What Diet Plan is Right For You?

Finding the right diet plan can be a full time job in itself.  With 5,000 different options out there, how do you know what is right for you?  When I was searching for a diet plan to help me lose weight back in 2017 - I was truly focused on losing weight while also doing something sustainable for the long haul.  I didn’t want to diet forever and I didn’t want to do keto and never be able to have a carb again without risking gaining all the weight back (I am not saying Keto won’t work for you, just not for me).

This blog post is all about how to figure out what plan is right for you.  I have to throw in a disclaimer - I am not a doctor or nutritionist - always consult with your doctor before starting any new diet plan.

My goal with this post is to help give you guide posts from which you can make your own decision.  If there is one thing I know for sure - there is no one size fits all solution.  All of our bodies are so unique!  We all need different things to feel good and if weight loss is your goal, we need different things to lose weight.

Here are some things to consider while you are looking into some different dieting options:

1. Stress level - If your stress level is high, losing weight in general is going to be difficult. While some stress is a good thing for the body, too much of it can hinder weight loss.  Your body in high stress releases cortisol, your stress hormone, which increases your blood sugar even if you haven’t eaten in hours.  I recently was doing a longer fast and hadn’t eaten in about 17 hours. I tested my blood sugar and it was 111 which is high for me in a fasted state.  I was wracking my brain trying to figure out why and realized that I had a lot of stress on my body and had been dealing with a lot that particular day.   All this to say - stress does deeply affect your body so you just need to be aware of it as you enter into a new adventure. 
2. Hormones - I LOVE to geek out on hormones nowadays.  I have learned so much about hormones lately.  So many women do not know how their bodies work and what their cycle looks like.  It is simply because we are not being taught the information and instead we are being given one size fits all advice or medications to help us.  The way a man’s body works is not the way a woman’s body works.  Women have a lot to consider when it comes to hormones but most of us don’t know enough about our hormones to understand the effect on weight loss and health.  The best resource I have found on explaining a woman’s cycle and the hormones at different times of the cycle is Dr. Mindy Pelz.  She has a huge Youtube channel with tons of information and a book called Fast Like a Girl which has excellent information.  If you are menopausal or post menorpausal she also has a book for you!  Learning what hormones are prevalent at what times of the month and what each of those hormones like and need and how they affect your energy levels and mood is a total game changer.  Hormones are intricately connected to us and who we are.  There are certain times of the month where we can SLAY it and certain times where resting is slaying.  Knowing these things will be so helpful to your health journey.  Thanks for giving me a moment to be a geek here.
3. Focus on health over calories - To me, the most important thing in the world is the health of the food you are putting in your mouth.  Quality is the key measure.  If you are just starting out, I don’t want to overwhelm you, so remember, you don’t have to know it all or have it all figured out right now.  As you progress on your journey, you will continue to learn more and more.  What I really want to impress on you with this tip is that calories are not the end all be all.  As women we have been socialized over and over again to watch calorie intake.  A 100 calorie pack snack is not a quality food. Yes it's “only 100” calories but they are loaded with preservatives and unhealthy oils that are far more harmful than having one tablespoon of unsweetened, no oils added almond butter to hold you over.  When I started losing weight I followed a plan that was loosely based on calories, but the premise of it was eating healthy foods in the right proportions.  This system really worked for me and it trained me on what a plate should look like and what kinds of foods were healthy to incorporate into my lifestyle.  Something that is strictly calorie based without consideration into the quality of the food you are eating should be avoided.
4. Give it time to work - Whatever plan you start is going to take time to see results. Make sure that you give it time to work before giving up.  I would suggest at least 30 days but 60 would be great to fully assess your results.  Make sure at the beginning of your journey you take photos of yourself from every angle, measure your major body areas (chest, waist, hips) and take your weight.  When I first started out, after 30 days the scale said the same weight.  I was so upset!  I had been working so hard!  But luckily I had taken before photos so I snapped an after photo and compared them and I was shocked at the results. My body was actually changing!  After the first 30 days the scale started to move and that felt good!  We are so reliant on the scale (guilty as charged!) so it is important to have other measures to look at.  If you are following your plan as outlined you should see some results after 30 days and even more after 60.

This was May 17th to June 6th progress photo!5.  Assess your lifestyle - When you pick a plan you want to follow, you really want it to be something you can do for the long haul.  If you do something drastic that you don’t think you can incorporate into the rest of your life, the chances are high that you will slide backwards once you stop doing that program.  So, what do you envision your future self doing and being able to eat etc.  For me, I never gave up ice cream.  Once a week I walked to the local ice cream shop and had ice cream.  I never felt guilty about it.  I was still able to sustain weight loss while having a treat once in a while (for the record I was not going and getting a huge milkshake or a sundae, it was one scoop of ice cream). I know that I love good food and I don’t want to give up something that in the long haul I just can’t sustain.  For me, mentally, if you tell me I can’t have something, I want it more.  Overtime, I learned healthier ways to enjoy treats.  Like brownies. I love brownies!!  But those boxed brownies are not healthy!  So, I learned how to make healthy brownies at home that will give my body good nutrients and keep me on track.  All this to say - I am a girl that grew up eating dessert basically after every meal.  I could have any junk food I wanted at any time of the day.  Taking someone like me and telling her she can never enjoy a dessert again wasn’t going to work.  Yes, you have to make sacrifices to lose weight and most importantly, create a healthy body (which is SO much more than just your weight by the way), and you can also learn to incorporate things you love into your life.  Some people truly do not want balance.  It is all or nothing for them and that is fine too.  That is why this tip is so important - to assess your lifestyle, who you are, who you want to be, what you love and what you don’t and where you are mentally when it comes to food.  

We are all unique beings.  My story is not yours and may not be even remotely close to what you experience.  I always hesitate to share pieces of my story because I don’t want anyone to compare their journey to mine, but I also think it’s important that you see what is possible for you!  With hard work and sacrifice you can absolutely achieve your goals.  Just remember, it is your own journey.  It is your life.  You get to call the shots.

<3 Marisa

Here are some resources that may be helpful as you set out on your journey:

• Body Love by Kelly Leveque (Book) Nutrition information
• Be Well By Kelly Podcast nutrition and healthy lifestyle information
• Dr. Mindy Pelz youtube channel hormone and fasting information
• Fast Like a Girl by Dr. Mindy Pelz (Book) cycle, hormones and fasting information
• Bodi (a workout platform that also has two different nutrition programs)
• Feeding You Lies by Vani Hari (book) for general food industry information 
• Period Power by Maisie Hill (book) for cycle and hormone education