By Brittany Youngman
From gluten-free to the caveman diet and everything in between, there is one thing that is not lacking in the health food arena: choices. From the sugar epidemic to the fat free frenzy, it is no easy task to find one that is right for you. Having tried almost all of the food fads myself, I still struggle with a good fit. There is definitely one common thing that resonates throughout each one of these diets and it’s no surprise that it requires paying attention to what you are putting into your body.
Starting with the simple task of writing down every single thing I ate from morning until night was exhausting and at times annoying, but mostly it was incredibly informative. Yes even that one, tiny stack of kettle-cooked potato chips that were sitting in the break room calling my name! After a few days of this, I soon started to see my habits changing – mostly not plunging my hand into the bag of M&M’s and pretzels for the sole reason of not wanting to write it down. Easy enough, I thought.
It soon became apparent that although I was writing these items down, I was not really looking at them as ways to fuel my body. Once I began training for a marathon, all of a sudden fuel was an extremely important part of the process. I had to be sure I was putting the right amount of the right stuff in my body in order to get me through the 17-miler on Saturday. Being the foodie that I am, this realization was hard for me to swallow. You still can’t stop me from diving into a plate of delicious lobster mac and cheese, however I probably won’t do it the night before a long run.
My experiences with fad diets include the Atkins Diet and feeling carb-less, Weight Watchers and getting dizzy with numbers and the Dukan Diet at which time I became a protein-hungry grump. My last attempt at the fad diet was going Paleo, however the overwhelming feeling of rules and restrictions resulted in never eating outside of my house and caused me to lose most of my friends (well, almost). After an intervention of sorts, I finally found the right one for me: the Whole Foods Diet (not to be confused with the grocer). I’m not sure you can find a book or article on it, because I essentially made it up. After watching a number of documentaries and reading various articles on the food industry, I came to learn that the power to become “healthy” was all up to me. Learning what was in the foods we eat and what companies do to market their products to consumers was eye opening. I was introduced to a world of farmers markets, greens I never thought I’d eat (kale) and many more options that don’t have a laundry list of ingredients to dissect. Not only did I become more knowledgeable about food, cooking and ingredients, but I also started feeling more energy throughout the day, less stomach pain and a seemingly strange change in my hair, skin and nails.
As marathon training increases and the mileage grows, I find myself “hangry” a lot more than usual and digging into whatever I can find. As runners we usually decide to treat ourselves after a long run whether it’s with beer, a burger and fries or a big meatball sub. I’m not sure where this mindset originated, but it’s not fair to ride our bodies to their fullest potential and consciously choose to refuel it poorly. Now, that’s not to say a celebration is out of the question, but be conscious of it and cherish it so that the mindless mistreatment doesn’t happen.
The bottom line is that there is no single secret that works for every body. The most important take away that I learned from experiencing a variety of different fad diets is that we must treat our bodies with respect. We only have one body and one chance to make it work. My motto in reference to diet is: Keep it real!
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Brittany Youngman is a running enthusiast who recently moved from Pittsburgh to Charlotte. She is the Community Engagement Director at Event Marketing Services and Thunder Road Marathon. Her goal is to make an impact on individuals in the community to lead healthier and more active lives. Contact Brittany at Brittany@runforyourlife.com.
