How to adapt your movement/exercise to early Spring + Kapha season

Mar 30

In recent years, there’s been a movement to embrace “slow living.” Slow living means taking an intentional approach to how we spend our days, oftentimes adapting to meet the needs of the seasons both in nature and in our bodies. By nature, it asks us to slow down and consider how our choices are affecting not only us, but those around us as well as the planet (verrrry countercultural to the “faster is better” world we live in).

Most commonly, I see the concept of slow living showing up in our food choices. How can we eat seasonally and locally? And, while that may take more time to figure out and may not be as convenient as going to the grocery store and having everything that we want at our fingertips, it IS what is best for our bodies and the planet (i.e. root veggies are abundant in winter and fresh fruits in summer).

Our bodies need seasonal adaptations pertaining to movement, too. Interesting, right? In a world where we are so regimented with food, exercise, movement, and productivity, we forget that we are nature. Nature is cyclical. Nature needs different things at different times. When we look at our bodies through the frameworks of yoga therapy and Ayurveda, we realize the benefits of adapting our movements to the seasons, instead of solely practicing the same type of yoga/exercise week to week and day to day. How freeing! And, how fun! Yes?

Right now, it’s Kapha season or early Spring. Kapha is one of the doshas, or constitutions in Ayurveda (there are three) that make up our bodies and are found within nature. Remember, Ayurveda recognizes that we are reflected in nature and she is reflected in us. Kapha is made up of the elements Earth and Water. The qualities of Kapha dosha and this early Spring season we’re in are:

Heavy
Wet
Cold
Damp
Cloudy
Dense
Slow

What happens in your body when you read these qualities? Now, consider what happens during Spring. The hard Earth begins to thaw. The rains soak the Earth to prepare for fresh buds and vegetation. There’s often a promise of sunshine followed by days of cloudy, rainy weather. This is Kapha in action.

Ayurveda is all about the play of opposites, and so we nurture the opposing doshas in our movement, food, breath, and other practices when we seek to find balance. What’s the opposite of Kapha’s heavy, wet, cold, damp, cloudy, dense, and slow qualities? Light, dry, hot, clear, fluid, and mobile. Yes? These qualities are also known as the gunas, or qualities found in nature.

How do we bring the qualities of light, dry, hot, clear, fluid, and mobile into our movement practices to balance Kapha dosha’s effects?

Promote Warmth/Heat: In yoga asana, move at a moderate pace through the postures and allow plenty of time for stretching. Moving moderately increases heat. Let’s be clear this doesn’t necessarily mean “power” or “hot” yoga. In fact, Ayurveda recommends exerting yourself in yoga to the point where you develop a light sweat, but not much further beyond that. And, stretch! Stretching increases Pitta dosha, or the fire like quality in our bodies. Feel your body warm as you hold postures like Seated Forward Bend, Pyramid, and Triangle.
Increase Your Stamina: This is the time to extend your practices where and when you can. If you usually practice asana for 20 minutes, see if you can practice for 30 minutes. If you’re on your mat for 30 minutes in a session, try for 40/45 minutes, and so on. Not only in yoga, but extend your movement experiences elsewhere, too. Take longer walks and hikes. This will create more lightness, fluidity, and mobility in your days.
Get Outside in the Sun! Early Spring is the perfect time to hike, bike, briskly walk, and even swim if that’s right for your climate. Choose activities that get your heart pumping, but not necessarily gasping for breath. Remember, Ayurveda is about balance in our movement and simply feeling good. Not necessarily pushing ourselves to the brink of exhaustion (don’t we do that enough elsewhere?). For some, light jogs will be a good activity or even interval training, what I like to call a walk/jog/”wog.”
Practice Postures that Support the Chest: Kapha is known to govern the heart and lungs of the body. Does anyone else get allergies or feel just slightly more mucous-y in the early Spring? In your yoga practice, this is the perfect time to practice twisting asanas, remembering to breathe into the front and back of the chest. Stretch across the heart space and the chest with gentle backbends and stretch out the sides of the ribs. If you’ve been practicing in Narrative, you’ve seen we’ve focused here quite a bit the last few weeks.
Wake Up Earlier: I know. I know. I can hear the protests already. Waking up earlier is a big part of bringing Ayurveda into your daily practices. There’s something called “Kapha” time, which is from 6:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. We want to wake BEFORE Kapha time at 6:00 a.m. and get to sleep before 10:00 p.m. Why? Remember the qualities of Kapha? If we wake during the slower, denser, heavier time of day, how do you think your day is going to start out? If we go to sleep during the heavier, slower time of day, won’t it be easier to nod off? There’s much more to say on this topic, but try it!

Which movement practice will you start to incorporate into your early Spring routines? What resonates the most? What do you think about Ayurveda and yoga therapy from reading this letter? Or what are your thoughts and experiences with slow living and taking a slower, more intentional approach to life (rather than the same things day in/day out)? I’d love to hear.

Happy Spring to you! Later in Spring and towards Summer, I’ll share how we adapt to the fiery, hot seasons.

With love,
Leanne