Christmas struggles!

Yesterday was the first big Christmas meal of the season for us. The wife and I went to see my brother down the road in Manchester and a few of the relatives were there.

I am pleased to say I was very strong during the meal and had to withhold from the potatoes and the dessert (which was apple pie and did look very tempting!).

I have to say that I did feel guilty, turning away from the food. I think it was because when other people had made so much effort cooking it that it looks like a personal affront to their skills. I always find that I have to explain myself and go into extreme detail about my the consequences of eating carbohydrates (I believe I used the term diabetic coma). Not strictly true but I do feel like shit after eating this sort of thing. As usual there are always cries of "one potato wont hurt", which is indeed true but I don't see why I should feel like crap all day (and days after incidentally) just to appease my guilt!

By Christmas day itself, I will have to try my best to avoid Christmas pudding. This is my absolute FAVE thing for Christmas dinner. However, if you had to invent something that truly knocks me for six, this is it! My Kryptonite if you will. I have also noted with interest recently that the cream that is with it causes my face to go bright red, in fact I look like I have cleansed my face with poison Ivy!

Please don't be under the impression that I will not enjoy Christmas because of my abstinence! On the contrary, I will enjoy the feelings of being normal, by concentrating on meat, veg and fat (and maybe 1 chocolate :-)).

Merry Christmas!

Andy

Calorie Counting Nonsense-one step forward 2 back

The latest "research" has apparently indicated that the current calorie recommendations for people are wrong!

Great news! That's what us low carbers have been saying for a long time. So, is this finally the time that those "in control" cure the obesity crisis forever and point to sugar as the real culprit? Alas no.

According to this article, the current recommendations of calorie intake are wrong and people can eat 400 calories more per day. Great. And what foods do they indicate would fill the 400 void? A cheeseburger, ice cream, an average sized cupcake.

So having realised that years of recommended calorie intake isn't working, the advice is to eat more? Brilliant! No information about choices, or macro nutrients but eat more cakes and cheeseburgers!

No wonder people are so confused!

Bad bad breakfast!

Hey all you low carbers!

Despite the main-stream media still being fat phobic, I was delighted to see a program the other day on channel4 about how unhealthy and full of sugar the average breakfast is. I believe it is a step in the right direction for how detrimental to long term health these sorts of foods are.

On the program it was clear to see how the marketing of breakfast cereals has cleverly placed them as "leaders" in health . It appears that the consumer was catching on to the fact that cereals might be a little unhalthyl. The companies therefore changed tactics and rebranded themselves as "fortified with vitamins" or "whole grain full".

By the way, Kelloggs is worth a staggering £12 BILLION POUNDS! This makes them a very dangerous enemy in the quest for the health of the nation. When you think about it, they are doing more damage than someone like Macdonalds because the kids eat this stuff daily, whereas it will be unlikely that the same can be said of a Big Mac (at least in children anyway).

What is it about whole grains? Where did we get the idea that we need them to stay alive? Much love and low carbyness to all!


Best wishes,

Junkie

6 week cure for the middle aged middle

I just got hold of the latest book by Protein Power authors, Dr.s Michael and Mary Eades. Its called the 6 week cure for the middle aged middle.

The book details why in middle age people tend to have bellies despite being slim overall. It details why our eating and drinking habits are playing havoc with our hormones and causing fat to be deposited where it ain't supposed to be!

I also discovered how saturated fat can actively trim your middle, why the "eat less exercise more" prescription fails-and what to do about it and how to fight the fat stored inside your liver that leads to hard-to-lose middle body flab.

In my own experience, I have always had a belly despite being slim overall. I have lean arms and legs, but my belly looks like it has been inflated at times! One of the major culprits is caffeine. Excessive caffeine consumption can increase cortisol which you may be aware can increase fat gain.

Although I am only 29 I am going to give this a go for 6 weeks. Weeks 1&2 is about giving you liver a rest throughout the day by drinking protein shakes only and then having one meal at night.

I am currently on day 2 of this program with NO COFFEE! Now I happily admit I am a coffee junkie (as well as a carb junkie) so this is bloody hard! I have a pounding headache and I feel like I am on withdrawal mode. Last night I am sure I dreamt about cappuccinos!

I will give you some feedback on my results. I wont be doing measurements, I will simply be giving feedback on how I feel and whether my belly reduces!

Wish me luck!

Andy

Food Pyramid

Brilliant link here to Michael Eades and the food pyramid.

Spinning around!

Hello all. Just a report here on what happened to me when I went to a spinning class the other day at the gym, and how I felt during and after.

I had not eaten throughout the day as I was on my "warrior" fast and the spinning class started at 6pm. I have not done a spinning class for about 10 years so I was a little nervous before as I was unsure of what my performance would be like, especially as this was a bit of an experiment in relation to the food.

However, although I found the class tough, it was not as difficult as I thought it was going to be. In fact at the end of the class I felt as though I could have continued and done it again! Interesting findings I thought.

OK, I could have pushed myself harder, but I was following the instructor perfectly- as was everyone else, but everyone else was looking SHATTERED! I was keeping an eye on the effort levels of other people and they were probably working as hard as I was, some of these guys are regular to this class apparently.

This made me think that perhaps I was at a physical advantage due to my fasting during the day. Everyone else who was supping on their energy drinks were trying to prepare for the activity ahead, whereas in fact possibly the best preparation is to eat nothing.

My fasted state means that my body is in fat burning mode already. So when the exercise kicks in it is already in its optimum state to maintain this energy release consistently. In other words my body is burning fat as a fuel which is a more efficient energy to burn.

The other poor guys in there would be only using carbohydrate in the muscles, so it IS NO WONDER it would be more difficult for them to exercise and that is why I think the spinning would feel so difficult.

Listen, I am not a particularly hard core exerciser, I do some every now and again and I enjoy it, but I also like to drink and eat lots of food! However, I did feel very fit in this class and I felt as though I could continue almost indefinitely (maybe not, but hey I was feeling great!).

Based on my own findings, I wonder if we are inherently fit individuals. I wonder if exercise is actually easier then it FEELS to us. You know how when you do an exercise session it is very difficult at the start but then gets easier? Well I think we are meant to start into the easy part. And we would do this by exercising in a fasted state.

What do you think?

No change

You know how when you go to the gym everyone in there always seems to stay the same shape regardless of how long they have been going there?

This is something that everyone just accepts and never questions. I know that every gym has some people who are extremely fit and have great bodies but the majority look pretty unconditioned I think.

If effort and time spent in the gym were proportional to fat lost/muscle gained then everyone would progress. It is true however that some people are genuinely happy with their current physical state and go to the gym only to stay healthy, but I believe the majority are there to change.

I believe the problems come not only from the activity being done in the gym but also what the people take inside them before and after a workout.

I have seen obese people eating an energy bar before a workout, doing some cardio for 20 minutes and then drinking gatorade afterwards. This is where people are going seriously wrong. They believe they are taxing themselves to such an extent that they need this energy release to assist them through the exercise.

Bollocks!

As ever, it is a hormone cascade that results in our bodies changing shape for good or for bad.

Bearing this in mind, I am going to see if it possible to burn fat and build lean muscle by spending no more that 30 minutes in the gym 3 times per week. I believe this is plenty of time as I will be doing big muscle groups only (no triceps dips!)

Where possible I will be working out fasted, or at least not eaten for a few hours. I will document all the activity on here and let you know the results.

Best wishes,

Junkie