Calm Kapha
So far we already learned about Vibrant Vata and Passionate Pitta Dosha in our previous blogs. Today we are going to learn about Calm Kapha and how they can stay in balance. Kapha is derived from the water and earth elements and it is all about Structure and Fluidity. Kapha dosha controls the structure of the body and maintains strength and the physical form in everything from the bones, muscles, and tendons, right down to the cellular level.
Qualities of Kapha: Qualities of Kapha dosha are the same qualities of its elements earth and water. It is Heavy, slow, steady, solid, cold, soft, oily, gross.
Physical Characteristics: Kapha types have a strong build and excellent stamina. They have a large body frame, soft eyes and gaze, smooth and radiant skin, and thick hair. Their joints are well padded. They have great physical strength, strong willpower, and high endurance. They have sound sleep and slow sluggish digestion. They are the ones who don’t like sudden changes, don’t like a lot of movement, and don’t like to shake things up in their life. This lack of motivation to move and exercise becomes worst when they develop excess Kapha. When Kapha dosha is out of balance it manifests in the body as excess weight gain, fluid retention, nasal and chest congestion and allergies, asthma, diabetes, or depression. Just like how too much earth and water combined forms mud which is sticky, heavy, gross. In nature, you will observe Kapha animals, birds, and plants everywhere. Have you ever seen Swan or goose? Those are examples of Kapha birds. Slow, steady, calm. Other examples are elephants, whales, and succulent plants.
Emotional Characteristics: Calm, collected, content, strong willpower, thoughtful, caring, loving, and compassionate. They have an inherent ability to enjoy life and are comfortable with the routine. They love their routine as it gives them a sense of stability and security. When in balance, they are strong, willful, loyal, patient, steady, and supportive. When out of balance they become over-attached to things and people, they to hold on to things, jobs, and relationships even if they are no longer nourishing or necessary. Excess Kapha in the mind will manifest as laziness, sluggishness, resistance to change, depression, withdrawal, indifference, depression, hoarding disorder, lack of motivation, and stubbornness. They can also become shopaholics.
As we saw earlier, Kapha’s don’t like to exercise or too much movement or to get out of daily routine, it becomes hard to motivate them to exercise or to take up a new challenge for professional growth. Even though they have great endurance and strength, they lack the motivation to get started into exercising or taking up calculated risks for their professional growth. Once they start the work, they really enjoy it and they will make sure to complete the task as they don’t give up easily. Also, when they meet with resistance or when things don’t go their way, they might become depressed and get drawn to food to seek comfort and this habit can easily lead to excess Kapha as they have slow digestion from the beginning. It is also important for them to let go of old habits or toxic relationships which do not serve them well. Instead of withdrawing from any situation and seeking comfort in food or in unnecessary things they must learn healthy methods to cope with emotions.
Balancing Kapha
The same principles of Samanya and Vishesha which we discussed earlier will apply here in balancing out of balance Kapha. As we saw earlier when any dosha is out of balance, Ayurveda recommends the use of 5 senses to bring it back in balance.
By Taste :
The best tastes to pacify Kapha are Pungent, bitter, and astringent.
Minimize foods that are sour, salty, and sweet tastes.
To counterbalance the cold and heavy nature of the Kapha dosha, Ayurveda traditionally recommends foods that are light and heating.
By Touch: To balance Kapha perform stimulating vigorous massage with light and warm oils like sunflower or safflower oils. Also, dry brushing which is called Gharshana in Sanskrit with a soft-bristled body brush can help. One more way to remove excess Kapha is by regular use of a steam sauna or dry sauna as it will promote sweating. Neti pot use is also recommended to remove excess nasal and upper respiratory tract congestion.
Balancing By Sound: Choose music that is fast and stimulating so that it can get slow, heavy, and sluggish Kapha energy moving. Passionate and fast Music like urban samba, drum beats, rock, and roll.
Balancing By Sight: Out of balance Kapha mind can also be balanced with bold and warm colors like oranges, bright yellows, and red.
By Smell: Choose stimulating, spicy, and aromatic scents, such as eucalyptus, camphor, clove, juniper, marjoram, and rosemary to balance out of balance Kapha mind.
Exercise and sweat is Kapha’s best friend yet Kapha Types can get very lazy hence they have to be very intentional when it comes to exercise and movement. They will need to find ways to force and motivate themselves to move. Sweat is the best medicine for Kapha types. Kapha’s naturally store fat and sweat is the natural enemy to their fat. Any exercise which will help them sweat will clear Kapha congestion and sluggishness. They would benefit highly from brisk walking, Zumba, dancing, running, rowing, HIIT, Kickbox cardio, Hot yoga, weight training, Barre class. Aerobic activities that will increase the heart rates are more beneficial for Kapha types.
In short, avoid cold and heavy meals, frequent eating, cold temperatures, wet and humid weather, ice-cold drinks, too much sweet, salt, or sour food. Consume warm and light cooked meals, use lots of spices, favor spicy, bitter, and astringent tastes. Also, favor fasting or eating less and move more. If you want to find your unique mind-body type / Dosha feel free to contact me.