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PROPER DIET(MITAHAR):

The Hatha yoga texts place major emphasis on mitahari, which connotes "measured diet" or "moderate eating". For example, sections 1.58 to 1.63 and 2.14 of the Hatha Yoga Pradipika and sections 5.16 to 5.32 of Gherandasamhita discuss the importance of proper diet to the body. They link the food one eats and one's eating habits to balancing the body and to gaining most benefits from the practice of Hatha yoga.

Eating, states Gherandasamhita, is a form of a devotional act to the temple of body, as if one is expressing affection for the gods. Similarly, sections 3.20 and 5.25 of the Shiva Samhita text on Hatha Yoga includes mitahara as an essential part of a Hatha yoga holistic practice.

ब्रह्मचारीमिताहारीतयागीयोग-परायणः | अब्दादूर्ध्वंभवेद्सिद्धोनात्रकार्याविछारणा ||

A brahmachari, practicing mitahara (moderate diet) and yaga (renunciation, solitude), devoted to yoga achieves success in his inquiry and effort within half a year.