We live in an interesting period of history. For the first time ever, people have access to research, papers, and intellectual debates that have historically been reserved for an elite few. This is truly one of the best things that the internet has given to the world. Access to an amount of information that is almost incomprehensible.
Yet with any good thing, it can be used poorly, with malicious intent, and with dangerous consequences.
You’ve probably seen it yourselves. One group of individuals will cite a “new groundbreaking study” to “prove” that what they are trying to sell you is the secret to why you can’t lose weight or gain muscle. Then another group comes along and cites another study that disproves the other team and “proves” that their approach is the optimal one.
Insert tribalism here.
It’s a bit obnoxious as someone who lives in the world of nutrition and exercise science on a daily basis.
Now don’t get me wrong, we have learned so much from recent research, and we need scientists to continue to research nutrition and exercise to the best of their abilities. But the problem comes not from scientists or researchers (usually), but with people who take this research and manipulate it to sell their product or coaching.
Let’s take for example the cold plunge craze. Advocates of this method of recovery will argue that by going into the cold water, it forces blood flow to rush to your torso and therefore increases circulation to the extremities when you get out. Hence, bringing in fresh red blood cells that can speed up the recovery process. It also helps reduce systemic inflammation, which can help athletes perform again the next day.
In theory, this is correct. But here’s the nuance that most cold plunge advocates fail to see: cold plunges have been shown to reduce the inflammation needed for muscles to grow post exercise (so not great for EVERYONE depending on their goal) AND the circulation they achieve can also be achieved by going on a brisk walk.
Am I saying we should avoid cold plunges? Not necessarily. For athletes that need to perform more than they need to grow muscle, I think they are a smart thing to do in season.
What I hope you see is that we want to avoid generalized definitives like “everyone should cold plunge every day”. Or “plants are bad for everyone”.
Each person is unique and responds differently to different foods, exercise, and recovery modalities.
So what is the average Joe to do when they are on social media and are getting bombarded with all of these various points of view, each having their own “studies” backing them up?
Here are the three things I would recommend:
Stick with the basics
Don’t be afraid of trial and error
Never try Lifestyle Change you know isn’t sustainable long term
Stick with the Basics
When push comes to shove and you are confused about what is the “optimal” thing to do in regards to your health and fitness, stick to the basics. What are these “basics”? They aren’t super flashy or sexy, but when you read them you know them to be the fundamental things that we can do as we begin our health journeys.
The Basics:
Eat mostly whole foods like lean protein, whole grains, fruits and veggies.
Move your body intentionally at least 3 days a week. This could be walks, hikes, resistance training, or recreational sports.
Avoid eating fast food as much as you can.
Drink water at every meal and throughout the day.
Limit alcohol as much as you can or at least to social gatherings.
Will these things make you the next 6-pack Joe? Probably not. But they are a great start.
Don’t Be Afraid of Trial and Error
When it comes to trying out some named diet (keto, paleo, vegan, carnivore, etc.). Don’t be afraid of trial and error if you have the basics above down. There are some foods that people simply don’t respond well to, and that’s not to demonize them, it’s just admitting that different people respond differently to various foods.
While I don’t advise you to try something extreme without first working with a coach or doctor, a little bit of safe experimentation in your diet or exercise routine is ok.
If you’ve been fascinated by carnivorous diets and simply want to see how your body responds to it, try it for a week or two and then give yourself permission to change or reintroduce certain foods without being a “failure”. This is not a diet that I typically recommend but I know that some people with autoimmune diseases or cancer have greatly benefitting from it.
Never Try a Lifestyle Change You KNOW You Aren’t Going to Do Long Term
This might sound counterintuitive after I just wrote about not being afraid of trial and error, but hear me out. If you look at a certain exercise routine or diet and know, without a shadow of a doubt, that it is something that you are not going to do long term due to health or social consequences, then you don’t need to do it.
This is especially true if you are in the beginning stages of your health journey. This bit of advice is more pragmatic than dogmatic. The reason being that people who go all in on a big lifestyle change that they know they can’t do long term, but are convinced that they will eventually just “grow to like it”, very rarely stick to it after the first few weeks. They get discouraged and go back to eating whatever their “normal” was and gain the weight they lost back within a few months.
This is the classic yo-yo diet that most people trying to lose weight struggle with so much of the time.
“But Research Shows…..”
Remember that research and studies are great things. But often people who cite them are citing literally just one study out of thousands, and not meta analysis done on actual human beings. Or the study itself is flawed because it failed to account for other variables that it could not control.
For example, people cite stress as a cause for not being able to grow muscle by citing a study done on college students during finals week. The study "proved" that the added stress of finals limited the participants ability to gain muscle mass.
But might it have been other factors? Did the students sleep less? Did they eat EXACTLY the same as they did before? Did they train just as hard as they usually would have before finals week? These variables weren't controlled so there is no way of knowing.
So please, don’t let people citing science they don’t know much about scare you into doing something. Especially if it’s a doctor who is a doctor in a certain field speaking into a field they know nothing about to give the thing they're trying to sell you some kind of authoritative appeal.
The best thing you can do for your health is to stick to the basics and then, if you feel like you need to, start playing around with various other modalities and techniques while working with a professional who can guide you along the way.
So what do you need to do the next time you see someone quoting "science" at you on social media? Take it with a big ol' grain of salt and move on with your life.
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