The 7 Most Sustainable Diets to Start in 2024, According to RDs

Have you ever started a new diet only to give up because it left you feeling hungry, drained, and defeated? You’re not alone. The truth is there are tons of eating plans out there, but few are sustainable, easy to follow, and effective.

A “sustainable diet” is one you will stick with for a lifetime, so it should offer all the nutrients your body needs. It should also bring other benefits to the table, whether that be weight loss, disease prevention, or simply a better relationship with your food, your body, and yourself.

While there’s no one-size-fits-all approach for healthy eating — and some might require a restrictive plan for specific reasons — one of these more flexible, sustainable diets below might be worth a shot. 

Top 7 Sustainable Diets for 2024

With so many different diet plans and weight loss programs available, figuring out which ones are safe, healthy, and sustainable can be challenging. Here are a few of the top choices to consider, according to experts.

1. Mediterranean Diet

If you’re looking for a tried-and-true eating plan, look no further than the Mediterranean diet, which is centered on the traditional diets of Mediterranean countries like Greece, Spain, and Italy. “The Mediterranean diet stands out for its emphasis on whole, minimally processed foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, lean proteins, and olive oil,” explains certified sports dietitian Tim DiLeo, RD, CSSD.

Not only is the Mediterranean diet popular for its flexible, no-frills approach to healthy eating, but it’s also backed by a long list of possible health perks. Case in point: Research shows that following a Mediterranean diet might stabilize blood sugar levels, reduce the risk of diabetes and heart disease, protect against cognitive decline, and even help you live longer.

If you’re interested in giving the Mediterranean diet a try, the Lose It! app is a great place to start. After setting your nutrition strategy to the “Mediterranean diet” option, you’ll receive personalized health goals and expert-backed tips to help you reach them.

2. Hara Hachi Bu

Hara hachi bu is a Japanese eating philosophy often touted as the secret to a longer lifespan. It is believed to have originated in Okinawa, an island in Japan that’s home to some of the longest-living people in the world. Unlike other diets that require you to meticulously track carbs or calories, this practice has just one simple rule: Eat only until you’re 80 percent full. Pairing this practice with mindful eating (more on that later) can make this a bit easier as you get going.

In addition to increasing your lifespan, this way of eating might help you lose weight, according to Mindy Roth, RDN. “It can aid in weight loss/maintenance by allowing the body more time to recognize and signal fullness,” she explains. “By stopping short of full satiety, we reduce the risk of overeating and consuming excess calories.”

3. Flexitarian Diet

If you’re interested in eating less meat, the flexitarian diet might be a good fit. This eating pattern shifts the focus to plant foods, but not exclusively. While this diet is all about consuming a variety of plant foods daily — such as fruits, veggies, whole grains, nuts, seeds, and legumes — animal products are also okay in smaller amounts. For that reason, the flexitarian diet isn’t as strict as a vegan or vegetarian diet, offering a little wiggle room to enjoy other foods. 

Besides benefiting the environment, following a flexitarian diet is good for your health. Research shows that flexitarian diets could improve metabolic health, aid in weight loss, and decrease the risk of type 2 diabetes.

4. Add, Don’t Subtract

The “add, don’t subtract” method takes the opposite approach of most traditional diet plans. Instead of avoiding specific ingredients or eliminating entire food groups from your diet, it emphasizes adding more nutritious foods to your weekly menu. Not only can this prevent feelings of deprivation (a common issue with many fad diets), but it can also help you enjoy more healthy meals and even experiment with some new and interesting ingredients in the process.

“This approach ensures a diverse range of essential nutrients, supports metabolic health, regulates appetite, and fosters positive eating habits,” says Roth. “Unlike restrictive diets, focusing on inclusion creates a sustainable, enjoyable, and long-lasting path to weight management.”

5. Heart-Healthy Diet

Though the heart-healthy diet (also known as the DASH diet) was originally developed to lower blood pressure levels, it has become increasingly popular as a simple, straightforward eating approach to support overall health. The diet offers more structure than some other plans by providing guidelines for the number of servings from each food group that you should aim for each day or week while limiting sugary snacks, alcohol, and salty foods. Set your nutrition strategy to “Heart-Healthy” in the Lose It! app for customized nutrition goals and tips.

DiLeo recommends the DASH diet as one of the top sustainable eating patterns for 2024. “With its emphasis on whole foods and balanced nutrition, it offers a sustainable choice for long-term health,” he says. What’s more, research shows the DASH diet could be effective for weight loss while lowering blood pressure and cholesterol levels to promote heart health.

6. Mindful Eating

Mindful eating doesn’t include any guidelines on what or how much you should eat. Instead, it reframes how you eat by bringing your focus back to your food, minimizing distractions, and encouraging you to fully enjoy the way each bite tastes, smells, looks, and feels. Interestingly, it could even boost weight loss, according to Roth.

“Mindful eating works for weight loss by promoting heightened awareness of hunger and fullness cues, preventing emotional overeating, and fostering a positive relationship with food,” says Roth. “It [also] encourages savoring each bite, breaking automatic eating habits, and cultivating long-term behavior change, making it a sustainable approach to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight.”

7. Plate Method

The USDA’s Plate Method (also known as MyPlate) makes it easy to enjoy more balanced meals at home by providing a visual guide for what a healthy plate should look like: At any given meal, half of your plate is vegetables and fruit, one quarter is protein, and the remaining quarter is grains and starches.

This method doesn’t provide any strict guidelines on which foods are permitted or restricted, meaning that you can easily tailor it to your taste buds to find what works for you. But if you need extra guidance, you can always plug your foods into the Lose It! app for a quick breakdown of the macronutrient composition of each meal to help you hit your goals.

Set Your Sustainable Calorie Goal for the Year

If you want to track calories as part of your weight loss or maintenance plan, this calculator can help determine your ideal daily calorie intake.

Note: This is intended to be a general guide only. For more individualized recommendations, please talk with your doctor or dietitian.

Editorial Sources and Fact-Checking

• Guasch-Ferré M and Willett WC. The Mediterranean Diet and Health: A Comprehensive Overview. Journal of Internal Medicine. September 2021.
• Pes GM, Pina Dore M, Tsofliou F, et al. Diet and Longevity in the Blue Zones: A Set-And-Forget Issue? Maturitas. October 2022.
• Derbyshire EJ. Flexitarian Diets and Health: A Review of the Evidence-Based Literature. Frontiers in Nutrition. January 6, 2017.
• Lari A, Sohouli MH, Fatahi S, et al. The Effects of the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (Dash) Diet on Metabolic Risk Factors in Patients With Chronic Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Nutrition, Metabolism, and Cardiovascular Diseases. September 22, 2021.
• What Is MyPlate? U.S. Department of Agriculture.