<p>MOWC, sounds like a fun time but scarey on the run, even though it was probably innocent. </p>
<p>Question, it sounds like WC is concentrating on qualifying for Kona, is that a full or half? I don’t know if they do a half at Kona. Also is the girlfriend not looking at Kona? It sounds like she is quite the go getter, med school and competitive triathlete. Impressive and sounds like the perfect girl for WC.</p>
<p>I believe WC has already qualified for Kona earlier this year - isn’t Vegas a “prep” for him? </p>
<p>Agreed with all others, MOWC - you did the right thing turning around. I’ve been to Vegas once in my life and that was enough. </p>
<p>Beautiful day but lots of pollen. Not sure if I’ll run today or not.</p>
<p>Picked up Lustig’s new book on sugar. A quick glance it appears to me he is not anti carb with high fiber. Fruits, beans, vegetables and real whole grains.</p>
<p>tom:</p>
<p>It’s a terrific book. Probably the best book to buy on diet/nutrition and highly motivational when trying to make long-term behavior changes. Thinking of sugar as toxic has saved me many a time in the grocery store. I haven’t had so much as a bite of candy since last Halloween (gotta come up with a new strategy this year!)</p>
<p>I think Lustig would argue that people have different tolerances for carbohydrates. Once they have metabolic syndrome and are insulin resistant, eating carbs in general becomes more problematic because of the constantly elevated insulin levels. He is a big proponent of keeping insulin levels low as that is the hormonal regulator of fat storage, metabolism, and hunger – or at least the one hormonal regulator that we can control through diet.</p>
<p>I think he’s also pragmatic, given that his background is working with childhood obesity. He’s not looking for “perfect” diets, he’s looking for steps people might actually be able to take. Stop drinking sugar. Cut added sugar from processed foods. And cut refined grains (which includes most everything labeled “whole grain” in the grocery store).</p>
<p>I think he also believes that chronic over-consumption of sugar is the root cause of insulin resistance, more that chronic over-consumption of carbs in general. Carbs become a problem after sugar has wrecked the metabolism. Seems like a plausible hypothesis. Doesn’t really matter for people who have already become insulin resistant. Regardless of the underlying cause, cutting carbs in general will be beneficial for insulin resistant people.</p>
<p>He qualified for Kona at an extremely difficult St. Croix half ironman in May. He got the one slot in his age group. Girlfriend did not do a Kona qual race. She isn’t doing that kind of distance since she is a med student and has even more time constraints than he does with his full time job! It is hard to qualify for Kona at a half ironman. (Well, it’s hard period). The slots at the halfs are very limited (St. Croix had 30 total over all the age groups). Some fulls have 100. WildChild has never done a full or run a marathon. The swag at Kona is awesome. They even get shoes! Here in Vegas they got really nice logo backpacks. When I get home I’ll try to link a really cool picture of the kids with their backs to me wearing the backpacks. Lots of international athletes here.</p>
<p>idad- can someone who is insulin resistant reverse that and go back to eating health high fiber carbs?</p>
<p>I don’t know if “reverse” is the right word, but you can certainly make immediate improvements in insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome by cutting the intake of carbs. Triglycerides in the bloodstream (fat produced by the liver from excess sugar/carbs) drop within days.</p>
<p>I doubt that someone who has been insulin resistant can go back to unlimited carb eating without seeing the same results as before (weight gain, etc.), but the actual tolerance levels for carbs in the diet is probably an individual thing. Most of the good low-carb diets (like Atkins) outline ways of progressively adding carbs back into the diet in a systematic way that lets you find out where you cross the line back into weight gain.</p>
<p>If nutrition science weren’t stuck in a decades-long tailspin, many of these questions would be pretty easy to answer. For example, it would be really helpful to do a study comparing people on a 50 grams of carbs a day diet to a group at 100 grams.</p>
<p>Personally, I just try to limit sugar and grains across the board. Not 100% abstinence (I put a quarter cup of sugar in the b-b-q sauce I made last night, I have croutons in my salad…), but I try to keep them pretty low in my diet.</p>
<p>My 5/6 week effort at attempting to lose weight indicates that for me carbs did make a difference in how fast the weight comes off- at least so far. I do eat more carbs on the weekend because I have steel cut oatmeal with blueberries for breakfast and black beans with mango salsa for lunch every weekend. I used to have that everyday but I wanted to cut carbs. During the week breakfast is a protein shake (2 carbs) a hardboiled egg and a gala apple. I have the hardboiled egg and gala apple everyday. Lunch is edamame and pistachios.</p>
<p>I believe my total carbs are below 100 grams a day during the week. My net carbs are much less because all the high carb food has plenty of fiber.</p>
<p>So far I eat pretty much the same breakfast lunch and snacks during the week and then change to a weekend meal plan.</p>
<p>My dinners have rotated between various proteins and green vegetables and so far most days I have stayed away from junk carbs, We eat 3 types of seafood, pork, chicken, filet mignon during the week. Adding butter or olive oil to the green vegetables really make them taste great</p>
<p>I will tell you idad between the fitness books and Lustig’s and other nutrition information you posted I really feel I am making progress. I have worked out since I was 14 and really think this is the best plan I ever put together.</p>
<p>After an hour of pilates and an hour of strength training, I went on our “typical” 20 mi bike ride with H (tandem). We wiped out! Argh! My elbow and knee are scraped up and bloody (well, I’ve cleaned it up) and I decided to call it a day and not go to hot yoga as planned, for fear that heat would be a poor strategy and that some of the moves would aggravate the skin. When I fell, I immediately thought - oh no, can I do the 5k on Sunday - but then, in the turning lemons into lemonade, I realize that now I have a great excuse if I don’t do well. “It was my biking injury.” I think I’m fine, but a little stiff. Have started on ibuprofen. Nap time soon!</p>
<p>Idad, interesting. What is your opinion of artificial sweeteners used in moderation? (Eg in a cup of coffee)</p>
<p>pizzagirl:</p>
<p>Ouch! I’m so glad that it’s just scrapes and bruises. A tandem bike spill (or any bike spill) could have resulted in broken bones or other really nasty injuries. A bloody knee is probably about the best you could hope for!</p>
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<p>From everything I have read, there just isn’t enough information about artificial sweeteners to know what happens. Other than basic safety trials, there’s every incentive for the food companies to NOT do the research that would answer the many questions. </p>
<p>I can’t stand the taste of the stuff, so it’s not an issue. I would rather not have sweet at all than have fake sweet. I think the general consensus is that – worst case – artifically sweetened drinks are at least better than sugar sweetened drinks. However, they may trigger the sweet brain response stuff just like sugar, so the “sweet addiction” aspect may still be a problem. Nobody knows.</p>
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<p>The diet stuff is maddening because docs and scientists basically had it figured out back in the 50s and 60s when it had been accepted for a century or more that starches were fattening. Nothing controversial about it at all. If you needed to drop a few pounds, lay off of the bread and pasta and potatoes and rice and cereal. </p>
<p>Then, the low-fat jihad took hold and turned that advice on its head, convincing us that all the fattening stuff was really “healthy” for us and we should eat more of it – five or six servings a day according to the food pyramid. Basically, the nutrition experts screwed it up and now we are paying the price on a global scale. </p>
<p>I still chuckle every time I walk by a display of Red Twizzlers and see the packages proclaiming FAT FREE! A comprehensively awful product from a health standpoint being marketed with “good for you” claim… Walking down the breakfast cereal aisle is like Alice in Wonderland… Heart Healthy Honey Nut Cheerios. Good grief…</p>
<p>Remember in our youth, when you went to a diner and the diet plate was a burger without the bread, cottage cheese and a hard boiled egg? Lot of truth in that!</p>
<p>^Yep.</p>
<p>Interestingly, I can tell the difference in the way DH looks after a couple of days of eating at home (my cooking) vs. eating out. Usually on Fridays he looks sort of puffy–don’t know if it’s water retention or too many carbs from restaurant meals, but by Sunday nights he looks pretty good again. Leaner.</p>
<p>I wish I could talk him into taking his lunch every day. I’m sure he’s getting way too much salt & carbs.</p>
<p>OTOH, I grew up on potatoes & bread and none of us ever got fat. I think the difference was we didn’t eat too much of anything. Our mother watched pennies and usually cooked “just enough” of the main dish. My growing brothers would look hopefully at the stove but the stew pot was empty. They would make themselves PB&J sandwiches as a snack!</p>
<p>And there were no fast food restaurants yet. None. We ate what my mother cooked, which included plenty of vegetables.</p>
<p>I ran the 5k this morning. An 8 year old finished in front of me, but I was still ok with 23:30 because it was a difficult course. Hilly cross country course with a dirt/gravel path, so I couldn’t cruise downhill as fast as I would like. But the weather was great, cool and overcast.</p>
<p>idad- I used to eat the large bag of Red Twizzlers on my ride home from grocery shopping.</p>
<p>A friend of mine gave up bread and potatoes way back in 1981 when he wanted to lose weight. Has not had the stuff since. I have another friend who has never had a soft drink and my nephew completely avoids all cakes, cookies etc. He has never had the taste for baked goods even as a small child.</p>
Oh no, Pizzagirl! I hate bike falls. Hooe you heal up quickly. What caused the fall?
I still drink diet sodas but plan to seriously cut back after this trip.
<p>Yay, NJRes. Nice race! I’m not a runner at all, but I used to do walk/run intervals partly on pavement and partly on dirt/gravel trails in a state park. I do find that running on the trails is easier on the legs, but clearly slower.</p>
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<p>Back to the basement. Good solid workout. Cranked the weights up on the second and third set of the TRX rear foot elevated split squats and the single arm DB bench press. Probably about time to come up with two new workouts as I’ve been doing these two for a while. On the other hand, I’m not sick of these two, so maybe I’ll go for another week or two.</p>
<p>Nice race, NJ!</p>
<p>Best of luck in the morning PG! No judging here, just encouraging - if you get out of bed and line up at the starting line , you will be a success!!!</p>