Carbo Loading, Exercise and Low Carb Diets – Part 1
I’m a member of a local running group, and “carbo loading” is encouraged in the week leading up to a race. I find this 
amazing, since I thought that went out in the 80′s! However, it is still alive and well in various endurance sports groups.
The fact is that the fuel you want to use during endurance exercise is fat, not sugar. “Carbo loading” simply ensures that you have full glycogen stores, which means using sugar for fuel. The more efficient you are at fat burning, the longer you will be able to go. Stu Mittleman (Slow Burn), one of the great distance runners of all time, eats a diet of 40-30-30 (carbs-protein-fat) most of the time, but when he is training for an event, he increases his fat intake to about 50%- not the carbs!
So I would say (and the science would agree) that there is no point in carbo loading before an event, unless you want to store some extra fat (don’t laugh, it’s probably a good idea for English Channel swimmers!)
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15 – Healthy self-assertiveness and dealing with negativity
(duration 17:48)
Kevin’s fast food nation experiences while driving to San Fran…
http://healthymindfitbody.com/2009/12/24/fast-food-nation/
Discussion of recent comments on our last podcast…
http://healthymindfitbody.com/2009/12/18/14-living-low-carb-with-guest-amy-dungan/
Thanks again, Angie, for your valuable input about healthy eating challenges in relation to others!
The “tall poppy syndrome” definitely needs to be countered
Self-assertiveness and courage can enable emotional understanding and empathy with others
The topic of eating is pretty much unavoidable
Individuation and self-esteem can help you deal with those in your social circles
How you treat your body is how you treat your emotions (and vice versa)
The first step to recovery is self-acceptance
bumper music “All In My Head” (Remix) – http://www.kosheen.com
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Fast Food Nation
Today, I drove from my home in San Diego, CA to my parents’ home in the SF Bay Area. It’s about an 8 hour drive (well with L.A. traffic it took me almost 9!), and I like to make my stops brief.
On road trips I always bring plenty of snacks. Today I munched on cashews and a Mojo Bar (lower carb cliff bar). But, snacking for me is not enough, and within 8 hours I need a substantial meal. Today I pulled off the highway in the middle of nowhere to gas up and get lunch. My options were:
Pizza Hut
Popeyes Chicken
Subway
Wendy’s
Taco Bell
McDonald’s
In N Out Burger
(Yes it was a major truck stop in podunk, CA!)
While I was leaning towards going to In N Out and ordering a burger “protein style” (meaning, no bun), I was concerned about the wait. So I opted for Subway (I ended up waiting 20 minutes in line anyway!). I ordered the Subway Melt, and the bread options were limited so I ordered it on Flat Bread (which is just as high in carbohydrates as my other options). I’m not crazy about Subway because: 1) even with peeling off some of the bread, it’s still a lot of carbs, 2) the meat they use is processed and has nasty nitrates and phosphates as preservatives, and 3) it’s very average-tasting.
Here’s the calorie breakdown of the Subway Melt:
Total Fat: 12g
Total Carb: 48g
Total Protein: 28g
Total Sodium: 1620mg
Wow. Well, if you take out let’s say 1/4 of the bread, as I did today, it’s still a little carb-heavy but not too bad. But that 1620mg of sodium is shocking to me. No wonder I was so thirsty after eating that sandwich!
I guess I’m still searching for something healthy in the fast food nation of truck stops!
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New Coconut Oil Discovery: Tasty, Healthy, and Affordable
I was in need of some coconut oil the other day and went to my local Henry’s market, which specializes in hard-to-find 
health food items. I noticed they had Nature’s Way Pure Extra Virgin Coconut Oil on sale for $8.99 for 16 oz. Not knowing what the taste would be like, I rolled the dice and tried this new brand.
I dug right in and tried some plain when I left the store. It smelled and tasted like pure coconut! Mind-blowingly good and tasted like I was eating a dessert of some kind.
It says on the label that it contains “62% MCTs”, which is the content of medium-chain fatty acids. MCTs are what make coconut oil special. This is one of the good saturated fats that we have discussed on Healthy Mind Fit Body podcast. These fats have been shown to help to lower the risk of both atherosclerosis and heart disease, as well as improve the immune system.
You can use coconut oil for cooking, adding to dressings or smoothies, or eating straight. The label on the jar also says you can use coconut oil for skin care and hair care!
I found several places you can order it online for less than $8.00, including this one.
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14 – Living Low Carb with Guest Amy Dungan
(duration 22:18)
Amy Dungan joined us from http://healthylowcarbliving.com
The insulin factor in fat gain and fat storage is often overlooked
To prevent “yo-yo” dieting, it’s important make permanent changes to your eating lifestyle
Explore important facts and common myths
http://healthylowcarbliving.com/myths/
Given that our culture is inundated with carbs, a “low-carb” diet is actually just lower carbs
Low fat/high carb diets foster hunger pains and more carb cravings
There is no real need to eat a certain amount of carbs, but your body will definitely malfunction without fat and protein
Aside from the insulin factor, gluconeogenesis explains a lot about the metabolic advantage from a low-carb diet
Make sure to eat quality foods; they may be more expensive, but you’ll save physically and medically in the long run!
Focus on measuring your bodyfat percentage on occasion, rather than stepping on the weight scale every day!
Per unit volume, muscle is more dense than fat and weighs more
You can be motived while you lose weight by keeping your vision of your future self in mind (generating a new self-image and self-concept), as well as by getting positive feedback from people in your social circle
Our culture of eating not-so-good foods can pose challenges to not succumb to negative peer pressure
Eating a lower carb diet will boost your immune system–and improve your blood readings–by reducing your insulin secretion
Very educational documentary film about food and eating:
http://fathead-movie.com/
The medical establishment and nutrition industry can only deny the errors of their ways for so long…
Lots of articles by Amy can be read at
http://www.examiner.com/x-659-St-Louis-LowCarb-Examiner
And follower her on twitter:
http://twitter.com/AmyDungan/
bumper music “All In My Head” (Remix) – http://www.kosheen.com
Feel free to rate and/or review our show on iTunes!
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=332309038
Also, please sign up – upper right corner of http://healthymindfitbody.com – to get the free bonus audio on the 3 Pillars Of Achieving Your Perfect Weight Using The Mind/Body Connection, as well as the newsletter
And please comment with your current weight loss or fitness challenges!
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How to make your lunch work for you
Like many people in America, I grew up eating a sandwich for lunch (and when I was 15 I would eat 3 sandwiches at 
lunch!). I usually would also have an apple, maybe some potato chips, and a cookie or some kind of dessert.
This worked okay for me as a growing boy. When I was in college and working out sometimes twice a day, I would usually eat a frozen pizza for lunch, since it was fast and easy! I was burning ridiculous amounts of calories swimming, so it didn’t seem to affect me all that much.
But, into my 20′s the high carb lunch stopped working for me. While working, I used to go to a place called Togo’s for lunch often. It’s a sandwich chain on the west coast, and they are known for their huge rolls. One day I realized that every time I had Togo’s, I would feel bloated and sleepy in the afternoon at my desk! Then I saw a presentation by a personal trainer who explained that some sandwich shops serve bread that gives you 10 TIMES the amount of carbohydrates you would need in an entire DAY!
I figured that I should start looking for thinly sliced bread. I started eating my sandwiches with just 1 slice of bread instead of two, and the results were amazing! No more bloating, not as much sleepiness, and best of all, fat melting off my gut!
Instead of letting your lunch work you over, make your lunch work for you!
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Hemp Protein Powder & Breaking Rules
Yesterday, I went to my local Trader Joe’s grocery store for some shopping. One item that I needed was protein powder. For years I’ve been using Designer Whey protein, but this time I decided to go out on a limb and try something different- Hemp Protein, vanilla flavored. Usually I mix protein powder with my yogurt, so this was definitely taking a gamble- I had no idea what the taste or texture would be.
This morning I had my goat’s milk yogurt, and mixed in 4 tablespoons of the hemp protein (12 g protein). It’s green in color and thicker 
than the Designer protein. I REALLY didn’t like the idea of turning my yogurt green! But surprisingly, the taste was pretty decent! Not sure I liked it as much as Designer, but definitely eatable.
Then I was looking at the container it came in. I was shocked to see that this “protein powder” had 17g of carbohydrate, including 5g of sugar per serving!!! I definitely broke a cardinal rule- I failed to read the label before I made the purchase.
I can still put it to use, but knowing the info on the carb content will change how I am using it. Two positive things to mention is it also has 11g of fiber per serving, as well as 500 mg of Omega 3 fatty acids, so by itself it is definitely a healthy food item- but don’t be fooled like I was and think you are actually adding just protein to your meal or smoothie!
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13 – Weight loss plateaus, metabolism and calorie myths
(duration 20:19)
Stay healthy during ‘the cold and flu season’!
Top 12 Foods for Healthy Immune Response by Joseph Mercola
http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig5/mercola20.1.html
Can’t lose weight? Don’t blame your metabolism! by Dr. Susan Roberts
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1226258/Cant-lose-weight-Dont-blame-metabolism.html
To those with excess bodyfat, skinny persons may seem to have a faster metabolism (though maybe not)
Beware the tactical nuclear penguin ;) http://www.asylum.co.uk/2009/11/27/worlds-strongest-beer-and-its-competitiors/
Everyone deserves to be their ideal weight and live the good life
Calculating your daily caloric intake really misses the point, because it’s more about types of macronutrients and eating quality food
“A calorie is a calorie” violates the second law of thermodynamics by Richard D Feinman and Eugene J Fine
http://www.nutritionj.com/content/3/1/9
If you hit a weight loss plateau, it’s important to be keenly aware of what you’re eating; drink lots of water and get proper nutrients and vitamins and minerals
The Atkins’ induction phase (consuming less than 20 grams of carbs/day) can move you off a frustrating fat-retaining plateau
Just because you may have a slower metabolism, doesn’t mean that fat loss is out of your control!
Again, you don’t need to count calories; just be aware of what you’re eating
Fats are the best source of energy, and they are satiating
Lots of high carb foods generally should be avoided, as they will just lead to fat accumulation
Paleolithic humans had a dramatically different food situation, weren’t aware of “calories,” and yet were fit and healthy
Paleo in a Nutshell Part 1: Food – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCFZoqmKf5M
Self-acceptance is key, as is awareness of and resolving your inner conflicts
bumper music “All In My Head” (Remix) – http://www.kosheen.com
Feel free to rate and/or review our show on iTunes!
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=332309038
Also, please sign up – upper right corner of http://healthymindfitbody.com – to get the free bonus audio on the 3 Pillars Of Achieving Your Perfect Weight Using The Mind/Body Connection, as well as the newsletter
And please comment with your current weight loss or fitness challenges!
Podcast: Download
Longevity escape velocity!
Ok, let’s step back from the food and fitness issues for a moment and look at the big picture. How long do you expect to live? How long do you want to live? If there is a difference between those two answers, is there any way to make them coincide? Now, if you answered that you just want to live a “long, healthy life,” then I contend that you’re really selling yourself short, which I’ll explain shortly.
The maximum human lifespan, set by our genes and thus metabolic processes is around 120 years. This is the card that evolution has dealt us. If anyone claims people have lived longer than that, you might want to raise at least one eyebrow, because they’ve deviated from the realm of scientific knowledge. Unfortunately, due to many factors, hardly any human being ever reaches their maximum lifespan; as we covered in a previous podcast, centenarians are the truly fortunate ones (and the super centenarians basically won the longevity lotto).
So, tragically, most people expire before their expiration date. This is definitely a major problem! In fact, some would claim that passive (or active) acceptance of degenerative aging and death itself is a form of madness. Indeed, the factors involved in the aging process have been scientifically identified, so theoretically there is no good reason to allow them to wreak their havoc. After working so much to achieve a healthy mind and fit body, why on Earth let the Grim Reaper take it all away?! Death is a one-way ticket to nowhere, contrary to what most of us have been told to believe (I explored this topic in a philosophical book I wrote years ago).
As you might’ve seen, Kevin tweeted about a great interview that occurred recently on CNN Vital Signs, titled “How to live longer,” which I found from a post within a longevity newsletter I subscribe to. Aubrey de Grey noted the crucial importance of pursuing strategies for engineered negligible senescence , which brings us back to the title of this blog post. What if, in the next few decades, those working in this oh-so vital branch of science discover ways to slow down, then stop, and even eventually reverse, the aging process? How long would you desire to live then, considering you will still have a healthy mind and fit body? My pick, and I really hope yours too, is: indefinitely! Whether each day brings you happiness or you’re still in pursuit of it, there is no reason (given present and future technologies) to sell your number of days short. The more the merrier; quality and quantity need not be mutually exclusive.
You are, after all, an irreplaceable part of reality, one of most excellent fancy, with many flashes of merriment, as a Shakespearean character might say. Saying “Out, out, brief candle” is NOT your destiny in this extraordinary period of human flourishing.
Rather than signifying nothing, a life in which you attain longevity escape velocity will be the most significant of all human tales, and it will be told by those who realize the true meaning of tomorrow.
W
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How to Make Delicious and Healthy Low Carb Hot Cocoa
Most of the time when you order hot cocoa or hot chocolate in a restaurant, it is served with several teaspoons of 
sugar, making it an unhealthy high carb dessert rather than what it can be: a healthy treat! You can easily replace desserts and sugar cravings with low carb hot cocoa, not gain weight, and you’ll be getting heart-healthy antioxidants from it!
Here’s what you need:
UNSWEETENED baking cocoa. I’m a big fan of Ghiradelli’s.
Stevia powder or stevia extract. This is a natural sweetener with no carbs and no calories.
2 teaspoons of cocoa, add stevia (the amount you need will depend on the concentration) to sweeten, add hot water, and you’ve got a healthy drink and chocolate in a cup!
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