Monthly Archives: May 2011

Please…

And…Eat more fat. Eat less sugar. Lifts weights intensely.

‘Nuff said.

As the low-carb diet strides proudly forward as the champion of health, the more the you hear how dangerous and terrible it is. Yes, it seems as if the anti-low carb kooks are out there in full force.

There’s just no stopping these nay-sayers. Though not as bad as the PETA people (who once suggested that a huge fence be erected in the Serengeti to cordon off the predators from the prey under the thinking that lions, cheetahs, leopards and other meat-eating meanies would learn to eat grass instead of zebra) they are right up there with them.

As you can see above, some people have gone so far off the anti-low carb deep end that they have created anti-low carb beverage mugs that have more lies on it than an whore-house. Not a single one of those claims are true. In fact, the mug should say “Warning! Low fat diets are known to…” It would be far more accurate that way.

These same folks also confidently state that a gluten free diet (gluten is only found in carby foods) is dangerous! Yes, be wary you silly low carbers. If you shun all gluten you are asking for it.

One claim is folate deficiency. Folate is an essential nutrient that bagel-addicted, cupcake consuming pro-gluteners claim you’ll become deficient in unless you eat the fortified glop. But will you really? Take a look at this table.

In an AP article, Dee Sandquist, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association stated that one of the dangers of going gluten free was the potential for overeating.

“There are just as many calories, if not more, depending on the food choices,” Sandquist said. “It’s all about the food choices.” Wow. I had no idea there were more calories in a cup of broccoli than in a cup of oatmeal. Why not argue the other side? Talk about grasping at straws.

Finally, and this might be the biggie, by cutting out gluten it is suggested you then cut out an entire food group as well severely limiting your fiber intake. Well, starch is not a food group and neither is gluten. If they mean carbohydrates, they are wrong again. Vegetables and fruit are carbohydrates and the best source of fiber. Don’t you just love it when you hear the vegans and the low fat crowd shout out that since a low carb diet removes and entire food group, it is overly restrictive?

Gluten is a highly irritative substance to the gut of all people some more, some less. Don’t be fooled by the experts who claim that gluten is only bad for a small percentage of people. What they mean to say is that only a small percentage of people have blatant outward negative reactions. Most people who smoke don’t show outward signs of emphysema, cancer or bronchitis. This of course does not mean that only a small percentage of people are negatively affected by cigarette smoking. Every smoker is damaged by cigarette smoking.

And this Forbes writer should be hung up by her Jimmy Choos. You can read my comment to her in the comments section. It’s the last one I posted. for some reason every time I tried to post a comment the Forbes site said it was down but to my surprise it posted them anyway. Oops!

So ditch the gluten in your life and feel better!

Lose weight and lower your cholesterol?

Baloney.

I just got the results of my yearly physical back and I discovered some interesting results.

Mind you, I was not trying to do anything about my cholesterol profile even though my doctor thinks I am going to expire in a few minutes unless I start eating fistfuls of statins. It amazes me that after all these years of being my doctor and seeing me in perfect health (and even better health as the years have rolled on), she continues to say the same things to me regarding cholesterol. I think she needs to read the book Who Moved My Cheese?: An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life(affiliate link).

Backing up a bit – as many of you know, I decided I wanted to go on an elimination diet to see if this would help my arthritis pain which unfortunately it didn’t. Not at all in fact. However, I did lose a lot of fat while doing this. I went from 175 pounds to 157 pounds in a few months. I cut out virtually all grain as I usually do, but did not cheat anywhere near as much on things like French fries, corn chips, dairy, etc. In fact, I cut out all dairy and replaced the calories with coconut butter, more meat, etc. I also stopped eating eggs.

The result of my blood work after losing nearly 20 pounds of fat and perhaps a bit of muscle?

My cholesterol remained virtually identical. My HDL actually went up a bit from 78 to 83. My LDL remained high 174 (was 178) but all of the LDL remained the fluffy, buoyant, large pattern A particles. As you can see from the graph, my LDL’s are well into the good side.

And for those of you who think ALL LDL particles are bad, take a look-see at this. Now, one really can’t make much of this study since the results are just an observation by the researchers. But I do find it interesting given my results and that I regularly perform high intensity exercise.

My triglycerides remained virtually the same – a very low 57. So I eat all this fat and yet…

One bad thing however – my fasting blood sugar was oddly high coming in at 104 (reference range 65 to 140). It should have been in the 80’s. I’m not sure why this was. It could be that since I and others who are on very low carb diets rely on gluconeogenesis (the production of glucose from protein), perhaps low carbers like us are making a bit more glucose than others who eat a good deal of sugar during the day. But I’m not sure. I’ve had fasting levels lower than this in the past so I’m not sure what to make of it.

Anyhow, I lost almost 20 pounds but there was virtually no change in my blood cholesterol profile. Interesting right? Did my doc say anything about this drop in weight but no change in cholesterol? Nope.

So the next time your doc says to lose weight in order to “improve” upon your cholesterol levels, don’t worry if it doesn’t change. Losing fat if in excess is always a good thing and will always result in better health even if your cholesterol numbers don’t budge.

And for those of you who are concerned about your cholesterol levels and just can’t seem to shrug off your doctors prodding that you take a statin, please read this book The Great Cholesterol Con: The Truth About What Really Causes Heart Disease and How to Avoid It

It’s informative and funny to boot!

Makoplasty here I come

Well, I’ve made up my mind. I’ve decided to go through with the Makoplasty procedure.

The fact is that my arthritis isn’t going away and will only continue to give me pain and immobility for the rest of my life. I simply can’t keep taking pain meds as a couple of weeks ago they started to mess with my speech. I was slurring words like a homeless drunkard – a side effect of these medications for some.

So, this coming Monday I undergo the surgery. I feel I’m in good hands with Dr. William Macauley and the team at Columbia Presbyterian. I’ll try to have pix and vids taken of the procedure to share with you all. Might make a cool blog post!

I plan on doing the rehab myself at Serious Strength. According to the surgeon, the bionic pieces set practically immediately so I can put full effort into my exercises pretty quickly. I’m not sure how long it will take for the stitches to “settle,” but I plan to get full range of motion ASAP using my special strength equipment. No theraband nonsense for me.

So, here we go. I’m looking forward to no more pain, no more meds, and an additional half inch in height (well, after I get the other knee done at least).

If anyone has any suggestions for post-op pain/swelling management, I’m all ears!

Franco Columbu’s Diet

Franco Columbu was one of the greatest professional body builders of all time. I pulled his book Winning Bodybuilding(affiliate link) from my library, dusted it off and took a look at what he had to say.

The one thing that jumped out at me as I flipped through it was his diet. Here’s what the massive Sardinian ate in a typical day – a diet regimen he claims gave him his championship physique:

Breakfast
3 fresh eggs
1 fresh fruit
Large glass of fresh squeezed OJ
Small dish of homemade yogurt made with raw milk with granola cereal
Glass of mineral water with vitamin and mineral supplements

Lunch
Large fresh vegetable salad with small amount of oil and vinegar dressing (one would assume he used olive oil)
1 cooked fresh vegetable never frozen or canned
A large portion of fresh broiled protein, such as fish, chicken, lamb or liver
A small glass of wine or a large glass of mineral water

Mid-afternoon
A plate of selected imported cheeses with fresh fruit in season usually pears

Dinner
Similar to lunch

Later in the evening
Small dish of the fresh, raw milk yogurt

Other than the small amount of granola which is undoubtedly the homemade kind and not the sugared crap you find in “health” food stores, the man ate a virtually high fat, adequate protein, low carb diet. I suppose the large glass of fresh squeezed OJ could be considered over the top, but judging from the amount of physical effort he put into his workouts, I don’t think the single glass of OJ stood a chance at bothering the behemoths blood sugar.

I mean, the iconic Italian could explode hot water bottles with his lung power:

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tfc5wNClQpo&w=540&h=390]

His diet is one that promotes health, strength and vitality. Hey – if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! I’d like to see a vegan whose physique even remotely comes close to his! Now, you might cry “steroids” and indeed I do believe that he probably dabbled in them when he was trying to achieve his Mr. Olympia title. But as you can see in the video and in his picture above, he did not in anyway posses the freak-show physique of the steroid monsters of today: