Yoga for Your Dosha

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Section 1
  • Welcome to the course Yoga for Your Dosha! The first chapter of this course is comprised of written articles designed to give you the introductory info you need to get the most out of the later chapters. From there, each chapter includes video lectures and a class that will teach you how to design personalized yoga practices for your students, your clients, and yourself! As a yoga practitioner or teacher, you’ve experienced the healing power of asana. At the end of your practice you feel different, transformed, better! At some point along your yoga journey, questions arise. How does my yoga practice...
  • The basis of ayurveda is understanding that you are a part of nature, and your physical and psychological tendencies can be described in terms of the five elements: earth, water, fire, air, and space. Everything in the natural world, including our bodies and the food we eat, is comprised of the five elements. In the body and mind, the five elements are expressed in three organizational patterns called the doshas. In essence, the doshas are the five elements bound into human form. KAPHA dosha is the combination of the EARTH and WATER element. PITTA dosha is the combination of the FIRE and WATER...
  • Now that you’ve taken the dosha quiz, you likely have some new insights about yourself, and maybe a host of questions! Dosha tests are a helpful tool when learning ayurveda to assist you in viewing your patterns in a new way. Remember, we all have ALL the doshas in us—they're just in different proportions.
  • Now you have some sense of your vikriti. Ayurveda takes a multi-faceted approach to alleviating symptoms of imbalance. One of the key tenets of treatment is a concept called “Opposite Therapy.” Remember that a dosha imbalance results from "like increasing like." Too much hot food makes pitta too hot! To balance a dosha in ayurveda we "apply the opposite." To balance pitta, in this example, a person could start to avoid hot spices (red chilli peppers) and use cooling herbs in their diet and spices (like cilantro, basil, or mint). They could also practice specific yoga postures to release excess...
  • The three doshas describe how the five elements bind into human form. The food we eat contains the five elements. Our digestive system breaks down these elements and “repackages” them into a form the body can use to build tissues and organs. Ayurveda explains how certain tissues, organs, and body fluids are more dominant in one of the doshas and less in the others. This concept of how the doshas “concentrate” in certain parts of the body is called sub-dosha. Each dosha has a “homesite,” or an organ where the dosha is most concentrated, called the “seat” of the dosha. Vata’s homesite is the colon....
Section 2
  • The qualities of lightness, motion, dryness, and cold characterize vata dosha. When a person has a high amount of vata (air and space) in their constitution, it shows in their appearance, personality, and nervous system. They tend to be light-hearted, creative, enthusiastic, and inspirational, often with a dry sense of humor. Physically, vatas are often thinner, with fine bones and protruding joints, and may become underweight if unbalanced. They appreciate help grounding and stabilizing—whether it's their joints, focus, or emotions, all of which can be brilliant yet flighty. Signs of vata imbalance...
  • In Ayurveda, when a dosha is said to be “moving out of balance,” it often refers to dosha gati—the movement of a dosha away from its home site. This concept is especially relevant with vata dosha, which has five sub-doshas, or directional winds, each with distinct roles in the body. Though vata’s home is in the colon, its energies can travel and reside elsewhere—like the head, skin, ears, bones, or hair. Here’s a breakdown of the five vata sub-doshas: 1) Prana vayu resides in the head and heart. It governs the flow of information between brain and heart through the maha vaha srotas, allowing us...
  • Vata’s sub-doshas are influenced by the ether and air elements. To help vata-dominant people stay focused and courageous while embracing their natural energy, a few adjustments to asana and pranayama practice can make a big difference. Incorporate warming, rhythmic pranayama. Breath work directly affects prana and udana vayus and influences the others as well. Sama vritti, or equal inhale and exhale, balances samana vayu and centers energy in the navel. A 1:2 breath ratio, where the exhale is twice as long, supports apana vayu and encourages grounding. Because vata tends to be cool and scattered,...
  • Feeling a little spacey or ungrounded,? Join Sarah in a vata-pacifying asana practice that focuses on grounding and stabilizing that restless energy, releasing stagnant vata in the pelvic region, and calming the nervous system. Learn how lunges, twists, forward folds, prone asanas, and warriors can compress that vata wind, create a strong sense of support, and strengthen the abdominal area and the pelvic container so you can stay rooted and present.
Section 3
  • Pitta dosha is governed by the fire and water elements, with key traits of heat, sharpness, and mobility. Pitta types often have warm body temperatures and strong digestive fire, which drives both a healthy appetite and passionate, competitive tendencies. They typically dislike heat and sun and are prone to irritability under stress. Pitta’s sharp quality shows in their keen intellect and ability to analyze and understand complex ideas. They’re determined and goal-oriented, moving like fire—direct and consuming. When balanced, pittas are radiant, joyful, and efficient. But when out of balance,...
  • To understand pitta imbalances, it helps to explore its five sub-doshas, each governing key physical and energetic functions. While pitta’s main seat is in the small intestine, it also influences the blood, eyes, brain, liver, spleen, gallbladder, sebaceous glands, stomach, and navel. Each sub-dosha plays a specific role, not only physiologically but also in perception, digestion (of food and impressions), and overall balance. 1. Sadhaka Pitta governs the brain and heart (considered one organ in Ayurveda). It digests sensory input and helps assimilate mental impressions. It works alongside prana...
  • Here are some important keys to remember when creating a pitta-balancing yoga practice: Maintain a soft gaze. We often have to remind pitta-dominant people to keep the gaze soft when practicing. This helps to calm the sadhaka pitta present in the brain and the alochaka pitta housed in the eyes. Practice cooling pranayama. Pranayama such as shitali (cooling breath) or bhramari (humming bee breath) create a cool awareness and a soft, calm effect. Work at about 60% capacity. This sounds crazy to someone with pitta dominance, but it’s actually quite important. Pittas tend to push themselves, and this...
  • Need to cool some of that pitta energy down? Join Sarah in an asana practice designed to reduce excess heat and intensity in the body as well as the mind. Pitta heat collects in the abdominal area, so this sequence creates space, length, and freedom throughout the midsection of the body with poses such as standing bow, twisting lunge, triangle, wide-angle fold, spinal twist, and crocodile. Sarah also teaches how to pull back on the intensity while still experiencing the power and challenge of each pose so that you can enjoy your activity and still relax any mental tension. Prop: 1 block, optional
Section 4
  • Kapha dosha is governed by the elements of earth and water, reflected in both physical and emotional qualities. Key traits include heaviness, wetness, slowness, and softness. Kapha’s seat is in the lungs, and its heavy nature is seen in a larger frame and muscle mass, which leads to easier weight gain and a grounded, steady energy. This grounding draws vatas and pittas to kaphas for balance. However, imbalance can lead to mental and emotional heaviness and holding onto negative emotions. Kapha’s water element brings grace, fluidity in movement and speech, and emotional flexibility. Physically,...
  • To understand kapha’s impact on the body, we must look at its seat and sub-doshas. Kapha’s primary home is the lungs, but it also resides in plasma (its main tissue), the brain’s white matter, sinus and oral cavities, tongue and saliva, heart, lymph tissues, synovial fluid, and the upper stomach and pancreas. Like vata and pitta, kapha has five sub-doshas: Tarpaka kapha supports memory and contentment, linking the mind, heart, and ojas (vital energy). It helps store genetic information (DNA/RNA) and emotional imprints (samskaras). Bhodaka kapha governs taste and sensory enjoyment through the mouth...
  • How do you work with the sub-doshas to pacify kapha and bring her into balance? Here are a few tips. Work with your breath. Choose warming, stimulating pranayama to support bhodaka kapha in the mouth and tarpaka kapha in the mind. When these two are balanced, saliva remains steady and you can better taste your food. Heating breathwork also stimulates the mind and reduces sensory dullness. Pay attention to your acid-alkaline balance. Thick saliva, when swallowed, can alter stomach acidity and disturb agni. Agni sara is a great tool to pacify this damp, kapha response and help balance other sub-doshas...
  • Feeling lethargic in body and mind? Join Sarah in a kapha-reducing practice sure to stoke the fire and reduce sluggishness. This focused, energizing practice includes sun salutations, high and low lunges, warriors I and II, side angle, wide-angle fold, twists, bridge, and more—all sequenced to fully pacify this (occasionally) heavy, sleepy, dull, and wet dosha, and deliver you to that “ahhh” state of coexistent energy and relaxation. So step out of your lethargy and into your happiness!