Your Ayurvedic Guide to Surviving Winter

As winter approaches, a layer of chill slowly engulfs the world and puts it in a state of dormant slumber. A cozy cover of snow envelops the world and all activities and energies dim to a gentle lull. It’s time to withdraw your energies and reserve them for the coming season. 

In winter, you direct all your outward energy inwards and settle into a state of reflection, repose, and hibernation. The cold season helps you retrieve all the spent energy over the year and revive you for the next one. 

 

Ayurveda and Seasons

To have a healthy and balanced life, it’s important to stay in perfect harmony with nature. Changing your diet and lifestyle can be a great way to stay in rhythm with the natural cycle of seasons. Once you understand your intrinsic nature and qualities and how they change with each season, it’ll be easier for you to make a healthy lifestyle and diet choices and optimize your immune system, digestion, and energy. 

As per Ayurveda, tuning into nature also helps you to be more mindful about your own constitution, or prakruti, which comprises of three energies, or doshas - Vata, the energy for movement, Pitta, the energy for digestion, and Kapha, the energy for stability. These energies are created from a combination of elements, the same ones we find in nature - Earth, Fire, Water, Air, and Ether. These elements contain different sets of qualities and are present in both your body and mind. 

Ayurveda has laid down a system of seasonal living, also known as Ritucharya. Ritu means season and Charya means regimen. Following these regimens and Ayurvedic practices will ensure that your body and mind acclimatize to the different seasons and the body homeostasis doesn’t get altered. Ayurveda divides the year into two periods or Ayanas based on the movement of the sun. There are two Ayanas - Uttarayana or northern solstice and Dakshinayana or southern solstice containing three seasons each. So while Shishira (winter), Vasanta (spring), and Grishma (summer) fall in Uttarayana, Varsha (monsoon), Sharata (autumn), and Hemanta (late autumn) fall in Dakshinayana. Each of the seasons contains different elements and energies, the imbalance of which creates diseases and illnesses.

 

Winter Season in Ayurveda

In winter, the weather is cold and chilly with a lot of moisture. The winter season is also characterized by a feeling of lethargy when animals and humans generally go into a hibernating mode. These qualities generally define the Kapha dosha and hence winter is generally believed to be a Kapha season. When the Kapha dosha is balanced, it provides strength and stability to the body and mind. However, in some cases, winter also has a cold and dry spell which bears signs of the Vata dosha. You’ll have to balance out the Vata dosha otherwise you’ll end up feeling isolated and depressed. 

 

How to Improve Immunity in the Winter Season

Many people don’t like winter since they consider it to be a season of cold, flu, and other contagious diseases. So it’s often believed that winter decreases your immunity to a great extent. However, Ayurveda feels otherwise and believes winter to be one where you can strengthen your immunity. The age-old science shows how to improve your immunity and how to stay healthy in winter. 

In Ayurveda, Bala means immunity which includes not just physical immunity but psychological and spiritual immunity as well. Bala helps in providing the body and mind with endurance to fight off any problems that affect the different areas of immunity. Various factors affect your immunity such as diet, lifestyle, season, and age. You can maintain a consistent level of immunity throughout any ups and downs in your life. 

There are three levels of immunity: 

• Hereditary (Sahaj) - the inherent immunity level you’re born with. 

• Seasonal (Kalaj) - the changing immunity levels due to planetary and seasonal shifts.

• Established (Yuktikrit) - the consistent level of immunity that can be maintained by leading an Ayurvedic lifestyle. 

Ayurveda focuses on strengthening the second level of immunity which fluctuates with changes in seasons and planetary cycles. Winter is a good time to build your immunity since digestion is stronger in the cold weather. As a result, people feel more hungry and digest more which nourishes their bodies. 

Many people have the misconception that winter is bad for immunity because it’s difficult to digest. However, that’s not the case. This is because as appetite increases, people tend to eat more junk food which affects their immunity. Having more Ayurvedic winter food can help in boosting immunity instead of weakening it. Choosing these immunity-boosting foods by Ayurveda will help nourish both your body and mind. Lifestyle too plays an important role in helping you maintain good immunity throughout the season.

 

Here are some simple health tips for winter to keep you going throughout the season:

• Rest - Winter is characterized by long nights and smaller days so you should give your body and mind an ample amount of rest. Going to bed early and rising early can help you to create the perfect balance. 

• Reduce stress - Winter helps you slow down which helps you to reduce stress to a great extent. Having a planned and organized routine for your daily activities can help you avoid clutter and confusion and reduce anxiety. 

• Exercise - Since the winter season induces lethargy, you need to provide stimulation to your body. Exercise is a great way to achieve this. Depending on your energy levels and the time of the day, you can choose your exercise regimes. 

• Practice yoga - Yoga is a great way to calm your mind and stay healthy. There are different movements that help produce heat in the body for the cold season and are ideal for balancing Vata and Kapha. 

• Choose hot, warm beverages and cooked food - In winter, it’s best to avoid chilled beverages and cold food since it may have an adverse effect on the immune system. Opting for cooked food and warm beverages can help balance the Vata and Kapha perfectly for the season. 

• Choose sweet, sour and salty foods - In Ayurveda, there are various tastes that match the rhythms of each season. In winter, it’s best to choose sweet, sour, and salty foods instead of bitter, astringent, and pungent tastes. 

• Use Ayurvedic herbal medicines - If you discover symptoms such as cold, cough, and fever, you can go for Ayurvedic medicines for increasing body heat that will create a healthy balance in the season. 

Now let’s look at these tips in detail below. 

 

An Ayurvedic Winter Foods List

Many people who intend to improve their immunity are not sure about what to eat in winter. To maintain a healthy diet in the winter season, it’s important to choose foods that are natural Ayurvedic immunity boosters. Immunity-boosting foods are those which are fresh, organic, easily digestible, and wholesome. Some of the best foods to eat in winter are fresh milk, fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and ghee (clarified butter). 

Winter foods that are easily digestible are ideal if you want to increase your immunity. It’s also important to avoid commercially processed food, foods produced with chemicals and preservatives, or even those which are canned, frozen, and packaged. This is because they disrupt the functioning of the digestive system and the immune system. 

Your winter food items should also be those which are warm, lightly cooked, less oily and spicy. In Ayurveda, there is the mention of six distinct tastes, namely Sweet (Madhura), Salty (Lavana), Pungent (Katu), Sour (Amla), Bitter (Tikta), and Astringent (Kashaya). Each of these tastes comprises of two distinct elements. Although the foods to eat in winter should have a balance of all tastes, however, your winter diet should include the sweet, sour, and salty tastes more than the astringent, bitter, and pungent tastes. 

Home-cooked foods are some of the best winter season foods, provided they aren’t deep fried and are cooked with light oils such as ghee or olive oil. You should also avoid cold food and chilled beverages and instead eat warm food and room temperature beverages. This will help keep your digestive fire burning and keep your body warm. 

Another good food for the winter season is tea since it helps in good digestion. You can sip a cup of tea after meals. Some of the other winter healthy foods are heat-producing vegetables such as radish, onions, carrots, and spinach and hot spices such as garlic, ginger, black pepper, and chilli pepper. You can add a range of cooked grains such as oatmeal, barley, tapioca, and cornmeal to your diet in winter. Moreover, legumes are a good option since they are good for Kapha and should be consumed with ghee so as to reduce the effects of Vata. Eggs and meats such as chicken, venison, and turkey are also good foods to eat in winter. Although it’s best to avoid dairy in winter, however, a glass of hot milk with turmeric and nutmeg can induce good sleep. It’ll also help to stick to water or juice-based fast for a refreshing winter Ayurvedic cleanse, especially if you suffer from Kapha imbalances such as cough and cold. 

If you’re confused about what to eat in the winter season, here’s a complete list of the Ayurvedic foods for winter:

Vegetables

• Artichokes

• Avocados

• Beets

• Brussel sprouts

• Carrots

• Chillies

• Corn

• Eggplant (cooked)

• Ginger and garlic

• Onions

• Mashed potatoes

• Pumpkins

• Tomatoes

• Turnips

 

Fruits

• Cooked apples

• Apricots

• Bananas

• Blueberries

• Watermelon

• Cherries

• Coconut

• Dates

• Figs

• Grapes

• Guava

• Lemon

• Mangoes

• Oranges

• Papayas

• Peaches

• Pineapple

• Pears

• Plums

• Strawberries

 

Grains

• Millets (in moderation)

• Oats

• Quinoa

• Rice

• Rye (in moderation)

• Wheat

 

Dairy

• Butter

• Buttermilk

• Cheese

• Cottage Cheese

• Ghee

• Milk (not cold) 

• Soy milk

 

Oils

• Almond

• Avocado

• Coconut

• Mustard

• Olive

• Peanut

• Safflower

• Sesame

 

Spices 

• Anise

• Asafoetida

• Basil

• Bayleaf

• Black pepper

• Cardamom

• Cayenne

• Chamomile

• Cinnamon

• Clove

• Coriander

• Cumin

• Nutmeg

• Oregano

• Poppy Seeds

• Saffron

• Sage

• Thyme

• Turmeric

 

Legumes

• Mung Dal

• Tofu

• Tempeh

• Miso

• Toor Dal

• Urad Dal

• Brown lentils

 

Nuts and Seeds

• Cashews

• Lotus Seeds

• Macadamia 

• Peanuts

• Pecans

• Pistachios

• Sunflower

• Walnuts

 

Fish and Meat

• Beef

• Chicken

• Crab

• Duck

• Eggs

• Lamb

• Lobster

• Pork

• Shrimp

• Turkey

 

Sweeteners

• Raw honey

• Maple syrup

• Molasses

• Rice syrup

 

Beverages

• Alcohol (in moderation)

• Black tea

• Herb teas such as chamomile and ginger

• Coffee (in moderation) 

• Water (warm) 

 

How to Reduce Vata Dosha with Food in Winter

A Vata balancing diet is the key to maintaining good immunity in winter. The two key elements of a Vata-pacifying diet are warm and cooked food. For example, warm soups and stews, hot cereals, and warm beverages such as herb teas are ideal for maintaining your body heat and, consecutively, your immunity. The predominant tastes are sweet, sour, and salty, and bitter, pungent, and astringent tastes should be avoided. Sweet, sour and heavy fruits such as oranges, bananas, cherries, pineapple, and berries and cooked vegetables such as beets, carrots, asparagus, and sweet potatoes are the ideal food to consume in the winter season. Some of the Vata reducing herbs and spices include cardamom, cumin, oregano, cloves, and turmeric. 

Many have questions such as how to keep the body warm naturally and how to reduce Vata in the body in winter. A simple solution to achieve these is by maintaining a strict regime for your food and eating them in regular and proper intervals. It’s important not to skip any meals, have a heavy breakfast and lunch, and a lighter dinner. Moreover, remember to have your dinner at least three hours before going to sleep. To satisfy your hunger pangs in-between meals, you can munch on nuts and raisins soaked in water. 

 

Winter Health Tips from Ayurveda

Although winter is about slowing down and adopting a gradual pace of life, it’s important to stray away from a sense of purposelessness and melancholy. This is the time to indulge in meaningful relationships, socialize in a balanced way and keep time for quiet reflection. 

Inducing certain predictability in your routine will go a long way in keeping the Vata in balance and boost the Kapha. You can divide the different portions of the day into a consistent routine and some spontaneous activity. For example, you can start your day with a regular morning routine such as yoga, spend the afternoons outside dressed in bright and vibrant coloured clothes that cover your body properly and protect you from the cold, engage in some uplifting evening activity and retire early to sleep. 

If you’re wondering about how to stay healthy in winter, then you should know that lifestyle is an important factor that affects your health apart from food. Disorderly habits such as staying up or working late at night, having meals at irregular times, and causing stress and fatigue to the body can negatively affect the functioning of the immune system. Keeping the body functioning and your daily activities in a smooth rhythm will help the immune system to be in perfect shape. It’s natural for the body to demand more sleep in winter since the days are shorter and the nights are longer. Moreover, the winter season is also a time to be in a resting period, so it’s ideal to reduce your activities to a bare minimum and provide more nourishment to the body. 

 

Yoga for the Cold Season 

In the winter season,  things slow down which creates an environment of heaviness and stagnation. To overcome this feeling, it’s important to provide stimulation to the body. One of the healthy tips of winter to provide stimulation is yoga.
Some of the yoga tips to survive the cold season are: 

• Practice in the morning and evening - Different parts of the day have different energies when the Kapha dosha is dominant. When the energy is high, you feel active, while when the energy is lower, you feel slower. It’s ideal to practice when the energy is on a higher side. The morning time from 6 AM to 10 AM and evening time from 6 pm to 10 pm is the most conducive for practicing yoga. 

• Focus on the heat-building movements - Many of you may feel towards relaxed movements since it’s winter, however, it’s important to balance out the cold weather with warm heat-producing movements. You can start your practice with a few Surya Namaskar and move on to a Vinyasa. 

• Wear bright clothes during practice - Colour therapy actually works. It’s easy to let the winter blues take over to make you feel dark and down. This is where bright colors help to lift your mood up. Some of the colors you can try out our reds, oranges, purples, and yellows. 

• Focus on leg-heavy postures - Incorporating more squats, lunges, and warrior poses can help you to increase the strength in your legs which adds to our mental wellbeing. More power in your legs means that you feel more positive and emotionally stable. 

• Play some music while you practice - A great way to provide steady stimulation while you practice is by keeping some uplifting tunes in the background. It can really help you get you in the mindset to work it out by overcoming your laziness. 

 

Some of the yoga movements that you can practice during winter are: