When a person aims to lose body fat, they always try to find the diet or eating pattern that makes things easier for them. Until then, all good. It is normal that, within our possibilities, we make life easier for ourselves.
The problem starts when people start going down the path of detox diets or pineapple diets, etc. This is indeed a problem, since not only will it not be possible to improve body composition, but in the long run, it will be affected.
Some of the eating patterns, such as the Mediterranean diet or Realfooding, have been shown to have good results.
Mediterranean diet
Rubén Murcia, from ICNS, comments that the Mediterranean diet is a nutritional model referring to the eating pattern followed by the countries of the entire Mediterranean side.
This diet is based on a high consumption of vegetables, fresh fruits, nuts, legumes, whole grains and fish, mainly, better consumption of eggs and dairy products and a even lower consumption of meat, especially purse seine, sheep and poultry.
One of its main characteristics is the use of olive oil as a cooking fat and the consumption of red wine in moderation during meals. This type of diet pattern based on a high consumption of plant-based foods, which provide nutrients from hundreds of non-nutritive components, antioxidants, such as phytochemicals, with important biological activities and an important role in preserving health.
Some studies such as those of Iris Shai or Joseph Mancini, have shown and suggest that the Mediterranean diet could have a positive effect on the loss of body fat.
On the other hand, at the health level, as Rubén Murcia comments, many studies have associated the Mediterranean diet with health benefits and the prevention of chronic diseases such as obesity and cancer, cardiometabolic profile, body composition, health hepatic function, kidney function, reduction in cardiovascular risk and mortality, better cognitive function, hypertension, diabetes, fewer hip fractures, lower total mortality, etc.
realfooding
Realfooding or, known simply as “eat real food”, is a relatively new trend, at least in Spain, which is based on the total or almost elimination of ultra-processed foods.
Really, any type of eating pattern, whether ketogenic diet, Mediterranean diet, etc, can go hand in hand with realfooding Since, for example, if we have a pattern like that of the Mediterranean diet and we are not almost processed consumption (wine, for example), we would also follow the trend of real fooding.
Even so, we want to make it clear that not all trends are for everyone, there will be people who eat 100% real food and are able to lose weight, and there will be others who, to maintain adherence, need to include certain treats every day.
And including small processed day by day, has nothing to do with the academic or semantic knowledge of people, but rather it’s something deeper, so, unless a person feeds on this type of product, there is no problem.
Which is better for losing body fat?
One of the problems of The nutrition, although it should not be taken as a problem either, it is that it is not an objective science as such, that is, not everything goes for everyone, since there will be as many perfect patterns as there are people in the world, so one food pattern is not better than another as such.
In other words, the Mediterranean diet does not have to be better than a vegetarian one, since there are still people who love fish and have a hard time giving it up.
Therefore, choose the food pattern that best suits your tastes and needs and, although the loss is slower, it will continue over time.
In Vitónica | What the ‘Mediterranean Diet’ Really Is: What’s Left of Ancel Keys and Whether It’s Appropriate Today
In Vitónica | Nine basic tips to lower our body fat percentage
Images | iStock
