The truth lived
Long before nutritionists started talking about 'proteins', 'lipids' or 'macros', people on my Portuguese coast were already living according to these principles, without even knowing it. My grandfather, when he went to sea, did not wonder if his breakfast was balanced. He ate what gave him the strength to row and haul in the nets. He ate fish, eggs, a little cheese, and vegetables from the garden. It was a lived truth, a science of survival and performance that did not need complicated words to exist.
This ancestral wisdom was based on observation and experience. We saw what worked, what made us strong, what allowed us to last. There were no abstract theories, only the reality of the body in action. By returning to this diet today, I am not making a scientific discovery, I am making an act of memory. I recognize that our ancestors had found, by force of circumstances, the optimal method of using the human machine. Science only confirms what the coast has known all along.
The evidence of the product
The logic of the coast was disarmingly simple: you eat what you have. And what we had was plenty of fish. Fish was the base, the foundation of every meal. Cereals like rice or wheat were rare, expensive, and often reserved for special occasions. We didn't deprive ourselves of carbohydrates out of ideology, we did without them out of necessity. And this necessity has forged robust bodies and clear minds. Health was the natural consequence of a diet dictated by the territory.
This logic of the raw product is what we lack the most today. We are lost in a sea of artificial choices, forgetting that the answer is right there in front of us. Grilled fish with a drizzle of olive oil is not a 'low-carb recipe', it is the universal coastal meal. It is the purest expression of our environment. By rediscovering this logic, we find our place in the world. We stop being consumers and become living beings again, connected to their source.
The legacy of the elders
When I look at the elders of my village, I see health incarnate. They are eighty years old, but they still walk with a firm step, they have lively eyes and an energy that never seems to run out. They never dieted, they never counted their calories. They simply ate as the coast demanded. Their health is not a miracle, it is the result of a lifetime spent respecting the laws of nature. They are living witnesses to a truth that we have ignored for too long.
Their example is my greatest source of inspiration. At 35, I don't just want to be 'thin' or 'fit', I want that lasting strength, that clarity that spans the decades. I want to age like them, with dignity and vitality. For that, I must follow their path. I must eat what is true, what is dense, what is alive. Health is not a concept that we buy, it is a heritage that we cultivate every day at the table. The elders showed us the way, we just need to not forget it.
Honor your roots
Today, the world is rediscovering low-carb as a revolutionary novelty. We talk about it in podcasts, we write books about it. But for me, it's a worthy rediscovery of my own roots. This is a belated recognition of the value of our coastal culture. I don't feel like a follower of a new fashion, but like a girl coming home after a long trip. I rediscover the flavors, gestures and sensations that rocked my childhood. It's a return to basics.
I can tell my children, with immense pride: 'This is how your great-grandmother cooked'. This sentence anchors them in a solid reality, far from passing fashions. It gives them a compass for their own lives. Tradition is not a weight, it is a force that carries us. By honoring our roots, we give ourselves the means to grow towards the light. The Portuguese coast has always known what is good for man. It's time to listen to it again, with respect and gratitude.
The wisdom of salt
The low-carb diet is not a modern invention, it is the age-old wisdom of those who live to the rhythm of the sea and the land.
I invite you to look beyond labels and theories. Look for truth in the raw product, in tradition, in the example of those who came before us. Find that simple and robust health that just needs to be expressed. Don't be afraid to go back to basics, that's where the real innovation lies. The table is the place of this reconciliation with ourselves. ¡Bom apetite e viva a sabedoria antiga!
