Traveling is a personal experience and ‘travel’ is a term that encompasses countless objectives and modalities. Maybe you hear the word ‘travel‘ and a beach vacation, mountain adventure, cultural immersion, cruise expedition, study abroad, wellness retreat, pilgrimage, visiting relatives, conference, convention or corporate meeting come to mind. Regardless of the reason for travel, the energetics of movement, change and irregularity can take a toll on the body and one’s state of holistic health. The Ayurvedic travel tips we will discuss in this article can help you maintain balance and wellbeing during your journeys.
Throughout my 20s, I travelled in various ways: study abroad, pilgrimage, back country camping, hostel jumping, international farm stays, and cross country bike tours. Regardless of how much joy, wonder and enrichment I received, I also experienced a host of symptoms such as constipation, acne, anxiety and fatigue.
Ayurvedic texts and teachings belong to a very distant past in which globalization and the ability to travel long distances over short periods of time was unimaginable. Fortunately, Ayurveda is also a science that can be applied across time and space and has much to offer in support of balanced travel and transitions – and travel is a culmination of many transitions.
Travel and Vata Dosha
Travel in its very nature is mobile.Travel as a verb means “to go from one place to another, typically over a distance of some length“. This mobility can disrupt your routine, diet, and sleep patterns. It is irregular and often yields unpredictability – factors that increase vata dosha, or the bodily humor that is responsible for motion.
When we travel we are increasing motion in the body, mind and self. In essence, we are increasing vata dosha and risking vata dosha imbalances. Comprised of air and ether elements, vata dosha in the body controls movement of thoughts, circulation, excretion of wastes and cell-signaling. Therefore, vata in excess – as occurs during travel – can translate to anxiety, overwhelm, disrupted sleep, adrenaline spikes, increased heart rate, constipation and irregular bowel patterns, malabsorption of nutrients, aches, pains and fatigue.
What I find even more interesting is the way in which vata imbalances manifest for individuals when they travel because, while travel symptoms themselves are often temporary, they can also highlight underlying sensitivities or imbalances. Any imbalance that is mild and transient is much less of a concern than one that is persistent, chronic or consistently recurring before, during or after travel. These symptoms are the ones that serve as a window into underlying imbalances.
Furthermore, while you may tend toward imbalances due to the nature of travel, these symptoms do not necessarily have to be inevitable. In fact, healing underlying imbalances at the root level can help stave off both mild and transient symptoms as well as chronic conditions. Ayurveda offers a holistic approach to maintaining health and wellbeing, which can be particularly beneficial while traveling and in everyday life.
Grounding Vata: PRE-TRAVEL
The golden rule of healing in Ayurveda is that like increases like and opposites decrease or bring balance:
Vata Qualities: mobile, cold, dry, light, irregular, sporadic
Vata-Balancing Qualities: dense, warm, moist, heavy, consistent, structured
Even before travel begins, planning can be stressful. There is a lot of think about. More often than not, travel planning all takes place on top of an already busy schedule or chaotic lifestyle. This is why vata dosha increases before travel begins. Therefore, it is essential to start grounding and balancing vata BEFORE you travel. There is be more space for planning, packing and organizing when your energy is centered as opposed to frantic.
Ayurvedic Pre-Travel Recommendations:
- Eat at regular times throughout the day.
- Eat grounding and nourishing meals that are warm, cooked, well-spiced and well-oiled.
- Increase root vegetables like carrots, beets, sweet potatoes and winter squash.
- Stay hydrated by adding a pinch of mineral salt to your warm water and remember to sip throughout the day.
- Create or lean into evening restorative routines. This will make it easier to implement grounding practices while traveling. It will also build ojas (strength, vitality and immunity) which will give you more stamina and protection on your trip.
- Add any of the following into your evening routine:
- Yoga Nidra
- Grounding Meditation
- Abhyanga-full body oil massage
- Foot massage with 4-5 drops of vetiver essential oil added to a carrier oil (eg. Sesame oil). Vetiver is a powerful root that calms and soothes vata. It aids in emotional burnout and physical exhaustion.
- Aromatherapy: lavender for sleep, rose and sandalwood for calming and soothing.
- Prioritize sleep: pre-travel is the time to build Ojas and ensure you have vitality and immunity to support you during travel. Go to bed by 10pm and wake up with the sun.
- Try a three-day kitchadi cleanse before traveling: this can take all the planning out of your before-travel meals so that energy can be put into trip planning and organizing. Also, the busier we are, the easier to digest our food should be. Kitchadi is easy to digest, supports balanced energy and blood sugar levels and fosters mental clarity.
Grounding Vata: WHILE TRAVELING
- Stay hydrated: sip on cinnamon water before flying as this fosters hydration at the cellular level, supports circulation and balances blood sugar levels. Bring tea bags with you to stay hydrated throughout your trip: cumin, coriander, fennel, tulsi, ginger, chamomile.
- If flying, place a couple of drops of any of the following onto a mask or a light neck scarf: eucalyptus, lavender, tea tree oil, rosemary to help balance the mind and boost immunity.
- Bring grounding snacks, such as our Honey Tamari Sunflower Seeds, with you for the first day of travel.
- Support digestion while on travel with an easy Travel Kitchadi recipe – you don’t have to eat kitchadi everyday while traveling but this is an easy way to balance between local cuisines, which can often be full of excess salts and unhealthy fats that disrupt digestion.
- Use transit time for grounding time: listen to guided meditations or yoga nidra while waiting or flying, consciously take deep diaphragmatic breaths or practice box breathing (inhale for four counts, hold for four counts, exhale for four counts, hold for four counts).
- Regulate your biorhythm in a new location or timezone by standing outside in sunlight for 10-20 minutes upon arrival in a new location. This mitigates jet lag by helping to reset your circadian clock to this new location.
- Have grounding routines around sleep/wake times; vetiver oil foot massage, yoga nidra, and restorative yoga poses such as legs up the wall, wide-legged forward fold, cat cow, mountain pose, tree pose, seated forward fold, child’s pose, long held savasana.
- Journal in the evening or morning as a supportive grounding practice that fosters more presence during your trip.
- My favorite travel tool is nasya oil. This intranasal oil calms the mind and protects nasal passageways from irritants and pathogens.
- Triphala, a traditional Ayurvedic herbal formula comprised of three fruits, is a trusty travel companion for digestion and immunity. It is extremely useful in combatting constipation or irregularity, supports overall digestion, has both cleansing and strengthening effects, is antinflammatory, and is a great source of Vitamin C.
- Take bone broth packets that just need hot water. Sipping on bone broth soothes nerves, supports mucosal gut lining, helping absorb nutrients and lowers inflammation in the gut.
- Mindful eating supports digestion, especially when eating at irregular times and difficult to digest foods. Take three deep breaths before eating, chew food to an even consistency, be present, and eat with all five senses.
- Take spice mixes with you to support digestion. Blend turmeric powder, coriander powder, ginger powder, cumin together and sprinkle on meals or add to small amount of water and drink before meals. Purchasing pre-mixed churnas to take is also an option.
Grounding Vata – AFTER TRAVEL
This is absolutely essential: plan for rest time/days. Whether your travel is long or short, designate time for recovery. We so often squeeze travel in around the rest of our lives and then expect to be able to jump back into the way things were without coming up for air. This creates cycles of depletion, overwhelm and dis-ease.
Often trips are full of amazing things but they can also be too full, resulting in consistently depleting actions. The more depleted one is, the less they are able to get out of the experience. Embrace rest as enjoyable. Rest fosters presence and enjoyment during and after excursions.
Set some boundaries around your time and your activities and make space just to be.
One of the biggest lessons I have learned from traveling: it is not about how much I can fit into a trip, it is about how much I can get out of my experience on that trip.
Over time, I have implemented many of these practices to my travel. I am able to maintain routines that keep me grounded, I no longer experience constipation, and I can manage stress and maintain energy levels. Ayurveda can support your unique travel demands too, and you don’t have to navigate the Path on your own.
Article authored by Chloe Chaput, who is dedicated to her role as a Clinical Ayurvedic Specialist to work with women’s health, male and female fertility challenges, parents or caregivers, and children to address a variety of clinical health concerns at the root of their cause. Contact Path Wellbeing today to set up your appointment with Chloe Chaput, CAS.
The information contained within this article is for educational purposes only and should not replace the direct advice of a doctor or other qualified healthcare professional. Always consult a medical or other professional healthcare provider when considering a new health regime.
