After the How to Start Intermittent Fasting post and The Diet to End all Diets post, there was a lot of interest in my oatmeal volcanoes and protein pudding. So I ventured into video land and played Emeril Lagasse for a few days. Enjoy!
No, seriously. Make both and enjoy them.
Just don’t fall in love too quickly and eat too many volcanoes in one day. (Like I did on Tuesday.)
Share to all oatmeal lovers, please. You owe it to them.
Hey Leopards,
Today’s Mwod highlights the fact that we have to strive to: Make sure mobilizations look like the movements we are trying to improve and, remember that we often stabilize and change directions during movements (ie. during the re-dip portion of the jerk, the hand/bar complex becomes a closed chain movement).
So, today’s Mwod fixes the hand, and uses the shoulder as the tensioner. Simple.
Remember: Your time is precious so don’t be afraid to combine techniques.
Test/Retest: Anything overheaded in nature
Click here to view the embedded video.
Kstar
In 1972 a plane crashed in the Andes Mountains. Living on heavily rationed wine, minuscule chunks of chocolate, and slivers of human flesh, 16 of the 45 passengers made it out alive.
And you’re telling me twenty-four hours without food is unbearable?
The body is capable of remarkable things. And despite what everyone used to think, it’s capable of surviving – perhaps even to the point of thriving – in a state of hunger.
What follows is my escapade through the popular methods of fasting, finishing with my long term eating “plan.” Try keeping your eyeballs in their sockets, please.
CURRENT FLAVOR OF FASTINGLately, I’ve fielded a lot of questions about my nutritional habits. It’s a tough issue to tackle because, all things considered, it’s ever-changing.
At the moment, I eat one meal per day, late at night. And if I’m ever unbearably hungry I suck it up until 4:00PM, upon wherein I’ll have a small serving of vegetables.
This is the Warrior Diet, or whatever freakish mutation I’ve made of it.
It’s been great.
Except for when it’s been bad.
And bad it’s been at times.
Bad to the point of pulling the plug, even.
But before I slop that on you, let’s first find out why I’ve succumbed to what society sees as starvation.
BENEFITS OF INTERMITTENT FASTINGThanks to Simon Sinek, I’m a big believer in starting with why.
Why intentionally not eat and live in hunger?
Few ask this question before picking up the glass of Kool-Aid. The answer surely isn’t because intermittent fasting is the only pathway to results. People use methods in stark contrast to intermittent fasting and still get big, strong, and ripped. Precision Nutrition is a prime example of this.
And from a broad perspective, intermittent fasting is rather logical.
Martin Berkhan’s 16/8 fasting scheme condenses a day’s worth of calories into three bigger meals. Ori Hofmekler’s Warrior Diet combines a day’s worth of calories into one big meal. Brad Pilon’s Eat Stop Eat cuts out calories from a few meals that would otherwise be consumed. John Romaniello’s Feast Fast cuts out an entire day’s worth of calories.
It seems thermodynamics – calories in versus calories out – is winning.
…Or is it?
INTERMITTENT FASTING AND BODY COMPOSITIONConsidering the forefathers of intermittent fasting are jacked and ripped, it sure is compelling for body recomposition.
But there may be more than thermodynamics to thank for this, like fasting boosting growth hormone, as explained by Brad Pilon. And Martin Berkhan surely isn’t lacking client testimonials.
Then there are anecdotes from the majority of fitness folk. Since writing about IF, many people have told me fasting was a key ingredient in getting them as lean as they ever have been.
There are a few hiccups here though. For instance, Martin Berkhan also recommends carbohydrate cycling. This undoubtedly has an effect on body composition. And people may simply be eating less after switching to intermittent fasting, since cramming six meals worth of calories into three is challenging at first.
But we can at least say intermittent fasting isn’t a negative in the body composition column.
INTERMITTENT FASTING AND LIFESTYLEPsychologically, it’s reassuring to know that hunger isn’t going to melt our muscles like the Wizard of Oz under a bucket of water.
This is reason enough to give fasting a go as a beeping watch alarm every three hours in reminder of “meal time” isn’t a fun way of living.
It’s also nice knowing some food in the stomach and feeling “good” isn’t going to be “bad.”
INTERMITTENT FASTING AND COGNITION
There’s a group of people that theorize creativity skyrockets during times of hunger. Hell, even Scott Adams – illustrator of famed comic, Dilbert – has his own take on breakfast and creativity. Starving may not be such a bad thing for the artist.
The rationale for this is that primitive man needed to be creative in times of hunger to find food. So when you open your fridge and find nothing but scraps, you’re more apt to concoct a conglomeration of ingredients that don’t really make sense. A banana, celery, and bleu cheese omelette? Whatever.
SO…WHY THE WARRIOR DIET?Great. Fasting is pretty cool. And good for us. But most fasting data is non-specific to the methods used. A fast is simply a prolonged period of time without food. What separates 16 from 20 from 24 from 40 hour fasts?
I’m not sure anyone knows. One or two weekly 24 hours fasts may be “enough,” as Brad Pilon suggests.
Most everyone settles for the Leangains 16/8 fasting scheme because it’s easy. But 24 hours without food? A little daunting.
I ventured away from Leangains because it seems optimized for physique athletes and recreational weightlifters. But as my sport schedule increases, Leangains causes conflict — a balance I struggled meshing last year.
This led me to the Warrior Diet.
INTERMITTENT FASTING ON PERFORMANCEMost fasting studies only examine immediate exercise in a fasted state. In other words: fast, exercise, get the hell out of the research facility.
But what if you exercise twice in one day? What if you exercise later in the day? Does the formula change? And most importantly – how does fasting affect performance extending beyond the bounds of barbells?
[Note: This topic is an entire article in itself. And yes, I’ve already began writing and researching.]
The hallmark studies done on performance and fasting involve athletes observing Ramadan – a practice of restricting both food and drink during daylight hours.
Many studies and stories reveal athletes of all shapes and sizes doing just fine without food and drink during the day. Yes, food and drink.
So that’s the first issue to consider. Not only are these studies examining food fasting, they’re also examining hydration fasting. And you have to think that athletes would undoubtedly perform better with some kind of hydration, even without food.
Ramadan is essentially the Warrior Diet, and one of the big reasons why I experimented with it. And, in general, performance can be maintained without immediate pre or post-workout nutrition.
A DISCLAIMER OF EXPERIENCEBefore I get to the meat here, I want to remind you of just how much work went into this. This article is more than two days worth of writing and editing 2,000 some words. This is years of experimentation.
Below is the progression of my diet.
6 meals per day – Summer 2006 4 meals per day – Summer 2010 4 meals, 2 snacks per day – Fall 2010 2 meals per day – Winter 2011 (broken foot) 2 meals per day, carbohydrate cycling with Feast Fast Method – Fall 2011 2 meals per day, Eat Stop Eat twice per week – Winter 2012 1 meal per day, Warrior Diet experiments – Spring 2012So this has been curating for years. And that’s how most of my knowledge blossoms: through years of trials, tribulations, and failures.
Here’s the story from the most relevant starting point.
BROKEN FOOT = CAN’T COOK
In 2011, I began intermittent fasting. My diet was simple: eggs, meats, vegetables, and protein shakes. I ate two meals per day: the first at noon, the second at dinner time.
Late 2011, I started carb cycling. My carb cycling methods were uber complex. In fact, try not to have your eyes dangle from their sockets trying to comprehend this.
High carb days, reserved for training days: oats, lean meats, protein shakes, and fruits. Low carb days, reserved for off days: fatty meats, eggs, vegetables, protein power.
Crazy, I know.
Again, I ate twice per day and saw great gains. But here’s why I momentarily switched to the Warrior Diet. (To be fair, I only handled the Warrior Diet strictly for a week, with daily experimentation happening a week or two prior.)
On Leangains, once I broke the fast, my creativity went downhill. On post workout days, I often wanted to nap after my first meal—not ideal considering I have games 3-4 nights per week and live and die by my creative mind.
So I did a few beta tests and found that 95% of the time I performed better on an empty stomach than compared to having a meal beforehand. Make it 99% if the meal had a decent amount of carbs. But sometimes it’s more about performance.
WARRIOR DIET NEGATIVES The night time feeling of fullness is overbearing. This is coming from a guy that has no problems eating a 12 egg omelette with accompanying side dishes. I’m pushing my stomach’s comfort barriers to fit in calories. My digestive system used to be ace, but it’s having some troubles. Despite the Warrior Diet claiming to optimize nervous system function and subsequent sleeping patterns, I found it disruptive (something a lot of studies confirm too). I get strong hunger pangs earlier in the day. My stomach feels weird at times, almost like it’s having difficulties processing things. Vegetables become secondary because they add tremendous food volume without caloric density. Around 2 or 3PM, I find myself glancing at the clock, anxious about eating. Any non-huge meal becomes moot and worthless, leaving you hungry. I’m more apt to have an extra cup of coffee to curb hunger. It renders me useless at night after you eat. I feel like Jabba the Hutt after my meal. I’m used to going for a walk around 8-9PM. But I can’t unless someone rolls me.
Pictured above: Three chicken breasts, peppers, six eggs with cheese, 1500 calories worth of oatmeal volcano, three scoops worth of protein lava pudding (all volcanoes have lava, duh), cottage cheese (not pictured) was also down the hatch. And if you look in the top right hand corner, you can see part of my gamorrean guard mug. Awesome.
THE BIG CONCLUSION – MY GREATEST GAINSI only expose my Warrior woes to help you hone in on why I eat the way I do now. I don’t want my life to become a slave to an eating pattern. But going through the entire experience has absolutely shaped how I will eat in the future, so it did have purpose.
The greatest gains of my life have come from eating two meals per day using the complicated carb cycling technique (details below). But the lifestyle freedom the Warrior Diet provided is something I want in my life. It didn’t lock in the psychological aspect eating habits until the end of the day. In other words, thing weren’t planned.
I could hang out with friends, cook anything on the grill, and enjoy myself because the first meal was the only meal. I started with a clean slate. Last week, I worked, trained, coached my little cousin, had two games, and didn’t get home until 11:30PM. A day like this screams high carbohydrate. But I wasn’t “feeling” it. So I cooked up some eggs, vegetables, and enjoyed a glass of wine to end the night – something I never did before.
Since I seem to respond well to — and enjoy — two meals per day, moving forward I’m going to make my first meal loads of vegetables and lean meats simply because it leaves freedom in my late meal. I’m not doing this per recent ravings about carbohydrate back loading or any of that junk. I’m doing it because it gives me a lifestyle freedom I have longed for and will also leave “room” in my stomach to perform well.
So here are the goods. The specifics — what you wanted 2,000 words ago.
HIGH CARBOHYDRATE DAYS (2-4 days per week)12-2PM – First meal
A) Lean meats, cottage cheese, vegetables, eggs (eggs excluded if lifestyle freedom adhered to)
or
B) If the mood strikes: 1000-1500 calorie oatmeal volcano, some lean meat, three scoops of protein lava
6-8PM – Second Meal
If B earlier, then either A or B.
If A earlier, definitely B.
LOW CARBOHYDRATE DAYS (3-4 days per week)12PM – First Meal
A) Lean meats, cottage cheese, eggs, vegetables (eggs excluded if lifestyle freedom adhered to)
6-8PM – Second Meal
B) Fattier meat, eggs, vegetables, cheeses, nuts, etc…
THE BREAKDOWN
The diet above is so simple, but the key is being able to eat enough. Again, I have a deeper stomach than most so I can take down 1,000 – 2,000 calories in one sitting.
I have a six egg daily minimum rule that means exactly what it reads. Eggs are one of the few foods that can sneak into high carbohydrate days because I enjoy them that much. (Omelette pride.)
If two meals are overwhelming, break things down into three meals per day at your convenience. Center each meal around protein.
Here’s a big tip. Huge tip, actually. Base the totality of your diet around getting at least one pound of meat, six eggs, and three protein shakes down every day.
It’s a recommendation passed down to me from a bodybuilder friend. Do that, and you’re on the right path. On hardcore training days, down more starchy and simple carbs. On off days, down more vegetables. That’s about as complicated as it needs to be at first.
….BREATHEUltimately, diet is just like training. The best plans are the one that fit with your lifestyle and psychology.
Looking back, this article it turned into more of a conglomeration of how my diet came to be instead of a “specific plan.” So if you’re interested, I’ll scrape up the details make a post about a more “solid” plan. Just drop a comment below. Likewise, ask questions! I’d love to hear from you. And be sure to share the article if you think your friends would be interested, as this diet is simple and cost effective.Remember: two meals, one pound of meat, six eggs, and three protein shakes. Do that, and you’re on the right path.
