Spring is swiftly approaching and you might be noticing that you’re feeling a little sluggish in more ways than one.

This transition can lead to an increase in heaviness physically, mentally, and emotionally, as well as an increase of congestion through all of our systems.

You know what I say…everything is connected! So let’s get into what’s going on from an Ayurvedic perspective.

Ayurveda views the world through the lens of the five elements and those five elements are broken into three categories, called doshas. Those doshas are Vata, which is made up of ether and air, Pitta, which is made up of fire and water, and Kapha, which is made up of water and earth. These doshas have connections with different times of day, different times of the year and so much more.

Yes, it’s important that we understand ourselves, our constitutions, and our imbalances, but it is equally important that we take into account our environment.

Our environment includes not only the home in which we live and the part of the world in which we live, but also the changing seasons in which we find ourselves. 

If we think about the elements of water and earth and what they’re like when they combine, they become heavy, smooth, cold, and sticky, like mud.

We can think of this mud causing some stagnation through our channels, making things move more slowly. Ayurveda tells us that we treat imbalances by using the opposite quality.

In this case, we need to bring in qualities like light, mobile, and pungent. We can do this in the foods that we eat, the movement we get, and our lifestyles in general.

• You might consider shifting away from those heavy cold warm winter meals to lighter spring meals.
• You might also start incorporating some spices to help warm things up in your system.
• You might also consider incorporating some movement to get your blood moving after the cold, dark winter, or practicing body care like garshana (dry brushing).