Hi Ashley,
You said:
> That was me. It definitely *wasn't* the initial shift into ketosis,
> this was months into me eating paleo, and I was eating a LOT of
> fruit. It wasn't ketosis cycling either, I've done that
> several times
> since and it gives me a headache but not muscle weakness.
Okay. Clearly I was wrong on that point.
(snip) Often when I got home my main
> meal would be a turkey leg (virtually no fat at all) and some
> veg, and
> the first thing I'd do after eating one would be to raid the fruit
> basket to satisfy the crucifying hunger it gave me. When I
> started my
> first permanent job (in an office this time), I used to binge
> on dried
> fruit to try and get some energy, but I would still have days
> where it
> was a physical effort to get out of my chair.
Okay..... I'm convinced that the problem was insufficient fat, but why would
you go to that extreme? Cordain recommends 25% fat. It appears that you were
eating very, very little fat.
> Anyway, back to me. Eventually I abandoned the lean meat idea. It
> was pretty scary, seeing how everyone was (and is) saying
> that eating
> animal fat will give you a heart attack down the road, but I figured
> if the Inuit lived healthily off a diet of almost pure meat and fat,
> the fat-heart theory *must be wrong*.
I certainly agree with you there.
>
> So I started eating loads of mince meat, fatty pork leg
> joints etc. I
> went way out the other way - I'd hunt through every pack of meat in
> the supermarket looking for big slabs of fat, and anything I
> fried got
> soaked in dripping. Result - no more hunger or muscle weakness.
>
> Maybe for some reason I have higher fat requirements than
> most people
> - my metabolism isn't in the best shape, although it's a lot better
> than it was. But I'm absolutely certain that it was lack of
> fat that
> was doing it, and not in any way related to ketosis. And the
> lack of
> fat was solely down to following Cordain's recommendation of eating
> lean meat.
I do remember something about that in some of his writing, but most of what
I've seen of his says 25% fats.
If I remember correctly, he is focused on omega 3 & 6 and unsaturated fats.
I've always considered that a miscue. I find that I am my healthiest when I
eat all kinds of fats.
> Hence (a) my cautious attitude to his
> interpretation of a
> paleo diet and (b) my almost fanatical habit of reminding anyone
> embarking on a paleo (or low carb) diet to EAT FAT.
Like you, I embrace fats. Maybe they aren't the best choice for everyone,
but they do seem to be better for me. I usually carry about 5 pounds more
than I need, and it is on my torso. I can lose the belly in a week just by
reducing my carb intake.
Unfortunately, I have a strong attraction to sweets. I miss them terribly.
After a meal I will get up and wander around the kitchen trying to see
something that will quell my sweet tooth. When I do break down and eat
something sweet, I unleash a daemon that keeps after me to keep on feeding
it. I suspect that is the root of much of the obesity out there. I can
certainly sympathize.
Although fats seem to provide me with all the energy I need, and I savor the
flavor of fats, I sure wish it was true that carbs are our friends. :-)
Best Wishes,
Ron
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