The other day, I got a chance to go on my friend Andrew Coates’s podcast, “Lift Free, Diet Hard.”
In addition to having a fun discussion about gamers and fitness, we also talked about something important to me.
We spent a good chunk of time on our personal evolutions over 15+ years in the industry.
Specifically, I shared what I got wrong about the Paleo Diet:
I used to be in that camp of “Eat paleo, eat clean, lift heavy.”
Eventually, I realized I might’ve been helping people, but I was helping them for the wrong reasons.
And now I gladly share that I was wrong with my rationale in these areas.
This is what I now believe.
I hope 10 years from now that I’ve come to learn even more.
I think people respect you more when, instead of digging your heels in and, and trying to continue down a path that you know is incorrect.
Tell people like, “Hey, I didn’t know what I didn’t know. And now that I do, I’m changing my mind.”
That’s a sign of growth and should be appreciated.
This is a lesson that took me a few years to learn, and I’m so thankful I did.
I was in love with Paleo’s narrative, not the science, and I liked being part of the “cool kid” club that believed Paleo was the end-all-be-all for nutrition.
The reality, of course, was that Paleo simply helped people eat fewer calories. That’s it. It was restrictive, demonized carbs and foods like pizza or pasta, and not many people – myself included – could stick with it.
Even though Paleo has fallen out of favor, new charlatans and miracle diets have popped up in its place. Demonizing oatmeal, or fruit, or ingredients in Cheerios (seriously). Or telling people an all-meat diet is the path to nirvana.
If you’ve spent any time on social media, you know who I’m talking about: people who have built their identity around ONE way of eating, and then demand devotion like a cult leader!
Here’s a truth I learned a long time ago:
How we eat shouldn’t be our identity. We should be wary of people on social media who idolize or demonize certain foods.
It’s food!
Andrew actually summarized this incredibly well on Instagram the other day:
We all want to belong to something, and charismatic people with six-pack abs can convince us to be afraid of certain foods or certain ingredients. This will only negatively impact our relationship with food, and with ourselves.
“But Steve, I cut out this ingredient/food and I lost weight and feel better!” you might be saying.
Great! All diets will work if they put us into a calorie deficit…as long as we can stick with it long term.
My philosophy: we should pick a strategy that doesn’t fearmonger or cause us to develop an unhealthy obsession with certain ingredients.
Calories aren’t good or bad. Some foods might be more satiating than others. Some will have more micronutrients or macronutrients. Some foods align with our goals, and others less so. Some foods are for celebration, family, or just because.
I appreciated the conversation I had with Andrew about this, and I love his perspective on how we should be thinking about food.
If you’re curious, my Guide to “Healthy Eating” here on Nerd Fitness is a good example of how we try to think about food now!
I just hope 10 years from now I’ve put even more thought into how I can help people by meeting them at their level.
Remember, it’s okay if you were wrong. You don’t need to dig your heels in and plug your ears. You can just say “I changed my mind” and move on!
-Steve
PS: If you want to listen to my full conversation with Andrew, you can listen to it on whatever podcast platform you use, just look for Lift Free Diet Hard (episode 145).
