5 Ayurvedic Tips for Late Summer
Friends,
According to Ayurveda, late summer is often associated with an increase in Pitta dosha, which consists of fire and water elements. Out in nature, heat has been building for several months now, and as natural beings, we may be feeling the effects of this accumulation of fire, too, characterized by heat, intensity, and sharpness.
Perhaps you, too, have been experiencing an excess of pitta in your body?
Do you have:
Headaches?
Quick to become irritable/angry?
Fatigue from and Intolerance to the heat?
Redness?
Skin irritation?
To soothe Pitta during this time, Ayurveda recommends incorporating cooling and calming practices into daily routines. If you are experiencing any of the above, try incorporating one or two of the suggestions below and see if it lowers your internal thermostat.
1. Slow and moderate exercise: This is the season to exercise outside. Just be mindful not to overdo it and what time you do it. It's best to get your daily movement in before 10 a.m., the start of the pitta time of the day. This is the time to favor slow-flow yoga, hiking/walking in nature, and swimming in lakes and rivers.
2. Hydrate well with cooling beverages: My summer favorites are hibiscus mint ice tea (I actually drink it at room temperature or slightly cool), coconut water, cucumber/aloe/ mint, and/or lime water. If I'm feeling really crazy, I may combine them all!
3. Mind the Sun: I was the teenager with the baby oil and the tin foil on my Grease album cover, baking myself for hours on end. Now, my favorite times to be outside are at sunrise and sunset. Not only does it set your circadian rhythm, help you sleep, and get you a good dose of vitamin D, but these times of day, when the sun isn't high in the sky, have less heat and, thus, won't increase yours. If I have to be outside mid-day, I wear a wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses and seek shade when possible.
4. Diet: Nature always provides. Eat local, in season, and organic whenever possible. Summer is the time when I eat salad with greens and cucumbers picked right from my garden. Also, watermelon, watermelon, watermelon. I give it to the dogs, the horses, the chickens, and the children.
5. Consider a fall cleanse: Like the ripening of the garden, the excess fire in your body peaks at the end of summer. It needs to be released as the season pacifies so that the heat and any signs of accumulated fire aren't driven deeper into the tissues, drying you from the inside out once the cool and windy vata season of Fall begins. This is why cleansing at the seasonal junctures is so vital. As you prepare your calendars for Fall, remember that the Better Yoga Fall Cleanse is happening October 20-25.
With these few tried-and-true foods and practices, I have found great relief from my firey-dominant pitta at the height of pitta season.
I hope they bring relief to any of you in need.
In Health,
Kari Harendorf
Better Yoga Co-Founder