Exploring "Good" vs. "Bad" Foods
“Good” Food vs. “Bad” Food: Can food truly be classified into these two categories?
In this episode, I’m excited to debunk this notion. This topic is near and dear to my heart, and I don't think we've really talked about it this way. The diet industry, the diet world, and diet culture have made us overly obsessed with the idea of good versus bad foods. And today I want to explain how certain foods are more or less helpful for achieving goals than others.
You can hardly look at media, magazine articles, or ads that pop up on your phone without seeing messages like, "Never eat this food" or "This superfood will change your life." Right? Hence, this obsession around good foods and bad foods. I find that this restrictive way of thinking isn't very realistic for me or for most of my patients.
So today, I want to give you a handful of tips to help you choose foods that support your body and for your specific goals.
Body Awareness: The Feel of Food
It's not realistic to divide food into strict categories of good and bad. A more helpful approach is to think about how different foods make us feel, both physically and emotionally. Sure, some foods might make us feel good right away, like chocolate or ice cream. These types of foods light up the brain and trigger cravings for more, but later on, they might leave us feeling sluggish or uncomfortable. This deeper reaction—how the body feels after eating—is where we should focus.
Rather than following the brain’s initial response to food, it’s important to tune into the body's longer term reaction. Does it affect energy levels, digestion, or sleep? This is where we get a clearer picture of whether a food works for us or not. For example, sugary beverages like soda can be fine in moderation, but drinking them regularly is often tough on the body. On the flip side, a health food like broccoli is packed with nutrients, but eating only broccoli all day would lead to nutritional imbalances—and it might not sit well with everyone’s stomachs.
Ultimately, it's about balance. The goal is to understand how certain foods impact the body over time, not just immediately after eating. Logging meals and tracking how you feel can help spot trends. Some foods—like gluten, dairy, or fast food—may cause issues for certain people, but the key is figuring out what works for you.
Instead of focusing on absolutes, try to listen to your body and adjust your diet accordingly. That way, food becomes less about labels and more about supporting your overall health and well-being.
Experimenting With Foods
Experimenting with different foods can give valuable insight into what works best for your body. For example, you might try cutting out a particular food group, like gluten or dairy, for a week and notice how you feel. Alternatively, adding something new to your routine and paying attention to your body's response can also be revealing.
When I was training for a marathon, I became more aware of what I was eating both during and outside my runs. While experimenting with nutrition, I started drinking a green smoothie—two cups of spinach, a banana or pineapple, some ice, and collagen peptides. I quickly realized that I felt great after drinking it—my energy was better, and my gut felt less bloated. This kind of discovery can make a big difference in how you approach food, as I now have this smoothie most days and feel amazing because of it.
On the other hand, bread often doesn't agree with me. While some types are fine, I usually experience reflux and even feel tired and achy after eating it. Learning how different foods affect your body over time is key, and moderation can sometimes help.
It's important to stay in tune with how foods impact you physically, beyond just the immediate effects. Pay attention to factors like energy levels, inflammation, and gut health. Does a certain food cause bloating, reflux, or discomfort? For instance, while tomatoes are healthy for most people, if they consistently cause reflux for you, it's probably a sign to reduce or avoid them.
Gut health is a huge indicator of how well your body tolerates a particular food. Whether it’s bloating, constipation, loose stools, or reflux, tracking these symptoms can help identify triggers. In some cases, eliminating a certain food for a short period can reveal whether it’s the culprit.
The bottom line is to honor your body by noticing patterns and making adjustments where needed. Whether it’s through food experimentation or logging, listening to what your body is telling you can lead to better food choices that suit your individual needs
Assessing Food Through Performance
When determining whether a food is a good fit for you, it’s important to consider its impact on performance, both physically and mentally. For athletes, this means reflecting on how food affects activities like strength training or running. Did a particular meal help fuel your workout?
Meal timing plays a significant role in performance as well. Personally, I prefer to eat something about 30 minutes before exercising. It gives me the energy I need without feeling uncomfortable during my workout. However, many people find that eating too close to exercise can lead to stomach discomfort or fatigue. Experimenting with different foods and timing is essential. For example, do you have more energy during exercise if you pre-fuel with a protein shake, some fruit, or something like an apple with peanut butter?
Performance isn't just physical; it also includes cognitive function. Many individuals experience brain fog or afternoon slumps related to what they eat. It's even common to feel sluggish in the morning due to the previous night's dinner. Paying attention to how various foods influence your mental clarity can help identify what works best for you.
In summary, evaluating food choices based on their impact on both athletic and cognitive performance can guide you in making healthier decisions that align with your lifestyle and needs.
The Impact of Evening Eating on Morning Energy
Many patients who struggle with nighttime overeating or binge eating often wake up feeling tired and sluggish, sometimes even resembling a hangover. Changing evening eating habits can be beneficial, such as moderating portions or reducing food intake at night. One of the early episodes of my podcast discusses strategies for managing nighttime overeating, making it a valuable resource for anyone facing these challenges (Episode 2).
What you eat the night before significantly influences how you feel in the morning. For instance, consuming caffeine or alcohol close to bedtime can disrupt sleep, leaving you feeling crummy the next day. Eating large meals that cause reflux overnight can also impact sleep quality. Additionally, high glycemic foods, sugary snacks, or simple carbohydrates may spike blood sugar levels during the night, contributing to feelings of fatigue upon waking.
Interestingly, not eating enough later in the day can lead to low blood sugar overnight, especially for those on GLP medications or those who are following low-carb diets. This drop in blood sugar can trigger the body to release more sugar, resulting in blood sugar spikes at night and an uncomfortable morning.
If waking up with fatigue or brain fog is a common issue, it’s worth considering how evening eating habits may affect sleep and blood sugar. Similarly, an afternoon slump can often be traced back to lunch choices. Heavy meals or those high in simple carbohydrates can cause a rapid rise and fall in blood sugar, leading to that post-lunch crash.
Switching to a lighter lunch focused on protein, vegetables, or legumes might help maintain energy levels throughout the afternoon. Paying attention to how different foods affect overall energy can lead to better choices for both evening and midday meals.
Understanding Gut Health
Gut health covers a lot of ground, starting with the stomach. Plenty of foods can irritate it, especially acidic ones like citrus fruits (lemons, limes, oranges), tomatoes, and anything made from them, like tomato sauce. Alcohol, caffeine, soda, and coffee can also be hard on the stomach. Some people are sensitive to dairy or red meat. Figuring that out often means cutting certain foods for a week to see if stomach issues or reflux improve.
If you’re on GLP medications, food tends to stay in your stomach longer, which can make you more sensitive to things that didn’t bother you before, like spicy foods. So, keeping an eye on your intake of spicy foods, citrus, tomatoes, alcohol, and caffeine could help with any stomach discomfort.
Moving further down the digestive tract, symptoms like constipation, diarrhea, and bloating are common. Dairy is often a big trigger for bloating, constipation, or diarrhea. If you’ve been consuming dairy regularly but suddenly feel off, it might be worth cutting it out for a bit to see if things improve. Gluten can also be an issue. Some people have celiac disease, but many others just experience sensitivity. The trick is to listen to your body and figure out how much gluten you can handle before it starts causing problems.
Beans and legumes are super nutritious, but they can cause digestive upset if you suddenly start eating a lot of them. Being consistent with these foods gives your gut a chance to adjust to all that fiber. And while certain fruits and vegetables can be a bit hard on the stomach, keeping a food journal can help you spot the ones that are really causing issues.
On the bright side, adding more probiotic foods to your diet can help support gut health. Foods like kombucha, yogurt, sauerkraut, and kimchi naturally contain probiotics that help restore healthy gut bacteria, making digestion smoother. Experimenting with these foods might bring noticeable improvements to how you feel overall.
FODMAPs: A deeper look at gut triggers
One category of foods that often triggers gut issues like constipation, diarrhea, and bloating is FODMAPs. FODMAP stands for Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides, and Polyols—basically, specific short-chain carbohydrates that some people have a tough time digesting.
When these carbs aren’t broken down properly in the gut, they ferment, causing gas and other uncomfortable symptoms. FODMAPs are found in many foods, including certain fruits, vegetables, dairy products, wheat, and legumes. If you’ve been struggling with persistent gut issues, trying a low FODMAP diet for a few weeks might help. By cutting out high FODMAP foods, you give your gut a break and can slowly reintroduce foods to figure out which ones your body can tolerate and which ones are best to avoid.
This approach can make a big difference in understanding your unique food triggers and improving overall gut health.
Homework: Your Week of Food Exploration!
Alright, here's a little homework for you! Why not try a new food, like some leafy greens or beans, for a week or two? Just see how your body feels with it. On the flip side, if there's something that's been bothering you, think about cutting that out for the same amount of time and see if you feel better.
And hey, if all of this feels a bit overwhelming, don't stress! That's what folks like dietitians or nutritionists are here for. You're not alone in figuring this out!
In this episode, I challenge the idea of labeling foods as strictly "good" or "bad," showing how the diet industry creates unrealistic beliefs. Instead, I encourage everyone to focus on how foods impact our well-being over time. By tuning into our bodies, experimenting with new foods, and being mindful of meal timing, we can make smarter choices. I also highlight the importance of tracking symptoms and suggest cutting out anything that doesn’t sit well. For more insights, be sure to listen to the full episode!
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