Found these two great resources this weekend and wanted to share them. While I am constantly on the lookout for quality sources of information and inspiration, I am not usually so enamored with what I find that I bother to post it to my blog. Let’s face it – the thing that I think makes an LCHF diet (or Paleo, or Primal, or Low Carb, or whatever you want to call it) doable and successful is that it can be done simply and without a lot of research. Then again, considering that 99% of what is out there on TV, the web, etc. regarding nutrition and diet is misleading or incorrect, I guess it does…anyways, on to the links:
The War On Insulin, by Dr. Peter Attia
This fairly new blog by Dr. Peter Attia is *fabulous*. It is both well-written and really informative. After reading a number of his posts I learned a number of new things like:
- Watching your protein intake is important; he mentions a ‘zone of misery’ which is basically anything over 50g of carbs per day AND/OR 150g of protein. The theory is, and it makes total sense, is that too much protein will convert to glucose and move you out of ketosis, which we know is to be avoided. I never really paid too much attention to protein intake before but will start looking at that now.
- I have been staunchly anti-supplement/vitamins. It goes against the primal/paleo principle, and more importantly: I’ve tried some and got no benefit. Not to mention that opinions/research on most are very conflicting. About the only vitamin/supplement that seems universally supported as being beneficial is fish oil, and that is only if you don’t eat enough fish. I am the only one in my family that likes to eat fish, as my wife and young kids won’t even try it or be around it, so the only time I get any is on business trips, which isn’t very often anymore. I’ve tried the fish oil capsules in the past and noticed no effect. Dr. Attia uses a liquid concentrated form, which makes sense. I will give it a try. If any of you have a recommendation on a brand, let me know.
- As for supplements – I dabbled in Egg White Protein-based shake mix (the Jay Robb stuff) last year but stopped due to cost and I just didn’t like them that much. Only reason I tried them was to get an energy boost pre/post workout but I felt no effect. I’ve noticed a number of blogs mentioning the benefits of liquid MCT oil. Dr. Attia takes a couple of teaspoons daily as an energy boost. I will definitely give this a try.
I urge you to check out his blog. It’s a great read. It is also now my new favorite blog.
Ask The Low Carb Experts
The second really great resource I found recently is a new podcast by Jimmy Moore. It’s not really a podcast – it’s a live call-in show. But it is also available for subscription and listening just like any other podcast. It’s called Ask The Low Carb Experts. I have only listened to the latest one, where Mark Sisson responds to many questions.
These newfound resources are awesome. Having been successful in losing the majority of my excess body fat and maintaining the loss for months now, I didn’t really think there was much more to learn but I still learn new things from the community.