Whether you are Pitta dominant with your elemental make up , or you find yourself in Pitta season. Adjusting your lifestyle and yoga practices according to this, will help keep your digestion flowing and your body healthy and balanced. A yoga practice for a pitta individual should encourage compassion, acceptance, relaxed effort, and be cooling in nature

(pron: pit-uh). Pitta energy governs chemical transformations related to digestion, metabolism and assimilation energy on a physical and emotional level. Pittas are focused, intelligent and intense. Physically an imbalance creates an aversion to heat, which causes sunburn, irritability and excessive perspiration. Other symptoms include rashes, peptide ulcers, heartburn, high blood pressure, stomach acid, insomnia and dry, burning, itchy skin and eyes. You really need to keep cool and calm by avoiding overexposure to direct sunlight and hot, spicy foods. Regular yoga practice, followed by pranayama breathing will help release negativity.

Stay cool and choose a relaxed yoga flow

The element of fire in this dosha means Pittas have more of a tendency toward heat and overheating. It’s not ideal for Pittas to practice power yoga classes in a heated room. Pitta types need to adjust even more in the hot summer months, taking even greater care to avoid overheating in their practices. Cooling, relaxing poses are best, ideally in the beginning of the day—or at least not in the hottest part of the day. Focus on poses that help to release excess heat from the body, including those that open the heart and the hips, such as Pigeon, Cobra, Bow and Bridge poses.

Let go of competition

Because Pitta types are overly heated and drawn mostly to physically demanding postures, when looking at yoga to help balance, pittas benefit most from a cooling, heart opening, and a non-competitive class (which, ideally, all classes should be). Dropping comparison is really important for Pitta, try poses that are more simple, so you don't push yourself too hard.

Focus on the breath

To avoid overheating, try practicing Ujjayi Pranayama . Cooling pranayama (breathwork) is also advised. Sheetali (cooling breath) and sheetkari(hissing breath) are best; chandra bhedana (left nostril breathing) and kapalabhati (skull shining breath) are also appropriate.

To be in flow means accepting all parts of our being – the feminine and the masculine. When do alternate breathing exercises, we are breathing in that Divine Feminine and Masculine energy or put another way, the energy of the moon and sun, of the create and the analytical. The sun is all-powerful, penetrating, sharp, focused (much like Pitta season) and the moon is deep, calm, quiet and all-knowing. To bring balance to these two beautiful states, try our Breathe Easy with Bittu classes, every Thursday morning.