The Trap of Optimization

We all want to live a healthy life, eat the best foods that nourish our bodies, wake up every day fulfilled by our work, and be surrounded by a supportive community.

Yet we are overstimulated by the myriad optimal ways to live. The perfect diet, perfect morning routine, workout plan, supplements, peptide stacks, communication methods, work-life balance, and the list goes on to every corner of our lives.

It's not only overwhelming; at times, it's actually exhilarating. You can become so motivated and start making every change in every facet possible. But when the futile promise of your entire life being fixed falls apart, it leaves you concluding that you are the reason for failure, or worse, you are a failure. This is the trap of optimization. This is what can steal the very joy of life.

You are not a problem to solve

समदोषाः समाग्निश्च समधातुमलक्रियाः । प्रसन्नात्मेन्द्रियमनाः स्वस्थ इत्यभिधीयते ॥ ३८ ॥ (सु.सू.१५/४०)

samadoṣāḥ samāgniśca samadhātumalakriyāḥ | prasannātmeṇdriyamanāḥ svastha ityabhidhīyate || 38 || (su.sū.15/40)

The one who is established in Self, who has balanced doshas, balanced agni, properly formed dhatus, proper elimination of malas, properly functioning bodily processes, and whose mind, soul, and senses are full of bliss, is called a healthy person.

Ayurveda approaches wellness by telling us that the enjoyment of life is as crucial to health as following any therapeutic regimen.

Ask yourself:

Am I in a state of bliss following the latest trend on how to optimize my life?

Utilizing the intelligence of our bodies is done by understanding who we are. Take a look at our natural tendencies, our interests, desires, goals, thought processes, natural sleep cycles, and metabolic rate. Everything that makes us who we are.

Unique Constitution

Ayurveda offers a way to name our uniqueness. It's called our Prakṛti, and it means our constitution. In some ways, it's also tied to homeostasis, but with the profound understanding that our ideal or optimal way of living is unique to ourselves. You and I are not meant to live the same way, eat the same things, do the same exercises, or have the exact same sleep routine.

Prakṛti liberates us from the false pretense that a one-size-fits-all approach to healing exists.

Svādhyāya: Self-study

Ongoing self-study is the best way to understand your Prakṛti (constitution). There are various online tests you can take, but don't let that be your stopping point. Similar to the trap of optimization, you can find claims of "best practices for your dosha." The advice may very well be suited for you, but your Prakṛti is more than the doshas; it is the understanding of yourself in every way possible. I have been studying these sciences for years, and I am brought back to the practice of meeting myself where I am with honesty. Svādhyāya is lifelong, and it reminds us to be patient and resist the urge for a fast fix that wellness trends tend to promise.

Current State vs. Constitution

Ayurveda continues to give us even more understanding by naming our current state of imbalance, our Vikṛti. Ayurveda's model for health from this perspective gives us a deeper understanding of why one protocol works for some time, but then fails to give the same results later on. Your Vikṛti (current state) changes constantly, and this is why health advice can fail to meet us where we currently are.

When we have a deep internal understanding of both our Vikṛti and our Prakṛti, then we are able to make a plan that honors our current state to get us back in harmony with our constitution.

This is a beautiful gift that Ayurveda provides, as it gives us the opportunity to connect with our imbalances with compassion and understanding rather than judgment and criticism. How quick are we to feel ashamed when we sign up for the gym, attempt their 'optimal weight loss routine,' only to lose a couple of pounds while the people around us easily drop weight? Or someone says, "Just read this book on habits and it'll change your life." Yet your routine has yet to change? Understanding our Prakṛti and Vikṛti gives us the chance to not only understand why a certain plan didn't work for us, but also celebrate why it worked for someone else.

Wellness doesn't need comparison, judgment, or shame to elicit change.

Categories to observe

Look at the following categories to get an idea of what to observe in your life. Write down the qualities of each for yourself and see if you have a better understanding of who you are and what types of change you'd need to make. These are my own short descriptions of how my Prakṛti and Vikṛti show up in various points throughout my life.

Digestion/appetite

• Balanced: neutral, natural craving for spicy and savory food
• Imbalanced: strong/hangry, heartburn, emotional eating of sweets

Sleep & Energy

• Balanced: 6–7 hours to feel energized and alert
• Imbalanced: struggle to fall asleep, or oversleeping but still feeling fatigued

Mood (irritability, anxiety, heaviness)

• Balanced: bubbly, animated, finding the humor in various situations
• Imbalanced: silently brewing, tendency toward anxiousness

Response to routine vs. spontaneity

• Balanced: open-minded, enjoys a bit more spontaneity in life
• Imbalanced: hyperfocused on building routine and upset with lack of results; high expectations

Response to seasons/weather

• Balanced: love for fall and winter, general enjoyment of changing seasons
• Imbalanced: summer exhaustion and frustration

With this small description, you already begin to build a narrative around me, my personality, my preferences, and can start to picture how else it can manifest in my own life. An "optimal" plan for me will not be an "optimal" plan for you. An Ayurvedic protocol for me would be to eat less Pitta provoking foods (spicy, hot, oily) and encourage more Kapha/Vata promoting foods (sweet, bitter, astringent). Struggling to fall asleep or staying too awake too long could be mitigated by meditation and gentle breathing exercises. Someone else, however, may require more heating foods for their digestion/appetite, or even some light exercise like a gentle night time walk before getting ready for bed.

Karmaphala: Detachment from the fruits of your actions

Karmaphala is the practice of detaching oneself from the fruits of one's actions. Now, very quickly, the mind will say, "that is the same as giving up." No, not at all.

Another way my teacher would say this was:

It's not about if we go out of balance, it's about when we do, we do what we can to get ourselves back on track.

Hope for the ideal. Surrender to reality.

- Jivan Shakti

This practice of Karmaphala also grants us the ability to use compassion to cultivate patience. With this patience, we are able to stay rooted in the enjoyment of life as we continue to walk the path of wellness. So whenever we try, our peace remains intact regardless of the results from any plan. Then we are more open to learn why it didn't work, what changes are asked, and continue moving forward.

You don't have to do this alone

We all have health and wellness goals, and we are all susceptible to the trap of optimization. Find support in your community, talk to your instructors for fitness classes. More often than not, people are aware that you're a unique individual. The trap of optimization usually happens in isolation, with our thoughts of self-judgment and shame spiraling in their own echo chamber. Or with doomscrolling before bed, seeing various influencers promoting 'the perfect plan you have been missing all this time.' See if your gym promotes individual growth rather than generalized plans, talk to your nutritionist for a custom plan, or ask your doctor if this is the same advice they give to everyone.

If you’re looking for a holistic wellness partnership, I’d be honored to take this voyage with you. We’ll start with where you are right now, your patterns, your seasons, what’s been working and what hasn’t, and use Ayurveda, Prakṛti and Vikṛti, as a map to help you come back into rhythm, not to optimize your life, but to live it.

ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः