The word “diet” is taking over our lives.
Yes, it’s dramatic, but I would have to say it’s true.
Almost everyone I talk to eats according to a diet. Keto, paleo, vegan, vegetarian, plant based, carnivore, intermittent fasting (not sure how, but this seems to be a diet now). “Names” associated with ways of eating are forcing people to pick one side or another instead of eating in a way that might fit better for their current situation.
You can’t just eat low carb, you have to be keto.
You can’t just eat a plant-based diet, you have to be vegan.
You can’t just skip a meal every day, you have to be intermittent fasting.
On days where I know I will be eating out I will re-adjust my day of eating. Somedays I will eat low carb through the morning and afternoon for that dinner out. This isn’t a keto diet or even a low carb diet. I just ate according to what was happening in that particular day.
When we choose a certain way of eating, there has to be some objective reasoning throughout the process. If something makes you feel like absolute garbage, then that won’t be a healthy option long term.
A paleo diet might fit great into someone’s life and have tremendous benefits for their gut, performance, and sleep. For someone else it may not be the right fit. If your sleep sucks, you feel awful, and haven’t pooped in three days, maybe this particular way of eating isn’t for you.
The amount of people who feel this way after starting some diet, and stick with it for months at a time, is ABSURD. Is it worth it to eat this way if the rest of your day you feel miserable?
Think of the people you have talked to over the past few months that may have regarded anything about food. In most cases we hear “I was on keto for a while, then went vegan for a bit, and now I am not doing anything.”
There is a division that when people are off the said diet, they are 100% off, and eating like absolute shit. The strict “rules” associated with each diets makes people feel that it’s an all-in or all-out mentality. We should be able to eat “off” for a meal and not feel like everything just went down the shitter.
Food is available at a massive quantity for most people on this planet. Being able to choose what and how we eat is a luxury. Food is there to maximize how we feel and how we live. In most cases, the people I am talking to, are looking to live long and healthy lives with some fitness goals along the way. So, in those circumstances, yes, eating for overall health and wellbeing will the main goal. Eating for performance will be goal number two.
The hard part is finding what works for you and what doesn’t.
This can be a good trial and error process. When you eat certain foods, think about how you feel after. Are you feeling lethargic, bloated, too full, energized, hungrier, satiated? All these things are valid feelings. Just know that always feeling bloated and tired after having milk might be a sign that milk is not the best thing to consume for your body. Be open minded about these things and do small experiments with different foods.
This is just another reason why I cannot stand these diets that keep popping up. People feel the need to push through even if they feel like absolute shit. Don’t do this to yourself!
There is a better way.
With myself and my clients who have been interested, this has been the most beneficial “diet” for most aspects of health, fitness, and longevity. Not because it will work magic for you. Not because it tricks your body into being a fat burning machine. Nope, it works because it prioritizes quality food that makes us feel good, energized, and excited to eat each meal.
It is not easy, but if you have a plan, it does not have to be too difficult. You have freedom to eat things you want, or make certain things, the only restriction is where your food sources are coming from.
The way I like to present this way of eating is to focus on eating WHOLE NATURAL FOODS.
This does not mean organic, this does not mean non-GMO, this means that the food is the ingredient list.
Chicken is chicken.
Potatoes are potatoes.
Beef is beef.
Eggs are eggs.
You would be surprised how many great options are out there when you focus on just whole foods. Like I said, this is not an easy way to eat, but it can be a very beneficial way to eat.
For starters, if you are someone looking to lose weight and seem to overeat on a consistent basis. This style of eating is satiating and, in most cases, will limit the urge to overeat.
On the other end of the spectrum, if you are looking to put on some size or muscle, feeding yourself high quality sources of proteins, fats, and carbs will be beneficial in the process, as long as you are eating in a slight surplus.
A great tool to utilize from the start would be a food tracking app such as My Fitness Pal or Fat Secret. These apps will make sure you are on track with how much nutrients your body is getting each day.
No matter how “clean” your food is, overeating will still cause weight gain, and undereating will not allow your body to progress with growth. Finding where your levels are and then adjust from there moving forward.
Once things start feeling like they are on track is when experimenting can be a great option. One thing I enjoy, is trying out different nutrient levels week over week to see how I feel compared to others.
There was a point in time where I was playing around with my carb intake. I tried higher carb and lower fat, felt terrible. No sustained energy and could not find the urge to exercise. Then I moved to higher fat, lower carb, felt a little better but kept that bloated feeling lingering around after each meal. What I found is I do well right smack dab in the middle. Not super high or super low on either end. No bloated feeling, good sustained energy, and felt better during my workouts. These are the types of things I want to know about myself. I want to know what makes me feel good and I can use that information moving forward.
These are the types of things that are open to try on this way of eating. There are no strict “rules” to follow. Just keeping things natural and you are open to try all sorts of options out.
I encourage people to try everything. This gives them the freedom to move in and out of certain thing and find what works best for them. It also breaks the rigidity of the “diet” stigma and can keep things fresh over the course of time.
Try eating low carb, try eating more plant based foods, try everything and see what works.
Diets fail because there is a strict way you need to eat. Finding something that is sustainable and can be done forever is the key to long term success. Stop looking for the shortcut. Keto is not a miracle diet, veganism does not make you “healthier” than everyone else, eat for YOUR goals and make them work for your lifestyle.
Jeffrey Nagle
