Ayuryoga: You are unique, as are your Yoga needs!

By Sheridan K Hailley, MA, CPT, RCC

First seen in Body Connect Magazine, Winter 2000

Ayuryoga uses the understandings from Ayurvedic medicine, tailoring a range of yoga postures to individual needs. Ayuryoga addresses your energy or dosha type, and seeks to restore energetic balance. Ayuryoga increases our sensitivity to our unique constitution. Energy imbalances, over time, manifest into disease in the body. Your ayuryoga practice may be designed to address a specific illness or injury.

Applying Ayurveda and the Five Elements:

Ayurveda is based on five element theory understanding of the human energy system. There are fundamentally five qualities of energy that exist in nature and in our being: ether, air, fire, water and earth. These elements combine to serve various functions in the body, forming three doshas. Based on your dosha qualities, Ayurveda offers you in-depth guidance to balance and strengthen your health, including diet, type of exercise, type of breath practice, herbs, proper timing of self-care and daily activities.

Vata (air and ether)

The qualities of vata energy are light, cool, quick and dry. Vata serves to propel all other energies in the body. Particular sights of vata include the kidneys and nervous system. Common vata imbalances in the body include contractions in shoulders and pelvis, overactive mind and poor digestion at the colon. Recommended yoga practices for vata include a very slow flow, and postures which open the low back and pelvis for grounding. Some recommended practices included alternate nostril breathing, cobra, forward bend, hip openers and slow walking meditation.

Pitta (fire)

Pitta quality is heating. Pitta serves the function of transformation, for example, converting food into fuel for the body. Primary sites of pitta include vision, immune system, and digestion (liver). Pitta imbalances include inflammation, high blood pressure excess anger or judgementalness. Yoga postures focus on the solar plexus and naval, with outward flow and release from there, to disperse these sites of pitta. Specific poses may include child pose, cat cow and slow deep diaphragm and naval breathing.

Kapha (water and earth)

Kapha quality is dense, and slow. Kapha serves to strengthen and stabilize. Primary sites of kapha include bones, joints and lymphatics. Examples of kapha imbalance include fatigue, excess weight and depression. Once imbalanced into relative inertia, yoga practices done with vigor get kapha healthily moving again. Recommended practices may include breath of fire, downward facing dog, and seated twists.

Dosha information assists us in bringing finely tuned awareness to our yoga practices. Tailoring postures to your unique individual needs can contribute greatly to rebalancing your energy, and accelerating the healing process!