My Ayurveda trip to India

At Re-Born sports we like to feel “born again” and I (Odette) want to investigate the activities that will give me this feeling. I noticed that I was doing less yoga, less sports and not eating that healthy anymore. Next to this I missed traveling. I used to make a big trip every year, but due to COVID this was not possible for a while. Time for a change: I booked a trip to the South of India for 8 days and explore Ayurveda: treatments, eating and drinking and yoga and meditation.

What does Ayurveda mean? AYUR means life and VEDA means science, so science about life. Ayurveda emphasize that to prevent is better than to cure. You have 3 sorts of dosha’s in Ayurveda and due to a questionnaire and a talk with the doctor, my dosha’s were set: mine are Vatha and Pitha. I also talked about certain diseases (eczema around my eyes). According to this, the doctor made a plan for treatments.

During my stay I will have 7 ayurveda massage/oil treatments, medical practice, ayurveda meals suitable for my dosha’s, yoga and meditation at a beautiful location in the South of India. I visited Trivandrum at resort Soma Manaltheeram Ayurveda Beach Village (booked at www.puurenkuur.nl).

Every day I got a treatment for 2 hours. Before every treatment I had a doctor’s appointment for an extra check-up (blood pressure and heartbeat) and health questions.

Ayurveda treatment: every day in the first hour I got a “4 hands” traditional oil massage (done by 2 ladies); oil over my whole body and head. The second hour treatment is always different: 45 minutes oil over my forehead (your third eye), a stamp massage with 2 bags with rice dipped in hot oil and stamped on my body to stimulate blood circulation and a milk bath where the got hot cow milk in traditional milk jugs and pour this over my body. Each treatment ended with a facial and different natural mask: rice milk, rice grain, herbs and flower blends. After each treatment you will get fresh coconut water.

When the treatments are done you will get a green wrapper and some cloth wrapped around your head for your hair (so the oil can work on the hair). All other guests wear these green wrappers, which is a bit strange in the beginning, but you get used to it. After 1 hour you can have a shower and try to get the oil out of your hair!!

Every morning I joined the meditation sessions, and I had my yoga practice in the afternoon, of course in my RE-Born outfits. I always take 3 sport tights with me when I travel and several yoga tops that got a bit wider fit when wearing; like the Wrap top and the Elastic back top, these tops are also suitable for meditation. Despite of the heat, I always like to wear a sport tight for yoga as it feels like a second skin.

Day 8: no more treatments, but still a doctors check-up appointment. The doctor gave me advise to stimulate my dosha’s (Pitha and Vatha) and tips for a better skin. When you stay 14 days or longer you can have extra cleaning treatments (enema).

Results: I lost 3 kilo, 8 days no sugars, so I am more energized, my body is more flexible and stronger due to the yoga every day and my skin is better. The eczema around my eyes is still there, but after 1 week back home in the Netherlands this also got better.

What I also find very inspiring about these trips are the people you meet. People all over the world (mainly women that travel alone) with the same purpose: investment in yourself. I met people from 30-84 years old coming from Dubai, Germany to Ghana; each person with her/his own life story. This is really super interesting.

I feel reloaded and fit, full of new energy, but I do look forward to dinners with more taste. This might sound strange, but the ayurvedic cuisine is lukewarm and bland.

I can absolutely recommend this trip; I feel totally RE-BORN!