Have you ever felt a little confused about all of the diet advice that’s out there? You might hear: Vegetarianism is healthy! You should eat Paleo! Stay away from fat! Eat low-carb!
It can start to feel like every time you turn around, a new diet is being promoted as the “best diet”, or the healthiest, or the answer to all of your problems.
But here’s the truth: There is not one specific way of eating that is the best diet for everyone to follow. Let’s look at why this is true.
Bio-individuality
Bio-individuality refers to the fact that each one of us is a unique person with unique needs. Think about it for a moment. Each one of us has a unique genetic blueprint that makes us who we are. That’s why out of the billions of people on this earth, no two of us are exactly alike.
Not only do we have genetic differences, but we have so many other differences as well. Some difference include our:
- Gender
- Age
- Level of stress
- Level of physical activity
- Environment that we live in
- Level of toxin exposure
- Food intolerances and sensitivities
- Food taste preferences
- Metabolic rate
- Medical history
- Medications
All of these factors, plus many more, shape who we are as a person. When you think about it this way, does it even make sense that there would be one specific diet that will work the best for everyone? I certainly don’t think so.
In fact, I also believe that even though one way of eating may work for you for awhile, as you age or go through a different time in your life, it may stop working so well. So a diet that works best for you today may look different than the diet that works best for you in 5 years.
To boil it down: You are a unique person with a unique set of circumstances, and you have a unique diet that you are best suited for.
How to Find YOUR Best Diet
Some of you might be feeling a little discouraged right now. It would be a whole lot easier if I could just tell you: eat THIS way (whatever THIS might be) and you will lose weight.
BUT even though I can’t tell you the exact best diet for you to follow, I can still provide you with some guidance to help you get started. Listed below are my top 4 tips on how to start figuring out what the best diet might be for you.
- Start eating real, whole foods. While I’m not going to tell you exactly what foods will be the best for you to eat, in what macro-nutrient ratios, and with how many calories, I can tell you that by basing your diet on real, whole foods that have been minimally processed, you will be off to a great start. These are the foods that our bodies have been designed to eat and will provide you with the nourishment your body needs. (You can download here a list of the real foods that I’m talking about to help you get started.)
- Stop looking to experts to have all of the answers. You can still look to others for guidance and support…I certainly have over the years! However, I would be leery of anyone who tries to tell you that they have all of the answers and that you have to follow exactly what they recommend. Instead look for people who will help guide you through the process of figuring out what will work best for you.
- Start paying attention to how you feel. Your body has all kinds of amazing signals to tell you what is working and what is not. If you’re feel foggy, getting headaches, have low energy, or have acne, these are just a few of the signs that something is not working for you. So pay attention to how you feel after how you eat certain foods to figure out what works best for your body.
- Join the FREE 5 Day Weight Loss Challenge. Each day of this challenge, you will receive one quick & easy to implement tool that will help you start to figure out what is going on with your body so you jumpstart your weight loss and begin to feel better. The tools will also help you begin to pay attention to your body so you can figure out the best diet for you. Click here to sign up for the challenge.
My goal in writing this is to give you hope. If you are frustrated because diets don’t work for you or because there is so much conflicting advice out there, then I want you to know that it IS possible to feel better, to lose weight and keep it off, and to increase your energy. But it all starts with knowing that there is no one best diet that will work for everyone, and having patience with yourself as you figure out what YOUR best diet is.
I’d love to hear from you! What do you think about the concept of bio-individuality? What factors influence what way of eating will work best for you?
