For decades, the media has been preaching how fats are associated with obesity, cancer, arteriosclerosis, and heart disease. Back in the late 1980’s, the U.S. Surgeon General recommended that Americans decrease their consumption of dietary fats. Marketing savvy food manufacturers immediately started coming out with everything from fat free ice cream to fat free cheese. In place of fat, more carbohydrates were added.

With all of the “fat free” marketing, the general public believed that since something was “fat free”, they could eat larger portions. Over the next ten years, Americans became fatter than ever! Obesity skyrocketed from 12% of the population to over 20% of the population in just 10 years. Today, research has found that 50% of Americans are overweight and approximately 23% are obese. With the help of the food industry, the public has developed a “fat phobia” and the importance of including healthy fats in our diets has been neglected.

If your goal is to build a stronger, leaner, more muscular body, dietary fats are necessary to maintain and improve your health, and play an essential role in reaching your fitness goals.

There are two types of fats, saturated fats and unsaturated fats. Unsaturated fats are considered healthy fats, they are usually liquid at room temperature. Although there are many sources of unsaturated fat, two great sources of healthy unsaturated fat can be found in cold water fish like salmon, trout and halibut, and flax seed oil.

Saturated fats are the unhealthy fats that are associated with a myriad of health problems. They contain virtually nothing nutritious or good for your body, it’s only role is it can be burned as energy. The fact is, you don’t need saturated fats at all, but the typical diet is jam-packed with them. For health reasons, you want to consume as little saturated fats as possible. Saturated fats are generally solid at room temperature and can be found in butter, margarine, dairy, cheese, and meats. I am not recommending you become a vegetarian and eliminate meat from your diet, but make sure when you are at the meat counter you select lean cuts. You do not have to eat meat every day. There are many other good non-animal sources of protein including beans, soy, and tofu.

The truth is, some fats are health promoting and essential to life itself. I recently read a great book by Dr. Udos Erasmus, one of the world’s foremost experts on dietary fats. I highly recommend you read his best selling book “Fats That Heal, Fat’s That Kill.” Dr. Erasmus believes that eating enough healthy fats is just as important to maintaining health as eliminating unhealthy fats.

The yoga diet is an excellent way to compliment yoga and improve your health. If you are into yoga fitness and want to change the way you eat, the yoga diet will impress you with its vast knowledge about foods and how they work in your body.

Practicing yoga might not be enough to get the energy you want. Energy can be physical and mental as many of the foods around us can drain our energy. The yoga diet actually works to bring out your energy in a good way and leave you feeling your best.

The yoga diet uses the three Gunas as a basis for its beliefs. It means that energy has three qualities that exist to create balance. There are Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. It is believed that these three things work to create inner peace. Sattva means purity, Rajas stands for activity and passion and the process of change, while Tamas stands for darkness.

To create the yoga diet you first need to make some changes to your diet. There are Sattvic foods that work with your body to help it feel healthier. This is the purest form of diets and it calms and purifies the body by giving it only pure foods. These foods include; cereals, whole-wheat bread, fresh fruits and vegetables, fruit juices and milk.

Rajastic food is anything that is hot and spicy, bitter dry and salty. It is believed that these foods work to over stimulate the brain and body. It is also noted that eating fast is also unhealthy. A few examples of these foods include; coffee and tea, spices, fish, eggs, salt and chocolate.

Tamastic food is believed to give you know benefits at all. It has been linked to energy loss and making your body feel unhealthy. Over heating is also considered Tamastic. Foods that are a part of this group consists of; meat, alcohol, tobacco, onions, garlic and vinegar.

The ideal yoga diet consists of vegetarian foods. A misconception is that vegetarians are unhealthy because they do not get enough protein. However this is a myth, there is lots of protein in nuts and dairy that many vegetarians consume daily.

Benefits to being a vegetarian include many perks. You might have a less chance of developing a heart attack, stroke, kidney disease and some cancers. You also have a less rate of obesity.

Vegetarians are allowed to eat many great foods. These include; cereals, pasta, rice, fruit and vegetables, nuts, dairy, honey, and herbs. With a diet consisting of all these foods, you are sure to be able to make meals and snacks that will be quite nutritious and tasty.

Easing into a yoga diet might take some time. You might want to take it slow. Start by including more fruit and veggiesArticle Search, and slowly work meat out of your diet. If you begin with small steps your success rate may be higher.

Along with becoming a vegetarian you might also want to try fasting. It is an important component of yoga. It is believed that fasting can rid the body of toxins which in turn will make you feel better. Not only is it great for toxins it is also excellent for the mind as it takes allot of mind power to fast and stay focused. And staying focused is a key component of yoga.

Heart Risk

Elevated blood cholesterol is not a good news, it can increase their risk of all sorts of health problems, including a heart attack.

But if you think you’ve heard everything you need to know about this waxy fat, there may be a few surprises in store. For one, cholesterol can be so high that it shows up in fatty deposits in the skin. On the other end of the spectrum, cholesterol can even be too low. Read the rest of this entry »

Once upon a time, it was unheard of for an adult of average income to hire a personal trainer. Trainers were thought of as an expensive luxury for celebrities and the fitness-obsessed ultra-rich. Today, it is common for people interested in health, fitness and/or weight loss to work with a personal trainer to improve their results. But did you know that personal trainers are also a great resource for teenagers who want to lose weight and increase their fitness levels? Read the rest of this entry »

Unhealthy diet is the main culprit in having very high cholesterol counts. Most Americans have very unhealthy diets due to the increasing number of fast food chains available. Not only are the burgers oily the fries that you order comes in packs so huge, making dieting a huge problem and most of the time out of the question.

Unhealthy eating can put a risk on your health. One major and very popular problem connected with cholesterol is heart attacks. Cholesterol kills. It will slowly consume you without you knowing it. Be smart and know what to do. Better yet prevent any bad attacks by being healthy and eating wise. Read the rest of this entry »