Living Low Carb (31 page)
Authors: Jonny Bowden
The book is divided into 3 sections: the 7-day jump-start plan; a section on tips, troubleshooting, and restaurant tactics; and a third section on recipes. The 7-day jump-start plan has one purpose: to bring blood sugar and insulin level back into balance so that cravings drop and motivation soars. The Hellers believe you can accomplish this by making a small change each day that builds on the success of the previous day until, almost without trying, you are back in control and on track. Those changes are lovingly detailed in the 7-Day Plan.
The six steps are as follows:
1. Add protein to every meal.
2. Add vegetables and/or salad to lunch, dinner, and snacks.
3. Balance all meals (à la the Zone diet).
4. Eat only low-carb foods for all snacks.
5. Eat only low-carb foods for all snacks and at
one
meal.
6. Eat only low-carb foods for all snacks and at
two
meals.
Of course, if you follow these six steps you will wind up on—you guessed it—the Carbohydrate Addict’s Diet!
The Hellers offer “Five Vital Clues Low-Carb Diet Doctors Miss,” which is actually pretty thought-provoking—though, in my opinion, most of the statements they make are hypothetical at this point. Let’s take a look:
1.
Saturated fat can raise insulin.
According to the Hellers, a diet high in saturated fat (and/or trans-fats) is likely to increase your insulin levels (or increase insulin resistance), leading to more cravings and decreased weight loss. I think this statement is pretty controversial and I have not seen any science to support it. And while no one thinks a diet that’s healthful has a ton of saturated fat, I think the movement to have all saturated fat condemned as “unhealthful” and the idea that we should lower it as much as possible is not a wise one. Why not have a diet well balanced between saturated fats (many of which are actually downright good for you), omega-3’s from fish and flax, and omega-9’s from such foods as olive oil and macadamia-nut oil?
2.
Sugar substitutes are carb act-alikes.
This is an interesting statement that is purely speculative, but, I must admit, bears further study. Isn’t it possible that—like Pavlov’s dogs, who salivated at the sound of a bell because they were conditioned to associate the bell with food—we have a conditioned response to sweet tastes? Maybe we are so conditioned to secrete insulin in response to something sweet that we might—just might—secrete insulin in response to foods that are sweet, even if they have no calories! And some new evidence suggests that the consumption of artificially sweetened foods (and beverages like diet sodas) could disrupt our innate ability to judge the caloric content of food and eat accordingly, leading us to eat more when we’re consuming a lot of artificially sweetened stuff. Definitely food for thought. (The Hellers offer a quiz to determine if you are “addicted to diet drinks.”) I think this idea actually has a great deal of merit.
3.
Glutamates are also carb act-alikes.
The Hellers point to a study that showed that applying MSG to the tongues of animals causes them to release high levels of insulin within three minutes (MSG stands for monosodium glutamate, a flavor enhancer that’s in a lot of food, including, but not limited to, Chinese food). But MSG is far from the only glutamate. Food manufacturers add glutamates to a zillion things, including water-packed tuna. It’s also frequently one of those innocuous-sounding “natural flavors” you see on labels. The Hellers make the point that glutamates are thought to be excitotoxins, and that if you’ve ever wondered why you can’t stop eating something that tastes good, even when it’s low in carbs, this might be the reason.
4.
How often you eat carbs matters.
Not surprisingly for authors who pioneered the concept of a “reward meal,” the Hellers are of the belief that it is not just the total number of carbohydrates you eat in a day that makes a difference, but also the frequency with which you eat those higher-carb foods. They believe that when you decrease the number of times in a day that you eat high-carb foods (even if the total intake of high-carb food for the day is the same), you can keep your insulin levels lower and your body in “spending mode” for longer periods of time.
5.
You should eat toward your carbs.
The Hellers believe that the order in which you eat your food matters. If a meal contains a high-carb food—for example, the Reward Meal in their Carbohydrate Addict’s Diet plan, or any other meal where you’ve decided to have a highcarb food—they feel you should eat it last. Their advice is to start the meal with the foods that are lowest in carbohydrates and finish with the foods that are highest. This advice makes sense on the face of it (i.e., you should stay away from the bread that comes before the main course), but it also seems to allow a meal of fish and vegetables to end with chocolate cake. This fifth “clue” is based on the Hellers’ belief—which I discussed in my review of the Carbohydrate Addict’s Diet—that the second surge of insulin happens about sixty minutes after you begin eating, so if you finish your food within an hour of beginning your meal, you will do less damage. Their thinking is that if you start with protein and low-carb foods like vegetables, you’ll be satisfied before you get too enamored of the dessert.
The Hellers also discuss four very good “Carb Myths” (my favorite: “You should have seen what I
didn’t
eat”), “troubleshooting,” and “restaurant tactics” and include recipes.
The 7-Day Low-Carb Rescue and Recovery Plan as a Lifestyle: Who It Works for, Who Should Look Elsewhere
I’m not 100% sure this book was meant to be a lifestyle—after all, the Carbohydrate Addict’s Lifespan Program is the Hellers’ “rest of your life” plan—but it’s excellent for those who want to try a lower-carb way of life without giving up their favorite foods. It’s also terrific for devotees of the Carbohydrate Addict’s Diet who have “strayed” and want to get back on track. For those who need more structure and whose bodies do well only on specific, measured amounts of net carbs, this plan might be too loosey-goosey.
JONNY’S LOWDOWN
I like this book better than the original. I still have a lot of problems with some of the Hellers’ biochemistry, but this book offers some theories—like the one about artificial sweeteners triggering hunger—that I think are both interesting and worth investigating
.
I didn’t agree with the Hellers about saturated fat in their other books, and I still don’t. But I like the step-by-step approach to getting back on track, which can be used even by someone who wants to investigate a lower-carb lifestyle in a less rigorous way. And the tips section is quite good. I was going to give this plan three and a half stars, but I think the low-carb myths and the hypothesis about artificial sweeteners moves this plan into four-star range
.
WHAT IT IS IN A NUT SHELL
An eating and exercise program targeted to “real women”: thirty minutes of exercise three times a week combined with one of two eating plans: low-carb or low-calorie. Both plans have three phases: weight loss, transition, and maintenance
.
The Curves program was developed for women, and it has a very definite sensibility. It targets “real” women, eschews the diet mindset that causes women to bemoan their inability to be a size 2, and has the admirable goal of being easy to stick with while at the same time correcting metabolic problems created by a lifetime of dieting. How well does it succeed? As they say, “let’s go to the videotape.”
Heavin explains that dieting eventually lowers metabolic rate and causes the opposite of the desired effect—by lowering your metabolism, you actually activate survival mechanisms, like your body’s ability to run on fewer calories, that cause you to hold on to fat. He calls these mechanisms “starvation hormones” (more on that in Jonny’s Lowdown). The Curves program promises to correct damaged metabolism, turning your body from a “food-burning machine” into a “champion fat-burning machine,” and fixing your “slow metabolism” in the process. Sounds deliciously appealing. And certainly a worthwhile goal.
How does the Curves diet accomplish this metabolic sleight of hand? Heavin asserts that the secret of the program’s success is that “we address the complicated biological issues that have been conveniently overlooked by conventional diets.” This might be news to the other authors discussed in this book, many of whom have presented sophisticated and accurate discussions of the hormonal and biological issues involved in weight loss, but that’s another story.
Curves is right on in its desire to “fix” (or, as Diana Schwarzbein would say, “heal”) a damaged metabolism. Heavin states, however, that there are some people who have “destroyed” their metabolism through years of low-fat, low-calorie, or yo-yo dieting; and for these unfortunates, “Metabolic Magic” (his term, not mine) can’t happen until they repair their metabolism and restore it to normal. For these people, he offers the “Metabolic Tune-Up,” a rather convoluted regimen in which you “eat normally” (2,500 to 3,000 calories!), weigh yourself every day, and try to stay between your “low weight” and your “high weight.” You should expect to gain 3 to 5 pounds during this phase. If you gain more, you’re to go back to phase 1 for no more than 3 days to “burn off the fat.” You repeat this cycle until it takes longer and longer to gain those extra 3 to 5 pounds and, consequently, you have fewer and fewer returns to phase 1. At this point, you can resume your weight-loss diet.
And what is the weight-loss diet? Actually, there are two plans: a lowcarb version and a low-calorie version. (The book offers tests to help you determine which plan is right for you.) In the low-carb version, you can eat unlimited amounts of protein, but you cut back on starchy and sugary carbohydrates. (The book states that “as long as you are eating the right foods, your caloric intake doesn’t matter,” which is complete nonsense and exactly the kind of silliness that gives thoughtful lower-carb plans a bad name.) The low-calorie version allows you about 1,200 calories a day, but is higher in protein than most conventional low-fat diets. And the book is correct in touting the metabolism-raising properties of protein and disdaining highglycemic carbs like bagels for just about everyone.
In the low-carb version of the program, there are three phases. Phase 1 is the strictest part of the program. If you have fewer than 20 pounds to lose, you follow it for a week. If you need to lose more than 20 pounds, you stick with it for 2 weeks. In phase 1, you are limited to 20 grams of carbs a day (exactly like the Atkins induction phase, which the author does not credit). You may eat unlimited amounts of protein (including lean meats, cheeses, eggs, seafood, and poultry), and in addition you are allowed unlimited amounts of Free Foods (which are basically all the greens recommended in the Atkins induction). You are also allowed one protein shake a day, which is also counted as a Free Food (for reasons that are not explained), which can contain 20 grams of protein and 20 grams of carbs. During this time, you will probably be in ketosis, which, the author correctly points out, is not at all unhealthful if you don’t have a preexisting kidney problem and if you drink enough water. This phase, as expected, produces the most weight loss in the shortest time.
In phase 2, you add more food. You continue to eat an unlimited amount of protein, but you increase your carb intake to between 40 and 60 grams a day (exactly like Atkins and Protein Power). Unlike those two plans, however, you continue to eat unlimited quantities of Free Foods and that one protein shake a day which, for baffling reasons, doesn’t “count.” During phase 2, you should lose 1 to 2 pounds per week. You stay on this phase until you reach your desired weight or until you want a break from dieting.
In phase 3, you have attained your goal weight and can basically be rid of the “diet.” The author—astonishingly—recommends that you go back to a “normal” intake of 2,500 to 3,000 calories a day (!) and suggests that you can stop counting both calories and carbohydrates (more on this in Jonny’s Lowdown). The “built-in” safeguard against gaining more weight is much like my 4-pound rule (see page 374 in
chapter 12
). If you gain more than a few pounds, you go back to phase 1 until you take it off, then go back to eating “normally.”
On the calorie-sensitive version, you eat 1,200 calories a day during phase 1, and no more than 60 grams of carbohydrates. It’s recommended that you get 40% of your calories from protein. As with the low-carb plan, you’re allowed unlimited Free Foods and the inexplicable free protein shake daily. In phase 2, you up the bar to 1,600 calories a day with the same freebies. You’re also allowed to ramp up the carb intake to 60 grams (not counting, of course, the Free Foods and the carbs in the protein shake). Much like with the low-carb plan, phase 3 sets you free, telling you to eat “normally” and only return to phase 1 if your weight goes up more than 5 pounds or so.