With the increasing use of social media, everyone has become quite particular about the way they look and present themselves. This has ultimately led to countless of people trying to “get fit” or “lose weight” during the global pandemic. There is no issue with having a healthy lifestyle. The issue lies in the fact that the diet culture portrayed in social media has convinced people to look a certain way and fit into certain clothes. It demonises nutrition and recognises some food groups as “bad” or “unideal” if someone is looking to get fit.
Which diet is then, good for you?
The kind of diet that we have been following since time immemorial until the diet culture took over. A diet which provides us with all the necessary nutrients, yet is wholesome and fulfilling.
Have we ever wondered why our grandparents never had to worry or weigh what they’re eating and still managed to stay fit? The answer is quite simple; they preferred simple home-cooked meals over fancy food items.
The carbohydrate debate
If we talk about the people of our country, Indians have always been inclined towards the western diet, because apparently Indian cuisine contains a lot of “carbohydrates” than protein. This, of course, is true but we can always tweak and modify our diet and increase food groups which are in less quantity and decrease the ones which are more, while maintaining a healthy diet.
People trying to lose weight go on diets like – keto, low carb, etc. and completely eliminate the diet that they’ve been used to for years. However, even after reaching their goals they fail to continue such diets because, for one, it is not sustainable and two, it is not healthy. We must remember that carbohydrates, just like other food groups are important for the functioning of our body. It provides us with energy which helps us to do our daily activities and absolutely eliminating it would lead to an unhealthy lifestyle.
The diet culture in the 21st century is very toxic. We don’t need to follow a certain diet to look a certain way. Our bodies deserve way more respect than that. It deserves to move, to eat, to enjoy the foods we love and everything that this life has to offer, without a set instruction of “do’s and don’ts”. A diet which we can follow for life, without any restrictions while staying healthy and active, is the diet which is ideal for us.