Journal of a Weary Dragon page 8

[Ddraig Goch]

Nightshades

Am adding this post here as a note to me really. This forum is the first place I have heard of vegetables being part of the nightshade family. Whilst looking for how to grind eggshells (natural calcium supplement) I came across this one for making homemade food for dogs & cats

What Vegetables Should Not Be Fed To Dogs and Cats

& they have a list of nightshades:

• beets
• collard
• eggplants
• green peppers
• parsley
• potatoes
• onions (toxic to dogs and cats)
• chives (toxic to dogs and cats)
• garlic (toxic to dogs and cats)
• tomatoes
• spinach
• Swiss chard

Most importantly I didn’t realize onions are toxic for dogs & that parsley & spinach are nightshades

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Calcium Supplement

Came across this article today, which suggests 1240mg calcium increases fat excretion. I am currently taking 800mg (with Vit D) & was going to stop when I had finished the bottle, as I’m sure I read in one of Marks posts that you shouldn’t take it as a supplement. Also the pills are very large & are the only tablets I have had trouble swallowing – it takes a bit of time to get used to them. A final reason for stopping is that they are calcium carbonate rather than the more absorbable calcium citrate

Effect of calcium from dairy and dietary supplement... [Obes Rev. 2009] - PubMed - NCBI

NB: One thing I have learnt re supplements – most are useless & a waste of money & the RDA% are usually woefully inadequate. Some seems to be making an awful lot of money out of giving people duff information.

Have started looking at the Vit & mineral content in food & will try to get enough that way else I will have to get some calcium citrate.

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Intermittent Fasting

I’ve also been doing some better research into IF. From the experimentation I have been doing this month I have liked IF but I wanted to know more about it so that I could still incorporate it into my n=1 along with SLD etc.

The best site I have found is leangains in which Martin Berkhan talks about his difference IF protocols. The Leangains Guide | Intermittent fasting diet for fat loss, muscle gain and health


The one that interests me is his early morning fasted training protocol as that is the best fit for me (especially when I get the exercise ramped up).

Basically the protocol is as follows:

6 AM: 5-15 minutes pre-workout: 10 g BCAA.
6-7 AM: Training.
8 AM: 10 g BCAA.
10 AM: 10 g BCAA
12-1 PM: The "real" post-workout meal (largest meal of the day). Start of the 8-hour feeding-window.
8-9 PM: Last meal before the fast. NB: these timings are for men – women's IF window is 2hr longer)

I have already heard that BCAA is the way to go rather than whey (at least until I get down to HSIS) &so this protocol makes complete sense to me. For the sake of convenience, he recommends getting BCAA in the form of powder and not tabs. Simply mix 30 g of BCAA powder in a shake and drink one third of it every other hour starting 5-15 minutes pre-workout. Apparently tabs are cheaper, but much more of a hassle (you're going to have to pop a lot of tabs – where have I heard that one before?). Not interested in cost yet as I don’t think I will need to worry too much for a couple of months until I get to a point where I can start training with weights again (shoulder needs to heal first).

He gave a really god interview outlining his views here:

Leigh Peele » Blog Archive » Martin Berkhan And Intermittent Fasting: Interview

The best IF window for women is 14hrs apparently

He explains why protein shakes aren't good for you & why breakfast is not necessary to keep the metabolism revving, something that has been worrying me about IF:

Martin Berkhan - Scorch Through Your Fat Loss Plateau - Fitness Black Book

Warning: Martin Berkhan is VERY anti Low Carb & VERY pro high protein so some of what he says need s to be taken with a pinch of salt

Another book to add to the list will be Eat, Stop Eat by brad pilon

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Managed to duplicate the previous post so have edited it out

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Still wrestling with which oil to use for SLD. Everyone sees to have the best results with Extra Light Olive Oil (ELOO) but my problem with this as I have said before is that a) it is refined, b) it is often mixed with other oils (as with the horse meat scandal who can be sure what the label says?).

The other popular one is refined CO but again I don’t fancy this as it is refined & one of the reasons for taking CO is the health benefits.

Walnut Oil just has too much omega-6 to be consumed in huge quantities although I do like it with endive – in fact walnuts are off my list altogether now for that very reason.

Why fish stomps flax as a source of omega-3

How too much omega-6 and not enough omega-3 is making us sick

How much omega-3 is enough? That depends on omega-6.

Coconut Oil Health Benefits | Mark's Daily Apple

Healthy Oils | Mark's Daily Apple

In the SLD book there is a chart that lists the different type of oils people use & how many people have trouble with them (thanks PaloMum)

Percentage of Users Having Trouble
Walnut - 8%
Extra Light Olive Oil - 25%
Grapeseed - 33%
Canola - 40%
Coconut - 66%

Apparently he also says s people taking it after a meal rather than before also reported a higher success rate.

Having read most of the SLD thread in MDA & shovelqueen's thread on the SLD forum it is obviously no magic bullet but & hasn’t helped with the late night munchies but that is probably a mind thing. (Have just put Jon Gabriel’s book on my Amazon list to help with the mind games

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1...A1V1IN1EONI40O

It also seems that it can take several weeks if you are young (no) female (ok yes) & near your ideal BMI (5 points off so no) but I’m taking the CO anyway & it helps with meal timings so I’ll continue to include it in my n=1 for now

PS: found this interesting lecture that Seth Roberts gave re his n=1 with butter & other fats

"What foods make my brain work best?" by Seth Roberts, PhD on Vimeo

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12 weeks of n=1

WARNING: this is my own personal n=1. It does not adhere to any individual WOE or method but is an amalgamation of research & mini experiments I have undergone over the past 4 weeks to try to find whats right for me.

Taking everything I have learnt over the past week I am now ready to put the flesh on my N=1.

1) Macros will be as previously stated:

Protein 46g (184 cals) to start, incremented by 5g up to 62g if my LBM goes down
Carbs 5g (20 cals) from eggs, spinach & Mac nuts only
Fat 80% 90g (816 cals)

Total cals 1130* (this number has nothing to do with BMR, it is simply an arbitrary figure based on the Carb/Protein/Fat combinations above & is my starting point). If no weight loss after a week then I will up the CO by 7g (50 cals) up to a max of 1250cals when I will revamp my menu plans.

NB: The reason for starting with a low cal count is as follows:
- When doing the fat fast I was able to survive comfortably on 1000 cals
- At the end of the day, whatever WOE is used, it is necessary to have a calorie deficiency to lose weight, the bigger the deficiency the faster the weight loss. The counter to this is than too low & the body switches to starvation mode & metabolism slows down so weight loss stalls.
- There are numerous ways of calculating BMR so any figure used to start with is arbitrary.

2) Tbsp refined CO will be used as per the Shangri-La Diet protocol to suppress the appetite and (maybe) lower my set point– cant hurt as I’m going to be taking the CO for health reasons anyway

3) A 14 hr IF window will be maintained:

- For health reasons
- To give me the mindset not to eat inappropriately in the evenings
- To make living on a restricted calorie input easier

4) The LeanGains early morning fasted training protocol will be used as the basis for the meal plan:

6:00 1/4 unwaxed lemon with hot water first thing
6:30 5-15 minutes pre-workout: 10 g BCAA with am supplements
6:30–7:00 Exercise.
7:00 1 tbsp ACV in 250ml warm water
8:00 10 g BCAA.
10:00 10 g BCAA
11:00 1 tbsp CO – 1^st SLD shot (start of 10hr feed window)
12:00-13:00 meal 1 - chicken bone broth supplemented with unsalted butter
13:00-15:00 meal 2 – tinned fish with EVOO & fresh parsley & coriander
16:00 1 tbsp CO – 2^nd SLD shot
17:30-20:00 meal 3 – either ground turkey & spinach or cheese & spinach omelette with Mac nuts
17:30-20:00 1/4 unwaxed lemon with 1/4 tsp cayenne in hot water at least 1/2hr before HCWC
20:00-21:00 HCWC - Last meal before the fast

(NOTES ON MEAL PLAN:

a) Hot lemon - good for liver cleanse

b) AVC – acts as a detox, breaks up mucus in the body, helps control appetite, aids digestion & helps with clear skin & hair (ACV has a unique blend of vitamins, minerals and enzymes. It also possesses antimicrobial and antiseptic properties

c) BCAA only started once heavy lifting or primal sprints included in exercise plan)

d) Fish increases DHA, which acts as an anti-inflammatory & is rich in selenium & Vit D

e) CO aides sleep, good for the skin & has many health benefits

f) Parsley, coriander & spinach – very low carb, high antioxidants, vits & minerals

g) Turkey boosts metabolism & acts as an appetite suppressant

h) Hot lemon & 1/4 tsp cayenne - detox drink. No physical activity for 1/2hr afterwards. Cayenne has lots of health benefits http://www.cayennepepper.info/lemon-...tox-drink.html

i) Limited menu choice makes it easier to ensure correct macros, manage protein & calorie increments with minimal thought & prep. Less time to fixate on food (or lack of it)

5) Results & Evaluation:

- Daily macros will be recorded & posted here weekly together with sleep length
- Weight & LBM will be recorded daily & the Diet Hacker Trend Chart used to track changes.
- The Monday Trend weight will be posted as the official weight for the week along with any change in LBM
- The exercise plan will be recorded & posted here weekly
- A monthly report will be posted on the EMF thread along with a copy of the monthly trend chart
- Measurements will be taken at the end of each defined period (4-5 weeks) & the BF based on the US Army & Navy formulas will be computed & included in the post to the EMF thread, along with the success (or otherwise) of the exercise program
- At the end of each defined period the cals in v cals out feedback loop will be reviewed & calorie input adjusted accordingly based on av weekly weight loss & hunger (not less than 1000 cals per day & no more than 1 ½ lb Trend weight av loss per week after first 4 weeks)
- For every day completed on the exercise program I will give myself 50p towards my ketone monitor or bulk buy of gelatin (depends what is freaking me out more) Full completion of a period will add £10. Full completion over the 12 weeks & I will add a further £25

6) Exercise

- The Diet Hacker 15min exercise ladder will be done Sun- Fri starting at rung 1 (limited by shoulder injury)
- Sun/Tue/Thu - Novice 5k Programme on TM at 60-70% Max HR
- Mon/Wed/Fri – Hip Mobility exercises / Squats / Shoulder exercises
- 5-6mi walk 6 days a week

So for the next 12 weeks I shall be doing & recording rather than lurking & posting

UPDATE 27/2
1) *Cals moved up to 1130 (from 1023) because I had been miscalculating the value of double cream, which put the number up for the first 2 days. As the original cal number was arbitrary anyway, its more important to stick with the same number everyday, 1130 is it

2) Not doing exercise for first 4 weeks – struggling with shoulder & work right now so don’t need the extra stress. Also I want to see what difference exercising makes so I need a sedentary (walking only) baseline

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Hey, where are you coming up with how many calories that you are supposed to be eating? They seem rather low.

Hi Neanderthal Betty Sorry I missed your post before now.

Prior to my new n=1 I have always determined my cals using my BMR based on my LBM not overall or HSIS weight

BMR = 370+21.6*LBM (kg) which gets me to 1370 approx. I ignore my activity level (very sedentary at the moment), preferring to use that as my deficit.

However, I have always had a big problem getting my head around the fact that I should be eating a much as 1370 cals. Anything more than `1250 on any sort of eating plan freaks me out.

At the end of the day, any calculation is a guess so my new n=1 will use the Diet Hacker’s idea of trending & closed loops to determine the actual calorie burn & go from there.

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Week 4 Round-Up

Have not kept the full weeks numbers – cals all over the place but the macros have all been at least 80% fat, protein 30-46g, carbs 2-3%. The problem has been too many cals.

Sleep has been an issue this week as well as I’ve gone back to late nights on the computer. This has led to kitchen raids so IF has gone out of the window. However, when I do go to bed I go to sleep pretty quick & am not waking in the night so that's something of a minor miracle.

I’ve also noticed my bad knee is been aching (usually if I don’t exercise it starts to ache badly). I know I’ve been on painkillers for the shoulder when it becomes unbearably but I don’t think its that.

I’m e4ven contemplating starting my TM program without eh knee brace. We shall see how it goes.

Excited to be starting my 12 week n=1 today. Yesterday became one of those ‘I’m going on a diet tomorrow so I’ll eat everything now’ Kind of days. I must have eaten triple my normal cals easily. Most of it fat.

Still, a new day begins today & I really want this new experiment to work. Partly because of the way I’m going to record it and because of the closed loop approach I know it will give me some real answers if I do it right.

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Its been 4 days since I started n=1. Tracking to a specific number of cals makes the whole over eating thing much easier as it makes me more disciplined. Yesterday I had a job getting all the cals in as I was out most of the day & forgot my lunch bag. Because I am working to a strict number of cals I had to eat them all but it was a struggle. I also went to bed early so wasn’t going to get my 2^nd oil shot in. Not being able to face CO for the sake of it last night I had an extra HCWC to make up the cals but it was hard work.

NB: I use an excel spreadsheet in place of myfitnesspal & yesterday realised that some of the calorie counts were wrong i.e. the cal count of an item was way different to adding up Cg x 4 + Pg x 4 + Fg x 9. Most are out by 1 or 2 (lots of foods contain ash etc which are not included in calories. In the UK fibre isn’t either hence the slight difference) but some were just wrong. Have now fixed this and added a checksum to flag up problems in the future so my daily cals are up slightly on what I expected.

Weekly averages so far Cals 1131 Pg 47 Cg 6 Fg 102 Ratio 17-2-82

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12 week n=1 experiment
Protein 46g (sedentary female), Carb 5g, Fat 80%, Cals 1130 incl 30g Coconut Oil. If LBM lost move up a protein level. If Wt Loss stalls add extra 7g (56 cal) coconut oil

Start Weight: 174lb BMI: 28.03 BF: 40.7% Water: 43.2% LBM: 55.6% LBM: 103.2lb

Update: Week 1 of n=1

Mon 25-Feb Cals: 1170 Protein: 47g Ratio: 16-2-82 Sleep: 5.5hr/awake/ 45min
Tue 26-Feb Cals: 1175 Protein: 47g Ratio: 16-2-82 Sleep: forgot to track
Wed 27-Feb Cals: 1046 Protein: 46g Ratio: 18-2-80 Sleep: 4.5hr, bed late, woken by alarm
Thu 28-Feb Cals: 1126 Protein: 42g Ratio: 15-2-83 Sleep: 5.5hr/awake/ 45min
Fri 01-Mar Cals: 979 Protein: 44g Ratio: 18-2-80 Sleep: 5hr+30mn+1hr30
Sat 02-Mar Cals: 1114 Protein: 42g Ratio: 15-2-83 Sleep: 7hr straight
Sun 03-Mar Cals: 1287 Protein: 47g Ratio: 15-2-83 Sleep: 7hr straight

Weekly Average: Cals: 1129 Protein: 45g Ratio: Av % (16-2-82)

Weight: 170lb Loss: -4 BMI: 27.39 BF: 40% Water: 42.7% LBM: 56.5% LBM: 102lb

Comments
1) On the Monday I tried ACV in water – 1 tbsp ACV in 500ml water. Yuk. Couldn’t get motivated to try again. Goal for week 2: 1tbsp AVC in small glass of cold water before dinner


2) On the Monday I also tried 1tsp Cayenne in hot water with lemon. Double Yuk & Ouch. I only managed ½ the cup then checked – turns out I should only be using ¼ tsp then work up over time. I can’t really imagine taking it in the morning it would ruin the whole day so I’m going to try taking it in the evening before dinner (apparently it is better to drink it 1/2 hr before doing any exercise so this time would be perfect). I will just have to wait for the taste to go before having dinner. Goal for week 2: 1/8 tbsp cayenne with ¼ lemon in small cup of hot water before dinner

3) I read that its better to take the first oil shot for SLD after a meal. Also I want take the second shot last thing at night to help with the IF so have been taking the 1^st shot mid morning. However, I haven’t been very good at getting the second shot in, mainly as I’ve been going to bed early due to this wretched shoulder & back pain so haven’t had an hr between diner & bed. Will see how I get on next week but I am more interested in sorting the pain out first, Also I have switched to using refined CO in the morning (I use KTC which is supposed to be as pure as you can get) with the intention of using virgin CO at night.

4) I have tried really hard to get the calories exact this week but it hasn’t quite worked out. Hence I ate extra cals on Sunday to ensure the weekly average was more or less correct). Goal for week 2: Stick to the meal plans & consistent daily calorie intake.

NB: Cals were up on Sunday to get my average cal number right for the week - this moved my scale weight up slightly when it had been decreasing all week so 1250 cals seems to be my sticking point. Will know better when I get more data.

5) Although I lost LBM this week I will keep the calorie & protein count the same, as I want a few weeks worth of data before I change anything. Also it was TOM this week so that may throw things out. IF the LBM loss is as large next week I will reconsider but I would like to do 4 weeks with the same numbers if I can.