Ayurveda

Get Energized: A Daily Balancing Routine for Kapha

Get Energized: A Daily Balancing Routine for Kapha
With Kapha as your predominant dosha, you’re naturally grounded and calm. You move at your own pace and enjoy the sweetness of life, love, and relationships. However, if you accumulate an excess of the Kapha elements of water and earth, you will experience sluggishness, dullness, and inertia. Everything takes much more effort to accomplish, and you may feel like you are moving through molasses.

An accumulation of Kapha can also manifest in a variety of health issues, including allergies, diabetes, bronchitis, sinus problems, depression, and obesity. By creating a daily routine that balances Kapha, you can begin to “lighten up” and get your energy flowing again.

Ayurveda prescribes a complete daily routine that balances all of the doshas. However, in modern society many people would struggle to find the time to complete all of the steps of the traditional routine. For this reason, we’re offering you a more doable daily routine tailored to the specific needs of the Kapha dosha.

Keep in mind that what works best for Kapha is to include variety within a routine. Since Kaphas have a tendency to get stuck in ruts, find ways to include novelty and excitement to your days. This can be as simple as trying a new route to work, or as elaborate as planning a vacation to a new destination. In general, make choices that are warm, light, energizing, and purifying.

Not a Kapha?


Morning

  • Wake up just before 6 a.m. In Ayurveda, the period between 6 and 10 a.m. is a time of increased Kapha energy, so by getting up before this Kapha period, you’ll avoid that feeling of heaviness you can get even after a good night’s sleep.
  • When you get up, drink a glass of warm water. This signals your physiology to eliminate toxins.
  • Meditate for 10 minutes, or longer if you can, letting the inner quiet set the tone for your day. Set an intention for your day—something simple such as, “I enjoy vital energy in every cell of my body.”
  • Massage your body with light, warming oils such as safflower or sunflower.
  • Bathe.
  • Wear clothing in bright colors that energize Kapha, such as yellow, orange, and red. If you don’t like wearing those colors, use them in your environment. For example, set a vase of vibrant sunflowers on your desk at work, or choose a piece of artwork that has vibrant Kapha-balancing tones.
  • Practice a Kapha-balancing yoga sequence (this takes less than 10 minutes).
  • Eat a healthy breakfast with awareness.
  • Perform your morning work and activity.
  • Exercise every day. Try invigorating practices such as running, bicycling, swimming, and dancing. You don’t have to exercise for hours at a time—even 20 minutes will energize you. Though, as a Kapha, you can benefit by exercising for longer periods. Aim for between 45 and 60 minutes. The most important thing is to be sure to break a sweat every day. You may also enjoy participating in competitive sports or outdoor activities that include an element of risk or excitement, such as rock climbing, sea kayaking, or white-water rafting.
  • Throughout the day, sip on warm, ginger tea, which is delicious and invigorating for Kapha.

Mid-Day

  • Eat lunch between noon and 1 p.m. In Ayurveda, lunch is the largest meal of the day because your digestive fire is strongest at this time. Favor lighter, drier foods with pungent, bitter, and astringent tastes. Eat slowly and mindfully. Not only will this help your digestion but it will also help you realize when you’ve had enough.
  • Sit quietly for five minutes after eating.
  • Walk for 5 to 15 minutes to aid digestion.
  • Perform your afternoon work and activity. Avoid taking an afternoon nap as this will increase the Kapha dosha in your mind-body system.
  • Meditate around sunset.

Evening

  • Eat lightly at dinner and do not eat after 7:00 p.m.
  • Sit quietly for five minutes after eating.
  • Walk for 5 to 15 minutes to aid digestion.
  • It’s particularly important to plan a few stimulating activities each week if you have a Kapha imbalance and have a tendency to spend every evening snacking in front of the TV. Join a group, try a class—perhaps yoga or dance—or go to a comedy club. These will all help you to lighten up.

Bedtime

  • Begin winding down for sleep at least 30 minutes before you intend to go to bed.
  • Enjoy a relaxing, warm bath before bed, adding a few drops of warming aromatic oils such as vanilla or rose to the water.
  • Aim to be in bed with the lights off by 10:30 p.m.
Commit to following a Kapha-specific daily routine for one week. Without being overly compulsive, try following a program that aligns your daily rhythms with those of nature.

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