I don't really want to get into a reddit discussion today but I would argue that happiness, peace, and justice are almost entirely cultural achievements (animals don't choose to be happy or sad, it's a reflection of their environment/situation), and technology has the power to affect those three principles in a very profound way. Our culture also largely dictates our direction and use of technology. So I do agree that "being just" and "being technologically advanced" are divorced, but they still can affect one another greatly, which is why I think that pre-civilized cultures can be "truly progressed" without advanced technology. What I mean is that technology can be a real boon and a great weapon against our progress towards betterment. I mean just one immediate example would be that we may destroy ourselves in a matter of decades if we keep up global warming -- that's a direct result of our advanced culture and could literally destroy us. Is that advanced, true progresson?

A definition of culture:

> "that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society."

covers a great deal of peace and justice because we literally cannot exist without a culture because we cannot divorce ourselves from our neighbors in a meaningful way.

You mentioned peaceful and advanced... again, you haven't described what "advanced" means. Do you just mean technologically advanced when you say that?

I'd also recommend checking out some books and documentaries on (isolated) indigenous people if only because it often describes just how incredibly healthy and happy they frequently are. Not all of them, of course, but there are many good examples. Plus it's just interesting to see totally different cultures from our own. One I've read recently that had a very strong impact on my worldview was Nutrition and Physical Degeneration -- I've never had any interest in dental health but still found the book just amazing (my mom is a nutritionist and had it laying around).

I'd doubt the total veracity of this video, but it was also incredibly interesting. Plus boobs.

And some favorite movies/documentaries that illustrate my point: Koyaanisqatsi (which is part 1 of a trilogy), Baraka, and Samsara.

As someone who has lost 50 lbs, I have to say that motivation and willpower aren't enough. You do need them, but you need tools in place that will help you along when your motivation and willpower fail. And trust me, they will. You have to have tools in place that will make easier to stick to your diet and exercise plan than it will be to go off of it. So, being extremely long winded, here is what I suggest.

• First, realize that weight is not the only, nor is it the best, indicator of health. You may not lose 35 pounds, but if you go down 3 pant sizes and lower your cholesterol, while increasing strength then you're better off for it. Before you start, weigh yourself, note your size in tops, pants, shoes as well as measurements at your waist, hips, bust, neck, upper arms and thighs. Take a "before" picture to look at when you're discouraged that the changes are happening too slowly. I'd also suggest seeing a doctor and getting a biometric screening to make sure you are well enough to exercise. Plus it'll give you a good baseline to measure against once you've lost the weight.
  
  
• Pick a "diet plan" that works for you. Keto, paleo, low-carb, low-cal, Weight Watchers, whatever. You are more likely to keep the weight off if you pick a diet plan that you can live with forever, which is why Weight Watchers has a much higher success rate than many other diets because their members don't have any foods that are off limits. I don't really like plans that tell you there are foods you can't eat, because that will make me want them and then I'll binge. But if you can do it, go for it.
  
  
• Don't jump into your diet plan head first. Do a little planning. Slowly ween yourself off fast food and junk. If you normally go out to eat every day, cut down to a few times a week. Pack your lunch. (It's not only more healthy, you'll save money too!) Find a bunch of recipes that fit your meal plan that you think are delicious. You may need a few weeks to test them out so you know they're good. Don't just focus on dinner. Find snacks, breakfasts, and lunches too. The goal is to never feel deprived. So eat only foods you love. I cannot stress this enough. This has been my saving grace on my "diet". I eat delicious food all the time.
  
  
• If the foods you love are time consuming to make, make them in bulk and freeze them. That way on some night when you're starving and want to just go to McDonald's and get a burger, you'll realize it'll take less time to heat up what you have in your freezer.
  
  
• If you refuse to stop going out to eat (which is fine!) research your favorite places and find foods on their menu that fit your meal plan. Get the book Eat This, Not That and see what it suggests for the restaurant you're going to. Do this before you decide to go, as it's much harder to have the willpower to pick something on plan once at the restaurant and starving. For sit-down restaurants don't hesitate to ask to swap things out, or slightly modify their dishes.
  
  
• Exercising probably won't make you lose weight, but it will help you keep it off. Once you get your food figured out, start working out. Find exercises you love and do them frequently. Make it a routine and don't deviate from that routine for at least a month. Do both cardio and strength training. If you don't feel like you have time to work out, try to incorporate exercise into your daily routine. Bike or walk to work. Hang up a chin up bar in your door way and make a rule that to walk through that doorway means you have to do at least one chin up. Do burpees every time you have a beer. Something like that.
  
  
• Lastly, and this is the most important rule: Weight loss is like Fight Club. DON'T TALK ABOUT YOUR WEIGHT LOSS PLAN. Numerous studies have shown that when you talk out loud to people about your plan to lose weight, your mind gets the satisfaction of committing to losing weight, but you are actually less likely to follow through. Keep it to yourself and you are much more likely to follow through and actually lose the weight.
  
  Good luck!

I assume the personal trainer has you do weights? You're very active but I see no dedicated weight training sessions.

"Toning" is simply stripping fat from your body to reveal the muscle beneath the surface; if there's no muscle to show off, there's no toning. Strength training will not also help you tone, it'll increase your metabolism, help your body burn more fat compared to not weight training, protect you against osteoporosis, give you more energy and tons more.

If I was you, I'd do at least 3 weight focused sessions a week and cut back on the HIIT and intervals. IE

• Weight training x 3 per week
  
• Horse riding x 2 per week
  
• Yoga class x 1-2 per week
  
• HIIT/Interval Runs x 1-2 per week
  
  There's all sorts of routines to follow. For females I typically recommend
  
  Strong Curves
  
  or
  
  The New Rules of Lifting Series specifically The New Rules of Lifting for Women: Lift Like a Man, Look Like a Goddess
  
  or
  
  Strong: Nine Workout Programs for Women to Burn Fat, Boost Metabolism, and Build Strength for Life
  
  The other side is diet. Just like weight training should be the meat and potatoes of your training regimen, well, meat should be the main focus of your diet. Or at least protein - you need a lot more protein in your diet.
  
  Protein supports lean muscle growth, which, as I mentioned, is needed to tone. Increased protein intake will also help your body preferentially burn fat, it will speed up your metabolism, protein "costs" a lot of energy to break down protein (if you eat 100 calories of sugar, 99 calories of that sugar will be turned into fuel for the body; if you eat 100 calories of chicken, only 70 calories will actually be converted and the other 30 calories will be "burned" while the body processes and breaks down the chicken into a usable fuel source), it gives you more energy, helps boost your immune system and more
  
  https://www.precisionnutrition.com/will-a-high-protein-diet-harm-your-health
  
  In short, lift weights, eat more protein

Just remember, the stone has already been rolled away so we don’t need breakthrough, we have it.

Some background info-fasting surpresses the carnal voice in our lives and helps us to see clear. It helps us to learn that the “spirit is willing but the flesh is weak” is before Jesus died, and now that he died and rose again, our spirit is willing and our flesh says amen. Fasting gets rid of “cobwebs” so to speak and makes things clear. It’s truly amazing. The self control I have grown in from fasting is so awesome-it really changes your perspective on things. It teaches you not to live sensual and not to let your flesh be in charge. Not to mention the physical and health benefits from fasting. The important thing about fasting is that fasting and prayer must go together. With fasting we put off the old and with prayer we put on the new. I can’t even begin to talk about all the good fruit I’ve seen in my life with fasting. It’s truly a powerful tool God has given us.

I highly recommend you check out The Complete Guide to Fasting by Dr. Fung. It's a very informative book and has lots of great info on fasting. I do practice a fasted lifestyle and do extended fasting, I have a podcast episode here I did on fasting, if you'd like some spiritual tips.

For longer fasts, It's ok to take supplements when you fast-potassium, magnesium, and sodium are great. Check out the r/fasting sub, too. Lots of great info there :)

you can exercise in general but you may want to reduce the intensity and it also depends on how you feel.

maybe you should stay off of the oils for now. straight up food is a cookbook i have and it's sos free. (no salt no oil no sugar )

the carrot cake was surprisingly yummy and tasted just like a carrot cake.

the complete fasting by Jason fung also has several yummy recipes

i have a bean burger recipe too thats simple to make.... i eat it in lettuce instead of bread.

dr esselstyn mentions oil is unhealthy for you nd not needed. i was having heart issues and followed his advice in general. mainly stopped eating oil and junk foods. i found some healthy alternatives... they weren't the best but they were better than what i was eating.

i like recipes that are easy to make without alpt of hassle. the forks over knives recipe books seem like too much of a hassle to me personally.

straight up food (there is also a website with recipes)

Straight Up Food: Delicious and Easy Plant-based Cooking without Salt, Oil or Sugar https://www.amazon.com/dp/0997636904/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_c5FSzbXN6Y9DD


complete guide to fasting by Jason fung

The Complete Guide to Fasting: Heal Your Body Through Intermittent, Alternate-Day, and Extended Fasting https://www.amazon.com/dp/1628600012/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_L6FSzbEV05VXJ


most people make veggie patties complicated. i have an easy recipe from rip esselstyn. it may sound complicated but i can condense it if you like
http://engine2diet.com/blog/top-engine-2-recipes-plant-strong-burgers/

let me know if you need help on seperating iceberg lettuce leaves to use in place of a bun

Another vegan chiming in. I went vegetarian in 2006 (I think?) and vegan in 2013. I went meatless/animal-less for both the environment and animals, but the health perks aren't too bad. :)

There's so many sources!

• Seitan
  
• Tofu/tempeh
  
• Beans (pinto, navy, black, kidney, red, chickpeas...)
  
• LENTILS! This is a staple of mine. I have lentils almost every week. You can put them in soups, salads, stir fries, just by the spoon...And there is a variety as well. Perfect for working out.
  
• Grains like quinoa, millet, farro, rice, barley
  
• Nuts/seeds (almonds, hemp, CHIA, flax, sunflower)
  
• Nut butters
  
• Sprouts
  
• Eating a variety of plants
  
  Eating enough protein is something I actually don't worry about. I try to eat the rainbow (as silly as that sounds...) every day, and I don't find myself feeling weak or strained. Sometimes I am exhausted and wiped, but that is just me forgetting to eat when I get busy then not actually getting the correct vitamins. I feel extremely healthy, and my blood work from a few weeks came back with great results.
  
  I do strength train and work out regularly. I also LOVE hiking, and I can hike 20+ miles a day if needed, and my veganism hasn't caused setbacks. Some people use protein shakes, but I have not found it necessary.
  
  If this is something you are interested in, I REALLY recommend checking out Becoming Vegetarian by Vesanto Melina (RS MD). (There's also Becoming Vegan if you are curious)
  
  These books are absolutely amazing. They breakdown all the nutrients within each vegetable, protein source, fruit, and nuts/seeds in easy-to-read charts. They also discuss nutrition myths, delve into why you may be wanting to make changes, and offer various meal options for people who are trying to lose/gain weight or are athletes that are transitioning to a plant based diet. So fucking helpful. I still reference to my "Becoming Vegan" and "Becoming Raw," and I have been doing this for a bit!
  
  They are also evidence based, so all the research is cited with a glossary in the back.
  
  There's also /r/veganfitness that is supportive and has a FAQ if you are interested. Feel free to PM if you have any questions, too!
  
  Edit: Formatting

It's been said a million times, but as a woman, the odds of your "lifting heavy and getting big" are slim to nil. There are tons of testimonials on fittit from women who've started lifting and discovered they don't get big, they get awesome.

As a somewhat recovered cardio freak (competitive swimmer as a kid, cycling, rowing, backpacking, etc. as an adult), discovering strength training was a huge, huge epiphany.

Look over the benefits:

Lori Incledon's online book, "Strength Training for Women"
http://www.healthline.com/hlbook/strt-benefits-of-strength-training-for-women

Stumptuous:
http://www.stumptuous.com/lies-in-the-gym

"The New Rules of Lifting for Women": http://www.amazon.com/New-Rules-Lifting-Women-Goddess/dp/1583332944

Short version (from Incledon's book):
Increased Strength
Increased Muscle Mass and Decreased Body Fat
Increased Bone Density
Improved Immune Function
Reversed Effects of Aging
Improved Mood and Increased Confidence
Improved Quality of Life

Just sayin'.

Lifting will give you some test boost, but will not make a miracle. Your test is pretty low for your age, maybe you should consider TRT. If you go the TRT route, get the BEST doctor you can get, if you screw with your hormones, depending on what you do, theres no going back. And research a lot before doing it. Read books, good articles. Clomid is a nice help for now.

Some things other than TRT to check:

• Check your vitamin D levels. Make sure its way above 30 ng/ml. If you supplement with vitamin D3, make sure you also take vitamin K2 (research about this).
  
  
• Eat brazil nuts, red meat. Whole eggs. Brocolli is high on a compound that lowers estrogen naturally, eat a fuckton of it. Eat only real food, something like paleo style is good. Make sure you are getting enough healthy fats, you need it for hormones. This will also help with fat loss. Also check on intermittent fasting, theres research showing it increases growth hormones and lots of other benefits.
  
  https://www.amazon.com.br/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012
  
  
• Make sure you are not overdoing volume at the gym. Lifting HARD for 1h30 is too much unless you are on the juice.
  
  
• Make sure you have enough zinc. Consider taking ZMA before bed or take a good multivitamin.
  
  
• Sleep well, reduce stress, make sure your cortisol levels are low. Look into meditation.
  
  http://www.artofmanliness.com/2013/01/18/how-to-increase-testosterone-naturally/
  
  https://www.t-nation.com/pharma/complete-guide-to-t-replacement?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=article4341
  

> I have had MS since Christmas of 2014.

Wow. Merry Christmas! :)

You're about the same age I was when I was diagnosed, with the big difference that I have testicles and you don't.

> At my last appointment I made it a point to point out I can't raise my leg past my other legs ankle.

My first attack started in my left hand and eyes with some mental issues.

Of course, every case is different. My eyes and mental issues cleared up pretty quickly. But my left hand was essentially useless -- mainly cosmetic :) -- for about a decade. Then it started to recover and today I can snap my fingers and have some pretty substantial feeling in it (but it's still numb, clumsy and tingly).

In short, things do change, especially at your age. Let's hope it does with your legs. Research says to exercise/stretch/move them and that makes a slight positive difference in disability.

> but I'm diabetic and

I don't know anything about you and diabetes, other than a lot of overweight people have it.

Since myelin is fatty tissue in the brain, and since I tried alternative treatments for MS after neuros started suggesting "experimental chemo" (no one wants to hear chemo coming from a doctor's mouth, and it's even worse with the word experimental in front of it!), I deliberately tried to gain weight and so I put on fat. (It didn't work for MS but I did have to have my gall bladder removed.:)

After the fat thing didn't work I also tried some MS diets. That did ID the fact that gluten does impact my health/how I feel.

But the godsend was a semi-paleo diet, which I still do. That allowed me to shed weight and to keep it off without even trying. Eating tons of greens improved my vision from slightly worse than 20/20 to better than 20/20. Sadly, it wasn't a cure-all for MS, but I liked the other benefits so much that I stick to a semi-paleo diet. (The gluten thing is definitely a keeper for me and I think there's truth in the "Grain Brain" idea.)

> So FINALLY he took me seriously...

Wow! You had the same neuro that I did! I thought she would've retired by now but she must've gone trans. :)

Please re-post a summary about the steroid jell if/after you do it. I did bee venom therapy for a while and it did give me small increases in my energy level (bee venom also contains steroids).

Edit: Typos, clarity.

I haven't read some of these books, but they seem to come from credible sources and be generally well-received. Anyone with personal experience with them should chime in.

From professional organizations, if that is your thing:

The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating

American Dietetic Association Complete Food and Nutrition Guide

A more in-depth textbook style book with a focus on accessibility and practical application:

Nutrition

Sports Nutrition/Geared towards active lifestyles:

Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook (One of the books that kicked off my interest in nutrition many years ago)

[The Men's Health Big Book of Food & Nutrition] (http://www.amazon.com/Mens-Health-Book-Food-Nutrition/dp/1605293105/ref=tmm_pap_title_0) (not perfect, but probably one of the simplest and most straight-forward options, with recipes included)

Precision Nutrition (Personal favorite. Complete toolkit, amazing recipes, easy to understand, can't say enough good things about it. Best 50 bucks you could spend.)

I hope that helps you at least get started thinking about it, and I hope others have more suggestions.

So you're saying that since we know very little about what early Paleolithic man ate (~2.5 million years ago up until 10,000), and despite the fact that we know our brains grew and stomachs shrank specifically because of meat consumption, we should eat vegan.

And that (RE: #3) because our day-to-day lives look very little like (in a literal sense) a hunter-gatherers life, we ought not eat meat? We may not run around and hunt our food, but how many of us run around all day, to this job or that, working overtime, etc. If anything, I'd think it would make more sense to streamline your foods for maximum efficiency - i.e., eat the foods that are most nutritious, which certainly includes a hefty amount of vegetables, but also includes a significant (dietarily) amount of high-quality meat product whose bioavailability or healthy fats and complete proteins (nevermind micronutrient breakdown) is virtually unmatched. That would only make sense in this over-worked and un-rested era.

(By the way, Paleo is all about quality. Only grass-fed/pastured animals, preferably that includes a hefty dose of the nutrient dense organ meat, as well as a short-but-intense exercise plan that would very much mimic that of a hunter-gatherer.)

RE: #4 - if you seriously can find me one piece of information that does not show very clearly an exponential increase in grain consumption in the last 100 years (that goes right along with the prevalence of diseases of civilization), I'd love to see it. I really don't think it exists.

Just a few examples (that aren't even talking about Paleo):

• Dangerous Grains
  
  
• The Great Cholesterol Con
  
  
• Trick and Treat: How Healthy Eating is Making Us Ill
  
  
• Food and Western Disease: Health and nutrition from an evolutionary perspective
  
  
• Gluten and Autism
  
  
• MS and Diet
  
  
• RA and Diet
  
  
• If those aren't enough, happy reading. I hate to break it to you, but even non-paleo dr.'s and scientists from across a host of fields are all coming to the conclusion - based on biochemistry and specifically how our guts, intestines, etc. interact with them - that grains are a far bigger problem than quality meats.
  
  Yes, every one of these will talk about shit-quality meats, but also extensively about "high-quality, whole" grains. And before you use the word "pseudoscientific" again, I'd just like to say I'm not sure that you know what it means. These citations are from scientists. I haven't yet seen you cite one scientist. And before you quote the China Study - don't. It's bunk, been proven to be bunk, by people smarter and more thorough than Denise Minger's pretty solid piece on Campbell's skewing of the stats.
  
  Get your learn on.
  
  Personally, I don't give a shit if you eat meat or not. But you're conflating a moral issue (of yours) with a health issue (of ours). I'll agree with you that the vast majority of meat that gets eaten in this country is crap. Factory farms need to go. Grain-feeding animals needs to stop. So do food subsidies for corn and grain. But beyond your morals, there's absolutely nothing unhealthy about eating a grass-fed steak, or a cage-free, chicken that's been allowed to run around outside and do its chicken-y thing. So long as you tolerate those well (food allergy tests - another thing I'm not sure you're aware of that's very, very popular in the Paleo community, and many people come back allergic or intolerant of many animal products).
  
  Anyway, I'm done here. You still haven't specifically told me what's pseudoscientific. You've linked to a group with an agenda and wikipedia, but have made all sorts of claims that imply you have some very specific knowledge relating to some damaging aspects of consumption of high-quality meats in a balanced diet with high-quality fruits, veggies, etc. I can link you studies and papers by scientists and doctors all day. You haven't cited one.
  
  Moreover, you make the claim that because we don't know what foods we're evolved to thrive on we shouldn't eat Paleo - all the while claiming Veganism is better. On what grounds if you can't say what we've evolved to eat? You can't have your cake and eat it too.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

If you've never done an extended fast before, I would highly recommend easing into it with shorter fasts first. I recently wrote a results thread about finishing my first extended fast (I went for about 10.5 days). There were some aspects that aligned with my expectations, and others that were virtually opposite from what I've read in others' experiences, and in hindsight I wish I had eased in by doing shorter fasts first. My original intention was to fast for 21 days, but based on how my final 5 days went (very low energy, muscle weakness, constant nausea, etc) I felt I had no choice but to be satisfied with 10 days and to stick to shorter fasts in the future.

I would also recommend reading Dr. Fung's Complete Guide to Fasting. It should give you a great basis to start from. For specific questions you may have, use Google to search this sub rather than Reddit's search. For example, to look up information on electrolytes, put this into Google: electrolytes site:www.reddit.com/r/fasting. Just substitute "electrolytes" for your specific keywords.

Speaking of supplementation, I'll either dissolve Celtic Sea Salt on my tongue or take small sips of Pickle Juice for sodium. For potassium, NoSalt has a good amount per serving and can be mixed with water and taken as a shot. Magnesium can be supplemented in pill form, a lotion/spray, or by soaking your feet in Epsom Salt. These will all be most beneficial on a longer fast, although I find that supplementing sodium starting on Day 2 of my own fasts has made me feel better (less brain fog and dizziness, improved mood, etc.)

Best of luck to you. :)

Being a vegetarian, learning to cook for yourself is going to be important.

I recommend the book Becoming Vegetarian, it has plenty of good starter recipes.

Tofu's easy to cook: it's bland by itself but picks up flavor easily. Fry it in a little oil then add some soysauce and keep heating til browned, it's very tasty.

Some simple & cheap meals I like:

Veggie stir fry with brown rice or noodles.

Brown rice is a staple, very cheap & healthy. Put it on and it's done in about an hour. White rice is faster of course, but lacks some of the vitamins. Grab a bunch of veggies you like, I typically like: broccoli, onions, bell peppers, a little garlic, carrots, mushrooms, celery. Cut everything into strips or bite-sized pieces, fry in wok or pan for about 10 minutes, add a little sauce (soysauce, blackbean sauce, sweet hot sauce), then serve on top of rice.

When I'm feeling lazy I'll make something similar, which takes longer but requires less watching:

Baked veggies

Chop up all the veggies you like, plus some potatoes if you want. Coat a baking pan in oil, put them in the oven at 350 for 60-90 minutes. Turn the veggies every 20 minutes or so. Add basil about 5 minutes before done. Serve on top of rice with some sauce.

Miso Soup

Miso is a little pricy, but goes a long way.

Boil 2 cups of water, lower to simmer, stir in 2 tablespoons of miso. Add wheat noodles, chopped mushrooms, small cubes of tofu, cook for about 5 minutes. Add chopped green onion (scallions) just before serving.

Vegetable Soup

This is easy. Get some vegetable soup stock bouillon cubes, then just chop your veggies, add to boiling water with the bouillon, serve with some bread & margarine. Some beans are good in this too.

Seitan is definitely something to explore. I like it instead of tofu in my stirfries sometimes, and it's great in:

Veggie Fajitas

Cut some seitan, bell peppers, carrots into strips, slice some mushrooms. Fry them up. Serve in whole wheat fajita bread with salsa.

What I've found is that changes in diet impacted (in a good way!) my energy levels and gave positive changes in some other MS symptoms. I don't buy the line that diet can "cure" MS, but I'll happily accept positive changes. :)

> I've been trying to lose weight

For me I have to wrap my head around things before I can make the changes a lifestyle change.

Key factors for me was reading the Grain Brain book and also reading about anti-inflammatory diets.

Discovering in myself that I am sensitive to wheat/gluten was huge (I can eat wheat with no stomach issues, but it definitely factors into "cog fog" for me) -- that convinced me to be gluten-free.

Reading about the fact that for centuries we've fattened animals for slaughter by feeding them grain, meant it was a short leap for me to just avoid grains. I'm not religious about that, but if given the preference I avoid any grain.

It's the same thing for heavily processed foods. If it doesn't "rot" and comes in a package that is processed to sit on a shelf for months and months, I don't want to eat that.

FWIW, this mainstream MS-specializing neurologist/doctor has a couple of videos on diet (examples: 1, 2). I love that guy's videos and often will play them as "background noise" while doing other things around the house. I've heard those same sentiments about diet echoed by other neurologists and doctors.

> Sometimes I mix them with baby spinach to get a different green in,

Oh yes, that's great. I routinely throw a bunch of "weird" veggies or greens into my salad. With that Subway-type cutting/chopping bowl, it's easy to cut them up.

I just read Jason Fung's book on fasting, and I really like his approach.

He recommends that you flexibly incorporate fasting into your life, working around your schedule. Maybe you normally fast on Mon/Wed/Fri, but a friend is having a birthday party Friday. Why not shift the Friday fast to Saturday? Maybe you normally skip breakfast and lunch, but some friends invite you to a weekend Brunch. Why not skip dinner that day?

Your case is different because you are talking about a long-term fast. Five days is already a great first fast—congratulations! There is certainly nothing wrong with stopping this fast for the weekend and starting a new one next week. (However, be aware that this is two short fasts and not one long one.) Did you have a goal? I'd recommend that if you want to do a really long fast (a week or more) that you plan it around your schedule. Like find a free weekend and put that in the middle of a 12 day fast.

Yep, love it! Intermittent fasting has changed my life for the better in a number of ways and I've lost 30kgs using it. Not for everyone, but there's many forms of intermittent fasting you can use based on your goals, existing condition, and current lifestyle.

Our introduction to the topic was the 5:2 diet Michael Mosely wrote about in "The Fast Diet" (https://www.amazon.com/FastDiet-Weight-Healthy-Intermittent-Fasting/dp/1476734941). But the thing that made it all click for me was "The Obestiy Code" by Jason Fung (https://www.amazon.com/Obesity-Code-Unlocking-Secrets-Weight/dp/1771641258) as that went into more detail about obesity, insulin resistance, and how fasting can be used as a tool.

Following on from that Jason Fung has a great podcast with Jimmy Moore called Fasting Talk (http://www.fastingtalk.com/), and together they wrote a book called "The Complete Guide to Fasting" (https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=T8ZVNTT4TWP9E76C1RJW) which I've not got around to reading yet. It came out after I started fasting but I hope to get my hands on it soon.

As a ketogenic diet and intermittent fasting go hand in hand another one of Jimmy Moore's podcasts I've found helpful is Keto Talk (http://ketotalk.com/)

Can't stop raving about IF, hope some of those links help :)

You spent 40 years accumulating that mass dude. Fasting is not easy mentally nor physically. Religious fasts had a community aspect to help push through. Fasting burnout is common. Day 3 can be especially annoying to push through, ESPECIALLY if you are not keto adjusted.

Jason Fung's idm protocol has two rules of thumb for really motivated folks who are interested in longer fasts. 7 day fasts he recommends doing once every 4 weeks. 14 day fasts he recommends doing once every 6 weeks to allow the body to readjust.

You haven't mentioned if you take medications. Do you have diabetes? If so, its highly recommended you work with your pcp to adjust your medications. Do you have heart issues? This can be potentially dangerous.

The dude who fasted for 382 days did so under the DIRECT supervision of a doctor. He was also TWENTY SEVEN years old, meaning his heart didn't have as much time to calcify. I'm not trying to be a negative nancy, but fasting is an extremely powerful tool and should be implemented cautiously.

I want you to succeed. I don't want you to burn out. I don't want you to injure yourself. I don't want you to kill yourself and I especially don't want people to blame Fasting for killing you.

edit: Continuing
Okay, you're still here. Sorry for being snappy. But I get scared looking at all these posts with people who plan on 30 day fasts but then [deleted] by [deleted] shows up later. I really encourage you to read though the side bar. If you have the money+inclination, I'd really recommend you download Jason Fung's book on fasting protocols.Complete Guide to Fasting. Amazon referral link remvd Its only 10 dollars and it really lays out exactly what you need in an easy format to refer to.

Watch Megan Ramos's Ketofest speech video in youtube. She is Jason Fung's partner in the idm protocol. The first 15 minutes is basically her personal story from obese to healthy since she was patient 0 of Jason's fasting protocol. 24 mins in is basically a step by step guide on how to do it properly. 33 minute 45 she covers some possible common side effects and what you can do to help avoid them. All in all one of the most useful videos for what you are about to embark on.

Since you're 40 years old, when you do break your fast, metamucil is highly recommended past a 7 day fast. Dislodging an impacted stool is one of the more unpleasant possible side effects of this. Having to go to a hospital setting and have a nurse shove her arm into your rectum to remove a stool is NOT what I consider a fun exercise(unless that is your kink, i'm not trying to shame here). Please be careful to have lots of fiber before the fast and also after. Some folks recommend fiber during as well, but if you're doing a 7 day( what I think is a great target for a first fast ) you probably don't need to consider laxatives/bulkers for your stools.

Make sure you join the discord on the side bar. Theres some old guys like splat who's like 50 years old.

OK, I fucked up.

Binge eating and anorexia are not related.

If you've had issues with anorexia (OCD), you understand the status loss associated with weight gain. In which case, I'm sorry I went too hard and gave you awful and dangerous advice. Most women vastly underestimate the status loss of being overweight. You overestimate it. And underestimate the risk to your life.

People suffering anorexia think the status loss is far worse than it is and can vividly imagine and over estimate horrible worst case scenarios. You don't need motivation, you have that. I wish i did more often!

What sufferers of anorexia are out of touch with is they have a distorted view of is what the problem is and how to go about fixing it. The problem for everyone isn't about losing weight or a certain dress size, it's about maintaining healthy weight. Which is the attractive weight, luckily they both align. With most people we don't need to go that detailed and it's usually counterproductive. A healthy, attractive weight is likely a couple of pants sizes higher, and 20lb heavier than estimated, because part of that healthy attractive weight is physical fitness, which is an increasingly greater factor to attractiveness/health as one closes in on a healthy weight. Lean muscle mass that fit people have is heavy and fills out clothes.

The problem isn't being overweight, it's not maintaining a healthy and attractive body. This can be because one is overweight or underweight combined with lack of fitness and poor diet. Dress sizes, calorie intake & weight are not ideal goals. They are vague guidelines and goals that are great for most people, but counterproductive for people with anorexia or for people approaching their ideal health. The goal is to live a healthy lifestyle of great nutrition combined with regular daily exercise. The great, attractive body is then a result.


So we understand the problem, how do we go about fixing it? It's tough. Firstly though understanding nutrition (https://nutritionstudies.org/whole-food-plant-based-diet-guide/
https://www.amazon.com/Whole-Rethinking-Nutrition-Colin-Campbell/dp/1939529840) and secondly through increasing exposure to scenarios outside your comfort zone to make you realize that,'hell the sky isn't falling in'. Putting on some weight and realizing that 'hey, I'm still attractive' has been a healthy thing. Now just tune it up.


Whatever I've said in the earlier posts here, if someone was to take anything away from it, it would be that book. It's written by Dr Doug Lisle who is an expert in evolutionary psychology, which IMO is what the good parts of TRP are based on. He does a great podcast 'beatyourgenes', I'd recommend it to everyone, there's 130 odd episodes, I found last weeks boring, but most are phenomenal and I've listened to them all. Scroll down and find a topic you find interesting and give it a shot.

Someone private messaged me between the posting of my ongoing fasting log and my completed fasting log. I am going to copy and paste my response so others can benefit from the questions and answers.

***
"Sorry I didn't respond sooner.

>First I would like to say what a tremendous achievement!!!! Hats off to you for the sheer determination through a remarkable journey!!! I have looked at a lot of your posts. You were the inspiration for me starting keto and fasting!!! Any help you can give me would be greatly appreciated.

Thx!

>Not sure how to put my log in here I did it in word.

I am using the reddit table formatting option.

Here is some general info on how to do that.

/r/tabled/wiki/table-format

And the source to one of my smaller tables.

http://imgur.com/a/noOmg

>When do you take your salt, mag pills, multivitamin during the day? Noticed in your log it said too close together sometimes and shart. (Should I increase my sodium Himalayan)? Also I feel better now when I take the salt but 5 trips to pee in an hour after?

When I am normally eating (not fasting) I eat around 7am, noon and 7pm. I usually go to bed around 10pm. So those are the 4 approximate times I take my electrolytes. If I miss my electrolytes and take a round later and get them too close to one another they seem to cause flushing of the bowels. I just follow the /r/keto and /r/ketogains recommendations on electrolytes whether keto or fasting. It seems to work for me. If you look at my previous fasting logs and the dialogue with other redditors I have addressed a lot of your general questions.

https://www.reddit.com/r/keto/wiki/faq#wiki_how_do_i_replenish_electrolytes.3F

https://www.reddit.com/r/ketogains/wiki/index#wiki_electrolytes.3A_sodium.2C_potassium.2C_magnesium_intake_for_ketogenic_diets_.2B_sports_.28and_all_about_the_.22keto_flu.22.2C_heart_palpitations_and_cramps.29

>When do you exercise? If you could give me your typical day w times would be great.

I have been a stay at home dad for a little over a year. I exercise in the morning normally and try to do an hour of machine weights. With no set schedule the time varies in the morning and sometimes gets pushed to the afternoon.

>I would like to do this to lose at least another 20lbs but I do lawn maintenance starting may 1st and based on your lack of energy and dropping the weights I am concerned. when do you think I should stop fast and start refeeding? What have you done pleas be specific your refeed since you just finished 6wk fast and how do you feel?

You can stop a fast at any point if you don't feel well. If I was not a stay at home dad I would have probably had to break this last fast due to energy levels. You are going to gain some of the weight back immediately after an extended fast so if you have a goal weight loss you need to over shoot your fasting weight loss a little bit. Depending on many variables this can be 5 to 10 pounds you need to overshoot to get your final desired weight after refeed. The best info I could source from other experienced keto extended fasters was that refeeding should be done with high fat and low protein with absolutely no fiber. After both my 6 week fasts I had problems with diarrhea during refeed. After listening to all the Fasting Talk podcast it seems that diarrhea during and after a extended fast is not uncommon. I feel a lot better during and after refeeding. I got my energy back.

http://www.fastingtalk.com

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/fasting-talk/id1192105323?mt=2

>Today weighed the same as yesterday 222.8, first time that happened on water fast. I had a family visit yesterday and did not exercise? out of ketosis?

I try to drink a gallon of water whether fasting or not. A gallon of water weighs little over 8 pounds. I don't know if the family visiting caused any stress but I have had stressful days translate into higher weight the next day. Don't pay attention to the daily weight swings pay attention to the trend.

>I become very alert at 10pm (think this started day 1 as I was up late looking stuff up). How do I get into 7am start and 11pm bed?

During an extended fast you will need less sleep. I went from going to bed about 10pm to going to bed at midnight to 1am. Just try to do something constructive with this extra wake time.

>You just got your dexascan results did you lose any bone or muscle since last scan?

http://imgur.com/a/qUvOk

>I just found this by Dr Berg on fatty liver while fasting what are your thoughts? Did you see an increase? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8dWWoADCFM&list=PLVLP-bhbxACY47_uAThXuS-7bxdBisiwC&index=27

I can't find a reference but the best of my knowledge was this was not an issue and fasting should help clear a fatty liver sooner than just a standard keto diet alone. I believe this is what I heard/read from Dr. Jason Fung.

>How do you put your log in the messages?

Answered previously.

>In closing, I would like to say that not only have you changed your life but you should also feel so good about how you have impacted other people!!! Looking forward to your response.

Thx!

Make sure you check out the Fasting Talk podcast (mentioned previously) and Dr. Jason Fung's material for more guidance.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1628600012?sa-no-redirect=1&pldnSite=1

https://intensivedietarymanagement.com/

https://www.dietdoctor.com/authors/dr-jason-fung-m-d"

Me: 49 y/o female, 5'8" 147 lbs (working on getting down to 140).

I've been a gym rat for years. Rule number one is stay interested in staying active.

a) Yes, you can go to the gym everyday, just make sure at least one day a week is very easy or even take a day off (uhh, so maybe you don't go every day).

b) Lifting weights is almost essential. I do about 10-25 minutes of weights about 5 days a week. Say, Sunday, Wednesday & Friday I do core/abs/legs. Then on Monday and Thursday I do upper body/arms/shoulders. The following week I switch so I do 3 of upper body and 2 of core/lower body. Learn how to lift from a trainer or a friend who knows how. A great book is The New Rules of Lifting for Women: Lift like a Man, Look like a Goddess

c) Depends. Even though I've done this for years, I feel great almost every day. It can take 6 weeks minimum for the body to register the adjustments you're making, so it may rebel and not like the changes. I think it takes about 6 months for the body to really "get it" that you're exercising for life.

Oh, lifting isn't tedious. It's really fun. There are so many different things you can do and ways to do them. The book I mentioned will help give you ideas.

Enjoy!

No, you can't overfeed a toddler. But withholding food can cause her to become food-obsessed, which means she will eat more than her body really wants or needs. And it doesn't sound like you are doing that at all, so I don't mean to imply that - just saying that sometimes it happens.

A really great book on feeding kids is Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense which talks about how to help kids eat the right amount of food for them, which might be a lot more or a lot less than the amount that adults expect.

I really like these peanut butter energy bites, and they seem like they might be really toddler friendly. String cheese or cheese cut into fun shapes like stars, beans, quinoa, oats (I like them with banana and honey), eggs (what about deviled eggs instead of scrambled? egg boats!), avocado, protein or yogurt smoothies, different kinds of nut butters, trail mix...trying to think of other proteiny things. Funny that you got an adamant vegetarian, my daughter loooooooooves meat from the first time someone offered her a lick of beef jerky and I was hoping she would be a veggy like me. :)

Yep, grains cause inflammation in the body. Its pretty much a proven fact. Consistent results in lab mice, and anyone who honestly pays attention to their body can tell a difference. Don't get me wrong, I still eat bread and grains every once in a while, and thinks there's a place for them in an active persons diet, but there's no denying grains cause inflammation. This guy http://www.drperlmutter.com/ thinks all carbs, including grains, are bad, which is a bit overboard if you're an athlete or a moderately active person, but his book is quite interesting https://www.amazon.com/Grain-Brain-Surprising-Sugar-Your-Killers/dp/031623480X There's a lot of pear-reviewed data about carbohydrates and inflammation in the book. A super interesting part of the book is when he started doing research on India, and noticed a large portion of Indian diets consists of carbs, but they have super low incidences of inflammation based diseases (Alzheimer's being the primary disease focused on), he finally made the connection that people in India also consume a huge amount of turmeric in their diet, turmeric is pretty much the best natural anti-inflammatory in the world. I could go on forever about diet and diet-related research. Anyways, glad you've made a connection with grains and your inflammation. If you noticed the dramatic difference as you stated, you very well may have a legit gluten intolerance. Maybe get tested? Here's the catch-22: if you keep going down the rabbit-hole of reduced gluten/grain intake, it will make it worse and worse each time you try to go back to eating bread/grains.

So here's what you do:

Get her one of these, they're grip strength trainers and you can get her one for about $4$8 or a pack of them for $10$20 (sorry, they've raised their prices). They're especially good for rock climbers but make great tools for working out in the car or at the office.

Then, get her a used copy of a book on sizism or which serves to humanize the kind of people she mindlessly hates. Two easy to read but good young adult novels are "Fat Kid Rules the World," by K. L. Going (which Matthew Lilliard has made into a film, partially because of its punk environment) and "Big Fat Manifesto" by Susan Vaught (this one has a female protagonist). Another good choice would be "Fat: The Anthropology of an Obsession" by Don Kulick. This one is more for adults and might be slightly more academic. You can get all of these for less than $2 apiece on Amazon, and you may even help to diminish some hate in this world. Good luck!

[Edit]: If you are really against pointing out someone's faults through an anonymous gift exchange, you could also get her a fitness book like The New Rules of Lifting for Women, which is highly recommended for female fitness geeks, especially if she doesn't yet lift weights.

Super, super sketch. If there's hope that it's actually going to work, there are easier ways of getting the info... The site lists these "factors" that result in having a smaller butt: 1. Hormonal imbalance during time of puberty, 2. Low fat genetics, 3. Low muscle genetics, 4. Natural body shape, 5. Physical activity, 6. Diet, 7. Lower body strength

Well, these actually boil down to the things we already know:

• Genetics
  
• Muscle
  
• Diet
  
  First, genetics can't really be controlled... with time and effort, you can look like the very best version of you. (You can't make yourself look fundamentally different, but you can fulfill your genetic potential.) If you think you have a hormone imbalance keeping you from having a bigger butt, seeing a doctor might help.
  
  Second, muscle is awesome. Check out strength-building programs such as Starting Strength or NROL4W if you have access to a gym with free weights. The compound lifts work multiple sets of muscles at once, and the basic lifts are squats, deadlifts, bench press, and overhead (military) press. Or look into Convict Conditioning if you want to use your body weight. These programs are balanced. These are well-researched. These are non-gimicky. If you follow the program, you will get stronger.
  
  The complete list of movements to build glutes are listed here at EXRX. They boil down to two main lifts - squats and deadlifts.
  
  The way to build strength and muscle mass is to lift heavy enough that the 3-5th repetition is really hard, and keep lifting more each time. If you never increase the weight, your muscles won't adapt to lift more. Progressive overload builds muscle.
  
  As an aside, doing lots of abdominal work can build your abs, which may make your waist-hip ratio smaller. If you're shooting for a killer butt, overdoing it with extra ab work (on top of the stabilizing work your abs do on heavy lifts) can't help you much in this quest. Spot reduction is a myth. See the "Brittany Spears Effect".
  
  Finally, in terms of diet, you can build muscle if you get enough protein. If you need to lose fat, eating enough protein and cutting out "junk" calories might be enough. If you need to gain fat, eating plenty of calories while you're lifting may be enough. If you don't need to lose fat, just focus on getting enough protein and eat sensibly when you're hungry.
  
  As you build strength in the posterior chain, you'll fill out looking like a goddess with "dat ass".
  
  TL;DR: No need for gimmicks - squats and deadlifts.

Some people do fat fasts, where they eat BPC / HC, others do only water fasts, they each have different benefits. Accidentally eating is tough, cause it can break some benefits of prolonged fasting.

This book by Dr Fung (https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500587651&sr=8-1&keywords=dr+fung+the+complete+guide+to+fasting ) is a good read, about different types and benefits of fasting. I am currently on day 32 of a 50 day fast. I am doing it for weight loss, autophagy, and to adapt to ketosis for endurance athletics. I have read that 2 weeks of water-fast is supposed to be good for auto-immune rejuvenation, and others claim cancer prevention benefits. I find when i exercise, and do hot sauna, it really helps a lot with weight loss and metabolism.

I would not get caught up on the "purity" of the fast as long as it works for you, and to understand benefits for you, i hear a lot that the best fast is one that works for you, and even if your eating and it isn't technically "fasting" it is still a form of fasting.

I have seen a lot of interesting challenges, like an "egg fast challenge" or "steak fast challenge", where you only eat "eggs" or steak, etc.. for 30 days, and those are interesting threads to follow as well. Congrats on the progress and keep at it. I've only got about 20 more days to, then i have to figure out the best way to get off my fast.

Actually, if you are reading Good Calories, Bad Calories, you can skip Metabolic Typing Diet. MTD is just another system to help you determine how your body processes fats and carbohydrates, which imho is the big variable when it comes to diet. But GCBC covers that along with updated information.

IIRC, GCBC also recommends starting with a super low-carbohydrate diet for a few weeks and then introducing carbs until you start to feel funky again, then pulling back til you feel better. This is pretty common practice for a lot of dieticians now. Incidentally, Taubes wrote a follow-up called Why We Get Fat and What To Do About It.
which is a bit of a rehash of GCBC but focuses more on putting the knowledge into practice. IMHO both are worth reading.

I'm also a huge fan of David Perlmutter's Grain Brain, which talks about the link between carbs and the brain and brain disease and imho is really worth a read. It has a couple of follow up books too (Brain Maker about the vital role that gut flora plays and Grain Brain Cookbook).

Since embarking on my nutritional journey, I discovered I have a gluten allergy (explains all those times I fell asleep at the wheel after eating a sandwich). I cut out grains for the most part and eat primarily protein and veg, very little sugar, definitely no refined sugar.
My mood is better and more consistent, brain fog is gone, weight is easier to maintain, and I have more lasting energy.

It's unfortunate that institutions like the FDA and AHA (who are backed by industrial farming corps) hammered the American public with the lie of the one-size-fits-all Food Pyramid and low-fat, "heart-healthy" diets & that the word "diet" carries a connotation of weight-loss instead of health.

Our generation is paying for it with our health.

> Why do you apply studies that used non-ketosis diets to determine protein requirements for ketosis? Please tell me where in that link that it says the studies were carried out using ketosis. Isn't that like applying studies on petrol engines to diesel engines?

Because the results and recommendations in the studies, do not contradict the ones for a ketogenic diet. You seem to think that you need a lot of protein to need muscle, when in fact the studies shown that it is quite the contrary. And once keto adapted, you actually may need less, as a ketogenic diet is muscle sparing:

> Within the nutrition and dietetics fields, most advice on protein intake is based on the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) and daily recommended intake (DRI) values. These recommendations, however, were developed for the average weight stable, unstressed individual. Add any degree of energy restriction (i.e., for weight loss) or physical or emotional stress, however, and the RDA/DRI values become inadequate.

> Thus consuming somewhat more protein than the recommended dietary allowance is probably justified if you are losing weight or frequently doing high stress exercise.

> That said, however, significantly over-consuming protein can be problematic because some of these extra amino acids can be converted to glucose in the body, raising insulin levels, and thus driving down ketones and suppressing fat burning. Even if your goal is gaining muscle, there is a limit to how much new muscle protein can be added each day, and under most circumstances, this amount is relatively small.

> Over-consuming protein beyond the level that allows maximum anabolism in skeletal muscle thus puts a burden on the body to get rid of the extra nitrogen. Since protein is not a particularly efficient fuel source and for the reasons mentioned above, it therefore makes little sense to consume it in excess.

> For all these reasons, we recommend aiming for an intake in the range of 0.6 to 1.0 grams per pound lean body mass. The table below provides a few examples of protein intake ranges for men and women with different weights and body fat contents. The key point here is that while these protein intakes are above the minimum RDA values, they are certainly not high protein intakes compared to current standards. Note also that our recommended intake ranges are pretty wide, allowing you a fair degree of flexibility in choosing your level of protein intake.

> TABLE

Source: The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Performance, page 65-66

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

> "A ketogenic diet can be very good for lean mass growth, while a high carb diet for total weight gain (meaning you will also gain fat)." <-- Please explain how a keto diet and carb diet of equal calorific surplus will result in different levels of body fat gain.

Here: (thanks /u/ashsimmonds, your book Principia Ketogenica is a wealth of knowledge. I'm sure you have a lot more references on this, as well as /u/Naonin.

> a) "Two very low calorie diets were studied, one high in fat and low in carbohydrate content, the other high in carbohydrate and low in fat.
The high fat-low carbohydrate diet resulted in a greater weight loss during the 2-week observation period, then significant rapid weight gain and urinary retention of sodium in subjects who returned to a maintenance diet. Fasting triglyceride and cholesterol levels declined to a greater extent following the high fat regimen. These changes reflected decrements in VLDL alone."
Effect of diet composition on metabolic adaptations to hypocaloric nutrition: comparison of high carbohydrate and high fat isocaloric diets. - 1977

> b) "Subjects overate different diets for 30 days by 1,000 calories a day more than they needed to maintain weight. On a standard American or a high carbohydrate diet they gained ~2.7kg, however on a high fat diet they only gained ~1.75kg."
Adaptation to overeating in lean and overweight men and women. - 1983

> c) "37 obese children were put on a diet of either ad-libitum very low carb or a low calorie balanced diet for 2 months. Subjects in the very low carb group lost ~5.2kg whereas the subjects restricting calories actually gained ~2.4kg."
Effect of low-carbohydrate, unlimited calorie diet on the treatment of childhood obesity: a prospective controlled study. - 2003

> d) "28 healthy, overweight/obese men and women were prescribed 2 energy-restricted diets: ketogenic, or low fat with a goal similar to accepted recommendations.
Daily calories on the ketogenic diet for the men were ~1,855 compared to the ~1,562 on low fat. A distinct advantage of keto over low fat was demonstrated for weight loss, total fat loss, and trunk fat loss for men. The majority of women also responded more favorably to the ketogenic diet, especially in terms of trunk fat loss. Resting energy expenditure was decreased with both diets as expected, but was better maintained on the keto diet for men only. Individual responses clearly show the majority of men and women experience greater weight and fat loss on a low carb than a low fat diet."
Comparison of energy-restricted very low-carbohydrate and low-fat diets on weight loss and body composition in overweight men and women. - 2004

> e) "96 insulin-resistant women were randomised to one of 3 dietary interventions: a high-carbohydrate high-fibre diet, a high-fat Atkins diet, or a high-protein Zone diet. There were supervised weight loss and weight maintenance phases (8 weeks each).
When compared with the high carb diet, the high fat and protein diets were shown to produce significantly greater reductions in weight, waist circumference, and triglycerides."
Comparison of high-fat and high-protein diets with a high-carbohydrate diet in insulin-resistant obese women. - 2005

> f) "The effect of a very-low-carbohydrate, high-saturated-fat diet on markers of endothelial function and cardiovascular disease risk was compared with that of an isocaloric high-carbohydrate, low-saturated-fat diet. Weight loss occurred in both groups and was significantly greater in the low carb group, BMI also decreased, with a differential effect of diet such that the reduction was greater in the low carb group. HDL cholesterol did not change with the high carb group, but increased with low carb. Triglycerides decreased overall, to a greater extent with the low carb diet.
A very-low-carbohydrate high fat diet with significant portion as saturated fat diet not impair brachial artery flow-mediated dilatation."
Effects of weight loss from a very-low-carbohydrate diet on endothelial function and markers of cardiovascular disease risk in subjects with abdominal obesity. - 2008

> g) "Subjects were put on a 20 day ketogenic or a low-calorie Mediterranean diet. Both diet protocols lead to a significant decrease in body weight, the reduction was significantly greater on keto. The ketogenic diet also lead to increased fat oxidation at rest without any effect on resting energy expenditure. Interestingly this effect was long lasting, at least for up to 20 days following cessation of the ketogenic diet.
Medium term effects of a ketogenic diet and a Mediterranean diet on resting energy expenditure and respiratory ratio. - 2012

And I especially like this one:

> h) "Reduced resting and total energy expenditure (REE / TEE) following weight loss is thought to contribute to the prevalence of weight regain after dieting and then resuming a normal diet.
21 overweight young adults were put on a weight loss diet, after achieving 10-15% weight loss they were put on a weight maintenance diet of the same calories, but consisting of either low-fat, low-glycemic index, or very low-carbohydrate. This was one in a controlled 3-way crossover design in random order, each for 4 weeks.
Compared with the pre-weight-loss baseline, the decrease in REE and TEE was greatest with the low-fat diet, intermediate with the low-glycemic index diet, and least with the very low-carbohydrate diet, meaning the low-fat diet caused as much as a 300 calorie drop in expenditure despite the same intake and activity levels as the low carb diet.
Effects of dietary composition on energy expenditure during weight-loss maintenance. - 2012

--------------------------------

I'm sure you can put two and two together and get your own conclusions.

Watch This! :) I also have this and really like it. The balance balls come in sizes based on height. My SO has the blue ball and I have green/teal, and the purple ball is the smallest. What's great about it is, if you feel you need more of a challenge than the band is providing you can buy dumb bells as you increase in strength.

Also, if you've interested in strength training I really recommend this book. It has a plan and for those who do not have access to a gym, there are modified exercises. I've read it a few times, marked it up, and passed it along to a friend who is going to be doing it with me. If you haven't heard of it yet lurk around r/fitness. It's full of some awesome, supportive ladies!

By the way, you look great!

>why do so many doctors stand behind these drugs, the money?

That's one big reason among several, yes. Maybe not money directly, but there are always the nice little gifts, the friendly sales rep with his helpful "research" to save them time chasing down and analysing debate between researchers, and the corporate-sponsored medical conferences in exotic countries etc (I personally know a doctor who loves going on these every year). There's also the little item that if your research funding comes from corporations and "non-profit" organisations with funding links to the corporate world, you are less likely to want to bite the hand that feeds you.

Re the logic, isn't it pretty obvious? You have a drug that is supposed to promote heart health which actually puts it at risk. I feel sorry for the trusting people who suffered or perhaps even died before it was realised that statin-induced Co-enzyme Q10 deficiency causes serious harm. And the problems of statins aren't just related to CoQ10. Statins suppress one of the precursors of CoQ10 and cholesterol, HMG-CoA reductase. That enzyme is a precursor about half a dozen steps prior to cholesterol - which means that about five other substances besides cholesterol are suppressed when a statin drug is present. Cholesterol of course is used to make other things, like the sex hormones estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone. Like bile, which helps with the absorbtion of fat and the fat soluble vitamins A, D, E and K. Like the "stress hormone" cortisol. Cholesterol is also a precursor for the body's synthesis of Vitamin D (so lowering it not only retards absorbtion of Vitamin D through food, but also retards your skin generating Vitamin D when sunshine hits it). Vitamin D is needed for proper bone mineralisation, and is also believed to have an anti-cancer effect. As well as the liver, the brain manufactures cholesterol but Lipitor can cross the blood-brain barrier and stop production there too. As cholesterol comprises a significant portion of the brain and is necessary for proper mental function, it is no wonder that slowness, forgetfulness, and even transient global amnesia are known symptoms of statin use.

I am related to someone who is taking Lipitor right now. He is taking co-enzyme Q10 and still suffering muscular aches and pains, and cannot raise his arms above shoulder-level any more, the pain is so great if he tries. He also suffers from an overwhelming tiredness shortly after taking his fix, and becomes a little slow at following the thread of conversations. His faith in his personal doctor is absolute, and no matter how many books written by DOCTORS I place in front of him to read, his faith in Lipitor and his Medical Priest sustain him like some sort of cult, even though I see it wearing him down before my despairing eyes. Interestingly, the white-coated Priest has been presented with Dr Graveline's first book on Lipitor, and did not choose to contend with it at all. His response to his patient was that "the choice to stop or continue taking it is yours".

When you learn from members of the international medical community that high cholesterol has not been proven as the cause of heart disease and how the stated reason for using statins is flawed by politics, profit and junk science, and there is no medically useful reason to take these dangerous statin drugs at all, you tend to want to boil over in fury.

Some books for you to check out:

The Great Cholesterol Con, by Malcolm Kendrick MD (2007)

The Cholesterol Myths, by Uffe Ravnskov MD PhD (2000, 2002)

The Great Cholesterol Con, by Anthony Colpo (2006) - forward by Ravnskov & contains nearly 1500 citations to medical journals and research trial reports.

Know Your Fats: The Complete Primer for Understanding the Nutrition of Fats, Oils and Cholesterol, by Mary Enig PhD (2000) - a bit dry for the lay reader, plunges into lipid chemistry, but highly informative. Enig was among researchers who became concerned about trans fats way back in the 1970s.

The Heart Revolution: The Extraordinary Discovery That Finally Laid the Cholesterol Myth to Rest, by Kilmer Mccully MD & Martha Mccully (2000)

Lipitor: Thief of Memory, by Duane Graveline MD (2006)

Statin Drugs Side Effects and the Misguided War on Cholesterol, by Duane Graveline MD (2008)

Those books have plenty of academic and scientific citations for you to seek further.

I know this might sound strange, but have you considered adding fasting into your keto?

The great thing about fasting is that you don't need to do or eat anything. You do need to take water, electrolytes, and maybe the sporadic multi-vitamin, though.

You said you're 264. Assuming you're trying to reach Onderland, that's ~64 pounds of fat that your body could use as food. (approx 224,000 Calories!) -- That's ~3 months worth of energy.

/r/fasting is a good place to start.

Also, this book on fasting has been amazing: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MF8SC2X/

Only $9.99 for the Kindle version, which you can read via the Kindle app on your computer or phone.

Dr. Jason Fung has plenty of videos on YouTube as well. This is a good one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9Aw0P7GjHE

Good points. The water fasting is not my specialty, but I know a little bit about it and have done a few. I did an internship (rather than visited as a patient) at TrueNorth years back when in medical school. It's not going to appeal or be appropriate for everyone, but it does seem to be effective, especially for some conditions with a strong inflammatory component like Rheumatoid arthritis, large blood pressure drops (perhaps no surprise there) and Lupus. You have to have a bit of basic knowledge before embarking on something like that. It's still to gain widespread acceptance within the mainstream, but there is a growing evidence basis for it.

If you are thinking of water fasting I'd suggest going to TrueNorth, reading the Pleasure Trap, or Fasting and Eating for Health.

• "Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World" (Jack Weatherford) is my all-time and all-categories favourite. Temudjin is a turbo ENTJ, the books reads like a thrilling novel and provide great insights at every page, and there is wisdom in every episode of the Khan's life and even after his life (the chapters of how and why the Mongol empires collapses are a serious lesson to be considered at all times). This book just has everything in it: a catching history, a great writing, emotions, lessons for life, insights of a great man who happens to have been "like us" and even if it's quite long, you dread for the end to happen every page you turn, and that is a feeling I rarely had.

• "How to Make Millions Without a Degree" (Simon Dolan) is the best fuel for my confirmation biases. Basically an anthem to self-made people and believing in yourself. Dolan is a funny guy and his motorsport career is more than acknowledgeable. Another proof that when there is a will, there is a way, inspiring guy and inspiring book. Only book so far I bought twice (physically and on Kindle).

• "To Hell and Back" (Niki Lauda) is my model for being bold and having balls, which I cruelly lack work toward developping. Lauda is the definition of boldness. The guy is crazy and the book relates a very unique story of a career. If you enjoy everything with an engine, it's a must-read. For all others, it's a lesson on boldness.

• "The Power of Habits" (Charles Duhigg) made a lasting impact on my life. I believe it's the best "neurosciences for everybody" book ever. It crunches a ton of important concepts and informations about our brains into the "simple" idea of habits.

• "Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think" (Brian Wansink) is actually a scam. Wansink was dismissed from his university for falsifying researchs and his "food psychology" thing was recently debunked for having little or no academic basis. This book is full of these made up stuff, most information it contains are probably wrong or manipulated. But... it works. It worked for me. It triggered little changes in my relationship to food (mostly about quantity and not tricking myself into eating stuff I'll regret later) and I can see my fat diminishing from these newly formed habits. So I don't know, this scam book was the one that made me end up bad habits with food when some more academic works didn't help a lot. I'll let that to your own judgement.

Hummus is actually not great for reflux because of all the lemon and garlic.


Try this: The Acid Watcher Diet: A 28-Day Reflux Prevention and Healing Program https://www.amazon.com/dp/1101905581/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_-d9GDbH0SRT50

Its definitely an adjustment. I'm middle eastern and grew up eatting "healthy" but very high acid (lots of ginger, garlic, lemon, tomato, etc..) it's hard to rationalize but healthy can look very different for different people.

Incorporating nuts into your meals for a flavor and protein boost is a great option. You can make pasta as long as its whole wheat then throw in some broccoli, liquid aminos, chicken and cashews. Instant cashew chicken lo mein :)

Or I know you dont like avocado but blend one with a bunch of basil and parmesan cheese in a food processor. Add in some kale or spinach if you need to make a lot and you have quick and easy pesto! Mess with the ratios and add oat milk to make a light, no cream alfredo sauce.

The book had a lot of recipes you can play with and tailor to fit your budge and taste. There are also several great threads here if you search for GERD recipes.

Hope things get better for you.

• Motivation: Life isn't a sprint, its not a walk its not even a single step, its a inch-by-inch fight Just make sure inch in the right direction a little more each day.
  
  
  

• Sleep
  

  Make sure you don't have a condition. Beyond that wake up the same time everyday, cut out lights when it gets dark. Get lots of light regular light everyday.
  
  

• exercise
  

  All exercise is equal for purposes of health.
  
  

• food
  -> in a nutsehll: its probable best to each lots of vegetables/fruits of various colors, good fats and lean meats.
  
  
• diet
  Summery: All diets are good assuming you consume less calories**, i personally find it easier to consume less if i eat just those things aforementioned.
  
  
• health
  
  good luck
  
  
  
  **within reason...

The FINAL answer is whatever works or you, and depends on what camp you subscribe to.

For your best bet if you want a FINAL answer, I suggest reading The Complete Guide To Fasting (https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012). Dr. Fung is cited a lot on here, and he makes a lot of good points in that book including why he sees fasting as either water only or water/tea/coffee without additives fasting.

There are several things to take into account:

Whether or not diet sodas are truly 'bad' for you not is still up or debate-the long term effects of some of the ingredients are unknown.

Whether or not the sweetness affects insulin levels.

Whether it affects what you eat while you're not fasting. For me, I LOVE Diet Coke, but I know I drink it I'm MUCH more likely to crave and then binge sweets and carbs later in the day, so I choose not to drink it during my fast. Occasionally I'll have it as a treat.

​

I wish you luck on your fasting journey. You've got this!!!

I'm no medical expert either, I'm a computer programmer, but I'm enjoying it.

One thing to keep in mind is that while Taubes does pretty thoroughly debunk the conventional view of things, he would probably be the first to tell you that the carbohydrate/insulin hypothesis he advances isn't proven either. It may be that there's more to it than that, but it does seem to fit the evidence better.

Another one worth looking at: The Great Cholesterol Con. I just got it, but haven't started it yet. (Want to finish GCBC first.)

Hey man, first of I want to say I'm not a doctor, I've haven't researched what Im about to mention and I could be completely wrong.

But, although I haven't heard of anything that can reverse Alzheimer's I have heard from multiple sources some things that can slow down its progression.

The thing I've heard about most is MCT oil, this a concentration form of coconut oil, taken daily can apparently slow down the development of Alzheimer's and one person even claimed it stabilised her husbands condition (meaning it wasn't progressing at noticeable rate anymore atleast in comparison to how it was previously).

The next thing would be to cut out gluten. I know this sounds like hippy bullshit and it may well be but its pretty much accepted now that Alzheimer's is basically 'type 3 diabetes' and is influenced by diet (not implying that it is 'caused' by diet but that diet can certainly exacerbate it and make you more likely to develop it if your already susceptible).

One book that I have recently read that talks extensively about it (also listing many studies which many be of interest to you) is a book called Grain Brain.

Normally I would be very hesitant to even mention things like this as I haven't researched the topic extensively but if I was in your position I would probably want to explore all avenues and its in my humble opinion that this area might be worth a week of your time to look into.

I wish you and your family all the best man.

Buff isn't normal. Athletic isn't normal. That said, obese isn't normal either. BMI and weight aren't perfect indicators of your health but they are good ones. Do you want to lessen your risk of cancer, heart disease, hemorrhoids, and many many other diseases and illnesses? If you are overweight get to a healthy weight. If you are at a healthy weight stay there. This kid is good looking but he is not at a healthy weight. He obviously cares about how he looks since he is here and to nearly everyone here he would be more attractive if he lost weight. Being overweight is not a character flaw. It does not make you a bad person. But it does make you a less healthy person. I recommend reading Eat, Drink, and be Healthy. It really motivated me to shed some pounds. For health!

So eating Paleo (read Grain Brain) is a diet all about reducing inflammation in the body. It also gives a list of supplements that are recommend by the neurologist that wrote the book. A lot of people with Autoimmune, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Diabetes, Gluten Intolerance and other allergies have had amazing results on this diet. All of which are linked by inflammation. This changed my life (Gluten & other allergies) and my Dad's (Parkinson and arthritis) life. Grain Brain

Two additional things that will help.

1 order gluten free gelatin from Amazon and make home made jello. This will help your joints like a miracle.

Gelatin Supplement

2 Take a melatonin supplement. It's what your body makes to help you sleep but sometimes when are bodies are sick and exhausted it doesn't produce enough. It will force you to get deeper REM and wake up more rested. Start with 5mg and tweak it to your needs. I have been taking it for about 10 years and I now take 20mg. I am 30, 5'7" & weigh 155.

Melatonin Supplement

Remember just like meds you may have to tweak brands and dosages in order to find the most effective results. But you should get relief within about a week of doing at least these two things.
A combination of all of this though took me from incapable of functioning and working a job to almost completely normal and now very successful at work and still improving.

try the healthy choice exchange books, like this: http://www.amazon.com/This-Thousands-Simple-Swaps-Pounds/dp/1594868549 and remember: there are these things called libraries. you don't have to break your wallet buying a bunch of food choice books that end up irrelevant to you. check them out in the library first to see if you even use it.

instead of white rice, eat other rice varieties, like GABA brown, jasmine, arborio, basmati, or a wild mix. wild rices and whole grain rices actually have nutritional value, white rice does not.

you could try whole grain pasta, but like quinoa, it's not for everyone. substitute part of mashed potatoes for mashed cauliflower. decrease your rice and increase your veggies -- they are lower calorie and have more nutritional value than grains. measure your food -- even if you're not aiming to decrease to start off, it helps to become aware of how much your intake actually is. track it in a food log.

remember to snack (healthy items!) frequently, it decreases your chances of binge eating. try a healthy snack before you go to the dining hall to see if that helps "uncloud" your judgment.

I've suffered with this for years and while it has impacted my gains, some careful meal planning and food selection has really helped get my appetite back on track to get closer to my daily calorie surplus goals.

I've found that cutting out most fast food and alcohol probably had the biggest overall impact, but there's also a whole slew of other things to avoid to help keep the reflux at bay. There's lists and articles online, but I've found this book to be the most helpful overall in fully understanding the cause and effect of different foods on your body's weakened digestive system and how to adjust your diet. It includes great food lists and some good recipes too. I keep the kindle copy on my phone so that I can easily check the lists if I'm out and thinking about buying/eating some type of food I'm not as familiar with.

Spreading out meals is unfortunately critical, since eating too much at once, especially if high in fat content, is very likely to trigger reflux. Myfitnesspal can help with keeping track of that. I currently rely pretty heavily on whey powder, almonds, dried fruit, and pre-packaged carb and protein bars to snack on throughout the day, which is especially critical on days when I'm very busy and have little time to eat, but I'm gradually trying to find better options and combinations. One of my current favorites is 1/2 cup Plain greek non or low-fat yogurt mixed with 1/4 cup muesli, 2 tbsps rolled oats, some almonds and/or dried fruit, and a bit of honey and vanilla.

I have Prescription for Nutritional Healing and Staying Healthy with Nutrition which I'll use as references for basic nutrition. The second one comes off a bit too hippy-ish for me sometimes (they state one of the most important water-soluble vitamins is Vitamin L, aka 'love') however all-in-all it's a pretty solid resource for understanding the essentials. The book begins with a discussion on water, which I think is great as H2O is often left out.

I'm also particularly interested in sport nutrition, so I have also picked up Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook. I like glossing over the reference textbooks, then switching to Nancy's book to get her 'sports coach' perspective.

According to the Nutrient Timing System, the ideal recovery beverage consists of the following:

• 13-15 g whey protein
  
• 40-50 g high-glycemic CHOs
  
• 1-2 g each of leucine and glutamine
  
• 60-120 mg vitamin C
  
• 80-400 units vitamin E
  
  I stick very closely to this because 1) they take a lot of care to quote a lot of research, a lot of which comes from the University of Texas and Vanderbilt University research departments and 2) I've had outstanding results with it. My "antidote" is 20 g whey, 12 oz milk and 4 oz frozen mixed berries and that's pretty close.
  
  But I'm lazy, so generally, I'll wash down a combo capsule with 500 mg vit C and 400 units vit E with 20 g whey in water followed by a soda rich with delicious HFCS.
  
  The amazing thing is that, before I started that, I got 2 colds/year, every year. Since, I get sick once evry 2-3 years and it's generally so mild I hardly notice it.

Here is what happened to me and what I have been doing. In August I was driving in SLC when a woman who was speeding ran a red light and t boned into my side. I bounced my head off the window real hard. TBI. I couldnt even talk without stuttering, real problems communicating. If regular fish oils bother your stomach, truthfully it is probably your diet. I started eating lean meats and vegetables and that is basically it. If I needed something sweet I would eat an apple. Read the book Grain Brain. Grains, wheat and sugar will fuck you up especially with a TBI. Get something called Digest Zen from DoTerra essential oils. Its got ginger, fennel, and a few other things that are awesome for your digestion. It you cant take the taste of the oil they make caps. Order some Lemon Balm, Passion Flower, and Kava (all of these are cheap on amazon) They really help me with sleep and mood. The thing that really made a difference and even improved my speech was acupuncture. Give it a try. My advice is to find a straight up Chinese guy as they are usually trained in Scalp Acupuncture. If you are getting the feeling that LSD can help, Micro dose at first. like half a tab. Test the waters before diving in. I hope this helps.

Yep. People are sooooo ingrained with their ideas of OMG you're gonna starve! They don't have the patience or inclination to sit down and read the research about how amazingly healthy it is to fast sometimes. I usually either laugh it off (like grab my hips and say look I promise I'm in no danger of starving) or I make a comment like "many cultures around the world have a tradition of fasting sometimes such as Catholics (Lent), Muslims (Ramadan), Jews (Yom Kippur), Russian orthodoxy, Hindus, buddhists, Native Americans etc and they've all survived for millennia. The body is designed to be able to be ok during periods of less food like winter or bad hunting."

If you want to learn more about the science of it so you can better explain that aspect,


https://www.amazon.com/Fasting-Eating-Health-Medical-Conquering/dp/031218719X (Great overview of why fasting)

https://www.amazon.com/Fast-Diet-Intermittent-Fasting-Healthy/dp/1780721676 (by one of the first doctors to publicize fasting)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1501140183 (More like funny memoir of experience with fasting and a layperson's understanding of the science)

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ourbrokenplate/our-broken-plate/rewards (In a few months should be available- brilliantly researched)

Documentary https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ihhj_VSKiTs

https://www.amazon.com/How-Not-Die-Discover-Scientifically/dp/1250066115 (Not solely on fasting but so comprehensively researched that I highly recommend it - everybody should read it. Truly and literally life changing)

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4684131/#!po=27.9661 (Not a book, but some good info)

How are your parents getting on? I would imagine it is a lot for them to take in and a bit scary. There is quite a learning curve.

I don't know how much education her diabetes team will provide but I bought a couple of books to improve my understanding of how it all works. I very much like Ragnar Hanas - Type 1 Diabetes it is like an encyclopaedia. Carbs & Cals book is also very helpful.

If she has school meals then her school authority should be able to supply details of the carbohydrate content of the school menu.

I don't know whether NHS Scotland varies much from NHS England with regards to test strip prescriptions and blood meters, but I believe you can use any glucose meter. Typically I think they supply an AccuChek Aviva meter but I think that the Abbott Insulinx is much better and Abbott give it away free on their website. - It uses about half the amount of blood of the Aviva and in my tests had no failures compared with a fair few with the Aviva.

Keep glucose or sugar in easy reach. Long life apple juice cartons for by the bed, glucose tablets in school bag, with blood meter, in the car etc. Whenever she gets low blood sugar you don't ever want to have to trek off somewhere or mess around to get something sweet.

Be there for him and help support him emotionally. Help him have fun.

I would also buy your brother this book as it would help him greatly.
https://www.amazon.com/Fasting-Eating-Health-Medical-Conquering/dp/031218719X

I have seen lot's of people heal arthritis through lifestyle changes.

“People do not get diseases, they earn them!” With few exceptions, (accidents do happen!) our daily choices—the foods we eat (or don’t eat), the activities we do (or don’t do), the thoughts we harbor (or release), the actions we take (or don’t take) are what create the body in which we reside, and determine if it is healthy or diseased. The adage “By age 20 you have the face that Nature gave you; by age 50, you have the face your choices gave you” is, indeed, true—and holds throughout the body. By age 50, we have the arteries, the heart, the skin, the colon and the brain that our choices have given us."

Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy: The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating

by M.D. Walter C. Willett

The book discusses a wide range of health impact from diet, most-import first. They cite primary research and discuss as effect sizes for each recommendation, and present a discussion of the strength of evidence. In fact, the entire Chapter 2 is dedicated to deepening the reader's familiarity with issues of strength evidence.

In my humble opinion, this book is vastly better than The China Study. Eat, Drink draws from a wider base of studies, and it deploys methodological care to ensure that each of its recommendation is delivered with a thorough description of the scientific evidence.

Follow the diet recommended by "Grain Brain".

Just reducing calories in order to become thin is not wise. It's hard and it's not healthy.

As for exercise, you should be doing a full regiment of weight resistant as well as cardio.

Weight resistance should be done to address all the muscles in the body, for proper health and longevity, but not in a manner to build bigger muscles. If you can't lift the weight 100 times, it's too heavy. So...low weight/resistance with higher reps is best. And don't do a CrossFit style workout.

Again, low weight...lots of rep.

Weight lifting also builds mental power and confidence, which has a lot of benefits in life.

Cardio doesn't need to be much more than 20 minutes a day, and should not involve anything extensive. Don't beat the body up. Treadmills, Stairmasters...etc. are really good for this. Running and walking is good too, but running on hard surfaces for long distances over a long period of time can damage the body. And walking is often not enough of a workout, unless you do a fast walk. Skating is good too but you can't push it too hard or it will build too much muscle.

And no sprinting or hill intervals.

Do this and you'll get crazy thin, naturally, and be in the best health - physically and mentally.

There are many doctors who believe in the health benefits of long fasting. There is a subreddit /r/fasting that has a lot of peeps and if you google water fasting there is a ton of positive info. I've fasted 10 days before and it was a great experience and at some point I'd like to repeat it. It was at a time that looking back I did not have the spare fat to lose but the dysphoria at the time told me otherwise. But it did not hurt me or my progress and I felt better at the end. No problems with HRT or anything and it got rid of the last remaining "boy" fat on me.

Guide to Fasting is a good resource.


Jason Fung Blog


The Obesity code book by Jason Fung has a lot of good info.


Complete Guide to Fasting is also good.

It's basically a combo of what Weston Price recommends in Nutrition and Physical Degeneration and Ellie Phillips in Kiss Your Dentist Goodbye. Price found out how to prevent and regenerate cavities through nutrition. Ellie Phillips found out (or at least put together with ton of scientific articles) how to prevent and regenerate cavities with modern dental products. I figured that for maximum effect, you need both.

On the nutrition side

• Cod Liver Oil - Take some every day. This will up your levels of Vitamin A and D.
  
  
• Natto/Grass-fed Butter - Weston Price recommended grass-fed butter in his book because it had Activator X (an unknown nutrient at the time discovered later to be Vitamin K2) in it, which activated Vitamins A and D. But Natto, a food from Japan that is essentially fermented soybeans has so much Vitamin K2 in it as well as other awesome things like Nattokinase that you should eat it instead. It's far cheaper, and is the single greatest food source of Vitamin K2. You can find it in Asian food markets in the freezer section. Look for a 3 or 4 pack of little square Styrofoam containers. You might as well get some grass-fed butter too, because it's damn good.
  
  
• Milk - Because you need calcium and phosphorus. If you don't have it, it won't bind to your teeth. Vitamins A and D allow this to happen after K2 activates them.
  
  
• Eat nutritionally dense foods - Grass-fed beef (especially liver), pasture-raised chicken/pork, organ meats, fish, vegetables, nuts, fruits, etc. Basically, stuff that is good for you.
  
  On the Dental Care side
  
  
• Xylitol - S. Mutans can't metabolize it, kicking its ass by forcing it to eject it from itself so it can pick up real sugars. In doing so, it wastes energy. Get 7-10 mg of Xylitol per day. More than 10mg per day doesn't do anything more.
  
  
• Listerine - Kills off S.Mutans to an extent. Use 1-2x a day. Realkalize your mouth immediately after use.
  
  
• Alcohol free ACT fluoride rinse - Follow up on the Listerine immediately with this to get fluoride on your teeth. It's a dilute fluoride solution, which is supposedly the best kind. You might be thinking, "but I just used the toothpaste!" This will get whatever spots you missed. Will also realkalize your mouth.
  
  
• Mouth Alkalinity - After eating or drinking anything acidic (or hell, after using Listerine--yes, it makes your mouth acidic), you must make your mouth alkaline again to prevent decay simply from your mouth being acidic, from giving favorable conditions to S. Mutans, and to keep your mouth in the remineralization state. The best ways to do this are to use Closys (apparently. I haven't tried it myself), ACT fluoride rinse, finishing your meal with milk, or Xylitol. Xylitol/milk tends to be the way to go though; you can eat what you like and then keep the acid at bay by using either of them immediately after. If using Xylitol, either eat a spoonful or pop 2-3 Xylitol mints/gum. Apples apparently have the same effect too, but Apple Juice has an acidity of 2.2 pH, so I don't trust them.
  
  
• Toothpaste that uses Sodium Fluoride and no abrasives or whitening - Because apparently Sodium Fluoride is the best kind. Whitening naturally will occur as the layers of enamel return to your teeth; whiteners tend to damage the teeth. Actual whitening comes from having so much enamel, light cannot completely pass through your teeth.
  
  
• Checking your water's pH - Some tap water is acidic by default. You should be aware as to whether or not drinking it will make your mouth non-alkaline.

If you are going to be nursing during pregnancy you need to take extra care of your heath/nutritional needs. You are asking a lot of your body. It can be done but needs to be done properly. You are growing a new baby, maintaining your body and feeding a growing child. That is A LOT. You are a ultramarathoner of motherhood.

You need to be eating a nutritionally dense diet. Every calorie counts. I mean that the amount of calories in a bowl of cereal, toast and banana may be the same as an egg, bacon and avocado but the nutritional content is VERY different. The meal with eggs and bacon has much more in the way of nutrients. The cereal meal has calories but not much more than that. Your body needs vitamins, minerals, fats and proteins to make a healthy baby. Your body can't create what you don't provide it. Put the meals into a nutritional calculator and see the difference. Your babies can not afford for you to cut corners when it comes to nutrition. Here is a good guide for pregnant/nursing moms.

Another resource is The Healthy Baby Code.

The best book that I have ever read on this subject is Nutrition and Physical Degeneration.

I've done counting calories on-and-off in the past. And what I've really taken away from it is I can be good at tracking...tracking all those extra calories I didn't need 😝

But I've had my biggest success with food this past year after discovering and reading about fasting.
The Complete Guide to Fasting, by Dr. Jason Fung (Amazon Link) is very informative and easy to read.

You don't need to do long fasts, I never have and don't plan on doing anything past a day. But following a 16:8 (16 hour fast + 8 hour feeding window) had helped me immensely. It's basically skipping breakfast (just get some coffee (black or with a little cream, NO sugar)) and delaying lunch so it's more of an afternoon snack, if anything, then dinner as normal. Following a 16:8 schedule really helped me get out of snacking at work... Which is my greatest challenge. I simply tell myself I can have that afternoon snack, but not till 3pm. By then that 2pm craving had subsided... But if it's still there then it falls within my feeding window.

The best thing about fasting is that there are so many protocols to follow, some are even do popular they have a common name (leangains, warrior diet).

I don't track calories, but I do yet to make smarter food choices (low carb, less sugar, etc...). This year I have gone from about 150 to ALMOST 140. And it's been pretty easy. No stressing, no debating if I can have this, no determining what do I have to sacrifice in order to have an indulgence. The 10# may not seem like much for nearly half a year, but I succeeded with that along with managing a of stress at work, which led to lots of junk food, a long distance relationship, and a cross country move for work.

If you don't want to commit to a $20 go check out a copy from your local library or check or out some of the subreddits to learn more:
r/fasting r/intermittentfasting r/leangains

I read a great book before getting into medical school called, "Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy" by Walter Willett, MD. It does a great job of turning the food pyramid on its head and giving more of and evidence-based approach to nutrition with biochemical data and illustrations to help demonstrate the material. I highly recommend it for personal reading. Here's an Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Eat-Drink-Be-Healthy-Harvard/dp/0743266420#productDescription_secondary_view_pageState_1416024688805

I've read various "tales" of hunter gatherer using astral projection to watch over their bodies as they sleep, so that they don't get eaten.

Can you prove it? No. Does it make sense that people who lived in constant communion with the earth, whose intuitive abilities were often far beyond our own, who perceived no separation between the worlds of spirit and matter, between self and other might have no need of a formal type of meditation or "union".

Most hunter gatherers societies had loads of free time, smoked hallucinogens or ate mushrooms, had highly cultivated sense of intuition, and talked directly to their various gods in and out of altered states, knew dreams as part of a single continuity and not some "brain fart" or something to be ignored as many of us do in modern civilized society.

There were also highly barbaric groups that did horrible horrible things to each other, some of them while high on mushrooms, as sacrifices to their gods.

It is fair to say that formal meditation comes with the farmer/settler lifestyle.

In my biased view, the consciousness of hunter gatherers ( and I may be way off on this) but the pre-industrial tribal cultures before they encountered agriculture, technology and what have you, lived somewhat closer to how animals live (and this is NOT meant as an insult) in that they would more directly perceive their environment, and be able to pick up on many things that we would rely on technology for, or intellect and reasoning to "work out". Where as tribal cultures often were able to see stars much further away than we can, they had better eyesight, often could find water and food sources by first seeing in their dreams or out of body states, and then travelling there (a far more efficient method that guessing) as well as being able to directly feel various electro-magnetic currents that run from the earth and into our bodies through our feet, such as modern water diviners are able to sense.

I don't idolize hunter/gatherer society, there are many aspects to it that I find horrific and repellent, cannabalism being one of them. However, in all physical respects, primitive tribes are our physical superiors in nearly every way, for anyone who reads "Nutrition and Physical Degeneration" by Weston Price with its numerous records of pre-industrial h/g societies and photographs of skulls and skeletons which show better bone formation, wider jaws, lack of tooth decay and vastly stronger bones from diets higher in bio-available calcium (not synthetic) this is self-evident

http://www.amazon.com/Nutrition-Physical-Degeneration-Weston-Price/dp/0916764206

Please don't accept anything I have to say, but look into it for yourself.

>Can I drink water or unsweetened tea...

All you want!

If you want a really great resource, read Dr. Jason Fung's Complete Guide to Fasting.

It has all the info you need to fast safely and comfortably. It's also great motivation!

This article is the best I’ve read on the subject.

It’s a fantastic piece, and I would recommend that all women read it, but tl;dr – Intermittent fasting works until it doesn’t. Women as a whole seem to have a harder time with it than men, though there are plenty of women who thrive on it. As with anything in fitness, take it if it works for you and makes you feel healthy, and leave it if it doesn’t. Don’t try to force it if it’s not making you feel good.

That said, the fact that you’re concerned about an eating disorder being triggered is a red flag for me. Is this just a general fear because of not eating, or do you have a history? Because if it’s the latter, I’d be cautious. Personally I enjoy it largely because it means spending less time prepping food, and as a busy person find it easier to go about my work day without thinking about food all the time. I’ve also never been a breakfast person so IF feels liberating, that I suddenly have validation/permission to skip it.

If you want more details on the how, when, and why, I recommend this book. Personally I try to eat in a 1:30pm to 9:30pm window and fast otherwise (most of the time), but that obviously wouldn’t work for a lot of people. You do you.

These are recommendations from my friends:

The Ethics of What We Eat: Why Our Food Choices Matter

Whole: Rethinking the Science of Nutrition

Cowspiracy which is a documentary available on Netflix.

I haven't read or watched any of these but my friends are smart people and this is what they recommend. I'm also going to read these and watch Cowspiracy so I'm more current with my information. Also this website (click on Food Justice: Know The Issues): http://www.foodispower.org/

Buy Eat This, Not That! and keep it near you all the time -- near the toilet is good, too.

It's a great accompaniment to low-cal eating. I'm on 1600 cal per day, and this book help me find foods that are decent in bulk / portion size, but have much fewer calories than similar alternatives.

Veyr easy, intuitive, fun to read. Extremely helpful whether you are eating out or grocery shopping.

No, I'm not the author or work for Amazon. This book really helped me (I also am on MyFitnessPal!).

So in this study, the doctors asked 773 patients about their diet regimens via a food-frequency questionnaire.

Now the study obviously has randomization of the sample and it was performed under double-blind situations. Therefore either the doctor nor the patient knew what they're respective position in reference to their diet. Now this study clearly outlines the odds ratio is increased in patients who have animal in their diet or can be classified as carnivores. While patients who can be classified as vegetarian, have a significantly lower risk of cardiovascular and metabolic syndromes.

There is only one specific aspect of this study in which I have a problem with. Its not the sample size, even though it is lower than what I would of liked. There could be a sampling bias. In the sense that the subjects are not representative relative to the general population. Therefore the results are not generalizable. I say this because I have not seen any estimate higher than five percept of the population being vegetarian. Therefore also indicating a possibility of selection bias. Furthermore, there could be a bias in respect to the length of this study. How long have they followed these patients, have these patients kept their diet going or did they interchange their habits? In respect to the strength of this individual study, the only thing it shows is a relatively small correlation with increased probability of decreased incidence of cardiovascular and metabolic disorders and syndromes, for patients who are vegetarian.

I am not trying to be a bummer here. Nonetheless, we must be strict with our interpretations. The fact that is also what the patients are eating. If the patients are eating animal proteins from animals grown on large farms, in which the probability of harsh chemicals, antibiotics, and the likes would be high. Then the probability of increased incidence of disease could be confounded in this factor. Off coarse this is all speculation.

If you want to read about a large significant study, I would recommend 'The China Study'.

Here is a link to download it:
http://btjunkie.org/torrent/The-China-Study-The-Most-Comprehensive-Study-of-Nutrition-Ever-Conducted-AUDIOBOOK/3198500d806664b9eb2f3a2f821a501060302436a9fb

Here is a link to buy it:
http://www.amazon.com/China-Study-Comprehensive-Nutrition-Implications/dp/1932100385

NOTE: Offcoarse the China Study is not the know-all-know-all. I'm just putting it up here because of the subject matter and because it is definitely a significant study that should not be underrated. To be fair, here is a link from a site which, IMO, critically interprets the study. The doctor who made this study has a response to it aswell.

Friends who have completed a 40 day fast, a handful on this sub here and here, as well as many over at curezone. I've read Dr. Joel Fuhrman's Book, whom you say you're a fan of. If you click on this amazon link, you will notice that the first bullet point states "How to use fasting to lose weight".

It seems as though you believe fasting is reserved for those with a disease? Well, the American Medical Association has declared obesity as a disease.

You also seem to need the approval of a doctor for an extended fast. I guess I trust my body to be able to take care of itself and burn the fuel that I've abundantly stored on my body as fat.

edit: Spelling.

For the most part I agree with the content of the book, it's a simple guide to calories in vs calories out and a lot of these principals discussed are methods I use and recommend myself. I also like that you are making this book free which is awesome!

However you lost me at "Crafting a Simple Diet plan". First there is a url to a document on google drive, it's not linked in the kindle edition and copying/pasting is an exercise in frustration - i gave up.

Next the BMR calculation, these assume you know your body fat. I don't think this is needed as the Harris–Benedict BMR is good enough for this estimation.

Calculating Maintenance Calories, you talk just about days of exercise but don't talk about your day to day activity level. For example let's say I'm working at a job where i'm on my feet all day but I don't exercise at all, what multiplier do I use?

Macro Requirements, for the sedentary adult 1g of protein/lb of weight way more than you need. A 300lb sedentary man does not need 300g of protein a day minimum. 0.4/lb is fine for a sedentary adult (American College of Sports Medicine).

I would recommend re-writing the Crafting a Simple diet plan and make it much simpler. Remove the need to track and calculate macros and assume at first the person losing the weight is sedentary, come up with simple calorie targets and if math is involved then perhaps create a site that corresponds to this book to do the calculations for them. Instead of recommending macro tracking just encourage balanced meals.

If people want to get more in-depth information about macro nutrients then I think they should turn to something a little more comprehensive such as Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook

good post, you've got some good tips in there.

on the nutricion i would add, don't forget about the fats. through paleo your main energyresource will still be sugar. and i believe that fat is the best fuel for humans. mostly animal (who have had their natural diet)

Weston A Price discovered this through observation en studying primitive people and their diets. He was also a dentist and intreged with primitive, way better teeth than modern man.

http://www.amazon.com/Nutrition-Physical-Degeneration-Weston-Price/dp/0916764206

Theories on nutrition are numerous and it's worth your time to do some reading on sports nutrition, with a training schedule as dense as yours. IMO the two most important things are: as an athlete, make sure your [daily protein intake] (https://www.strongerbyscience.com/athlete-protein-intake/) is on point (1.5g/kg/bw is ok, 1g/lb is better), and favor more carbs [near the exercise window.] (https://www.amazon.com/Nutrient-Timing-Future-Sports-Nutrition/dp/1591201411)

If your muscles seem to start to run out of glycogen during training, it's probably because you are not refueling muscle glycogen stores adequately between training sessions. If you get hypoglycemic during training, it's probably because you did not eat enough solid carb/protein food 2-3 hours before (I find that light snacking like bananas or protein shakes 1 hour before also works, if you can't get a full meal in sooner.)

10.5 hours/week is a pretty high density training schedule so you need post-training carbs to [put that glycogen back] (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3905295/) into your muscles. Generally a good idea to get a protein/carbs meal in 2 to 3 hours before training if you can.

For water, about 1 ounce of water per kg of bodyweight per day is a common base recommendation but I find that on training days that is more like 1.5oz/kg.

As a heavyweight, I solve this somewhat complex problem by just eating all day, every day. Hope this helps.

I recommend this book: https://www.amazon.com/New-Rules-Lifting-Women-Goddess-ebook/dp/B004IE9RGC

TL:DR; lift like a man, you won't get "too big".

The author recommends pushing and pulling movements which use many muscles at the same time, and is all against isolating certain muscles, or working on small muscle groups independently (think bicep curls).

I've been weight training following the book's advice for a couple of years, and it works like a charm. My weight training sessions last for about only 30 minutes, twice a week, so very little time commitment. The rest of the time I do yoga (twice a week).

And yes, I do this on keto. No carb cycling or anything. You will not eat your muscle.

My sister has cytochrome P450 deficiency and my dad has diverticulitis. It's no wonder i also have nutritional issues.

Our modern food supply is compromised in a variety of ways and that does not help people like us. Irradiation, pasteurization, and antibiotics in foods disturb or just destroy natural bacteria, enzymes, and other things that help us digest food.

Your best bet is to follow the paleo line of thinking and eat whole, unprocessed foods as much as you can. I myself spent many years unlearning the junk food mentality and it was hard, but very much worth it.

The paleo people and the naturopath people have some good advice. They can be hit or miss, but there are a few of them who respect actual science. Here are a few people to look into:

Dr. Rhonda Patrick ( my favorite, and she is a real aspie science geek )
Robb Wolf ( one of the most science minded paleo guys out there )
Eric Berg ( very hit/miss, and gives out faulty advice regularly but has some good leads for starting your own research)

And if you want some information on what vitamins deficiencies can cause, check this stuff out. It will blow your mind:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvQ5F6GCfgI
https://www.amazon.com/Nutrition-Physical-Degeneration-Weston-Price/dp/0916764206/ref=sr_1_1/145-3313227-7006032?ie=UTF8&qid=1494665888&sr=8-1&keywords=weston+price

oooooo I am down to talk about fasting any day u/okaybutfirstcoffee!!

I can't recall what my longest fast was. 68 hours, something like that? I'm planning to do 2-3 day fasts regularly starting at the end of August.

I love Dr Fung's book, Complete Guide to Fasting. His blog is fantastic. This is one of my favorites because it explains the hunger cycles.

Regarding your question about weight loss, extended fasting is more effective because it ramps up human growth hormone. Basically the longer you fast, the more you reverse insulin resistance, and the more resilient your body gets. After about six months of doing OMAD most days, I now notice, for example, that if I have a "sabotage day" I just. can't. eat as much as I used to. I am straight up not hungry. Whereas before if I, say, ate a bagel I would be starving an hour later. I had one last Monday and I was so full I didn't eat again until dinner. Fasting FIXES your body and I fucking love it for that because I didn't even think that was possible.

I will show you the data, and please do not tell me its delusional, if I was unable to show you the data, or you showed me data showing im wrong, then I will gladly accept that you are right. I am still learning about this myself and I will not pretend to know everything.

http://www.amazon.com/China-Study-Comprehensive-Nutrition-Implications/dp/1932100385

the biggest one ever is The China Study. Over 800 million people in china were studied over a long period of time and the results are quite amazing. you can read about it all over the place or simply buy the book or find it at a local library if they have it. The basis for what I am saying is this: The body has a wonderful fighting system that is able to fight off any infection or disease normally. The people that normally eat a lot of processed foods are in cities and places where its very easy to consume large amounts of unhealthy food.

another book I am reading now is this one:
http://www.amazon.com/Healing-Gerson-Way-Defeating-Diseases/dp/0976018624/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1331091809&sr=1-1

and its awesome at explaining how the body works and what substances break down our bodies natural defenses, letting chronic illnesses take over. I hope you will look at these books. I got a cousin dying in a hospital right now of a tumor that has come back again, after almost 2 years of chemo, and now his body is to weak and toxic from the chemo to fight anymore and he has less than a 20% chance of living. Damaging the defense of the body only bring the problem back and with even worse effects.

Also, the documentary Forks over Knives is a good one to watch. Two doctors who are masters in their fields of work realize diet is very important in keeping infection and disease away from the body. I wish you the best my friend

Here's a short bit from Dr. Jason Fung's book "The Complete Guide to Fasting".

https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012

Well worth the money.

>When food intake goes to zero (fasting), our body obviously cannot take BMR down to zero—we have to burn some calories just to stay alive. Instead, hormones allow the body to switch energy sources from food to body fat. After all, that is precisely why we carry body fat—to be used for food when no food is available. It’s not there for looks. By “feeding” on our own fat, we significantly increase the availability of “food,” and this is matched by an increase in energy expenditure.

>Studies demonstrate this phenomenon clearly. In one, fasting every other day for twenty-two days resulted in no measurable decrease in BMR. There was no starvation mode. Fat oxidation—fat burning—increased 58 percent, from 64 g/day to 101 g/day. Carbohydrate oxidation decreased 53 percent, from 175 g/day to 81 g/day. This means that the body has started to switch over from burning sugar to burning fat, with no overall drop in energy.

>In another study, four days of continuous fasting increased BMR by 12 percent. Levels of the neurotransmitter norepinephrine (also known as noradrenaline), which prepares the body for action, increased by 117 percent, keeping energy levels high. Fatty acids in the bloodstream increased over 370 percent as the body switched over from burning food to burning stored fats.

Jason Fung also runs https://intensivedietarymanagement.com/ which is worth checking out.

I recommend reading The New Becoming a Vegetarian and Eating Animals. The first one will get you up to speed on how to get what your body needs without meat, and the second one will help you learn how to talk about it when your family and friends give you shit. Good luck and congratulations!

First, let me say, I cannot really provide a solution for you, but I can share what has worked for me. I have not been as overweight as you but I have at times in my life been significantly overweight (not in mass but in % body fat) and as I am becoming older, I had found it increasingly difficult to control. My point is, you need to try things to see what works for you. Keep a daily journal of how you feel (energy, attention, brain function, etc) so you can do some experiments on yourself.

What has worked for me is adopting (what appears to be the latest fad) the paleo/evolutionary fitness model for diet and exercise. I eat little or no processed foods (e.g. read Pollan, and other rules of thumb...if it doesn't spoil, don't eat it, never shop in the inside area of the supermarket, if it comes out of a box, don't eat it, etc.). I don't drink soda, juice, or anything with sugars (just unsweetened coffee or tea, water). I eat a lot of meat, eggs, fish (no worries on fat content...my favorite lunch is a sandwich from the local deli called the Three Little Pigs, without the bread, it is smoked ham, pork bbq, and bacon). I eat some dairy, primarily full fat and fermented, like Fage Total plain yogurt (with a little fresh fruit and shredded raw coconut). I eat all my favorite vegetables slathered in full fat butter (from the farm if I can get it). This may sound like a low-carb, Atkins type diet, but it isn't. That isn't to say going low carb won't help you lose fat quickly. Nevertheless, it isn't the main point. The main point is to eat as our ancestors did some 10,000 or more years ago, as evolution has not caught up with our recent use of grains in our diet and certainly not processed foods. Another thing I do is intermittently fast. At first somewhat forced, but now just because I am not hungry. I can typically eat dinner (say around 5pm) and not eat again until around lunch the next day.

As far as exercise, I avoid long aerobic activities unless in pursuit of yard work, handling the kids, or sport (like tennis). No treadmills, distance running, or biking. I do walk or ride a bike for transportation, but I am not getting winded. I do lift weights, usually once a week, using only large muscle groups and free weights, and very intensely. It takes about 20 minutes, but given its intensity it is brutal...but over quickly. I introduce a bit of randomness into the exercise frequency and variety of exercises (e.g. maybe twice in one week, maybe I will do a bunch of pull-ups one night or push ups). Sprints are intermingled with this, sometimes just as part of playing with the dog. Again, the point is to expose the body to stresses in an irregular but intense pattern, as perhaps were encountered by our ancestors.

The result is that I am probably a month away (after approximately 9 months total) from having washboard abs, I have great energy levels, stamina and focus. I no longer wake up with aching joints. I don't get low energy levels after eating (unless I really stuff myself). Keep in mind, I am in my 40s. I was 210 and very soft and pear shaped when I started, now I am 185 and back to a youthful V shape.
The only negatives I can speak to is a diminished ability to find quick and convenient food sources and missing bread, pasta and a pizza once and a while. I really don't miss sweets, but I don't think I was that hooked on them in the first place.

Finally, let me give the sources that drove me in this direction. Take a look and see if you are interested in trying it. As I said, I can't say that it will work for you, but it has worked for me.

Websites:

Art Devany http://www.arthurdevany.com/ Evolutionary Fitness

Keith Norris http://theorytopractice.wordpress.com/

Mark Sisson http://www.marksdailyapple.com/

Richard Nikoley http://freetheanimal.com/

Seth Roberts http://blog.sethroberts.net/ (more about self-experimentation and the value of fermented foods)

Weston A. Price Foundation http://www.westonaprice.org/

Books:

Gary Taubes, Good Calories, Bad Calories

Little, McGuff Body by Science

Weston A. Price, Nutrition and Physical Degeneration

Mark Sisson The Primal Blueprint

To lose weight it's basically caloric restriction. Sign up for something like http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ and start tracking what you eat. This will be the most important aspect. [The /r/fitness FAQ] (https://www.reddit.com/r/Fitness/wiki/faq#wiki_diet_details) explains some more.

If you really wanna delve into what's good to eat nutritionally I found the book [Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy: The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0743266420/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1) very good. There's a lot of misinformation out there relating to diet, and it helps when claims are backed up by major and good scientific studies (which this book makes a major point of explaining and doing right with it's claims).

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1450459935/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_i_qXNTCbWS8QKTF

Nancy Clark writes very well for the lat person on this topic.

You can also find various material from the Sports, Cardiovascular, and Wellness Dietetic Practice Group page.

https://www.scandpg.org/home

If you are more advanced in health sciences or biochemistry, then I recommend Advanced Sports Nutrition by Dan Benardot.

Feel free to ping me, as I am a sports RD by profession.

Dietary ketosis. Effectively your cells are operating primarily off of ketones and free fatty acids as opposed to glucose.

From the link:

> Ketosis is a metabolic state where most of the body's energy supply comes from ketone bodies in the blood, in contrast to a state of glycolysis where blood glucose provides most of the energy.

> In glycolysis, higher levels of insulin promote storage of body fat and block release of fat from adipose tissues, while in ketosis, fat reserves are readily released and consumed.

---

Though often used to lose weight (see /r/keto), a ketogenic diet may be beneficial for far more reasons. See this comment by /u/ashsimmonds, who has compiled a massive tome of research references on effects of ketosis.

If you're interested, check out the /r/keto FAQ, and /r/ketoscience for a research-based exploration.

---

NINJA EDIT: A ketogenic diet was also one of the original treatments for epilepsy, especially in children. It's sometimes used today when other medications are unsuccessful.

I started 5 months ago with intermittent fasting. I remember how hard the 1st day was just making it to lunch. Then I started doing 20/4 and then I added fasting all day on Monday. I could not get past the 24 hour mark without a snack at first. Jump now to May and I can do 48 hours easy. It is like so hard at first but the more you practice the easier it gets. So I will just keep practicing and upping my goals as needed. I think If I ever get to 5 days I would be satisfied and not push past this. No reason for me to ever past 5 days. After a two day fast I always have much more energy and I feel young and so much better than my 52 years.
I plan on ordering this book http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012

You may want to take a look at this link to figure out what your BMR is: http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/. Your BMR (basal metabolic rate) is the number of calories you need to take in just to keep basic body functions going... basically, this is the amount of energy your body needs just to exist. I threw in some numbers based on what you have listed, and your current BMR is about ~1500 cal, which means you want to eat at least that much each day, just to keep your body going.

If you want to not jiggle, you may want to consider weight lifting, as well. You'll build muscle, which burns fat faster, and end up looking more "lean" and "toned." I read this pretty fantastic book called New Rules of Lifting for Women, and it's got a good nutritional plan and six-month weight lifting plan as well.

I hope this helps!

Your husband sounds like a douche.

I see some serious potential in your body for fitness and a lovely shape! It's already there, shape-wise. You have a great dip in your natural waist, your legs in particular look like they are going to be amazing with some exercise and your butt still looks quite high.

Your body reminds me of mine when I was a bit heavier but you have more muscle already than I did. If you lose weight slowly and do weight training at the same time you may avoid the excessive amount of loose skin that I, unfortunately, did not!

I would advise you to try http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ as it has helped me immensely in my getting fit.
The other thing you could get is a small (they are like, 20 bucks) digital food scale. Amazingly helpful. It's shocking how rarely a measuring device (tablespoon,cup) is accurate. Almost never! I was so wrong on my portions and serving sizes before I got a scale.

Also, I would suggest not just doing cardio classes but weight lifting as well. You could look at something like Starting Strength or The New Rules Of Lifting For Women.
It will reshape your body, making everything tighter and higher instead of just losing weight (which has the danger of making everything droopier and saggier!).

Good luck!

This book on amazon is pretty inexpensive and the author appears to be an RD and CSSD (Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics) Looks like the reviews are pretty positive, too

the bare minimum entry into intermittent fasting just requires that you not eat before 11am or after 7pm. If you do that, you're technically doing "intermittent fasting" to get more aggressive, just shorten that 8 hour window to an 6 hour window. The idea, is that the longer you fast the more benefit you can potentially gain from it.

I'd recommend you check out this book: https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1538061608&sr=8-3&keywords=guide+to+fasting

or the great resources at /r/intermittentfasting

Nu glumeste, eu tin o saptamana la vreo 2 luni in mod regulat si o zi in fiecare saptamana nu mananc nimic. Maxim am dus 9 zile si am mancat din reflex, m-am asezat cu sotia la masa seara, dupa munca, ea manca, si fara sa imi dau seama am inceput si io sa mananc. dar nu imi era foame deloc.

Prima zi e aiurea, in special daca mananci de obicei carbohidrati (nu esti keto sau low carb). A doua zi deja nu iti mai e foame, dar ai constant senzatia aia "ba, toti mananca in juru meu, ala o shaorma, ala o aluna, io ce fac aici?". Cam din ziua 3-4 asa deja nu mai ai nici o problema.

Ca idee, poti bea cafea sau ceai, nu doar apa. Evident, fara zahar sau lapte in ele. Singura recomandare pe care ti-o fac e sa mananci sare zilnic, ca altfel o sa te deshidratezi si nu e fun deloc. Fara sare o sa ti se faca si frig destul de tare cam din ziua a 3a si din ziua 5a-6a pot aparea deficiente serioase care sa duca la crampe musculare. Asa ca linge cateva grame de sare pe zi.

Daca vrei sa citesti despre fasting: https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012

Daca vrei video mai light pe youtube, iti recomand canalul astuia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UShUs1Wb_k sau https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ojt9PmqAfhA

Daca vrei video mai in detaliu pe yotube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9Aw0P7GjHE&t=25s

Daca vrei sa citesti mai mult in romana, uite aici. E despre intermittent fasting, dar se aplica aceleasi idei, evident cu diferenta ca nu mananci deloc.

Definitely consider fasting. Check out Dr. Jason Fung's book on fasting. He treats diabetes and obesity and often cycles fasting (from 24 hours to 7 days) into the protocol. He explains why (it's not just to cut calories) and outlines all of the health benefits. Yes, it helps with a stall - and so much more. And no, you won't lose muscle mass. Definitely worth a read!

I highly recommend this book. Everything you need to know is in there and it has solid science to back its claims. Better than someone saying yes or no without backing their claims.

http://www.amazon.com/Nutrient-Timing-Future-Sports-Nutrition/dp/1591201411

Here is a post I made. Inside I talk about the protocol these scientists recommend.

http://www.reddit.com/r/Fitness/comments/zoqok/switched_up_my_diet_for_8_weeks_heres_the_results/

>Currently I consume 10g of whey protein with 25g of high glycemic carbs during workout and 25g whey protein with 45g of high glycemic carbs post workout.
This protocol (slightly modified) was obtained from "Nutrient Timing: The Future of Sports Nutrition" by John Ivy, PhD. and Robert Portman, PhD. I highly recommend this book and supplement protocol because it increased my workout intensity and decreased recovery time. I am currently using fruit juice for the high glycemic carbs but soon will be switching to a 50/50 blend of maltodextrin and dextrose to capitalize on a greater insulin response as recommended by the book. Another nutrition resource that I utilized was "Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook". Both books cite numerous peer reviewed scientific research to back claims => legit.

For books I'd recommend The Complete Guide to Fasting by Dr. Jason Fung.

I do three 42-hour fasts a week. Basically I don't eat on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The other days I eat in a 6-hour window, generally 8am-2pm.

I love it! I get a real energy boost at about hour 36.

It's called Carbs & Cals (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Carbs-Cals-Count-Calories-Photos/dp/1908261064/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1458344841&sr=8-1&keywords=carbs+and+cals) and I'm like 99.999% sure they have a US version as well. It's a really cool book, they even have a condiment section and a takeaway section (though obviously that's always going to be a bit of a guestimate anyway), plus it gives you the sizes of the plates that the photos are taken on so you actually have scale.

Yeah it's actually the worst! I think I assumed it wouldn't be as bad as they said because the hospital doctor said I could go immediately straight back to work (what a lie!) but nooo. Such a good job with the running though! Don't rush, build it up slowly and soon it'll be like your pesky lungs never caused all that bother. :)

Do you have access to a library? I got this book years ago and it helped me get over some of the myths about women and weight-training/strength-training. There is A LOT of BS out there that leads women into doing some really counterproductive, inefficient things.

http://www.amazon.com/New-Rules-Lifting-Women-Goddess-ebook/dp/B004IE9RGC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1404734314&sr=8-1&keywords=new+rules+of+lifting+for+women

I liked this book because it went into the physiology and psychology and then gave me a progressive routine. After this, I did New Rules of Lifting and P90X. Starting Strength is another great place to begin.

hey! I haven’t started it yet but drinking ice watermelon and cucumber juice thingy is part of it. Waiting for the book to come in tomorrow!

https://www.amazon.com/Acid-Watcher-Diet-Prevention-Healing/dp/1101905581/ref=nodl_

I’m on mobile rn but there’s an online book and a book available on Amazon.

A cookbook is coming out around October and I promise I’m not shilling lmao I’m just hoping this diet works to heal me. But it helps to heal the symptoms from silent reflux/ lpr.

Buy this book.

And you're pretty much done.

Best of luck.

https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012

Congratulations!!!

Once you get comfortable with IF/omad. I would recommend checking out r/fasting. It'll speed up your weight loss and take your energy to the next level.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MF8SC2X/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

I found "Becoming Vegetarian" to be a great, comprehensive, thorough introduction and reference book for the diet. Highly recommended, and good on you for wanting to research.

http://www.amazon.ca/The-New-Becoming-Vegetarian-Essential/dp/1570671443

The part about "Targeting Your Trouble Spots" sounds like they know they're trying to BS you. They present the true facts that lifting heavy and eating enough will target weight loss at fat, not muscle. But they stick this information in a paragraph suggesting that spot reduction is actually possible.

At any rate, as a woman I'd definitely recommend SS (which I'm doing) or SL to a lady who's interested in strength training. This book, The New Rules of Lifting for Women might also be helpful to outline the effects of strength training on women, as well as dietary myths/tips. It also outlines its own strength training program, but the general information it gives can be applied to any program.

He means five consecutive days. In this passage he's just saying that a 5 day fast would be better, and probably easier. In his book he advocates fasts from 16 hrs to 14 days. According to him, a 7 day fast can be done once a month. A fourteen day fast shouldn't be done more than once every 6 weeks. Anyway, a 5 day real fast, once a month, is fine. His new book is great by the way. Can't recommend it enough.

http://amzn.com/1628600012

Agreed, also cut out the following foods:

• acidic
  
• spicy
  
• highly processed
  
• has lots of sugar
  
• caffience
  
• alcohol
  
• fatty
  
  ​
  
  In addition..
  
  
• Get a pillow like this for sleeping on and don't eat anything for 2-3 hours before sleep.
  
• This book helped me to undesrstand GERD and has some great GERD friendly foods

I read Dr. Jason Fung's book on the subject "The Complete Guide to Fasting". He does a good job of breaking down the do's and don'ts of fasting and approaches everything from a scientific perspective. He runs a clinic that treats patients with advanced stages of diabetes with his primary tool being fasting to get their body's insulin regulation working again.

Here's a quick video from Dr. Paul Jaminet on the benefits of intermittent fasting. If you're down for something longer and denser you could watch this interview Dr. Rhonda Patrick did with Dr. Valter Longo (the professor of gerontology at USC involved in the fasting study I mentioned elsewhere in this thread).

I wouldn't look at the fasting subreddit as a source for information on fasting so much as a social support network for those involved in fasting. They're a great group that encourages each other even if there's a good amount of misinformation floating around. I blame most of that on the fact fasting is such a taboo subject.

With just those few sources you'll know enough to decide if you want to give it a try or not and be better educated on the risks and benefits. (You absolutely can kill yourself with fasting if you don't know what you're doing, so don't just dive in blind).

A good book to read regarding what is healthy/not healthy is "Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy: The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating" They debunked the egg yolk myth.

I'm told this is a good read for women to keep them sane and that they aren't going to Hulk Out:

http://www.amazon.com/The-New-Rules-Lifting-Women/dp/1583332944

That being said, a novice program like Starting Strength or even StrongLifts 5x5 would work for women; both full-body compound movements.

With extra research you can help her get stronger and not be concerned with becoming "swole" and "bulky."

I have found the two following books to be very helpful on the subject...

The China Study

Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease

Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn has done amazing work in reversing Heart Disease in severely sick people. He has the arterial and vein scans to show exactly what his nutritional plan can do. Both books are must reads in my opinion.

Its definitely worth buying. u/Nimbah u/satthereonashelf Arnold Schwarzenegger wrote it for fuck's sake. Get the updated one though if you do.

The trick is to not copy it word for word, but to study his methods and techniques and adapt your training and nutrition to his ideas. Figure out a way to use them in a way that works for you, because what works for one person might not work for someone else.

Another couple good ones I like:

https://www.amazon.com/Nutrient-Timing-Future-Sports-Nutrition/dp/1591201411/ref=sr_1_1/165-0407129-1672854?ie=UTF8&qid=1478043820&sr=8-1&keywords=nutrient+timing+book

https://www.amazon.com/Golds-Building-Training-Nutrition-System/dp/0809239477/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478043845&sr=8-1&keywords=golds+gym+mass+building

https://www.amazon.com/Strength-Training-Anatomy-Frederic-Delavier/dp/0736092269/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1478043862&sr=1-1&keywords=strength+training+anatomy

Chestia e ca dureaza foarte mult timp pana cand efectele sunt vizibile, daca n-ai boala celiaca de ex. poti sa mananci paine fara simptome, dar glutenul provoaca probleme la toata lumea. Exista multe studii stiintifice noi care explica mecanismele astea, dar va dura mult pana cand se vor traduce in recomandari dietetice. Problema e complexa, poti sa incepi aici, sau aici, probabil gasesti cartea si pe torente daca nu vrei sa dai banu. :)

Glutenul nu e singura problema, eu cred ca excesul de carbohidrati in dieta si insuficienta micronutrientilor e o problema la fel de mare. Ce procent de carbohidrati poti sa tolerezi fara probleme depinde de mostenirea genetica, varsta si alti factori, Romania e campioana Europeana la diabet deci probabil nu stam grozav la capitolul asta. 13.5% din populatie are diabet si probabil inca 25-30% au "sindrom metabolic" sau pre-diabet. (in SUA si in Orientul Mijlociu e mai rau!) Din pacate diagnosticul de diabet se pune foarte tarziu, cand glicemia ridicata in sange persista pana dimineata inainte de prima masa, asta se intampla dupa 10-15 ani de pre-diabet in care iti stresezi organismul cu cantitati mult mai mari de zaharuri decat poti sa procesezi.

On youtube, Cultivate Health and Beauty. It's targeted towards women and their channel is not about being anti-vegan, but they are pretty anti-vegan. Also Primal Edge Health. I watch Sv3ridge for the exvegan videos and the Epitomy of Malnourishment videos but be careful in venturing to anything outside of that. For podcasts, listen to Bulletproof Radio, Fitness Confidential, The Paleo Solution, Primal Blueprint Podcast. For books, The Vegetarian Myth and the works of Weston A. Price. Look for people with an internet presence who are paleo. Most a very educated about veganism. Nina Teicholz work is worth mentioning too. She did a great breakdown of all the problems with that piece of propaganda "documentary" What the Health.

I highly recommend reading "The China Study" by Colin Campbell before swallowing this BS.

http://www.amazon.com/China-Study-Comprehensive-Nutrition-Implications/dp/1932100385

The article repeats the myth that animal proteins are the best "complete" proteins.

Do yourself and your health a favor and read The China Study.

Read Think Like A Pancreas - an excellent book that covers everything you need to know about carb counting. This is the number one thing you need to get the hang of to control your diabetes properly. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Think-Like-Pancreas-Practical-Insulin--Completely/dp/0738215147/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1422127481&sr=1-1&keywords=think+like+a+pancreas

You might also find the Carbs and Cals books helpful for working out carbs
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Carbs-Cals-Count-Calories-Photos/dp/1908261064/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1422127636&sr=1-1&keywords=carbs+and+cals

Ah alright, I'll look into that book. I get headaches on a near daily basis if that makes any difference (maybe it's dehydration like you said?)

As for nausea, I guess that could also be dehydration, I don't know. I talked to my family to see if I have any allergies we aren't aware of.

I was going to get this book before I do a fast longer than 3 days, but thanks for all your help.

> It's pretty certain that modern diets result in more malocclusion than ancient diets did

Bingo. Weston price has a great book that'll open your eyes.

https://www.amazon.ca/Nutrition-Physical-Degeneration-Weston-Price/dp/0916764206

The idea behind a recovery shake is that you drink something with a 1 to 3 or 1 to 4 ratio of protein to carbs after your workout when your body's insulin sensitivity is very high. This gives you a big insulin boost and puts your body into recovery and growth mode. It literally flicks a switch. You're going to be insulin sensitive after your lifting and probably a little more so after your cardio, so I'd just drink it after your cardio.

A separate issue is whether you're getting enough calories and your macros are at the levels they need to be. What I mean is that you need to make sure that your muscles are fully fueled up before you lift and then run and that you're getting enough protein and carbs. If you're calorie deficient or getting too little protein, that run is really going to impact your lifting growth and recovery. So make sure you consider that too. The recovery shake is really just the thing that throws the recover-mode switch.

Source: (not an affiliate link) http://www.amazon.com/Nutrient-Timing-Future-Sports-Nutrition/dp/1591201411/ref=sr_1_1

'Becoming Vegetarian' - Melina & Davis

Found this to be a good book recommended to me here on reddit. Offers an unbiased look at our body's needs and how to fulfill them through a vegetarian diet.

Might I also recommend a different take on this, one that stems from balancing the many needs we have from our food - nutrition, convenience, social life, health/fitness and cost:

"Vegan Before 6" - Mark Bittman

I agree with you on that one, but going back to the post's title, or at least its implied meaning, I do have a recommendation that i've found really useful.

It's a book (and app if you want it), called "Carbs and Cals" - Which gives portion sizes and weights of quite a few foods, drinks and meals.

I got it from amazon here - Not sure if there's one in Imperial measurements but worth a try.

I would recommend that you read the r/keto and r/intermittentfasting subs they have great faq's.

I would also get a copy of Jason Fung's book complete guide to fasting
https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012/

This book explains a lot of the science behind both fasting and the benefits of a ketogenic diet. You also have a meal plan complete with recipes for you to get started with.

>https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day-ebook/dp/B01MF8SC2X

Dr. Fung is a great purponent and his points have always made sense. Great reading suggestion, I second you.

Fasting for 3-4 days likely won't cure eczema.

According to Fasting and Eating for Health by Dr. Joel Fuhrman, most auto-immune issues (including eczema) would take about 2-3 weeks of fasting to resolve. Check out r/fasting/ if you're interested in learning more.

I almost totally cleared up my own hand eczema through dietary changes (eliminating dairy and reducing sugar), and adding in lots of probiotics. I also have been doing intermittent fasting now for a few months. The only remnants of eczema left are some minor dry patches on my hands.

Sure thing. Here's one: Features of a successful therapeutic fast of 382 days' duration

>"Prolonged fasting in this patient had no ill-effects."

If you'd like more information, I recommend Dr. Jason Fung's "Complete Guide to Fasting." link

I've been reading "Mindless Eating" by Brian Wansink and it's fantastic. He runs a food lab Cornell and he talks about the experiments they and other labs do to change how we eat. His focus is on explaining all the things we don't think about affecting our eating, like restaurant lighting and the route we take to/from work. It's written in a very easily understood way and he doesn't come across as preachy. It's not really a dieting book but it's a really fascinating look at the way we eat.
https://www.amazon.ca/Mindless-Eating-More-Than-Think/dp/0553384481/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

Nothing special, I am just trying to think about everything I eat. I am on a slow boat but it is showing. For instance, Thursday night is my golf league. I used to eat a dozen wings and get an order of fries. Now I eat a dozen wings and a salad and always turn down the last beer. I have cut out snacking almost entirely. I try to not eat seconds. I almost never eat dessert. I have a rowing machine, a jump rope, and Bowflex adjustable dumbells and I try to do something every day, even though that something is often a ten minute workout after work. I am not trying to quickly lose weight, but I would like to be at 185 when I get married next September. At my current pace I will be pretty close. I think I am going to try to run two or three 5k's this summer, as I used to run them fairly often in high school and college, and I think running will push me over the top to the 185 goal.

Edit: I just finished this book for a Food Marketing course, but I am going to try to apply its principles to my eating habits. It was a fascinating read. Some of the ideas are intuitive, but it reinforces proper behavior.

His new book is very good and an easier read, arranged better for newbie to fasting.

I don't expect you guys to be taught this, but a lot of chronic diseases can be healed with good nutrition, and when I say good nutrition, I mean, think, what did people eat back when chronic diseases were not commonplace? (Cows ate grass, not candy. Chickens ate bugs. Produce back then was organic.) Suggested reading-shorter: http://blog.elliebellyupdates.com/p/her-story.html Suggested reading-book length: https://www.amazon.com/Nutrition-Physical-Degeneration-Weston-Price/dp/0916764206

https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012

He is a Canadian doctor specializing in kidney functions/diabetes/weight management etc, and fasting is a major part of his protocol. He is really an amazing guy....I encourage you to look him up and find out more! r/DrJasonFung

Jason Fung's blog is where many people get started. He has a whole series on fasting (intermittent and otherwise). You can get started here:

https://intensivedietarymanagement.com/fasting-a-history-part-i/

He also has a book that was published in October, The Complete Guide to Fasting, which is supposed to be very good.

Lastly, DietDoctor.com has great info on LCHF and fasting. Here's that link:

https://www.dietdoctor.com/?s=fasting

Sure. It's not as hard as you would imagine. My first time trying longer fast, I went from my longest being 20 hours to 5 days. I still haven't gone farther than a week because I don't want to lose any muscle and I don't have that much fat to lose. The world record for water fasting is an obese man who fasted for over a year, btw.



So, I usually lift ~5 days a week. When fasting I completely stop lifting and just do some slow walking for a little exercise. Lifting frequently before and after fasts will prevent muscle loss. After the first day of eating again, my lifts are back to where they were or even higher.


Fasting is easier than you would imagine, it's just really boring. I have a small amount of potassium salt each day (lite salt) and caffeine/ephedrine in the morning (not necessary but helps with energy and appetite.) I don't really get hungry. Sometimes I get a 20 min wave of hunger but it goes away.


So basically just start a fast like you would, then keep going. It's easy but very boring. When fasting, my desire to eat food is more out of boredom than out of hunger.


This blog is where I studied before fasting:


https://intensivedietarymanagement.com/fasting-a-history-part-i/


He also has a book:



https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1628600012/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1480211182&sr=8-1&pi=SY200_QL40&keywords=fasting+fung&dpPl=1&dpID=51v35yZ51XL&ref=plSrch

And this subreddt is helpful;

/r/fasting

Read this book

https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012/

If you can't afford it, there are great free articles here that have essentially the same content

Fasting – A History Part I

Women and Fasting – Part 10

https://idmprogram.com/tag/fasting/

The research is all over the place right now, there's a book titled "Grain Brain" which subscribes to that theory. Here's the book:
https://www.amazon.com/Grain-Brain-Surprising-Sugar-Your-Killers/dp/031623480X

I personally think that all of the processed foods we eat may one day be linked to Alzheimer's, there are just too many chemicals in all of it. I like the study that says red wine helps ! :)

Ok, when I first started dealing with GERD a few months ago, not only did I go to a GI doctor, I also started seeing a therapist. She helped me talk through all of my worries about eating and being sick, process them in a healthy way, and taught me coping mechanisms. I highly suggest that if this is making you anxious (and I don't blame you), seek out a therapist. My therapist was an amazing support system when I was truly struggling.

I've been on pantoprazole for about 2.5 months, eating a strict GERD diet (specifically the Acid Watchers Diet-- great book, I highly recommend), not eating 3 hours before bed, and sleeping on an incline. I'm feeling much better now. Only current symptom is burping (annoying, not painful or anything), and some occasional heartburn but that is becoming rarer and rarer. I believe if I stick to this plan, and continue to let my esophagus heal (I also have esophagitis), I will be able to eat trigger foods in the future. My doctor wants me to wait though until I am essentially symptom-free for several months before taking me off meds and letting me experiment with my diet.

That's another thing, getting a GI doc you trust and can explain your illness in an understandable way is really important for combatting anxiety. My first doc only increased my anxiety because he really didn't know what he was doing and was deeply unhelpful. My current doc has set up a good plan for healing and it is making me optimistic instead of nervous and disheartened.

But let me tell you, I suffered for 5 months to get to this point, where I'm so much happier and nearly symptom-free. This place is completely possible to get to. And I know so many people on this sub have GERD but now are totally symptom free and can eat trigger foods in moderation. We will both get there! I know how isolating this can feel but know that we're all with you!

Edit: wow I also have costocondritis and that shit sucks too! I'm sorry you're going through this

https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Fasting-Intermittent-Alternate-Day/dp/1628600012/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1498139836&sr=8-1&keywords=fasting

I noticed when I did lazy keto Id have all kinds of problems. When I did strict Keto I had much better success because calories were low but I dont think I solved my hormone problems. The book goes into why calories in calories out doesnt work (even with Keto) (basically your body adjusts.)

However do fasting and your body has no other choice than to do what it was designed to do. When you are fasting it is supported to eat your fat stores because that is all that is left.

I guess I really already knew this but the book put it all together into one place where I was finally like.

"Ah HA! This makes sense"

Now I think I have final permanent control over my weight and a new relationship with food. I schedule when I am going to eat and ignore what I previously thought was hunger pangs.

I also dont worry about skipping breakfast AND lunch. (lunch is such an expensive pain in the ass anyhow.)

I dont worry about eating 7 small meals a day (That was so stupid it wasnt funny in retrospect.)

I also know why dieting leads to plateaus and weight gains. (Looking at my Myfitness weight graphs for the past 6 years looks like a map of the himalayas.

All good stuff. This fasting thing is powerful. I think I can live with 1 day normal eating then 65 hours of fasting until I get to a healthy weight.

I hit the gym three days a week and do a full weight circuit. Bench, rows, pull-downs, squats, lunges, hamstring curls and all the assorted ab work/minor lifts I can pack in. I try to be in and out of the gym in less than an hour, lift as heavy as I can for 3 sets of 10 reps and then get out.

I can't stand doing cardio on machines but that doesn't matter too much since I bike commute everywhere.

You might like the The New Rules of Lifting for Women, the book is very helpful and the workouts are quick.

I recommend this book on vegan and nutrition:
http://www.amazon.com/China-Study-Comprehensive-Nutrition-Implications/dp/1932100385

I myself and not a vegan. You got to be insane to give up a good BBQ. But I do appreciate the science of nutrition and this book good does a good job to describe the science.

TL;DR. Tell your wife to get approval from a doctor because there's a right way & a wrong way to be vegan.

I've been to one of these free dental pop-up clinics. It was a pretty terrible experience. Many of the people I was sitting around didn't even look that poor. Some of the people who came in had completely black teeth and were getting them pulled and X-rayed. Some patients I saw in the same chair for hours getting their free work done.

I think I waited around 8 hours to finally get my teeth cleaned. It was the first time I got my teeth professionally cleaned in 11 years. Despite an 11 year gap between professional teeth cleanings. The dentist said that my teeth were in great condition aside from some crowding due to lack of braces, and some calculus deposits. I didn't have any cavities. I do brush twice a day and floss once a day.

I do recommend this book "Nutrition and Physical Degeneration" by Weston Price. It explains how important diet is for teeth quality and health. It explains why people eating primitive diets always have near-perfect teeth, while people eating modern "white" diets (white flour, white sugar, white rice, and foods brought by the white man) have bad teeth and physical effects. Its why in documentaries about native tribes in Africa, they always have perfect white teeth despite not having toothbrushes or dentists.

https://www.amazon.com/Nutrition-Physical-Degeneration-Weston-Price/dp/0916764206/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1522226965&sr=8-1&keywords=nutrition+and+physical+degeneration

OP's article reminds me of this episode of "Extreme Cheapskates" where a couple is doing DIY dentistry. I admire the ingenuity of the vacuum hose. There really are millions of poor Americans with no access to healthcare who are relying on folk medicine, DIY medicine, and illegal drugs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3m-58CCVAM

America has to make up its mind. Do we want a free market healthcare system? Or a socialist single payer system? Choose ONE plan and stick with it. No good can come out of this bizarre twisted mish mash of public and private. The politicians can't make up their mind, and the people are suffering because of it.

Recently finished reading The Complete Guide to Fasting (amazon). A lot of the book overlaps Dr. Fung's blog posts (site) but at the end of the book there are some explanations of different fasting styles and why Dr. Fung might recommend one or another for various situations. Might be helpful!

There isn't any reason I know of that would make IF not appropriate for females. Your body might also be super efficient and make really good use of the calories you give it. I'm not a huge fan of calorie restriction and it's hard when you are exercising as much as you are, but maybe try restricting calories to the low end of your range for at least one week. See if you can do it for 7 days and if there is any change (maybe start after your marathon). If that still isn't working, I would venture to guess that there is something else going on with your physiology. Have you tried a gluten free diet? Some people have extreme gluten sensitivity that can affect fat retention, especially visceral fat. A keto diet is 90% of the way to gluten free so switching over shouldn't take too much effort. Check out the book grain brain or wheat belly for more information and the science behind gluten.

Edit: Links

I'm sorry, but any post about nutrition coming from someone who "ate nothing but McDonalds all summer" is invalid here. You clearly don't know very much about the subject matter. For example:

> You can become unimaginably fat eating apples if you try hard enough.

No you can't. It's a negative calorie food.

Trust me, I see your point, that's there's more to dieting than just making sure you eat the right foods. It's the same problem Lean Cuisine faces, right? You can't just eat their foods and become magically thin, there's more to it than that. But I see your hangup as something a little disclaimer can take care of.

This website idea is less like a full-on diet plan (no nutrition info, remember?) and more like "Eat This Not That". In a no-nonsense way it can debunk the irrational dieting decisions we sometimes let ourselves make ("Oh, one piece of cheesecake can't hurt, and Tammy's birthday just comes once a year!"). It also can provide clarity to some people who really need it ("Is peanut butter bad for me? There's a lot of fat..."). Finally, it's a kick in the ass - maybe if you knew this website would say "Not Eat" about that hamburger, you're more likely to stay in and have soup instead. In this way, you don't even have to use the web site for it to work.

But c'mon, a "horrible idea"? How can it be a horrible idea to have a site that suggests getting a fettucine noodle bowl from Healthy Choice over the fettucine at Olive Garden? No, it would not be an end-all dieting solution, but that's undeniably helpful.

Grain Brain is also a great book that discusses research that has been done on how a low-carb/low-grain diet impacts health and brain function. The author talks about preventing dementia/Alzheimers through a keto-type diet. Highly recommended. Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Grain-Brain-Surprising-Sugar-Your-Killers/dp/031623480X

I highly recommend reading Dr. Jason Fung's The Complete Guide to Fasting. He does a great job describing the fundamentals of how fasting works for non-scientific readers.

Totally agree with you. Have you read "The China Study" ?

Great book. Link Here

How Not to Die is an excellent introduction to the world of evidence-based nutrition! I also highly recommend The China Study and Whole: Rethinking the Science of Nutrition.

There is a large body of work showing how and why keto works, and there is also a large body of work showing that VLCHF diets are more effective than other forms of dieting.

What the literature and studies have not yet shown conclusively is whether the calories in calories out theory is the only valid reason. If it is, then why is keto more effective?

There is so much knowledge I can't really point you any further than Principia Ketogenica to show you that the FAQ is not exactly correct.

Keto still requires a calorie deficit, it's just easier to manage because you don't get bad hunger pangs in between meals.

And ultimately, weight loss is practically a side effect of what keto is doing for your cardiac health, immune system, complexion, mental clarity, and other stuff. A number of interesting books on the subject have emerged in the last 5-10 years that are basically turning nutrition science upside-down. Grain Brain is a prime example.

This book covers physical exertion a bit but great read.

The Complete Guide to Fasting: Heal Your Body Through Intermittent, Alternate-Day, and Extended Fasting

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/1628600012/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_acHwCb5CYRSV5

I might get downvoted for this, but please read Dr. Malcolm Kendrick: The Great Cholesterol Con

If you're interested in reading you could try this book or this one.

My 4 year old eats everything short of meat (allergic), that we serve. We don't do processed sugars or any artificial dyes. We do a "no thank you bite." For instance, we do four or five food groups with a meal, and when there is something new on his plate, he may not have more of the things he likes until he tries at least ONE bite of the new food. Essentially, if you're serious, you'll need to do an entire haul of your kitchen. Toss/donate any "crap" foods. If you don't have it in your house - you won't eat it. Start meal planning (trust me, it will save you A LOT of stress). If you don't have a crock pot.. get one! You can meal prep, once every few weeks, throw the crock pot meal into a freezer bag, freeze, and throw it in the crockpot before leaving for work and wahlaa, dinner when you come home.

It's not an easy transition, especially with the older child, but it's better to teach healthy eating habits now rather than later. We realized how bad our eating habits were when my son was one, and it took a lot of dedication but it IS possible.

Lifiting is an intense workout if you lift heavy enough!!

search around, look at /r/xxfitness and you will find tons and tons of stories about how lifting heavy helped women reach their goals. I'm not one of them yet but I know once I get to about your weight I'm going to start eating at maintenance and (continue to) lift heavy to get what I want.

You don't need to run for miles and miles everyday to get a smaller waistline, especially if you hate running. Lifting doesn't just help your arms :)

Honestly consider getting this book http://www.amazon.com/New-Rules-Lifting-For-Women/dp/1583332944

It will explain a lot about how lifting can help you.

> I don't see how not eating for weeks can be possible really. How do you go to work? Do everyday shit? I can't even imagine.

It's really not as big of a deal as you make it sound. It's also well researched. I've done 6 in my life and gained immense benefits each time. It's hard to understand though for people who may have never heard of it.

Dr Fung is a leading expert in the field and has written an excellent book about it https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B01MF8SC2X/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

A good book would The New Rules of Lifting. There is also one for ladies. I read the one for women and it has a lot of really good info and exercises.