Theory to Practice

“Men and nations behave wisely once they have exhausted all the other alternatives.”

- Abba Eban

Inundate yourself with Paleo-minded information long enough, it’s easy to come to the conclusion that insulin is the consummate “bad guy” hormone.  That’s a little too simplistic a way to look at insulin, though — even for those of us who, though not trained specifically in the medical sciences, choose to enhance our lives through proper diet, exercise and well-rounded knowledge.  Insulin is, of course, critical for life and optimal health, and it’s not the hormone per se that is inherently evil, but the gross tilting of that hormone level beyond anything that the human body has evolved to handle that defines the problem.

In this clip (alternatively, you can jump to the Nov. 8th, 2009 WOD from the CrossFit home site), Robb Wolf discusses a case study in obesity, metabolic syndrome, and (though he doesn’t get into it here), the classic indicators of carbohydrate addiction.   If you’re a member of the CrossFit Journal (I highly recommend it, though I’m certainly no shill for CrossFit, nor do I fully endorse all of CrossFit’s ideologies), you can view a much larger portion of this video (over 7 minutes worth).

The take-away message here — and what we, as Paleo-minded, physical culturalists need to keep in mind — is that, within the body, insulin’s dictate (when excessively elevated) is to is promote/accelerate energy storage, maturation, reproduction and decline (death).  And from an evolutionary prospective, of course, this all makes perfect sense.  Quicker turnover equates to a more nimble and adaptive species.  In your grandma’s day, young girls matured in their later teens.  Nowadays, girls as young as 9 have reached reproductive maturity.  I’m not saying all of this can be laid at the feet of a hyper-insulin environment — there are plenty of other notable suspects lurking about in our diets — but I’d be willing to bet that an out-of-control insulin level has a big hand in this.

And just as Robb alluded to in the clip, the body can’t be fooled by artificial sweeteners.  The key is to successfully break the desire for the sweet taste (and thus eliminate the carb jonze), not placate that need by the use of artificial sweeteners — the equivalent of handing out methadone to heroin addicts.

Though we use the metaphor frequently, the body is not a simple furnace that serves solely to liberate energy from raw material.   There are complex storage and release components at work as well; hence the truth of a calorie not being a calorie.  The amount of energy contained in a calorie is, of course constant; what’s not constant is the hormonal impact that calorie source will have upon its host.  The first law of thermodynamics works fine for a closed system (the “furnace model”), but not for an open system, i.e., a living being.

In health,

Keith

“Diogenes struck the father when the son swore.”

- Robert Burton

The following question comes by way of TTP reader Bret Brams (any relation to Johannes, I wonder?), a teacher from Belgium.  Bret tells me that his interests revolve around anything related to the fields of nutrition, sports science, psychology and biology.   Sounds like a pre-requisite hanging out around these parts, huh?  And when he’s not ladling knowledge over dry but eager minds, Bret busies himself with competitive powerlifting and sprinting.  Bret also wanted me to extend, for him, a hearty welcome to any serious trainees who’d like to join him in his fully-equipped home gym in Belgium; all are welcome to come down and train with him, or just hang out and discuss any and all aspects of physical culture.  If you’re in the neighborhood, look him up; if not, you can can find Bret here, at his Facebook page.

On to Bret’s question:

I’ve read your thoughts and habits on meal frequency and such. How much do you think this matters in muscle preservation? Slowly I’m weaning myself off the bodybuilding idea that you have to eat every few hours to retain muscle, however, it’s still somewhat foreign to me.

I’ve gone from 8 to 6 to 5 to 4 meals a day over the years, now eating fully paleo. Reliance on hunger has become something unnatural to me, as I’ve always disciplined myself to eat every few hours(for the typical reasons … digestion, etc.). I haven’t gotten around to fasting yet, but I’m trying. It seems I’m still hungry(for the good stuff, but still)and can easily eat the entire day, even on paleo foods.

Can you perhaps address what you noticed in terms of muscle loss/gain and fat loss?
I assume that initially one will lose some muscle(due to loss of muscle glycogen) but will afterwards gain it back when his insulin sensitivity rises and the glycogen sparing effects of the fasting improve.

Less is more?

Sincerely yours,

Bert

My Reply follows.  Bret will notice that I’ve embellished quite a bit from the answer I originally sent back his way; the advantage of a little extra thought and a little extra time:

I went through the same wrestle with the meal frequency issue, and truthfully, only recently do I think I’ve fully got a handle on it.  A few tears back I’d thought that, having completed a few months of full-on Paleo lifestyle, that I’d fully transitioned to the Paleo way — but the problem of meal frequency (and of still being “hungry” numerous times throughout the day) persisted.  Eventually, though, I reached the point of being able to listen — really listen — to my body, eating only when truly hungry. I do think that it takes a while, however, to get to that point; especially coming out of the old, ingrained, “6-times-a-day” habit.  And this is largely the result of two separate (but wickedly co-conspiring) phenomena –  social conditioning and carbohydrate addiction. Of course one must learn to navigate the practical issue of living Paleo in a modern environment as well, and this will be different for each individual due to their living/working circumstance.  For instance, I’ve had to learn how to square randomness in eating and working out with a mostly regimented and always extended-hours working life.  My solution(s) are not necessarily easy to implement or to follow — and they’re certainly not perfect — but they do represent the best I can do under my given, restricted, situation.  And that, I believe, is all that we can be asked to do.

But specifically, let’s look at the “big two” in way of obstacles to reaching meal frequency un-attachment — and forgive me if I begin to sound a little too Zen about this whole thing, but really, “un-attachment” and/or “dissociation” are key in finding resolution, here.  Are you truly hungry?  Then eat.  Eat what?  Well, I never go by hard and fast rules, but I try to consume more fat calories than protein, and certainly more animal protein calories than carbohydrate.  The rest takes care of itself.  How many times a day do I eat?  Well, the average is probably 3 — but I fast often (mostly in the 20 – 24-hour range, but sometimes as long as 36 – 48 hours), and many days I only eat once or twice.  In fact the only constant to my eating pattern is that there is no constant.  And as an overlay to this template is the random template of my workouts, with one having very little influence (if at all) on the other.  This was one aspect of the “social conditioning” that was so hard for me to break.  I’ve come now to believe, though, that the whole business (conventional notion) of “refueling” — timing windows and such as that — is, in a word, bogus.  And I am being quite generous here.  I also believe that the multiple-times-per-day eating regimens so popular now amongst bodybuilders and athletes is flawed — even if those meals are Paleo-like — because they act to limit the body’s need to and/or ability to utilize stored fat.  So this is more of a mental construct then, that must be dismantled and overcome.  My n=1 experience is that my musculature has taken on a definite degree of increased hardness due, I’m sure, by the shedding of  some intramuscular fat and a lack (due to a low carbohydrate environment) of water retention.  I’ve also experienced a reduction in subcutaneous fat and water retention as well.  And, to top it all off, I’ve banked a net gain in overall bodyweight (note the previously mentioned reduction in fat and water) over the last few years.   So, unless my bones and/or organs have massed-up, I’d have to say I’ve gained a decent amount of lean muscle tissue.  Hardly the “wasting-away” outcome from this manner of eating prophesied by the 6x/day “experts”.

The other half of the co-conspiring dynamic duo then, is carbohydrate addiction.  I almost hate to use the term, because it implies a certain level of sensationalism, but it is addiction we’re dealing with here, nothing less.  Now the degree of addiction may be more for some than for others, but addiction it is, none the less.  I’ve discussed the phenomena previously, here and here.  The short answer is, though, one is compelled to eat frequently for similar reasons as to why a smoker reaches for another cigarette — a combination of social conditioning and physical dependence.  Both phenomena must be overcome if one is to truly break the meal frequency cycle.

In health,

Keith

PS –  (10/23/09, 1550 EDT) I failed to include this post from Richard over at Free the Animal.  Make sure to check out the comments as well — lots of great information contained therein.  Carbohydrate addiction — and specifically, sugar and HFCS addiction — is no joke.

“The Commander stands for the virtues of wisdom, sincerely, benevolence, courage and strictness.”

- Sun Tzu, The Art of War

photo:alsohbennett

You may have missed this comment in the Dynamic Warm-up post; as such, I’d like to share it here, as I think it’s so very important, and dare I say, inspirational.  Now the very word inspirational has been so watered down — hackneyed even — that I’m loathe to use it. But really, in this case, I think that it’s justified.  Check it out:

Keith,
As always, I love your writing and appreciate all you do to keep us motivated.
I wanted to write an update on my continued attempts to put theory to practice as I have just reached 101 pounds lost. Having gone from 356 lbs. to 255 lbs. has given me so much vitality and joy. I can now fit in size 36 jeans and XL shirts, coming from size 48’s and 4XL!
I am still pumped about eating well (paleo with minimal cheats) and exercising (beginning Crossfit). I have survived stressful times without binge eating, which was a major concern.
Also, and most importantly to me, I am showing my children that these things are possible. A side note to this point: I have begun having the occasional ice cream with my kids. I felt that it was important to show good eating habits but also the ability to show restraint with foods that kids like. (Thoughts?)
They have begun to see that junk food need not be “everything” and they don’t ask for candy anymore. Well…at least not from me.
In fact, last week my dad even asked me to go over my diet with him. He sees the results and knows I am not eating poorly to lose weight and wants in. Yeah!
Anyway, this is where I am.
Hope you and yours are well. Please keep up your great writing.
Thank you,
Jeremy Palmer

A fantastic testimonial for the efficacy of the Paleo lifestyle.  And remember, this is nothing that I’ve created — this “lifestyle”, and the constituent building blocks thereof, have been around since the dawn of mankind.  This is our collective legacy.  I only endeavor to apply these ancient principles, best I can, within the challenges of a modern (and, let’s face it, nutritionally broken) society.  This is the task, the challenge, that confronts each and every one of us — every hour of every day.  Living this lifestyle requires intelligence, wisdom, a good dose of willpower (at least, initially) and a questioning — un-trusting even — attitude.  I’ve met with and conversed with a wide array of Paleo adherents throughout my own Paleo journey, as well as with many would-be, failed practitioners — from just about every ethnicity and socio-economic background you can imagine — and what I’ve found is this: what separates the adherent from the would-be and failed are two things; intelligence and a highly-skeptical, question-authority mindset.  At this point in the game — and until society as whole makes a drastic, nutritional U-turn (which I don’t see as happening in our lifetimes) — only those equipped with the tools and character to “break free of the Matrix” (red pill or blue pill, Neo?) — like our friend Jeremy, here — will succeed at the Paleo endeavor.  This isn’t a pessimist speaking, but the thoughts of a rationalist.  Think about how this manifests on your own lives.  How many of your own friends, family and associates are willing to cast themselves, without a net, into an intellectual solo-flight, an on-going n=1 experiment?  How many are willing to question heretofore “authoritative”, dietary, proclamations,cast aside what they once considered “truth”?  Red pill or blue pill, Neo?  Really, isn’t this what the Buddha asked as well?  Don’t blindly follow me, he said in essence, but tease these things out for yourself, in the laboratory of your own mind and in your own body.  Keep what works, discard what doesn’t.  Above all, though, question; aggressively and ceaselessly question.

And to quickly add my own 2 cents on the question of raising kids within a Paleo framework:

(1) Living as an example is, in my opinion, the best thing you can do, coupled with an on-going discussion of why (at an age-appropriate level, of course) you’ve made this dietary and lifestyle choice.  Do all you can to develop within them the notion of respectful questioning.  Because, let’s face it, sooner or later you have to let them free in the big, woolly (and woefully mis-informed) world, a world governed by — you guessed it — experts.  And being a mainstream “expert” only means that one has majority backing; that may, or may not, connote any modicum of truth.

(2) High dose fish oil, especially in children, will aide in blunting the effects of a less-than-perfect diet.  They will eat crap, no doubt — and lot’s of it — because society at large encourages it, and at a certain point, the need to fit in (or at the very least, not “fit-out”) will override all else.  More on fish oil in a later post.

(3) Personally, I’m not a believer in half-measures — but that’s just me.  I certainly understand where you’re coming from though, Jeremy.  Kids do need to be taught moderation so as to equip them for navigating the real, un-informed world.  This is a touchy question, and I’m calling out to experienced TTP readers to weigh-in on this one.  The way I approached this with my own was to say I choose not to partake because (insert age-appropriate reasoning).  Ultimately, though, you have to make your own choices about how to treat your own body and your own health.  Now, my kids were much older when I began this journey, and were familiar with this kind of talk, usually, though, centered around political ideals, or fitness/sports training topics, drugs, alcohol, sex, etc.  Of course, if I had young children in my home now, they wouldn’t even have access to “bad” foodstuffs (I can see me being a very unpopular grandpa), and hopefully their very early-established “tastes” would help moderate them through the real-world minefield once it was (inevitably) unleashed upon them.  My gut feeling is though, Jeremy, that you know what’s best for your kids at this particular juncture in their lives.  I’m an all-or-nothing kind of guy, and I was an all-or-nothing kid as well.  One thing the years have taught me is that the vast majority of people do not operate that way.  My coaching style works well and is fit for an athletic/sporting environment; in the general public, well…not so much 

I’ll end the day’s pontification there, as I’ve gone on long, long enough.  The real point of this post is to acknowledge a gentleman who has fought the good fight well, and is flying the Paleo flag proudly.  My hope is that Jeremy’s action and success can ignite a desire in others (especially his kids) to do the same.

Here’s to you, Jeremy!  Good work!

In health,

Keith

“To find yourself, think for yourself. ”

- Socrates

Another fine, fine, n=1 quote.

Little Girl and Big Guy, courtesy of Farm City

A few things from this past week.  First off, a couple of observations from the world of track and field –

If you haven’t yet seen this clip, check it out.  I’m left grasping for something to compare Usain Bolt to.  One tends to forget that this kid is walking away from world class athletes.  Astonishing, is all that I can say…

Bolt is the “perfect storm” of sprinting; off-the-charts power-to-bodyweight ratio, aerodynamically put together, extremely long stride at top-end speed (with the ability to both maintain the speed and stride length for the duration of the race, i.e., anaerobic stamina) and the ability to transfer that high power development to the ground, both from a dead-start (piston action) and at full stride (spring action).  A perfect sprinting combination of fortunate genetics and fabulous, first-class training methods.  The Jamaicans know how to train sprinters, and they have a wealth of talent to choose from.

And speaking of genetics, genetic expression, and the powerful effects of hormones on the phenotype, how about the controversy surrounding the women’s 800 meter phenom, Caster Semenya?  Now, I’m certainly not trying to imply that following a Paleo lifestyle will impart an extra Y chromosome “advantage” to the Paleo ladies out there, or unleash an unlimited fountain of testosterone in the guys, only that the Paleo “push” that we do provide via positive genetic expression (and, hence, hormonal expression) does account for a good portion of our overall health and bodily composition benefits.

According to the NPR news story cited above:

Gender testing used to be mandatory for female athletes at the Olympics, but the screenings were dropped in 1999. One reason for the change was not all women have standard female chromosomes (i.e., an xxy make-up — my insertion for clarification).  In addition, there are cases of people who have ambiguous genitalia or other congenital conditions.

The most common cause of sexual ambiguity is congenital adrenal hyperplasia, an endocrine disorder where the adrenal glands produce abnormally high levels of hormones.

Health of the modern-day, semi-hunter-gatherers

What’s interesting here is that the people being studied (the Tsimane tribe, of Amazonian Bolivia) exhibit high C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, and yet show no signs, even in far advanced years, of heart disease or other markers of “metabolic syndrome”.  The high CRP levels — a marker of inflammation — are surely attributed to the high instance of parasitic infestation among these peoples.  What keeps them from developing good ol’ western style metabolic syndrome?  Well, my guess is that the Tsimane maintain low insulin levels due to a lack of simple carbohydrate ingestion.  Again, insulin is the main player, with other factors (in this case, inflammation) playing the part of “tools of convenience”; aiding and abetting, so to speak.  Very, very interesting, to say the least.  Check out the NPR story (podcast), here, and the University of Southern California news story, here.   We as modern Paleos can learn much from research like this.  The most practical take-home message here being that the intelligent Paleo practitioner will marry the best of the past (diet, movement patterns) with the best of modernity (sanitary practices) in what should be an ever-evolving, progressive and intelligent union.

On “Evangelizing” the good news…

Yes, it’s tricky business, to be sure, the practice of offering unsolicited advice; and I avoid it myself, as if were the plague (…attempting to teach a pig to sing will only frustrate you and annoy the pig).  But when the government is involved, though — in other words, someone with the power to force their will upon me — I feel it’s imperative to speak up.  Here’s an interesting bit of commentary on the on-going (American) healthcare debate.  The link is to a Super Human Radio podcast interview with Dr. Ronald Klatz.  Dr. Klatz is one of the Founders of A4M (The American Academe of Anti-Aging Medicine) and has presented a Healthcare plan that can not only (purportedly) save the country Trillions of dollars, but will also extend the lives of most Americans.  Also, check out A4M’s article on the 12 Point Action Plan for effective healthcare reform ( here is the 12-point plan itself).   My only problem with the proposal is that is conspicuously deficient of any mention of the positive health markers elicited by the adoption of a Paleo-like lifestyle.  One small step at a time, I suppose.  Even with that deficiency, this is still the best set of action points that I’ve seen floated by any group with any sibilance of influence (little as A4M may have) in Washington.  Kinda tough to compete with folks like this, ya know.

…and of having the good news evangelized to you

Again my good friend Carl Lanore, at Super Human Radio comes through with an informative and timely interview.  This time out, he’s got John Wood, of US Wellness Meats on the line.  John has been raising beef cows in the traditional, grass-fed way for decades.  Listen as the discussion turns to the health benefits of eating grass fed, hormone free, antibiotic free beef, over the conventional beef-look-alike that lines your grocery food store shelves.  When it comes to grass-fed beef, John knows his stuff.  Want to know why the Argentinians are so adept at producing a fantastic steak?  John will fill you in.  Now I’m lucky in that I live in a relatively rural area, so I have ready access to grass-fed/free-range meat.  If you don’t have ready access to these products, though, check out the folks at US Wellness Meats.  Really, their prices aren’t that much higher than what I pay for my locally raised products.  That’s a good deal for everyone — you and the producer of these quality products; not to mention the animals themselves who get to live out their lives naturally, and free of cruelty.

What I’m reading now…

Want to try your hand at subsistence farming and ranching?  You say you’d love to, but live smack-dab in the city, and that, of course, ends that little dream.  Well, think again.  Novella Carpenter has written a gem of a book entitled Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer.  I could gush on and on about this book — it’s just fantastic.  The juxtaposition of farming and animal husbandry struggles against life in the “hood” is nothing less than fascinating.  Even if you have no desire whatsoever with delving into raising your own food, I’d still highly recommend this book.  Really, it’s the sleeper of the summer, and I’m so very glad that I stumbled upon it.  If anyone will make you want to chuck the ol’ 9-to-5 (7-to-6 is more like it nowadays), and try your hand at eeking it out on your own little plot, Novella will.  And before you think that Novella is some kind of militant Berkeley vegetarian, think again — she raises her own chickens, turkeys, rabbits, goats and pigs for consumption, and does her own slaughtering.  My kinda girl.  Anyway, pick up her book and check out her blog (cited above); you’ll be so glad you did.

And one final tidbit…

Psychological barriers: we all know what it’s like when we can’t seem to bust past certain plateaus in our workouts.  Maybe it’s a certain amount of pull-up reps, or a certain number of 100 meter repeats.  We feel like we ought to be able to pull it of physically, but for some reason our psyche is holding us back.  Well, Kevin Purdy of Lifehacker.com has a great idea to help overcome that overactive (and self protective) mind: using a camcorder; check it out.  Of course, in time you can train your brain to somewhat squelch that overly-protective-mom-like feature, but this camcorder idea looks to me like a perfect bridge to help get one to that point a little quicker.  Try it out and let me know what you think.

“Character – the willingness to accept responsibility for one’s own life – is the source from which self-respect springs.”

– Joan Didion

courtesy of roadsidepictures

Groucho is dubious here, and you should be too

A buddy of mine brought this video to my attention recently (thanks, Caleb!), and it really is a “must see” — or a “must hear”, as I chose to listen to the podcast version (making my work commute pay dividends).  Wow, in the same way that watching the Zeitgeist films will stir-up your hatred for “the gub’mint man”, Sugar, The Bitter Truth will make you want to go out and string-up a few “big food” executive types.  No kidding, pick a rainy weekend to kick back and watch all of these offerings back-to-back and you’ll want to jump off the grid and join up with a militia.

The tag line for the “Sugar” lecture is as follows:

Robert H. Lustig, MD, UCSF Professor of Pediatrics, Division of Endocrinology explores the damage caused by sugary foods.

But really, it’s so much more than that.  Dr. Lustig does a fantastic job of explaining why (and how) sugar is so destructive to the body, and why High-Fructose Corn Syrup is just out and out poison.  Anyone who is still in the dark about exactly how carbohydrate in general (sugar and HFCS specifically) botches-up the blood chemistry and ramps-up the body’s fat storage mechanisms, needs to pay close attention.  And get ready to be schooled — though, in a very entertaining way.

And be prepared  as well, to consider the out-and-out lunacy of a nation attempting to formulate some manner of health care reform, while at the same time promoting, through taxation (or lack thereof) and subsidy, the very substance that is at the heart of (pardon the pun) the physical ailment side of the whole equation.  Get people healthy to begin with, and the unwieldy health care debate then becomes something much more manageable.

In health,

Keith

“The greater the ignorance the greater the dogmatism.”

- Sir William Osler

An opportunity missed

…or, yet another instance of damn, I wish I’d had my camera.

Meesus TTP and I had to travel down to Georgia over the July 4th weekend to tend to a few remaining loose ends as a consequence of B’s recent accident.  We’ve both had better 4th of July holidays, I have to say — and yet, we were able to salvage some moments of renewal and rebirth (the stunningly beautiful Victoria Bryant State Park, for one example, where a new butterfly park is being planned in Brittani’s honor) and even a few instances of serendipitous joy.  (Serendipity seems a common theme in my life — possibly something I need to further explore?)  At any rate, one of those “serendipitous moments” came while Meesus TTP was tending to some business at Emmanuel College.  I remained outside of the on-campus, Student Life center for some fresh air, sun, and a bit of quiet reflection when a sign I’d seen countless times prior — Jones Garden — suddenly hit me anew.   While contemplating the alternative/contemporary meaning of “Jones”, I enjoyed one of those laugh-outloud-with-no-one-else-around moments.  I’m sure any onlooker to this scene would have mistaken me for one of the drifting, poverty-stricken and psychologically-burdened casualty cases of the modern American healthcare system.

Then I saw the sign for Jones Church, and I just about lost it.

Those two pictures would have made for a great intro here, but alas, you’ll have to suffice with your own mental snapshot.  And while the Jones connotations above are funny (admittedly, possibly only to me and my quirky sense of humor), a serious Jones of any kind is no laughing matter.  Especially, and in the face of attempting to clean up your act on the diet front,  the dreaded carbohydrate variety of Jones.

Victoria Bryant State Park. No carb cravings, here. Thoughts of those two ducks on a grill, though, are another story.

And to that end, low carb podcast maestro Jimmy Moore recently scored an interesting interview with psychologist Julia Ross, author of The Diet Cure.  Lots of good information to be had here.  And I know what your thinking.  No, this isn’t low-carb 101 for the Opera-watching masses — Ms. Ross actually hits on some very important and advanced issues concerning addictions; addictions of all kinds, really, but in particular here, carbohydrate addictions, and how to curb, and ultimately, overcome them.  One point that Ms. Ross makes — and one in which I totally agree with — is that an addiction of any sort has less to do with lack of willpower and more to do with altered brain chemistry.  Correct the chemistry and, for the most part, the physical addiction will have been eliminated.  The psychological and situational issues will remain, of course — and this is where willpower will have to prevail — so, like most issues, overcoming the carbohydrate Jones requires more than just focusing in on one underlying cause.  I’ve written about the carb Jones, previously, here, and you might want to check that particular post out again for some other thoughts and associated links.

Proper use of amino acid supplementation will go a long way toward negating the underlying brain/chemical cause for the carb Jones, as will increasing the amount of good fats in one’s overall diet.  My favorite trick for curbing a sweet-tooth pang (a pang that will in time, and with the maintenance of proper diet, become a thing of the past) is to horse-down a tablespoon or three of olive, fish, or other such oil.  Good, quality nut butters work well for this, too.  Of course now we have the luxury of partaking in an even more palatable option for this purpose — Artisana’s raw coconut butter — though I must warn you here of the dangers of trading one addiction for another; that raw coconut butter is seriously good stuff.

Channeling obsessions, and the quest for control

Alex, over at a Paleo Journey to Health, brings up an excellent point for contemplation in this post.  Another aspect to the whole carb Jones phenomena may just be the sense of “out-of-controlness” one feels in the initial stages of withdraw.  That is to say, (and this is my take on the issue, take it for what it’s worth) that what we’re dealing with here is another dimension of the psychological issue.  People will do things, and ultimately and eventually (though, unintentionally, in many cases) form habits of those actions, as a means of having some control over their lives.  Now, in some instances, this works out for the greater good.  My initial love of, and remaining immersed in, physical culture (writ large) was born, early on, from a deep-rooted desire to have total control over something — anything — in my life.  Lance Armstrong has famously stated that, in his opinion, the compulsive drive of a professional athlete (he was speaking specifically of TdF cyclists, however, in my opinion, this is true of all compulsive athletes), stems from that athlete’s either running from, or chasing down, some personal demon.  Of course, it can be argued that this kind of compulsion is as damaging to the mind and/or body (in a cumulative trauma and/or free-radical sense) as any other compulsion — and, in a manner os speaking, I agree.  That’s a topic, though, for another time.

Back, though, to known destructive habits.  Some will get on quite readily with actions they acknowledge at the onset are bad for them — even actions that they know (logically) and at the onset of initially partaking, are highly addictive.  Ironic, isn’t it?  The insidiousness of carbohydrate addiction though, is that it’s so very sneaky.  We were brought up to believe (and the masses still cling tightly to the notion) that (1) all carbs are created equal, (2) that refined carbohydrates, while maybe not “good” for you per se, are certainly much better for you than fat of any kind, and (3) addiction? are you kidding me?  This concept of “carb addiction” is still considered the stuff of the lunatic fringe.  Ah, but you and I know it’s real — very real — and for some, the addiction to carbohydrates is overwhelming.  So overwhelming, in fact, that many folks will walk away from a Paleo-like diet because of an inability to shake the carb Jones, even while fully acknowledging and buying into the Paleo concept on an intellectual level. This carb Jones is no puny opponent.  It can be soundly defeated, though, with a little applied knowledge, and a little effort in the form of willpower.

So check out Jimmy’s interview and Julia’s website.  There’s some good information be be had in both.  I can say that The Diet Cure is now on my “books to read list”, as I believe Ms. Ross has the addiction thing — the physical/chemical aspect, at least — pretty much nailed.  And as any of us who’ve made the switch from a western diet to a more Paleo diet can attest, overcoming the carb cravings and the social alienation are the two big storms one must clear to get to the smooth and easy Paleo waters.

In health,

Keith

“Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.”

- Henry David Thoreau

Compulsion.  Addiction.  Drive.  Pain threshold.  Inherent brain chemistry (genetics of the mind, if you will) is another major piece of our individual genetic make-up that wields huge influence upon our ultimate fitness and phenotype expression.  One needn’t be a “brain surgeon” to realize that some people are just wired between the ears for fitness success, while others, unfortunately, are cobbled together in such a way that channels them toward addiction and avoidance of exertion.

In keeping with this theme, Diane Rehm recently interviewed Dr. David Kessler about the addiction aspect of over-indulgence, and about his new book, titled The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite. In the interview, Dr. Kessler describes the complete endocrinological response to the human taste preference for fat, sugar and salt, and especially the combination of these macronutrients.  This is very interesting stuff indeed, in a “devil you know is better than the devil you don’t know” kind of way.  At least it provides information to ruminate on while battling the dreaded carb Jones; and it provides, as well, a scientific basis behind why a good dose of fat will alleviate that Jones — and why a Paleo diet with adequate fat intake will eventually curb that Jones to a manageable nil.  And here again, we see the genetic factor at work.  As Dr. Kessler puts it, some people would be content to take their food in pill form, while others are wired to crave the entire sensual delight of a food’s taste, smell, mouth-feel…even the atmosphere within which the food is consumed.  The point is, we’ve all come to this ride called life with inherent liabilities that we have to work with and around; that realization is step one to diet and fitness success.  Step #2 is formulating a personal plan of attack with a solid knowledge of where your weak underbelly lay.  Just as in physical training, a concentrated effort on toughening that weak underbelly will ultimately pay greater dividends than further improvement of proven strengths.  Unfortunately, this mindset runs counter to the natural human inclination toward the path of least resistance.  Hey, do yourself a huge favor, huh?, and take the path least traveled.  You’ll be so much the better for it.

I do have to warn you that Dr. Kessler — though he never comes out and proclaims it so — seems to hint throughout the interview of an anti-fat bias. He never says that it’s the sugar and salt alone that are the real culprits here, and that left to its own devices, fat would be not only benign, but healthful — and that’s too bad.

And a big reason why that’s too bad is because he’s missed a perfect opportunity to weigh-in (pardon the pun) on the national healthcare debate.  There is simply no way to achieve any modicum of healthcare reform — no matter the formulation — unless Americans take responsibility for the state of their own health.   The costs of keeping sick people limping along — while a boon for my industry (pharmaceuticals) — is simply too cost-prohibitive to any otherwise potentially viable plan reform.  Most Americans will not accept this simple truth, though.

But don’t blame this national nonacceptance on Sally Fallon.  She’s out fighting the good fight through the Weston A. Price Foundation, and most recently, this interview with Joe and Terry Graedon, of The People’s Pharmacy, covering such topics as the efficacy of hunter-gatherer diets, the benefits of raw dairy, and a whole host of other Paleo-minded topics.  It’s one of the best mainstream treatments I’ve heard touting the positives of the Paleo lifestyle.  Give it a listen, and see if you think so as well.

In health,

Keith

“As you live, believe in life. Always human beings will live and profess to greater, broader and fuller life. The only possible death is to lose belief in this truth simply because the great end comes slowly, because time is long.”

- W.E.B. Du Bois

Seriously Good Stuff!

You may have heard me mention Artisana’s Raw Organic Coconut Butter before — maybe in a tweet, or in the TTP Facebook group, or elsewhere — but let me officially pronounce in this TTP post that I am, in fact, a HUGE fan of this product.  In fact, to throw a little SAT-like word association at you, Artisana’s Raw Coconut butter is to whole coconut as Vibrams are to footware.  Yeah, it’s that good.

So, how do you eat it?  In any way you have normally (in your pre-Paleo days, of course) eaten peanut butter — except, needless to say, on bread, crackers or the like.  Right out of the jar works pretty well for me.  Or mix a bit with a bite of fruit, or with some raw nuts.  Avocado, tomato, bacon and coconut butter?  You bet.  Here’s a great snack idea: I like to spread out some raw pecans and melt a generous portion of coconut butter over them; sometimes I’ll add a bit of raw butter to this concoction as well.  Let your imagination run wild.  And for those who are new to the Paleo game, or otherwise caught in the throes of a serious carb Jones, consider Artisana’s Raw Organic Coconut Butter as your methadone.  Beating the carb Jones is one of the serious bug-a-boos (the other being “social alienation”) that folks new to the Paleo way must navigate prior to reaching the clear, wide open, Paleo seas.  Got a carb pang going on?  A tablespoon or two of Artisana’s will beat it back.  I’ve long suggested tablespoons of olive, coconut, or fish oil for the same purposes and received the old “crinkley nose” response.  I can just imagine the “old timer” Paleo now:

…yeah, I remember when all we had to beat back the carb Jones was coconut and olive oil — hell, even fish oil — young people today…

Anyway, the stuff is seriously good to eat.  Pick some up and give it a shot.  You’ll be oh so glad you did.

Long-term low calorie intake, and the subsequent rebound re-feed

It’ll be quite some time before I can speak about the events of last week in anything resembling an objective fashion.  However, it is worth noting in a venue such as this, the mental and physical stamina and stability provided as a result of adhering to a Paleo lifestyle.  Last week was characterized by unimaginable grief, and mental, physical and emotional anguish.  Couple this with extensive travel, physical exertion (moving, clearing out an apartment), two funeral services (with one more to go) and a precipitous lack of sleep.  Through it all, though, I never wandered into the low blood sugar “hinterland”; to be sure, hunger — true hunger — sprang up from time to time, though it was not the shaky hands and body, cold sweat “gotta eat right damn now kind of hunger characteristic of a high carbohydrate diet.  In fact, because the Paleo hunger has no real side affects other than a craving for something substantial, it was quite easy to keep it pushed back and held at bay.  I have no way of knowing what my caloric intake was day-to-day over the last week, but I do know that it was minuscule as compared to my norm — even as compared to my non-workout-day norm.  I mostly ate one — and a couple of days, two — small Paleo meals per day over the stretch, and this following a very long initial fasting period.  I augmented with spoonfuls of raw nut butters and coconut butter here and there as the opportunities arose.   In fact, most days of the last week I took in no carbohydrates at all — no fruit and/or vegetables.  I am back home now, and I can report that my hunger is rapacious — especially for high-quality protein and fat — I just can’t seem to top the tank off for long.  Within 3 or 4 hours of a healthy feeding, I’m ready for another round.  Of course I’m eating clean, giving my body what it’s asking for.  I may even head out to the playground tomorrow.

In health,

Keith

“Ira furor brevis est. Anger is a short madness.”

- Horace

Carl Lanore, of Super Human Radio, hosted an interesting interview recently with Dr. Antoine Roux of the University of Montreal.  The discussion centered around Dr. Roux’s involvement in a study which identified sugar consumption — or, more specifically, glucose signaling — as a factor in accelerated aging.  It’s an interesting discussion, even if Dr. Roux is difficult to understand at times.  God bless him, though — I can only imagine how an interview with moi, in French, would come off

And here’s an article from Science Daily covering the same territory.  Yet another reason to lay off the sugar, and refined, packaged foods, in general.

And if simple table sugar muck’s-up your inter-workings like no one’s business, how ’bout the evil that High Fructose Corn Syrup can lay upon you?  We all know to stay the hell away from HFCS, but just in case you need a little more prompting or “reasons why”, check out this T-Nation article by Dr. Lonnie Lowery.

Have a wonderful, safe and very Paleo weekend!

In Health,

Keith

“A hypocaloric diet, whatever the proposed type, is an inadapted treatment to chronic disease, like obesity. All diets are inefficient on the long term. The weight loss is generally small, about 1-2 kg a year. The results are the same, independently of the type of diet, and the patient’s compliance is clearly the main key to succeed. About 80% of patients regain weight the first month following the diet, and only 1% can keep the obtained weight a year later. Nearly half of the patients involved in a diet program give up before the end. Finally, because of risks of macro and micro nutriments deficiency, certain diets are to be avoided and hypocaloric diet shouldn’t be proposed.”

~ from, Hypocaloric Diets: Which Ones to Advise/Avoid? Di Vetta V, Clarisse M, Giusti V.

Readers of this blog are, of course, not the least bit surprised by the above quote, as it is common knowledge within the larger Paleo community; conventional dieting fails miserably, and those currently engaged in conventional dieting are, for the most part, well — miserable. The 10,000-dollar question remains, however; why do these diets fail? Now, in my real-world, day-to-day comings and goings, I’m not much concerned with whether I’m hypercaloric or hypocaloric. I know that, by whatever mechanism is at work in my Paleo way of life, over the long-haul I’ll maintain single-digit body fat levels coupled with a stellar blood profile; my health will be excellent and my vitality vibrant. And all of this will come free of any feeling of depravity, gnawing hunger, rampant cravings or lethargy. I’ll have no need for a calculator or scale, nor will I ever be concerned with meal timing. I am a curious sort, though, and so I wonder: Am I, over the long haul, actually either ingesting fewer calories or burning more calories than in my pre-Paleo days? Is it a combination of the two? Or, does the total calorie content really not play that significant a role?

I know I’m not going to raise the eyebrows of any long-time TP readers by stating that, in my opinion total calorie ingestion plays a minor, short term role in weight control (body fat and lean tissue) when compared to the hormonal/enzymatic environment elicited by the ingestion of those calories. In other words, it’s the type of calorie ingested that trumps the amount of overall calorie ingestion.

Now, it’s obvious to the most casual of observers that caloric restriction below the basic metabolic rate (BMR) and total calorie expenditure will result in weight loss. But are all hypocaloric diets created equal? Again, TTP readers know the answer, but, for purposes of comparison, let’s take a look at this study:

Comparison of the Atkins, Zone, Ornish, and LEARN Diets for Change in Weight and Related Risk Factors Among Overweight Premenopausal Women. The A TO Z Weight Loss Study: A Randomized Trial

Now, let’s have a gander at the recent Harvard study (Diets That Reduce Calories Lead to Weight Loss, Regardless of Carbohydrate, Protein or Fat Content) that I wrote about here.

Just what, exactly, is going on here? We seem to be getting mixed signals. If a calorie is truly a calorie, then what is going on with this Atkins group?  Thanks to Chris, at Conditioning Research, for finding this apropo cartoon, from this very smart and witty collection.

The problem with scientific studies, though, lay in (1) the minutia and, (2) in the interpretation.  And, as the above cartoon so very well illiterates, correlation does not necessarily imply causation.

Well, here’s the short version of my take on the issue

There is a dramatic shift to fat burning when insulin levels are low and/or not overly released with each caloric ingestion. Insulin immediately shuts down fat burning (the release of stored FFAs – free fatty acids) and begins the process of moving FFAs, and excess glucose in the blood stream into body fat. By comparison to a high carbohydrate meal, very little insulin is released by eating the TTP/Paleo way, and this slight rise in insulin will occur over a period of hours — not seconds or minutes as would be the case from eating the usual high carbohydrate, high glycemic-value, high total caloric load (all contributing factors) typical of the “normal”, western diet.

It is very clear to me that the bodily chemical processes (especially the action of insulin) that entail the digestion of all foods work via certain, distinct pathways, and knowing these pathways gives us the tools to knowingly adjust our diets which, over time (and which is clearly demonstrated by empirical evidence), can cause us to correctly assume what is optimal for our individual body types, and to allow ultimate control of our body composition. My contention is that that function of determining how a fuel calorie (glucose and fatty acids) will be utilized — whether stored as fat, or burned as energy in the muscles,or in the act of bodily repair/replenish — is carried out primarily by the hormone insulin via interaction with the enzyme lipoprotein lipase (LPL). It is interesting to note as well (though a bit of-topic for this discussion), that sex hormones also interact with LPL, which is why men and women gain/lose/carry body fat differently. It is insulin, though, that acts as the primary gatekeeper, the traffic cop, so to speak, in the ultimate partitioning of the end-products of food ingestion.

So what does all of this mean in practical terms? Well, it means that it’s your insulin levels that will determine what is to become of the calories you’ve ingested. A high insulin level (resulting from consumption of a high carbohydrate meal) will do two things, primarily (1) it will shunt the excess ingested calories to be stored as fat, and (2) it will shutdown the release of FFAs from the body’s fat deposits. The flip side of this is the maintenance of a low insulin environment via the elimination of simple carbohydrates and the limitation of complex carbohydrates. In other words, and from a purely biological or homeostatic perspective, lean people are not those who have the willpower to exercise more and/or eat less. They are simply people whose bodies are programmed to send the calories they consume to the muscles to be burned rather than to the fat tissue to be stored —the precise reason that Lance Armstrong and his ilk can get away with the massive amounts of carbohydrates they consume with no (outward) noticeable affect. A less active a person would tend to go the other way, shunting off calories to fat tissue, where they continue to accumulate to excess. This shunting of calories toward fat cells to be stored or toward the muscles to be burned is a phenomenon known as fuel partitioning. It is also why I think of the body more as a capacitor, rather than a simple thermodynamic machine; a capacitor whose charge/discharge properties are controlled primarily via insulin, the level of which is primarily controlled by the type and amount of carbohydrate ingestion.

So, is a calorie just a calorie? Well, no more than a bullet is just a bullet, I suppose. Would you rather be shot by the rubber variety, or a “cop killer”? Keep that metaphor in mind before you fork-up that next mouthful of pasta.

In Health,

Keith