Ayurveda attaches great importance to a balanced diet that meets the needs of the individual constitution and is beneficial to health. In addition to a diet rich in vital nutrients, it is just as important to get enough exercise every day to keep body and mind flexible and strong.
The entire body with all its organs and functional units is geared towards movement and absolutely needs it to stay healthy, as numerous studies in the field of sports science have shown.
Exercise is important at any age and ensures a vital and balanced attitude to life. On a physical level, it strengthens the muscles and the entire musculoskeletal system, strengthens the cardiovascular system and activates the metabolism, which protects against degenerative diseases. On a mental level, exercise has a balancing and mood-enhancing effect, as stress hormones can be better reduced and neurotransmitters such as dopamine, serotonin and noradrenaline are released, which significantly increases well-being and the ability to concentrate.
Just as life is always on the move, our bodies want to move every day. And this is precisely one of the biggest challenges in today’s world, as most jobs and professions are associated with little physical activity. For many people, this leads to back pain, weight gain and a lack of flexibility in body and mind. In addition to a lack of exercise in everyday life, quite a few people have also lost the joy of exercise because they have not been able to find a form of exercise that they enjoy or because they may have had unpleasant experiences with sport in their lives.
Do you immediately think of exertion, sweating and exhaustion when you think of sport? Then you probably haven’t found your perfect sport yet. According to Ayurveda, the ideal type of sport depends on the prevailing dosha. So how can you find the ideal type of sport for you? Quite simply, it depends on your dosha dominance. If you don’t know this yet, then do a dosha test here first, which can at least give you an initial indication. (Your Ayurveda doctor will be happy to give you a more precise determination during a consultation).
The right form of exercise depending on your constitution
Every form of exercise and sport should be adapted to your own constitution and in consideration of your personal needs.
For example, if you have a Vata imbalance and feel exhausted and burnt out, you often need gentle and calm forms of exercise to avoid further irritating the increased Vata in your body. If your Pitta is too high, you should be careful not to overheat during sport so as not to fuel the inner fire even further. If you are Kapha-dominant, you will benefit above all from activating training to overcome the feeling of sluggishness and heaviness.
Provided there is no serious dosha imbalance, you can roughly use the following breakdown as a guide:
Vata
Slender, slender people with fast movements usually have a clear Vata dominance. They are lively, constantly interested in new things and do not like to perform the same movements all the time. As a Vata-dominant type, you tend to exaggerate and easily overexert yourself. The sport you choose should therefore be light and have a grounding, calming effect. Slow, calm yoga asanas, Qigong and Tai Chi are particularly recommended. Hiking, swimming, walking or cycling are also ideal activities. In winter, you should avoid indoor sports if possible or make sure you have enough warm clothing, as cold generally increases Vata.
Pitta
If Pitta is your predominant dosha, you are certainly ambitious, determined and well organized. Your medium to strong physique can take a little more strain, but beware of too much pressure to perform! This fires up your pitta even more and throws you off balance. Suitable sports are all those that are practiced outdoors, in or on the water: Swimming, surfing, skiing, climbing, cycling, light jogging (30 to 40 minutes) and all ball and team sports. Sport is ideal for people with a Pitta emphasis if you sweat easily and breathe deeply.
Kapha
The naturally somewhat stronger person with larger muscle mass and Kapha dominance is often less motivated, but benefits particularly from regular exercise. If you have a Kapha dominance, you are welcome to exercise for long periods of time and in such a way that you sweat profusely and even breathe deeply through your nose. This gets your slower metabolism going and helps to reduce excess Kapha. People with Kapha dominance are sensual, sociable people. Dancing is an ideal sport to train all muscle groups. When strength training in an exercise group, the kapha-dominant athlete is inherently superior to all others in terms of strength, and other recommended sports are jogging, long-distance running and rowing.
The 50% load rule
In the classical Ayurveda textbook Charaka Samhita it is written: “Those who practice sport in excess will suddenly lose their strength, like the strength of a lion trying to take on an elephant.” The 50% rule applies to all three constitution types: aim for half your capacity. Move in such a way that your breathing deepens, but don’t increase your pace to the point where you have to breathe through your mouth. This indicates a lack of oxygen and therefore a harmful over-acidification of the body. You could therefore achieve twice as much with maximum effort, but you would then also be at the end of your tether.
According to current recommendations, you should exercise moderately for at least 30 minutes a day and supplement this basic level of activity with three endurance training sessions of 30-60 minutes and two more strength-oriented training sessions. Using the example of a person with Vata as an example, this could look like this: A short 30-minute walk every day, two to three endurance units in the form of walking or cycling and two yoga units per week.
As you can see, it doesn’t have to be complicated, but can be easily integrated into everyday life with the right planning and often combined with other things, such as cycling to work or to the shops, or taking the stairs instead of the elevator.
Ultimately, the decisive factor for long-term implementation is how much you enjoy it. So you should ask yourself what you enjoy and what you have perhaps always wanted to try. There is a wide range on offer in most places and it is constantly evolving with new sports. Taster courses can be helpful to get you started, so that you can carefully try out a new sport. Another option is to become a member of Urban Sports Club, for example, where you have the opportunity to discover over 50 different sports. YouTube and numerous apps also offer a wealth of free videos for training at home. So there is something to suit every taste and every budget, provided you dare to take the first step.
7 additional Ayurvedic recommendations
- Ideally, exercise at Kapha time between 6 am and 10 am.
- Eat a satiating diet and support your body and mind with Ayurvedic food supplements.
- Take sufficient time to relax and regenerate after sport.
- Exercise moderately for 30 minutes a day rather than completely exhausting yourself for an hour twice a week.
- Take your time and build up your fitness slowly but steadily.
- Do not eat a large main meal two to three hours before you exercise, but a small portion of fruit is fine
- Avoid exercising in the blazing sun or in extreme heat.
- Avoid strenuous sports before going to bed.
Your Maharishi Ayurveda Team from Bad Ems wishes you lots of fun with exercise and an active life!
© Maharishi Ayurveda Private Clinic Bad Ems
