What signals to you that Summer has arrived?
Perhaps light or heat or maybe it is something more subtle that changes your behaviour or the way you feel about situations and people.
Whatever it is that lets you know Summer has arrived, like the other three seasons, Summer has it’s own distinct personality which may act in harmony with your internal state or potential aggregate a natural habit or tendency.
In the West, we don’t as a whole, tap into the changing of the seasons and forge habits and patterns to allow us to sync in with nature.
In Ayurvedic Medicine though, they very much prescribe to idea that routines, habits and dietary choices should ebb and flow with the seasons.
By making a conscious effort to live in harmony with the cycles of nature and making appropriate adjustments to our lifestyles we can achieve an improved state of balance.
According to Ayurvedic principles, there are 3 types of personality; Pitta, Vata and Kapha. Each one has specific traits that are linked to them and people can express mainly the features of one, or be a mixture of two or three. The Summer season is that of the Pitta type, associated with dryness, warmth and light.
Take these 5 tips onboard to help you navigate through the heat and light that appears over the next few months.
- Keep your Pitta personality in check.
Throughout the Summer, the traits associated with a Pitta personality become more apparent, these include expansion, transformation and mobility. Although it is best to allow the natural flow during this time, just be mindful of the balance here and adjust according if any one of these traits starts to take over.
2. Stay Cool.
The Pitta season by nature is warming, hot, intense and fiery so ensure that you keep cool by avoiding the heat of the midday sun, stay hydrated and keep grounded through meditation and other methods of relaxation.
3. Pitta Diet.
Due to the increase in heat, our own digestive fire adjusts accordingly by dispersing it’s innate heat throughout the body and thus making digestion slightly less effective. We must therefore adjust our food choices accordingly to reduce the digestive load; light, cool and smaller meals are the key here. Flavours that are best suited to this time of year are: bitter, sweet and astringent so going for foods such as citrus fruits, aspargus, parsley, coriander and coconut are all excellent choices. Look at what foods are in season, and stick to eating those as much as possible, nature guides us by making available what is most suiting to us at that time.
4. Exercise staples.
Summer is a time of energy and high vibrations and most people tend to find it easier to rise early in the morning which should be embraced and enjoyed. Exercise is best in the morning too, when energy levels are naturally higher. Due to the heat created when we undertake exercise, be sure to avoid carrying it out in the middle of the day and don’t over push it, aim for 50-70% of your maximum capacity.
5. Dress accordingly.
Although not an obvious adjustment to make, and we naturally change our wardrobes for Summer anyway, but be thoughtful of your choice in fabrics, keeping them at natural as possible as well as the colours that you choose. Stick to light shades and garments that are loose and breathable.
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