Tidbit Tuesday – Why Diets Work!
Hello,
Welcome to another Tidbit Tuesday where we aim to teach you something new about health, nutrition, lifestyle, training, and so much more, every week!
Today we are talking about why most diets seem to work… at least in the short term.
At Don’t Sweat It Nutrition, we agree with the statement from Precision Nutrition regarding “is there a best diet?”
“I don’t believe there’s a single, absolutely, positively, without-a-doubt best diet for every person to follow, always, and forever.”
We just couldn’t put it better ourselves!
That being said, there is no doubt that diets do work for people. Some people even lose significant amounts of weight.
So, what’s the deal?
There are two things to it. They are something that pretty well every diet has in common.
And it isn’t about what that diet tells you to eat, necessarily.
But, more about what diets eliminate from your daily consumption.
Usually, when we decide that it is time to get into better shape and lose a few pounds, we are all in!
We are doing the diet, hitting the gym, cooking our own food or ordering more healthy options. The first couple weeks go great and you start to see some results. Now you’re motivated!
I will tell you right now. One of the biggest reasons that you saw change right away, is because you eliminated the bad habits from your routine. Your body was able to reduce inflammation and all the delivered nutrients are well received, improving the body’s immune system.
It is the elimination of the “bad” foods that ultimately make the biggest difference. And most diets restrict you in some form from eating outside of their parameters. Hence, you will see results.
The second part to it is that our bodies thrive on change!
Adding variety and diversity to our diet will greatly improve our gut health, our microbiome.
A good way to change up your diet could be seasonally, if you like change you could change monthly, or even weekly.
The point is our bodies thrive on the variety that is available to us!
Given that you continue to follow your basic habits around health and nutrition, making sure to watch your total calorie intake and matching up with your goal, practicing good sleep hygiene, emotional and mental health, stress levels are manageable, then trying out new diets and ways of eating could be extremely beneficial to the body.
At the end of the day it will come down to your consistency!
What can you manage for the long term?
Any one style of diet can be hard to stick to long-term, hence why more often than not people rebound within two years of losing weight from following a diet. And not utilizing habit change.
But, with a solid foundation of good healthy habits. You could bounce from one fad diet to the next. Trying out all the different things you have wanted to try but couldn’t commit.
Simply take up a diet for a short time. Maybe you say you will try it somewhere from 3 to 6 months, totally up to you.
And when you are over it. Move on!
Choose another diet that you feel like trying and give that one a shot for a little while.
Just remember to keep practicing those basic habits, consistently, and any diet will yield results.
If there is a certain diet that you have been wanting to try but don’t know where to start, ask one of our coaches to help get you started!
Happy eating!
Your friend in Health & Fitness,
Coach Sean