Hanif Lalani on Making Food Choices That Feel Good Long-Term

Hanif Lalani on Making Food Choices That Feel Good Long-Term

Ask Hanif Lalani about nutrition, and he won’t start with calories, macros, or the latest elimination trend. He’ll ask how your meals make you feel—not just physically, but emotionally and energetically, too. As a UK-based health coach with a holistic focus, Lalani approaches food not as a battleground, but as a relationship. One that, ideally, lasts a lifetime.

You can read more on BBN Times, where his food philosophy intersects with training rhythm and nervous system awareness.

In Lalani’s view, long-term nutrition isn’t about discipline—it’s about attunement. He encourages clients to notice how different foods affect their focus, digestion, sleep, and mood. Rather than labeling foods “good” or “bad,” he reframes the conversation around fit: what supports your body’s unique rhythm and what doesn’t. This allows for structure, but also for flexibility, joy, and cultural relevance.

That balance is essential, especially in a landscape dominated by extremes. Lalani sees restrictive diets as short-term strategies at best—and self-sabotaging at worst. He’s worked with clients who’ve followed hyper-clean eating plans only to rebound into cycles of guilt and craving. His alternative? A framework that blends evidence-based guidance with lived experience. Whole foods are emphasized, yes—but so are pleasure, social connection, and consistency. The benefits of this approach are also reflected in how Hanif Lalani reframes coaching around emotion and eating cues.

Part of what makes Lalani’s approach sustainable is his emphasis on pattern recognition over perfection. He teaches clients to track how they feel after meals without judgment, building internal awareness alongside any data. Over time, this creates a kind of internal compass—one that guides food choices not through fear or shame, but through trust and curiosity.

His approach also takes into account the nervous system. When people are stressed, deprived, or overwhelmed, their relationship to food shifts—often unconsciously. Lalani incorporates tools for stress regulation and mindfulness into nutrition coaching, helping clients recognize when a craving is biological versus emotional, and what their body might actually be asking for.

Ultimately, Hanif Lalani believes long-term nutrition isn’t about controlling food—it’s about collaborating with the body’s wisdom.

For more details, visit his coaching space on Substack.