TEMPLE, Texas — "Ayurveda is the world's oldest health system, and it's the sister science of yoga based on the mind-body connection."
Best-selling author and podcast host, Sahara Rose, has been practicing Ayurveda for nearly ten years. The health system, which originated in northern India, provides guidance on nutrition, self-care and daily practices that can help you live a long, balanced and healthy life.
Rose said it completely changed her life and transformed her health.
"My body essentially begins shutting down, I didn't get my period for over two years. Doctors told me I would never be able to have children; I would probably become handicapped in my 50s,” Rose explained.
Through studying Ayurveda, Rose discovered the raw vegan diet she'd been eating was completely wrong for her body.
"When I first took a dosha quiz, and I read everything about this archetype, it felt like I was reading my autobiography. Not only aspects of my health - bloating, gas, constipation amenorrhea - but also my mind - anxiety, insomnia- and my personality - creative, think outside the box, idealistic. So, for the first time, I felt so understood. I had never experienced that from the countless doctors that I went to," she said.
Rose’s experience led her to write the book "The Idiot's Guide to Ayurveda" where she breaks down this 5,000-year-old health system and makes it idiot-proof. It starts by discovering your own unique dosha - pitta, vata or kapha - or some combination of the three.
"By understanding what are your primary doshas, your primary energy types and the season that you are in, your needs, etc, you're actually able to customize everything for yourself," she said.
Once you discover your dosha, you learn how it's reflected in the way your body looks, your metabolism, digestion and even your personality. If things are out of balance, Rose said you can use food as medicine to help get things flowing smoothly.
"One of the overarching themes is that like increases like. So, a body that is out of balance will further crave the foods that will knock it out of balance and a body that is in balance will further crave the foods that keep it in balance,” she said.
And while it can seem complicated at first, according to Rose, practicing Ayurveda is something many people already do, they just don't know it.
"In the fall we want pumpkin spice lattes and we want soups and we want warm beverages. That's because our bodies can feel that it's cold … it's dry, so it's wanting to bring balance with warm and moist foods. Or on a hot summer's day we're wanting fruits and herbs and salads, etc., because our bodies are naturally hot, then we're wanting more cooling foods," she explained. "So just that intuitive desire of the body to bring itself back into balance with your diet, exercise, etc. that is Ayurveda in practice."
Rose suggested one easy way to start living a more Ayurvedic life is drinking warm water first thing in the morning, which helps with digestion and nutrient absorption.
She also has a free quiz where you can find discover your dosha on her website. If you’re interested in learning more you can also pick up her book, "The Idiot's Guide to Ayurveda," or her cookbook "Eat, Feel Fresh."