How to Choose the Best Diet for You

When it comes to picking the right diet for yourself, there are a lot of choices. Making matters worse is that there is so much conflicting advice out there that it can be difficult and downright confusing to make sense of it all.

Health blogs, nutrition experts, and medical organizations will all tell you something different when it comes to the optimal diet. There are some things most everyone will agree on, such as reducing processed foods and added sugars, but beyond that, everyone has their own opinions on diet and nutrition.

In reality, the right diet for you depends on many different factors including age, activity level, weight goals, and your current health status. Even your ancestral background may play a role in choosing which diet is best for you.

Realistically, the best diet should meet all of your nutrient needs, keep you full and satisfied, and make you feel good overall.

Here are some actionable tips to help you find the diet that is right for you.

Consider Your Health and Fitness Goals

One of the first things you have to determine when selecting the right diet is your health and fitness goals.

Are you trying to lose weight or are you trying to add lean mass? Or are you just trying to maintain the weight you have now?

These are questions you need to ask yourself before you select the diet that is right for you.

When it comes to losing weight, it’s pretty simple: you need to consume fewer calories than you’re burning.

While diets high in fat have been maligned in the past, they may actually help promote weight loss by making you feel fuller. Just make sure you’re eating lots of healthy fats like olive oil and avocados.

Eating a higher fiber diet can also help you lose weight. Foods high in fiber include whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and legumes. Fiber also helps improve gut health.

However, there isn’t just one diet that is effective for weight loss. The most important factors are whether you can stick to the diet and if you’re taking in fewer calories than you’re burning.

If you’re trying to build muscle without gaining a lot of fat, then a higher protein diet may be best for you.

If you’re an active person, then including more carbohydrates in your diet may be beneficial. Exercise, especially intense exercise, depletes the energy stores in your muscles called glycogen. Carbohydrates help replenish these glycogen stores.

As your health goals change, so too will the right diet for you.

What’s Your Health Status?

The best diet for you also depends on your current health status.

For example, if you’re one of 30% of Americans who suffer from high blood pressure, then you may need to limit the amount of high-sodium foods you’re eating and try to eat foods high in potassium, which helps lower blood pressure.

This may look something like the DASH diet, which aims to reduce blood pressure by incorporating fruits and vegetables that are low in sodium and high in potassium, magnesium, and other beneficial minerals. It also limits saturated fats and sugars and emphasizes low-fat dairy and lean meats as protein sources.

If your cholesterol levels are high, you may need a diet lower in saturated and trans fats and higher in fiber, especially soluble fiber found in fruits and vegetables. This type of fiber can attach itself to cholesterol and help remove it from the body before it gets absorbed which helps lower your cholesterol levels.

Those with type 2 diabetes should avoid foods that spike their blood sugar levels, like milk, white bread, and white rice, and instead opt for whole grains, legumes, and milk alternatives like coconut or almond milk.

Another common health condition affecting millions is IBS (irritable bowel syndrome). Doctors aren’t quite sure what causes it but diet likely plays a role.

Those with IBS may want to try a diet low in FODMAPS, which stands for fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols. These are sugars that some people have trouble digesting.

Bacteria in the gut love these sugars and produce hydrogen gas a byproduct, which can cause gas and bloating or even diarrhea and constipation. Examples of foods high in FODMAPS include apples, peaches, cauliflower, and most beans and lentils.

Is it Sustainable?

Often, the best diet for you is the one that you can maintain over the long term.

If you’re trying to eat a low-carb diet but constantly craving sweets and sugar, you’ll likely eventually cave to these cravings.

Many have found incorporating a so-called “cheat meal” helps them stick to their diet. Allowing yourself to splurge and eat a less healthy than normal meal once a week takes the pressure off you to always eat clean. It also serves as a reward for sticking to your diet and reinforces your healthy eating habits.

However, it’s important that if you are going to have cheat days, you’re able to get back on your diet as soon as possible or it defeats the purpose. It’s also important not to go too overboard on your cheat days.

It’s also important to take note of how you feel on your diet. If you’re eating a diet you consider healthy but you feel sluggish, have digestion issues, or swings in energy level then it obviously isn’t the right diet for you.

While it’s cliché, often the best diet is the one that you stick to you.

Popular Diets

Mediterranean Diet

Currently, one of the most popular diets is the Mediterranean diet.

The Mediterranean diet emphasizes eating lots of fish, whole grains, healthy fats like olive oil, fruits, vegetables, and legumes. It also involves consuming moderate amounts of dairy products and lower amounts of red meat.

Research has found the Mediterranean diet to be helpful for blood sugar, weight loss, heart disease, inflammation, and more.

Paleo Diet

Another diet that has gained quite a following in recent years is the Paleo diet.

Like the name implies, the Paleo diet advocates eating like our paleolithic ancestors. This includes foods like vegetables, fruits, nuts, and meats. It excludes foods that were introduced into our diet only recently, evolutionarily speaking, such as dairy products, grains, and processed foods.

Some research shows it can help with weight loss, balance blood sugar levels, and improve blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

Vegan and Vegetarian Diets

Vegan diets exclude all animal products whereas vegetarian diets include some animal products like dairy and eggs.

These diets are often followed by people who feel eating meat is unhealthy, unethical, or simply bad for the planet.

Studies show vegan and vegetarians may be helpful in preventing heart disease and cancer.

It’s important to note that vegan and vegetarians diets can be low in certain nutrients like B12, iodine, and calcium. People following these diets may want to cover their nutritional bases by eating foods fortified with these nutrients, or supplementing when necessary.

Conclusion

There are many different factors to consider when choosing the right diet. These factors will undoubtedly change over time and will require you to tweak your diet in response.

The point is there is no single diet that is right for everyone and there is certainly more than one diet that is right for you.

You may need to try many different diets to find the one that suits you best. While this can be challenging, it will certainly be worth it.