I think "did" work as a normal verb in this situation, but I'm not sure about it. I would like to have your opinion. Thank you!
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Did would be a "helping verb" in, say, I did do the best I could, where it implies emphasis / refutation. – FumbleFingers Reinstate Monica May 31 '16 at 14:22
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To do one's best is an idiom which means to do something as well as one can, so the sentence may also read:
I did everything I could.
or
I did my best.
In both examples the verb to do has its literal meaning of to carry out an action/actions, so did, in the examples, is just the past form of the verb.
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There's nothing wrong with "I did the best I could" - there's no need to change it. "I did my best" doesn't mean quite the same thing. – nnnnnn May 31 '16 at 11:17
