How and When to Eat to Support Digestion.
- Apr 29
- 3 min read
"When diet is right, medicine is of no need; when diet is wrong, medicine is of no use." -Ayurvedic Proverb
Every fall and spring I offer a gentle Āyurvedic cleanse to my community. This program highlights the foundational health habits of Āyurveda (dinacharya--daily rhythms) while also offering guidance in mild detoxification aimed at supporting digestive function.
During week 1, which is a preparation week, I present the Āyurvedic guidelines for how and when to eat. These alone often bring relief of mild - moderate indigestion like gas, bloating, acidity and constipation.
The relief that many find with these guidelines points to the fact that even if we're eating the "right" foods, if we eat them too often, in the wrong way or at the wrong time, we won't be able to digest them well.
In Āyurveda, digestive health is central to health overall. Chronic indigestion is so much more deleterious to health than the inconvenience of its symptoms. It's a sign that your body's not properly digesting the food you eat, which means the good nutrition from that food is compromised. As we get older and all of our bodily systems begin to decline some, doing what we can to support their function is so helpful. The following practices, will support your digestive function so you'll get even more goodness from what you eat:
Eat your meals at regular times --this will shift a bit as we move through the seasons, but find your rhythm each season to support regular appetite, elimination, inner stability and calm.
Sit down to eat so you can slow down and enjoy your meal. Digestion is a parasympathetic activity, and we need to be calm to digest our food well.
Eat until satisfied rather than full (sitting down and slowing down will help with this).
Wait to eat until the previous meal has been digested. (You'll know this has happened because you'll be hungry again). Eating between meals interferes with the digestion of the food you're snacking on and the meal your body's in the process of digesting. Imagine adding cloths to a wash cycle already in process--wait until the previous digeative process is complete before adding more.
Eat your biggest meal at mid day (brunch or lunch) when digestion is strongest, to fuel your work throughout the day. This is even more important for women! Skipping lunch or grazing through lunch inevitably leads to binging in the late afternoon, often on carbs or sugar, and overeating at night.
Eat a lighter supper, at least 3 hours before sleep, and then close the kitchen. This supports sleep as well as freeing up your metabolic energy to do some inner cleansing/repair while you sleep.
Fast between supper and your first meal the next day. This one habit takes care of so many things: improves sleep; enhances cellular repair overnight; keeps blood sugar down; and invites metabolic flexibility, allowing the body to use both fat and carbs as fuel. This is the very best time for a woman to intermittent fast--rather than postponing your morning meal.
Action Steps:
Which of the above practices are you already following?
Which not?
Pick one practice to work with this week.
The healthier eating guidelines are powerful. Every cleanse season I have a small handful of people who resolve their indigestion within days of practicing them. Amazing!
Next week I'll say more about what to eat. Until then, I'd love to hear how these work for you. Are there any barriers to you following them? What helps you digest like a champion. Leave a comment, or reply to the newsletter to share.
Do you want some support healing digestive issues? Schedule a complimentary discovery call and let's talk and see how an Āyurvedic approach could support you this season.
Love,
Shannon
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