December 6, 2018

If you read last week's article “What Is The Perfect Human Diet? Beginner, Intermediate & Advanced Meal Plans From Ben Greenfield That Tell You Exactly How To Eat For Your Unique Body.“, then you are no doubt are already aware that I'm not a big fan of a myopic “one-size-fits-all” approach to diets.

And yet, despite the enormous amount of biochemical individuality that exists from person to person, there is still a plethora of diet books published each year (particularly close to swimsuit season or the New Year) that promise to be the de facto final solution for everything from fat loss to banishing acne to beating cravings and building muscle when, in fact, the same ketogenic diet that helped your neighbor shed twenty pounds can result in rampant inflammation, brain fog and oxidized cholesterol for you. The same could be said for a vegan diet, a carnivore diet or many of the other currently popular eating approaches.

In last week's podcast, part 1 of a 2 part series on customizing your diet, you discovered more about the concept of biochemical individuality, along with how to test your body to determine the perfect diet for you, and a range of dietary options to choose from that have been vetted by yours truly.

In this episode, part 2, you're going to learn how to customize your diet even more if you are wanting to eat a plant-based diet, notorious mistakes made on a ketogenic diet and how to fix them, how to support and sustain the environment with your food choices, and my top books and resources for learning more. Enjoy!

During this solosode, you'll discover:

-The best way to go about a plant-based diet…6:25

• My own personal stance: While it's possible to live a healthy lifestyle minus eggs and meat, you must be very careful and knowledgeable about your diet.
  • It's easy to feel good in the short term, while doing lasting damage to your body in the long term.
  • You can build up deficits on any type of diet: ketogenic, carnivore, etc.
• 10 strategies to keep in mind to avoid deficiencies:
  1. Eat real food. Avoid processed foods.
  2. Be cognizant of inflammatory Omega 6 vegetable oils. Get fats from Mediterranean sources.
  3. Vitamin K2 supplement
  4. Get adequate Vitamin A
  5. Properly prepare soy products (or ferment them yourself)
  6. Non-heme-based iron
  7. Iodine intake
  8. Vitamin B12
  9. Taurine
  10. Creatine

-Best practices when doing a ketogenic diet…23:20

• If you want to go keto, consider including some things that are not purely plant-based (like eggs.)
• Consider adding dairy to your diet (if practicable)
• If the two above suggestions are not possible, take niacin and thiamin.
• High amounts of algal oil
• Book: Ketotarian: The (Mostly) Plant-Based Plan to Burn Fat, Boost Your Energy, Crush Your Cravings, and Calm Inflammation
• Beware of the following deficiencies:
  • Sodium
  • Glutamine
  • Amino acids
  • Taurine
  • Medium chain triglycerides
  • Prebiotics
  • Choline
  • Potassium

-How to support and sustain the environment with your food choices…36:00

• Identify your minimum effective dose of animal products. (Around 10%)
• Minimize food waste. 
• Support sustainability and efficiency. (Farmers markets)
• Incorporate a wide variety of foods. (Experiment, try new things.) 

-My top resources on how to turn yourself into a health and nutrition NINJA!…44:00

• Books:
  • Biochemical Individuality – Roger Williams
  • Returning to an Ancestral Diet – Dr. Michael Smith
  • The Jungle Effect: Healthiest Diets from Around the World-Why They Work and How to Make Them Work for You – Daphne Miller M.D
  • Wired to Eat: Turn Off Cravings, Rewire Your Appetite for Weight Loss, and Determine the Foods That Work for You – Robb Wolf
  • The Plant Paradox: The Hidden Dangers in “Healthy” Foods That Cause Disease and Weight Gain – Steven R. Gundry
  • Deep Nutrition: Why Your Genes Need Traditional Food – Dr. Cate Shanahan, M.D.
  • The Art of Fermentation: An In-Depth Exploration of Essential Concepts and Processes from Around the World – Sandor Ellix Katz
  • A Simple Guide to the Paleo Autoimmune Protocol – Eileen Laird
  • Perfect Health Diet: Regain Health and Lose Weight by Eating the Way You Were Meant to Eat – Paul Jaminet Ph.D. and Shou-Ching Jaminet Ph.D.
• Articles:
  •  Can a Vegan Go Keto?
  •  F*@# Diets – Customized, Delicious Nutrition Made Easy.
  •  How To Be Extremely Active And Eat A Plant-Based Diet Without Destroying Your Body.

-And much more…

Click here for the full written transcript of this podcast episode.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Book: Ketotarian: The (Mostly) Plant-Based Plan to Burn Fat, Boost Your Energy, Crush Your Cravings, and Calm Inflammation

–The Zen Of Customizing Your Diet To Your Unique Body And Goals – For Vegans, Females, Seniors, Kids, Fasting, & Ketosis. <–contains many of the vegan, plant-based tips I give in this podcast

Article: How To Use Genetic Testing To Personalize Your Workout And Diet.

Article: The Jungle Effect: Book Unlocks the Power of Indigenous Diets

Article: Guts and Grease: The Diet of Native Americans

Article: Country Food (Inuit Food) in Canada

Article: Why You Should Think Twice About Vegetarian and Vegan Diets

Other Resources:

The Wahls Protocol: A Radical New Way to Treat All Chronic Autoimmune Conditions Using Paleo Principles – Dr. Terry Wahls M.D.

Nourishing Traditions – Sally Fallon

Recommended Tests:

Blood: WellnessFX Longevity Panel for Women

Blood: WellnessFX Longevity Panel for Men

Microbiome: Diagnostics Solutions GI MAP

Microbiome: GI Effects Comprehensive Stool Profile Genova Kit – Direct Labs

Microbiome: Viome – use code: FITNESS for $50 off

DNA: 23andMe

DNA: DNAFit

DNA: Youtrients Genomic Analysis from The Centre for Biological Medicine – use code CBMBGF ($50 off consultation, $520 off testing, $130 off monthly price for custom supplements)

Optional Tests:

Cyrex Labs Array 10 Multiple Food Immune Reactivity Screen

Genova Individual Optimal Nutrition (ION) Profile – DirectLabs

Metabolic Test – To find a Metabolic Testing Center near you, Google the name of your city + Resting Metabolic Rate Test (RMR) and Metabolic Test (VO2 Max Protocol).

– SeafoodWatch.org, which can help you make more sustainable seafood choices.

– WaterCalculator.org, which can help you learn more about how much water your household uses.

– The Cornucopia dairy scorecard, which ranks more sustainable dairy brands.

– The Cornucopia egg scorecard, which ranks more sustainable egg brands.

– Buying Poultry, which ranks more sustainable poultry brands.

– Eat Wild, which includes sustainable meat options.

– Local Harvest, which helps you find local food options.

– Better World Shoppers Guide, which helps locate companies that engage in more environmentally friendly practices.

– CarboTax, which gives you a series of questions to help you compare how your climate impact compares to that of the average American.

– The Footprint calculator, which gives you a series of questions to help you identify your environmental footprint.

– Greener Choices, which provides consumer reports for environmentally friendly products.

– Less Meat Less Heat: The Climatarian Challenge App, which provides education on the impact that meat consumption can have on the environment.

Episode Sponsors:

–Kion Recovery Bundle. Kion's Recovery Supplement Trifecta! Contains: Kion Flex, Kion Aminos Tablets, LivingFuel SuperEssentials Omega 3EDA+

–MVMT Watches Need ideas for your holiday shopping? MVMT Watches has got you covered! Get 15% off + free shipping when you use my link.

–Clearlight Jacuzzi Saunas I recommend the Sanctuary model. Get $500 off your purchase and a special gift when you use code: BEN at checkout!

–Organifi Hundreds of thousands of women and men use Organifi products to sleep better, get their energy back and achieve their weight loss goals. Are you next? Get 20% off your order when you use the code here at checkout.

Do you have questions, thoughts or feedback for me about customizing and personalizing your diet? Leave your comments below and I will reply!