This might be a never ending conversation about nutrition and health.
“what’s the best diet?”
- With resources that exist like the 576 page researched based book “How Not to Die” by Michael Gregor, and Forks over Knives by which was made into a documentary. As well as the entertaining book Skinny Bastard (Laughed reading this one on vacation, it’s well written for my sense of humor).
- As well as popular diets like the Paleo diet and a now popular carnivore diet, where there is a strong social media presence promoting these diets.
Although I’m referring to two ends of the spectrum (all or nothing), it tends to be how most of us thing of things. Attempting to do something all in when we get excited to follow the new trend, only to become mentally fatigued and ultimately give up and revert back to old habits, to seemingly no success.
- I can speak antidotally having experiences diets focused on vegetarian based meals and successfully and with great health being capable of running several ultramarathons to the extend of 50-100 miles at a time and experiencing a modified version of a paleo diet when I happened to take 1st place in a men’s physique competition.
Having coached thousands of individuals by now, I commonly to not coach into any of these “fad diets” that are exciting and cool for a few years only to learn about the next best thing.
Looking at the history of diets:
The 20th century saw a surge in fad diets, often promising rapid weight loss:
- Grapefruit Diet: One of the earliest fad diets, popular in the 1930s, focused on consuming grapefruit before meals.
- Stillman Diet: A high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet popular in the 1960s. (This was one I was not familiar with)
- Atkins Diet: This low-carb, high-protein diet gained prominence in the 1990s. (Super popular when I was growing up)
- Zone Diet: Introduced in the 1990s, it focused on balancing macronutrients in a 40:30:30 ratio of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. ( I just got rid of my zone diet book)
- South Beach Diet: Another low-carb diet, it gained popularity in the early 2000s.
- Paleo Diet: This diet attempts to mimic the diet of our Paleolithic ancestors, focusing on lean meats, fish, fruits, and vegetables.
- Gluten-Free Diet: Initially for those with celiac disease, it became a popular trend for those seeking improved health.
- Vegan and Vegetarian Diets: Plant-based diets have gained significant popularity due to concerns about animal welfare, environmental impact, and health.
- Mediterranean Diet: Emphasizing fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and olive oil, this diet has been linked to heart health.Ketogenic Diet: A high-fat, low-carb diet that shares similarities with the Atkins diet but with a stricter focus on fat intake.
- Intermittent Fasting: This eating pattern involves cycling between periods of eating and fasting.
It’s essential to remember that while these diets have gained popularity, not all of them are suitable for everyone. Although I personally know individuals who are living the carnivore diet, it is one of the few diets I actually advise against due to the increased risk of cardiovascular disease.
It is essential to consider a diet plan that you find sustainable and suitable for your goals. As some of the extreme options that are not sustainable over the long period of time often lead to muscle loss with fat loss followed by a rebound of fat gain due to lack of sustainability. This becomes a cycle that long term will only put us in a worse off position of health.
The Research References:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10380617/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28446499/
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