By Jennifer Reinhardt
It’s officially Spring!  Which means, it’s also officially Kapha season.  
 
Kapha dosha is one of the three mind-body types within Ayurvedic medicine.  Kapha is governed by earth and water and is cold, heavy, dull, smooth, oily, unctuous, and stable.  Lending to their earthy nature, kapha types are grounded and steady, yet prone to getting stuck in their ways.  Kapha governs the lungs, and when out of balance brings allergies, congestion, cough and a tendency towards stagnation.
 
As the earth beings to thaw and winter melts away, the qualities of kapha dosha become more pronounced.  The air is cool and damp, and moisture palpable.  A time of rebirth and renewal, the shift from Winter to Spring is dramatic – the days are warmer, the air feels lighter, and nature is in full bloom.
 
Ayurveda teaches us that we are not separate from nature – rather we are an intricate part of it.  Just as the sun warms the earth, so too does it warm our own bodies.  Anything that has been cold or stagnant within us becomes ripe for release.  This is why things like allergies, congestion and mucous run rampant in the Springtime.  It is our own internal winter melting away.   
 
To ease the transition into Spring, Ayurveda teaches us to favor dietary and lifestyle practices that balance Kapha dosha in the body.  This means calling on Kapha’s opposite qualities - warm, dry, light and rough.
 
Kapha time of day is 6-10am.  So, in the Springtime, it becomes more important to align with the circadian rhythm.  Get up with the sun and get moving.  Go for a brisk walk or engage in a vigorous yoga practice. Breathwork techniques like Skull Shining Breath or Alternate Nostril Breathing are preferred at this time of year, as they are especially heating, helping to move leftover cold and stagnation out of the system.  
 
Dietary practices for Spring include those that promote detoxification and lightness in the body.  It’s best to favor foods with astringent, bitter and pungent taste.  This includes bitter greens like dandelion and arugula, light grains like quinoa and amaranth, legumes, and astringent fruits like apples and dried cranberries. 
 
Likewise, it is equally important to minimize or avoid completely foods with sweet, sour and salty taste.  These foods increase Kapha dosha in the body, an action amplified in the Spring.  Processed foods, animal products, and dairy are some examples of foods that are better left alone at this time. 
 
By making intentional shifts in our daily living, and aligning ourselves with the rhythms of nature, we can experience profound transformation in health and well-being.  
If you found this information helpful and are interested in learning more about how Ayurveda can best support you and your specific mind-body type, Call (928) 853-1699 to schedule a free consultation call with our Health Coach, Jennifer Reinhardt. 

Do you or someone you know suffer with debilitating pain? Pain may prevent good sleep, ability to exercise or perform daily tasks and can make you feel, well just grumpy. Here at Northern Arizona Massage and Wellness we are always looking for ways to help our clients manage pain. 

• Massage - helps manage pain through manipulation of soft tissues that may be tight and bound up weather the cause of the pain or as a result of the pain.
• Deep tissue laser therapy - a quick easy approach to pain management involving the use of a class VI laser. Treatments are about 15 minutes long and target specific pain points. Stimulates healing in the cells.
• Infrared Sauna - Relieves pain via heat and infrared light. Heat stimulates circulation to promote healing and infra red light stimulates healing in the cells.
• Cold Plunge - Pain related to inflammation responds well to Cold Plunging.
• Float Pod - Nerve pain and muscular soreness both respond well to the 900 lbs of magnesium in our Float Pod
• Hypnotherapy - a great solution to help retrain the brain's perception of pain, since pain is the brain's interpretation of sensation in the body.

Please give us a call with any questions you may have about any of these treatments and how they can help you manage pain without drugs or surgery. We are happy to help you come up with a plan to move forward out of pain. 
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