StreTch’s Bullet February
Hi all,
I’ve stolen this little idea from Tim Ferris and thought that it would be a great way to share some of the things I’m researching and experiment within 2017.
I enjoy learning, reading, training, feeling stronger, moving well, eating healthy, and feeling great. I also enjoy helping others do the same. The idea behind these blog posts it to share some of the things I’m exploring with a larger audience than just my clients.
February KetoDiet Experiment.
This month I kicked off a little KetoDiet experiment that I’m planning research further in 2017. My initial test was to see how hard it was to get into a state of ketosis by following a modified Atkins diet, could I do it? Honestly, it wasn’t much fun as my energy levels, and sleep was all over the place. I continued to strength train over the four days and managed to hit ketosis on day 2. I’m hoping to do the test again next month and add some additional steps to make the process easier and hopefully improve energy and sleep.
Why am I doing it? Health and longevity are my main focus in training and life, and there seem to be some great health benefits from stepping in and out of ketosis. I don’t plan on being in a state of ketosis for an extended period; I would like to be able to do it once a month for 5-7days. I don’t train for body composition results, but I did measure these over the 4days and was surprised to see a drop of .5kg in weight, a drop of 1% in body fat, and an increase of .3kg in lean muscle mass.
What I’m reading?
Tools Of the Titans, Tim Ferris (F: The 4-Hour Work Week, I: @timferris, T: @tferris) – This is a collection of the show notes from Tim’s podcasts — “focused on deconstructing world-class performers” —, and it’s certainly worth a read. I’ve slowly been constructing a list of podcasts I need to go back and listen to, as the information in this book is inspiring. Tim shares many of his tips and tricks for success. I won’t lie, it’s Tim’s podcast, blog, and books that have inspired me to put together this blog post. I also find that Mr. Ferris interview some amazing people and he seems to ask the right questions at the right time to uncover useful real world advice.
Overcoming Gravity, Steven Low (F:eShow, I:@stevenlowog) – the second edition of this book is even bigger than the first. It’s a comprehensive gymnastics training guide that offers a wealth of knowledge. Exercise progressions, program design, periodisation, structural balance, injury prevention, nutrition, and recovery are just a few of the sections covered. I’m only 1/4 of the way into the book, and I can not stop underlining the wealth of information. If you are serious about improving your gymnastics ability, this is a must read.
Great By Choice: Uncertainty, Chaos, and Luck – Why some Thrive Despite Them All, Jim Collins – This is a book I needed to read for a course I’m about to start, OPEX case study. How do some companies thrive in uncertainty and even chaos and others do not? This is the key question addressed in this book. The companies classified as great were not only included based on performance but the extremity of the environment, the companies that endured it. How the great differed from merely good in environments that exposed and amplified those differences.
The companies classified as great, with the moniker ‘10X’ were those that out-performed the industry by at least 10 times on stock returns over 15 year periods. To understand what these companies did differently, the authors picked comparison companies against each 10Xer, from the same industry, which was similar in size and age. The authors shortlisted a group of seven companies which met the criteria of 10Xer and an equal number of comparison companies.
The basic finding from the research was:
(a) the successful leaders are not necessarily bold, risk-seeking visionaries, but they were more disciplined, more empirical and more paranoid
(b) it is not the more innovative but less innovative, more important was the ability to scale innovation to blend creativity with discipline
(c) they were not necessary always fast, demonstrating fast decisions, and fast actions, but ‘going fast when you must, going slow when you can
(d) radical change outside does not necessarily need radical change inside
(e) all companies had their luck, good and bad in comparable amounts.
What I’m listening to?
Tim Ferris – Dom D’Agostion on Fasting, Ketosis and the End of Cancer (T:@DominicDAgosti2) – The podcast dives into the topic of fasting and the potential health benefits, looking at the positive outcomes of a ketogenic diet. Most people get fasting wrong as they don’t research the impacts that it can have on their body and how to perform the diet correctly. Fasting is not something to try without researching the procedure and health impacts. Training fasted is counter productive and there is a lot of bull*** on the internet that is not backed by science. Some interesting talk on ketosis killing cancer cells, and increasing strength performance in the gym.
Also, part 2 which is more of a Q&A: Tim Ferris – Dom D’Agostion – The Power of the Ketogenic Diet – Part 2 – If you lower the CARBS what macronutrient are you going to increase? Saturated fats are the answer, and until recently the medical community thought the saturated fats were the problem.
A low CHO diet is easy to do, but a ketogenic diet is not as simple to follow, and the is why many KetoDiet followers opt for a modified Atkins diet. Questions on modified KetoDiets, plant-based proteins, how KetoDiet impacts exercise, the importance of not cutting calories, gut health, foods, and supplements are also covered in this podcast.
Resources:
ketogenticdietresource.com
ketomotive.com
ketodietapp.com
Optimal Performance Training (I:@optimum_performance_training, FB: optimal performance training, T: @CoachFitxGerald)
Michael Fitzgerald is the owner and coach at Optimum Performance Training (Calgary). He coaches athletes of all ages/abilities to achieve their true potential and has around 60 competitive CrossFit athletes training under him. One of the best quotes “the goal with training is to get as good as possible by doing as little as possible.”
He talks further about the importance of movement quality in the sport of CrossFit and how there are not elite CrossFit athletes making it to the Games who have poor ankle mobility, shitty overhead mobility, and poor hip mobility. To perform at such a high-level athletes need to have high-quality movement patterns and great end range mobility.
One other critical elements of CrossFit is grip strength, and this can often be forgotten in the training program as many coaches believe it doesn’t need to be trained separately.
Michaels nutrition for athletes advice is simple, “eat as much as you possibly can without putting on weight.” More food = better performance!
What I’m Watching?
Ketogenic Diet Research Dr. Dominic D’Agostino at TEDx (T:@DominicDAgosti2) “let food be thy medicine” Hippocrates
How was the KetoDiet discovery? By the Navy Seals
Healthy impacts of the KetoDiet on epilepsy and cancer cells.
What is the KetoDiet? Low carb and high fat to control glucose/insulin levels and improve body composition.
The brain and nearly all healthy cells of the body can adapt to use ketones as a fuel source. Cancer cells lack the ability to use ketones as energy; they depend on glucose (sugar). Is cancer a metabolic disease? What other diseases are metabolic and could a KetoDiet be the cure?
Sugar – the elephant in the kitchen: Robert Lusting at TEDx (FB: DrRobertLustig, T: @Robertlustigmd)Is it your decision to be fat and sick? The current world health crisis is due to chronic metabolic disease and the quality of our food supply. The only cure is prevention, but do we have any preventative measures? The obesity epidemic is not about eating less and exercising more, we are being taken for a ride. Many of us have insulin levels three times higher than they should be. 7/8 people who have diabetes don’t even know they have it. How is this possible? TOFI – Thin on the outside, fat on the inside. Many people think because they are thin and because they exercise they are healthy, but this is not always the case. How do we control an epidemic if we are unaware?
The hormone insulin is the diabetes hormone, the energy storage hormone, the hormone that tells our fat cells to take up energy. The human behaviour is secondary to the biochemistry. You can be thin on the outside and fat on this inside if your insulin levels are high.
Is a calorie a calorie? 100cal of Coca-cola is not the same as 100cals of vegetables. Science tells us some calories cause disease more than others, and different calories are metabolised differently, a calorie is not a calorie. The sooner we come to terms with this the better.
The curse of processed foods is killing us:
– not enough fibre
– not enough Omega-3 fatty acids
– not enough micronutrients (vitamins and minerals)
– too much trans-fats
– too much-branched chain amino acids (leucine, isoleucine, valine)
– too much Omega-6 fatty acids (plan oils, polyunsaturated fats)
– too much Alcohol
– too much SUGAR (the biggest problem)
Sugar is toxic, consuming one soda per day can increase the chance of diabetes by 29% irrespective of your height, weight, calorie intake, or fitness levels. Sugar causes fat accumulation around the organs, sugar is addictive (just like alcohol). 80% of foods available in supermarkets are spiked with sugar, and real food is hard to find. There are 56 names for sugar, and most of us have no idea what they are. Food labels are not required to have sugar content on them, and most leave them off.
Sugar is a public health crisis, and governments are not on our side because they are being paid off. Food needs to confirm wellness.
Further reading: Robert Lustig The man who believes sugar is poison
Is the “obesity crisis” just a disguise for a deeper problem? (Peter Attia, MD, President and co-Founder of the Nutrition Science Initiative)We make the assumption that eating too much and moving too little is the cause of obesity. We fail to question the conventional wisdom. How much better would we be is we started tackling the cause (insulin resistance) and not the effect (obesity).
Insulin is the master hormone that controls what we do with the energy (foods) we consume. If you become insulin resistant, your body composition is out of your control unless we focus on an unconventional diet. We need to stop focusing on obesity and start focusing on insulin resistance.
You can be thin/lean and have insulin resistance, elevate your chances of metabolic disease. The issue is not too much food, its too much sugar (grains, cereals, refined sugar, starches).
Stuff I’m experimenting with?
Blue Light Blocking Glasses – We al know that blue light at night decreases the production of melatonin, the sleep hormone. One way to help manage this on your laptop is to install f.lux. iPhones also now have a “night shift” setting. But way about the lights in your house and the TV? This is where blue light glasses are all the trend.
I was a little skeptical at first, but after wearing these while working on a laptop or watching TV, I did find it easier to switch off and get to sleep. They also remind me of Ali G, “East side is da best.”
Quest MCT Oil Powder – YUM. I’ve been using Medium Chain triglycerides (MCT) oil for a while now, and although it gives me the energy/concentration boost, it doesn’t mix very well into liquids. The Quest MCT Oil Powder taste awesome in black coffee, and it mixes well. It gives the coffee a creamy texture and a nutty taste. MCT oils have been shown to promote health, aid brain function, and improve body composition.
Stelton TO-GO Cup – I hate throwing away disposable coffee cups as it bad for the environment. How annoying is it when you spill your favorite cup of joy? This TO-GO cup is perfect as it works like a thermos to keep your coffee warm. It also has a funky 360-degree “state of the art smart click” function that lets you open and closes the cup easily.
Hope you enjoyed some of the information here. I’ll keep you posted on my March explorations.
StreTch.