10 Million Diet Cults

[JasonE]

There are 10 million diet cults, and I don't like buying into them.

The last one I looked at was Blood Type Dieting, and although it seemed okay, the emphasis on minimizing hemoglutanates seemed a bit odd. I mean, how could the panhemoglutanates in a tomato outweigh the positive aspects of taste, fiber, and vitamins and minerals??

Now I have been hearing about Alkaline diets, Atkins diets, South Beach diets, Weight Watchers, Warrior Diets, ad infinitum. What works? What doesn't?

There are underlying principles that outweigh the details. Don't give me names; give me the realistic rules of thumb.

Also, I will not indulge in crap like Ori Hofmekler's Warrior Diet that require you to spend lots of money on his particular supplements in order to make the program work. When he outlines a weekly diet and 2/3 of the items on the list are his patented supplements, I think he's insane and not worth serious consideration. If you disagree, please tell me why.

If you are an avid follower or hater of ANY one of the aforementioned diet cults, please tell me why or why not, and what your experiences have been. I want to know!!

I am willing to take some vitamins, minerals, omega oils, and other basic supplements readily available from a variety of suppliers... but I don't want to rely on them or consider them a key element of my diet.

Okay, that's all. I welcome all opinions!

There are only 2 factors in any diet

1) Calories in v. calories out

2) how to comply with 1 forever

Eating a high protien, high fat, low carb diet makes compliance with rule 1) much easier because you are not always hungry. It is also healthier for a myriad of reasons related to hyperinsulinism. My results can be seen in the picture on the cover the last issue of circularstrength mag. I will not tell you what books to read since you said not to :twisted:

[Connie Brown]

well I consider myself a survivor of most of those 10 million, sad to say.

I ended up tossing em all and crafting my own food plan based on trial and observation on my very own self. Plus reading up on basic nutrition to make sure all the good stuff is in there. Including all the nutrients, macro and micro.

I must say I wasted a lot of time trying to balance calories in and calories out. I would make poor food choices that fit in the calorie allowance, exercise, and still not lose. I now know that the quality of the fuel impacts the quality of the burn.

Nowadays when I skim a new diet book it is for possible new information on nutrition. There is still a lot to learn.

[JasonE]

I must ammend my earlier post:

If you want to recommend a book, magazine, or other source of information that you personally believe in, please do so.

Thanks!

Dr. Ellis books at ultimatedietsecrets.com -straight low-carb

NHE by Robert Fagin for carb cycling

[JasonE]

Thanks, Bill.

Lesson learned. :oops:

[Chuck]

Jason,
I'll second the recomendation of Ellis's Ultimate Diet Secrets. And I'd add Life Without Bread by Allan and Lutz and Nutrition and Physical Degeneration by Weston A Price (originally published in the 30's). I'd also recommend the www.westonaprice.com web site. Probably the best book writeen on the human diet is The Stone Age Diet by Walter Voegtlin. It was published in 1972 and I took me a long time to find it and I had to lay out 100.00 for it but it was worth it.

[sammybaby]

I managed to find Greg Ellis with no problem, but Bill (or anyone else), do you have a link to the NHE stuff? I couldn't find squat via Google.

TIA.

[Connie Brown]

For eye-crossing detail on the interplay of hormones I would recommend The Transition by Diana Schwarzbein, endocrinologist. Talks about the effect of food on the major hormones insulin, adrenalin, and cortisol. Also what happens if you go too low OR too high on any of them. (building or losing lean body mass and or fat)

[Jrichardson]

NHE -- Natural Hormonal Enhancement -- used to be sold on Dragondoor but isn't anymore... you can find it on a google search though. Make sure you start the search terms with "Fagin."

[Chuck]

Connie,

Schwarzbien's books are pretty good. I have read both Principles and Transitions and usually recomend them to diabetics or those prone to diabetes who I don't feel would adhere to a more rigorous program. Her program is doable for most people. I disagree with her on a number of issues which keep her of my recomend list for the more motivated.

However one thing that really stood out in Transition, which you recomended, is how long it can take to return the body to normalcy after years of abusing it by consuming the SAD. As I recall it took her about 5 years to recover from her horrible diet (carbs and soft drinks if memory serves) while in HS, college, and med school. Many of the patients she writes about took a long time too.

While I have some problems with particulars of the books they are well worth reading and I'm glad you mentioned her. Her office is about 45 minutes north of me and about 15 minutes from my wifes office. I have been trying to get my wife to schedule an appt with her but am having no luck.

[Connie Brown]

Yes Chuck, I hesitated to recommend it just because a lot of it would not apply to lifelong athletes who had not been quite so off-the-wall with eating.

[JasonE]

Considering that for a while I was up to around 12 cans of Coke daily with regular pizza infusions, I might have a ways to go before my body recovers. :oops:

Thanks for the recommendations, guys! Please post any other sources or suggestions that come to mind, and why.

[Connie Brown]

Well Jason, you might really enjoy Potatoes not Prozac by DesMaisons if you want the science of the "schwingggg" from coke and pizza.

basically, white sugar, white flour (the "white powder' foods) and sat fats have a psychotropic effect on blood sugar and brain chemicals. A much milder form of the same pathways involved in opioid addictions (downers) - plus the caffeine in the coke fires up the same ones as the dopamine addictions (uppers)

Once we did a survey of, what is the ultimate drug food?

top winners were ice cream on a chocolate brownie
(caffeine, chocolate, white wheat flour, white sugar, dairy sat fats)

and beer and pizza (coke is just as good)
(alcohol/intense sugar, white wheat flour, dairy sat fats, meat sat fats)

always on an empty stomach of course for maximum hit.

mwha ha ha ha

[BullOnTheBeach]

The confusion and contradiction is astounding. I went about finding my diet the same way Connie did, I became a guinea pig for my curiousity. You can't beat personal experience and listening to your own cravings. It seems that the newest fads that are rolling out now are Instinctual Eating.

I am currently reading "The South Beach Diet", I am taking a break from it now acctually. As a trainer I have to keep up on these trends. The autor/creator is a cardiologist and the basis for his diet is to help is high risk heart patients. There really is not smoke and mirrors BS with what the autor promotes. He promotes clean food and smart living. In fact he has devoted the last 1/3 of the book to some very tasty looking and sensible food recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and deserts (yes, the anti-christ of diets)

What I am getting at is that you are better off listening to what your body is telling you then you are listening to what someone has to say in a book that was written in a general text.

Go out there an find the info and you'll find something that works.