Protein, Carbs and Insulin

I always find it confusing when I read things like:

"Protein slows insulin levels, which you want to keep in balance to avoid weight gain."

I find it confusing for two reasons.

1) I'm really not sure how you can 'slow' a level

2) I'm really not sure how they define 'balance'.

Honestly I really dislike vague terms..especially when applied to science.

What I do know is that from the research conducted on sports supplements we know for sure that a protein/carb meal can have just as big an effect on insulin as a carb only meal. And, that as long as you are eating your insulin levels are going to go up and down...

Watch the Video for more details:

BP

Why am I so Tired?

Yesterday was a daddy / daughter day.

I took Brier to a breakfast place we have around southern Ontario called Cora's (www.chezcora.com).

After eating a rather massive breakfast for lunch consisting of french toast, crepes and fresh fruit, I headed back to the office, and battled to stay awake for the rest of the day.

I know I may come across as a "pro-carbs" kinda guy, but in reality, I mean it when I say "we could all benefit from eating a little less carbs." The difference is, I don't think you need to cut carbs for weight loss, but I do think their are health benefits to eating less carbohydrates and especially sugar.

And, their may be productivity benefits too. I can't recall the last time bacon and eggs made me sleepy. But I know that anytime I have a big "sugar bomb" type of meal, I'm out like a light about 30 minutes after I'm done eating.

At thanksgiving, its not the turkey that gets me, its the stuffing.

Now that I think about it, I'm rarely "nappy" during my fasting days (and I love my naps).

Makes you wonder about the miracle meal that breakfast is made out to be. There seems to be some missing logic here.

Wake up, then try your best to put yourself right back into a deep sleep by eating pancakes, oatmeal, toast and maybe some OJ.

Bottom line - If you are constantly asking yourself "Why am I so tired all the time?", maybe it's what you are eating (as opposed to the far too common answer of "you must be hungry, eat something").

BP

PS - Here is some great Eat Stop Eat feedback from the ttmembers forums (www.ttmembers.com)...

"I have been on the Eat Stop Eat program now for 6 weeks. A solid 12lb wt
loss! So far for me its the easist diet I have tried. Activity level is
turbulance wts 2 x per week. Recumbent bike interval 2x per week. Brazilian
jiu-jitsu 2 x per week. I am 53. Male. Starting wt 251 present wt 239."

Montreal, Snow Storms and the role of carbs in weight loss

It's been a crazy week for me. I was in Montreal for the weekend, checking out the local cuisine. I had some very tasty duck, and some amazing raw fish at Buona Notte (I highly recommend this restaurant!) Unfortunately, on Sunday I was caught in that huge snow storm that pummeled southern Ontario. Needless to say, what should have been a 6 hour drive home ended up taking almost 11 hours!

By the time I finally got home I was so behind on work that I had to spend the last couple days trying to get caught up on emails. One of the emails I received had a really great question asking whether it's carbs or calories that causes weight gain. I've copied the question and my answer below...

Hi Brad,

I've read your book Eat Stop Eat and I'm wondering whether you would have written it differently now that you've read "Good Calories, Bad Calories" by Gary Taubes. I mean, in your book you still write as if the amount of calories matter and as if you shouldn't differentiate between them. What Taubes has found is that the only thing you really can say is that too many Carbs are unhealthy.

George

And here is my answer:

Hi George,

Thanks for the email and for the excellent question.

I have read "Good Calories, Bad Calories" and was very impressed with its content. I believe that Taubes has accurately pointed out the health issues surrounding a high sugar intake. However, I do not believe that he accurately analyzed the data regarding the correlation between total calories and obesity.

Taubes examined studies containing diet record data and concluded from this research that the obese do not eat any more calories than non-obese people. Unfortunately, we have learned from the work of Brian Wansink that obese people tend to under report their caloric intake by as much as 30% when using diet records. This phenomena has been noticed by other researchers, and has been written up as an extremely important confounder in weight loss research. (For a great write up on this point you can see a Trial by Steven W. Lightman et al. published in the New England Journal of Medicine, volume 327 (37), 1992.)

For this reason I would not have changed any of my recommendations in Eat Stop Eat if I had read "Good Calories, Bad Calories" before I began writing.

I think that the points that Taubes makes about sugar are accurate, and I do believe that one or two 24 hour periods of complety no sugar (like during the Eat Stop Eat method of fasting) is beneficial to human health, yet I also believe that the only way to reduce body weight is through a negative caloric balance, and the best way to ensure that the majority of that weight loss is fat is by using the combination of caloric restriction and resistance exercise (the two keys to Eat Stop Eat's success).

I hope this answer helps,

Brad

To learn more about the benefits of short periods of flexible fasting for weight loss, visit http://www.eatstopeat.com

Sparring with the American Diabetes Association

Looks like Adam Campbell of Men's Health magazine has found himself in a verbal sparring match with the ADA.

It all started with a very well written and well researched article that Adam wrote about diabetes and carbohydrates. If you'd like to learn more about Adam's article and the American Diabetes Association's response then Click HERE to visit Adam's Blog.

BP

Fasting Diet, Circuit Training