Princess Mola's Journal, 18 Jan 15

Nice one! 

By the way I've never tried a high fat (ketogenic) diet. But the idea has never really made sense to me. I understand the idea is to "teach" your body to burn fat for energy instead of carbs, but doesn't that just put even more strain on your liver since you have to burn through your body fat AND the fat you are consuming? Anyway you should stick to what works, but what works for me is high fibre high protein. I recently found this on the scooby website, I found it useful: http://scoobysworkshop.com/weight-loss-meal-planner/ 

I've been Paleo lifestyle for over two years now and love it. It's slipped slightly since November, - major operation so I'm relying on hubby to do the cooking/shopping. I've put weight on so need a 'quick start' especially as I can't exercise yet properly. I got interested in the Ketogenic diet as follow on to Paleo and there seems to be a lot of science to back it up. I've been only doing it for two days but already there is a difference in how I feel. I think 'burning fat' is the wrong analogy popularised by the fitness industry, it's more how your body processes it. Have a look at http://livinlavidalowcarb.com/blog/  

Congratulations :-) 

Glennith: "Paleo" means a completely different thing to me, it means eating un-processed, and un-farmed foods. i.e. cutting out grains and cereals. You can still eat plenty of fruit, vegetables and lean meats (like salmon and chicken) and call that a Paleo diet but it would be higher in carbs than your typical high-fat diet. I call a high fat diet where you get your main source of energy (i.e. macros with >50% fat) from omega oils and a minimal amount of saturated fat. I've no doubt that it works, and like i said if it works then stick with it. Personally I am still sceptical as to whether its healthy as a long term diet. 

I quite agree with your comments on the Paleo and that's my usual main focus. I still will not be eating grains or processed foods (I've felt so much better without them) and doing my best to source local, grass fed etc. I'm not sure about getting the majority of fats from omega oils, I use butter, lard, coconut oil which I think are classed as saturated - and of course olive oil. This is a bit of an experiment for me, I'll let you know how sustainable it is, how I feel. And I'm not trying to convert anyone else. Unless of course I suddenly become an Olympic triathlon champion! 

Glennith: by omega oils I mean essential fatty acids. Your body cannot manufacture EFA's which is why they are called essential and should be included in a balanced diet. Out of butter, lard and coconut oil, I think coconut oil is the best for you since it has mostly HDL's and not LDL's. But your body can make these saturated fats, which is why all mammals have it, (and why I am trying to loose it ;) . Fish being cold blooded animals don't have saturated fat, if they did they wouldn't be able to move (like a hard lump of frozen lard). Instead they have Oils, which is why fish is such a good source of omega 3. Flax seed (linseed oil) is a good source of omega 6 and olive oil is a good source of omega 9.  

Thanks Glennith and GileBathgate for your comments and discussion points. Both of you have mentioned points that I have incorporated into my lifestyle. I started off on absolutely no carbs (except those found in vegetables and very limited amount of fruits), medium consumption protein and fat. It took me about a week to fully engage with this diet and I did it strictly for a month and absolutely enjoyed. I refined it slightly as I think it is not sustainable to have such an adverse attitude to all carbs, especially good ones – like I was. But whilst I was on it, I had more energy, less cravings, felt fuller quickly, knew when to stop eating and positive attitude to any food I consume. Believe me, this was new to me, following years of overeating, always hungry no matter how much and when I ate. 6 months on into my revised low carb diet, I don’t crave for high carbs meals/food or as my main 'focussed' meal and I classify myself as a recovering large portion eater. I believe going on low carb diet healed me – physically, emotionally and psychologically. It is very difficult to explain eloquently how it has worked for me but it has. Imagine if your main focus meal were pasta, bread, rice and many more from this class of food. Coconut oil is also one of my main sources of fat so good to read good comments about it. I am privileged to get good supply of it from my sister who has built her business on producing good cold pressed quality coconut oil. So I never run out of supply. I also make my own 'no grain' bread (using coconut flour plus nuts and seed). Oh! I also observe intermittent fasting (5:2) and still have enough energy to do 2-hour walks most days... After so many years of obesity and failed ‘fad diets’ I now know that my body doesn't cope well with ingesting high carbs. You are therefore quite right to advise readers to find what is best for them. I will add to this and say whatever you are doing must heal your body holistically so that it works the way it is designed to. Thanks also for the Scoobyworkshop website, very useful.  

I meant to say consuming limited amount of fruits due to the high sugar but not that they have limited carbs..... 

I wish I could get a good and reliable source of coconut oil - can I come and live next to your sister!? It's really heartening to hear from someone who has had such positive effects from this diet (lifestyle, diet is such a hijacked word these days). There is a shift in thinking from a lot of scientists, medics on the demonised role of saturated fats in our diets, there is evidence that butter, lard etc. cause an increase in HDL's in the blood - if you don't eat them with large amounts of the processed carbs that makes up the average diet. I don't know if you have watched the movie 'Cereal Killers' the results were impressive, high fat low carbs to say the least. The experiment was conducted under medical supervision and one medic had to hold their hand up and say the results were not what they had been taught to expect.The body doesn't actually need carbohydrates, it can synthesise glucose from amino acid or fat, but can't synthesise essential proteins or fats from carbohydrate, there is no such thing as an essential carbohydrate. However, if by health you mean the optimal functioning of your body and mind, they may be essential for you. The level of carbs needed in the diet varies between individuals, depending on activity levels,etc. And you may just feel better with some. I'm sure a glass or two of red wine is not essential to life but I wouldn't like to do without it for ever! I am also a fan of intermittent fasting, I tend to have a couple of days where I have an early dinner at night then miss breakfast the next day. Actually, there are quite a few times in the week when I'm just not hungry at standard mealtimes, I'm satiated for longer. I've also lost the energy dips during the day. When I'm in full time work, I am 'on duty' from 6.00 am to sometimes late evening and I used to have to have a nap in the afternoon. That's a thing of the past. This is interesting! 3 days into my adjusted style of eating I already feel as if I've slimmed. I know that probably sounds daft, I haven't weighed or measured myself and I won't until at least 7 days in. But I do. 

Glennith + Princess Mola. I would like to backtrack a little bit on my statement about coconut oil. After doing a bit more research it seems that it has the highest saturated fat compared to; lard, butter, and suet. My understanding is that this type of fat is a) recommended to keep to a daily minimum. (>20g) and b) bodyfat is composed of saturated fat. (As I said before it seems a little odd to me to consume the type fat that you are trying to loose). On the plus side Coconut oil does claim to have 0mg Cholesterol, and other health benefits have been reported about it lowering LDL. Most of this is anecdotal evidence though because not enough research has been done. Interestingly in the movie Cereal Killers, he states near the beginning he will be getting most of his fat calories from Macadamia nuts. These are much higher in unsaturated fat e.g. Monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat. Likewise Lard has the best proportions of MUFA's and PUFA's, by comparison to butter. I would think the best things to focus on in a High Fat Diet would be Macadamia oil, Lard, Flax Oil, Fish Oil, Macadamia Nuts, Avacado, Bacon, and Eggs.  

http://www.healthysupplies.co.uk/macadamia-nut-oil-olivado.html 

It seems to me that the debate is still raging over the role of saturated fats in our diet, there is more and more being published to counter the claims that it is bad for you. http://web.bma.org.uk/pressrel.nsf/wall/1DDD7A0C1C26E3E280257C08002CC274?OpenDocument http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/07/27/saturated-fat-cholesterol.aspx My feelings are, our ancestors - back to them again, would have eaten a lot of saturated fat in their diet being hunters. The evidence from existing hunting tribes is they favour the fattier parts of the animal before the lean. The human race wouldn't be here today if it had furred up their arteries and gave them heart attacks and strokes. I'm sure they ate nuts and seeds as well, perhaps it's getting the balance correct that we need. Or, as various commentators are starting to put forward, is it more involved; maybe fats combined with the large amount of sugar in the average modern diet?  

Don't forget our ancestors also ate a lot of fish, small wild animals like rabbit, game birds like chicken and pheasant. All of these meats have comparatively low saturated fat compared to pigs lambs and cows, which became more substantial food sources in the agricultural, post-palaeolithic age. 

True - except the modern day game birds also bear no resemblance to their predecessors, chickens having been bred to the nth degree to become the creatures they are today for modern consumption i.e. little fat and corn fed, if they are lucky. Even pheasants, and I know this from living next to a shooting estate, have been manipulated by breeding and feeding. So, we can't really emulate the traditional hunter gatherer diet because even our very basic food has changed. Where does that leave us?  

I had to use modern day examples because I am not well versed in what small wild mammals were living back then, but the point is that smaller animals, have a high metabolism, and run around like crazy trying to escape from predators, so don't store much fat. They are lean. Well, we might assume that palaeolithic hunters had a diet of Mammoth, and Tiger. I am sure its more a case of whatever they could get their hands on. Doing lots of running around trying to catch it, not eating for several days, then gorging when a big kill was made, all the while supplementing with seeds, berries, nuts, roots, as and when they could find them.  

So in effect, we are back to a diet varied in most of the food groups - with the exception of grains. Don't touch processed foods and go for the minimally processed fats, avoiding like the plague vegetable oils. Avoid the processed sugars and watch how much natural sugar you take in, fruits etc.. Give intermittent fasting a go, it's probably part of our natural eating habits (some shepherds I know give their dogs one fast day a week, they say it helps their digestion). Have dairy if you can tolerate it. Exercise in a natural manner, outdoors if possible, will also help with vitamin D levels. Sorted! 

That's my kind of lifestyle ;) (Nothing wrong with vegetable oil, perhaps you meant hydrogenated vegetable oils? yes avoid those)