What To Eat To Feel Vital and Grounded Now (Vata Season)
Looking to the seasons to guide your eating goes beyond cravings and nostalgia. In traditional healing systems like Ayurveda, eating certain foods can have real health benefits by helping you maintain your internal sense of equilibrium.
Just as nature changes with the seasons, so do the needs of our bodies.
Here in the northern hemisphere, we are entering Vata season with its gusty winds and chilly days. To counterbalance the season’s qualities of dryness, cold, light and moving we naturally transition away from salads to warming and grounding foods like soups, stews and roasted root vegetables.
If Vata energy accumulates in our bodies and minds, it can manifest in symtoms such as insomnia, restlessness, anxiety, dry skin, joint pain and constipation.
Incorporating Vata balancing foods can help you stay vital and grounded during the fall and winter season. Of course, most important is to listen to your body to discover what works best for you.
1. Add herbs and spices such as ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, cardamom, cumin, nutmeg and allspice to your soups and tea selections.
2. Drink lots of warming liquids such as hot water and herbal teas to prevent dehydration.
3. Enjoy sweet, moist, warm and grounding vegetables like winter squashes, pumpkin, yams, carrots and beets.
4. Grains that are smooth, grounding, sweet and easily digestible like rice, quinoa and oatmeal are a source of strength and stamina for the body and mind.
5. Combine sweet, moist and/or pungent fruits such as dates, figs, raisins with heavier, fortifying foods like grains or root vegetables. Cooking or stewing fruits (eg. baked apples) makes them more digestible and supportive for Vata energy.
