I'm with you, Catin. What Timmypatch doesn't seem to understand is that high insulin is the only thing that can cause one to overeat in such a way. It is not just psychological to sit at a desk and eat. I work a sedentary job where I sit at my desk for 9 hours per day and I don't have the slightest inclination to eat, so I certainly don't buy that. The fact that you feel stress from work or whatever also demonstrates high insulin levels. That's science, my friend. Just because you've never been obese does not matter one iota with regard to insulin levels. All the diseases of civilization are caused directly or indirectly by high insulin levels and not all who contract chronic disease are fat, so your history of weight is immaterial.
If you are hungry and overeating, then you are either eating carbohydrates or you have excessively high insulin. If you truly gained 20 pounds eating fat and protein then that means that you were underweight to begin with and now your body is at the weight you're supposed to be at, bottom line.
Our position here is not that eating meat "causes" a person to lose weight. The only thing that does is sets up the environment that is conducive to weight loss. Weight is regulated by your body, not your mind or your cravings. Cravings and weight gain don't happen without high insulin, plain and simple.
If all is as you say, then there are only two possibilities. You were underweight two months ago and now you are your body's regulated weight, or you have high insulin despite your weight which is what your description says to me.
Look, I don't see why you feel the need to try to discredit me. I guess there are probably plenty of asses out there who will try to stir up conflict and propose contrarian views just for the shock and entertainment value, but I assure you I am not the type. If you choose to believe I'm making all this up, that's your prerogative.
About the age, I sometimes give out "fudged" personal data. I do this not because I'm trying to mislead, but because I am fairly paranoid about giving out information online that somebody who knows me could use to identify me with (my real name is not timmypatch either). I'm sure you think that's stupid, but its true. Lets just say I am around 21, and leave it at that. I somehow doubt that zero carb would affect a 23 year old differently that it would a 21 year old. I do not fudge facts that are relevent.
regarding your other questions: most of the gain seems to be in fat, but I have noticed minor increases in strength when lifting weights, so probably its some muscle also. I eat all sorts of cuts--whatever is on sale or looks good. I usually aim for the cheapest fatty cuts of meat I can find: chuck roasts for example. I also have a huge tub of rendered suet that I make generous use of. I do not make a point of eating the fat first--I do what comes naturally. Seasonings I use include pepper, very modest use of salt, curry powder, modest amounts of herbs like rosemary, and on a blue moon perhaps some garlic. Generally I eat my meat pretty plain, and often raw.
Timmypath or whatever your name is Wrote:i think my experience clearly invalidates the widely held view that as long as a person isn't eating carbs, he cannot gain weight. As far as I'm concerned, it also invalidates the opinion that zero carb eliminates cravings in all cases. I foresaw having a miserable amount of school work this semester, and knowing from experience that logging in hours behind the desk drives me to eat extreme amounts out of boredom, I figured that perhaps going zero carb could help me overcome this problem, or at least prevent the inevitable weight gain this sort of behavior would ordinarily entail, but clearly the diet has failed in both respects.
The reason that people have trouble with your story besides the inconsistent age and other things is this statement here. You clearly seem as if you're coming to tell us that your experience invalidates what most of us already know to be true judging by our success with what we are doing and you think that your experience invalidates what you think we believe.
But you see weight is not the only factor we consider. We don't have hunger or cravings and we don't eat when bored nor do we snack. This means that you have not adapted to the diet, plain and simple. Two months seem like a lot of time to your 20-something year-old mind, but it's not that long to us. According to Dr. James Sidbury, it can take 18 months to lose cravings so it would take a much fuller attempt at ZC before we concluded that somehow your results invalidated any of our findings.
You didn't come for help, you clearly came to share your experience and you've done that. Thanks for sharing.
Maybe it needs to be in the FAQs in big bold letters: ZC is not a weight loss plan. ZC *normalizes* your weight per your genotype, and it may or may not stabilize at a weight that you like or that you set as a goal.
+1 on not needing to eat non-stop just because I am sedentary or bored. I am stuck at a desk in front of a pc for 8 to 9 hours a day. I don't eat anything all day at work. On zc I don't need to. I eat dinner, go to bed, get up, go to work, come home, make dinner. Rinse, repeat.
Yes! Just what I was thinking.
I'm not saying that zero carbs does not yield wonderful results for a lot of people. I'm just saying that my circumstance proves that it does not provide elimination of cravings and prevent weight gain for EVERYBODY. Even if I'm the only person in the world for whom zero carbing does not work as it is suggested it does, my statement still holds true: everybody-1=not everybody.
I don't know why you feel the need to reduce everything to insulin. Some people deal with stress by pick at their skin, others cut themselves, others pleasure themselves 18 time a day. Are any of these behavioral traits caused by insulin? Stress is not caused exclusively by insulin, and it has more robust effects than does insulin alone.
Bringing insulin under controll has a lot of possitive benefits, Charles. I'm not trying to question this point. I am only trying to point out that insulin control is the be-all, end-all of health and well being.
I suppose its possible that I was underweight before and that I've been growing into my ideal weight, but I doubt that its natural for me to have a layer of unattractive flab covering my belly. I feel that I was a pretty good weight, and certainly not underweight before I started eating zero carb (for the record, I went from about 160 to about 180 as a male of about average height).
Also, I do not have cravings for sugar or carbs. I haven't eaten sugar or refined carbs for years, as I mentioned earlier--so this might have something to do with it. And I don't need you taunting me with GCBC esoterica. I've read the book, and I am well oriented of the body of academic knowledge surrounding zero carb. Besides, Charles, nobody here, you included, have been zero carb for over 18 months. If took 18 months for you to experience benefits from zero carb, I somehow don't think you'd be on the diet right now. If a diet takes 18 months to work, and in the mean time has negative impacts, I think its safe to say this is a diet that nobody is going to be willing to subject themselves to on an article of faith. As far as I'm concerned, the whole, "Dr. James Sidburry" is a easy excuse to throw around when zero carb really just isn't working for some people the way they had planned. Furthermore, why should I believe some obscure study published decades ago? A person who eats zero carbs has to be just a little skeptical of the legitimacy of most scientific studies, and I don't see why I should necessarily feel any different about those that are supportive of low carb or no carb diets.
I have better things to do than try to convince you all over the internet that I'm not making all this up. I thought there would be people here interested in learning from other's experiences, but I'm growing increasingly convinced that Charles, and maybe some others, are only so assured of their views because they are selectively choose to disbelieve those who do not have as much success with what they are doing as they have.
If you don't want to hear what I have to say, just let me know, I'll stop talking.
By the way, that last comment was not specifically directed at everbody here. Most members here seem pretty open minded and nice, but gosh, Charles and Catin, can't you cut me a break. I'm not trying to rain on your parade. you know what works for you better than I do. I'm simply speaking from my own experience for those who care to hear.
I agree with you. Not all psychological problems will be fixed with diet. Certainly. Now that you know this you have the opportunity to fully address your problems. Because you can know that your diet is not the problem, you at least have one factor you can eliminate. Analyze whether your cravings are indeed due to hunger or primarily emotional/psycholological.
But, please, I wish you to consider that you stilll have healing to do with your pancreas. Not having been overweight does not mean your pancreas is not still very damaged from the taxing burden of dealing with carbs your whole life. Perhaps you just need to give it a lot more time.
Best wishes to you.
Never fear, Marnee, I'm not giving up carb avoidance any time soon. I may have to cave into picking back up a traditional low carb diet in the near future on account of social pressures, but I'll still be as low as possible. Like I've been saying, I don't believe that eating this way has made me gain weight, it just hasn't succeeded in preventing this from happening.
How exactly did you get into zc, besides curiosity? Have you had any benefits since going zc, such as energy boost, immune system better, etc..? Or has it all just been negative? What exactly was your diet before this? How much did you weigh before? Please give height as well. How often do you lift weights? How much research have you done on this site before posting? Like how many threads did you open and read?
Thanks