#nsng

I’ve been listening for a while to “Celebrity trainer Vinnie Tortorich,” a podcast I found through Abel James’ “Fat Burning Man” podcast, which I found through “My diet is better than yours,” which I found through…

It’s a winding road. There are many podcasts advocating the Primal, Wild, Bulletproof, Paleo, ketogenic approach which share the eliminating of processed sugars, artificial sweeteners, and most grains. They differ in what else to exclude – some toss dairy and/or eggs, some remove nearly all carbohydrates for full ketosis while others argue for “mere” fat adaptation, some push intermittent fasting.  The common push is a hormonal theory of obesity rather than calories in/calories out.

I’ve raged against the unfairness of CA/CO – scrupulously track calories, expecting the math to add up, and it never did. The hormonal theory is that as long as your body is tuned to burn sugar, your fat stores are mostly one way: you can increase, but not utilize them.  The recent Biggest Loser studies showing that metabolisms were “broken”, leptin stores demolished. at whatever weight (most gained), they were allowed 500+ fewer calories to stay at that weight than those who didn’t lose that, and they needed to exercise hours a day just to maintain. Over time, that gap only widened.  if you don’t change the hormonal thermostat, your body will constantly fight to return to the previous equilibrium, which is why so many people can lose hundreds of pounds, only to regain them (and often more, because of the trashed metabolism). The hormonal theory tries to adjust the thermostat itself, and heal the metabolism, insulin resistance levels, leptin and ghrellin levels, etc.

Anyway,  Vinnie Tortorich (Vinnie) has been the guy I’ve connected with most. He’s an odd mix of morning shock jock – many of his listeners find him through the Adam Carrolla show, where he appears frequently – health and nutrition mentor, and extreme endurance sports nut. He’s got solid credentials, and he brings on as guests people who share his philosophy: Gary Taubes, Eric Westman, Jimmy Moore, Abel James, Mark Sisson, Nicole Recine.  He’s approachable, offering phone calls at relatively reasonable rates, but his show’s frequency provides a crapton of free and helpful information.

Long story short, I decided to endure the “keto flu” over Memorial Day weekend. I’ve been struggling hard with sugar cravings. Admin candy bowl within sight of my desk, more time driving myself means easier access to fast food and donuts. I’ve been brushing against 500lbs, where things like tying shoes and walking short distances gets challenging. So I stayed at home, slept as much as I could, drank plenty of water, stuck to a lot of bacon, eggs, coconut oil, and no-grain “fathead” pizza. I felt hammered by the switch most of the weekend, and the next couple of days after, but so far the desired effect kicked in: my insatiable sugar cravings are gone. I’m still tempted, but less so, and have been resisting.

It’s sure to be an ongoing process, but I’m feeling benefits. I had a fairly hefty burger this morning, wrapped in lettuce instead of a bun. It shaved around 400 calories from the total. But where I’d normally get the burger in a combo with a large cherry coke and a couple of cookies, and still feel cravings, I had about 750 calories total from the burger (a guacamole bacon third-pound burger) by itself with a bit of water, and I could feel the “okay, I’m full” message kick in. A few hours later, I’m still full. Compared to the bacon and egg breakfasts of the previous two days, this was a fattier meal, and I think that made the difference. The keto/fat-adapted approach wants more fat – by far – than protein or carbs. Fat makes you feel sated in a way that protein and carbs don’t. Fiber can fill you, but it doesn’t trigger the “oh, yeah, I’m done” satedness.

A guy named Butter Bob Briggs notes that 150 pounds of extra fat is the equivalent of “100 fajita dinners” – each a 5000 calorie feast. I’m  carrying closer to 200 of those fajita dinners. He notes that as long as your body is burning sugar, the body never touches that vast store of calories, or wants to. The body is meant to burn fat; sugar is like adding nitrous oxide to your car for that burst of speed that will burn out your engine over time.  The goal is to switch the body back to its desired state, burning its internal stores and adjusting its thermostat accordingly, fixing insulin and leptin levels as you consistently give your metabolism a break. He talks about how in three weeks, you can give yourself a nasty case of fatty liver, or make big strides to healing it.  The fatty liver is the driving force behind so much metabolic damage: diabetes, etc.

I’m not even in week one. I do feel better than last week. Though yesterday and the day before were miserable, I’m a bit better today. I can walk farther without being out of breath.  My brain feels less foggy.  I’m still not sleeping any better, but I’m feeling the need to get to bed earlier (last night, 11pm).  I am at the beginning of determining which foods make me feel better/worse, but I’m thinking nothing is sacrosanct; if it leads to inflammation, it’s gonna go. I’m carrying too dang much water and want the body to let it go, but I don’t want to rush it.

The last two days I noticed I didn’t need food on the way home, or before bed.  I considered it, but didn’t do it. Marie wanted a ginger ale last night; I got her one, but got nothing for myself. This is a big NSV (non scale victory).

I’m changing my relationship with food. Honestly, if this model is the correct one, it’s not a path of deprivation. Yes, I love bread, love donuts, love pastries, love sugary snacks. But I also love bacon, eggs, cheese, steak, avocado. Given a choice, it seems so much easier to live with the latter. It’s not that the wild paleo butterproof NSNG approach forbids ever having sweets (Vinnie calls it “life into living”), but it’s putting it into a context more common in my early life, before “low fat” became a mania and butter and eggs got blacklisted. I rarely had soda as a young kid. Cake was for birthdays. candy was for Christmas and Halloween.  As an adult, I’ve let them become daily or near-daily treats. But they’re not really treats when they’re a daily thing.  I want to get back to where they’re occasional, even rare. With enough time between indulgences, it’ll be easier to tell their impact.

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