There are so many different options out there when it comes to diets, it can be difficult to sift through everything to find one that suits you. Keto? Paleo? Clean eating? Low carb? High protein? Intermittent fasting? Mediterranean? Vegan? Vegetarian? Gluten-free? And that's just the tip of the iceberg. So which one should you be following?

There's no single right answer for this as your nutrition needs and preferences are unique, but whatever ticks these boxes for you is likely going to be a winner:

• It is sustainable
• It fits your budget
• It doesn't leave you hungry
• It contains mostly nutrient-dense whole foods
• It's in line with your ethics
• It helps you achieve your health goals
• It fits in with cultural/home life
• It's one that you enjoy

Why do some diets fail?

It's not you, it's the diet! If a diet fails it likely means it was either too difficult and/or unsustainable. This is common in short-term, fast fix diets which will often be labelled as detoxes, cleanses or fast weightloss programmes.

While they can be a great way to kickstart healthier eating habits, they often don't teach you how to sustain the changes beyond the end of the programme. They may involve expensive supplements, non-typical ingredients or ask you to do things such as counting calories or weighing food that becomes tedious or hard to keep up when not at home or when your life circumstances change for whatever reason.

Social occasions, holidays, dining out, changes in life or health circumstances, travelling, pregnancy, breastfeeding, event training, sleep quality and quantity, stress... all of these things and more can affect your ability to stick to a diet in the long term. If the diet you've chosen to follow doesn't take this into consideration and allow you enough flexibility, it will likely always feel like a struggle to keep it up.

What will work for me?

For some people, specific diets with certain restrictions may work well depending on the bullet-point list above. For the majority of people, an everything in moderation approach will help cover all nutrition bases and be more sustainable over time.

This means:

• Learning what everything in moderation means; we've often lost sight of this thanks to all the confusion around diets and food
• Eating a base of nutritious, mostly whole foods
• Knowing what portion sizes are right for your body to gain/lose/maintain weight
• Recognising your body's cue for hunger and fullness
• Recognising which foods cause your body discomfort (i.e. bloating, indigestion)
• Having food that leaves you feeling satisfied and happy
• Making conscious healthier choices as much as possible (but if you choose to have takeaways or a piece of cake, own that decision and savour the food as a treat)

Whatever your nutrition goals are, breaking them down into small bite-sized mini goals that you can action on a day-to-day basis and tackling them one at a time will help you make your changes in a way you're more likely to be able to stick to for life.

Image / DepositPhotos