A Calorie is Not Just a Calorie

Does this sound familiar? You want to lose weight so you buy into an established program like Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig. Or you buy yourself yet another dieting book, perhaps the latest craze everyone is talking about. Conventional diets have you counting calories: not only what you consume but how much you  presumably expend during exercise. You measure portion sizes according to some pictures, the size of your hand, or even pre-made plates they sell you. The stress rises from all the attention to detail and attempts at perfection.

You do lose weight initially. It seems all "diets" lead to some weight loss in the first few weeks. What happens then? You plateau. No matter how hard you exercise and how much attention you pay to your food portions and avoidance of fats, you can't seem to make the same inroads any longer. So you stop counting calories, maybe unconsciously  at first. Your metabolism has slowed on the calorie-restricted diet and now established eating patterns result in increased weight and fat deposition. Now you are heavier than when you started. What to do next? Of course: try the latest dieting fad. The cycle repeats itself.

What if I told you counting calories and fat-restricted diets are things of the past? That the added stress of counting calories consumed and expended increases cortisol levels which in turn increases fat deposition? That there are ways to lose fat and tone muscles that allow you to eat all you want of the correct, nutritious foods?

There are. I lived it myself.

In February of 2012, I weighed-in at a whopping 220 pounds, 45 pounds heavier than my college graduate weight. We had Dolphin Therapy for Jon coming up in March and I wanted to lose some of my rolly-polliness so I started practicing what I had been preaching to my patients for the last 2 years. I attacked the problem in two ways: jump-starting my weight loss with the 2 week "induction" phase of the Atkins Diet. I knew it would work since I made astounding progress on it when I was training for a body building contest in 1997. I then followed that with the Wheat Belly Diet, devised and written by my friend and cardiologist Dr. William Davis. I also monitored my body fat, cholesterol levels, and C-Reactive Protein (CRP) levels. CRP is a generalized measurement of acute inflammation. Chronically elevated levels of inflammation are associated with cardiovascular disease among other things:
                   "Recent research suggests that patients with elevated basal levels of CRP are at an increased risk of diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease."

Six weeks into the program I had lost 30 pounds. My total cholesterol level had dropped from 220 to 187. My body fat had decreased from 30% to 22%. And I never went hungry. Admittedly, the Atkins part of the regime was rigorous. The Wheat Belly part is just fun. Discovering new ways to prepare wheat- and gluten-free meals appealed to my inner Chef.

This is the gist of the program that I advocate for all my clients, friends, and relatives. There are obviously more details that I will explore in later posts. But for now, please consider buying or borrowing these two books. Learn that "diet" refers to a lifestyle (not THE Lifestyle which I will talk about some time later) and that you can enjoy eating sanely and nutritionally.

And stop counting calories: it's not healthy.

How to Think Like a Doctor Reviews

How to Think Like a Doctor describes how a physician thinks. Whether you are a Medical Assistant student, a nursing student, a pre-med student, a new medical student, or even going into health care administration, you will benefit from discovering the process of how an M.D. or D.O. views any particular patient encounter and arrives at a diagnosis. The Diagnosis is key and ties together all of the other elements of the encounter so that a Plan can be formed to make the patient better. Improvement in health is why doctors do what they do and now you can gain an insight into that thought process. 

Even if you are not a health care student or provider, How to Think Like a Doctor will make you a more knowledgeable patient. My best patients are those who become experts about their own bodies and their own medical and health issues. In addition to diseases, doctors address pain issues, mental health issues, dietary concerns, and even societal ills. Some physicians strive to make healthy people even better. So if you fall into any of these categories, you will benefit from this book.

From the Reviews:
1. 5.0 out of 5 stars

 Initial thoughts September 13, 2013

By MBell

Format:Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase

Just downloaded and I am already adding some words to my vocabulary "new favorite words list". Good stuff. I think that not only is this insightful information, but also a motivator for me personally. I don't know if anybody else feels this way, but the more knowledge I gain, the more excited and confident I feel myself becoming. I am in the beginning stages of obtaining a degree in Surgical Technology and this book is a great resource of information that otherwise would need to be obtained from years of on the job experiences. Highly recommended.

2. 5.0 out of 5 stars

 Excellent Resource May 15, 2014

By Kindle Customer

Format:Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase

An excellent job of breaking down the "doctor speak" into terms that ordinary people can understand. Dr. Manhood also explains WHY doctors do a lot of the things they do, and some of the pressures put on them that have nothing to do with patient care. I highly recommend this book for all patients. The more the patient understands what the doctor needs to know, the better information they can give the doctor.

3. Well written, easily understtod September 15, 2013

By Mary Derrig

Format:Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase

This is a great book for all healthcare consumers and those starting out in any healthcare field. As a registered nurse, I was impressed by the simplicity that the author brought to what many would perceive as a difficult process. It empowers the healthcare consumer by giving them insight into how a doctor moves through the process from meeting a patient to diagnosis. I have recommended this book to the many nursing students that I encounter and to patients who express an interest in taking control of their healthcare decisions. Highly recommended.

Here is one I don't understand. The reviewer would have given the book 5 stars if it had a different title maybe? I did respond to the review and challenged the reviewer to actually write an eBook that addresses the concerns expressed in the review. To give the book 1 star instead of 5 would be like giving The Wheat Belly Diet a low rating because Dr. Davis doesn't address the health concerns of cow's milk:

4.  Would be a 5 for showing, accurately, how sadly, most docs DO think May 15, 2014

By Jan P

Format:Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase

This book, I think, does accurately reflect "How many doctors think" - but, I'm giving it just one star for exactly that reason.

The case study on Mrs G reveals she's 5'3" & 200# which is morbidly obese with elevated blood pressure (142/88), and arthritis and NOT one recommendation of addressing the inflammation of her arthritis, obesity or hypertension with diet. No recommendations for diet change, weight loss, aerobic exercise to help promote wt loss (sorry, yoga alone may not do it) or a referral to a dietitian/nutritionist. And, prescribing NSAIDs is likely to just screw up her gut eventually.

That's why I refer clients to integrative or functional physicians that would address the entire client with lifestyle change and refer to somebody that could help her, not just drugs and yoga, which may be unsafe in many positions with hypertension, such as downward dog.)

THE WHEAT BELLY DIET

Anyone who has followed my dietary advice knows that my first recommendation is to ditch the wheat and all other products that contain gluten. When I talk about "diet" I don't mean losing weight necessarily (although that will follow) but rather your nutritional lifestyle. My revelation about going wheat-free came about with a talk one day at a Starbucks with the author of the book Wheat Belly: Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight, and Find Your Path Back to Health, William Davis, MD (see my Recommended Reading list). In my own experience, I lost 30 pounds in six weeks when I first started the diet then another 10 after I incorporated a "cheat day" once a week. A cheat day is the one day a week (I chose Friday) when I would eat what I wanted and as much as I wanted. Despite the fact that I never got hungry following Dr. Davis' advice, my metabolism did eventually slow down and I revved it back up by pigging out one meal a week.
But the "diet" part is actually two-fold: avoid gluten AND avoid sugars and simple starches. While "Wheat Belly" measures the effects of carbohydrates on a person's insulin response, I found it easier to stick with the standard Glycemic Index, avoiding "fast carbs" and consuming only "slow carbs." Those phrases were popularized by Timothy Ferriss in his book The 4-Hour Body . Warning: not for the faint-hearted. He also gave me the idea of the cheat day. The thing I like best about Ferris is that he tries his ideas on himself first. This just supports Dr. Mangold's Rules for Good Living No. 2: Never Trust a Fat Dietitian.
Search for "Glycemic Index" and you will find no lack of sites that not only explain what the term means, but also give you lists of foods that are low and high GI. Sugars and simple starches are highest, while more complex veggies are low. Simply put, I did fine with cabbage, asparagus, kale, spinach, nuts, and legumes. Dr. Davis narrows the choices down even more but I still lost weight eating non-recommended foods. He also has a Wheat Belly Cookbook. As I said, I never went hungry nor should you.
Here's to your start of healthy eating!