It's Not About The Diet.....
Just Because Diets Fail Doesn’t Mean You Have To Also….
Restrictive diets, calorie counting and those “2 am infomercials with those too good to be true’ fat burners are not the answer. By design, diets fail and the downside is that they make you feel like a failure when they do.
Rather than obsessing over the foods you can and cannot eat, focus on making healthy food choices that are going to nourish your body with energy
Many diets today have proven successful for many people and have been shown to be healthy in the long run. Others are more like one-hit wonders that don’t have a whole lot of scientific merit. No doubt it is difficult to figure out the distinct nuances of each diet and whether it is the right one for you.
Maybe your health practitioner told you to eat a low-fat diet to lower your cholesterol, but Susan, your co-worker told you she lost 35 lbs on a high-fat keto type diet. How frustrating is that!!
Many diets have shown to be effective for weight loss and yes, some are healthier than others, but the truth is the best diet is the one you can comply with and make sustainable.
“The best diet is the one that you can stick to”
Truth is these most of these diets have more in common than they do different. These include the Mediterranean diet, low-carb diets, paleo diet, and whole-foods, plant-based diets. Although they have their distinct approaches to nutrition, we need to look for the overlap in these diets and how they promote healthy eating and living.
Here is what the most successful diets agree on:
Eat less processed foods
We should be eating more whole, real foods
Eat foods free of additives, colorings and chemicals
Eat low glycemic foods (and foods low in sugar, in general)
Vegetables (especially one’s high in fiber) should be the predominant food in your diet
Avoid consuming a foods with a lot of flour and refined sugars.
Avoid trans fats and vegetable oils high in Omega 6
Ideally eat humanely raised and grass-fed animals with a healthier omega 3 profile (compared to feedlot animals)
Limit consumption of dairy products
Eat sustainably caught fish, preferably low on the food chain with lower levels of mercury
Include nuts, seeds and whole grains in your diet (although a few may be sensitive to grains due to auto-immune issues so adjust accordingly)
Limit exposure to hormones and pesticides
We need the healthy fats in our diet.
Focus More On Healthy Foods Instead Of Calories
What successful diets have in common is that they emphasize the importance of whole, well-sourced, single-ingredient foods rather than calorie restriction.
Although calories do play a role in weight management, simply restricting them without regard to the foods you eat is rarely effective in the long term.
Less is not always better.
Where your calories comes from matters.
With such a wide variety of foods accessible to us today, it’s hard to know just what is healthy for us and what is just deceptive advertising designed to trick us into an impulsive purchase made by your taste buds.
We need to smart about the quality of food we choose. Think of food as information for your body. What you feed it ultimately programs your cells and the health of your system. Using a computer analogy, if your body is the hardware, then the foods you eat are the software that programs how well your body functions. Just like computer, our bodies need an update.
Instead of trying to lose weight or restrict calories, make it your goal to nourish your body with the energy it needs.
EAT FOR VITALITY!!
If you want to learn more about eating for health, vitality and longevity let’s connect!!
Disclaimer: The information contained in our website, blog, products or services have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and is not intended to treat, prevent or cure any disease. Our intent is not to replace any relationship that exists between you and your healthcare provider. Rather our aim is to serve as your guide on your journey to better health and help you reach your health and wellness goals by implementing positive, healthy and sustainable lifestyle changes to help you live and thrive.
Tommy Markov is a Functional Nutrition Professional and Wellness Educator with a Master’s in Human Nutrition and Functional Medicine. He specializes in healing the person, not the condition. He is passionate about uncovering the root cause of his client’s ailments and incorporating an integrative mind-body approach.
Tommy’s knowledge of the interconnectedness of body systems helps him identify imbalances before they manifest into dysfunction and disease, allowing for an effective preventative approach.
Tommy has been working in the health and fitness industry since his 20’s, ranging from health clubs, hospitals, medical practices to currently founding his own thriving practice, Living Wellness Solutions, after overcoming his own health challenges.
Tommy has appeared as a guest and expert speaker on numerous podcasts, speaking events, as well as being a nutrition and supplement consultant. Most recently, Tommy became a proud partner of F.L.O.W. Wellness Center in Abington, Pennsylvania, where he incorporates Functional Medicine and Nutrition along with various other healing modalities and practitioners.
