How to Support Your Health with Exercise Written by Ajay Sangwai The human body was designed to move, as evidenced by the three hundred and sixty joints in the human skeletal system, and we all know that exercise is critical to maintaining optimal health. When engaged appropriately, and according to one’s individual needs, exercise can be a potent catalyst for improved health. Unfortunately, modern life requires more and more of us to lead extraordinarily sedentary lives, making movement and exercise more important than ever. Benefits of Proper Exercise Exercise also supports the body’s pathways of detoxification—kindling agni (the digestive fire) throughout the tissues while improving digestion, circulation, elimination, and lymphatic flow. Beyond that, exercise activates natural pathways of rejuvenation by helping release accumulated tension, clearing stagnant mental and emotional energy, improving our ability to relax, and supporting sound sleep. All of these benefits are understand...
How to Support Your Health with Exercise
Written by Ajay Sangwai
The human body was designed to move, as evidenced by the three hundred and sixty joints in the human skeletal system, and we all know that exercise is critical to maintaining optimal health. When engaged appropriately, and according to one’s individual needs, exercise can be a potent catalyst for improved health.
Unfortunately, modern life requires more and more of us to lead extraordinarily sedentary lives, making movement and exercise more important than ever.
Benefits of Proper Exercise
Exercise also supports the body’s pathways of detoxification—kindling agni (the digestive fire) throughout the tissues while improving digestion, circulation, elimination, and lymphatic flow.
Beyond that, exercise activates natural pathways of rejuvenation by helping release accumulated tension, clearing stagnant mental and emotional energy, improving our ability to relax, and supporting sound sleep.
All of these benefits are understandably critical to our experience of optimal health. Ideally, our fitness routines are grounding, energizing, and truly help us feel our best—body, mind, and spirit.
Is It Possible to Exercise Too Much?
However, we live in a culture that glorifies exercise, hard work, and pushing the limits in as many ways as possible. This worldview has undoubtedly infiltrated our perspective on exercise. How often do you hear phrases like these?
No Pain, No Gain
Push It
Go Big or Go Home
Just Do It
Feel the Bur
As with many things, we have an obsessive relationship with exercise. We’re generally conditioned to think that more is always better, and that pushing ourselves to the limit is unquestionably preferable to taking it easy in our activities.
But Ayurveda offers a different view entirely.
Aurvedic Herbs and Their Benefits
1. Ashwagandha
Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) is a small woody plant native to India and North Africa. Its root and berries are used to produce a very popular Ayurvedic remedy (2Trusted Source).
It’s considered an adaptogen, which means that it’s believed to help your body manage stress more effectively. Research has shown that it reduces levels of cortisol, a hormone that your adrenal glands produce in response to stress (3Trusted Source, 4Trusted Source).
There’s also evidence linking ashwagandha to lower levels of anxiety and improved sleep in people with stress and anxiety disorders (3Trusted Source, 5Trusted Source, 6Trusted Source).
Moreover, research shows that ashwagandha may enhance muscle growth, memory, and male fertility, as well as lower blood sugar levels. However, larger studies are needed to confirm these benefits (4Trusted Source, 7Trusted Source, 8Trusted Source, 9Trusted Source, 10Trusted Source).
Finally, there’s evidence that it may help reduce inflammation and boost your immune system, though more studies are needed (11, 12Trusted Source).
SUMMARY
Ashwagandha is an Ayurvedic spice that may help your body manage stress more effectively. It may also lower your blood sugar levels and improve sleep, memory, muscle growth, and male fertility.
Boswellia is an Ayurvedic spice with anti-inflammatory properties. It may reduce joint pain, enhance oral health, and improve digestion, as well as increase breathing capacity in people with chronic asthma.
Understanding the Principles of Ayurveda:
Principles of Ayurveda
The word "Ayurveda" is derived from the Sanskrit word Ayu (life) and Veda (knowledge or science). Ayurveda centers around the idea that imbalance leads to illness.1
According to Ayurveda, the universe is made of five elements:
- Jala (water)
- Vayu (air)
- Prithvi (earth)
- Aakash (space)
- Teja (fire)
These elements combine to form three energy types in the human body: Pitta dosha (air and space), Vata dosha (water and fire), and Kapha dosha (earth and water). Together, these Tridoshas help regulate how the body functions.
In Ayurveda, the body is comprised of seven types of tissues known as Sapta Dhatus. These include:
- Rakta Dhatu (blood tissue)
- Rasa (plasma)
- Meda (adipose or fat tissue)
- Mamsa (muscular tissue)
- Majja (bone marrow)
- Shukra (reproductive tissue)
- Asthi (bone tissue)
- Tri Malas and Agni are other important elements in Ayurveda. Tri Malas involves three types of waste products: sweat, urine, and feces. Agni represents the biological fire that helps carry out metabolic processes. Imbalances in either Tri Malas or Agni can lead to a variety of conditions including digestive issues and skin irritation.
Very useful information 🙂
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