If you are into yoga or you just want to get a bit healthier, then one avenue you may want to go down is Ayurveda. It is considered to go hand-in-hand with yoga and there are many health benefits you can get from this practise.
Not only is practising Ayurveda incredibly good for your physical well-being, but it is also fantastic for your mental well-being too.
People who practise Ayurveda tend to find themselves in much calmer states of mind, and this helps them to work on their physical bodies too.
If you want to start practising Ayurveda but you don’t know where to start, then you have come to the right place!
Read on to find out the essentials you need to know if you want to start practising Ayurveda!
What Is Ayurveda?
Ayurvedic medicine (known as Ayurveda for short) is a type of alternative medicine that is actually one of the world’s oldest holistic healing systems.
Developed more than 3,000 years ago in India, it is a practise and belief system that is based on balancing the mind, body, and spirit. The main goal of Ayurveda is to promote good health, but it is not the answer to fighting disease.
Though it will not cure diseases, there are lots of Ayurvedic treatments that are designed to help against them. Ayurveda is all about promoting good health, wellness of the mind and body, and mindfulness.
People who practise Ayurveda find themselves in a much better state of mind and that state of mind helps them to improve their physical wellbeing.
How To Start Practising Ayurveda
Practising Ayurveda might seem like it’s really difficult when you first start, but you will find that the more you incorporate it into your life, the easier it will be.
You will need to adjust your routine and even your diet in order to start practising Ayurveda, but you can move at your own pace and take each day as it comes.
Below, you will find some great ways in which you can start practising Ayurveda. So if you are ready to make some changes to your routine and try something new, read on to find out more about each of the ways you can start practising Ayurveda!
It All Starts With Water
One of the easiest ways you can start practising Ayurveda is by drinking more water. Water is the healthiest drink you can consume, and to start with, all you need to do is drink a glass of water when you wake up.
If you can, try and make sure the glass of water is lukewarm. This will activate your organs and help them to function properly throughout the day. It will also help you with bowel movements too.
Yoga & Meditation
Ayurveda medicine already goes hand-in-hand with both yoga and meditation, so if you haven’t started practising them yet, you definitely should!
Both yoga and meditation count towards Ayurvedic practises and they help you live more in the moment and feel more at peace.
If you have never practised yoga or meditation before, you don’t have to do anything strenuous or complicated when you first start. Basic yoga poses are perfect and most of them are quite easy to pick up.
As for meditation, there are plenty of different kinds that you can try, but when you first start, just focus on your breathing.
You can practise yoga or meditate for an hour or 5 minutes, any practise is better than none! You will find that the more you practise, the longer you will be able to do both.
Go To Bed Early
Another simple way to practise Ayurveda is to start going to bed early. If you are more of a night owl, this might seem like a bit of a challenge at first, but going to bed early is actually incredibly beneficial to your health.
It is believed that the body detoxifies itself between 10 pm and 2 am, so you really want to be sleeping during this time!
If you go to sleep really late at night, you can just start going to sleep a few minutes earlier than you usually do, and gradually get down to the required timeframe.
If you struggle to fall asleep early, one of the most important things you can do is switch off all your electronic devices at least an hour before you go to sleep.
Do not bring your devices into bed with you either! The earlier you wake up, the easier it will be to fall asleep earlier too, and doing plenty of exercise throughout the day will also help.
Wake Up Earlier
As previously mentioned, waking up earlier is also essential as part of your Ayurvedic practice. Ideally, you want to wake up with the sun, but even just waking up an hour earlier than you usually do will be beneficial.
If you go to bed earlier, you will find that waking up earlier is much easier. It does take a little while to fall into this rhythm and routine, but it is not impossible!
Ayurvedic medicine believes that if you wake up past sunrise it can clog up communication between your body and your mind. This in turn causes you to feel depressed, dull, and lethargic. This is why it is so important to wake up earlier as often as you can.
Have A Relaxing Bath
Most Ayurvedic practises are actually incredibly relaxing, and if you don’t quite feel ready to try some of the other options on this list, simply start with a relaxing bath!
Having a relaxing bath is a great way to enjoy the benefits of Ayurveda and it is also perfect for winding down after a long day. It will relieve any stress or tension you might have built up throughout the day and it will allow you to settle down for the night.
Having a relaxing bath just before you go to bed is perfect as well, especially if you are struggling with getting to bed earlier.
Not only is this practise incredibly relaxing, it is also super beneficial in tandem with some of the other Ayurveda practises I have already talked about.
Empty Your Colon
This one might not sound so glamorous, but emptying your colon regularly is incredibly important to your overall health.
Ideally, you want to empty your colon every morning, so you can face the day without worrying about it, but any time of the day is better than none!
The longer you go through the day without a proper bowel movement, the more time there is for toxins to build in the body. This can lead to you feeling uncomfortable and in some cases, it can even be the cause of chronic conditions.
Your digestive system and how it works is a key way to gauge your overall health and well-being.
Conclusion
Ayurveda is a fantastic practise to incorporate into your life, especially if you are ready to focus on your health.
There are so many different aspects and ways in which you can practise Ayurveda as well, but I really think that the options I have included on this list are perfect for beginners to try!
I'm Clare, the owner and operator of Off The Couch, where I serve as a qualified Nutrition & Health Coach.
Based in Dublin, Ireland, I offer coaching services both locally and globally, providing personalized strategies in nutrition, stress management, sleep quality, and fitness.
My journey into this field began as I navigated my own chronic illnesses, including early menopause, Interstitial Cystitis, Lyme Disease, and hydrocephalus.
