One of the challenges you might find when you’re trying to set your sights on a method of eating to help you improve your health, lose fat, (or both) is determining which method is superior to all the rest.
The short answer is: there isn’t one.
The more nuanced answer is: there may be a style of eating that works well for you and not as well for others.
Keep in mind, we are alive to experience the wonder and weirdness of social media platforms where the loudest megaphone (and often the largest platform) wins.
Which means that just because the loudest person is speaking doesn’t mean they’re right and when it comes to nutrition, it means you may have to discard the advice of people who range from the “girl-next-door” to those who have “Dr.” in their name. Not all doctors, just some.
I’m going to try and not throw any particular person or style of eating under the bus. Rather, I want you to approach nutrition information with skepticism (even if it comes from me).
Let me refresh some basics for you with a wildly simplistic breakdown of macronutrients:
Protein: Protein contains essential amino acids which have to be supplied in the diet because the body does not make them on its own. Protein can be found in all animal products but also in different grains, nuts, seeds and certain vegetables (usually in smaller amounts). It assists with the repair and recovery of muscle, supports immune health and may contribute to feelings of satiety and fullness in the diet.
Fat: This macronutrient can contain essential fatty acids and can assist with hormone production and contributes to healthy hair, skin and nails. Fat is typically found in animal products but is also present in nuts, seeds and certain vegetables as well as cooking oils.
Carbohydrates: This macronutrient is not “essential” but has been touted as the body’s “preferred” source of energy (more on this later). Carbohydrates are typically found in grains, fruits, vegetables as well as in different sweeteners. Also, carbohydrates are where you’ll find sources of fiber. Fiber intake and fiber diversity are associated with a healthier gut.
For the purposes of this article, I won’t be talking about alcohol which is the other macronutrient.
Narrow your sights on any style of eating: ketogenic, vegan, vegetarian, carnivore, Paleo, Mediterranean, etc. and you’ll find the pockets of people who will swear as the day is long that (insert name here) is the BEST way to eat for health, longevity, fat loss, etc. Many of which have Facebook support groups to rally the troops and rah-rah, hey-hey about the diet.
I need to impress this one point: It may very well work great for THEM and at the same time be terrible (or not ideal) for you.
Diets like carnivore, ketogenic, and any other low-carb variation can (keyword) be helpful for fat loss. On one hand, when you take your standard diet (which probably has moderate to high carb intake) and flip over to one of those styles of eating, you’re not only removing a LOT of calories by default (putting you into an energy deficit), you’re also removing a macronutrient that holds 3-4g of water per 1g of carbohydrate.
So, the removal of 200g of carbs from the diet can lead to a 600-800g drop in “water weight”. If you add the carbs back in, water weight comes back with it. That doesn’t make carbs “bad”, it just means they hold more water than protein or fat. This can temporarily allow the scale to give a positive but nuanced drop downwards.
However, as individuals acclimate to a lower carb style of eating, they may find that since fattier foods are prevalent, calories can start to creep up again. If they creep up too much, you’re no longer in an energy deficit and (for those pursuing it) fat loss may stall.
For all of the people hating on carbohydrates who truly believe you cannot consume them and also be successful at fat loss, I’d like to warmly introduce you to the vegans and vegetarians. If you don’t already know, their diets are chock full of carbohydrates and, if approached correctly, can very easily be successful at fat loss. (Just saying).
I think my biggest issue aside from the zealotry and fanaticism around certain diets is you get that cultish appeal that tends to come along with it. It’s not uncommon for me to find people who dug their heels in on a certain manner of eating, swearing up and down that it was the optimal way for them to eat, only to find them a year later eating in a completely different (and often contradictory) manner.
Wait a second, I thought the other way was optimal?
If you’ve been led (or scared) towards your diet through a documentary you found on Netflix, remember that these films are made to push emotional buttons, NOT to be accurate with evidence and the studies they provide for scientific reinforcement.
When I’m working with clients to help with fat loss, it helps to have a general guideline for where calories should be and a flexible protein goal. Beyond that, carbs and fats can pretty much fall wherever they need to. Some people prefer and perform better on higher carbs, some on lower carbs. That being said, despite what you see on the internet, NOT everyone should be counting calories (or tracking macros).
I was recently asked by a client what I thought about anti-inflammatory diets. It’s a tough question to answer. For one, foods that may cause inflammation in one person might not do so in the next person. Some people claim that gluten containing foods and dairy are pro-inflammatory foods, however, not every person will have that experience. Of note, my wife can’t consume any gluten or dairy without having several days worth of extreme discomfort afterwards. Our son and myself have no issues with either of those types of foods.
For individuals who struggle with IBS (inflammatory bowel syndrome), many healthy and nutritious fruits, grains, and vegetables have to be excluded to determine what is a safe (if any) dose that a person can consume. Foods like onions, garlic, mango, avocadoes, or broccoli, for example, might have to be temporarily or permanently removed from a diet to reduce IBS symptoms.
So, that makes it kind of tricky when you hear advice about: consuming whole, minimally processed foods to have an optimal diet because all of the foods I just mentioned in that last paragraph would fit the definition AND also not be ideal for some people’s diets.
You’ll find asshats on the internet who want you to fear seed oils, sugar, legumes, oatmeal, eating past 7pm, or literally any carbohydrate ever because God forbid your blood sugar temporarily spike up which…it’s…supposed…to…do… (unless you’re diabetic and if so, please talk to your RD and endo).
Ultimately, it’s not my place to tell you which diet to choose. You may have to try several to find the one that best supports your lifestyle, physique goals and performance. What I will say is that if someone is leading you to a food decision and they’re doing it by promoting fear, be skeptical of that person.
If someone says: don’t eat something with ingredients you can’t pronounce, walk the other way.
If someone says: sugar is toxic, ask them in what dose, which toxins specifically and which types of people have that response to sugar intake?
If someone says: eliminate processed foods, grab their bottle of extra virgin olive oil and ask them which farm that bottle sprouted from.
If someone says: everyone should be practicing intermittent fasting, tell them you do plenty of fasting while you’re sleeping. (Also, intermittent fasting as a dietary practice is flat out terrible for a LOT of people.)
The truth about food is often found in the gray area. And I hate to say it but the gray area is pretty boring.
The headlines and the buzz get made on the extremes. If I tell you (and even better if you trust me), that fruit and vegetable intake has a correlation to several types of cancers, I can make you fear fruits and vegetables. Once you’re afraid, it’s easier to sell you a product or service.
If the approach to nutrition you’re being led from seems cultish, put the Kool-Aid down and find a new sandbox.
The only “cult” worth following is the band of the same name, with my favorite era being 1983-1995.
If you need some help navigating the mine field, drop me a line.
(Photo courtesy of Katie Smith)
