The yoga community does not promote the macrobiotic diet, but this eating plan encompasses many of the same ideals as the yoga lifestyle and diet. When you go deeper into yoga, you may want to take better care of your body and the world around you. A macrobiotic diet achieves this goal by emphasizing natural, unprocessed, local foods and including lifestyle changes rooted in religion and philosophy. All of these aspects tie in with a yoga lifestyle, although you do not have to practice a macrobiotic diet if you participate in yoga. Consult with your physician before beginning a new diet or exercise plan.
Diet
While a traditional yogi diet was more strict, modern yoga practitioners generally aspire to take care of their bodies and the world around them. They typically try to avoid meat or at least reduce the amount they eat, eat whole foods over processed and consume a significant amount of whole grains, fruits and vegetables. This is very close to the macrobiotic diet, which holds all the same tenets.
Spirituality
The macrobiotic diet connects to spirituality, just like yoga and a yoga way of eating. In yoga, the traditional belief is that, as you develop spiritually, you move away from fermented, spicy or strong foods to pure foods, which include grains, fruit, vegetables and dairy. In the same way, the traditional macrobiotic diet involves moving along different levels of consciousness to the supreme level, an intuitive way of eating. Although the macrobiotic diet is very personalized, the different levels of eating in this diet are mechanical, or instinctual, sensory, emotional, intellectual, social, philosophical and supreme.
Lifestyle Aspects
While the macrobiotic diet and yoga both include ways of eating, they also involve more than just diet, encompassing a complete lifestyle. They are both holistic plans that include physical, emotional, mental and spiritual aspects of your life. Both the macrobiotic diet and yoga involve you in exercise and help you reduce stress. Each focuses on taking care of your body and the environment around you; eating local, unprocessed, whole foods achieves these goals.
Differences
Although they have many similarities, a yogic way of living and the macrobiotic diet have some differences as well. The traditional yogi diet includes a number of foods that the macrobiotic diet suggests avoiding. These include dairy products like milk and butter, as well as sugar. While the traditional yogi diet recommended vegetarianism, similar to the macrobiotic diet, many current yoga practitioners eat meat, although many try to reduce the amount they consume.
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