Well, the past 4 days have been great. I have not done all my practices. But I have learned from not doing them as well. I am being very mindful of what I am doing and not doing. Actually, I thought it would be easier to get into the groove with spending more time with meditation, but this week my mind if pretty active. Tomorrow I am going to start a little late in the day as I am still up at 12:00am, however, I am going to put in a very good effort to succeed in my routine.

I have been having the most challenges with eating.  Although I eat generally healthy, I tend to be snacking a lot since I am doing some of my jobs from my computer and from home. I want to follow the Ayurvedic guidelines for having healthy eating habits. (Here are 10/Link to guidelines.)  In my studies of Ayurveda I still don’t know exactly what foods are best for me. From my understanding, everything is based on balance… pair of opposites.  So for example, Hot and Cold are a pair of opposites. Moist and Dry, Heavy and Light. There are (PLACE HOW MANY) pair of opposites that Ayurveda uses to balance. I have a pretty good idea which qualities aren’t the best for me right now. However, changing the diet is a very challenging thing so well tomorrow I am just going to try to stick to the guidelines and avoid eating between meals,take time to eat and not eat after 8:30pm. (3 hours after sundown) This has proved to be a bit challenging for me, since my Latino partner is used to eating late, I have normally been waiting to eat with him when it has been possible for us. However, I really do understand the purpose of giving my body the time to digest the food before I go to sleep so that my body then can work on what it really wants to during my time under. I’ve worked nightshift before and I took my job pretty serious… and I hated when there was something last minute thrown on my plate that I needed to do (digest) before I could begin my real job… the job that I needed to have done before the people arrived in the morning.

Also- my Pitta is a bit out of balance right now and it’s apparent in my skin and waves of critical thinking. Tomorrow morning I am going to start off with the cooling juice of cucumbers and mint and then have some vegetables for lunch.

Today I got in contact with an Ayurveda Practitioner who lives in Tijuana, Mexico that graduated from the program I am in. I am going to have a consultation with him, to help me get myself on my healthy way- I am studying as fast as I can- however, one can only know so much at a time. Many questions that are forming for me, I won’t get to study until next year!

Seeing an Ayurveda practitioner isn’t cheap… that is why I haven’t went to one yet. I am kind of cheap sometimes, but I realize now that when I buy organic and healthy foods and different ingredients to be more healthy- but I am still bloating after I eat them- they may not be serving me. So I should stop reading all the newest and best health advice that keeps popping up on Facebook, and really just invest the time in figuring out what works for my body and what practices have been recommended and have been working for 5,000 years…not 1 month.
Nothing is cheap these days and to study Ayurveda to be honest, also isn’t cheap. It’s an investment in your health and a career.
I have been to several Ayurveda practitioners in India and I am excited to compare the difference in the first consultations with someone trained in the West.

In the past couple days I made some videos and just edited them all and now uploaded them. So I am happy that, that is done.

Below are photos of how the first 4 days went as far as creating my routine. Overall, this week hasn’t been perfect but I have accomplished to wake up around the same time and eat around the same time everyday as well as doing many of my self practices. My goals for today and so forth will be to work on my meditation time and not eating after my last meal.
The reason I feel these two are important- first off they are the two I am struggling with and also- because Meditation is very important for me and I throughly enjoy it- however, I just need to calm myself down enough to make space for this practice. Also- not eating after supper- because I have been mindless eating lately and it doesn’t serve me. Mindless eating is eating without having a practice of sitting and enjoying your food- giving respect and thanks to your food and also… emotional eating or ego eating. Eating things really just because they are delicious and here and I don’t want them to go to waste. That is a very slippery slope. Eating things, because you don’t want them to go to waste. Nobody wants to throw away food- so what I am going to need to do, is begin to be more mindful when I shop as well and maybe I will need to go back to the grocery times a few times in the week to pick up for food… but I can’t continue to overeat, just because I have a lot of food. Nobody is served by that- and even though I was trained to finish all my food because I am thinking about the kids who are starving… by packing MY stomach so full that their is no room that it’s incredible hard on my digestion to happen, isn’t helping anyone. I think it would be best, to begin being more thoughtful before I ask for food and serve myself food. Check in myself to see- actually how hungry I really am, not how much I want- because it’s so delicious and I love eating.

One more food for thought thing for today- I do love snacking. So I have turned to eating copious amounts of Popcorn to satisfy this need without worrying about copious amounts of calories. And I ever found delicious popper popcorn that says its verified non GMO- that’s right I am buying Artisanal Popped Popcorn from San Fransisco! Haha.
However, because I am Pitta Vata, if I am not working on balancing my Vata with routine, sleep and stability and instead eating a lot of popcorn and light foods, doing many activities and projects- I begin feeling a bit more “airy”, and although I have had a lot of fun in my life being this way- I recognize now that it’s not helping me work towards Svastha. (Perfect health in Self and self.)

Day 1 of 21. A picture from my excel “Routine Check List”