What Does it Mean to Eat Healthy?

When someone wants to improve their health, one of the first things that comes to mind is that they want to eat healthier. However, what exactly does this mean? In today’s day and age, this has become a very confusing topic. Radicalized fad diets have ravaged social media. Each dietary tribe makes polar opposite claims and seems to be at each other’s throats.

For someone who wants to start eating better, this can provide a rather chaotic learning environment. In truth, good diet and lifestyle practices don’t have to be so crazy and confusing. Growing up, my mother called her diet the “common-sense diet.” When you are nailing your nutrition, that’s exactly how it should seem.

Still, saying the “common-sense diet” might not paint a super clear picture in your mind. So, the purpose of this article is to provide structure and guidelines to this idea, and talk about practical nutrition strategies and tactics that you can implement in your own life.

Covering your bases

There are a few avenues we are going to go down regarding what makes a healthy diet. Some of which are concepts that you can do to further improve your health past a baseline healthy diet. First, though, let’s talk about the basics of what comprises a healthy diet:

1)    3-5 servings of fruits & vegetables minimum per day

• This is the recommendation from the USDA that provides adequate nutrition to 50% of the population. Ideally, these are going to be 3-5 different fruits or vegetables every day. Reason being is that this is going to ensure you get an intake of a variety of different nutrients, as opposed to the nutrient profile of just one fruit or vegetable. The research overwhelmingly shows that higher intakes of fruits & vegetables are associated with improvements of all health biomarkers and general well-being [1].

2)    14 g of fiber for every 1000 calories that you eat

• If there’s any “superfood” in the world, fiber would be it. It seems to have an inverse relationship with heart disease and all-cause mortality [2]. The USDA recommends 14 grams for every 1000 calories that you eat in a day. Another metric you can use is 20-29 grams per day for women and 30-38 grams per day for men. I would caution against going too much higher than the intakes recommended above though, as excessive fiber intake can cause gastric distress and nutrient malabsorption. Fruits & vegetables will provide some fiber intake. However, greater fiber sources include grains and legumes such as oatmeal, lentils, beans, quinoa, etc.

3)    Eat 1.6 grams of protein for every kilogram you weigh (said differently, 72% of your bodyweight in pounds)

• High protein intakes are perhaps one of the more controversial topics in the health and wellness space. Alan Aragon (renowned sports nutrition researcher and educator) recently summed up the argument quite well in a quote. He said “There is a painful lack of human data to support the idea that protein harms longevity. In contrast, there is a ton of human data to show that if we optimize the environment for the musculoskeletal system to thrive, we can increase lifespan and healthspan.” The research clearly shows that increased muscle mass improves nearly all health biomarkers [3]. Further, the research shows that this 1.6g/kg intake is the point at which any more protein does not provide much more benefit [4].

4)    Eat ~30% of your calories from “healthy” fats

• When I say “healthy” fats, I am referring to polyunsaturated fatty acids. Having a sufficient intake is important for regular and healthy hormone production. Polyunsaturated fatty acid sources include most nuts, fish (salmon), olive oil, canola oil, avocado, etc.

5)    Less than 10% of your calories from saturated fats and minimal (ideally no) trans fats

• One of the nutrients that has been most clearly shown to increase LDL (“bad” cholesterol) is saturated fat [5]. Thus, the USDA recommends that your limit your saturated fat intake to less than 10% of your total calories. Sources of saturated fats include fatty animal foods (bacon, fatty beef, chicken thigh, etc.), coconut oil, butter and other dairy products, etc. This is another reason why lean proteins (protein sources with a low-fat content) and considered better.

These five tenants are what I would consider the bases of healthy eating. Let’s put these into practice and see what a meal would look like under these guidelines:

1)    Healthy portion of a lean protein (chicken breast, lean beef)

2)    1-2 servings of a fruit or vegetable (berries, Brussel sprouts, avocado, banana, broccoli, etc.)

3)    1 serving of a high fiber carb (quinoa, farro, oats, potato, etc.)

4)    small handful of almonds

If you saw a plate with this combination of foods, you would probably assume that it is healthy. However, having these guidelines and frameworks can help you understand why and how to structure meals.

A step further: controlling and improving body composition

Apart from this, eating a diet that promotes a leaner body composition seems to significantly benefit our health and lifespan. Research suggests that individuals who have leaner body compositions have greater biomarkers of health than those with more body fat [6]. In addition, as mentioned previously, having more muscle mass promotes a wide array of health benefits such as improved glucose control, decreased blood pressure, decreased cholesterol, etc. [3].

So, it’s clear that we should work to improve our body composition. However, it’s important to understand that all the guidelines mentioned previously will not inherently improve body composition. In order to this we need to pay attention to our energy balance [7]. If we are seeking to lose fat, we must consume less calories than we burn in a day. Conversely, if we want to promote muscle gain, we must eat more calories than we burn in a day. Both instances require a sufficient protein intake to be successful, following the 1.6g/kg of bodyweight mentioned previously. When muscle gain is the goal, resistance training (i.e. weight training) is essential. When fat loss is the goal, resistance training is not essential, but greatly beneficial. For multiple tips on how to achieve either goal, see the two articles below:

Related: 8 Tips to Make Fat Loss Easier

Related: Easy, Muscle-Gaining Strategies for Hard-Gainers

One thing you might also notice is that following the “bases” mentioned above will make it easier to keep your calories under control. Protein is very filling. Fruits and vegetables are very filling. Fiber is very filling. When these are prioritized in a diet, it is much harder to overeat and much easier to maintain a reasonable calorie intake.

Another step further: eating for performance

Based on the research, I would consider the first two to be the more important starting points. However, once you are covering your bases and have built a decent body composition (good amount of muscle mass and healthy amount of body fat), how do you continue to improve your health?

I would argue that you should eat in a way that improves your physical fitness and performance. This, of course, assumes you are also training to improve your fitness. The reason I say this is because nearly every relevant biomarker of health improves as your fitness improves. For instance, one of the key indicators that your endurance has improved is a decrease in heart rate and blood pressure. Coincidentally, high blood pressure is a key indicator of cardiovascular disease risk. Conversely, lowering your blood pressure is one of the most effective ways to reduce your risk. In addition, your VO2max (measurement of endurance capacity) is one of the key indicators of longevity [8]. Having more muscle mass and strength is also very healthful providing benefits such as improved glucose control, reduced risk of diabetes, decreased rate of sarcopenia and osteopenia, increased metabolic rate, improved mental health and cognition, and more [3].

Related: VO2max Explained

To clarify, when I refer to performance, I am specifically referring to building and maintaining a level of muscle mass (and therefore strength), power, cardiovascular endurance, and muscular endurance. I can go on-and-on about training strategies and how each impact your health. However, the point of this article is to talk about how to eat to optimize progress in these areas. So, here are a few helpful guidelines:

1)    Eat 1.6 grams of protein for every kilogram you weigh (said differently, 72% of your bodyweight in pounds) [4]

• This idea of eating performance is partially why protein was also covered in the “bases” section. Getting sufficient protein in is key in order to make ample progress in your fitness. So, make sure you are eating at least this amount. As an example, a 100 lb person would need at least 72 grams of protein per day. A 200 lb person would need at least 144 grams of protein per day.

2)    In your pre-workout meal: eat a high amount of carbohydrates, moderate amount of protein, low fat, and low fiber [9]

• The goal of your pre-workout meal is to make you perform as good as possible with minimum muscle loss. When it comes to optimal performance, carbohydrates are your best friend- so we want to make sure our bodies are not lacking them when we train. Fat and fiber are both slower-digesting nutrients, so they can cause some stomach irritability if you eat them too close to training. Protein can be slow digesting when eaten in a high amount, however, eating a moderate amount prior to training will likely make you feel better.

3)    Keep yourself hydrated

• The obvious point here is to consistently drink water throughout the day. I struggle to recommend a certain amount since water is recycled at a rapid rate throughout the day. For instance, it wouldn’t make sense to drink all your water in the morning and then assume you’re good for the rest of the day. Truthfully, as long as your urine isn’t yellow, you’re doing alright. Electrolyte intake is also an important factor to hydration. This includes sodium, chloride (salt), potassium, magnesium, and others. Electrolyte intake can be covered using an electrolyte drink (Gatorade, LMNT), salting/seasoning your food, and from your fruit vegetable intake.

4)    Take supplements as needed

• There’s many supplements that can be beneficial in a given context. The two that I would argue are beneficial for everyone to invest in are protein powder and creatine. For a longer description of why I say this, check out the articles below:

Related: What Makes the Best Type of Protein Powder?

Related: Creatine: Everything You Need to Know

Conclusion

In this world, healthy eating can be a confusing endeavor. Every magazine, news outlet, and social media page is telling you something different. I totally understand how frustrating that can be. Hopefully, this article was able to provide some peace of mind and direction regarding the topic for you. In summary, there are three aspects to healthy eating in my mind: covering your bases, optimizing body composition, and eating for performance.

References

1. Associations Between the Modified Food Standard Agency Nutrient Profiling System Dietary Index and Cardiovascular Risk Factors in an Elderly Population

   • PubMed ID: 35967785

2. Association of Dietary Fiber Intake with All-Cause Mortality and Cardiovascular Disease Mortality: A 10-Year Prospective Cohort Study

   • Pubmed ID: 35956265

3. Resistance training is medicine: effects of strength training on health

   • PubMed ID: 22777332

4. A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of the effect of protein supplementation on resistance training-induced gains in muscle mass and strength in healthy adults

   • PubMed ID: 28698222

5. Replacing Saturated Fat With Walnuts or Vegetable Oils Improves Central Blood Pressure and Serum Lipids in Adults at Risk for Cardiovascular Disease: A Randomized Controlled-Feeding Trial

   • PubMed ID: 31039663

6. Higher than predicted resting energy expenditure and lower physical activity in healthy underweight Chinese adults

   • PubMed ID: 35839758

7. The energy balance model of obesity: beyond calories in, calories out

   • PubMed ID: 35134825

8. Survival of the fittest: VO 2 max, a key predictor of longevity?

   • PubMed ID: 29293447

9. NSCA’s Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning. 4th edition. 2015.