I am trying to lose weight but was struggling with compliance, tried eating only 5 foods and saw better compliance for 2 weeks, mainly because other foods weren’t in my apartment. The 5 foods were:
Non fat plain greek yogurt
Broccoli
Unsalted Almonds
6 Pasture-raised Eggs - 4 times a week
7.5 oz Wild caught sockeye salmon - 3 times a week.
I take two supplements
5g Creatine monohydrate
1 multivitamin
When looking through Barbell Medicine diet recommendations, it looked like my diet met all the criteria. However, I am curious if there is anything that I am missing.
List of foods that I have struggled with: Any snacks, sugar, salt (though I do get >600mg a day), carbs like wheat/rice/oatmeal, fruit, high fat dairy, meat.
I do normally go out twice a week and have food beside this, but for my other 26 meals only eat those 5 foods. I have a busy schedule and don’t have much time to cook or make frequent grocery trips, so just keeping other food out of the house seems to be my best strategy so far for remaining compliant.
Are there any risks to eating these 5 foods this for 3-6 months that would outweigh compliance benefits? If you could provide studies or any other evidence, that would be great.
I don’t think many diets pose a serious risk in the short-term, including complete fasting. Whether short-term restrictions in diet variability produce better or worse long-term outcomes is up for debate, though my prediction is that some will do well and most will not. People will vary significantly in their response, but because the restricted variety doesn’t develop adaptable behavior patterns for the modern food environment, I don’t think it’s a great for routine use.
In your particular situation, I see no whole grains, no legumes, and no fruits. I don’t think that’s consistent with a health promoting dietary pattern in most cases. I also don’t think going low-carb is likely to support training related adaptations generally speaking, but if prioritizing weight loss, you could adopt a low carb approach. Again, I have concerns with long term adherence and success. There’s some data supporting better outcomes with increased variety:
I would want to know more about what you mean regarding foods you struggle with, especially the minimally- and un-processed ones. We’re starting to get into consultation territory though. We’d be happy to help if that’s something you’re interested in.
If I may suggest something, I’d try and expanding each of the items you have here a bit. I also think you need additional protein and carbohydrate sources in your diet. While I do agree with altering the food microenvironment as needed to suit your goals, I would not limit your intake to only 5 foods.