The 80/20 Rule: Put An End to Dieting

Yo-yo dieting is one of the easiest ways to not see any progress in the gym. Yo-yo dieting is when someone continuously switches from one restrictive diet to another, usually with periods of excessive eating in between. Have you ever told yourself you're starting a low-carb diet on Monday, so you ate all the carbs you could over the weekend? You probably strictly cut out all bread, pasta, cake, and basically everything enjoyable in life for a couple days. After a few days of being hungry and miserable you went right back to your old eating habits. You've probably gone through this cycle a couple times with a few different diets, or at least know someone who has. This is an example of yo-yo dieting. It makes you feel awful and at the end of the day you've done nothing to improve your health or physique. It's time to put an end to dieting and finally see results without having to be hangry.

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What is the 80/20 Rule?

The 80/20 rule is not a diet. It's basically just a loose guideline for eating. It means that 80% of your diet should be "clean" or "healthy" foods. You want the majority of what you eat to be rich in micronutrients, so that your body gets everything it needs. The other 20% of your diet can be "unhealthy" or "treat" foods. if you're craving a cookie, a bowl of ice cream, or a Big Mac... then you can eat it!

What are the benefits?

The problem with diets is that they are often very restrictive. The more restrictive your diet is, the harder it is to follow through with. If you say that you're going to try eating more vegetables, you shouldn't struggle too much because it doesn't involve cutting anything out. On the other hand, you may say you're going to cut out carbs, but it's pretty unrealistic to think that you will never eat carbs again. The 80/20 rule is relatively easy to stick to. Rather than cutting out all of your favorite foods, you just eat them in moderation. Implementing the 80/20 can also help reduce excessive eating. When you're about to start a new diet, you probably pig out on all the foods you know you won't be able to enjoy anymore. You might eat salads all week and then eat an entire pizza, a pint of ice cream, and 5 donuts on your cheat day. These things are counter productive. With the 80/20 rule you don't feel the need to over indulge on your diet breaks, because it isn't a diet. It's changing your lifestyle and choosing to look at food in a different way.

How Do I Implement It?

I use the 80/20 rule to help me be more mindful of the things I'm consuming. It's a loose guideline to what I should eat in a day. If you don't usually put too much thought into what you eat, then I suggest starting a food diary. This could be as simple as writing down what you've eaten in a note on your phone, and looking at it before bed to reflect.

Heres an example of what I would eat in a typical day:

Breakfast - Oatmeal and greek yogurt

Mid-morning snack - Protein bar and a serving of chips

Pre-workout - Banana plus a scoop of C4

Lunch/Post-workout - Tuna melt with fruit and a protein shake

Snack - Popcorn and 2 oreos

Dinner - Salmon with a sweat potato and a serving of veggies

Dessert - Ice cream

This can vary a lot depending on what I'm doing that day and what I'm craving. In general, if I'm craving something then I eat it. I basically never go a full day of eating only "healthy" foods. Remember this is extremely flexible. Sometimes I'll be tired or busy and I'll end up eating mostly fast food. You shouldn't feel guilty about stuff like that. The key is to using moderation the majority of the time and developing a healthy relationship with food.

Food isn't something to be scared of. It's not something to feel guilty about. Food is your body's fuel. It is what allows you to climb mountains, laugh with your best friend, and kiss your significant other.