5 Reasons to Take Away Her Salad
By Matt Stone
Guys, don’t let your wife or girlfriend eat salad. Or 100-calorie snack bars. Or even that Special K stuff.
Over the last 40 years the dieting mentality has managed to work its way into the DNA of the human female. It’s hardwired from birth. Whether this self-starvation programming comes from actual physical strands of genetic material is unknown. I have my suspicions that Jenny Craig put her own self-replicating DNA into some genetically-modified strain of Arugula. And since the female body is more than 50% water, and most of that water comes from the water-rich bagged and washed mixed field greens she buys by the case at Costco, well, that means your wife or girlfriend is more than 50% Jenny.
And it shows. The evidence is abundant.
So let’s cut right to the chase. I originally created a list of the top 468 reasons to take away her salad, but was asked to shorten it to just 5. I threw a brief tantrum and started deleting wildly. This is what remained ? the five that were so important and groundbreaking I just couldn’t let them be unheard?
Salad causes blindness.? Arugula works its way into just about every salad somehow. It’s sneaky, and it’s got Jenny DNA all up in it. If you go to Google images and you type in ?Jenny Craig? you’ll see a bunch of pictures of Kirstie Alley. Yikes. Do you want your girlfriend going from fat to skinny and skinny to fat so fast that buttons pop off of her shirt, hit you in the eye, and leave you blind?? Aside from getting to intimidate all other dudes in a 3-mile radius when you’re rollin? with an eyepatch I’m guessing the answer is no. Dump that salad into a waste receptacle immediately or else.- Salad causes carpal tunnel.? Salad leaves have like two calories per pound. A healthy woman needs not a single calorie less than 2000 (for most, more like 2500) to maintain good progesterone levels. Progesterone is what makes women horny, especially around ovulation. When she’s not in the mood for months on end are you honestly going to resist the urge to start berserkin? yer gherkin when there are pictures of Kim Kardashian all over the internet before she gained a thousand pounds after starving herself on salad?? No. In fact, you’re probably going to click and tug your way to a bad case of carpal tunnel in your wrist.
- Salad causes unemployment.? Salad is what gorillas eat. Do you even know how strong one of those things is?? If your wife eats too much salad she’ll likely express her anger over your excessive masturbation, not by crying or even binge eating like she does after her protein shake diet, but by ripping your arm off clean at the shoulder socket, leaving you with a mouthful of pubelike gorilla hair as a second subtle reminder not to do it again. Even if she doesn’t get as strong as a gorilla, she’ll still be so hungry from only eating salad and Special K that she will baste your arm with barbecue sauce while you sleep and eat it anyway. Either way your new job description is ?Drummer for Def Leppard Cover Band,? assuming you’re lucky enough to have lost the arm with the carpal tunnel. If not, you’re straight up unemployed.
- Salad causes cancer. Salad causes excessive flatulence and loose bowels. Your girlfriend is too polite to fart, but her stomach gets so bloated from holding it in you develop severe paranoia about her becoming pregnant. So you start practically bathing in spermicide, which contains carcinogenic chemicals. Or, your wife, who just lets ?em rip, keeps sharting her thongs (which looked cute on her before she started dieting, lost 20 pounds, wrecked her metabolism, increased her cravings for chili cheese fries by 17,296%,?and gained 100 after). You’re going through 4 Tide Pods a day, milking every last penny of your unemployment check, and exposing yourself to carcinogenic chemicals. Either way, Chemosabe for you Lone Arm Ranger.
- Salad causes impotence.? At this point you have an eye patch, are a 1-armed drummer in a hair band, and have to drive like a gangsta with your one arm on the steering wheel. Plus, after losing all your hair you look a lot like Bruce Willis. Face it, you’re now the ultimate chick magnet ? especially for women who only eat Double Cheeseburgers because they are too impoverished to afford salad. Their sex drive is relentless and you eventually reach the point of complete impotence. It’s upsetting, but you do get some satisfaction when all the salad-eating women flock to a young fruitarian movie star, the fruitarian gets pancreatitis, and the salad eaters go completely insane and start smoking crack.
Men, don’t let your women eat salads. Give them plenty of yummy things covered in barbecue sauce and they will reach orgasm with you instead of with every random stranger cooking up something more-calorie dense than lettuce on the Food Network. They won’t even watch that stupid channel anymore, but will savagely ravage you multiple times per day until you reach the point of impotence.?Salad or not, all paths eventually lead to impotence for men.?What, you didn’t think you could avoid it did you?
First! :)
This post is so fucking stupid, provides no research what so ever., how about what KINDs of salads, does organic make a difference? how about the dressings put on salads which are full of sugars and refined flavoring. why dont you spout some more bullshit with no reference. The carbs and sugars are the issue, not the salad.
If carbs and sugars are the issue, then why did I get an email from a 400-pound long-time low-carber who I recently consulted with and encouraged to dramatically increase his intake of carbs and sugars? Riddle me that Mr. Simple Theory…
I just finished your two books. I have two questions: how long should I be on your milk diet. (I read 8oz every half hour but for how long? In one of your books you mentioned you had a friend that sold cream to remove moles. My mom has tons of them. What is his website page?
Thank you,
JILL
Also is the milk whole milk, skim. 1 or 2%? Thx
I wouldn’t do milk only. Try fresh or cooked fruit and milk and add a little salt to the milk. Experiment with skim, 1%, 2%, and whole to see which one makes you feel the warmest. Dose it by the concentration and frequency of your urine. You shouldn’t have clear urine or be urinating more often than once every 3 hours.
The mole removal product my friend makes is Dermatend. http://www.dermatend.com
In which one of your books have you written about a ‘milk diet’? l can’t find it right now…
180 Diabetes
Great! Thanx! I have all of your books now except for ‘Eat better than a caveman’ and I think I better get that one too since I’m constantly struggeling within about if l should or shouldn’t eat grains and milkproducts. I have read a sh**tload of books about NOT to eat it and that have really gotten to me…(I do eat grains and milkproducts every day, but I’m fed up with my inner battle if it’s good for me or not…*sigh*)
I can’t stop laughing :)
You obviously missed the point…
Too bad you can’t recognize rhetorical devices like *satire*… Don’t you get it? Matt is lampooning the societal obsession with low-calorie eating. “Have a bowl of plain oatmeal for breakfast, a nice salad for lunch (with light dressing on side), and a 100-calorie snack pack, a chicken breast with some steamed broccoli for dinner…” Where does that put you at the end of the day- At like 800 calories??
Bottom line is, the body needs a certain level of *energy*… not vitamins, minerals, not fiber, CALORIES to perform optimally and thrive. Health will never be achieved by a life of ascetically disciplined eating and food avoidance behaviors. You can only obtain ‘health’ by working towards creating a optimally functioning and *resilient* body.
Most people would view that menu as ‘perfect’ and sadly that line of thinking sets people up to make even worse decisions… hypocaloric rebounds –> BINGE! I truly believe this is a driving factor in obesity and ill-health [mental & physical]. Wake up in the morning- “I’m going to be good today” eat an apple. Lunchtime, “ooh, I am going to have a salad, yes I’m being so good today”. Dinner: “I love meticulously preparing my healthy meals! I’m so healthy”… “er… still hungry, I’ll just have one bite of ice cream, I can ‘afford it’…” wakes up 2 hrs later in pile of potato chip crumbs and drying-cracked empty ice cream bowls. “FUCK I DID IT AGAIN I SUCK I HATE MYSELF TOMORROW I WILL BE GOOD THO” (repeat)…
very well said. Don’t forget the mentality of now they have to work out X amount of hours to burn whatever shiz they just binged on.
Well put. When I discovered that I gained weight by skipping breakfast, I never went back to the idea that calories are inherently evil.
Man gotta laugh Sean.. Otherwise he gots eaten by nutrition
which is fine with me, but not with the reality..
I’m not sure if you’ve been following this site. We’ve all been through vegan, raw, low carb….you name it diets and finally landed here. Increase sugar, salt, carbs, fat, dairy and experience health improvements.
And learned to be relaxed and got rid of orthorexic tendencies.
Sean- Be sure and leave your number. I’ve got a part coming up and you sound like a blast!
Poor guy. So under-carbed he couldn’t even read the post.
When I read this, and pretend your taking the piss, it is really fucking funny!!!!!!!!!! You actually produced a work of art and you don’t even know it. Thanks man!
Actually it’s not the sugar in the salad dressing, it’s crapload of omega-6 oils they put in them that inhibit metabolism. In fact the omega-6 oils inhibit the body’s ability to correctly use sugar. Eat the sugar, not the oils.
I think you maybe need to stop taking everything so seriously and realize that he was making a whole bunch of hilarious jokes to drive home the point that salad is not a good thing to subsist on. He could have made the same post about “juice cleanses” (which ol’ kimmy K loves as well)
LMAO!!! “sharting in her thongs” LMFAO!!! Matt, thanks for this post and for the use of the word “sharting”. I believe “shart” is the most underutilized word in the English language :)
Sheesh. Thank goodness. I was worried about using it for fear of it being overused. I can relax today now.
You ave no worries Matt, it can never be overused LOL!
Poor Matt – now your sense of humour has gone sour ( without the dressing )….
Nice. I am absolutely speechless. And I even got an email about this one.
Mr. Stone, I’m not sure what got into you, but it’s entertaining.
I will take issue with the other Sean. I love this post, and the photos were pretty hilarious. My Chinese co-worker calls salads “rabbit food” and always gets a good chuckle in when she sees someone eating one (I think she is thinking “Oh, these Americans are sooo stupid!”
So, I guess it is 1 Sean “yea” and 1 Sean “nay”
But basically, we Chinese medicine folk think that salads are pretty indigestible and offer very little nutritional value that is actually absorbed, not to mention the crap PUFA that is in EVERY commercial salad dressing “organic” or otherwise. I always tell my women friends that “salads do NOT constitute a square meal.”
Hahahaha this is great.
Maybe Matt can make a more serious post later.
Just because it’s funny and silly doesn’t mean it’s not serious. I am quite serious that women (and men) need to stop trying to starve themselves on totally inadequate food, as that just slows metabolism, decreases sex drive, increases the tendency for fat gain, and increases the number of chili cheese fries required to satisfy one’s appetite by nearly 20,000%
So f-ing hilarious!!! Thanks, Matt, for a good giggle this morning. @Sean… open your mind, son. Read everything Matt has written and you will understand this post.
One of my favorite sightings in San Francisco, are the skinny, well-dressed, uptight-looking (think the “b-word”) womyn that flock to the fancy Union St or Fillmore St. cafes, and they’re always, and I mean, always eating f-ing salads. Yapping on their smart phones. Eating salads. Or smoothies. God help me. It’s hard to find a good woman in San Francisco…
You should find some real women in Oaktown. They’ll love you with your one arm, eye patch, gangsta lean, and Bruce Willis look.
Dude, I am actually moving to Oaktown this summer. every time I go there I meet very nice, real people!
Impotence is on its way buddy.
Us real women don’t go to SF much because the skinny ones are mean and most of the guys are (I know its a cliche) gay. I only go to the city for conferences and to see family.
A-men. Not to mention the people shitting in public. Glad my family moved out of there so I don’t have to go anymore!
SF is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. I was born there and lived there up until recently (now in LA due to husbands job).
I’ve found that if you focus on being a person of virtue and integrity, that is what you will find all around you no matter where you live.
Try Cornerstone Church on 17th Street in the Mission. It just may rock your world-it did mine.
Like John Pinette says, “Salad isn’t food! It’s a promissory note that food is coming!”
In Europe, it’s a palate cleanser after the main course. In small portions. That’s how my family ate salad growing up.
Hilarious, Matt!
Other research shows salad is perfectly healthy when consumed with food, not as food.
From Ron Swanson: “There’s been a mistake. You’ve accidentally given me the food that my food eats.”
http://johngushue.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451f25369e2017d40f7c937970c-800wi
You made my day, Rob! His expression is priceless!
Well…..I happen to like salad……BUT I eat a lot of other food too!
Here it is eaten as an appetizer.
Matt,
This may seem like it’s totally off topic, but I assure you it’s not. What are your thoughts on hormonal birth control? I realize that synthetic progesterone actually tends to lower natural progesterone production. What are your suggestions?
I am not Matt but I would warn any woman against ever going on the pill. And know that once you’ve been on for some time, it’s a s**t show coming off for a lot of people. Going on the pill gives you lovely things like increased risk for blot clots and yeast infections, mild (or for some moderate) weight gain, compromised gut flora and a lifelong increased risk of breast cancer. I also did not realize that it affected my personality and mental state. When I came off (after being on for 15 years) I all of a sudden felt what I can only describe as free, womanly and like myself again. Didn’t even know it was missing until I had it back again. My libido shot up, too. BUT the side effects I had coming off I would wish on no one. Hormonal upheaval is the only word to describe it. Losing about 1/3 of my hair (which thankfully regrew after about 9 months), severe acne, ovarian cysts, every other gynecological issue you can think of. Thanks to time, good eating and the wonders of homeopathy, it’s all been balancing back out and is much improved, 2 years later. But I would recommend any woman to stay far, far away from these horrible drugs!
And BTW, my friends who’ve gone off the pill have had similar stuff happen (Except those who got pregnant right after – that seems to “reset” hormones somehow, although I don’t think anyone has studied the effects on the babies, so that is an unkown). Ob-Gyns’ response in every case is going back on the pills is the only way to resolve the side effects!
When I was 17 years old I got the injection Depo Provera- all it took was one dose and I was a psychotic mess for several months. I gained about 60-80 lbs too within the next several months. It was a nightmare!
It turned a friend of mine into a crazed b-ch. She went on it because she is severely dyslexic and couldn’t tell what day of the pill she was on. Not to mention it made her suicidal- it does that to a lot of women.
I think there is little actual research on the effects it has on babies but what I have studied child development professionally for over 15 years and I can tell you there is usually some kind of delay in the development of children born to mothers who have been on the pill. Some mild, some very severe–I think it depends on lots of factors but if it messes up the metabolism, I am thinking that this can’t be a supportive environment for the fetus and that all of the hormones required for pregnancy and the birth process could not be in balance leading to a bit of domino effect and making birth stressful and all of the resultant side effects that has…
I can’t see this research being something that would be easily funded–too much money at stake.
Not to mention politics, since obamacare proponents seem dead set on having women be on the pill for free, which will lead to even more widespread use. How they have indoctrinated people to view this as being pro-woman I do not understand; more like anti-woman in my eyes, but it is surely pro-pharma. As it is, most women I know are on the pill, unfortunately. Most people have no clue about the health risks involved. I sure didn’t until the last few years.
Was it Yasmin? I ate that for 7 months and among other things l started to loose a lot of hair. I have been off it for five months now but continue to loose hair,especially on top of my head. I have also lost 1/3 of my hair and I started to think that it wasn’t the pills and that it’s genetic. Maybe it is, but when I reed that your hair started to regrow after 9 months,maybe there is hope for me too… l’m actually considering to start with Minoxidil-treatment before it’s too late,but maybe I should wait a while longer and see if it starts to regrow? Was your hairloss mostIy on top of your head too?
It was ortho-tri-cyclen. I’ve heard Yaz is especially bad for hair loss, but it all depends on the person, I think. I would not do monoxidil or anything else yet if you’re only at 5 months – who knows, that could cause even more issues in the long run. Give it at least a year. It’s pretty common. If you google it you will see a lot of other people go through the same thing. It seems everyone’s hair loss stopped before the 1 year mark, so that’s the good part, I guess: it’s temporary.
It was mostly the top of my head, too, especially right above my forehead. I swear I was starting to see a bald spot forming there! I was really freaked out, and was pulling out small clumps in the shower and when I brushed my hair each day, but sure enough it reversed after 9 months and I had a million new hairs starting to grow in.
Needless to say, this is all a big part of why I hate BCPs!
I was on Yaz for several months at a time (as well as a cart load of other fertility meds) to try and get my periods back after years of no show during restriction….(needless to say, 4 months of RARRFING and they came back…much to the surprise of numerous top-end gynes and endocrinologists), it sent me bat-shit crazy. Like suicidal depressed and mad as a fruit loop. The idea that I would have to spend my life on that instead of just using condoms (or withdrawal ahem ;)) does not bear thinking about.
where on earth did society get the idea that females should all go around pumped choc full of fake hormones? the Pill if you are young, to control your fertility, and HRT if older, to control the menopause! It is always the male docs who are keenest on this too (and I am not especially feminist, just had a fair bit to do with fertility specialists).
Yeah right. What if men were taking hormones that made them impotent as birth control and feminized them hormonally? Would men accept that as “just part of being a man?”
It’s all about the money. Most of their drugs suck. But they can make a killing with them because being patented makes them so expensive. The fact that they cause a decrease in vision ( a euphemism for blindness) frequent bowel movements and the inability to control them (diarrhea? I kid u not these are from real pharma tv ads) Your hair to fall out and limbs to drop off is not a concern and in fact helps them to sell u more drugs to try and control those side effects.
Thank you SO MUCH for your response!! I have a doctors appointment on Thursday about the hair and if I’m going to start with Minoxidil or not and I was totally prepared to start using it because this causes extreme anxiety for me! I’m also starting to see baId spots and l just panic! But now I have decided to wait longer and see. I thought that it must be genetic since my hair has gotten worse even though it was 5 months ago I stopped with Yazmin. But now when I read that it took 9 months for you and I have also found a forum called Yazmin and Yaz Survivors and there more people have had the same problem so I guess that I just have to be patient and Iet it take more time before considering Min oxidil…So again:THANK YOU! Your response ment the world to me! *Hugs!*
I was on birth control for 5 years and after I went off of it to get pregnant I swore I would never go on it again. I didn’t realize what I was missing. My libido went WAY up, I felt more alive as a person. I like the monthly hormonal rhythms. If you need birth control, lambskin condoms are great (if you are not worried about STDs that is).
“I felt more alive as a person” – yes, exactly! It was shocking to me when this happened. I had no idea what I was missing out on when I was on the pill!
I agree with The Real Amy – after I came off birth control pills, my husband didn’t recognize our sex life anymore. On the pill, I suffered through. Off the pill I actually stopped waiting for him to make advances and pounced on him. I thought it was just a side effect of getting older, but no, it was the pill.
Another thing I never knew while I was on the pill is that most birth control pills are actually abortifacients, not prophylactics. They cause your uterine lining to slough off whether or not a fertilized egg has been implanted! I was very disturbed to learn this. It’s all right there in the papers that come with every refill packet.
Erin- Please read “Sex. Lies and Menopause: The shocking truth about synthetic hormones and the benefits of natural alternatives” by TS Wiley. This is a book every woman should read and keep throughout her life as she not only discusses hormones in our 20s but all the way through menopause and beyond.
She explains in the book that “the pill” is a big, dangerous no-no. It puts you in a chemical induced state of menopause. Read that last line again and again until you can scream “Holy Shit!! That doesn’t sound good at all!!” I was on the pill for 17 years and I realize now that I not only f*cked myself up by doing so, but it is also probably the reason it is taking me so long to heal now.
Don’t take it! Don’t take it!! Do NOT take it!!!
I love when the ladies derail the convo with girly problems :) But seriously every woman should learn to chart her cycle/ nfp/ taking charge of your fertility… Whether you are even sexually active or not. It’s an amazing way to get to know your body and, in my opinion, completely in line with the ideals of 180 degree health.
On a side note, Matt, now that I am pregnant and think the world revolves around me even more than I did pre- humaninmystomach, I think you should get on writing ‘180 Degree Baby’. I made A LOT of improvements with my health based on your advice and basically became a total Fertile Myrtle (a note about NFP- it works great, but only if you do it ;)) but now with the baby, its sort of hard to gage how far I should go with your advice, specifically when it come to hydration- it’s one thing to go against the mainstream with your own health, but its harder to cut out the doc’s advice when your baby’s health is on the line!
So I still stick to a lot of what you say, but I definitely drink more water than you would probably like, but only because I am truly so much thirstier. I am also taking prenatals plus a K2 supplement, and I am tempted to start taking an omega 3 supplement. I am totally averse to all seafood, there is no way I could choke salmon or tuna down, but I keep hearing how vital those are for those are for the baby’s brain development…. So, start writing, please. :)
180 Baby would be awesome. I am on my 4th pregnancy and attribute drinking too much water and not enough protein to wreaking havoc on my metabolism through my last three that left me with chronic fatigue. I am def cutting the liquids this time.
you don’t win friends with salad…classic Simpsons song!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aM6xVQwIOYQ
I don’t eat salads every day but I guess I’m weird in that I actually crave salads fairly regularly – especially Greek or Cobb salad with big hunks of stinking cheese. OmNomnomnomnom. Arugula sucks.
like!
I love a good cobb salad, especially with bacon.
Oh gosh, I haven’t posted here forever (although I still read everything!) I loved this…it was hilarious!
We occasionally have salad meals, but the lettuce is just a vehicle for the hard boiled eggs, black olives, bacon, blue cheese, and homemade dressing.
I think it is worth mentioning from living in Italy that salad is never a full meal. It is usually an afterthought, served drenched in olive oil along with the second course. It is never given first because of fear of someone filling up on it and then not being able to eat the other food. Sometimes there are antipasti (meats, cheeses, olives, bread) first, but for a normal meal, the first thing is pasta because that is the most important. Second courses usually consist of some sort of fish, pork, or occasionally beef or chicken, and always with bread. Fruit always follows.
So, Matt. I was directed to your website and listened to your podcast with Cheeseslave after doing research as to why I was continually gaining weight despite my fasting (skipping breakfast and lunch), counting calories, avoiding carbs, eating high fat/protein, yadayadayada for the last ten years. Chalked up the inability to lose weight to perimenopause (I’m 51) but was consternated by my recent weight GAIN on 1400 calories a day! My metabolism is definitely slug-like. Some nights I am freezing cold all night and can’t warm up for anything. I’ve been under lots of stress and my adrenals are flat-lining. I’m treating that too. So I’m trying to follow your protocol and have been eating what I like and want. I haven’t been packing on the pounds like I was afraid I would but I’m not losing either. My metabolism is somewhat better for sure, but not consistently so. I’m having trouble finding things on your website that are clear and concise- you have a lot to filter through here and so much that could be more helpful if presented a bit more clearly- could you give me a direction of where to look, where I can find some specific answers from what you’ve already written? Like how long does the turn around take? Should I embrace the idea that I will probably gain ten or twenty pounds before I can lose the thirty-forty I already need to? How much does age factor into the theories? Again, your ideas make sense, but understanding how to read the effectiveness of the application is fuzzy.
Thanks for any input or direction you can give.
Hi Clayvessel,
If you click on my name, all the information you need is there on my blog in one place. I was having the same frustration that the core principals. are all over the place and I wished they were in one place, so I did that. Gwyneth, at youreatopia, gives the best guidelines for how many calories you need to eat and how long recovery from restricting/dieting takes, which is an average of 18 months. So, hang in there for the long haul and in about two years you should find yourself naturally at your normal weight.
Thank you Emma for that bit of hope that my weight may yet become normal, from simply eating normally…without monitoring in any way shape or form. I’m looking for complete freedom and I know it’s out there….for all ages, not just babies and small children.
Have you tried some yoga? I find it to be very restorative to my body rather than breaking me down it builds me up and helps a lot with my metabolism. The other thing I don’t do anymore is drink cold water. The other day I did that and I was literally sick and shivering all night. So no cold water. Try it to see if it helps.
Don’t drink water at all would be an even better idea when recovering. I don’t, and feel way better. Minimal fluid intake is great for boosting metabolism and transit time. Milkshakes with plenty of fat, sugar added are the go. Molasses is very good with milk. Add as much as you want.
I love milk shakes. Often thats the only thing that is palatable to me anymore.
I agree, 18m – 2 years. When you’re older. I’m 49 and if I’d known it took so long I would have felt less despair and hopelessness. I would still have done it, but not felt like I was the one person it was not working for. I went from looking good to a blob, about 50 pounds up I guess (never weighed myself, not planning to either), felt awful, pain, weakness, swelling, and lots else, not least dealing with the looks of disbelief and not being able to explain (they’d definitely think I was crazy!). I lost so much muscle my arms would float up like waterwings in the swimming pool. For a while my voice was hoarse – inflamed thyroid? Scary. Now, 21 months later I’m turning the corner. I think it’s because I’m strong enough to exercise now. I’m loving doing low rep high weights on machines like the leg press, 10-15mins twice a week, feel better, alert, and fat is coming off- and this is interesting – it’s coming off near the muscles I’m using (local insulin sensitivity??) Long way to go but I’m delighted. Matt, people need to know it can take this long. I know it’s not a huge selling point :) but feeling like the one freak it wasn’t working for was unnecessary suffering too.
When I was raw vegan, all I ate pretty much was salad. And when my little girl told a friend “All my mom eats is salad!” and not in a proud way, that was a sobering moment.
Eat the Fuckin Food Ladies and Gents. You will not die. Quite the opposite actually.
xo
haggis
Hey, similar moment when my hubby suggested pizza with the kids and my son says ‘yeah, mommy can have a salad’. Bam! Orthorexic wake-up call and one large pizza with garlic bread on the side for me and I’ve never looked back. Very, very funny post btw Matt.
*like*
Erin,
Stop taking birth control stat!! The stuff in birth control pills is called progestin, not progesterone. Its just another estrogen that will lead to estrogen dominance=gorilla, thong sharting, estrogen bomb, beast!!!
ackshully, i think progestin is the patented version of progesterone… they tweak the molecule just a little as they synthesize it, so they can patent it as a unique product – and collect plenty of $. other companies synthesize the same molecule as natural progesterone, and one can buy that in many forms, cream etc, called “bioidentical”, but it doesn’t cost nearly as much because it’s not patented. in birth control pills, they mimic the monthly cycle by having different amounts of different hormones in the pills taken at different times in the monthly cycle. trouble is they are not bioidentical, and the tweaked molecules are not utilized by the body , causing “side effects” – because they’re not the right molecule for the body to recognize as usable! what a surprise!
Haha… i know… they can’t call what’s in birth control progesterone, but it can be called progestin(patented) too confuse women. Its really just estrogen though…. I know what bio identical progesterone is.
Bleh. I don’t like salad. The only time I have a desire for salad is maybe in August when it’s blisteringly hot here in the ATL. And that’s as a side for my grilled steak.
Salad’s are a waste of digestive energy and stomach space in my world.
I actually have a question about hormonal birth control too. Matt, I have been reading your site for some time now (love it and thank you), and please do a post on this issue! Honestly, I feel no different when I am on the pill verses not. The only difference is the clarity of my skin. Off the pill, broken out chin and cheeks. One the pill, sparkly clear (well at least for the most part). I was on the pill for 10 years, then went off it for 3 years, and now have been back on if for 6 months. The 3 years I was off it, my skin never improved. Anyway, my sex drive is crazy awesome, and it does not make me fat, or bloated, or grumpy (did I miss anything?). Because I (and I am sure plenty of other women) seem to do alright on the pill, do you think it is ok to essentially be on it forever? I never want kids, so I figure clear skin and not getting knocked up = two birds one stone.
Thanks again Matt for all of your work!
It is the same for me. Lovely skin on the pill. I never had a problem going off it either. There was one time I re-started it and became a raging bitch and went off it. The next time I re-started I was fine (weird huh?) That said I do feel uneasy about messing with my hormones and after I had my kids my husband got a vasectomy so I wouldn’t have to take BC. I miss the nice skin though.
Intellectually, I too feel incredibly uneasy about taking the pill, I always have. I have always tried to do things as naturally/holistically as possible, and no matter how loose your definition of those two words, the pill does not qualify. That being said, having clear skin is important to me, and I greatly value my sex life. I was considering working with a doc utilizing bioidentical hormones to hopefully, and most likely, clear my skin, but that still leaves me (and most other women) with the pregnancy issue. I am only in my late 20s, so I most likely have a long way to go before this will no longer be a concern. So until I find a man who has had a vasectomy (can you request that on a match.com profile?), I think I will most likely be on the pill.
Suggestions are welcome…
My girlfriend prefers the pull-out method haha.
I would think condoms peri-ovulation and the pull-out method the rest of the month would be 98% effective for most women.
This is exactly what I use. It’s been effective for a year and counting now, and women in my family are insanely fertile. Track your cycle by taking temps, monitoring other signs to learn ovulation (Google natural family planning, you can also use an iphone app to help), and use condoms around fertile times. Withdrawl method all the time. It’s actually super easy, cheap, and empowering, and the plus is, when it comes time to get preggers one day, you’ll know exactly when you’re fertile!
BTW, vasectomies can lead to hormonal issues for men, so they are no panacea.
My girlfriend’s brother had a vasectomy. Oops, didn’t work. They now have a 6th kid. How do you go about getting a refund for something like that?
Same here. My 3rd child (now 26) was a post vasectomy
baby. :) That was a rough time. My baby was 3 months old,
when I found out I was pregnant again.
Trouble is, the man has to masturbate in a cup at the
Dr.’s office. (fresh sample) To make certain he is shooting
blanks. My hubs was told that after about 12 ejaculations
he should be shooting blanks. So, he refused to go masturbate
in a cup. He was convinced all was well. Me being the good
wife, not wanting him to have to embarrass himself, went along with it. Yep.
But, the silver lining……..my third child was the most loving, most
self-disciplined child. He truly parented himself. :)
I did that for a while too but that is surely more anxiety-inducing than the pill. At least for me. And it won’t do anything for your skin… well unless…
If you mean due to fear of pregnancy… I know 2 people who got pregnant while on the pill (taking it properly) – and those are only the ones I knew about. No BC is 100%. NFM is actually pretty accurate done right.
here in Scandinavia it’s called “the Finnish jerk” finska rycket :D haha it’s the traditional finnish method
Hahaha…Det hade jag faktiskt inte h?rt f?rut och ?nd? ?r min ex finne… andra sidan s? varade det bara i 2 sekunder.;-)
haha! underbart ?r kort
F?r honom iaf ;-)
lite som finlands(svenska) snapsvisan: int’ nu men nu!
haha :)
Thanks for your feedback everyone! Regarding natural family planning, I was so happy when researching it, and I thought that I was going to be a prefect candidate (being that my periods are perfectly regular, usually to the hour), but it just scares the hell out of me. I tried doing the tracking that is recommended, but could never get a good feel on things. Body temp. varied greatly throughout the month, but never fit what they said should happen. And the other things that they suggest tracking, I never really noticed a difference throughout the month either (and I tracked everything month after month for at least a year). Also, only having sex while either using a condom or having the man that I am with pull-out…bummer, really? Anyway, I appreciate everyone taking the time to respond. Thanks!
11 years and counting!! since the birth of my last child. withdrawal or pull out methods also does come another bonus. I am sure my stretch marks faded because of what didnt go in went on top, waste not want not. apparently the protein has been matched and used in skin care. So not only will you not get pregnant you can achieve that amazing skin :)
Oh, my husband just had a vasectomy after our 3rd child was born. I sure hope it works lol
Hah! How about trying to get my boyfriend to stop eating salads! Now there’s a challenge! I always feel like I have to “eat like a lady” around him. Many guys these days don’t know how to eat anymore. They used to call me a “beast” because I ate so much and stayed so thin before I caved in to eating ladylike.
Kylie,
After you caved in and eat ladylike, did you start gaining weight? Btw, to get your boyfriend to stop eating salads, he first needs to take his skirt off LOL!!
Lol! I never liked leaves. Give me a chopped salad made out of “fruit” veggies and some shrimp, beef, chicken, with some home made evoo vinegrette any day. SO DONE with diets. I’m eating real food, just not the leaves!
Uh oh, I love salads. I have it often in the summer. Not sure about this summer since I am still working on my metabolism, as in EATING THE FOOD and feeling awfully fat and dumpy! I did have a milkshake with lunch yesterday and today. It may be hard for some of you to believe but I still have a hard time getting those calories in. That post was too funny!
Matt,
Thanks for keeping me skeptical, I needed this. It seems like every food and activity we do can lead to cancer anyway.
After nearly 50 years of over concern with food (dieting in various forms including simply under eating/ignoring hunger) I am still coming to terms with being diet free and eating everything that the universe has provided, including the white stuff. I now eat when I am hungry, as promptly as possible.
Of course, after starving for sugar, I overate like a starving person. Ha! and gained back every pound that I had lost during that 6 months….nearly 30 pounds. I am coming to terms that being fat is not the end of the world. Thanks for the new websites that support eating and eating sugar.
The thing that I have not see written anywhere is: SUGAR is pure energy. Our body doesn’t ALWAYS need complex sugars (vitamins and minerals) when all it wants is pure energy.
True or not? I’d really like to know.
“The thing that I have not see written anywhere is: SUGAR is pure energy. Our body doesn’t ALWAYS need complex sugars (vitamins and minerals) when all it wants is pure energy”
Well, Ray Peat pretty much says that. Some people here like to make fun of him, but his diet helped me. Ray believes that simple sugars are better than starches, and that starches promote weight gain. It is kind of difficult (for me at least) to eat just white sugar, but fruit provides simple sugars that the body can use right away. Fruit also has potassium which helps the body process the sugars.
I add lots of sugar to my juices and milk and sometimes eat plain honey. If I don’t want milk, juice or fruit, then I drink Pepsi throwback. I don’t believe that every thing we ingest must be balanced with regard to the macro nutrients, because our bodies need more sugar than fat or protein. Sometimes–like you said–the body needs just pure energy, not fat, protein or other nutrients. A bottle of Pepsi energizes me much better than bread or potatoes. Matt says that liquids like soda destroy the metabolism, but drinking sucrose sweetened soda has helped my metabolism and does not cause weight gain.
The amount of micro nutrients that our bodies need on a daily basis is very small. The problem with many diets, including the vegan, is that they over emphasize the micro nutrients. The micro and macro nutrients are not interchangeable. Green juices may be full of micro nutrients, but they are low in macro nutrients and that’s why eventually most people end up feeling terrible on a vegan diet.
Interesting comment. I agree that sometimes you just need some energy in the form of sugar. Since listening to my body, I realize that sometimes I really want and need a sugary drink like lemonade or coke. A couple of weeks ago, I had caught some bug and was running the first high fever I’d had in a few years. I ate a little, but I was so thirsty for sweet drinks– I had cokes, lemonade, a gallon of orange juice. I must have drank 2000 calories of liquids for two days, but I could tell it was what my body needed and I listened.
I’m not sure about your characterization of Matt’s advice, though. He’s the one who first suggested replacing water with soda, milk with added molasses, orange juice… to me. In EFH , he suggests it’s the excess (beyond thirst) consumption of plain water, tea, coffee that make you cold and lowers metabolism.
Ann, I can’t answer your question, just wanted to pipe in and say I’m in the very same boat. I’ve gained back all I lost last year, but it feels so liberating not to be afraid of food. I think I’ll eventually wind up in a happy weight place – not as thin as I was but maybe 10 pounds down. But if that doesn’t happen, I’m still better off, after 39 years of yo-yo dieting.
Diets Don’t Work, Thin Within (the earlier version, I can’t speak for the newer one), and The Overfed Had are keeping me going, as well as sites like these.
Good luck!
Other Steph
I’ve read those books and given them away. Was still making them into diets. Old habits die hard, but Matt, Danny and the sugar girls, and the Fuck It Diet, etc. are giving me support daily to eat and enjoy it, no matter that I am fat and may remain so. Accepting me now and forever at my current body size is coming along.
Probably putting the weight scale somewhere really hard to use, or out of the house permanently would help me make more rapid progress. My grandsons don’t need a scale and I didn’t have one when I promptly lost all excess weight upon leaving home after high school.
I panicked and bought a scale and proceeded to keep my weight and my eating monitored and have been consistently overweight or dieting/starving ever since.
Just writing that gave me resolve to get rid of the scale and the weight monitoring chart I just created and printed yesterday. Thank you for listening.
I unfortunately like salads. And by salads, I mean the feta, olives, nuts and seeds to actual greens ratio makes it more like…. Well, cheese, nuts, and seeds.
But of course, a few technical questions to pull from the article..
1.) A healthy woman needs not a single calorie less than 2000 (for most, more like 2500):
2,500… Is that for someone who is active in daily life, or has an exercise regimine that burns 500 above the 2000?…. And really, 2,500 for a woman??? I believe it, but I’m 22, and have trouble maintaining on that much with a six mile walk every day. Then again, I also have a myriad of other issues which lead me to this site. Sigh.
2.) (which looked cute on her before she started dieting, lost 20 pounds, wrecked her metabolism, increased her cravings for chili cheese fries by 17,296%, and gained 100 after)-
Is there any way to un-wreck your metabolism without gaining a s–t load of weight?? Has anyone had any success with this?
Eat plenty of fats/carbs in the AM. Taper calories towards dinner (you will be full anyway.) Try some rapid breath of fire yoga. Eat enough food. I know that seems redundant, but if you eat too little then you will gain.
Haha, I have a huge appetite and no issue with getting the calories in as far as that goes. I guess I have two main concerns: One, not eating enough and gaining weight without really fixing anything (you can interject any variation of “Tried, screwed up” here) . Two, eating too much, gaining too much weight, and maintaining at a weight higher than what my body really needs simply because I thought I needed xx amount for xxx time.
Either way, I guess it boils down to the fact that I’m a weeeeeeeeeeeeeeebit apprehensive about getting stuck at a weight *higher* than what is originally intended for me. :/
That is an understandable fear. Matt has said that you don’t have to do RRARFing forever. Its not meant to be indefinite. I really hope he addresses your question directly. I don’t put on as much when I’m calorie cycling (a really high calorie day followed by a day that is 600 calories less and then start the cycle again.) But, I have no idea if that would help you or do a mind bender on you.
Thanks for your help. Yes, a comment from Matt would be great..
You know.. Calorie cycling makes sense, especially if it’s based on appetite. My brother who has NO history of calorie restriction or any restriction whatsoever lost a ton of weight to Epstein Barr mono. Without consciously doing anything, when he was better he gained all of the weight except about..15 ish pounds. He’s a lot thinner, but eats naturally.. I’ve noticed he’s usually hungry every 2-3 hours, and usually eats 1000 calorie meals. And all he does is sit around. No exercise whatsoever.
Also… What is the consensus on alcohol?? Nothing, absolutely nothing makes me warmer than alcohol.. Yet recent research suggests that regular moderate alcohol consumption can make you thinner (likely because it blocks nutrient absorption ((gwynowlyn blog!))..
If you reallly put an emphasis on eating up at the higher ranges of carb intake – 60-70% of dietary calories while working on your strength and fitness you’ll probably find that happy place where metabolism is high and weight gain is minimal – you might even get leaner. It’s just hard to eat enough that way, but athletes do it so I’m sure you can find a way.
But it all depends on who we are talking about and how severe your problems are. Pretty healthy people with pretty good metabolic rates starting out just need minor adjustments. People in really bad shape need to throw out all other dietary concerns and begin eating as much calorie-dense food as possible and sleeping all day. It really depends on your starting point.
But it certainly doesn’t have to be a big junk food bender and letting your fitness fall off the deep end. Try approaching this with minor, not major overhauls of your diet and lifestyle.
Eh… I would say that I’m semi-severeish. Not underweight, but binge/restrict/exercise cycle and amenorrhea for at least 3 years now. I’m fairly young, but have essentially been on a binge/restrict cycle for my entire life which sent me from being a tiny kid into an ‘overweight’ kid in grade school (had a diet-crazed family)… I just never lost weight from it until college, when I went on a “lifestyle” change drastically undereating and drastically OVEREATING a few times a month.
I was wondering if someone who easily consumes 2500+ calories per day mind listing what you eat. I need some ideas besides the usual junk, which for me would be pastry and dessert stuff. Can’t eat that all day. Also I tend to eat lighter in the summer, but I can do ice cream. Thanks.
Its easier to get enough calories if you liberally add fat to your carby things like a milk shake with extra cream. It might make you gain, it might not. I don’t know. I just find it easier to ingest it that way.
Here you go! (boring!!)
Tea w/ 1 tbsp honey -60 cals
Packaged oatmeal w/ chia seeds-200 cals
bag of plantain chips -550 cals
three string cheeses-240 cals
kombucha-100 cals
KIND bar – 200 cals
apple-150 cals
cottage cheese-300 cals
strawberries -100 cals
icecream bar-150 cals
lean turkey burger cooked in coconut oil-250 cals
ketchup-50 cals
rice w/ mixed veg-250 cals
so far about 2600 cals. I count calories right now because I’m in recovery for ED and I need between 2500-3000 so I don’t relapse (my adrenaline starts going on less food and I get an endorphin high and begin restricting). I count at the end of the day and naturally fall in this range, unless I’m stressed out (lowers it).
I used to eat so many KIND bars and apples that now I can absolutely not eat them. Well, unless in apple pie. I always wonder about what people eat too. Just to give a sense of PUFA and mineral or pesticide consumption I labeled foods with * to mean organic or grass-fed. Here is the last 3 days:
Day 1: 4475
bfast: I was trying to set a personal time record for ice cream eating during bfast.
1 qt Trader Joe’s ice cream – 2560
lunch:
olive oil chip bag – 750
soda – 120
dinner:
haagen dazs pint – 945
soda – 100
Day 2: 1700
bfast:
whole milk* – 150
2 potatoes* deep fried in coconut oil* (c oil)- 650
lunch:
.75 lb ground beef* fried in c oil – 800
white bread as patty – 100
dinner: none
Day 3: 2000
bfast:
homemade french toast* 3 slices fried in c oil- 600
leftover custard fried french banana – 200
lunch:
.25 ground beef in c oil – 220
white bread patty – 100
sour cream and maple syrup spread for hamburger – 500
(The above spread is very gross and it should not be repeated. I mean, they are my two favorite ingredients ever! But together, it’s over sweet throw up.)
dinner:
twix – 280
soda – 100
Day 4: 2775
bfast:
1 potato in c oil: – 325
corn in c oil – 300
lunch:
2 chipotles – 2000
soda – 150
dinner: none
Woah. I was very shocked to find that I ate so little on Day 2 and 3. I had to look up most of the calories online, except the ice cream. I honestly thought I was eating 3000 calories a day minimum. It makes sense though because of Day 1’s intake, I guess.
*last 4 days
I don’t know the calories, and looking them up will trigger me, but here you go.
3 eggs
Coconut oil
Red pepper
Grated cheddar cheese
Tea with milk
Soaked bread x 3 slices
Tons of grassfed butter
Turkey meatballs made with cheese x 4 or 5
500g potatoes
Salad or peas
40-50g dark chocolate
Cheese strings x 2 or 3
Low PUFA chips or apple or grapes
Decaf tea with milk
Snacks tend to be bananas, occasionally peanut butter, and dark choc.
Matt, Reading your posts provides great stress relief so thank you for contributing to my recent stress-relief regimen by posting these articles other than suggesting that one should eat foods high in salt, sugar, saturated fats and starch (yum) and drinking only when thirsty. I am recovering from a low-carb diet and some post-pregnancy weight. I have read two of your books and have embarked on eating for heat. However, am wondering about two things. Does a 5 foot woman also need to eat 2000 calories a day? Its been 5 days and I feel fantastic but have already gained a bunch of weight. Just wondering how long it will be till I have my high metabolism back up and can fit into my old clothes. What is the average time span of this “unprogram”? My understanding is that once you get your metabolism up, you can go back to eating a little less and drinking a little more, perhaps? Not that that is my goal. My goal is having a lot of energy throughout the day and possibly a slimer physique. I’ll take early death to so much fatigue and malaise in my youth. I greatly enjoyed your interview with Ann Marie Michaels. I actually think your ideas are not far from what many of our sensible grandparents were doing – eating 3 to 4 solid meals with plenty of saturated fats, salt, starch. Thanks again for being radical in the crazy alternative world.
People, how long have your rarrfed (spelling?) on average until you went back to normal? Did you buy new clothes for rarrfing? Rarrf clothing… hmm (new marketing idea). Can you back out in the middle and do it later in the fall say when you can wear jackets to hide your shame or is it impossible to stop? I am terribly anxious about bursting out of my clothes in a few weeks and needing to spend more money on clothes. Not enjoying looking and feeling like a bag at the moment.
I can nearly guarantee that anybody shooting for a hard number of calories to consume in a day, say 2500, will overshoot that goal.
Calories are nearly impossible to calculate. Even eating something as simple as potatoes, it’s hard to accurately measure how many calories you consume.
This is true even if everything you eat comes in a box with calories listed on the side.
Instead of trying to hit a moving target, just eat til your full.
Ann B. good luck with what you are trying. I decided to try to stop “dieting” and eat what I wanted about 15 months ago. At the time I’d lost a ton of weight on a low carb diet but was still 80 pounds from my goal. When I started eating what I wanted again I prompted gained 30 pounds in less than a month – and the weight has not budged since. So I seem to be able to eat what I want without my weight changing, but I still weigh 110 pounds more than I want to – and even if I lost that I would still not be *thin*. I’ve been waiting for over a year to hope to see the weight trend reverse but nothing doing in that department and I feel worse than ever. Sometimes life is just a b*tch. :-)
Every time Matt attacks salads and plants I think T. Colin Campbell sharts his diapers.
He does that every time I don’t too. It’s one continuous stream of shart.
My wife had me on a salad loop for a month or two a while back, but at least we were having some real food alongside it. The problem with salads for me is that they are WAY too much chewing effort for very little caloric reward. Strangely, though I feel the same way about steaks that don’t basically melt in your mouth.
Fortunately, I didn’t end up a bald, one-eyed, one-armed bandit and eventually the salad thing faded out.
Hey Matt,
I’ve always had issues with my health, like since middle school I’ve had issues with brain fog, anxiety, and other things that I think are associated with hypoglycemia. And my digestion has never been outstanding except for at the start of puberty. I never really developed like other kids and I still have rather large legs and a thin childish upper body (I also used to have quite a lot of weight in my abdomen only. And I’m in my twenties… I look really young and goofy which doesn’t help.
But anyways…
I haven’t had much luck with your eat for heat ideas and I imagine I could have some adrenal issues going on for multiple reasons. After years of overwhelming stress and things of that nature, I’ve finally started with destressing consistently and feeling a bit better. But my sleep isn’t very good and I don’t have an appetite. Like at all. Like today, I ate a muffin at 11 because I felt like I needed to, and then I didn’t eat again until 4, again just because I needed to… I felt no desire to and I honestly really would rather have not. I was trying to eat large meals at lunch time and eating for heat and what not, but I usually just felt bloated and unenergetic all day and out of it, and my digestion just felt blegh (like just a dull burning sensation) so then I tried eating intuitively and now I don’t really eat very much at all. Sometimes I get a strong appetite, but usually not at all. i feel better when I just don’t eat at all. My feet and hands are warm, as opposed to when I do eat a lot more when I don’t want to… then the cold feet usually hit me (but not cold hands, never cold hands? but sometimes sweaty and clammy). Could it be a stress response by my digestive system? Sorry if I’m a bit incoherent. I’m just trying to feel like a normal early twenties male.
Also, I’ve never really had a good sex drive. Like, I find women attractive and everything, but it’s just really indifferent if you want to call it that. I don’t know.
But yeah, I feel actually really good when I don’t eat… but when I do, I feel kind of shitty, almost “stale” if you want to say that. I hate it. I really just want to be at least mildly energetic.
Have you been checked for a parasite? They are known to cause a drop in appetite. Or are you healing from any bone breaks? I found myself unable to eat when healing from a broken bone.
I know that its anti-Matt to suggest it, but I have had some success with green smoothies for brain fog. (or better yet a juice) Not as a meal substitute but in addition to my meals.
It sounds like you may be getting a bit high from not eating. Its a common thing. People with EDs can get high.
Or have you been checked for celiac disease? I ask only because someone I knew with celiac had similar sorts of symptoms.
I was apathetic towards men (seriously, no drive) until I started to eat a shit ton. Then I got hungry for other things!! ;)
My appetite was NOTHING until I started adding magnesium (epsom salt baths) and zinc. I’m not sure which did it, but I think it was the mag. for me. Check for mineral deficiencies? It sucks that they are self-perpetuating…not hungry, don’t eat = less hunger…
I’d say you feel bad when you eat and have no appetite because your digestion has way downregulated. I would eat calorie rich food, especially carbs (oh my gosh I can’t believe I’m saying that lol) because you probably aren’t making enough digestive juices because you aren’t eating, and vice versa. You might want a good digestive ennzyme for a while. It’s kind of like getting into shape, get your digestion into shape, eat. Ice cream with chocolate chips is yummy, milk shakes… Dominos pizza… Cookies man, cookies!
If you have a smart phone, get the my fitness pal app, and set in the calories you need to eat per day and make sure you eat them. Give yourself time to work up to it if its too hard at first. Go to health-calc.com and use their TDEE calculator to get a guess at your maintenence. Realize you will need more than this to make up for past lack of eating. Your body has lots of rebuilding to do.
Question: I’ve had two friends telling me to “get into green smoothies” one is an ex anorexic who went raw but left all that but advocates starting day with green juice, and other friend said I should- they say this because I’ve lost periods again/ and my skin is dry/peeling …again…! I have been eating what I want and it steers always towards basics- plantain, tuna scallops potato cheese salad concoctions dark chocolate… My friend has got a skin glow! And she believes in super fruits aswel… Are green smoothies a good way to start the day? On the theme of salad in a smoothie…!
bh
Lucy, green smoothies are not HARMFUL!! (altho this website might give the impression that they are :) j/k) One can add nuts (soaked or not) and seeds to beef it up.
I love the green smoothies. Coconut oil, fish oil (in capsule not in the smoothie, not a good flavor combo), and evening primrose oil help with my ‘glow’. I enhance mine with organic cream.
Word to the wise, never take healthy eating advice from an anorexic or a yo-yo dieter, who thinks they eat healthier than the rest of society.
Have you tracked your calories to make sure you are truly getting enough?
thanks ashley, nira, alisha and mmsg! no, I’m just eating what i fancy when i feel like it? but I’m weight lifting, not sure if muscle percentage going up has stopped my periods as i was low body fat before/ with periods…. hmmm, i suppose should count my calories but I’ve almost got a mental block to all that now, after years of doing that with an ed, i seriously have blocked out how many calories are in stuff..! like, how many calories in a ribeye? a filet? a pat of butter… hmm 100? i eat rice bread and it has no calories on the pack… and stuff from a french bakery- that comes with no calories on it! so i really am not sure! but my skin is peeling, my hair is brittle,and my body not functioning like a womans!! i feel like i eat more than enough as my digestive system suffers with the amount i eat at the moment!
I have found that I can’t just eat what I want. I have to have nutritionally diverse meals (balance of macronutrients) at regular intervals to keep my metabolism running. I avoid liquid meals, especially green juice. Liquid food is much more difficult on the metabolism. I also refuse to take dietary advise from my friends or family –they inevitably bias thinness over health.
ha ha! cracked up when I read this! love it! I have calorie restricted, low carb’ed, vegetarian, vegan, raw vegan, meal replacement, superfood’ed, mono mealed, fruitarian, blood typed, keto’ed, paleo’ed, Weight watchers, Jenny Craig’ed, sureslim’ed, HGC’ed, and have a library of books that I can burn should there be a sudden ice age snap in my lifetime. I am now ‘old school eating’, (fat salt carbs), very little salad, and if I have no choice, and its greens I dump a whole lotta Rosie on it to keep me a nice person. And I too have landed here! yay!! Thanks Matt :) I am Fat and F@#$ed up, but I know what I need now. :)
I’ve done the first 12 and the last of the ones you wrote :D haha such silliness. It made me giggle to see your post and to know I know it too well :)
Count me in, rowing the same anti-diet boat as everyone else who nearly choked on their high-calorie breakfast from laughter. I’ve been RRARF-ing for almost two weeks and I am gaining weight at an unparalleled pace. I think getting enough sleep is going to be key, even though it’s been really difficult to fall asleep…. has anyone else found that? I’m trying to keep the faith with re-feeding, since I’ve already had some awesome changes (softer hair, skin is finally healing, stronger nails) despite the weight gain.
I had a really weird sleeping rythm when I rrarfed! I was quite fascinated by the whole thing, and I adopted the belief that it would eventually solve itself. Typically, I was not sleepy until the wee hours of the morning, and then I’d sleep a few hours. The next night, I’d sleep early, 8pm, but be awake at 2am, or 3 am, and really not tired. (It’s possible it got worse when I experimented a bit with Lugols iodine solution, that experiment didn’t last long.) I just hung in there and followed my sleep where-ever it went. Now I’m having a great nice nightsleeping thing going on. I don’t rrarf anymore, so that might be one reason my sleep has balanced out. But I can see from my journals, actually, that it’s since I started to tape my mouth at night, nose breathing, that I sleep soundly. It sounds silly, but it acytally has helped me a lot. You can read about nose breathing here: http://consciousbreathing.com/blog/the-conscious-breathing-method/ The same night I started it, I slept like a baby until morning.
oh and I gained weight, 30 pounds :) all in the right places. It will follow me until it’s time for it to leave. I’m guessing 2 years until it’s gone, if it wants to go. I’m fine either or.
oh, and – I got my period back! :) it’s wonderful. It came back in the first rrarf week. It’s worth it!
(17 nights in a row now with sound sleep and nose breathing)
Thanks, Suzy! That definitely gives me hope that one day I’ll be sleeping soundly at the right time for the right amount of time. Until then, full permission for napping. :)
This is off subject a little but what does it mean if you wake up in the middle of the night wide awake and have to pee… Then can’t go back to sleep for an hour with a racing heart? This happens to me fairly often (and last night I was starving when I woke up) I also am pretty much vegetarian. Would that have anything to do with it??
My Mom has that too. I wonder what is that all about. She also gets tingling/hot hands. During the day she doesn’t pee at all.
Hmm… Yeah I get really really hot at night too. My hands and feet are burning when I’m asleep but normal during the day. Do the hot hands only happen to your mom at night?
Yes, only at night. Often right after she pees, she can’t sleep, her heart races, and her hands tingle.
General consensus around here is that is a sign that you are underfed. Eat more calories during the day, and have a calorie-dense, dry, salty snack (like crackers and cheese) before you go to bed, and it should help. Also, curtail your water intake closer to bedtime.
Hi Sarah! The racing heart happened to me during the first months of rrarf. I typically woke up at 04:00 am with adrenalin rushing, heart beating fast. Not every night but now and then. After some rrarf time, a month or two, it happened less and less. Haagen Dazs first thing in the morning and last thing before bedtime seemed to help. Now I don’t have it anymore. I don’t rrarf anymore now, I wanted it and did it for four months and then I felt finished with it. Now I want veggies. I don’t even want Haagen Dazs anymore (I know you said it would eventually happen, Matt, but at that time it sounded unbelievable) Good luck with your body and your communication with it, Sarah!
Sarah
Sounds hormonal/bs imbalane. Google Emmas ste in Sydney, a ND she is also amazing …. the nutition coach … Infact she just posted a few days ago on such topics . Not unlike Matt. A lot of her reseach is referenced and stems from Ray Peat as I also believe that Matt ideas come from also. Emmas talks about eating protein with carbs to balance hormones and to help prevent hypoglycemic events during the night like what you are experiencing – try milk and raw honey before bed. I too suffer exactly the same way you do – as a result of vegan eating – late nights – stress etc?
Post 4 month rrarfing without borders, to my surprice and delight, I want cooked veggies. My stew recipe: chop up fresh salads, peppers, potatoes, cabbage, onions, leek, carrots, salt, pepper, butter. Let it simmer in a little water for an hour or so. Add cream. Inspired by Matt (“boil the **** out of veggies”). I don’t want raw salad/veggies though. I don’t like carrots, I like potatoes :D cue claves
First, I do wish there was a forum here. :)
I just found out about Matt and 180 a few days ago. I bought the Diet Recovery 2 book and started stuffing my face about 5 days ago. It’s been going pretty well. I was a vegetarian/vegan and then did paleo/low carb. I’ve never purposefully restricted calories or fat, but I sure it happened when I was vegan for a couple yrs. Growing up I never had a weight issue and I was always burning up. Though I have no idea what my normal temps were then. I prided myself on being able to eat anything and everything without gaining weight. I also never had a cavity until I was 17/18. I gained a little weight starting around 19.. not much, but of course I was confused bc I never had before. So, I started looking into food. Calories never seemed to make sense to me as being important really… and I’ve never been one to be able to stick to anything if I’m hungry. Nothing seemed to work, though I was really just annoyed that exercise didn’t fix everything. LOL. Then I learned about vegetarianism at 22 and thought it was a way to be/stay healthy. Biggest regret of my life. I gained weight got a mouth full of cavities and have keritosis pilaris that just gets worse and won’t go away. I thought paleo was the answer, but restriction has never been something I do well. The best results I ever had was following Dr. Kruse’s epi-paleo rx + Leptin rx. But it is so restrictive that unless I’m a hermit I will end up “failing”.
So, this all makes sense to me. As I used to be able to eat anything and have no issues at all. Right now the carb load is making me very sleepy all of the time, but hopefully that will go away soon. My worst thing is cavities. I still have a ton since I don’t have insurance. Maybe I’ll get lucky and some will heal themselves with the overfeeding. It does make eating sugar difficult though as it hurts my teeth and I have to be careful.
Has anyone had any luck with healing keratosis pilaris? I have read it may be a genetic issue with being unable to utilize any Vit A that is not in retinol form. I have been eating liver still just in case. The best I’ve seen it is when I’ve cut out dairy and eat liver. It does seem to start to diminish.. albeit slowly. I’m hoping there is something else as I love butter, cheese and heavy cream. I don’t have any digestion issues with dairy, but I’m still concerned that my skin is a sign that maybe I shouldn’t be eating it. I am feeling conflicted about eating dairy because of this. I know KP isn’t life threatening, but if something is showing on my skin like that and if it truly is a Vit A issue (wouldn’t be surprised with my teeth being as they are) then I don’t want to do something detrimental to my health in the name of “NO DIETS”. I am enjoying the freedom again though.
Anyone have this clear up on it’s own by eating regular/anything???
Hi Erica,
I had KP for many years through restriction (never severe or to a level that anyone except my family knew about), and I have to say, following the high-energy Your Eatopia guidelines caused it to clear up completely (and this eating bucketloads of dairy, fat and carbs). My perennially slightly rough leg skin and skin at the back of my arms became smooth as a baby’s bum. Since a little bit of a relapse over the past 6 months, it has come back, but not as badly.
I do think that, in some cases at least, it can be caused by the skin not regenerating quickly enough, letting dead skin build up and cause problems, which, of course, is caused by low metabolism. Even dallying with diets can cause damage that needs a bit of repair work, and you might well find it clears up!
As an addendum, I had perfect skin up till age 18, after which the hormonal changes resulting from long-term mild restriction caused me to start getting spots then. Refeeding definitely improved my skin (after an initial crazy-ass period from hormonal fluctuations). It also improved my teeth- I started having sore and sensitive teeth, dentists would criticise my brushing method. Now my teeth are tough and dentists complement me on my dental care regime (which has changed not a whit), though I eat waaaaay more sugar now. sounds like you might benefit from taking a look at youreatopia.com to assess the extent of the project you have at hand, it can also give mre details on the kind of experiences you might have at whatever level of ‘refeeding’ you need.
Thanks Nat!
Well, that gives me hope. I had a KP in my teens, but it was very faint and would come and go. I just thought it was zits or something on my arm at the time. It wasn’t bad at all. Now I have it bad on my arms, some on my legs, I even have it on my cheeks and I have Fordyce Spots on my upper lip (which is basically kp on lips imo). I think it’s all related.
Hopefully it will all go away like yours did. :)
I didn’t really check out youreatopia before because I never had an eating disorder. I didn’t really think I’d connect much with the site.. I’ve only restricted carbs before and that never really lasted long as me and “restriction” of any kind don’t mesh well. LOL.
The concern with sugar and my teeth is mainly because I have active cavities right now. I’m not sure how it will affect them and I can’t afford to get them fixed yet. If I didn’t actually have any cavities/broken teeth, I would be stuffing my face with much more sugar LOL. I’ve always been a sugar fiend. In 7th grade we had to make these pyramids out of sugar cubes.. let me tell you those were the best few wks of school of my life. I ate so many sugar cubes it was like I was in sugar heaven. :)
I’ll check out youreatopia though and see what’s going on there. Thanks for the tips. Hopefully with the sugar I am eating it will help my teeth after a bit.
I had KP for as long as I can remember, but I don’t anymore. I am not sure why–maybe I just grew out of it? I am 36. I have spent the past 3 or 4 years getting a lot more sun outside than I had in the decade prior to that. Other than that, food changes ran the gamut and didn’t seem to help one way or the other.
I was struggling with eczema on my face prior to my attempt at diet recovery, and it’s gone since then. Before, I felt the same way that you did about your KP–it seemed better when I avoided both gluten and dairy. I am eating plenty of both, now, and don’t seem to have eczema or KP. I eat more gluten now than I have in years.
Hey matt i need advice. I am going to doctors in a couple days because i have depression and possibly bipolar. I have searched up what it is they might give me for it and lithium is suggested. I heard lithim causes those low metabolism signs. exccsesive pee, weakness, tiredness, bad weight gain and so on. I am scared, i have been trying to eat for heat and is this going to reverse the whole thing? :( I am not sure if they even will give me lithium but that is the most common medication.
Everything is a matter of prioritization. If your condition is ruining your life and lithium really helps but to the detriment of a few metabolism indicators, it’s the lesser of evils by far. Good luck. We’re always here to support you if we can.
Yes, lithium causes weight gain, a lot. So do most psychiatric medicines. They also cause other health issues.
Are you sure you really want to start down the path of meds? Before you take anything I would urge you to do some of your own research. Robert Whitaker’s book, Anatomy of an Epidemic, is a good place to start. He’s an investigative journalist and has some pretty convincing evidence that people with even pretty severe psychiatric conditions generally do better long-term without meds. Short-term the meds reduce symptoms, but they are associated with worse long-term outcomes, more relapses, more disability. Or you can see his blog for a preview http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mad-in-america
I would never tell you what to do, but definitely do research before taking anything. These meds are not something you could come off easily.
Not all of the psychiatric medicine causes weight gain. I know a number of people who lost a few pounds and showed signs of metabolic improvement on Wellbutrin. Having said that, I have noticed that depression and emotional instability in young woman either follows or is in conjunction with a period of irregular and abnormal eating.
Sooo true. I was a complete mess when I was bulimic. My entire personality changed and I thought I had depression, when I really just needed to EAT and keep it down.
There is nothing like starving your brain to make you crazy.
Recently I have been reading a number of blogs from woman who describe themselves as crazy. The mildly depressed and slightly unstable ones tend to have an obsession with losing weight that is presented as quirky and adorable. The ones who have had full mental breakdowns will only mention in passing that their eating had become abnormal. I don’t think they recognize this as a contributing factor, as much as a symptom.
This may also be because a lot of them get put on antidepressants which cause weight gain. And the dieting merry-go-round begins. My personal experience with everyone I know who has gone on antidepressants is their emotional states have actually gotten worse, ironically, in many ways, and every one has also become obsessed with their weight (because they have gained). The dieting starts which makes matters worse emotionally, I am sure. Maybe some people have a more positive experience but I have yet to see it in the people I have been close to.
My one friend who got off meds lost 20 pounds effortlessly and really turned her life around in the course of a year. She says she is so much happier now, and her self-esteem is a lot higher.
Going on meds is a personal decision. and I know some people feel they help, but to be honest I have yet to see it in my personal observations, and I wish doctors would be more upfront about the side effects. Depression is an awful thing for sure. I suspect that the root of depression is stress, like most health issues. Stress can be emotional, dietary, etc. Its obviously a lot harder to address when the stress is deep-rooted and emotional in nature, like childhood trauma, but for many people I bet a few months of rest and refeeding could be lifechanging, and that should be the first line of attack by doctors.
My interpretation of the blogs was based on personal experience, specifically what I saw happen to both myself and friends around the age of 19 –pre-antidepressant dabbling. To Catherine’s comment that sparked this thread, I think the most important thing is getting stabilized with sleep, nutrition and people in your life (not necessarily friends). A routine is really important. Sometimes a kick start is needed in the form of medicine. I would also focus on making plans for the future, setting goals and feeling healthy.
Thanks. I’m 19 and am having quite a hard time. i stopped hanging out with friends almost two years ago and the shame and loneliness is hard so is nice to have support.
Catherine, you could have a look into St. Johns Wort. Some German studies have shown it has the same effect as anti-depressants, but without the side effects.
I am currently using it and I feel a LOT better, without help of my doc. I read about it in Julia Ross book “The mood cure”. That way might be better for your overall health than the lithium. It is worth checking out. I am not sure how Matt feels about it, as I read some stuff on 5htp not being so good if I remember right. Something about weight gain I think.
I did not gain weight using 5htp. But then I’d rather gain weight than be depressed. The stuff Julia Ross describes is only temporary. No permanent use of supplements. It is about healing yourself.
Just have a look around what is all out there, you may find something that totally suits you without having to use the lithium.
I am not trying to tell you to do the Julia Ross protocol. I am just mentioning it, as it helped me and to show you there are more things out there than the conventional way. With some research you may run into something totally different, but totally suitable for you.
Good luck with it all.
Catherine- I really can sympathize. I don’t want you to feel alone (even though depression can cause that feeling.) You aren’t. I have been in and out of depression since I was 9 years old. I have had the most success with walking (30 min./day outside, doesn’t have to be intense at all), solar light bulbs (on for 30 min. before the sun comes up in the AM.), and a book called ‘Yoga for Depression’ helped steer me towards using yoga to help myself feel not so numb or detached or weepy. Now, the yoga doesn’t need to be more than 15 min. and it doesn’t need to be ‘power’ yoga. If anything, avoid that stuff. You don’t want to hurt yourself. I got the most mileage out of ‘rapid breath of fire’ which is awesome because you don’t even have to get hot, sweaty, or wear a ‘yoga’ outfit. Just something loose enough to sit comfortably and breathe in.
I have taken St. John’s wort in the past. I found that it made me photosensitive. But, it does work.
Btw, if you are on any sort of birth control, you need to know that the wrong prescription can cause depression.
hey catherine, your not alone, I’ve been similar places too, extreme loneliness caused by depression but fear to socialise, small steps are always best, finding reasonable things you feel you can do and building on them bit by bit one at a time. loneliness is a soul destroying feeling, but just remember, there are no experts on life out there, you can become your own expert. i found it helpful to stop comparing what i could do to others my age – not that you indicated that you compare- but rather, concentrate on baby steps and personal achievements in the context of how your feeling right now.
Such good advice, Lucy. So true.
Hi Catherine
Many anti depressants don’t cause weight gain in every person who takes them; however IME lithium causes insane weight gain in everyone. Every single person I have ever met who took lithium gained insane amounts of weight. One person I know gained 80 lbs on it and the other gained 50 lbs. It also causes diabetes. This information is freely available on the package insert that comes with the me, and on pubmed too.
I would urge you to try things like amino acid therapy, the Mood Cure, lithium orotate etc. before going anywhere near Lithium. It honestly is one of the worst meds ever made.
Hilarious!
And I honestly did not understand a piece of the puzzle initially. Us European folk do not eat a salad on its own (at least most of us don’t). It is part of a meal. You know a steak, fried potatoes with bacon bits and then a ceasar salad with it. And of course a bit of tomato soup to start the meal and a dessert as a finish.
I cannot fanthom anyone only eating a salad, that would leave me so hungry. And I am already eating too few calories a day, unplanned, it just happens. Working on fixing that.
Hey everyone, this is my first time commenting on this website. I’ve been lurking for a while reading everyone’s experiences, and I wanted to start sharing my own. I’m 33 years old, and I’ve been chronically ill since I was in my early 20s. To cure myself, I went through several phases of restrictions (gluten-free, paleo, etc.) and developed a standard case of othorexia. Restriction would often make me feel better temporarily, but it never worked for long, and I kept chasing that initial high like a drug addict. I became obsessed with food, and would read about diets for hours whenever I felt sick. I never considered that I might be perpetuating my own problems because of my ortherexia. I thought that finding the “ideal diet” was my only hope to ever feel healthy again.
I don’t know why I started getting sick in the first place, but it probably had to do with a stressful childhood, along with some substance abuse. Basically, I think I learned to survive by boosting myself up with chemicals, and as I got older, the adrenaline rush of exercise and eating restriction replaced drugs for me.
In the last couple years I hit rock bottom. I was overwhelmed by stress, lost interest in my friendships and my work, and I was on the verge of suicide. I fantasized about withdrawing all my money from the bank, buying a shitload of opiates, and getting high for a few months until I died. I needed a new solution to my problems.
Over the last four months I’ve been trying to eat my way out of this hole. The more I eat, the hungrier I get, and I’m starting to feel like I’m making some progress. This last month, I gave up all restrictions completely, and I’ve been eating at least 5,000 calories a day. Yesterday I decided to calculate the total and discovered I was actually close to 6,000. Yet even after 6,000 calories, I woke up early this morning with a ravenous appetite, and I’m still hungry after eating well over 1,000 in the last hour or so (second breakfast coming soon).
This process has been extremely challenging, because my body has had difficulty adjusting to this much food, even though I am constantly hungry. I’ve felt strong compulsion to stop eating so much. But at the same time I can tell my body is healing–and it’s in a gradual, authentic way. This is completely different from the temporary highs I’d get from experimenting with eating restrictions.
I hope to post from time to time to share my progress. I hope others will find it useful.
Hi David,
Thanks for sharing your experience. It’s helpful to hear from others who are going through these issues.
Here are a couple of posts from the youreatopia website about extreme hunger after restrictive eating, for anyone who might be interested in the science behind this phenomena:
http://www.youreatopia.com/blog/2012/5/22/extreme-hunger-what-is-it.html
http://www.youreatopia.com/blog/2013/4/9/extreme-hunger-profoundly-disturbing.html
These may have been posted before, but I think it bears repeating from time to time. I know for me, I really need to keep reading this stuff in order to work through the cognitive dissonance.
It sounds like you’re doing really well, David. Keep up the good work!
Hi Kim,
Thank you for positing those links. I learned about that site from a link in a previous comment thread here at 180DH (maybe you posted it then too?), and it has been very helpful for me. I agree it is very worthwhile to keep publicizing that information, because virtually all the dietary advice on the web (even for anorexics, which is stunning to me) retains the mentality that some form of restriction is healthy. Ancel Keys starvation study has also been helpful, because I recognize myself in the decline those men experienced, and in their massive hunger and difficulties during recovery.
I’ve learned a lot by reading about anorexia and other eating disorders, but I never thought of myself this way because I never had an “underweight” BMI. I’ve often looked quite healthy and even athletic and muscular. It just goes to show that you can’t identify an eating disorder (or metabolic derangement) by weight or appearance. Currently I’m a bit overweight because of my re-feeding (my belly looks like the second trimester), but I can tell that my body still needs food. Besides the hunger, I’m experiencing “growing pains” in my limbs, as if I were going through a second puberty. My body feels like the day after hard lifting in the gym–beat up, tired, and sore, but also healthy and anabolic. It’s become clear to me that the best muscle building exercise is lifting the fork from plate to mouth.
Yes, I agree ? there’s a lot of misinformation out there. Which is sad. I, too was never considered underweight and thought I was eating a normal amount and being ?healthy? and was the envy of other women my age. Until my thyroid and adrenals tanked and my search for answers led me here and other sites like youreatopia. The Ancel Keys study is so fascinating and I’m surprised that I had never heard of it until this year.
I can also relate to the second trimester belly! Lol I call it my ?recovery baby?, and I’m very ready to be delivered of it. But just like pregnancy I realize it takes time. I didn’t get to this point overnight and there are no quick fixes. I think my kids must think I’m crazy though. For years I never bought ?junk? food and now suddenly I’m telling them it’s ok to eat this stuff. Here’s to pop tarts and ice cream!
(And just so people don’t get the wrong idea, we do have healthy meals. But for snacks, I let them eat whatever they want :)
People always thought I was naturally fit too, and almost no one knew about my increasing pain and fatigue, in large part because I tried very hard to keep it a secret. I can remember the frustration I experienced when I finally opened up to doctors about my problems. Their response: “But you look healthy!” For me, admitting to a problem meant I was in a state of desperation, and I couldn’t believe no one would take me seriously. That’s when I started getting into nutrition and alternative health theories, and my decline was basically guaranteed at that point.
I don’t blame the doctors, because they’re just operating on what they’ve been taught. Still, it should be obvious that the first approach for energy problems should be consuming more energy (calories). In many cases, chronic fatigue system is probably just low calorie consumption.
I’d also like to lose my belly, but I’m not too concerned about it at this point. Fortunately, I’m also building a lot of muscle (without exercise), so I mainly just look like a bigger person now. I admit I do have it easier as a guy, and I’m sorry for all the pressure on women to maintain a certain weight. Nearly everywhere in the media we’re lectured about obesity as a health concern, but to me it just sounds like moralizing and class judgment. The more I learn about anorexia and all disordered eating in our society, the more furious I become about how we manipulate and control each other (and ourselves) with our seemingly well-meaning opinions.
I’m sure your kids are glad they’re allowed the snacks now. I was often hungry as a kid and I would have killed for regular access to some tasty treats!
Hi David,
Really glad to hear that you are doing the best thing for yourself and sticking with it. You have probably read a lot of the stories on youreatopia, but just wanted to chime in and say that the belly really does go away- I was never under BMI 21, really ‘fit and healthy’ but in reality exhausted. I was on 3000-4000-5000/day for like 4 months. I got a lot of digestive issues first month that cleared up, belly went down after a few months, even while my weight was still climbing, partly because I was putting on tonnes of muscle and it all started shifting about. I tried weights after 6 months of NO exercise, and could lift like 20 kg more than I could when working out several times a week before recovery. Thighs of steel. (And I’m a girl!) it’s a bit ironic that if you are overdoing it, the most effective way to get built is to do not exercise and just ETf! That said, you do feel like you have been hit by a bus, and itchy/hot all the time to boot, but that does pass eventually- it’s just the healing processes happening. The oedema that can happen also is useful for forcing you to be immobile and allow things to happen more quickly, but is not fun at all. Thing to remember is, it does pass, especially the wierd stuff like the belly and soreness. You will have a stomach like a Lammergeier by the end (bird of prey that can digest bones) ;). I know what you mean about being a bigger person- part of me is desperate to get back to my ‘socially ideal’ figure before, but part really likes being a bigger person- all in proportion, but just scaled up. Stick with it :)
Hi Nat,
Thanks for the response. Your soreness, uncomfortable heat, and digestive weakness are just what I’ve been experiencing, and I look forward to becoming a Lammergeier sometime in the next few months (and thanks for the vocab boost, by the way!). It would be a lot of fun, after a full recovery, to enter an eating contest and see what kind of punishment that old gut can take.
I’m curious what my current “gym strength” would be if I were to test it. The next time I go to the gym (maybe a few weeks from now) I’ll try to remember to post something if I notice a big difference.
Kim,
Me too! My poor family. My years of eating “healthy” meant that I rarely brought junk food in the house. I would make homemade desserts and such, that wasn’t the issue, but not store bought “junk”. Of course, they would eat and enjoy it outside of the home, which I didn’t try to stop because it would have been futile to try and do so. Thankfully, since I didn’t outright try to limit their food intake, despite my silly efforts to eat healthy, they still managed to grow up with a healthy relationship towards all food. Since I’ve been re-feeding, I’ve been buying “junk” food regularly. At first, my kids thought I was losing my marbles, and they were right, I was losing my dumb dieting marbles. I explained the sudden change to them and, thankfully, they agreed and thought it made sense (teenagers, not little ones). Unlike what I initially thought would happen, they don’t just eat the junk (a term I now dislike, but don’t know how to get around its use in conversations), they eat a balanced diet of all food now.
I also have reservations about the term “junk food,” though it’s very handy and I still use it for that reason. Maybe “convenience food” would be more accurate, or we could give it the war-on-terror treatment and call it “freedom food”: freedom fries, freedom donuts, freedom doritos, etc.
I’m like your kids, in that after a bunch of chips, candy, etc., I start desiring something more substantial, like a giant steak burrito from chipotle (which is my current addiction). When I started eating heavily, I had to keep my meat consumption down because it was so difficult to digest, and I even removed the pepperoni from my frozen pizza. But lately I’ve been craving more meat and sometimes add extra chicken or shrimp to my pizza, along with the pepperoni. I’m confident my appetite will tell me what I need, if I listen.
Hi David,
Thank you for sharing your experience. It sounds like you’re doing really well, and going through the typical extreme hunger phase. When you begin to consume enough calories, it seems like a switch is flipped and the body begins to dramatically respond and heal with the higher calorie amount. Below that amount, the body primarily gains fat and you don’t really make any gains beyond the initial improvements that come with eating more in general. I look forward to your updates. Good luck!
Hi David – I’m happy to hear you want to heal and live life. What’s the most comfortable (that sits well with your body) food for you to eat nowadays? You’ll surely get support and more replies here, I just wanted to say hi basically.
Hi Suzy- That’s a good question. My digestion’s still pretty weak (though getting stronger every day), and I continue to suffer a certain amount of bloating, gas, heartburn, and other unpleasantness when I eat. This means I have to be careful to pick the most easily digestible, calorie-dense foods. I’m eating lots of pasta, soft tacos and burritos (no beans), pizza, hamburgers, hot dogs, fries, chips, candy bars, ice cream, juice, soda, milk (lactose-free for now), pop tarts, sushi, etc. I can’t eat very much fiber, and I also limit my protein. When I calculated my calories yesterday, I was at 60% carbs (half starch/half sugar), 30% fat, and 10% protein (about 6,000 calories total). I didn’t plan that, but that seems to be my usual ratio if I’m eating for comfort and palatability. For a while I was watching PUFAs, but I started improving even faster as soon as I let that go.
The crazy thing is that, since I started really allowing myself to eat, my hunger almost never goes away. I can eat so much that I feel like I’m going to puke, but my body is still screaming in hunger. Right now is a good example. It’s 9:20 a.m. and I’ve already had 2 pop tarts, a large plate of tator tots with catsup, about thirty ounces of juice, 9 fun size candy bars (kit kat and twix), some pringles, and a few cheesy rice cakes. This is over 2,000 calories, but I feel like I’m starving. I also feel like I’d get sick if I eat any more for a few hours.
I am definitely looking forward to the time when my digestion catches up with my appetite!
You’re really giving it a good go, that’s very inspiring! I really enjoy reading your writing, too. I’ll be looking forwards to reading your updates, and I hope you’ll chip in with your experience here every now and then. When you described your foods and what you’ve had today, I feel hungry for rrarf again. It sounds like hard work for you though, eating until you are full, and then still feel hungry. First world problem :)
Thanks, Suzy! I learned a lot from reading about other people’s experiences in this forum, and I want to return the favor by sharing my own experiences. I will definitely keep posting.
You’re right that we’re dealing with first world problems, and I’m always grateful that I have access to as much food as I need. Eating is a somewhat painful process at this point, but I can’t imagine the suffering that truly starving people must go through–or the desperation people must feel when they turn to hunger strikes as the only way to express their opinions.
It makes me feel stupid to know that I restricted food for years–by choice–and that I unknowingly compounded my own problems. My own fallibility has taught me to feel more compassion for the suffering of people with eating disorders. It’s also easier for me to understand what it means, for the sick and obese, to starve themselves in the hope of enjoying a little health or self esteem–when all their efforts seem doomed to fail. When I was younger I was much more likely to blame people for their problems, and if I’ve gained anything worthwhile from my illness it’s empathy.
Yeah – stupidity matched with curiousity and / or boredom, is to blame for a lot of lessons my life. But then again perhaps I wouldn’t be the awesome person I am if I hadn’t paid for the tuition myself. (now a bit self concious about calling myself awesome) It’s great to repair what can be repaired, even better that the medicine is food, yummy food. I think Ashley sums it up really nicely: http://180degreehealth.com/2013/04/soylent-rob-rhineharts-childbrain#comment-79403
Ashley April 19, 2013
I agree it’s calories you need to be most concerned with. Look at it like money.. give your body money to spend. It’s like a broken down house, you need a lot of money to get it fixed up like new again.
Thanks for the link to that comment. I enjoy thinking about calories as the most important nutrient. I’m imagining a supplement line of “ALL NATURAL CALORIES” sold by the capsule. Matt could start selling it from this very site.
good one!
Speaking of things in caupsules, there are capsules containing enzymes, to aid digestion: http://www.amazon.com/Garden-Life-Omega-Zyme-Ultimate-Digestive/dp/B000GWKAHK and on the same page, the pre- and probiotics from the same brand. I like them. I’m sure there are other brands but this one is the one I use.
David
I too have same/similiar issues. I just wonddr if you are eating enough protein and if this could be a contributary factor as it could be for me too.
Good luck
Hi Amanda,
I actually discovered that I needed to reduce my protein consumption, especially at first, in order to increase my total calories. Currently I eat about 10% of my calories from protein, which seems about right.
I’m eating a ton of calories, so 10% is still plenty of protein. Even if you can only eat 3,000 calories a day, 10% would still be 75 grams of protein, which is quite a bit unless you’re doing lots of muscle training (and then you would need more total calories too).
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with eating more protein if you like, as long as your body can handle it. But my digestion system is still weak and does better with the more easily accessible forms of energy: sugars, starches, and fats. That said, I do eat some meat every day based on my appetite.
“I am definitely looking forward to the time when my digestion catches up with my appetite!”
Your experience, in this regard, sounds a lot like mine. My digestion, although it’s come a long way, still has some catch up to do. I had an ah-ha moment recently when I ran across something that Gwyneth said.
I have had a difficult time for YEARS with my digestion being slow, food taking forever to empty from my stomach (4-6 hours). I would eat at my next meal only because I knew I needed to eat, not because I was hungry, as the food would still be in my stomach from the previous meal. I think eating meal upon meal like that also made it hard to get in enough calories because my stomach was always full, which made it hard to eat enough at each meal. BTW, this problem developed only after I started dieting. I never had this problem before that.
Anyhow, Gwyneth said that when someone is undereating, sometimes the body responds by keeping what they do eat in their stomach as long as possible in order to extract a many nutrients and calories as possible from the food. That finally explained for me why this was happening to me, and how it’s possible for some people to honestly say they’re not hungry even though they’re not eating enough. Appetite and hunger are completely supressed in this scenario, which is exactly what I went through. It’s better now that I’m eating enough calories, but I had to push through the lack of appetite/hunger in order to get enough calories in so that my body would stop hoarding the food in my stomach, realzing that there’s plenty of food now. Each week that passes gets better for me. It will get better for you too as long as you don’t start restricting again.
Hi Emma,
Thanks for the encouragement. I still have a ways to go before my digestion and energy levels are normal, but I’ve seen enough improvement at this point that I’m confident I’m going to continue. The worst nights of heart burn, intense bloating, and mental fogginess seem to have passed, and every week I see noticeable improvement. And one of my worst symptoms, which has been with me for over ten years, is almost completely gone. I used to get horrible pain through the middle of my face (dx: ideopathic mid-facial pain), and it’s very minor now. I’ve also lost my craving to abuse alcohol. I’ll have a beer occasionally, but I don’t feel the same need for it. It seems that part of what I was craving was the immediate calorie absorption that you get from alcohol, and now simple sugars are playing that role.
It’s very helpful to know other people have gone through this process. In the past, I often tried to start eating more on my own, but I would stop when I was overwhelmed by all the digestion problems; I thought I was harming myself. Even when I had realized that no one knew what “healthy” meant when it came to nutrition, and that there was no need to remove entire food groups from my diet, I still skipped meals (especially breakfast) because of my weak digestion.
Never again. I want at least 1,000 calories by 8:00 and 2,000 by lunchtime.
And I loved the looks I got when I attended a reading group recently and pulled out a McDonald’s bag with a bigmac, mcchicken, large fries, dipping sauces, and large drink, and devoured it like it was nothing.
*I’m
Erica, You could try using Spry, Xylitol toothpast. I think it is the Netherlands where they give children xylitol candy and toothpaste and they get few to no cavities. It is supposed to eventually kill the bacteria in the mouth that cause tooth decay. Wish I would have had this when I was a kid.
I do use Xylitol. Thank you. My stomach doesn’t like it so I use spry gum and I’ve started actually brushing my teeth with xylitol. I have a huge bag of it, but since I can’t use it to eat then I figure might as well use it as a “toothpaste”.. cheaper this way as well. :) I also wish this was around when I was growing up.
Hey Erica, I’m gonna jump into the conversation a little late here, so you might not see this, but I’m gonna say it anyway! If you want more pointed advice about using xylitol to help heal cavities, you should check out Dr. Ellie Phillips blogs and advice.
http://ultimateoralhealthguide.com/2011/07/26/how-to-repair-damaged-teeth-naturally/
I just was directed to her information last week and can say that for sure it has made a difference in my mouth and gums. Hahaha. Sounds like an infomercial.
I’ve pretty much devoured her website and she has mentioned a few times that it is totally beneficial to either brush with the granulated xylitol or let it dissolve in the mouth, swish, and spit if you feel you don’t want to consume the xylitol. However, if you’re into it, I suggest working up to the dosage that she recommends. At first I definitely had weird stomach feelings (like my tummy didn’t like the xylitol), it is a sugar alcohol after all, but by working my way into it, I can tell my gut bacteria is getting used to it and is not so aggravated. And it’s only been a week! I still swish and spit, but I bought the Spry gum and mints for after meals; the timing is key! Hope this info helps! I just wanted to pass on some stuff that I found to work (imagine that!)
Loved this. I lmfao!
All I can say is that salad completely ruined my first Radiohead concert. I was 5 weeks into GAPS because a naturopath friend was convinced that it was going to cure my chronic gut problems. I was living on salads, avocados, and meat, and was in total metabolic shutdown. My peristalsis had pretty much stopped. I had absolutely NO ENERGY. I was apathetic. I had managed – after waiting in front of the concert venue for 9 hours – to snag a front row, at the bar, spot for the show, and I didn’t really care. I was in a daze. Objectively, I knew that it was a totally awesome concert and being a huge fan, I should have been ecstatic, but there I was, living on salads, and I couldn’t really get that excited about anything. Not even Thom Yorke flailing around in red pants. I was in a metabolic shutdown haze.
Thanks a fucking lot, Salad…
Next time – lots of sugar.
That sucks. I experienced that same creeping apathy and disinterest in the world because of my restrictive eating. I self-medicated with alcohol and all kinds of drugs (legal, illegal, ambiguously legal) to keep up a “normal” face in social situations, but after a while I just didn’t want to do anything. Going to parties became just another obligation so that people wouldn’t know how sick I was.
Strangely enough, the biggest radiohead fan I ever met (who didn’t drink or do drugs) had an appropriate motto back in college: “Eat candy.”
I actually really dig salads. I got so used to them on low carb and paleo that even now when I eat what I want I often go for the salad option, except it is topped with all sorts of fat and other goodies, so not low calorie. Besides green leafy vegetables are pretty nutrient rich so if your eating them for that I think its all good.
o’hoy there baker tots!
coco-muffins
25-50 g butter
1-2 cups of sugar
1-2 eggs
a pinch or two of salt
1-2 cups shredded coconut
Mix everything and place in muffin forms.
175 ?C / 350?F for 12-15 min
It’s a very forgiving recipe.
soup:
chop up potatoes, onions, leek
add butter, salt & pepper
cover with water
simmer for half an hour or so
add cream
blend
enjoy :)
Salad contains PUFAs and keeps you from getting to the Zone. You need protein for that.
Men don’t let your women grow up to eat salads.
Don’t let em eat carrots and lettuce and such,
Let em eat taters and pie and pork butts.
Hi David!
You and I are in the exact siutatuion! I really, really feel such a strong connection to your story, because it is the exact same as my own! I am 22 years old, almost 23 and have put my body through the ringer too. I can TOTALLY relate to you when you said this,
“People always thought I was naturally fit too, and almost no one knew about my increasing pain and fatigue, in large part because I tried very hard to keep it a secret. I can remember the frustration I experienced when I finally opened up to doctors about my problems. Their response: ?But you look healthy! For me, admitting to a problem meant I was in a state of desperation, and I couldn’t believe no one would take me seriously. That’s when I started getting into nutrition and alternative health theories, and my decline was basically guaranteed at that point.”
Because people always thought I was naturally fit too, but they had no idea the amount of exercise I was doing every day to look that way (I exercised every day for 4 years and felt extremely guilty and anxious if anything got in the way of my gym time). I also used to be a dancer, and would exercise on top of 2 hours of dance classes most days.
like you people had no idea how fatigued I always was on the inside. I would try and hide it, but I just couldn’t because I was constantly getting sick, always cold in warm temperatures, always had migraines, stomach always hurt, head always hurt, something always hurt and I NEVER had ANY energy. there was always something wrong with me. After finding this website and youreatopia.com I finally realized that I had a problem, and that all my extreme over-exercise put my body in such a severe state of restriction for 4 years too long, and I needed to stop.
I actually just stopped exercise 3 weeks ago (although I have jobs where I am standing 4-5 hours some days). But, I upped my calories from 2000 (during the exercise restriction/addiction pattern) and upped them to 3000. I thought this was all I needed to get better. But, I was only stuck in the circle of exercise addiction and relapse, and fatigue longer and longer.
It is only after I stopped all gym exercise and exertion that my body feels like it has been run over by a truck (and that is all of the years of over-exercise) hitting all at once, when you finally give your body the rest it never got after all these years. I have been EXHAUSTED, ill, sick, sore muscles, sore everything and just so tired. This is from all the stress and demands I had put on my body for years that I never gave it the chance to rest, and now I am.
I hope that I can finally give my body the rest it needs now, and food. So has everyone found that more carbs are best for this? That is what I have been reading I think. I eat around 2700-3000 a day with close to 400 G. carbs every day. Wondering if this is good and what are some tips people may have for me? Should I just wait it out, more carbs are good? More fat? What has really worked for everyone here?
Hi Helen,
I’m glad to hear that my experiences resonated with you, and I hope you’re successful in getting your health back on track. This is definitely a difficult process, and I think it’s almost impossible without support. I know I’ve felt discouraged the last couple days because of some of the symptoms I’ve developed. Although my muscle soreness is diminishing, I’ve started feeling shortness of breath from the fat accumulation in my abdomen. Fortunately, my appetite is subsiding, so hopefully I’ll start cutting fat soon. A big part of me just wants to go into fasting mode for a few days, but I know in the long run that I need to nourish my body, not deprive it.
One place I think I made a mistake in my re-feeding process is eating too much fat, which I think contributed to my sluggishness and also to some of the weight gain. Some fat is necessary to keep calories up and make starches palatable, but I ate too many high fat foods like chips, ice cream, and hot dogs. Rather than so much fat, I think it’s probably better to focus on starches like pasta, bread, rice, corn, and potatoes, as well as sugary foods based on appetite. Fat should probably be a flavoring agent rather than a focus of the meal.
Of course, this is just conjecture, but I feel like we have to experiment a little to figure out what works for us. Right now I’m thinking that I should eat a diet heavy in starch, moderate to high in sugars, moderate in protein, and low in fat.
As an example today I’ve eaten cereal, pasta with a homemade sauce (tomatoes, chicken, lemon, and lots of salt and spices), tons of low-fat popcorn, pretzels, a turkey sub with veggies, whole fruit, fruit juice, soda, and coffee with sugar. I’ve hit the caffeine much harder than I normally would, because I have some projects to complete that require a little more focus than normal. Surprisingly, I don’t have any negative effects from it, which is unusual. This could be because of the lower fat content in my diet today and yesterday, or because of I’ve built up some resilience to caffeine because of my re-feeding the last few months. I’m going to have to keep drinking coffee for the next week or so, so we’ll see if my resilience lasts.
So what are you eating now?
Well, I have suprisingly eaten more freely today thank I have in WEEKS and I think its due to all the reading of Matt’s book, Diet Recovery 2 today! I have felt such freedom with food! I have also felt so stuffed all day, yet have continued eating. During my 4 years of (restriction) I ate around 1800-2000 calories but I exercised every day no rest ever. So, after finding (youreatopia) I upped calories to 3000, and ate around 3500 for a few weeks, then as months went by exercise crept back in and intake was closer to 2500-2700. I felt MISERABLE and saw no improvement.
So only a month ago I totally QUIT all cardio, and now only activity is standing at my jobs and walking around 3-5 hours most days (4 days a week mostly). So, my intake has been around 2700 most days, but today I feel like I will go far above. I eat around 400 Grams of carbs every day, and probably 70 grams if not more of protein, and maybe 40 grams of fat daily. I am trying to up my fat because I know how much I need it for HEAT and METABOLISM right?!!
Also, MUCH of my carbs come from oatmeal, pretzels, tons of pretzels (I am kind of addicted to salt) which is okay from reading the Diet Recovery book to my understanding? And needed? If I am wrong please clarify! Also, I eat between 3-4 sandwiches on wheat bread per day and intake a LOT of fiber a day.
I’m not sure if Matt would agree, but I don’t think much fat is necessary for boosting your metabolism. For me, fat’s main benefit is that it helps boost my caloric intake on days when I’m extremely hungry. For the last month (up until a few days ago), I was eating 5,000-6,000 calories a day, and I couldn’t satisfy my hunger without added fats. Now that I’m eating around 3,000-4,000 calories, I find that I can satisfy my appetite with mainly carbs (and I’m still plenty warm).
Based on the macronutrients you listed: 400 grams carbs, 70 grams protein, and 40 grams fat, you’re only eating around 2,240 calories a day. The protein and fat numbers seem reasonable, but I’d consider adding carbs. Sugar is the easiest way to do that. You’d be amazed how much warmth you’ll notice if you add a couple hundred grams of sugar (fruit, fruit juice, or even pop and candy) to what you’re eating already. If you feel apprehension about eating sugar, try adding a little at a time and see how it makes you feel. I think sugar is an important part of the human diet, and has been for all recorded history. People have always had a sweet tooth.
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with eating a lot of fiber, but my digestion is actually better if I limit it. And I find that fruit fibers (like in bananas or apples) are much gentler than the fibers in whole grains.
Beautifully said. Every word of it.
Thanks, Matt. Your site has been helpful for me in breaking my old nutritional dogmas and developing a healthier relationship with food. If I’ve learned enough to give good advice, you deserve some of the credit for it.
Thank you so much for such a clear explanation! I have been eating 400 Grams of Carbs every day for about 6 months now and only around 25-40 of fat…so that is interesting and good for me because I love my carbs and salt! I am such a bread, pretzel and more bread girl,oh and Oatmeal (way to obsessed with it and I forgot to add that I get at least 100 grams of carbs from oatmeal every day too….) lol :)
I dont know if it makes a difference with the fat thing but I did go through 4 years where I limited my fat to very, very, low amount (around 10 grams a day) and the more on weekends when I “overate” but thats probably what saved me but I had very, very little body fat on me at all during these years. I am also on the pill for my period (that was lost due to weight loss) so I just thought I would point that out too.
But, I am just going to add in more carbs for now because I love them way, way too much! And I was around 3100 for calories today and 425 for carbs so far. Sound…okay?
Sounds good to me. Based on your description of your situation, I’d say you should just eat what you love, and pile it in! It may take some adjusting, but you’ll feel much better in the long run. Those carbs will give you back your energy–and actually 425 isn’t all that high.
Eating only 10 grams of fat a day must have been horrible. I can understand why you started feeling so sick. Even low fat vegans usually get more than that.
Thanks David! yea, I restricted fat so low, because I thought it was “unhealthy” so I basically had no fat on my body. I think my bf was below 8% or something like that at one time.
And 425 isnt that high? Thats awesome to hear. Thanks for all the advice! I hope you are going along well as well and seeing improvements Are you ??
I’m loving your positivity, Helen. Actually, I am doing pretty well right now. I’m a little tired because of end-of-semester writing (I’m a grad student/instructor), but my digestion and mental energy are gradually improving. In my last class, I was more alert than usual and kept my students on their toes with a lot of hard questions, and they seemed to enjoy the extra challenge.
This has been my diet so far today:
4 shortcake cups with blackberries and a little whipped cream
glass of orange juice
pretzels
2 big spicy tuna sushi rolls
can of soda
sub at subway (cheese plus just about every veggie)
large fountain soda
When I get home, I’ll probably have some spaghetti with tomato, lemon juice, and a bit of mozzarella cheese. Probably by the end of the day Ill have a bit over 700 grams carbohydrates and around 4,000 calories. (Eventually, I may drop down to 3,000 or so.)
I hope to see more posts from you as you continue to improve!
Thanks so much! That was helpful to see your relative intake as something to compare to! I have been feeling absolutely wonderful. Truthfully, I have felt such a sense of freedom around food come back and my used to be sky high levels of anxiety around food that wasnt prepared by me, or had fat…gone! Well, getting better!
I am honestly feeling like my old self again. I can not wait to see my cold hands and feet go away for good, my temperature rise, my insomnia to go away and my energy levels be high again! I can feel it will happen as long as I continue this way! And I definitely continue to do so. It is only that since I have not been killing myself with cardio every day and allowing myself fat again, that I have seen and felt the improvements! I can see my body changing, I can see my legs are ot looking like sticks with no shape anymore, and I am starting to look more womanly (somewhat, even though I dont have hips still haha) but I am starting to see changes, and I like them! A lot. I have also seen an increase in my moods and outlook on life. I just see the positives now, instead of everything that is wrong. All I could focus on when I was malnourished and over exercising was the bad in my life, and how bad I felt all the time. Now that I am giving my body the rest its needed….I am starting to see how great and wonderful my life is and how happy I can be when I feel good! I just have so much more of a love for life when I feel good! This is just amazing
I am so glad that I am starting to see an increase in energy, and all it seemed to take was a few weeks of me stopping my cardio workouts and keeping my intake at 3000 and eating some more fat along with my high carb intake. 700 grams of Carbs is great and makes me feel more normal about my 400! ;) But, you are also getting about double the calories as I am…so all makes total sense :)
Glad to hear things are shaping up for you (literally). Curves are definitely sexy on a woman. Honestly, it sounds like you’re doing amazing and I’m really excited for you.
Like you, I’m limiting exercise for the time being. I plan to start lifting weights again in a few weeks, but probably won’t do any cardio for quite a while. It’s much too draining unless you’re already in a state of robust health.
I’ve thought a lot about happiness and what it takes to be happy. It seems to me that a strong, healthy, well-nourished body is probably the single most important factor. As the Romans said, mens sana in corpore sano (“a healthy mind in a healthy body”). It sounds like we’re both on the way to achieving that goal. I know I still have a lot of healing in front of me, but it’s nice to know I’m moving in the right direction.
It sounds like we are very similar (why I linked to your sotry in the first place!)
But, like you I can not see cardio in my future at all. I know how draining it was on my body, and ow TERRIBLE it made me feel to get to the point to where I am now. I only see eating for health and happiness, and rest in my future.
Sounds like you and I are both on the right track here!
Just wanted to add that I have just finished eating 250 grams of carbs in one sitting and within the last hour, and overall today I inhaled 500 total grams. Right now, am feeling so warm, hot, sweaty, my stomach HURTS it is all pushed out, I am so uncomfortable,….but is the warmth thing normal? Is that meaning something good is happening?! I only averaged 2800 calories today and yet those Carbs were so so very high haha :)
First of all, congrats on eating all those carbs today! I think that carbohydrates are really the key to rebuilding energy levels. You need fat and protein too, but carbohydrates should be the majority of your calories because your body can use them more easily than other macronutrients.
I think the heat and indigestion you’re experiencing are a normal response. Eatopia is useful for this, because the site makes it clear that recovering from restricted eating can have a lot of difficult side effects. That’s why it’s so important to have a support system (just like what we’re doing right now), because it’s easy to relapse when you experience some of the uncomfortable symptoms.
Here are some of the negatives I’ve experienced:
1) Extreme heat. I’ve started sleeping without blankets som nights and my wife says that heat is radiating from my skin. It is definitely uncomfortable sometimes, and I hope it will balance out as my metabolism regularizes.
2) Digestive problems. This has included bloating, gurgling, bowel irregularity, flatulence, burping, and heart burn. This has started to regulate recently, but it was horrible at first.
3) Muscle soreness. For the first few weeks of re-feeding, my muscles ached, especially my leg muscles, and it made it hard for me to sleep. This has become much better. I think I was experiencing growing pains as my muscles recovered.
4) Lethargy. I often just want to lie around and do nothing. (To be honest, I’m not sure if this is much different from before re-feeding!) I expect my energy levels to start increasing in the next month or so.
5) My gut. I can’t deny I have a pot belly now, which is not normal for me. I’ve read this is quite common in the early stages of recovery, and that it tends to reduce after your body realizes you won’t starve it anymore.
I really hate experiencing these side effects, but I think it’s a necessary step. I’m also experiencing plenty of positives, which include boosts in confidence, sexual energy, muscle growth, social enjoyment, and mood. I hope to see the positives continue to increase, while the negatives decrease.
By the way, here’s my diet for today.
Breakfast:
Sliced tomato and mozzarella on half a loaf of french bread
Can of soda
Lunch:
All-you-can-eat sushi (fish, vegetables, heaps of rice)
Two glasses of soda
Dinner;
Huge bowl of spaghetti w/ tomato sauce, chicken, and mozzarella
Glass of orange juice
I have no idea what my totals were today, but I guess I was around 700 grams of carbohydrates again. Tomorrow I plan to try a smoothie for breakfast, with several bananas and some milk.
David- thank you so much for posting everything! I have actually been following Eatopia for about 7 months now, I upped my calories to 3000 but continued the exercise, for most of that time. Although I had periods of a few weeks when I would stop the cardio (and I did notice all those things you noticed as side effects) and my body went through all of them. So, I did kno what to expect this time around because I went through it before, I just never continued with it….which is why I never got better. I never let myself. So, now that I am continuing with it I hope to continue to see progress! I am going through this whole thing again–so even with an increase in calories, it’s always pure REST your body needs for repair clearly! The body cant fix anything while it is using all the surplus calories for working out.
So, hopefully now I will continue to see improvements! Thanks again for clearing up why carbs are so important, and why such a big (well almost all of my intake) is carbs! thank you for posting your intake! Thats helpful!
I have actually been doing bags of pretzels each day (like 6 serving bags), 4 bagels a day, 3 sandwiches on wheat bread, and veggies, 3-4 granola bars a day and 4 bowls of oatmeal haha :)
” Lethargy. I often just want to lie around and do nothing. (To be honest, I’m not sure if this is much different from before re-feeding!) I expect my energy levels to start increasing in the next month or so.”
Oh yea…same here, and this is no different from how I have felt for the last 4 years of my restriction and exercise addiction…this is what became of that mess. I could never function, and coulndt do anything.
But, lately I have been feeling loads better and having SO MUCH ENERGY!
Has anyone experienced excessive dryness of skin and itchiness all over their legs, back and bellies while rrarfing? I am doing well in every other way except that I feel like I am moulting or something. Sometimes I just can’t focus on what people are saying or what is going on because I am too preoccupied with not wanting to scratch my back or legs. Help!
Matt, what kind of help or assistance do you offer in your one-on-one sessions? I know you prefer not to be too specific about dietary recommendations but can clients run their dietary history by you and get suggestions on what would work to get their individual metabolism up? Thanks.
Ranjani,
For sure, going over dietary history and coming up with some tailored ideas and recommendations is definitely a part of a consultation. The benefit of a one on one is that specific recommendations are possible based on an individual’s likes, needs, background, etc., and are not the shot in the dark that generalized mass prescriptions tend to be.
Not sure about itching specifically, but skin issues sometimes crop up during metabolic rehab, and are not necessarily a sign that you need to switch tracks. Others might be able to speak more directly to it, though.
i LOVE
I LOVE salads… but my idea of a salad is romaine hearts, spinach, a good serving of some spicy as hell chicken or steak, a heap of guacamole and a good amount of pico de gallo. all homemade. I used to add brown rice to it, but I really am sensitive to grain and end up really bloated and icky when i eat them =(
Hey Matt or Garrett… I am in the beginning of the CHEK Institute and follow you and the Rubins all the time. Love you and Garrett’s stuff, and the sense of humor really resonates with me. I went through a green juice phase, paleo phase, Peat phase, and a not giving a fuck phase. It seems to me that calories matter the most to you. Organic, non-GMO, local, etc… don’t seem to be talked about as much as getting the right amount of calories and not over-hydrating. So after all the experimenting I still have possible gluten and dairy issues. When consumption of them is high, I never have a nice solid log drop into the toilet. During my milk phase, I don’t think I had one good looking Mr. Hanky the entire time! Just soft, loafy, stinky garbage coming out. Plus I developed terrible eczema like symptoms on my hands and my finger nails became striated and extremely unhealthy looking. Not sparing the details here…sorry. Can you clarify if you really think we can just eat our way to proper digestion and vibrant energy by consuming whatever we want? I know you hate the “optimal foods” vs. “sub-optimal foods” vocabulary, but why do things I hear from the Stone side of things mess me up my digestion. I know you and Josh Rubin were in contact nutritionally for some time, and he seems to be all about food logging to see how certain foods make you feel/sleep/operate. What is your stance on that? I read the “Paleo Code”, and still feel confused by your stance now after all the research you’ve done.
I don’t think there’s really a cut and dry answer. My first approach would be to try to get past those sensitivities without removing them from the diet. Often something can be off metabolically or otherwise that can cause hypersensitivity, and this hypersensitivity can be overcome. In other cases, it can’t. Food logging can be useful but it can also be limiting, not to mention a real drag. But I wouldn’t be quick to restrict. But I wouldn’t be stubborn about cutting foods out of your diet if you clearly can’t get past the bad reactions to them. Gnomesayin?
It is all very individualized… I huuuuuurrrrd dat. I was just wondering if there were hints or advice you gave clients of yours who struggled with the same issues. I listened to your interview with Garrett about the mineral analysis ratio and heard that some people who are metabolically low are drowning in calcium, so I thought maybe I was overdoing it with all the milk and cheese and whatnot since my metabolism might be shitty. Another big issue of mine is being underweight (I’m 6′ 4″ and weigh 170lbs) with chronic low back disk/SI joint instability and stiffness. I am working of fixing all the postural problems, but I feel that after 10 years (I am only 27), it would of started to fix itself if I was giving my body what it wanted to heal. I know stiffness, joint pain, and underweight can be symptoms of thyroid stuff, so that is why I am so crazy about what works for me and what doesn’t. The constant aches and stiffness have STRESSED me the fuck out for the past 10 years and run a lot of my life. I just want to get to a healthy weight, get my digestion back, and make this bullshit ache in my low left back/hip/leg to go away! It is quite the journey.
I like point of the article but the sad thing is when I share it, most instantly find it sexist and lose the message. Articles like these do not draw in the newbies, especially overweight women.
I guess I shouldn’t have dropped the preface that mentioned this article was written for a men’s magazine. It wasn’t meant to draw in women.