I feel absolutely ridiculous admitting this, but I am only human. And sometimes I end up shrugging my shoulders and saying “do as I say, not as I do. I’m only human.”
Tuesday was one of those days. (more…)
Many of the women I coach have the prevailing idea if they only decrease the number of calories they consume, the weight will melt off. This is, in fact, the prevailing nutritional basis in the world yet we are still in the middle of an obesity crisis. Could our one solid formula, calories in equals calories out, be the culprit? (more…)
As Daniel Vitalis said in The Great Health Debate: vegetarianism and veganism are experiments! Only consenting adults should partake in the great food experiment. Our ancestors ate animal protein and fat for survival, and when are humans not in survival mode? Our bodies are always trying to survive on what we feed it: we need to feed it nourishing foods.
Well, Oprah challenged her staff to a week of veganism. One staff member has two young kids at home and another staffer reported feeling angry, which was attributed to the fact that she was “addicted”. (OK, so irrational emotions are just “withdrawal symptoms?” Thanks, but I’ll pass.) This staffer is going to stick with it for 21 days because she doesn’t want to be addicted to “junk food, fast food, everything.”
Hold on. When did animal products become junk food?
And also, Oprah struggles with her weight and is hypothyroid and is giving challenges for people to eat the same foods (i.e. soy) that brought her where she is today. Is that what you want for your health?
Sunday night began the first of eight nights where prominent leaders in the health industry talk about all things diet-related ON LINE, hosted by Kevin Gianni. This completely free event features Dr. Mercola of Mercola.com, T. Colin Campbell, Sally Fallon Morell, Dr. Robert O. Young PhD. author of “The pH Miracle”, Dona Gates of “The Body Ecology Diet”, and more. Each debate starts at 8pm EST and is online for only 24 hours (except the first night, Sunday night, is available for an additional 24 hours).
If you haven’t already, get registered. No matter what your diet is, you will learn something new.
The following is an excerpt from GAPS online:
Q: After reading your book about dietary fat, cooking fats, and toxins stored in body fats, I now am wondering what your understanding of belly fat on individuals is?
A: Fat is the preferred source of energy for most of the cells and organs in the human body. Body fat is stored energy. There are two main depots of energy in the body: under skin fat and visceral fat (belly fat).
Under skin fat is an endocrine organ producing certain hormones essential for human physiology, such as leptin, resistin and cytokine TNF alpha. Women normally have more under skin fat than men, as female hormones lay the foundation for feminine fat storage on hips, breasts, buttocks and thighs, giving women their beautiful shape. Male hormones favour storage of under skin fat on the upper body, giving men their masculine shape. Regular consumption of sugar, flour and other processed carbohydrates alters hormonal balance in the body: that is why nowadays we see many women with male-type bodies and many men with feminine looking bodies.
Belly fat is largely a storage space for quick energy: this energy is stored inside the abdomen around inner organs: intestines, bowel, stomach, liver, kidneys, etc. Normal amounts of visceral fat are essential to support and insulate our inner organs. Processed carbohydrates in the body are quickly converted into fat. Some of this fat is stored under skin, which has a limited storage capacity. But if the carbohydrates keep coming, excessive fat is largely stored in the abdomen. Alcohol is a form of energy, which is quickly converted into fat and stored almost exclusively in the abdomen, giving the person a “pregnant” look. Fat attracts water: almost a quarter of belly fat tissue can be stored water. Men (and women) who drink too much alcohol regularly without consuming too much carbohydrates have large, hard-to-touch bellies with very little under skin fat – a “pregnant” belly; a belly full of fat and water. Men and women who indulge in both (too much alcohol and processed carbohydrates) will have large hard bellies and too much fat stored under skin as well.
The obesity epidemic is caused by processed carbohydrates which came to dominate our modern diets. Natural animal fats (butter and fats in eggs, meat and fish) balance our hormones and go into our bodily structure. Unfortunately, our modern diet is very low in these nourishing fats. Eating lots of carbohydrates while depriving your body of essential-to-life animal fats lead to obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, auto immunity and most other modern plagues.
Dr. Natasha Cambell-McBride:
“Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride holds a degree in medicine and Postgraduate degrees in both Neurology and Human Nutrition. In her clinic in Cambridge she specializes in nutritino for children and adults with behavioral and learning disabilities, and adults with digestive and immune system disorders.
She believes that the link between learning disabilities, the food and drink that we take, and the condition of our digestive system is absolute, and the results of her work have supported her position on this subject.” Read more about Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride here!
I found this article as I was perusing Weston A. Price Foundation’s website. The following are guidelines for the Standard American Diet – and look where we’ve ended up following these suggestions: overweight, sick, and confused. Thankfully here are answers explaining why the USDA guidelines are wrong.
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Saturday, January 01 2000 18:48
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I am going to be quite blunt in this entry because it is late and I wake up at 5:15 a.m. so I can’t afford to beat around the bush, as they say. Speaking of cliches, I have had the thought that I should learn as many as possible so I can have a clever saying for whatever might come up. Whoops, distracted already.
I have weighed about 135 to 140 for the last few years but I’ve wanted to weigh 125 because, well, just because. I thought that was my perfect weight. But no matter how much I exercised — I ran a half marathon during this time, a few shorter races, and completed one or more inline marathons and a small scale triathlon — and no matter how diligent I was about tracking my food intake I just stayed the same. Firmer, but the same weight. In the middle of December I changed a few things, we won’t get into the logistics today but they were extremely healthy for my body, and a few weeks later I weigh between 120 and 125. This is not the point of this blog.
The point is this: I thought for the last few years that getting to my goal weight would make me happy. I was not completely happy with my body, but I faked it. Fake it till you make it (Yes! A cliche!). Weighing 125 would make me happy with my body. But guess what? I’m here to say that is NOT 100% true.
Yes, I can see the numbers on the scale are “correct,” I can see my bicep is a whole inch smaller, my thigh is two inches smaller, my stomach is — I can see those facts. But what remains is years of telling myself that I was too big, years of feeling like I was too big. And those thoughts and feelings don’t go away in a few weeks or even a few months and for some people they never do go away, and then you get into anorexia, bulimia and I know very little about those.
Change now. Change your thoughts and how you perceive you feel. Tell yourself now how beautiful you feel with yourself. That is the point of this blog.
P.S. Just for the record, I feel great.
Veggies and fruit – typical “diet” food.
Many people are intrigued by the success calorie restricting diets have in promoting weight loss, and why wouldn’t they be? They work: people who watch hawk-like over their calorie intake lose weight and look good! (Until the weight is gained back, plus a little extra.) Contrary to popular belief though, focusing solely on restricting calories is not a healthy diet for the human body and here’s why:
Weight Watchers promotes a low calorie diet, but says nothing about the quality of food. There is no emphasis given to healthy fats versus unhealthy refined carbohydrates. The participants are given a certain number of points to consume per week and a value is assigned to each food item based on calories, fat and fiber content (Eat Fat Lose Fat, pg. 71). As a result, most dieters on Weight Watchers and the mass of other people who restrict calories choose unhealthy fats like margarine or false butter spreads versus butter. Butter has 100 calories per tablespoon, whereas margarine only has 75. And lean beef cuts contain less calories than beef with nutritious animal fat attached. But it is the animal fat your body craves, and it is nutrient dense food your body needs to ward off disease.
So people are trolling along choosing margarine over butter, bird-like food over bacon, pork, or beef diet soda over water or tea; they are on a weight loss diet! Meanwhile, they are unsatisfied and becoming undernourished. They crave sugary foods, donuts, breads, chips, cookies. And when they’ve reached their goal weight and step off the program, they are incredibly vulnerable to boomerang weight gain. Their body is craving sustenance, it is hungry and the post-dieter goes crazy without restrictions. Which is exactly what Weight Watchers counts on: they want you to succeed on their diet and fail when you are off.
Calorie restriction diets lead to nutrient deficiencies and cravings, triggering binge eating and boomerang weight gain. Instead, allow me the privilege of coaching you on your journey to health. I’ll give you information on healthy weight loss, the kind that gives you energy and will help you stop craving sugar and refined carbohydrates. You can lose weight, have extra energy and feel better without calorie restriction!
RESOURCES:
Eat Fat Lose Fat, by Dr. Mary Enig and Sally Fallon
