Obesity

Being obese doesn't mean you are not beautiful! Obesity makes one vulnerable to many health disorders and needs to be taken care of. It is important to take steps to treat obesity but that can and should be done without negative self-talk. 

Obesity and Body Positivity:

Being obese doesn't mean you are not beautiful! Obesity makes one vulnerable to many health disorders and needs to be taken care of. If you are obese there could be many reasons for it, some of those might not be in your control. So please do not blame yourself or find faults when standing in front of the mirror! Finding faults in the way you look can make you anxious, make you develop eating disorders and lead to further increase in your obesity further. 

On the other extreme end, you should not accept obesity as a matter of fact in your life and not even try to do anything about it. Doing so puts you at a greater risk of early death because of diabetes, cardio-vascular diseases etc. 

It is important to take steps to treat obesity but that can and should be done without negative self-talk. 

Causes:

• It is a Kapha disorder.
• Excess production of growth hormone or other hereditary issues
• Stress and overeating.
• Pregnancy weight
• Frequent munching between meals
• Steroids, contraceptives and some other drugs
• Addictions such as alcohol
• Sedentary lifestyle
• Insufficient sleep

Basic Rules to Follow:

• Minimize the consumption of dairy products.
• Drink hot water instead of cold drinks.
• Daily walk for at least 30 minutes - this is one exercise where even old and obese people might be able to do easily.
• Gradually introduce some aerobic exercises as well.
• Do not drink cold water or eat snacks right after exercising. Doing so will undo all the benefits of exercise.
• Do not snack between meals. If you absolutely have to you can choose from healthy options like celery sticks, carrot sticks or raisins. 
• Drink a cup of hot water with 1 tsp honey and 10 drops of lime juice added to help melt fat. This can be taken when one feels like eating between meals.
• Do not sleep during the day.
• Add Kapha-pacifying spices to your diet such as - cumin, coriander, fennel, cardamom, ginger, cinnamon and garam masala.
• Eat your biggest meal during daytime - that is in breakfast or in lunch. Keep your supper very light or skip it altogether if you are not hungry.
• Work on quitting addictive substances like alcohol, tobacco etc.

Yoga recommended for the obese:

Please not that you might not be able to do all these postures perfectly right away depending upon the level of obesity and flexibility of your body. But you should try doing these and gradually you will be able to do these with ease. 

These poses have been mentioned keeping in mind the difficulty that obese people might feel while doing yoga or any exercise for that matter.

• Palm Tree Pose
• Triangle Pose
• The Fish
• Camel Pose
• Cobra Pose
• Cow Poses

Pranayamas recommended for the obese:

• Bhastrika pranayam - also known as Breath of Fire
• Right Nostril Breathing

Herbs and Supplements:

• Take ½ tsp of kutki, chitrak, shilajit, punarnava in 3:3:2:5 twice a day with 1 tsp honey before the meals.
• Along with the above-mentioned powder take 1 tablet each of triphla guggulu, chitrak-adhivati, punarnava guggulu 3 times a day after meals.
• Steep ½ to 1 tsp of triphla in 1 cup of boiling water for 10 minutes and drink it 1 hr before dinner.

References:

Primary Source: The Complete Book of Ayurvedic Home Remedies - Vasant Lad - Pg 257-260