Yoga is a philosophy, an approach to living developed thousands of years ago and passed down through the generations by wise sages who lived austere lives. One of the primary concepts of the eight-limbed path set forth in The Yoga Sutras, by Patangalis, the ancient foundational yogic text, is that of Ahimsa, or non-harming. It's the principal of living with compassion for all living things in a non-violent, cruelty-free way. The tradition of yogis and yoginis being vegetarian springs from this verse. However, most westerners who have whole-heartedly embraced yoga for its life-affirming qualities do not feel compelled to embrace the vegetarian diet.
Whether you practice yoga because it's a great form of exercise, or because you want to embrace the whole philosophy, eating a health diet rich in fresh fruits, vegetables and grains will only serve to support your yoga practice.
Because there are really two approaches to the vegetarian philosophy--the ethical stance and the nutritional stance on the issue, for our purposes, we are looking at the nutritional reasons for becoming a vegetarian. We are going to share some tips and ideas for easing into a vegetarian lifestyle, or, if you don't think you'd ever want to give up eating meat completely, at least add more fresh fruits and vegetables into your diet.
o Try a vegetarian diet for just 30 days
o Get a good vegetarian cookbook and find a few recipes that look appealing to you
o Start slowly by 'making over' your current meals by adding more vegetable dishes
o Take a vegetarian cooking class
o Spend some time in the produce section of your grocery store and make it a point to try some of the vegetables that you've never tasted before
o Eat fresh fruit for snacks instead of chips or crackers
o Use ground veggie burgers instead of ground beef in your pasta recipes
o Prepare a big salad at the beginning of the week with lots of leafy greens in it
o Bring a salad to work with you each day
o Skip the meat when you order pizza and add vegetables like broccoli and peppers and tomatoes and mushrooms. Then try it without the cheese.
o Try brown rice instead of white rice
o Switch to multi-grain or whole wheat pasta
o Look for whole grain foods and eat more of them
Most of all focus on being mindful of everything you eat and of the choices you make about what you eat. It's not about making you feel guilty for eating meat. The vegetarian lifestyle is about abundant health and eating living foods that our bodies thrive on. The quality of the food you eat will dictate the quality of your life. After you've switched to a vegetarian diet or even just added more fruits and vegetables and grains to your current food choices, you will notice that you will have increased energy and vitality, your yoga practice will be richer, and you may even drop a few pounds.