Morning Routine

The main reason, in his view, is that, as a group, “Morning people” tend to be much more proactive. This finding is validated by a recent poll by the British daily The Guardian. It reveals that many successful business leaders get up around 5 a.m. morning.

Use of stimulants, polluted environments, poor eating habits, poor lifestyle habits, lack of rest, mental overactivity, stress,… it is a fact, we live in a civilization that aggravates the Vata dosha. It is not uncommon to hear indian doctors passing through the Old Continent say that more than 70 of the population of Western countries suffers from an imbalance of Vata, regardless of the birth constitution of their inhabitants. Better than any other health system, Ayurveda has a deep understanding of the mechanisms that fuel such imbalances as well as knowledge of all the solutions to them. This is why many turn to Ayurveda, but often without properly assessing what will need to be changed in their lives in order to take advantage of the advice that will be given to them.

It is common for people who turn to Ayurveda to think that taking the preparations prescribed to them by an Ayurvedic doctor is enough to restore balance. Alas, this is far from enough. Taking preparations without changing health-damaging lifestyles, as any vaidya recommends, is like filling a pierced basket. Daily and seasonal, the Ayurvedic routine is therefore the indispensable complement to these preparations in order to restore good health and bring joy and success in the life of everyone. From this perspective, becoming morning is the starting point of this work that requires a real shift in lifestyle. This is the condition to restore balance, especially in those who are in the evening and like to prolong their activities late at night.

Whether you are a manager or not, Ayurveda recommends that everyone get up early and start the day with a look at the sunrise show and take a few steps or yoga postures in the rising sun, a habit that is supposed to increase longevity. In order to respond in anticipation to a remark I often hear, one should never lose sight of the view that physiology likes to settle into a regular routine. Immediate consequence, waking up early also applies to weekends and holidays. It is a mistake to think that on Saturday and Sunday you will be able to sleep later in order to make up for a possible lack of sleep or because of a bit of fatigue. On weekdays or weekends, you will have to get up at the same time and sleep the same number of hours according to your constitution. Not having your sleep hour count will decrease your cognitive function. It would work as if you had between 0.5 and 2 grams of alcohol in your blood!

The quality of sleep directly affects physical and mental health. By influencing Ojas, it also affects immunity. That’s why Ayurveda is full of equally relevant advice to sleep soundly and wake up in top shape.

This multitude takes into account the different constitutions. It also responds to the many factors that can disrupt sleep over the course of a lifetime.

A Vata sleep imbalance is usually characterized by a wake-up call in the middle of the night between two and six o’clock, the hours of the Vata cycle, and a difficulty in getting back to sleep. This problem can be solved by taking a hot bath followed by a body massage with sesame oil before going to bed. If a full massage is not possible, at least massage your head and feet. A warm milk with honey before bedtime will also help to manage this type of problem.

Pitta sleep imbalance manifests as an awakening 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. The ghee massage of the head and feet usually overcomes this problem. Brahmi-based herbal tea (Centella asiatica) will also help, as will aromatherapy with lavender essential oil.

The Kapha imbalance of sleep is characterized an inability to wake up before 6 a.m. and sleep up to ten or eleven hours! To remedy this, massage the head and feet with mustard oil mixed with olive oil or sesame oil. The ideal of course is to get up early in a natural way. It is better to outlaw the use of any alarm clock, even if it is musical. On the other hand, for those who are in the evening, light therapy can be an effective help. The light that simulates the morning dawn slows down the production of melatonin and promotes a gentle awakening to which physiology will get used without any difficulty. This assistance is appreciated in winter when the night is still dark at five o’clock in the morning and the brain still produces melatonin.

An early rise increases the chances of success

After a good night’s sleep, it is advisable to include physical exercise in your daily routine. Practiced when he wakes up, it gives the best results according to research carried out at the Appalachian State University (USA). They show that, compared to evening exercise, morning exercise lowers blood pressure, reduces stress and anxiety, and helps to sleep better at night. This is a good way to start the day on a dynamic tone. But who says getting up early, also means going to bed early. Ayurveda asserts it loud and clear. She believes that going to bed early is crucial for health because many physiological mechanisms start when you are in bed before 10 p.m. (see about it ). The most recent research confirms this fundamental precept of ayurvedic routine.

Rashid Deane, a researcher at the University of Rochester in New York, first showed that the brain had its own toxin-evacuating system, called the glymphatic system because of the involvement of glial cells. Going to bed early allows the brain to do a real cleansing and thus get rid of all neurotoxins. During sleep, the brain’s glymphatic system drains dangerous neurotoxins into the cerebrospinal fluid. The study suggests that it takes about 6 to 8 hours of sleep to complete this process, proof that the amount of sleep will have been sufficient. In this case, the brain gets rid of toxic metabolic by-products that would otherwise accumulate there, disrupting memory, destroying neurons and causing neurodegenerative disorders. Large amounts of neurotoxins are thus drained when the sleep cycle is in keeping with nature’s cycles, especially beta-amyloid, suspected of destroying neurons and leading to Alzheimer’s disease.

The Dawn Simulator

For its part, Ayurveda also recognizes the existence of a system that literally drains toxins from the brain into the cerebrospinal fluid. Kapha’s sub dosha Tarpaka is doing this work. If it is cluttered, the memory can be altered and the mind lacks clarity. The cause of this imbalance can be emotional trauma, the cumulative impact of stress, lack of sleep or digestive weakness. Several solutions can correct such an imbalance, starting with nasya, a technique that involves inhaling herbal oils in the sinuses, or the use of Bacopa (Bacopa monnieri), a neurotrophic plant that supports production. healthy cells in the brain and Brahmi which promotes microcirculation in the brain. It should be noted that high blood sugar has a negative impact on this cleaning process.

The importance of early bedtime cannot be overstated. We have given several tips in these columns to achieve this. If there is any that stands out from the crowd, it is that of reading. Several researches show that reading before bedtime can significantly reduce stress.

A study conducted at the University of Sussex (England) in 2009 shows that six minutes of reading are enough to reduce stress by 68. Reading is even more relaxing than music. At a time when smartphones and PCs make us zap and fly texts diagonally, reading before bedtime compensates for such behavior that pushes us to spend less than 15 seconds on a text! There is, of course, no way to read a detective novel with a plot that attracts attention and leaves us totally awake. A book with spiritual significance, such as the Bible, the Koran, bagavad Gita or Ramayana, is more suitable. Admittedly, reading has fewer and fewer followers in the era of multimedia and smartphones. A recent survey by the Pew Research Center showed that more than a quarter of Americans had not read a single book in the past 12 months. However, those who read regularly have better memory and improved mental abilities at all stages of life. They make better speakers in public, better thinkers and, according to some studies, better people in general. Opening a book before going to bed is therefore more than just a way to fight insomnia.

Conclusion: by making the necessary rocker to become morning, you will have passed the toll of the highway of health, the daily routine of the Ayurveda, essential to get the maximum benefits of preparations that you will have to take.