Our bodies have three doshas (vata, pitta, kapha) in unique proportions. These are biological energies that are responsible for all the functions of our body. In Ayurveda, we call your natural state of "balance" Prakriti.
If one or more of these doshas moves away from their natural state of balance, we will develop symptoms and then disease.
Qualities of pitta
Pitta dosha is made up of the elements fire and water. Being the change in the body it is responsible for the transformation in the body and mind. Like the digestion of food for example.
Recognizing the pitta qualities within yourself will help keep this dosha balanced whether pitta is your dominant dosha or not. In the chart on the left, you will find the physical and emotional characteristics of a pitta dominant person.
Five tips to help you balance your Pitta dosha
Stay cool, physically and mentally
Stay moderate in everything you do
Participate in quiet and thoughtful activities
Stay focused and practice patience with others
Follow pitta dietary guidelines
1. Stay cool, physically and mentally.
To stay cool physically avoid excessive heat intake in the form of spicy foods (ginger, alcohol, garlic and onion) or hot spaces (sauna and sitting in the direct sun). To stay cool mentally don’t push yourself to the limit too often. Relaxation is the way to go!
2. Stay moderate in everything you do
As pitta have the tendency to overwork themselves try to follow a natural perspective on what you do. The punch line says it all: “Try to decrease the desire to punch every bag and do things from a moderate perspective.”
3.Participate in quiet and thoughtful activities
To keep pittas mind calm it is recommended to participate in thoughtful activities like yoga, going for walks near bodies of water and listening to calming music.
4. Stay focused and practice patience with others
Pittas naturally have ambition and a robust mind, therefore it is easy to get agitated when other people do things at a slower pace. Realise this fact and try to accept that everyone is different.
5. Follow Pitta dietary guidelines
Cool, refreshing, and liquidy foods are favorable. Pittas go well on lightly cooked foods, heavier grains, and a balance between augmenting and extractive foods.
Add spices to your cooking. Preferred spices: Coriander, Fennel, cardamom, and saffron.
Go for sweet, astringent and bitter tastes. Use less sour, pungent and salty tastes.
Cooking with liquid and oils is preferred over dry cooking methods like baking, grilling, or dehydrating.
Using the 60/40 augmenting/extractive method will keep your pitta balanced.
"Like attracts like, and opposite brings balance."
In Ayurveda, there is a saying like attracts like and the opposite brings balance. When experiencing a pitta excess, you will naturally crave sour and salty foods. BUT these are cravings of your imbalance. To heal this pitta imbalance, it is essential to introduce the opposite qualities. Therefore if you are experiencing an excess of pitta qualities (hot, intense, acidic, sharp and pungent), you will need to introduce food and exercise with the opposite qualities (cool, slow, sweet, and soft)
Always start with one thing at a time. Implement it into your daily life and then when that feels nice and you no longer think about it, then pick something new.