Dr. Vatsala Sperling joins me from Costa Rica to talk about ayurvedic eating. She’s in Guanacaste working on a reforestation and education project with her husband, Ehud. He was on in episode 43, telling me all about the project.
Vatsala is a clinical microbiologist and homeopathic doctor practicing out of Rochester Homeopathy in Vermont. She grew up in an Ayurvedic household and learned from the time that she was very young to appreciate Mother Earth and to live from a place of abundance, sharing and giving freely to people and animals around her.
Early in her medical practice in Vermont, Vatsala realized that food was as much a part of healing her clients as medicine was. She helped people change their diet and lifestyle as a part of her treatment plan and saw results with ayurvedic eating. That’s why she wrote the book. Inspired by her clients, she wanted to help others.
The Ayurvedic Reset Diet is a book for people who are looking for vibrance in their lives. It’s a diet, but it’s also a way of life. Vatsala speaks to the fact that vitality doesn’t only come through what we eat, but how we eat. Our attitude toward food, our connection with the earth, and our connection with the people around us all play into our health. Ayurvedic eating gives us a road map.
The book gives us a roadmap for bouncing back after holidays and festivals when we overindulge. Or, it gives us a simple step by step process to live a more radiant life. If you’re struggling with not feeling 100% and you sense it has something to do with what you eat, I recommend this book. Vatsala tells us what to eat and when. But more importantly she breaks from most “diets” on the market and goes a step deeper, teaching us how to interact with our food, and its source: Mother Earth.
WATCH THE EPISODE:
Closed captioning transcript included in video. Subscribe on YouTube.
8 Simple Ideas To Make a Difference:
1. THANK MOTHER EARTH WHEN WE TAKE FOOD. The earth is nourishing us every day, just as a mother would do. Rather than grabbing food, eating it quickly, and discarding the scraps, we can take time to remember that it’s a gift. And say “thank you”.
2. SHARE FOOD WITH FRIENDS & NEIGHBORS. Only take what we need and share the rest. Ayurvedic eating includes giving freely to people and animals around us. Teach children in our lives to do this with us. Live as if there is abundance.
3. THANK GOD, DEITIES, A POWER HIGHER THAN US. Before eating, say a simple prayer of thank you for the food that we have been given. Connect to the gift of nourishment. Food is not only meant to satisfy hunger or taste. It is meant to sustain life force, intellect and vitality, to help us reach our full aspirations in life.
4. EAT WITH OUR HANDS. Drop the silverware. Eating with our hands taps into our innate senses and triggers our bodies to fully experience the joy of consuming food. This is healthy for our minds and our bodies.
5. DRINK MORE WATER. If we have access to clean, non-contaminated water, we should choose this as our main source of nourishment. We can use it to fast and cleanse our body. It is a better choice than tea, coffee, milk, juice, etc.
6. GROW OUR OWN FOOD. The nutrition and vitality we receive from Mother Earth through our food is stronger when the food is fresh. If we grow our own food, we are able to eat it right after picking or cutting it. And we know that it is free from chemical alteration.
7. GO BAREFOOT. Soil has many microorganisms which are beneficial to us. They help us build our immune system. Walking barefoot and putting our hands in the dirt will build our immunity.
8. RESET WITH THE AYURVEDIC RESET DIET. When we’re feeling unhealthy, or know that our lives could be more vibrant, we can try the Ayurvedic Reset Diet. This cleanse is likely to refresh our bodies and help us to feel better.
What to do when we over-indulge:
Have you ever over-indulged in festival food? Holiday food? And then your stomach is churning? I loved Vatsala’s approach to bouncing back from overeating these foods. She learned this process as a child in India from her mother. And this is the process that ended up inspiring the full Ayurvedic Reset Diet.
- Day 1: fast on water only
- Day 2: eat a simplified, one type of food diet – mango, papaya, etc.
- Day 3: back to normal, eating sensibly
The Ayurvedic Reset Diet Steps:
1. MAKE A DECISION THAT WE ARE GOING TO HELP OURSELVES. This only works if we have the drive and conviction to change with ayurvedic eating.
2. LET GO OF PROCESSED, UNHEALTHY FOODS. Clean our refrigerator and pantry. Remove foods that do not serve our bodies well.
3. INVITE HEALTHY FOODS IN. Fresh, local, if possible organic, fruits, vegetables, water and whole grains.
4. FAST ONLY ON WATER. The first step of the diet, a water fast, flushes the body. The book has a calculation that we can do to see how much water we should drink.
5. MONO DIET FOR ABOUT 1 WEEK. The second step of the diet is eating one food at a time. This allows our body to extract and fully absorb the nutrients from just that type of food, simplifying digestion and avoiding the problems that arise when we mix food.
6. GRADUALLY GO BACK TO COMBINING FOOD. Sensibly combine food for meals. Eat fruits, nuts and seeds first thing in the morning because lighter foods are digested quickly from the body at the beginning of the day. 6 hours later, eat vegetables and grains, which are digested throughout the afternoon. And 6 hours later, eat legumes and/or meat because it takes longer to digest and can absorb overnight.
Detailed guidance for these steps can be found in the book at The Ayurvedic Reset Diet.
Sanskrit chant:
ॐ सर्वे भवन्तु सुखिनः
सर्वे सन्तु निरामयाः ।
सर्वे भद्राणि पश्यन्तु
मा कश्चिद्दुःखभाग्भवेत् ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥
Om Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah
Sarve Santu Niraamayaah |
Sarve Bhadraanni Pashyantu
Maa Kashcid-Duhkha-Bhaag-Bhavet |
Om Shaantih Shaantih Shaantih ||
Meaning:
1: Om, May All be Happy,
2: May All be Free from Illness.
3: May All See what is Auspicious,
4: May no one Suffer.
5: Om Peace, Peace, Peace.
About Vatsala:
Dr. Vatsala Sperling is a mother, a published author of ten books, and a classical homeopath with a doctorate in clinical microbiology. She and her husband work on reforestation projects and support educational efforts for children by giving scholarships.
In her practice, Rochester Homeopathy in Vermont, Vatsala uses Classical Homeopathy to address a wide range of complaints in a holistic manner. As an adjunct, she makes recommendations for healthy living by way of using Ayurvedic diet, exercises, and techniques for creating a positive frame of mind.
The best way to reach Vatsala is through her publicist at Inner Traditions:
E-mail: author@InnerTraditions.com
Include Vatsala’s name in the body of the message. They will forward your message on to her.
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