Archive for April, 2009
Posted by lorenz
No food alone could ever cause us to lose weight, there is no such thing as the best single weight loss food. We all understand that weight loss is the result of the energy consumed from all various foods within the diet, and that a diet’s total energy must be lower than the energy used by the body.
Some sites peddle the idea that certain foods are the best for weight loss because when these “special foods” are eaten they result in negative calories however, there is no hard scientific proof to support this theory. In fact the only reason some foods are considered the best for weight loss is because they help reduce the total energy consumption in some way. For example, some fruits are listed in the negative calories foods list and considered one of the best foods for losing weight but this is probably due to the fact that fruits are often very low in energy. If any low calorie food is replacing another food high in calories then it can be considered good for losing weight.
Some other foods that are considered helpful when losing weight are those high in fiber. The fiber helps fill up the stomach quicker causing the individual to eat less, thus less calories are consumed.
Foods that are low in fat are also believed to be the best for losing weight. Fat contains more than twice the amount of energy than carbohydrates or protein, so eating less fat naturally lowers calorie intake.
Foods that are nutritionally dense, especially from some of the B vitamins may help increase energy levels and give an individual more desire to exercise.
Many foods with a high water content are among some of the best foods to help lose weight. They are often low in calories plus increasing water intake has been shown to benefit weight loss. Water benefits weight loss
Fresh, natural produce are among the best foods for weight loss, they are often low in energy and low in sodium. A high sodium intake has been shown to cause slight water retention, thus gaining an extra few pounds of water weight. A low sodium diet can help rid the body of water retention.
Processed and convenient products loaded with refined sugar are NOT the best foods for losing weight. The sugar contributes to “empty calories” void of all nutrients.
Posted by lorenz
Red wine is rich in antioxidants
Many people have heard that a Mediterranean-influenced diet is beneficial to your health. Why? The theory is that the high antioxidant levels contained in a diet full of fruit and vegetables extinguishes the free radicals and other oxidants which damage your cells and tissues. Similarly, red wine contains antioxidant chemicals that have also been credited with a lowered risk of heart disease. Antioxidants act as a biological “army” to protect the lining of your blood vessels from developing the dangerous fatty plaque that causes atherosclerosis. This plaque is developed from damaged (oxidized) fat molecules that begin collecting within the lining of the blood vessels. Antioxidants sacrifice themselves by taking the place of the tissue and cells so that they are not damaged and can thus continue with their regular metabolism.
Polyphenols benefit your heart
Red wine is rich in a class of compounds known as polyphenols, which can also be found in teas, chocolate, and fruit. These compounds are involved in the quality of the wine because they influence the color, bitterness, astringency, and chemical stability1. Polyphenols have been associated with numerous cardiovascular benefits: they reduce blood clots, relax blood vessels and promote healthy cholesterol metabolism.
In one clinical study, volunteers were asked to drink 12 ounces of red wine daily for two weeks. At the end of the study, researchers concluded that a moderate daily intake of red wine was associated with a slight increase in HDL cholesterol levels as well as an increase in chemicals that act as antioxidants in the blood2. Another research study determined that moderate wine drinkers have lower incidence of hypertension related mortality3.
In a third notable study, researchers took all of the information above one step further and recruited 15 volunteers with coronary artery disease. They asked volunteers to drink 8.5 ounces of red wine everyday for the first two weeks, and then switch to 8.5 ounces of non-alcoholic wine for the next two weeks4. Results of the study showed improved blood vessel functioning after the two weeks of drinking the alcoholic red wine.
Which wines should I drink? And how much is enough?
Researchers at the University of California, Davis tested a variety of wines to determine which ones had the highest amount of polyphenolic compounds. Results of the tests indicated that Cabernet Sauvignon was at the top of the list, with Petit Syrah and Pinot Noir following closely behind.
So how much wine do you need to drink before you can reap these benefits? If a 4-ounce glass is equal to 1 serving of red wine, men should drink 2 servings per day, while women only need 1.
Is the benefit from the grape rather than the alcohol?
Despite all this positive research, some scientists remain skeptical about whether the beneficial qualities of wine can be attributed to the grape extract itself or the alcohol contained in the wine. Nevertheless, there are strong efforts in the scientific community to demonstrate that a moderate intake of red wine is beneficial to your health.
Posted by lorenz
Pick a program that focuses on strategies you can practice long-term, not just while you are “on the diet.” Meal replacements, like shakes and portion-controlled entrees, make it easier to cut calories now and in the future. A plan with lots of vegetables and fruits allows you to eat in volume without a lot of calories, and they’re loaded with nutrition.
Make your home a safe haven
Fill your home with healthy, low-fat, quick and easy food options. A bowl of fresh fruit on the counter, for example, can make it easy to have a healthy snack.
Don’t go it alone
Research shows that people are often more successful when they lose weight with a friend or a group.
Make a strong start
Contrary to common wisdom that “slow and steady” weight loss is best, recent articles have found that dieters who lost weight quickly, lost more total weight and kept off more weight long-term. Researchers concluded that how well dieters do in the first 2-4 weeks predicts their success up to five years later.
Make a plan
If you don’t plan out what you’re going to do, the world has a plan for you. Map out the first day of your week to get a strong start you can build on the rest of the week.
More is better
When your weight-loss plan includes healthy strategies like vegetables and fruits and meal replacements, the more of these you eat the more success you’ll have. You don’t have to be hungry to lose weight. On the contrary, if you stay full on low-fat, low calorie foods, you’re more likely to stay on your diet and lose more weight overall.
Target your “easy wins”
Simple substitutions are often the easiest way to cut calories. Drinking a diet soda instead of a regular soda every day will save you 15 or morepounds in a year. Eating a turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato and mustard instead of a roast beef sandwich with mayonnaise just twice a week will save you another 15 pounds.
Keep moving
Daily physical activity, like walking, along with healthy eating is key to long-term weight-loss success and maintenance. Once again, more is better.
Track your progress
Food and exercise records help you stay accountable to your diet plan, reinforce your success and give you valuable feedback on how to continue to build your skills.
Drink your fluids
It is important to stay hydrated, especially when you are losing weight, because your body will naturally lose some water. Make sure you drink at least eight 8 oz. glasses of non-caloric liquids per day.
Easy Swaps
With these strategies under your belt, try the following “Easy Swap” system along with physical activity to help drop those pounds:
Easy Swap: Coffee w/milk, sweetener
Instead of: “coffee house” latte
How often: 5 days a week
Lose in a year: 18 - 20 lbs.
Easy Swap: Whole grain cereal w/skim milk
Instead of: a bran muffin
How often: 3x a week
Lose in a year: 14 - 15 lbs.
Easy Swap: Mustard
Instead of: mayo on sandwiches
How often: 3x a week
Lose in a year: 12 - 13 lbs.
Easy Swap: Turkey sandwich w/lettuce and tomato
Instead of: cheeseburger and fries
How often: 3x a week
Lose in a year: 8 - 10 lbs.
Easy Swap: 6 oz. baked potato w/sour cream
Instead of: 5 oz. french fries
How often: 3x a week
Lose in a year: 10 lbs.
Easy Swap: 20 oz. diet soda
Instead of: regular soda
How often: 7 days a week
Lose in a year: 25 lbs.
Easy Swap: Piece of fruit
Instead of: a candy bar
How often: 5 days a week
Lose in a year: 10 - 12 lbs.
Posted by lorenz
Believe it or not, men and women are actually quite different. Apart from the obvious differentiators, women have a number of barriers towards maintaining a healthy weight that men have probably never considered.
The first weight loss problem to discuss is the fact that generally women won’t lose as much fat as men or at the same rate. The reason being is that female fat is stored around the hips, butt and breasts and is there to support the female through pregnancy even during periods where food may be scarce. This fat is less mobile than the fat men store around the mid-section. This is a good thing for women as it reduces their risk of cardiovascular disease when compared with men of the same age. Post menopause women change in how they store energy and can begin to store fat more readily around the mid-section thus increasing their risk of cardiovascular disease as compared to their level of risk prior to menopause. Therefore it’s important for women to manage their body fat prior to menopause as it becomes more difficult with time.
Another weight loss problem for women is that they are typically under more pressure than men to achieve an unrealistically lean body shape. This can lead to significant psychological consequences especially if the female is not genetically predisposed to looking like the desired body shape. As a result, many more women than men have attempted to and achieved weight loss through various crazy and unproven, although popular, weight loss strategies. This can result in the yo-yo or rebound effect, which is another common weight loss problem for women. The main thing to realise is that the body has gone on strike. With each severe bout of weight loss the body becomes more and more protective of the energy it has left making any further weight loss even more difficult
Women are also at greater risk of the vicious cycle of dieting than men. A person can feel unhappy about their body image and decide to go on a diet. As a result they can feel deprived, then angry. In this state of mind the person is more likely to binge which can lead to the person feeling anxious and depressed and food can become a coping strategy. Men are also susceptible to this cycle but women are much more at risk. This situation can lead to a person becoming an ‘over restrained eater’.
Over restrained eating is a common weight loss problem as these people are at a greater risk of relapse due to the thin line they are walking and the feeling of guilt they associate with food. The over restrained eater can last for long periods of time until a situation arises that they are unable to cope with or provides them with an excuse to break their restriction and the gorging begins. Pregnancy is a prime example; the female restricts herself for a number of years then falls pregnant. This provides the over restricted eater with the excuse that they are eating for two and off they go only to find the stored energy doesn’t come off once the baby is born.
The final point to discuss is the role of stress, worry and anxiety. Women experience anxiety much more than men and are therefore more exposed to the effects stress, worry and anxiety have on weight loss. “Stress Management” is an essential tool for the female when it comes to weight loss.
If the above sounds like you or someone you know it is important to understand that this cycle can be difficult to break and professional support may be required. The key factor is to reduce the guilt about eating. If you can stop the feeling of guilt you can break the cycle and actually eat less. If you hear the statement of “I deserve it” stop and think. Should you really have to earn food? If the above sounds like you try the following tips:
Tips to overcome weight loss problems for women
- Give yourself a bit more lee way when it comes to losing weight
- Be aware of overly restrictive eating and the tendency to binge when things go wrong
- Practice eating to live – not living to eat
- Don’t try to compare directly with Men – set your own goals and targets
Posted by lorenz
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ONE STRIKE, YOU’RE OUT
A problem that many challenged dieters experience is falling off the wagon when they make just one diet slip-up. You’ve gone a week without indulging in any fried fast foods, and you break down and go to the local burger joint for some fries and a burger. Then, you figure, since you have already screwed it up, there’s no reason to try to eat well the rest of the day, right? Wrong! That day leads to the next day, the next week, month, etc. It is a vicious cycle. Do not beat yourself up for going off the diet plan once and a while - sometimes you just can’t help but satisfy a craving. We beat ourselves up so much over one mistake that we allow ourselves to believe that all of our efforts to get fit were a waste. Instead of turning a small negative into a huge one, turn it into a positive. If you eat a brownie sundae after lunch, put in some extra time at the gym later, or take a brisk walk after dinner. Nobody is perfect; the important thing is handling your mistakes properly.
EMOTIONAL EATING
Overeating to ease emotional stress is a major pitfall for dieters. Many of us may not realize that we were brought up to bury our feelings behind a snack. Think about how many times you have seen a mother console her crying child by offering him a cookie. So many women are used to curling up with a pint of ice cream to soothe the pain of a break-up, or a fight with their significant other. These natural tendencies lead us to make allowances for ourselves when we are going through stressful times. Unfortunately, eating poorly will only lead to more stress, because you will be worried about being overweight and not being able to follow through with your diet. Rather than eating to numb the pain, try exercising, writing in a journal, or calling a friend. If you can stick to your diet in a stressful situation, then you will be able to feel more confident that you will be able to meet your weight-loss goals. Handling stress is an important test of a dieter’s will and determination.
NO MIRACLE RESULTS
We are in a world of quick-fixes and get-rich schemes, so it is no wonder that the weight loss industry makes false promises too. You cannot expect to lose sixty pounds in two months. It just isn’t realistic. Haven’t you noticed the fine print on those weight loss product commercials? The results that they are proudly advertising are not typical! Losing weight is not easy, and you shouldn’t expect it to be. If it was as simple as these ads would lead you to believe, then obesity wouldn’t be such an enormous health problem in the United States. Losing weight is about changing your entire lifestyle. You can’t expect to go from couch potato to super model in little to no time at all. You have to commit yourself to a healthy diet and exercise, and you have to be patient and consistent. Do not set your goals too high. Healthy weight loss should be about one or two pounds per week. Crash diets may be intriguing, but they will not be sustainable, and you will be back at square one, once again. Bottom line: set realistic goals, and don’t expect miracles.
YOU ARE YOUR OWN WORST ENEMY
There once was a story about a fox that saw a vine of grapes hanging high from a tree. He wanted the grapes very badly, but they were just out of his reach, so he convinced himself that they wouldn’t be so great anyway. Dieters are not very different from that fox. You say that you want nothing more than to get fit and healthy, but once you start doing it, and you get sick of it, you convince yourself that you don’t really care about your weight anyway. You tell yourself that it is hopeless, and that it just doesn’t matter. You would rather be able to eat what you like than be thin. To avoid this pitfall, write yourself a commitment letter when you start a diet. It might sound silly, but it can help you to get centered on your goal when you want to stray from it. Write down the reasons that you want to go on this diet and change your lifestyle, and write down what you commit to doing to achieve your goals (working out at least three days a week, no fast food, etc.).
SICK DAYS
Sometimes when we fall out of our regular daily routines due to an illness, it can be hard to get back to business when we feeling better. If you have been home in bed with the flu for a week, then you dread going back to the gym, and having to build back up to the level you were at before you got sick. It is okay to take it easy for yourself right after you recover, but you should at least do something to stay physically active and on track with your weight-loss goals, such as taking a jog, or doing some laps in the pool. |
Posted by lorenz
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Developing healthy eating habits isn’t as confusing or as restrictive as many people imagine. The first principle of a healthy diet is simply to eat a wide variety of foods. This is important because different foods make different nutritional contributions.
Secondly, fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes—foods high in complex carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins, and minerals, low in fat, and free of cholesterol—should make up the bulk of the calories you consume. The rest should come from low-fat dairy products, lean meat and poultry, and fish.
You should also try to maintain a balance between calorie intake and calorie expenditure—that is, don’t eat more food than your body can utilize. Otherwise, you will gain weight. The more active you are, therefore, the more you can eat and still maintain this balance.
Following these three basic steps doesn’t mean that you have to give up your favorite foods. As long as your overall diet is balanced and rich in nutrients and fiber, there is nothing wrong with an occasional cheeseburger. Just be sure to limit how frequently you eat such foods, and try to eat small portions of them.
You can also view healthy eating as an opportunity to expand your range of choices by trying foods—especially vegetables, whole grains, or fruits—that you don’t normally eat. A healthy diet doesn’t have to mean eating foods that are bland or unappealing.
The following basic guidelines are what you need to know to construct a healthy diet.
1 Eat plenty of high-fiber foods—that is, fruits, vegetables, beans, and whole grains. These are the “good” carbohydrates—nutritious, filling, and relatively low in calories. They should supply the 20 to 30 grams of dietary fiber you need each day, which slows the absorption of carbohydrates, so there’s less effect on insulin and blood sugar, and provides other health benefits as well. Such foods also provide important vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals (plant chemicals essential to good health).
2 Make sure to include green, orange, and yellow fruits and vegetables—such as broccoli, carrots, cantaloupe, and citrus fruits. The antioxidants and other nutrients in these foods may help protect against developing certain types of cancer and other diseases. Eat five or more servings a day.
3 Limit your intake of sugary foods, refined-grain products such as white bread, and salty snack foods. Sugar, our No.1 additive, is added to a vast array of foods. Just one daily 12-ounce can of soda (160 calories) can add up to 16 pounds over the course of a year. Many sugary foods are also high in fat, so they’re calorie-dense.
4 Cut down on animal fat. It’s rich in saturated fat, which boosts blood cholesterol levels and has other adverse health effects. Choose lean meats, skinless poultry, and nonfat or low-fat or nonfat dairy products.
5 Cut way down on trans fats, supplied by hydrogenated vegetable oils used in most processed foods in the supermarket and in many fast foods.
6 Eat more fish and nuts, which contain healthy unsaturated fats. Substitute olive or canola oil for butter or stick margarine.
7 Keep portions moderate, especially of high-calorie foods. In recent years serving sizes have ballooned, particularly in restaurants. Choose a starter instead of an entrée, split a dish with a friend, and don’t order supersized anything.
8 Keep your cholesterol intake below 300 milligrams per day. Cholesterol is found only in animal products, such as meats, poultry, dairy products, and egg yolks.
9 Eat a variety of foods. Don’t try to fill your nutrient requirements by eating the same foods day in, day out. It is possible that not every essential nutrient has been identified, and so eating a wide assortment of foods helps to ensure that you will get all the necessary nutrients. In addition, this will limit your exposure to any pesticides or toxic substances that may be present in one particular food.
10 Maintain an adequate calcium intake. Calcium is essential for strong bones and teeth. Get your calcium from low-fat sources, such as skim milk and low-fat yogurt. If you can’t get the optimal amount from foods, take supplements.
11 Try to get your vitamins and minerals from foods, not from supplements. Supplements cannot substitute for a healthy diet, which supplies nutrients and other compounds besides vitamins and minerals. Foods also provide the “synergy” that many nutrients require to be efficiently used in the body.
12 Maintain a desirable weight. Balance energy (calorie) intake with energy output. Exercise and other physical activity are essential.
13 If you drink alcohol, do so in moderation. That is one drink a day for women, two a day for men. A drink is defined as 12 ounces of beer, 4 ounces of wine, or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof spirits. Excess alcohol consumption leads to a variety of health problems. And alcoholic beverages can add many calories to your diet without supplying nutrients.
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Posted by lorenz
There is a reason why a portion of the food section in your grocery is filled with different brands and varieties of yogurts. Yogurt is one of the most popular health and diet foods available, and more and more people are exchanging their calorie-rich ice cream tubs for cups of this delicious and healthy dessert.
Yogurt is made of milk or cream mixed with active live cultures, which are responsible for most of its health benefits. These live cultures are actually good bacteria which improves the way the body functions. It prevents the growth of bad bacteria and makes our body fight off diseases and infections. Good bacteria also improve digestion and boost the immune system. The yeast levels in our body can be balanced by good bacteria and can help prevent the onset of yeast infections. Yogurt can be eaten by anyone, even by those who are lactose intolerant. Regular intake of yogurt can maintain the good bacteria levels in the body.
Another health benefit of yogurt is calcium. Eating yogurt is good for the bones and teeth, especially for the prevention of osteoporosis and bone density loss. Yogurt also contains protein, which provides the body with enough energy to keep the body going. Protein is good for the muscle-building and suppresses the appetite, which can prevent one from indulging in impulsive snacking.
Yogurt can be a healthy replacement for your dessert. You can add fruits, nuts, or even chocolate to your yogurt to make it more delicious. It can be a healthy substitute for milk when cooking waffles and pancakes.
To maximize the benefits of eating yogurt, make sure to choose ones that are low-fat or no-fat varieties. You can also opt for organic yogurt, which is the most natural of the lot.
Posted by lorenz
Fixed-menu diet.
A fixed-menu diet provides a list of all the foods you will eat. This kind of diet can be easy to follow because the foods are selected for you. But, you get very few different food choices which may make the diet boring and hard to follow away from home. In addition, fixed-menu diets do not teach the food selection skills necessary for keeping weight off. If you start with a fixed-menu diet, you should switch eventually to a plan that helps you learn to make meal choices on your own, such as an exchange-type diet.
Exchange-type diet.
An exchange-type diet is a meal plan with a set number of servings from each of several food groups. Within each group, foods are about equal in calories and can be interchanged as you wish. For example, the “starch” category could include one slice of bread or 1/2 cup of oatmeal; each is about equal in nutritional value and calories. If your meal plan calls for two starch choices at breakfast, you could choose to eat two slices of bread, or one slice of bread and 1/2 cup of oatmeal. With the exchange-type diet plans, you have more day-to-day variety and you can easily follow the diet away from home. The most important advantage is that exchange-type diet plans teach the food selection skills you need to keep your weight off.
Prepackaged-meal diet.
These diets require you to buy prepackaged meals. Such meals may help you learn appropriate portion sizes. However, they can be costly. Before beginning this type of program, find out whether you will need to buy the meals and how much the meals cost. You should also find out whether the program will teach you how to select and prepare food, skills that are needed to sustain weight loss.
Formula diet.
Formula diets are weight-loss plans that replace one or more meals with a liquid formula. Most formula diets are balanced diets containing a mix of protein, carbohydrate, and usually a small amount of fat. Formula diets are usually sold as liquid or a powder to be mixed with liquid. Although formula diets are easy to use and do promote short-term weight loss, most people regain the weight as soon as they stop using the formula. In addition, formula diets do not teach you how to make healthy food choices, a necessary skill for keeping your weight off.
Questionable diets.
You should avoid any diet that suggests you eat a certain nutrient, food, or combination of foods to promote easy weight loss. Some of these diets may work in the short term because they are low in calories. However, they are often not well balanced and may cause nutrient deficiencies. In addition, they do not teach eating habits that are important for long-term weight management.
Flexible diets.
Some programs or books suggest monitoring fat only, calories only, or a combination of the two, with the individual making the choice of both the type and amount of food eaten. This flexible type of approach works well for many people, and teaches them how to control what they eat. One drawback of flexible diets is that some don’t consider the total diet. For example, programs that monitor fat only often allow people to take in unlimited amounts of excess calories from sugars, and therefore don’t lead to weight loss.
It is important to choose an eating plan that you can live with. The plan should also teach you how to select and prepare healthy foods, as well as how to maintain your new weight. Remember that many people tend to regain lost weight. Eating a healthful and nutritious diet to maintain your new weight, combined with regular physical activity, helps to prevent weight regain.
Posted by lorenz
Exercise is the number one suggestion made by doctors as the path to weight loss. For the extremely overweight, this option may be out of the question. Our world is not focused on gradual, we are focused on fast! Everything needs to be at our fingertips, and thus, the exercise world focuses on those they are most apt to control, the thin and athletic. The extremely overweight are the sector of people who need to most attention because they are the ones that can be hurt the most from improper exercise practices.
Traditional exercise machines are not able to hold the weight of an extremely overweight person. While treadmills offer pre programmed exercise cycles that are based upon a 150 pound user. These are the troubles that face the extremely overweight, but, exercising is a reality for weight loss. And, exercising is what must be done. Here are a few tips for the extremely overweight involving exercise.
Tip 1: Increasing the Heart Rate
The main idea of exercise is to increase the heart rate for an extended period of time. For an extremely obese person, an inflated heart rate is not that hard to achieve. The added weight makes traditional cardio difficult, but there are ways to integrate exercise without causing injury.
Swimming, walking, biking and dancing are fantastic ways to raise the heart rate and they tend to be fun. Fun and exercise need to be the best of friends for anyone to stay on track. If you are having difficulties walking for long periods of time, try sitting in a chair with a straight back and lifting your arms over your head then back to your sides. Repeat this motion and your heart rate will increase.
Tip 2: No Pain, No Gain
Yes, there will be pain associated with your workout regime. This is more so the case for people who are unable to stretch after a workout. Stretching loosens the muscles and frees the pent up lactic acid that cause pain in the muscle. The inability to stretch will leave many extremely obese people hurting badly enough that exercise is given up after just a few days.
The key to keeping your exercise pain free is two fold. You can either stretch your heart out after you finish your exercise routine, or you can start your routine very slowly. Many people find the slow approach to be the easiest one to stick with. Starting slowly means just that, progressing at a snails pace. You will want to exercise for 10 minutes, twice a day to start. Continue this program for two weeks than increase by five minutes. Again, wait two week and add another five minutes. This gradual increase in exercise will fit perfectly with your weight loss.
Tip 3: Stay Away From the Gym
I know, this tip seems like an absurd one, but there is good reason. Gyms are made, as I stated in the beginning paragraphs, for thin and athletic people. Ab machines usually have a maximum weight of 250 pounds. Treadmills are created for people who are of “average” weight and weight benches are too narrow for an extremely overweight body. But, just because I say to stay away from the gym does not mean you can stay away from exercise. If you wish for the gym like experience, try visiting a women’s only gym. There are many circuit based routines perfect for extremely obese person.
Being overweight is nothing to be embarrassed about. Life as an overweight person is a difficult struggle that should include exercise whenever possible. Exercise is the key to weight loss and for the obese person, that exercise can be the most difficult part. Using these tips, try that exercise program again. You will be happy you did!
Posted by lorenz
Yoga as is said to be not only based completely based on exercise but it is also supported by various other components as the Diet. As also in Ayurveda it is said that if a person consumes the right diet as per season, its properties, its nutrients and also its amount it will provide its consumer the most fruitful benefits. As also the main source of energy to our body is Diet that we consume everyday. So this diet not only nourishes our body but it also nourishes our mind too with all the nutrients and properties that are made up in it.
The right type of yogic exercises should also be complemented with the right diet to produce the maximum effect and benefit. This diet helps to nourish the mind and body to keep an individual alert and energized through the day and so that we can handle everyday stress. Food or diet that we take is the center to achieve good health as it enacts as the medicine that we take everyday the helps us to build up the immune system and resist various diseases. But also this diet helps to repair the various wear and tears inside the body. There are also certain reasons in Yoga saying that occasional fasting should be practiced as it provides the digestive system rest. At first this might seem to be hard to follow as the toxins that are present in your body will be replenished. But after this phase the body shall regain its energy and vitality. As also in terms of modern science terminology a balanced or proper diet is a diet that provides all the proper nutrients that are required by the body to live for a healthy living.
But it is not just to get a diet that gives all the nutrients but what also matters is that it should be consumed in the right amount and also in the right condition and environment. As we humans our diet is also divided into three Gunas:
* Sattvic (Purity)
* Rajasa (activity)
* Tamasa (darkness or inertia)
This division of diet is due to the energy qualities that are found to be existing in equilibrium. Also as said that fasting has a great importance in yoga. As fasting provides the body discipline, control on self and determination. Also it is the belief of the yogi’s that abstinence helps to clean and rejuvenate the body. The Yoga diet is also one of the Five Principles of Yoga since eating healthy not only does provides good health but it also helps to stay fit. Thus ‘Yogic Diet’ is a perfect complementary to ‘Yogic Kariyas’. And also in this diet it is not that a person must be vegetarian only but he can be both ways.
Thus out of these three guna’s if one of them is dominant than the other two the individual or substance will acquire its features. As this can be explained in form as if an apple that is ripe it is profound to be with the Sattvic Guna; whereas if only some amount of ripening is resulted it is profound to be with Rajasic Guna and if it is overripe it is profound to be having the Tamasic Guna. Thus in common terms a food that is pure is Sattvic, food that is stimulating is Rajasic and food that is rotting, leftovers, diseased and decaying is Tamasic.
The properties can thus be summarized as:
* Sattvic Diet: This type of food is soothing and nourishing to the body and is considered to be the best source of energy to the body. Nourishes the body and maintains a peaceful state. And produces a balanced flow of energy in the body. Such food must be chewed properly and eaten in modest amount. This comprises of fresh foods, sweets, vegetables, legumes, nuts, sprouted seeds, honey and herbal teas, uncontaminated milk or milk products, nuts and whole grains. Such food gives energy and life to the body.
* Rajasic Diet: Such type of food is very stimulating to the body and can arouse emotions; these may bring about nervousness or disease. Theses type of food damages the equilibrium of mind and body; can over stimulate body making the mind uncontrollable and restless. Even eating in a hurry or with worry will produce rajasic guna. Such type of food causes circulatory disorders as high blood pressure, hardening of arteries and uric acid diseases. Etc. Spicy, processed, hot, bitter, sour, salty foods, fish, eggs, chocolates and stimulants as tea and coffee fall in this category.
* Tamasic Diet: Any food that is overripe, decaying and dead. This state or guna diet is most toxic or poison to the body and can harm the body immediately when consumed. So this diet does not benefits the mind or the body. Such food consumes away the prana or energy destroying the resistance of body and mind is filled with dark emotions, anger and greed. Even over-eating is considered to be producing Tamasic property. Foods in this category are meat, alcohol, tobacco, fermented food as vinegar, and stale overripe food.
he Yogic Diet thus elevates an individual’s state of mind. If a person is experiencing lowered, depressed, agitating or distracted states of mind food that is consumed can immediately feel better.
