- Place left hand on left knee.
- Lift right hand up toward nose.
- Exhale completely and then use right thumb to close right nostril.
- Inhale through left nostril and then close left nostril with your right ring finger
- Open right nostril and exhale through right side
- Inhale through right nostril and then close right nostril
- Open left nostril and exhale through left nostril
- This is one cycle
- Continue for to 1-5 minutes
- Always complete the practice by finishing with an exhale on the left side
- Alternate Nostril Breathing Exercise with Dora Kamau | Breathing Technique for Energy and Calm on YouTube
- https://youtu.be/a7re4bKxB3A?si=XPDpNPjg3ECHqmD1
- Box Breathing, Sama Vritti Pranayama, instructions
- Inhale slowly through your nose while counting to four.
- Hold your breath for a count of four.
- Exhale slowly through your mouth for a count of four.
- Hold your exhalation for a count of four.
- Repeat steps 1–4 until you feel re-centered.
- Box Breathing for Stress – CHI Health on YouTube
- https://youtu.be/G25IR0c-Hj8?si=YhBAPM4IZL_FKSU-
Meditate, Practice Mindfulness, and activate your parasympathetic nervous system, aka rest-digest nervous system.
You can meditate anywhere, anytime. My favorite time to meditate is early in the morning and often in bed, lying down. Also on days that are hectic, I take a 2-minute mindfulness moment focusing on my breath before I move from one task to another or in-between appointments.
- Walking Meditation : https://www.insightmeditationcenter.org/walking-meditation-instruction/
- Guided sitting Meditation with Tara Brach on YouTube: https://youtu.be/9gErDK1HUk0?si=CEkUIgGjZTX7NtOE
- Meditation Guide with Tara Brach: https://www.tarabrach.com/wp-content/uploads/pdf/HowToMeditateForPDF.pdf
- Yoga Nidra Guided Meditation
- Yoga Nidra for Calm and Ease with Betty Brown
- https://on.soundcloud.com/6S286fqfPkynvhy86
5. Practice Daily Gratitude
November is National Gratitude Month, a time to say “thank you”, and a time to embrace the power of gratitude:
- Improve your sense of well-being
- Feel more positive and have a greater sense of what’s possible
- Help you deal with adversity
- Help manage anxiety, feelings of overwhelm, depression
- Help you build strong relationships
- Reduced stress
When I start to worry, feel anxious, and stressed, I turn to gratitude. As a mother, I worry about my kids, ( yes they are now adults, but they are always my kids). When I start to worry about their health, jobs, struggles, ect, I stop and shift to gratitude. I begin by saying, I’m thankful for……, changing my worries into thankful affirmations. I begin to feel calm, relinquish my sense of control, and regain my hope and sense of possibilities.
Check out 10 Ways to Practice Daily Gratitude, for practical tips to start your gratitude practice:
- Mindful Magazine, How to Practice Gratitude
- https://www.mindful.org/an-introduction-to-mindful-gratitude/