Find Your Dosha: A Meal Plan for Body Type?

One day last week, my coworker turned to me and said, “I thought of you yesterday.”

To which I raised an eyebrow and replied, “…in what context?”

Apparently, a Dr. Oz feature on T.V. recently screamed “Alyssa.” After researching to topic a little, I need to share it with you all.

This episode featured Ayurveda, the 5,000 year-old Indian ancient science of healing. It is the oldest surviving complete medical system in the world.

According to Ayurveda, each of us has a unique mix of three mind/body principles, which creates our specific mental and physical characteristics. These three principles are called “doshas.” Most of us have one or two doshas, which are most dominant in our nature. The three doshas are known as “Vata,” “Pitta,” and “Kapha.”

Take the quiz here to see what dosha describes you.

When one hears the description of a Vata, it is very likely he or she would, in fact, think of me, just as my coworker did.

Vatas (Creativity ~ Enthusiasm ~ Freedom ~ Generosity ~ Joy ~ Vitality) have a small frame, are either very tall or very short, walk quickly, speak quickly, and are enthusiastic and active. They prefer routine, but are thrill-seeking. Vatas to avoid confrontation and express themselves through activity and creativity. As my corworker said, each of those characteristics most definitely pertains to me.

Factors that increase Vata (i.e., things Vata-based personalities should avoid): Explosure to cold; no routine; eating to much dry, frozen, or leftover food or food with bitter, pungent or astringent taste; fasting; too much traveling; too much or inappropriate exercise; suppressing natural urges; abdominal surgery; not moisturizing skin.

For a Vata Body Type Meal Plan, click here.

Pittas (Ambition ~ Concentration ~ Confidence ~ Courage ~ Enthusiasm for knowledge ~ Happiness ~ Intelligence), on the other hand, tend to have a moderately well-developed physique with mascular limbs and a purposeful, stable gait of medium speed. Their skin is generally hot/sweaty and freckly and tends to rash easily and burn in the sun. Pittas spend moderately on luxury items and can be judgemental, articulate, learned and proud. They have a developed sense of responsibility and organize affairs well. They are also argumentative, but with a sense of humor.

Factors that increase Pitta: Exposure to heat; eating too much red meat, salt, spicy/sour foods; indigestion and irregularity of meals; exercising at midday; drugs, especially antibiotics; increased intellectual work/thinking; alcohol; fatigue; strong emotion

For a Vata Body Type Meal Plan, click here.

Kaphas (Caring ~ Centeredness ~ Compassion ~ Contentment ~ Faith ~ Fulfillment ~ Groundedness ~ Patience ~ Sense of being nourished ~ Stability ~ Support ~ Tenderness) are calm, steady, and considerate. They have patient personalities and are slow to anger. Kaphas are loyal, forgiving, and understanding, and they can be lethargic, even lazy, if not driven by others. Learning for them may be slow, but their memory will be strong. Kaphas generally are deep sleepers and require many hours of rest and are money savers.

Factors that increase Kapha: Exposure to cold; eating too much sweets, meats, fats, cheese, milk, ice cream, yogurt, or fried food; excessive use of salt; excessive intake of water; taking naps after meals; “doing nothing”; sedatives and tranquilizers; doubts; greed; possessiveness

For a Pitta Body Type Meal Plan, click here.

While this school of thought is definitely interesting, I’m not 100% sure I buy into it 100%. I do know I fall into the Vata personality type, according to the quiz, so maybe I’ll keep avoiding cold temperatures, frozen meals, and too much traveling.

Oh, and abdominal surgery. I should probably avoid that, too. And while a meal plan made for the “vata” body type looks interesting, I think I’ll stick with the Fitmixer Boot Camp nutrition plan with which I’m having success.

Would you buy into the Ayurveda principles? Would you be willing to follow a meal plan prescribed for your body type?

The information highlighted in this post was compiled from numerous sources.

Tagged as: ayurveda, find your dosha, kapha body type, meal plan based on body type, pitta body type, vata body type