What is the Best Diet for Weight Loss?
Nutrition has become quite the warzone to discuss. Baseless claims, heated debates, and fear mongering are everywhere when it comes to dietary recommendations. Let's look at the science.
Well, here it is. This is my take on the heated topic of “the best diet for weight loss.”
I have to start by telling you that if you came here looking for a clear answer or meal recommendations, I don’t want to waste your time. You will not find those here. Diet is too individualized for black and white advice.
Low-fat vs. low-carb diets for weight loss
These two dietary strategies are very common and often pitted against each other. Here is a quote from the article, Optimal Diet Strategies for Weight Loss and Weight Loss Maintenance, published in the Journal of Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome:
“Except for energy deficit, there seems to be no significant difference between macronutrient composition-based diets.”
This means when it comes to weight loss, the ratio of carbs, fat, and protein does not matter. The total amount of calories consumed and burned is the only thing that matters.
The results show time and time again that there is little or no difference in weight loss between the two diets. A meta-analysis, Dietary Intervention for Overweight and Obese Adults: Comparison of Low Carbohydrate and Low-Fat Diets, looked at 17 studies comparing the two diets and found that, while both successful, low-carb diets marginally outperformed low-fat diets.
However, the studies looked at weight loss, not fat loss. I believe it is highly likely that this small difference in outcomes can be attributed to loss of water weight. We store carbohydrates in the form of glycogen, and for every gram of glycogen stored, we surround it with 3 grams of water. Those eating a low-fat, carbohydrate-rich diet carry more water weight than their low-carb eating counterparts, so it is expected that they won’t have as much weight loss (even though fat loss is similar between the groups). With that in mind, I find these two diets to be equally effective when it comes to weight loss. This matters because most people are concerned about the weight they carry in fat, not water.
Intermittent fasting for weight loss
Intermittent fasting comes in many forms. You can choose to have a 16-hour period of fasting followed by an 8-hour period where you can eat, for example. Another common strategy involves restricting calories certain days of the week, but not others. All forms of intermittent fasting have one thing in common: specific times in which you are able to eat certain amounts of food (sometimes, that means nothing).
I have seen claims stating that by going longer periods of calorie restriction, your body boosts its metabolism, therefore burning more calories. Well… I don’t buy it.
The study, Intermittent and continuous energy restriction result in similar weight loss, weight loss maintenance, and body composition changes in a 6-month randomized pilot study, spoils the results for you right in the title. This study, as do others, demonstrate that when total calories are equal, no matter when they are eaten, weight loss results are the same.
Summary
I could go on and on about the different types of diets and I will keep finding the same results. Intermittent fasting, frequent small meals, low-carb, low-fat, keto, paleo, mediterranean, vegan, carnivore, etc. If you consume less calories than you burn, you will lose weight. Your diet does not have to have a name or a theme to be effective.
“The best diet for weight loss” is a phrase I would like to change to “The Your best diet for weight loss health”. This is a better way of thinking because it puts you first (it is your diet after all), and it also emphasizes that weight loss is not the king metric for health or looking good.
“Okay, so none of these strategies make a huge difference… what do I do now?”
What I like about these diets is that they can give you ideas. Take small pieces of what these diets offer and make it your own. Do you enjoy nuts, avocados, olive oil, and eggs? Well, in that case I wouldn’t recommend a low-fat diet. And if you don’t care for those foods, but you like fruit, starchy vegetables, and grains, a low-fat diet might be a great idea!
However, I can’t help but mention that for good health, you must consider more than just your total calories.
If you want to lose some weight, here is what I recommend:
You will likely have to track what you eat. If your weight has been stable for at least a few months, eliminating around 500 calories per day should be enough of a deficit. A deficit of 500 calories per day comes out to about 1 pound lost per week. Here is an article listing some common calorie tracking apps: "The 8 Best Calorie Counting Apps"
***This is not my list
Eliminate the least enjoyable high calorie foods first.
Eat foods that are minimally processed.
Eat slowly, mindfully, and pay attention to your hunger cues.
Exercise!
References
To find the referenced studies, type the PubMed ID number (PMID) into the search bar at the PubMed home page.
PMID: 33240920
PMID: 26485706
PMID: 33305526
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There is so much good advice here! Thank you Nolan for sharing this with us.
I embraced a whole food plant based diet for several reasons including weight loss. And I realized because my diet had a lot of fiber I felt full sooner and for a longer time period. When you eat whole foods the bulk alone can keep you from overeating and staying in a caloric deficit while still getting the nutrients you need.