In the previous post I discussed the important step of making clear goals. This post will deal with how to make a plan that will achieve your desired goals. The question you must answer first is: do you want to be a sugar-burner or a fat-burner?
[UPDATES]
[A|2012/12/07] - Removed almond butter from recommended fats. Added peanuts, almonds, cashews to fats to avoid due to high Omega-6 and phytic acid content.
[B] - Debunked standard assumption that it takes 3500kcal to burn 1lb of weight.
[C|2012/12/10] - Added section on why sugar burners are always hungry.
[D] - Edited Axiom 3.
Axioms
- Your body can use three different fuels; fat, glucose and keytones.
- fat is the preferred fuel for aerobic (i.e. low exertion) activity and provides ~9kcal/g
- glucose is the preferred fuel for anaerobic (i.e. high exertion) activity and provides ~4kcal/g
- the brain can use glucose or keytones for proper function
- There are two sources of fuel; internal (i.e. endogenous) and dietary (i.e. exogenous).
- gluconeogenesis is an endogenous process which uses fats and proteins to produce glucose and keytones
- ketosis is an endogenous process that allows the brain to run primarily on ketones and lower glucose levels
- There are two hormones that control
storage fuel into/out of the cells; insulin (storage input) and glucagon (extraction).
- carbohydrate raises insulin, protein raises insulin and glucagon, fat has little effect
- if insulin > glucagon --> fuel into cells
- if glucagon > insulin --> fuel out of storage
- [D]insulin can direct fuel into cells for immediate or for later use (storage)
- Fuel has three primary storage sites; muscle, liver and fat cells.
- glycogen (i.e. stored glucose) is stored in muscle and liver cells
- triglyceride (i.e. stored fat) is stored in fat cells (i.e. adipocytes)
- glycogen storage is limited to ~400-500g
- triglyceride storage is dependent upon the # fat cells you have
- **it is possible for glucose to be stored in fat cells and vice versa**
- Water is required to store fuel.
- 3g of glycogen : 7g of water (i.e. 9g:21g)
- 9g of triglyceride : 1g of water
Things can get pretty lonely for non-voters in the months leading up to a major election. Irregardless of why they choose not to vote, the fact remains they are still a minority and often the target of discriminatory attack (e.g. Chris Matthews). Personally, I can attest that this experience, while difficult, provides an opportunity to better empathize with all different types of minorities.
Empathy is not synonymous with sympathy. Sympathy acknowledges pain. Empathy understands pain. To empathize with someone you must have either shared an experience or be able to put yourself in another's shoes.
For some, the inability to understand why someone chooses not to vote leads to outright emotional attacks and, in rare cases, physical assault. I would like to offer the following thought experiment (inspired by the closing arguments from A Time to Kill) to those who cannot understand why myself, and thousands of others, choose not to participate in elections.
I realize that this post is a bit late as most have already voted and key states pretty much decided. This post is intended to challenge people to reconsider what they are implicitly doing when they cast a vote. I highly doubt this will change anyone's actions tomorrow or 2 or 4 years from now. If I can influence one person, perhaps they can influence another.
Before reading this post I urge you to read the essay A Way to be Free, by Robert LeFevre. It truly changed my life and I think it could change yours as well. I do not think I could write anything better and I will not try. I will keep my argument as concise as possible.
I believe that I possess the tools of knowledge, experience, and theory to help most people reach their desired goals. The problem, in my experience, is that most people never think about what their actual ends are.
Ask most people you see working out at the gym and some typical responses are:
- I want to look good naked
- I want to be strong
- I want to be functional
- I want to be healthy
At first glance these look like great goals, goals I'm sure most people strive for. All of them, however, contain a fatal flaw; they all reference subjective values. Who do you want to look good naked for? What do they define as good? How much weight, in what movement, do you consider strong? Which movements are functional? What function are you trying to perform? What is healthy? Are you referring to overall wellness or results from a blood test? Ask these questions and you the response will often be vague, if you get any at all.
