If you feel like it’s difficult to get out of bed, let alone stay energized all day... you are not alone.
If you feel like you’re not thinking as clearly, or computing as quickly, as you’d like to… you are not alone.
These challenges are common among people today — and it’s generally because we are all processing a lot.
We are processing the ups and downs of the world we’re living in, but there is often something else going on inside of us.
This secret factor is something that Ayurveda has known about for thousands of years, but that Western society is just beginning to conceptualize.
That is — internal metabolic waste, or āma as it is referred to in Sanskrit. This is a heavy, sticky substance that is toxic to the body and is at the root of disease.
This sticky substance forms from the dysfunction of internal digestive processes. In other words, āma is generated in the digestive tract when food is improperly digested. This is often the result of overloading our digestive systems with things that are difficult to process, resulting in the inability to transform our food into nutrients that can be absorbed and assimilated
This is the secret culprit to so much of the heaviness we feel.
Why?
Because āma has the Ayurvedic qualities of cold, heavy, dull, dense, sticky and slimy. This means it is generally very kaphic in nature (embodying the qualities of the earth and water elements)
Due to these qualities, āma clogs the vital channels in the body that are responsible for everything from elimination of wastes to transportation of nutrients and cellular communication. This ultimately hinders many of the body’s processes — causing diseases of digestion, the veins and arteries (such is the case with high cholesterol), and more… right down to the cellular level. This can ultimately lead to things like weakened immunity, and in severe cases, this same principle is responsible for autoimmune disease.
So how do we know when this metabolic waste begins to accumulate? As you learn to tune in more deeply with your body, you can tell that your system is struggling with āma if you have any combination of the following:
A thick white coating on your tongue
A sense of stagnant or dull energy
Feeling of heaviness in the body and mind
Brain fog or an inability to think clearly
Foul smelling gas or burps
Frequent bad breath or a bad taste in mouth
Indigestion and often a low appetite
Constipation or diarrhea
Nausea
Low libido and/or sexual debility
Body aches
Malaise — general discomfort
Overall feeling of uncleanliness
Take a moment to check in about whether or not you are experiencing any of these symptoms. Be honest with yourself.
So what do we do about this toxic stuff???
The BEST way to prevent and reduce toxic build up in the body is to keep the digestive fire burning bright — because healthy digestion is the foundation for deep, satisfying wellness. Healthy digestion is synonymous with strong digestive fire, and in Ayurveda, we call digestive fire agni.
Agni, or digestive fire, is named for the Vedic god of fire, and fire (as we know from pitta) exemplifies the energy of transformation — just as a flame transforms wood into heat, agni transforms food into energy. Agni has the Ayurvedic qualities of hot, light, sharp, subtle, clear and dry.
Your agni is responsible for transforming the food and beverages that you take in to your body into the sustenance that supports your thriving existence through digestion, absorption and assimilation. When agni is burning steadily, digestion is comfortable, your cells are nourished and damaging toxins are prevented from building up in your body.
In Western terms, you can think of it like metabolism, digestive enzymes and amino acids. Healthy agni unlocks the nutrients that enable bodily tissues to mature and develop for optimal function. When agni is properly tended to in the body we experience greater energy as a result of deeper nourishment, as well as a more youthful feeling and glow as a result of proper cellular turnover, etc.
Keeping agni healthy is important because it helps ensure disease cannot manifest, and that you feel light, bright and energized.
There are a few general rules you can follow in order to reduce or prevent āma. Among the most important things to focus on to help you avoid and being to purge toxins include:
Eat mostly warm, well-cooked and well spiced foods. Cook your food with digestive spices such as cumin, coriander, ginger, etc.
In other words, soups, curries, stirfries, macrobowls with roasted vegetables, whole grains and a protein, etc. These foods are most easily digested, absorbed and assimilated — and therefore least likely to turn into toxins.
Do not eat more than the stomach can handle — eat to only ⅔ your stomach’s capacity.
Avoid excessive sweet, heavy, oily and cold foods, especially processed sugar and fried foods
Be sure your food has been digested before adding more (including snacks)
Eat dinner no later than 7 pm
If you need water during your meal, sip only small amounts of warm water
Avoid sleeping immediately after eating
Do a seasonal cleanse like The Reset for Resilience Ayurvedic Cleanse for Body & Mind
Inevitably, throughout the year, most of us experience some form of toxic build up. When toxins accumulate in the bodily, they begin to clog our channels. This is when we notice our bodies feeling tired and heavy for days and even weeks on end, and it often happens at seasonal transitions. Usually, this is the point when we feel a deep craving for a digestive reset.
The Reset for Resilience is a 28-day program, centered around a five-day detox, that is designed to improve digestion, enhance immunity and promote clarity. LEARN MORE.
