I think this is the first time I have posted about nutrition. Nutrition has slowly been occupying more and more mind share and that is long overdue.
I have never had visible abs and always maintained a stubborn layer of body fat. Based on memory, I think I have tested as low as 15%. When I was running in high school my weight was a very reasonable 145# on my 5'10" frame.
I have quickly and slowly increased my weight since then.
I finished college around 155#
I dropped out of medical school at 200#
I moved to Colorado at 175#
I teetered around 185# for the last 10 years
I topped out at 200# while working in the oil fields
Now, I have an additional motivator. My A1C blood test results have been elevated at 5.8% a year ago and 6.0% this year. Anything above 5.7% is considered pre-diabetic. Considering the challenges my dad has faced as a diabetic, I want to stave off diabetes as long as possible.
As I have slowly been reading about zone diet, paleo and macro nutrition among others, the simple lesson is that I eat too much food, too much processed food and too many carbohydrates.
On a youtube video last night, Ben Bergeron summed it up quite simply, "Eat real food, not too much, mostly plants." Much easier said than done. His progression with crossfit athletes is to drive towards low body fat (10% for men or when you see abs). Then based on blood work and performance to adjust diet.
When pushed he did address supplements including
Carbohydrate Supplement - UCAN products
Creatine Monohydrate - 5g/day (daily)
Pre workout Caffeine - 180-200 mg (no more than a couple of times/week)
Whey Protein - Isolate for slow absorption, Hydrolysate for fast absorption
When pushed he also talked about micro nutrients. Apparently Zinc and Magnesium supplements are the big thing. He did caution that micro nutrients should not be addressed without blood work.
I have decided to reduce my food intake and eat more plants. The hardest but most effective first step will be NO SUGAR! Then reducing my dependence on processed foods. I will eat vegetables at every meal. Knowing that I cannot tackle everything at once and in the spirit of atomic habits, I am going to:
1) stop snacking between meals
2) stop getting seconds after my original plate
I have never had visible abs and always maintained a stubborn layer of body fat. Based on memory, I think I have tested as low as 15%. When I was running in high school my weight was a very reasonable 145# on my 5'10" frame.
I have quickly and slowly increased my weight since then.
I finished college around 155#
I dropped out of medical school at 200#
I moved to Colorado at 175#
I teetered around 185# for the last 10 years
I topped out at 200# while working in the oil fields
Now, I have an additional motivator. My A1C blood test results have been elevated at 5.8% a year ago and 6.0% this year. Anything above 5.7% is considered pre-diabetic. Considering the challenges my dad has faced as a diabetic, I want to stave off diabetes as long as possible.
As I have slowly been reading about zone diet, paleo and macro nutrition among others, the simple lesson is that I eat too much food, too much processed food and too many carbohydrates.
On a youtube video last night, Ben Bergeron summed it up quite simply, "Eat real food, not too much, mostly plants." Much easier said than done. His progression with crossfit athletes is to drive towards low body fat (10% for men or when you see abs). Then based on blood work and performance to adjust diet.
When pushed he did address supplements including
Carbohydrate Supplement - UCAN products
Creatine Monohydrate - 5g/day (daily)
Pre workout Caffeine - 180-200 mg (no more than a couple of times/week)
Whey Protein - Isolate for slow absorption, Hydrolysate for fast absorption
When pushed he also talked about micro nutrients. Apparently Zinc and Magnesium supplements are the big thing. He did caution that micro nutrients should not be addressed without blood work.
I have decided to reduce my food intake and eat more plants. The hardest but most effective first step will be NO SUGAR! Then reducing my dependence on processed foods. I will eat vegetables at every meal. Knowing that I cannot tackle everything at once and in the spirit of atomic habits, I am going to:
1) stop snacking between meals
2) stop getting seconds after my original plate
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