It's been a while since I posted. I've been completely overwhelmed on a number of levels lately, and I just don't have it in me to post right now. I will be back, but I need some time to work on some other things.
Hope you're all well.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Primarian
So after several days, nearly a week, here's what I have to say about eating Primarian. I am rarely ravenous. Mostly I get hungry enough to realize it's dinner time. This is good. I don't know if I feel better physically by getting rid of most flour-based carbs. Stay tuned for that. What I do know is that it's really, really hard to get enough calories if you're a large person, as I am.
I believe that you should eat at least your BMR. Mine is around 2600. If I were in a coma, the hospital would give me 2600 calories of something, just to keep me alive. This week, I have eaten a lot of protein, fruits, and vegetables. At least 1.5 ounces of walnuts and/or almonds a day, too. And frozen yogurt with frozen fruit (so glad to have rediscovered frozen fruit. I have had a very hard time hitting 2600. Other than that, I'm good.
I don't want to lose more muscle than necessary on the way down. That only compromises one's metabolism. But I do want to lose. I've seen some movement on the scale. It's up and down within a week, but it seems to be on the low side. This is good. I've sort of revised my goal to losing another 20-25 pounds before the babies come. I can do that, right? August? That would get me solidly in the xxl range. I would like this. It opens up a whole new set of options for buying clothes. Most mainstream places have xxl clothes for men.
The thing I've decided to do is eat more dairy than would constitute a strictly primarian diet. Milk is part of farm culture, and there's pretty good evidence that adults shouldn't be drinking or eating dairy anyway. But it's a decent source of decent calories, so I'm going to stick with it. Low fat versions, of course, to stay away from saturated fats. But yeah, I'm keeping that.
This week I've been around 2300 calories a day. We'll see how that goes. My fantasy is that all this protein combined with some weight lifting will keep my muscle where it is. Cross your fingers.
I believe that you should eat at least your BMR. Mine is around 2600. If I were in a coma, the hospital would give me 2600 calories of something, just to keep me alive. This week, I have eaten a lot of protein, fruits, and vegetables. At least 1.5 ounces of walnuts and/or almonds a day, too. And frozen yogurt with frozen fruit (so glad to have rediscovered frozen fruit. I have had a very hard time hitting 2600. Other than that, I'm good.
I don't want to lose more muscle than necessary on the way down. That only compromises one's metabolism. But I do want to lose. I've seen some movement on the scale. It's up and down within a week, but it seems to be on the low side. This is good. I've sort of revised my goal to losing another 20-25 pounds before the babies come. I can do that, right? August? That would get me solidly in the xxl range. I would like this. It opens up a whole new set of options for buying clothes. Most mainstream places have xxl clothes for men.
The thing I've decided to do is eat more dairy than would constitute a strictly primarian diet. Milk is part of farm culture, and there's pretty good evidence that adults shouldn't be drinking or eating dairy anyway. But it's a decent source of decent calories, so I'm going to stick with it. Low fat versions, of course, to stay away from saturated fats. But yeah, I'm keeping that.
This week I've been around 2300 calories a day. We'll see how that goes. My fantasy is that all this protein combined with some weight lifting will keep my muscle where it is. Cross your fingers.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Stuck
So, I was talking to my stepson earlier, and I told him that I was frustrated that my weight is the same now as it was in October. He gave me a gift--pointing out that I've had a lot going on (including the holidays) since then. I told my wife about it, and she said I've said the same thing several times. I guess I forgot.
I keep trying to remember that in my world, not gaining is a win. So I guess I'm winning.
Still.
I got a copy of Barbara Berkeley's book, Refuse to Regain: 12 Tough Rules to Maintain the Body You've Earned. Her website is linked at right. This book and website are really geared toward maintenance, but I figure it can't hurt to see what the future looks like, especially since I'm basically maintaining right now. She thinks--and this is probably somewhat controversial--that weight loss and gain are not limited to calories in/calories out.
Her thesis:
"...Foods that stimulate insulin [cause problems]. Insulin causes fat storage and traps fat in the fat cells so that it cant be released. Cutting out all carbs except for vegetables and low sugar fruits is essential. That includes whole grains. And by the way, the weight you lost will come back if you reintroduce these foods!"
Dr. Berkeley is a weight loss physician with the Cleveland clinic. She's no slouch. She advocates what she calls a Primarian diet for weight maintenance. This is a diet based on human genetics. We did not evolve to eat most carbs--grains, sure, but also beans, tubers, and other starchy foods. These cause insulin resistance in fat people or previously fat people, and lead to gaining weight. That's the simple explanation, but the full discussion is not much more complicated than that. Just as you'd feed a lion only raw meat, you should feed yourself what you evolved to eat. This is a pre-agrarian thing. Agriculture is only 10,000 years old. We have not had time to evolve to eat post-agriculture cuisine. Eat only what you could find in the woods. Lean meat, fish, fowl, nuts, veggies, most fruits.
Well, that's limiting. But I've been reading about the glycemic index for years. I can see the connection. So I'm going to try to eat in a Primarian way. But not stupidly. I still think you have to eat enough (at least your BMR, and probably a bit more). Here's the thing. If you don't eat carbs (or not much), it's HARD to eat a lot of calories. An eight ounce chicken breast is 260 calories. If I am supposed to be eating 2700 calories, it's going to be a trick to eat a lot of clean food. I'm going to give it a shot. That's a lot of veggies and chicken. But what else am I doing? (And I think I'm feeling better, so the gym beckons.)
I keep trying to remember that in my world, not gaining is a win. So I guess I'm winning.
Still.
I got a copy of Barbara Berkeley's book, Refuse to Regain: 12 Tough Rules to Maintain the Body You've Earned. Her website is linked at right. This book and website are really geared toward maintenance, but I figure it can't hurt to see what the future looks like, especially since I'm basically maintaining right now. She thinks--and this is probably somewhat controversial--that weight loss and gain are not limited to calories in/calories out.
Her thesis:
"...Foods that stimulate insulin [cause problems]. Insulin causes fat storage and traps fat in the fat cells so that it cant be released. Cutting out all carbs except for vegetables and low sugar fruits is essential. That includes whole grains. And by the way, the weight you lost will come back if you reintroduce these foods!"
Dr. Berkeley is a weight loss physician with the Cleveland clinic. She's no slouch. She advocates what she calls a Primarian diet for weight maintenance. This is a diet based on human genetics. We did not evolve to eat most carbs--grains, sure, but also beans, tubers, and other starchy foods. These cause insulin resistance in fat people or previously fat people, and lead to gaining weight. That's the simple explanation, but the full discussion is not much more complicated than that. Just as you'd feed a lion only raw meat, you should feed yourself what you evolved to eat. This is a pre-agrarian thing. Agriculture is only 10,000 years old. We have not had time to evolve to eat post-agriculture cuisine. Eat only what you could find in the woods. Lean meat, fish, fowl, nuts, veggies, most fruits.
Well, that's limiting. But I've been reading about the glycemic index for years. I can see the connection. So I'm going to try to eat in a Primarian way. But not stupidly. I still think you have to eat enough (at least your BMR, and probably a bit more). Here's the thing. If you don't eat carbs (or not much), it's HARD to eat a lot of calories. An eight ounce chicken breast is 260 calories. If I am supposed to be eating 2700 calories, it's going to be a trick to eat a lot of clean food. I'm going to give it a shot. That's a lot of veggies and chicken. But what else am I doing? (And I think I'm feeling better, so the gym beckons.)
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