The Vata/Pitta battle

[J F]

Okay, not really a battle. I mean, it does give me more options than if I were just one. But, I have an ongoing battle of wills between Vata and Pitta doshas. If I neglect one, I feel it right away. I've been trying to study up on Doshas and food choices, and have finally realized WHY I can't have one type of meal (rich) and then the next meal be another type (light/astringent). I either feel bogged down by the rich meal or insufficiently nourished and dry by the lighter meal.

My happy medium: my beloved Greek salad WITH a nice slice of meatloaf, and if my Pitta side is REALLY hungry, I'll have some baked and herbed up sweet potato fries. I've tried the 4-5 small meals a day. Pffft. My digestion goes straight to Hades. My body wants 3 solid square meals a day with little to no snacks in between. Just lots of water. It wants to be plenty hungry when time comes to eat, and it wants to EAT.

I guess the question I'm asking is does anyone else have a split personality dosha setup, too? Or is my body just insane?

Added note: While I can't bear the thought of fasting, I do notice once or twice a week, I don't want to eat until mid-late afternoon. So, I just have a little fruit, tea, water, and stretching. Then, come dinner time I'm HUNGRY again and have a nice big meal followed later by a great night's sleep. Who knew my body was being dosha friendly all these years when this happened????

[shelley]

bi-dosha or tri-dosha people have to take a look at their lifestyle. If you're highly active or blood type O or under a lot of stress or healing, then you definitely need some form of protein in almost every meal, and this means you will then have the energy to skip a few meals every now and again.

I think it's a wonderful sign of balance and being alive when I get that gnawing, cell-deep hunger. It's not a stomach hunger, it's more a sense of really needing calories that isn't satisfied until I get some MEAT in my system! One of my specialty stores has a nitrate free london broil in the deli section that makes a marvelous beef sandwich. HOO boy that keeps my body happy! I make it open-faced so I don't overdo on the bread, sprinkle some basil on the mayo... yummmmmmmmm!

[J F]

What kind of bread do you like to use? I tried Ezekiel bread, yesterday, and it does what all sprouted grains do to me. It gives me a sore and tight throat, almost makes me feel goitrogenic. I think the goitrogenic part comes with millet. I had an ultrasound done on my thyroid a few months back to make sure there wasn't anything wrong there, but it came back normal.

You know what bread always feels great to me so long as I only have a slice a couple times per week is good old fashioned all natural fresh baked french bread. If I have it every day, I feel clogged, but if I have it 2-3 times per week, it makes me feel soooooo good.

That good type of hunger you feel. Not an achy hunger but a nice voracious appetite, right? Ya. I feel that way when I am in balance. When I get a nice blend of physical and mental activity, do my regular meditation and hit the gym or the park for some basketball or walking or frisbee or baseball. Then, I go home and have a nice big satisfying meal and am running strong for the next several hours until it's mealtime again. Why oh why do we choose to abuse that? It's such a great state to be in, but we are so often inclined to ignore that lifestyle and go for the stress like it's the only way to validate our existence.

[shelley]

Unfortunately, I could not digest Ezekial bread. It's too dry for us dry Vatas. So I get a very white bread so that I don't get a ton of wheat. Ironically, when you're somewhat sensitive to wheat products, white bread is better than whole grain. My Japanese market makes a wonderful white that isn't too bleached or full of junk like fake vitamins and doesn't tear apart easily.

[J F]

Which explains why I LOVE fresh french bread. It's white flour!

[shelley]

Yep! and sourdough is fantstic because the difficult proteins have been pre-digested.