I eat mostly animal foods.
Peggy doesn’t.
She’s been pescatarian for years.
We sit at the same table, have been together for nearly two decades, teach together, walk together, and somehow our marriage has survived this enormous nutritional crisis. 😂
I believe animal foods are extraordinarily nutritious.
Peggy apparently believes salmon deserves a fighting chance.
And here’s the strange part.
We’re both doing pretty darn well.
That has made me increasingly skeptical of one of the sillier things we do with food.
We turn it into a religion.
Carnivore.
Vegan.
Keto.
Mediterranean.
Paleo.
Plant-based.
Pick your tribe and apparently you’re supposed to spend the rest of your life explaining why everybody at the other tables is eating incorrectly.
I don’t have much interest in doing that anymore.
I Know What Works for Me
Nineteen years ago, I had type 2 diabetes and weighed 98 pounds more than I do today.
Changing how I ate was a huge part of changing my life.
My diet continued to evolve over the years.
Today I’d describe it as carnivore-ish.
Meat. Eggs. Animal foods. Very few carbohydrates. Very little ultra-processed food.
I don’t count calories.
I don’t obsess over macros.
I eat when I’m hungry and stop when I’m not.
I feel good eating this way.
That’s meaningful to me.
It isn’t proof that you should eat this way.
Those are two very different statements.
Peggy Found a Different Answer
Peggy doesn’t eat meat.
She eats fish, eggs and other foods that work well for her.
She’s happy with the way she eats.
I’m happy with the way I eat.
Neither one of us spends dinner trying to convert the other.
Which probably contributes considerably to marital longevity. 😂
And I think there’s something useful in that.
Instead of asking:
Which diet is THE healthiest diet?
Maybe a better question is:
What way of eating helps me thrive and makes sense in a life I can actually live?
Plant-Based Can Absolutely Be Healthy
You can build a nutritious diet around plants.
There’s no serious question about that.
Beans, lentils, vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds, whole grains and soy foods can all provide valuable nutrition.
Protein deserves some attention, particularly as we get older and maintaining muscle becomes increasingly important.
But you don’t need to combine rice and beans at the same meal to magically create a “complete protein.” That’s an old idea that refuses to die.
Eat a varied diet with enough total protein across the day and your body has access to the amino acids it needs.
People eating completely vegan diets also need to pay particular attention to nutrients such as vitamin B12, and depending on the individual diet, potentially iron, calcium, vitamin D, iodine and omega-3 fats.
That’s not an indictment of vegan eating.
It’s called paying attention.
I do the same thing with my own diet.
Every way of eating has questions worth asking.
“Plant-Based” on a Package Doesn’t Tell Me Much
Here’s where Peggy and I find considerably more common ground.
Walk through a grocery store and you’ll find “plant-based” printed on all kinds of things.
Some are perfectly reasonable foods.
Some are highly processed products.
Same thing happens with “keto.”
And “high protein.”
And “heart healthy.”
And almost every other phrase somebody discovers will help sell food.
I’m less interested in the tribe printed on the front than what’s actually inside.
That’s one reason both Peggy and I lean toward whole foods.
Her whole foods aren’t necessarily mine.
That’s okay.
Food Should Help You Live
This is where I’ve landed after years of experimenting.
I don’t want food to become my full-time job.
I don’t want to spend dinner calculating seventeen biomarkers.
And I certainly don’t want to spend the rest of my life arguing with strangers about potatoes.
I want to eat in a way that helps me feel good, stay strong, maintain a healthy weight, enjoy my life and keep doing the things I care about.
I want the same thing for you.
Maybe that’s carnivore-ish.
Maybe it’s Mediterranean.
Maybe you’re vegetarian.
Maybe you’re vegan.
Maybe you’ve never felt the slightest urge to give your eating style a name.
Good.
Pay attention to your body.
Pay attention to useful objective information too. Blood pressure, blood sugar, blood work and other health markers can tell us things that simply “feeling good” sometimes can’t.
Make adjustments when something isn’t working.
And don’t become so loyal to a dietary tribe that you’re afraid to change your mind.
You Don’t Need My Permission
I still believe animal foods are nutritionally superior.
That’s where my experience and reading have taken me.
You may disagree.
We can survive this. 😂
What matters much more to me is whether the way you eat is helping you build the life you want.
Are you getting enough nutrition?
Enough protein?
Are you maintaining strength?
Do you have energy?
Do you enjoy your food?
Can you keep eating this way without making yourself miserable?
What do your health markers tell you?
Those questions are much more interesting than whether your tribe beats mine.
Peggy and I figured out different answers.
We’ll probably keep changing them as we learn.
That’s okay too.
Eat food that helps you thrive.
Then push your chair away from the table and go live your life.