In Ayurveda, the doshas are the three fundamental energies, governing our constitution. The three doshas are Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. Each is a representation of the five essential elements (ether, air, water, fire, and earth). Every person has a unique doshic combination that shapes their health and personality. Understanding your dosha can help you make more informed choices and lead to a more balanced, harmonious life.
Let’s look at the dosha most active during the spring, Kapha, and how you can eat to maintain Kapha balance and overall well-being.
In Ayurveda, the doshas are the three fundamental energies, governing the physical, mental, and emotional characteristics of each individual. The three doshas are Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. Each is a representation of the five essential elements (ether, air, water, fire, and earth). Every person has a unique doshic combination that shapes their health and personality. Understanding your dosha can help you make more informed choices and lead to a more balanced, harmonious life.
Let’s look at the dosha most active during the spring, Kapha, and how you can eat to balance Kapha dosha and improve overall well-being.
The Kapha Dosha
Kapha dosha combines the elements of water and earth. Because of Kapha’s stability and strength, it is known for being the dosha that holds things together.
Kapha carries its own unique qualities, just like all of the doshas, that include: slow, cool, sticky, heavy, and damp. Personality-wise, Kapha is associated with calm, compassion, and stamina.
Kapha’s connection with dampness (water) makes it responsible for keeping the body hydrated, lubricated, and moisturized. When Kapha is in balance, it supports the immune system and the body's overall vitality.
The Kapha Body Type
The Kapha body type has a certain grounded and solid quality to it. Some Kapha types may even refer to themselves as ‘big-boned.’ Their bodies are durable, strong, and typically the largest of the three doshas.
When Kapha is someone’s dominant dosha, they likely have oily skin and hair and large, dark eyes. A tendency to gain weight easily is also associated with the Kapha body type and those struggling with an imbalance in Kapha regardless of their dominant dosha.
Why Balancing Your Kapha is Important
Imbalanced doshas compromise your well-being and can contribute to various health issues. Understanding how to balance Kapha dosha is a powerful step towards preventative — and sustainable — health.
Kapha dosha symptoms that signal imbalance are most often related to the chest, lungs, and digestive system. When Kapha becomes stagnant in these areas, excess mucus is produced, and the natural process of elimination and cleansing slows. This can look like nasal congestion, seasonal allergies, fluid retention, and a slow, heavy feeling in the stomach.
When Kapha is balanced, your energy level remains steady, stress levels are low, and you can maintain focus. An imbalanced Kapha dosha can manifest as sluggishness, feelings of depression, and feeling distracted.
Many factors determine whether your Kapha is balanced or imbalanced. Some factors are outside your control, like the season, weather, environment, genetics, and unavoidable circumstances. Other factors are within your control, like your lifestyle, diet, sleep habits, and how you support your body in times of stress.
Let’s dive into the simplest and most powerful way to pacify Kapha, address Kapha imbalances, and restore balance to your doshas this spring — eating the right foods!
Eat These Foods To Balance Kapha Dosha
Changing your diet during spring to balance Kapha dosha can be a joyful process. While we will cover foods to avoid later, focusing primarily on the foods most beneficial to your Kapha dosha will keep things light and exciting.
A primarily vegetarian diet is excellent for balancing Kapha. If you have a hard time eliminating meat, a few light meat options will keep your Kapha in check.
The flavors that best balance Kapha are spicy, bitter, and astringent. When cooking for Kapha, stick to baking, broiling, grilling, or steaming. Cooking without or with very little fat is advised to avoid adding oiliness to an already oily Kapha dosha. Think dry and warm. No matter the meal, adding spices to balance Kapha dosha like turmeric, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, and mustard seed can add a balancing boost to your food.
Please Note: All of the meal suggestions below are meant to make a Kapha diet easy for you to put together. You can eat Kapha foods at any time of day, though, and do not have to only have the listed breakfast foods in the morning, etc.
Kapha Breakfast
To start your day with a Kapha-pacifying meal, start with a grain option, add a few Kapha-balancing seeds, and enjoy a Kapha-friendly milk/dairy option. If Kapha is your dominant dosha, you may even find that skipping breakfast or lunch works well for you.
Kapha Breakfast Grains:
Granola
Muesli
Oat Bran
Oats (dry)
Rice Cakes
Buckwheat
Cereal (unsweetened, cold, dry)
Sprouted Wheat Bread (enjoy spread with our Cultured Ghee or Turmeric Ghee)
Kapha Nuts and Seeds:
Almonds (soaked and peeled)
Chia Seeds
Flax Seeds
Pumpkin Seeds
Sunflower Seeds
Kapha Milk, Dairy, and Eggs:
Eggs (not fried, and in moderation)
Soy Milk
Buttermilk
Cottage Cheese (ideally from skim goat’s milk)
Goat’s Cheese (unsalted, not aged)
Goat’s Milk (skim)
Yogurt (fresh and diluted)
Kapha Lunch
Keep your day feeling light with a warm and refreshing Kapha Lunch. Just steer clear of a lunch heavy on raw foods or vegetables. A sprouted wheat bread sandwich or ‘charcuterie’ style plate are great options for incorporating Kapha foods into your mid-day meal.
Kapha Lunch Proteins:
Chicken (white)
Eggs (not fried, and in moderation)
Fish (freshwater)
Venison
Legumes
Kapha Lunch Grains:
Sprouted Wheat Bread
Crackers
Wheat Bran
Amaranth
Millet
Kapha Lunch Sides:
Cottage Cheese (ideally from skim goat’s milk)
Yogurt (fresh and diluted)
Kapha Vegetables:
Bean or alfalfa sprouts (grow these at home!)
(see the Kapha Dinner list below for more vegetable options)
Kapha Dinner
Many Ayurvedic dal recipes include beans to balance Kapha dosha and they make fantastic bases for a Kapha dinner. Light proteins are also acceptable. When adding greens and vegetables to your dinner, look for in-season, fibrous vegetables.
Kapha Dinner Proteins:
Chicken (white)
Fish (freshwater)
Shrimp
Turkey (white)
Venison
Soy Meats
Tempeh
Tofu served hot
Adzuki Beans
Black Beans
Black-Eyed Peas
Garbanzo Beans (Chickpeas)
Lentils
Lima Beans
Mung Beans
Mung Dal
Navy Beans
Pinto Beans
Split Peas
Kapha Dinner Grains:
Amaranth
Barley
Corn
Couscous
Millet
Polenta
Quinoa
Rice (basmati, wild)
Kapha Vegetables:
Asparagus
Mushrooms
Radishes
Turnips
Dandelion
Brussel sprouts
Cabbage
Carrots
Cauliflower
Celery
Cilantro
Collard greens
Corn
Endive
Garlic
Green beans
Kale
Lettuce
Mustard greens
Onions
Parsley
Peas
Potatoes
Spinach
Swiss chard
Kapha Snacks, Drinks & Other Foods
Minimal snacking is advised to balance Kapha dosha since this dosha is prone to overeating. A dry snack or piece of Kapha-pacifying fruit are your best bets for a little pick-me-up between meals.
Simple Kapha Snacks:
Popcorn (without salt or butter)
Dried fruits including figs, raisins, prunes
Kapha Fruits:
To be enjoyed alone!
Apples
Apricots
Berries
Cherries
Cranberries
Grapes
Lemons
Limes
Mango
Peaches
Pears
Persimmons
Pomegranates
Raspberries
Strawberries
Kapha Drinks:
Ginger tea
Dandelion tea for cleansing
Lemon honey tea
Kapha Oils/Fats:
Mustard Oil
Flaxseed Oil
Sunflower Oil
Ghee
Minimize These Kapha Aggravating Foods During Kapha Season
Since Kapha brings a slow, heavy quality to the body, it can be easy to reach for crunchy, salty, and sugary treats to boost energy. But sweet, salty, and oily foods will only contribute to more imbalance in the Kapha dosha. Particularly sour foods and those that are very high in protein (like dense, dark meats) aggravate Kapha and should be replaced in the diet with the beneficial foods listed above.
Vegetables to Avoid:
Dense, oily, and watery vegetables should be avoided to balance Kapha’s dense, oily, and watery energy. Avocados, cucumbers, squashes, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, and zucchini are all Kapha aggravating vegetables you shouldn’t be eating during Kapha season.
Grains to Avoid:
Since there are so many delicious grains that work well for balancing Kapha, it shouldn’t be too hard to avoid the few that don’t! Cooked oats, pasta, rice, wheat, yeasted bread, and grains cooked into pancakes are all Kapha aggravating and should be left out of your diet.
Dairy to Avoid:
Most of the recommended dairy for bringing balance to Kapha is derived from goat’s milk. Cow’s milk, cheese, butter, ice cream, and sour cream are all dairy products that should be avoided as they can contribute to mucus in the body and aggravate Kapha. Spiced yogurt drinks and ghee made from cultured butter are good options.
Nuts to Avoid:
Almost all nuts are too heavy for Kapha season and should be avoided when balancing Kapha. Focus on eating the beneficial nuts and seeds mentioned above.
Proteins to Avoid:
Red meats, pork, and the dark portion of poultry should be avoided. Tuna, salmon, sardines, and most seafood should also be avoided as they are too dense and aggravate Kapha.
Oils/Fats to Avoid:
Only the light oils listed in the beneficial list above should be used when balancing Kapha. Other common oils, such as avocado oil and olive oil, are not recommended when your Kapha dosha needs to be balanced.
