Sattvic meals are the selection of many yogis, and have been for 1000’s of years. So in case you are questioning find out how to align your physique with nature and to seek out purification that matches that of the historic seers and non secular seekers, then it’s time so that you can look towards a sattvic eating regimen.
The Sattvic eating regimen is also called the yogic eating regimen because it follows historic ayurvedic beliefs about cleaning the physique and thoughts to be in concord with the spirit. This will help one deepen their yoga observe and even to commune with divine oneness.
Beside the bodily well being advantages that the sattvic eating regimen boasts, there’s additionally a purpose to eat sattvic meals to extend non secular consciousness, take away distractions from the thoughts and have higher psychological focus. Let’s look a bit deeper into what meals to eat and which plant meals to keep away from to completely embody the ability of the sattvic yoga eating regimen.

What’s a Sattvic Weight loss program?
A sattvic eating regimen is a plant-based eating regimen generally referred to as the ‘yoga eating regimen’ as a result of it’s adopted by many yoga devotees, practitioners and different non secular seekers. It originated within the historic faculty of Ayurveda (which means ‘life science’) as a approach to create well being and stability within the physique.
Briefly, the sattvic eating regimen is a vegetarian eating regimen that features many wholesome meals. It’s largely a plant-based eating regimen (vegan) with just a few exceptions of dairy merchandise akin to ghee and yogurt. A sattvic eating regimen will keep away from meals which are overstimulating for the thoughts or physique (akin to caffeine), whereas additionally leaving out excessively processed meals that result in lethargy.
Research have proven that plant-based diets help in weight reduction, cut back the chance of coronary heart illness and create total vitality within the physique. In spite of everything, you might be what you eat.
Those that observe the sattvic eating regimen as a part of their yoga observe will typically declare that the physique is a temple. By nourishing your bodily physique with the proper alternative of nutritious meals, you might be additionally creating a way of concord within the thoughts and spirit too.

The Three Gunas
Yoga and Ayurdeva are primarily based on the idea of 3 ways of being. These are referred to as the three gunas: Tamas, Rajas and Sattva.
These are three qualities that aren’t solely current in our meals, but additionally in nature, the best way we transfer via life and the ideas that circulation via our minds.
In line with the ayurvedic rules, sure greens and meals teams fall beneath these three classes of gunas. Here’s a temporary overview of the three gunas and the sorts of meals which are included in every class.
Tamas
Tamas means inertia, darkness and dullness. It’s a state of dormancy, heaviness and insufficient motion. Once we sleep, we’re in Tamas. In nature you will note the standard of Tamas in a resting seed buried deep within the darkness of the earth.
If you happen to lead a lifetime of Tamasic qualities, you’ll really feel heavy in your physique, thoughts and spirit, chances are you’ll be oversleeping, overeating fatty fried meals, and ultimately, your total system will really feel torpid. Tamas can also be a state of despair within the thoughts, as it’s linked with an absence of function, lack of pleasure and lack of lust for all times.
Tamasic Meals
Meals with tamasic qualities are these which are impure, useless, or outdated and rotten. They’re the sorts of meals that trigger heaviness and laziness within the physique, thoughts and spirit. If you happen to eat tamasic meals you’ll expertise an absence of motivation, dullness and total negativity.
Some Tamasic meals are:
- Alcohol
- All animal flesh
- Chemical substances, preservatives and synthetic sweeteners
- Barbecued, burnt or smoked meals
- Deep fried meals
- Frozen meals
- Leftovers
- Refined sugar
- Microwaved meals
- Any meals that’s not contemporary (ie. preserved meals over 1 yr outdated)
- Mushrooms, pumpkin and overripe fruits
Rajas
The alternative to Tamas is Rajas, which implies exercise and motion. It’s when the seedling grows from the earth and begins to make its means towards the daylight.
That is the state of stimulation and pleasure which is far wanted in life, however it will possibly typically result in a state of extra and overindulgence. When an excessive amount of rajas is consumed, stress and overstimulation may be created, resulting in nervousness or burnout within the thoughts and physique.
Rajasic Meals:
Rajas meals are people who improve power within the physique. Regardless that that is good in small quantities, extra rajas will create a stress overload over time.
Some rajasic meals are:
- Some dairy merchandise together with contemporary cheeses, cottage cheese, yogurt and eggs
- All fermented meals (miso, molasses)
- Salt and vinegar
- Bitter meals
- All caffeine (together with cacao, chocolate, espresso and caffeinated teas)
- Some spices: asafoetida/hing, cayenne, chili pepper, fenugreek, garlic, or an excessive amount of of any spice
- A couple of greens together with eggplant, onions, capsicum, leeks, chilli, potatoes, radishes, sea greens, sprouts, tomatoes
- Some legumes together with kidney beans, navy beans, pinto beans and crimson lentils
Whereas these meals are nonetheless thought of wholesome meals, it’s best to eat them in small quantities and stability out their energies by incorporating them right into a sattvic eating regimen.
Sattva
Though rajas is a a lot wanted state for creating motion and power in your life, and tamas is necessary for making certain rejuvenation and relaxation, in the long run, it’s all about discovering the right stability. This stability is thought a Sattva.
Sattva is a advantageous combination of stability and concord. A sattvic state is when the seedling has grow to be a beautiful flower and it unfurls its petals to easily soak in the great thing about the world round it. It’s resting in energetic consciousness.
If sattva guidelines your life, it’ll really feel mild, free, peaceable and serene. You’ll really feel grounded within the second, but expansive too. It’s a state of true well being and stability within the thoughts, physique and spirit.

Sattvic meals
A sattvic eating regimen will convey stability and concord to the physique. It is because vegetarian diets are considerable in nature, the meals are alive and it’s the form of eating regimen that may make you make your physique really feel vibrant.
A sattvic eating regimen contains consuming complete grains, complete meals, pure fruit, juice, greens, nuts and seeds. It’s best when these meals are harvested contemporary, are natural, domestically grown and in season. Following sattvic consuming habits means to align your eating regimen with the circulation of nature.
Naturally, any form of sattvic eating regimen will help in weight reduction, however solely till one’s preferrred physique weight is reached, as that is about consuming the power that feels proper on your physique, thoughts and soul.
The next meals are thought of to be sattvic meals:
- Sprouted complete grains – brown rice, barley, amaranth, bulgur, barley, millet, quinoa, wild rice, and so forth.
- Complete grain bread
- Recent fruit
- Recent fruit juices
- Recent land and sea greens – beets, carrots, celery, bok choy, cucumbers, candy potatoes, and cabbage.
- Most legumes
- Uncooked natural honey
- Nuts – almonds, walnuts, pistachios, hazelnuts, cashews, brazil nuts
- Seeds – chia seeds, flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds
- Dairy – milk, yogurt, cheese, vegan milks like almond milk, coconut milk, oat milk (not soy)
- Ghee (clarified butter)
- Some fat and oils: olive oil, sesame oil, crimson palm oil, flax oil, ghee, and so forth
- Sattvic spices and herbs embrace basil, nutmeg, cumin, ginger, coriander
- Coconut oil and coconut milk
- Natural teas
Advantages of following a Sattvic Weight loss program
The nutrient dense meals that make up sattvic diets have many well being advantages.
Wealthy in good fat akin to olive oil, coconut oil and ghee, you may be consuming many good important fatty acids for supporting coronary heart well being.
Vegetarian diets have additionally been extensively studied to indicate their anti-inflammatory results on the physique. This reveals us that consuming a vegetable wealthy eating regimen can cut back danger of coronary heart illness, diabetes and different persistent sicknesses.
In addition to consuming for the physique, a sattvic eating regimen can also be about consuming for the thoughts. Whenever you devour vegetation which are alive, you might be feeding the cells of your physique with contemporary power that is part of the earth.
Sattvic diets additionally declare to create extra peaceable meditations, focus, and readability within the thoughts, which is why this fashion of consuming has lasted over a whole lot and 1000’s of years amongst these on a yogic path.

Why do it is advisable keep away from processed meals?
Non-Sattvic meals akin to processed meals, fried meals (french fries, takeaway quick meals), white sugar or different synthetic sweeteners are the sorts of meals that result in coronary heart illness, and different persistent illness states.
Alhough they make for a fast ‘really feel good hit’ and the sugars could make your mouth drool, the long run results create exhaustion and lethargy within the physique. Diets excessive in sugars and saturated fat akin to these in fried pastries and different quick meals, create a big stress load on the physique. They create additional work for the liver to detoxify the physique, they create a rise in physique weight and many years of scientific analysis present that sugar creates unfavourable well being results on the physique, thoughts and behavioral patterns.
Any ayurvedic practitioner will contribute an extra of rajasic and tamasic meals to persistent illness and can encourage a transition to a sattvic eating regimen and life-style for optimum well being advantages!

The right way to Incorporate Nutritious Meals and Transition to a Vegetarian Weight loss program
Sattvic meals ought to at all times be freshly ready, and normally solely evenly cooked, making them fast and simple to include right into a every day eating regimen.
To incorporate the entire vary of plant meals akin to complete grains, nuts, seeds, vegatables and fruits, have a look on-line for some vegan and vegetarian eating regimen recipes! There are plentiful assets on-line, or you’ll be able to decide up a veggie cookbook.
Fruit salads, smoothies, and complete items of fruit are nice breakfast selections. Add in a handful of nuts and seeds for some protein.
For a much bigger and extra filling meal, select a base of complete grains, with some contemporary greens or evenly steamed greens on prime. Drizzle a dressing over your salad with olive oil and tahini and sprinkle on just a few scrumptious additions akin to sesame seeds. That is a simple throw-together fashion meal!
An important factor to contemplate when following a sattvic eating regimen is to be ready. Having a meal plan for the week forward will make it straightforward to observe your sattvic plant primarily based eating regimen wherever you go.
Store at an area farmers market on a weekly foundation, decide up seasonal produce and inventory your pantry with sattvic herbs and spices.
Further Tip: Go away all incompatible meals behind (i.e. refined grain merchandise or sugars) as a result of if they don’t seem to be in your kitchen, you’ll not be tempted to eat such meals.

A Favourite Sattvic Recipe : Kitchari
In line with ayurvedic rules, individuals ought to eat sattvic meals which are warming and stuffed with scrumptious herbs and spices to stimulate digestion and cleanse the physique. That is the place Kitchari may be added to a wholesome yogic eating regimen.
This scrumptious recipe inspiration comes from Vidya Residing. The components that you’ll want for this recipe embrace:
Cut up mung beans, basmati rice, kombu (seaweed), bay leaves and water for the bottom. Then, for the sauce, you’ll need quite a lot of herbs and spices together with ghee, yellow mustard seeds, coriander seeds, turmeric powder, contemporary ginger, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, fenugreek, cinnamon and Himalayan pink salt.
Discover the complete portions and the recipe technique on her web site right here!

Often Requested Questions:
Which fruits are Sattvic?
All contemporary fruits are sattvic! Pure fruit juices are additionally an amazing alternative for cleaning and purifying the physique.
Which greens are Sattvic?
Most greens are sattvic. A couple of to keep away from are mushrooms, onions and garlic as they’re mentioned to be rajasic and tamasic which create disharmony within the thoughts and physique. Except for that, eat quite a lot of greens in stability with the remainder of the sattvic eating regimen.
What does a Sattvic eating regimen do to the physique?
A sattvic eating regimen balances the physique, creates concord within the bodily, psychological and non secular self and helps one to deepen their yogic and meditation practices.
The easiest way to seek out out what a Sattvic eating regimen does is to strive it for your self!