Eating a meat based diet

[ace2000]

It is becoming more clear that the type of meat matters. Grass fed beef is actually very good for you giving you the good saturated fats that are needed in our brains and allowing fat soluble vitamins to be absorbed into our bodies.

Good point. Here's what the article states to back that up...

"Try eating poultry or fish once or twice a week and a vegetarian dinner once or twice a week. And when you eat red meat, switch to leaner cuts and grass-fed cattle".

 

[Passepartout]

Boy, between this thread and an article today on people who eat red meat having shorter life expectancies http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1112492778/red-meat-may-shorten-life-expectancy-study-says/ , those who have had success with Atkins and South Beach low-carb diets better duck!

Jim

 

[Big Matt]

The tough part about this thread is that stats don't lie, but I've found that going to a diet of mostly proteins and vegetables has significantly lowered my weight, cholesterol, other key numbers. I'm not on Atkins, but I do watch what I eat and stay away from animal fat as much as possible.

My biggest take away is that it is SUGAR that is what caused all of my problems. I never was really obese, but I've gone from 230 to about 200 pounds with a goal of 190. Cutting out sugar and bad carbs is my key.

 

[TSPam]

stats lie all the time

 

[dioxide45]

I don't understand how bacon is a processed meat? It is slices of cured pork belly. Does the curing process make it processed? Processed in my mind would be hot dogs, bologna, most deli meats.

 

[MuranoJo]

Boy, between this thread and an article today on people who eat red meat having shorter life expectancies http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1112492778/red-meat-may-shorten-life-expectancy-study-says/ , those who have had success with Atkins and South Beach low-carb diets better duck!

Jim

No ducking for me. I am at my best weight, feel great, and have the best blood work when following an Atkins style of diet. Where does Atkins promote eating a bunch of red meat? As has been the case for many years, the concept is all about getting away from processed and starchy carbs, basically sugars. Carbs are good if they are veggies, balanced with protein. And Atkins recommends good fats, like olive oil, avocados, nuts.

Too many falsehoods floating around about Atkins from people who don't read the book and yet accept stories of someone who claims to be doing Atkins by eating hotdogs or bacon all day.

BTW, Jim, I thought you were a low-carber yourself from some older post?

 

[Passepartout]

BTW, Jim, I thought you were a low-carber yourself from some older post?

I have been and to a degree still am. I have slipped on a nice layer of insulation over the last few months and would feel better if it wasn't quite so close.

 

[Tia]

Think that it's the nitrite in it?
http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/nutrition/DJ0974.html

I don't understand how bacon is a processed meat? It is slices of cured pork belly. Does the curing process make it processed? Processed in my mind would be hot dogs, bologna, most deli meats.

 

[ace2000]

My last word here... if you look at the details of my previous TUG thread, you'll see that I posted very early in my program, and I posted my thoughts throughout the 2 month course (CHIP program) that I took last summer.

For the benefit of those that don't want to go back and read through it, here are my numbers. Again, I went to a vegetarian diet, and for one reason or another, I'd average about one serving of meat (chicken or fish) through the week. I was exercising for at least 2 hours a day throughout the program.

-----------------------20-Jun-2011---- 01-Aug-2011--------- 15-Oct-2011
Total Cholesterol ----198 -------------------164 ------------------147
HDL Cholesterol ------44 --------------------55 --------------------45
LDL Cholesterol ------123 -------------------94 ------------------- 89
Triglycerides ---------154 -------------------76 ------------------- 65
Weight ----------------240 ------------------209 ----------------- 203
Pulse rate -------------103 -------------------70 --------------------72
Blood pressure ------112/81(with meds) 106/68(wo meds) 105/70(wo meds)

I've taken these numbers from the written documentation I recieved in the course. My height is 6'2". My ideal or goal weight is to get down to the 180s.

I currently take no medications for anything. Before last summer, I was on blood pressure meds for the previous five years, 10 mg lisinopril (I believe that's a low dose).

My point here is that through diet and exercise, you can drastically lower your numbers. I strongly disagree with those above that say you can do it through moderation. I believe it requires a total committment!

One last comment to make. The two most important contributors to high cholesterol (and atherosclerosis) are meat and dairy products. The rest of the food groups are not factors. The course stated that you should strive for your total cholesterol number to be below 160, and if you can get below 150 that you can actually reverse the atherosclerosis process.

 

[Ridewithme38]

Meh, you live till you die...Why limit the things you truely enjoy in life during the short time you have on this earth?

Both of my parents work in the health care field, father as a senior editor for a major business news provider(Mostly dealing with Drug companies) and mother as a Nurse administrator....95% of what defines your health and your life span are genetics....If your REALLY going to make life a chore because of that 5%, your not living to your full potential

 

[ace2000]

Meh, you live till you die...Why limit the things you truely enjoy in life during the short time you have on this earth?

Both of my parents work in the health care field, father as a senior editor for a major business news provider(Mostly dealing with Drug companies) and mother as a Nurse administrator....95% of what defines your health and your life span are genetics....If your REALLY going to make life a chore because of that 5%, your not living to your full potential

10 years ago, I believed the same as you. Now that I'll be turning 50 this year, I kind of see things differently.

 

[geekette]

One statistic I know is a 100% certain, 100% of us are all going to die someday. It's just some will be sooner than others.

Exactly. My risk of death is 100% no matter what I eat. Prolonging my time on Earth is somewhat of a crapshoot. George Burns smoked and drank into a very long life. There are no guarantees.

 

[geekette]

stats lie all the time

true.

I didn't actually read this study, but in most cases, these things don't tell you everything. For example, I doubt they break out every genetic factor of the participants and chronicle everything in their lives. Easy to conclude red meat did them in, but it could easily be something else. I could be on some med that makes red meat react differently in my body. We are not all identical. Far from it.

And aren't we trusting that the participants were honest about everything they ingested? Maybe they ditched red meat and loaded up on ice cream or who knows what.

I am always skeptical of 'studies'.

 

[ace2000]

true.

I didn't actually read this study, but in most cases, these things don't tell you everything. For example, I doubt they break out every genetic factor of the participants and chronicle everything in their lives. Easy to conclude red meat did them in, but it could easily be something else. I could be on some med that makes red meat react differently in my body. We are not all identical. Far from it.

And aren't we trusting that the participants were honest about everything they ingested? Maybe they ditched red meat and loaded up on ice cream or who knows what.

I am always skeptical of 'studies'.

Yep, I tend to agree with you... I think I'll step outside now and smoke a couple of packs of cigarettes.

 

[Ridewithme38]

Yep, I tend to agree with you... I think I'll step outside now and smoke a couple of packs of cigarettes.

You joke, but my friends grandfather lived well into his 90's smoking almost two packs a day

 

[ace2000]

You joke, but my friends grandfather lived well into his 90's smoking almost two packs a day

Yep, and using that kind of logic there is nothing that is unhealthy for you. We all have an Uncle Joe who smoked five packs a day, drank a six pack daily, weighed 350lbs, and lived to his nineties.

 

[Passepartout]

There is no doubt that genetics and family history will influence your longevity. So will looking both ways before stepping off a curb.

Jim

 

[Ridewithme38]

Yep, and using that kind of logic there is nothing that is unhealthy for you. We all have an Uncle Joe who smoked five packs a day, drank a six pack daily, weighed 350lbs, and lived to his nineties.

Actually i'd use that logic to say nothing is 'HEALTHY' for you, in the end its not what you ate, smoked, drank, walked, its how your gene's are defined...Eat all the Cheeseburgers you want, or all the vegetables you want, nothing can change genetics

The most important thing is that you live life, if you are measuring everything you put into your body before you eat it, your not living life, if your scared to drink a rum and coke because of the calories, your not living life, if you avoid 'smoking' restaurants and bars, your not living life

 

[ace2000]

Actually i'd use that logic to say nothing is 'HEALTHY' for you, in the end its not what you ate, smoked, drank, walked, its how your gene's are defined...Eat all the Cheeseburgers you want, or all the vegetables you want, nothing can change genetics

So, you're saying that weight, cholesterol, and blood pressure numbers have nothing to do with your overall health and when you die? You should write a book on that topic.

 

[Ridewithme38]

So, you're saying that weight, cholesterol, and blood pressure numbers have nothing to do with your overall health and when you die? You should write a book on that topic.

In a general sense?? No, they don't...Weight is a non-issue for most people, i hate that people see a number and try to define health by it, you can be 300lbs or 98lbs and be healthy, its all about height, frame, genetics, muscle definition...there are hundreds if not thousands of other defining factors in it...

For instance, me and my older brother and a friend of mine weight about the same amount, between 215lbs-220lbs....based on your assumption that weight is a definition of health, you would assume that we are all equally unhealthy...that's simply not true, because of our various builds we all carry the weight completely differently on our frames, my friend has almost twice the shoulder width(he's a Gym Rat, he's basicly square) as my brother who Run's daily and i'm right about in between, i never work out, but i'm a little taller then both of them

My point is, the numbers on a scale do not matter AT ALL when it comes to health and fitness

 

[glypnirsgirl]

Actually i'd use that logic to say nothing is 'HEALTHY' for you, in the end its not what you ate, smoked, drank, walked, its how your gene's are defined...Eat all the Cheeseburgers you want, or all the vegetables you want, nothing can change genetics

The most important thing is that you live life, if you are measuring everything you put into your body before you eat it, your not living life, if your scared to drink a rum and coke because of the calories, your not living life, if you avoid 'smoking' restaurants and bars, your not living life

Depends on your perspective.

I think that if you can't walk 3 miles at Disney World, you aren't living life. If you don't look good in your jeans, you aren't living life. You aren't enjoying a physical relationship with your partner, you aren't living life.

I tried the CHIP plan last summer for about 3 months. I am one of the fortunate people that has great genetics. I am way overweight (and I don't look good in my jeans) and my blood pressure is 120/68 and my pulse rate is 62. I tried CHIPS for my husband.

The problem was that Ian's answer to going off of meat was to eat pirogis. He gained weight while we were not eating meat - 60 pounds! I know that it was the pirogis and not the vegetables but it defeated the purpose for us.

I lost weight (12 pounds in 3 months that I have kept off) and I felt better. Because of Ian's reaction (maybe rebellion?), I added meat back into our diet and I have tried to make positive changes. We are now eating 2 or 3 vegetarian meals per week. I have a vegan black bean enchilada recipe that is terrific and it is in our regular rotation now as is a whole wheat spaghetti with white beans and garlic recipe (less often). We sometimes have a hummus and tabbouleh night (my favorite).

I still think a plant-based diet is the way to go.

elaine

 

[Ridewithme38]

I lost weight (12 pounds in 3 months that I have kept off) and I felt better. Because of Ian's reaction (maybe rebellion?), I added meat back into our diet and I have tried to make positive changes. We are now eating 2 or 3 vegetarian meals per week. I have a vegan black bean enchilada recipe that is terrific and it is in our regular rotation now as is a whole wheat spaghetti with white beans and garlic recipe (less often). We sometimes have a hummus and tabbouleh night (my favorite).

I still think a plant-based diet is the way to go.

elaine

I think its great when you can eat a balanced diet and still enjoy the meals, good for you Elaine for finding a way to mix things up without overdoing it by 'weighing' your food or eating portions smaller then the size of a table spoon

I've actually just switched to whole wheat spaghetti, not for any health reasons, but because i find with the garlic and butter sauce i use with shrimp, it adds to the flavor and actually improves the dish, even with some Marinara sauces i find an improvement in flavor with the whole wheat spaghetti...i'd say i eat spaghetti atleast twice a week and this has done alot to open up the flavors for me

I still say, eat whatever you want, whenever you want...but if what you want, is good for you...Win, Win

 

[hypnotiq]

My point here is that through diet and exercise, you can drastically lower your numbers. I strongly disagree with those above that say you can do it through moderation. I believe it requires a total committment!

I said moderation AND moderate exercise.

 

[MuranoJo]

Ace, congrats on the great turnaround in your stats in such a short timeframe! Amazing what you did.

But I do have to add that 2 hours' exercise in a day is not 'moderate.' I would say it's pretty intensive. Honestly, it's probably what we should all do every day, but unlikely given most demands.

 

[ScoopKona]

I'll go to my grave a little earlier, thanks. I'm FINE with the trade off.