There are many determinants as to whether diets will be successful, but ultimately they are all about you, the individual. Your diet is yours. So who does it fall on to take ownership of it? You guessed it: YOU! Shame no one ever thought to offer you an approach to your diet, though. Instead, the diet help out there is overwhelming and often contradictory.
We all have our own preferences for, relationships with, habits around and objectives through food. For vegetarians and vegans, ethics are a key factor. Some people use food as an emotional comfort, some punish themselves mentally when they feel they’ve eaten badly. These days, more and more people get caught up in binge-diet cycles that border on eating disorders. I know I have at times.
Each of us has a unique lifestyle so how you as an individual go about making healthy, sustainable changes will not come from blanket, broad-brush, cookie-cutter advice. What works for you might not work for me and vice versa. Unfortunately too much diet help is biohackers telling you what worked for them.
So we’ve all got to figure out an approach to food that is suitable to our own specific needs. Those who have cracked it us can often view food as fuel. What’s the difference between them and the rest of us? A sense of purpose through food.
1. Write down your goals for your health
Your health is yours, no one can or should take charge for you. Any diet help you utilise should support your goals.
2. Consider available diet options in relation to your health goals
As in all the examples above, specific food plans can help with specific goals. Research what is out there and try what works for you. You can even blend diets according to your goals.
3. Keep a food journal
Taking photos of your food is easiest; but more important is to check in with yourself and how you feel an hour or so after you’ve eaten. That way you can identify which foods go well with you and which do not. Moreover it helps you to make conscious choices about what you eat, rather than eating anything and everything on autopilot.
It’s important to build a positive relationship with food and make active choices that you enjoy through understanding of why you’re making them. Diet help is not actually meant to be about the diet, it is meant to be about you. Let me know how you get on.
If you try and still feel that there are barriers to achieving your goals at this stage it’s worth considering seeking help from a nutritional or lifestyle doctor or dietician. Here at Hippocrates’ Lounge we operate a bespoke lifestyle clinic to support you in reaching your goals. There are many components of lifestyle that contribute to your unique challenges and we individualise patient care to overcomes these and support you in making the healthy changes you want to see.