The Perfect Healthy Diet14
Posted In Blog
My Google-friendly fans often get confused when they look to the internet for advice on how to eat like Tony. They find articles on my vegan ways. They find opinions on the benefits of organic meats. They may even stumble on the P90X2 Nutrition Plan, which features a “grain-free” modification with a strong Paleo feel to it.
“So which is it, Tony?” you demand. “What’s the right diet for those wanting to eat the Horton way?”
The answer to that, my friends, is, “All of them.” Yes, I was a vegan for years — and I felt great doing it. But the problem was that I couldn’t keep weight on, eating just veggies, fruit, beans, and nuts, so I had to rethink my strategy. I still eat tons of veggies, but I’m now a free-range chicken, wild salmon and other healthy fish-eating type of guy, too. I’ve also cut back on my grains, having discovered that the less gluten I eat, the better it is for my body and brain chemistry.
You see, even if you think you’ve found the perfect diet, it won’t always be perfectly perfect. Making adjustments based on your ever-changing needs — especially as you get older and wiser — is normal. I like to refer to this philosophy as “flexitarianism.” Some define this as a vegetarian who occasionally eats meat. I beg to differ. To me, it means you eat with an open, observant mind, shifting your diet as needed to suit your personal nutritional needs.
For some strange reason, this style of eating is news to most of us. As a society, we’re compelled to segregate diets into rigid categories, like we do religion, politics, or sporting team loyalties. Vegan, Paleo, raw, macrobiotic, pescetarian, pollotarian, or vegetarian. They all have their benefits. When it comes to food, there’s no shame in being a flip-flopper and taking advantage of all of them.
That said, I think there are a few simple rules to keep in mind. First off, why do you eat what you eat? Hunger? Survival? Cravings? Boredom? Performance? It’s important to find the balance. If you don’t stay accountable, then cravings for addictive comfort foods will cause all kinds of problems. On the other hand, overly restrictive diets will almost always lead to problems as well. Sooner or later, you’ll crack and binge. So, to keep your hand out of the proverbial (and literal) cookie jar, it’s important to design an eating plan that makes you feel good while eating it. If you do that, then you’ll stop the weight-loss-weight-gain cycle.
The diet guide in P90X and the one in my book Bring It! may seem entirely different, but they aren’t. The strategies vary, but when all is said and done, they both recommend that you eat healthy food. P90X2 takes that philosophy a step further with grain-free, vegan and high-protein plans — all healthy, varied options. Note the key word here: healthy.
If you’ve found the perfect diet for you, great, but it might not always work, so don’t be afraid to experiment. Think of it this way. Over the course of your life, do you buy the same car over and over? Probably not. As your needs change, you might go from junker, to sports car, to family wagon, back to sports car (midlife crisis), to roomy sedan. As your tastes, needs and economic situation shifts, you require different vehicles. The same goes for food. Your 20-year-old body and your 50-year-old body have totally different needs. It’s important to honor that.
Of course, I may be 100% wrong. Maybe there’s some magic diet out there that’s perfect for everyone. If you know about it, please tell me, because I’m willing to give it a try. After all, that’s the whole point of being a flexitarian, right?
Read more: http://www.askmen.com/sports/foodcourt_700/717_the-perfect-healthy-diet.html#ixzz1n2ZStK5b
14 Comments
Leave a Comment
Tony’s Bring It!
available dec.21
Chat with Tony
Tony On the Web
So far, I’ve found that a diet that is (very) low in carbs and high in protein/vegetables works best for me. This is sustainable because I have never been a big fan of sweets/bread.
Thanks for the article, Mr. Horton!
I’m detecting shades of Bruce Lee’s philosophy on adaptability:
“be formless, shapeless — like water. Now you put water in a cup, it becomes the cup; You put water into a bottle it becomes the bottle; You put it in a teapot it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.”
You have given me yet another reason to love you, Tony Horton! I get so tired of reading the “This is the ONLY diet that works” BS I see all over the place!!! I enjoy a mostly vegetarian diet, with occasional seafood as I see fit. Theoretically, I would like to go vegan….but my body seems to be happiest with moderate dairy intake….and sometimes, I just feel the need for seafood. Grains work for me, in moderation. Eliminate them, and I am starving all the time. Eat too much protein, I bloat up like crazy (which is the total opposite of how it works for many of my other fitness-minded friends). I had amazing results with P90x, even though I modified the diet a lot based on what I know to be my own body’s needs and my own personal beliefs and preferences. We all have different genetic profiles, different lifestyles, and different tastes and preferences. What’s the “best” healthy diet? The one you can live with and stick with. Period. Thanks for writing this.
Thank you for your open mind on nutrition. Following the P90X nutrition guide has helped me to figure out the correct proportion of protein, carbs, veggies for me to feel great. I don’t eat a lot of grains as I find they stick with me for a while and I feel more lethargic when I eat them. I will occasionally eat gluten free bread and oatmeal, but my diet follows closely with phase 1 of the P90X diet plan, high protein, low carbs. But with your philosophy, I feel free to change it up depending on how I feel and am performing. Thank you again. Your openness about nutrition and fitness has been inspiring.
Move toward a plant based diet. Yes you can eat fish and other meats. Jsut be mindful of what you’re eating and what affects these foods have on your body. Saturated fat does nothing for your body except clog your arteries. Plants have low or no saturated fat to speak of. The protein your body needs can be obtained from a veggie diet. But this doesn’t mean you have to be a vegan as Tony H says educate yourself on the benefits and the lack thereof of the various diets and foods available. Read the FDA’s recommendation for DRI, AI, EER. The government has done a huge amount of the scientific research for you. Make these resources available to yourself. Read about these in particular: fiber, sugar, fat, salt, vitanims and minerals. Are you getting enough of these, too much of these, etc.? These alone can help guide you toward a successful and healthful diet. Lastly, thanks Tony for always contributing to positive dialogue and for encouraging others to do the same.
I eat a well balanced diet includes vieggies and salads, chicken, fish and the ocassional steak or even plain hamburger no bun. If I crave something i have it right and the craving is over. I will indulge and have a hand full of chips or popcorn. And I drink plenty of water to help with the cravings and the overeating.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this Tony. I have so many people asking about what is THE RIGHT WAY to eat. It is so true, that there is no RIGHT answer. Everyone has to figure out what is best for them at the point in time in their life based on the results they want.
I am in total agreement, some people used to bash the Adkins diet, People still use it and it still works, I think from everything I am learning is grain is not a good thing , protein, fruits veggies lean meat complex Carbs. You are the man Tony
Keep Bringing It;)))
[...] like how my buddy, Tony Horton talks about a healthy eating plan. It’s not one-size fits [...]
This sounds very much like what I have been doing the past year. I did P90x and started off with the standard diet but then transitioned myself to what I call my Life Style Diet. It is based off whole real foods gluten, dairy and legume free. I was able to shed all my fat going from 30% bodyfat to single digits while packing on muscle. Not to mention the fact my blood pressure went from Stage1 Hypertension to Athlete Levels and I was able to subtract 16yrs off my fitness age! Good to see Tony now agrees with the way I have been eating. I have had an incredible transformation and thank P90x for that but give alot of credit to my new diet.
I’m pretty sure that you were reading my mind today.
I had a similar conversation with a friend this afternoon. After my Plyo X workout today, I felt like I really need to return to my earlier, more disciplined eating habits that I’ve set aside in the past couple of years. Also, now that my daughters are reaching adulthood and taking charge of their own fitness, I especially want to help them to make the best nutrition choices, without feeling burdened over which choice to make. Thank you so much for confirming what I had been trying to convey to my friend earlier. I’m excited and motivated anew!
I’ve found that I tend to need quite a bit of handholding in this area. haha. I am overanalytical in all the wrong ways. My hope is to continually become more well informed and to be able to bend my needs to it… wait a second… that sounds like what Tony said about dieting! haha. well, honestly, I’m glad I have Beachbody’s site and chat room to help me along.
Personally I have found a Paleo type diet works best for me. I got the best results with P90x while doing it, and my fat keeps coming off while doing P90x2 and following Paleo. I cheat and have some grains once in a while, but I usually feel like crap when I do. I buy the best meat I can afford, and get as many organic fruits and veggies as possible.
I always read anything you have to offer when it comes to diet…food..eating. In my opinion, picking an excersize program and pushing play every day is the EASY part (am in week 6 of p90x and LOVIN EVERY MINUTE OF IT, some days I even do doubles)….but eating. good grief, one has to think about that every second of every minute of every day. I have lost 82 pounds and down to 17% body fat, thankyou so VERY much to p90x, but also I changed the way and WHAT I eat. I have gone from eating one meal a day, to eating 5 times a day…I REALLY have to watch the clock and it seams like I am always eating now, but just more healthy things. I dont really follow any diet per say, but follow what my body wants, and it tells me the closer a food is to its original & natural state (unprocessed), the better it is for me. Shoosh, look how GREAT you look at 52~ WOW! I wanna look like that (but in girly form
) and feel great~ You have it figured out in my book, and I just wanted to THANK YOU so truly, for being so generous & helping so many of us folks get healthy!! T*H*A*N*K*Y*O*U*