It still boils down to exercise.

I've just started in on Dr. Attia's chapter on Nutrition... so far I like what I am learning.  Most comforting is that this very smart, well studied, and respected wellness expert dreads talking about nutrition as much as I do.  His reason is more science based as opposed to mine which is feeling inadequate.  I am not a nutrition specialist.  I will share what I learn from him with all of you.  To give you a quick preview though... "One of my biggest frustrations in the area of nutrition, has to do with how little we actually know about it for certain. The problem is rooted in the poor quality of research, which leads to bad reporting in the media, lots of arguing on social media, and rampant confusion among the public." 🙋 Which leads to ME feeling inadequate to guide someone in their nutrition journey.  

"Nutrition is relatively simple, actually.  It boils down to a few basic rules: don't eat too many calories, or too few; consume sufficient protein and essential fats; obtain the vitamins and minerals you need; and avoid pathogens like E. coli and toxins like mercury or lead. Beyond that, we know relatively little with complete certainty. Read that again, please."

I have figured out what works for me... only took me about 49 years 😁... probably only 20 of them "paying attention" to what I ate.  I have tried A LOT of different styles of nutrition, I don't like the word diet.  Paleo, fasting, whole 30-ish, low carb, giving zero f*cks, and for the last 5+ years I have been vegan.  The health reasons for being vegan for me are at the bottom of my priority list.  I choose to be vegan for compassion toward animals and the impact on our planet.  These two things alone keep me very dedicated to this style of eating.  Believe me when I say, I find unhealthy foods to eat being vegan.  So I do not stand on a pulpit and preach down to you.  I get the temptations and munchies just like you do.  And I cave in and indulge, probably more often than I should.  

Dr. Attia confirms what I have found in the last two, most successful, years of my nutrition journey.  "Nutritional interventions can be powerful tools with which to restore someone's metabolic equilibrium and reduce chronic disease. But can they extend and improve lifespan and healthspan, almost magically, the way exercise does? I'm no longer convinced they can."  

Now don't get me wrong, what we fuel our body with directly impacts how we feel and perform and metabolize... HOWEVER, each one of us is as unique as our fingerprint with what this looks like.  This is where the frustration comes in... we all want a simple blueprint to follow.  It doesn't work like that.  

So what do we do?  I keep reading and you keep trying things.  MOST IMPORTANTLY is the exercise -  the coming to the gym, the 10k steps a day, the active lifestyle.  THIS has been proven through reliable testing and research to have a profound impact on our health.  What do we NOT do? Stop caring about what we eat.  It IS important... there just isn't a perfect blueprint for what that looks like across all humankind.  The foods on the perimeter of the grocery store are still significantly more potent with nutritional value than the middle isles.  

To be continued...