Part of this way of life involves taking a good look at your diet and deciding what types of foods and habits will hinder your yoga practice and which types will enhance it and produce desired results. The goal of any yoga practice is sound health of mind, body, and soul... and a "yoking together" of the three so that they may be directed with intention towards what the yogi considers to be "good." In my case, towards a life of Union with the God of the Bible....in the case of others, perhaps, with themselves, with gods of the hindu pantheon, etc.
So, what type of food qualify as "Yogic?"
Ideally, yogis will consider eating SMALL quantities of HIGH QUALITY foods. The Small quantities is because we want to use nutrition as a tool but not indulge in excesses or overindulgence of what, in small quantities, is a good thing. The quality matters because we want to give our bodies nutrition that they will use, not bog them down with a slew of stuff that needs sorting, rejecting, etc. Our physical, mental, and spiritual energy are directly related to the situation inside our bodies... so we should be mindful (there's that word again!) of what we put in them and how we treat them. A good mix of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and nuts is best for these purposes.
Some yogis eat meat, but in small quantities and on occasion, not as a daily staple at every meal-- the main reason being that meats contain toxins that bog down the system as well as being more difficult to digest and more challenging to assimilate. IF you eat meat every day, it's probably best to confine RED meat to once- a week or so, and instead try fish or lean white meat, like chicken. Instead, replace meat dishes with beans and legumes.
Yogic tradition indicates that the fresher the food, the better, and the less cooked the food, the better, when it comes to produce. Recently, much scientific data has come out which agrees with this idea-- it seems that the fresher and less cooked the food, the greater the nutrition. So when snacking, for example, choose raw fresh organic broccoli or carrots rather than leftover spinach quiche made with canned spinach. When you cook vegetables, a light steaming is usually best. Because of the great emphasis on moderation, most yogis agree that food should neither be consumed too hot, nor too cold. Modern science agrees and actually suggests that certain types of throat cancer can be caused by tissue damage caused by constant irritation of the throat with hots and colds. I'm not sure I believe that, but it's interesting.
In the "foods to avoid at all costs" department, you will find: Virtually all refined white sugars, brown sugar, raw sugar organic sugar. This includes food that may be labeled: "Fructose, Glucose, Galactose, Maltose, Sorbitol, Honey, Mannitol (421), Molasses, Corn syrup, Maple syrup, Date sugar, Maltodextrin, Lactose. " This is because Sugar is like poison to the system, creating toxins and slowing down the whole system. Kick the sugar habit as soon as possible. An idea to start with would be to replace all sugar and sweeteners with Stevia Rebaudiana, which is said to be much sweeter than sugar and all natural. Avoid ALL artificial sweeteners, of course, which are much worse than sugar and arguably poisonous for the system.
Serious yogis stay away from Alcohol, and relatively serious yogis will drink with extreme moderation and caution. Like sugar, alcohol contains toxins and is poisonous to the body. Another reason to avoid the use of alcohol is that the purpose of yoga is to awaken and invigorate the central nervous system, whereas alcohol clogs it up and destroys it with excessive use.
Alcohol first stimulates and then shortly afterwards depresses the central nervous system, whereas yoga stimulates and elevates the central nervous system... creating a natural high with no "downer" at the end.Using alcohol and practicing yoga regularly is counterintuitive, to say the least.
Alcohol also causes poor sleep, which can lead to a myriad of other physical, mental and emotional problems. Poor sleep, for example, can cause weight retention, mood swings, and hormonal imbalances.
One last thing: Yogis take TIME to eat.. they don't just scarf food down. This is for the very simple reason that when we eat slowly and take lots of time to chew, the digestive process is aided rather than hindered. This is important because good digestion is the first step to nutritional health. If your body is in good health,- and a regular yoga practice helps with this-- then even eating NON nutritious food slowly provides lasting benefits-- because your body will squeeze every last drop of nutrition from it and then eliminate the remaining toxins immediately.
Hopefully this will give you some ideas for improving your own health via decisions about nutrition. It's never too late to start eating better! A regular yoga practice aids the body and works hand in hand with good food choices, which in turn will help to ensure the "whole" person is healthy, active, and self-aware. But one need not practice yoga to enjoy the benefits of such a healthy philosophy about food... any form of physical exercise is important and useful to the body so that we can make the most out of what we have been given.
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