Get a Fat Metabolism & Reader Feedback Time

Mar 14 2008

Published by Mike OD at 11:19 am under Fat Loss, Health, Intermittent Fasting

I know what you are thinking…..what the heck is he talking about getting a “fat” metabolism? What this means is that you want to teach your body to burn more “fat” for daily energy than “carbs”. Why you ask? Excellent question. Well first off the better you get at burning fat, wouldn’t it make sense that the easier it will be not to gain fat in the long term? Secondly, everything I like to focus on here is based on health and longevity, no quick fixes at the expense of overall health. So look at quote from the research article titled: Fat Hormone May Contribute to Longevity

Using a mouse model of longevity, Terry Combs and colleagues report that changes in metabolism can indeed increase longevity. They demonstrated that long-lived Snell dwarf mice burn less glucose and more fatty acids during periods of fasting, and as a result produce fewer free radicals.

The benefit of burning fats instead of glucose for energy is that it produces fewer oxygen radicals which can damage cells and exacerbate the effects of aging.

Wow, sounds like a pretty good natural response that the body already has built in. Our bodies are designed to burn fat all day long especially during non-stressful events. Sure you will have muscle glycogen stored up and ready for short bursts of effort, but you don’t need to be drinking gatorade all day long or eating excessive carbs for energy (unlike what most commercials will try and tell you). Get in the mindset that you can burn fat for energy and that’s your goal! So quick check list on how we can start to accomplish that:

Eat a lower carb diet. You don’t have to starve yourself of carbs, but just lower it. There are many studies (listed here) to show the advantages of lower carb intake for health and longevity. Everyone is different (and activity levels can change) but most poeple will be fine on 50-100g a day at most.
Get more fats in your diet. People should at least be getting 30-40% of their daily calories from healthy fats (and NO we are not talking about processed foods, cookies and trans fats). The more fat you put into your body (instead of carbs), the more it will learn how to burn it. There are people showing great results in fat burning and performance levels with even higher %s (50-60%). Your total calorie intake will be determined by your health, goals and activity level. Hence why all that “low fat diet” advice only got people more overweight in the last 10 years. Let your body re-learn how to burn fat again by giving it some! (Note for fat loss that if fat goes up in the diet, carbs have to go down! Protein remains about the same. A diet higher in fat, carbs and lower in protein is NOT good!)
Keep calories lower to have a deficit, so you can burn internal fat for energy. This is nothing new, just saying that overeating a diet high in fat is not going to help you lose weight.
Fasting.…well of course I am going to throw it in there. As you see from the above quote about the mice, periods of fasting help the body burn internal fat for energy (as that is what fat cells are, storing energy for when the body asks for it)

So to sum up, you get the best results for longevity, health and weight loss when you follow a program of intermittent fasting, lower carbs (or carb cycling), higher dietary fat intake, lower average daily calorie intake and of course an active lifestyle.

A Personal Note: Your Feedback is Important

I would like to just take the time to thank everyone for their response and feedback. I didn’t know what to expect when starting this and I have found that it has become a very enjoyable platform for which I can share my knowledge and interact with everyone about topics that matter (in my opinion….health, longevity, fasting, simplicity and happiness). To me it has been something that I truly have enjoyed and look forward to continue on for a long while.

I have another project I am looking to launch real soon and will let everyone know about that when it does. But I want to ask YOU about what direction you would like to see this blog take in the future. I can of course ramble on for a long time (just ask any ex-gf) but I want to cover the important topics to who makes up this blog, you the reader. In my eyes this is your community and I am just here to help everyone along the way. So please share any comments and feedback about what you would like to see more of in the future and we can keep the quality content and comment discussion rolling along!

Thanks again to everyone out there for making this venture a success! Hopefully we can continue to spread the word and get more people on the road to health, wellness and happiness!

28 Responses to “Get a Fat Metabolism & Reader Feedback Time”

# Matt Metzgaron 14 Mar 2008 at 1:48 pm

Here’s something I would like further ideas on. To me, there is a big difference between a compressed feeding window and an intermittent fast. A compressed feeding window could be something a person does every day, if a person wants to and it works for them.

But a random intermittent fast, like not eating for 24 hours or more, strikes me as something different. I don’t like lumping the two into one big category under fasting. A person could do one or the other, or both actually, and there could be all kinds of different effects.

Maybe you can help sort this out.
# Jon Kalbon 14 Mar 2008 at 1:51 pm

Okay, you asked…

My feeling is that fasting is woefully under studied. We really don’t know nearly enough about the benefits (and problems) or how these benefits are achieved. We don’t know optimum fasting patterns (how often, how long, etc.).

I understand that many people have found answers that work for them, and I don’t mind hearing about that, but what I’d really like to see are references/synopsis of studies of any kind (clinical, animal, etc) that help us form answers in these areas. I other words, I’d like to know more about the studies that we do have and what they tell us as well as what specifics people are trying and find successful or unsuccessful (for them).
# Mike ODon 14 Mar 2008 at 2:05 pm

Matt and John - Exactly the kind of stuff I want to hear back on. I agree that fasting and the ideal ways vary alot and should be clarified. There are a ton of IF studies I have listed in the resource section but what is called “IF” varies between study. It could be ADF (alternate day fasting) in one, ADCR (alternate day calorie restriction…which is not really fasting) in another, 24-48 hour in another, and then Ramadan daily fasting. The common element being of course 2 things, fasting helps reset some evolutionary natural fat metabolism trigger and improves health/longevity factors. As for which is better than the other, we can look more into it but I think you also have to take into account the baseline of health for the person and activity level. One thing for certain is that better benefits will always be seen with a lower carb, and mod protein/fat diet in any form of IF. IFOC (IF on carbs…or crap) is not ideal or recommended.

Also the term IF I will admit is pretty wide in what it could be. Could IF be a condensed eating window (fast 5 approach) or does it have to be a 24 hr approach? Is it ADF? Which is better? Which provides the greatest stimulus for muscle growth vs long term health factors? Which is better for fat loss? Where are the studies about this? All good questions I ask myself as well.

But that’s one of the reasons I wanted to do this site…is to get the discussion on IF out there and start finding the real answers. Thanks again for the honest input.
# John Spenoon 14 Mar 2008 at 2:09 pm

Did you really mean to say 15-20% of calories from fat? That seems way too low. It’s lower than the current wrong-headed guidelines from the establishment even.
# Mike ODon 14 Mar 2008 at 2:30 pm

John - actually…No..damnit. My bad (got carbs/fats mixed up in my head). Thanks for the heads up and going to fix it. I am human. It should be somewhere around a minimum of 30-40%…the key word being minimum as I know my intake is much higher (50-60%+) but that is probably more than the average person gets nowadays as they think the zone is high fat at 30%. That and people with high fat intakes nowadays are also higher calorie intake overall. Percentages will range with total calorie intake as low calorie (such as the zone) may have 30% but down the carbs and up the fat….you get 50-60%. 30-40% is minimal based on a reasonable calorie intake…but people have shown greater fat burning and performance benefits becoming more fat adapted and using a higher % of fat in their diet too.
# chaineyon 14 Mar 2008 at 3:57 pm

I’d like to see your “studies” site finished, for the selfish reason that then I can cite them.

Also, for most people some interpretation (of those studies) will be required. For instance “greater prevalences of sclerotic glomeruli” doesn’t mean much to me. Is it good or bad?
# Mike ODon 14 Mar 2008 at 4:09 pm

chainey - Are you referring to the studies in the “resources” section? Right now they are just links but I am trying to present and clarify more studies in every post. Or was there something completely different you had in mind? Little confused but it’s been a long day. Thanks for your comment.
# Scott Kusteson 14 Mar 2008 at 4:40 pm

Don’t forget that ketosis will kill you though MOD. Seriously though, it blows my mind that people think the body’s natural process of burning fat is deadly. The body has no processes (off top of head) that are deadly when running properly. Diabetics may not want to go ketotic (all that ketoacidosis stuff), but then again, the body isn’t running properly in a diabetic.
# Mike ODon 14 Mar 2008 at 4:48 pm

Scott - good point as we all have to first assess where our health base is…as most people are disfunctional at some level of mostly insulin resistance factor. There are essential amino acids (proteins)….essential fatty acids….but no essential sugars (carbs) unlike what those “secret tropical berry” MLM juices try to sell you on. Body can convert fat or amino acids into sugars…but not the other way around. Of course I like a certain level of carbs daily and that level will be individualistic as well, but lower is better that’s for sure!!
# Pete Ton 14 Mar 2008 at 6:16 pm

What’s your definition of “healthy fats”? Can you give me an example breakfast/lunch/dinner that follows your advice?

(It’s easy for me to see how to cut carbs. It’s harder to see how to add healthy fat. Do I fry my meat in olive oil? Avoid “extra lean” beef in favor of ground chuck? Add a handful of almonds to my meals?)
# Mike ODon 14 Mar 2008 at 6:28 pm

Pete - My definition of healthy fats include sat fat from meat/eggs (grass fed is ideal), coconut oil (which is an MCT sat fat, easily digested), organic butter, Olive oil, avocado/guacamole, fish oil, and then various nuts and nut butters. I would say it is also healthier to get more sat/monounsat than excessive polyunsat (poly is more unstable and creates more oxidative damage and can increase inflammation with too much omega 6s). Of course everyone has their opinion on sat fat, and people say Paleo meats were leaner and had less sat fat than livestock today, here’s a good article on fats: http://www.westonaprice.org/knowyourfats/skinny.html

If you are going to cook high heat, use sat fats like coconut, palm or butter as they are more stable. Olive Oil being a monounsat are less unstable at higher heats and better off at lower heat cooking.

Meals….step 1, add meat….beef, eggs, chicken, tuna…..step 2 add veggies….spinach, broccoli….step 3 add fruit or fats (fruit better in AM when insulin sensitivity is higher). Pretty simple, try to avoid the grains, breads, etc when I can. I like being more strict M-F and being more flexbile on the weekends when I probably get more carbs,
# Scott Kusteson 14 Mar 2008 at 7:07 pm

And for pity’s sake, avoid the trans fats! To further what Mike said about polyunsaturated fats, Paleolithic intake would have been very low. Foods like corn are not exceptionally high in fat, so it takes a lot of corn to get a bottle of corn oil. That means lots of pressing, lots of processing. Our ancestors would not have had access to huge amounts of polyunsaturates. On top of that, the polyunsaturates require deodorization and refining to make sure there’s nothing left in them that can go rancid while they sit on the shelf. Saturated fats do not require any processing due to their inherently shelf-stable nature. That means they retain their vitamins…see a post a wrote a long time ago on The Tropical Oils” for a comparison of vegetable oils vs coconut and palm oils.

Scott Kustes
Modern Forager
# Pete Ton 15 Mar 2008 at 2:46 am

Mike and Scott, thanks for the advice and pointers!
# Eddy Aon 15 Mar 2008 at 5:58 am

Hi guys.
I find IF method very innovative and interesting, while history-related. I’ll try it.

Anyway, it seems that the discussion is orientating toward the Zone diet, which I followed for some weeks in different periods, with good results. Have a look on that and see that the percentage of macronutrients combinations are extremely similar to the ones you’re proposing.

Stay fit!

P.S. How do you associate fasting with training?
# Ian's Dadon 15 Mar 2008 at 10:01 am

MOD,

The magazine Scientific American put out an issue a little over a year ago dealing with calorie restriction, stress and longevity genes. Volume 16, Number 4, 2006 is the issue. It gets fairly technical in places, but given some other reader comments, perhaps, you or other readers of this blog who are smarter than I, can decipher the jargon. Here is an excerpt from one of the articles:

“…we and other researchers have fond that a family of genes involved in an organism’s ability to withstand a stressful environment-such as excessive heat or scarcity of food or water-have the power to keep its natural defense and repair activities going strong regardless of age. By optimizing the body’s functioning for survival, these genes maximize the individual’s chances of getting through the crisis. And if they remain activated long enough, they can also dramatically enhance the organism’s health and extend its life span. In essence, they represent the opposite of ageing genes-longevity genes.”

They should have it in their digital archives at http://www.sciam.com. Unfortunately, they require $39.95 a year to subscribe and access the archives. Or if you want, I can mail the newstand issue that I have. I’ve gotten as much out of it as I can.

Thomas
# Ian's Dadon 15 Mar 2008 at 10:03 am

I meant to say “I can mail YOU the newstand issue that I have”.
# Jimon 15 Mar 2008 at 10:07 am

Eddy A,
I just started IF at the end of February, so I do not have much experience. I have been exercising in a fasted state since then. It is much easier than I thought. I do crossfit and was worried I would not be able to survive it. Working out made the fast a little easier, because I am never hungry after a good work out. The hard part for me is to not overeat when I come off the fast. That full, satisfied feeling does not seem to happen as quickly. So I need to decide what I am going to eat prior to the meal and have plenty of water.
Best of luck!
# Mike ODon 15 Mar 2008 at 11:08 am

Eddy - IF (or fasting) is not something new as you can really trace it back to Paleolithic times (You know the Geico caveman) man and his times of feast or famine. It’s just a natural process in nature that we have lost due to the abundance and constant supply of food supply, there is no time where we have to not eat because of lack of food in modern society. As for the zone, I’m more of the “eat paleo” type of person but the zone can work for sure. I will do a post in the very near future on the Zone vs IF, similarites and differences. As for fasted training, many people do it just fine…of course it varies on your definition of training (strength? glycolitic? 2 hours of basketball? etc). People who have upped their dietary fats and become more “fat adapted” with their metabolism find it easier too as you always have plenty of fat in the body to burn.

Thomas - Good stuff. In pretty plain and simple words, you need periods of stress/catabolism to have the body react in an anabolic way. (You can see plenty of studies in the resources section that will tie calorie restriction/fasting to increases of protection for the heart, lungs, cells and cancer, and other neuroendocrine stress responses) Hell if you keep punching a brick wall, eventually the body makes the bones in the hand stronger and denser to keep up with the stimulus (if you don’t break your hand in the process of course). Kind of like working out, you tear down the muscle only so it can build it up again stronger. Whatever stimulus you give the body, it will learn and build up stronger defenses for the next time. So fasting, the body learns and says “ok…well let’s make everything stronger in the body to get ready for the next fast”. Genetic survival mechanisms that keep us alive. Hence then you can look at ageing and say it is really just when the body lacks any more periods of stress and lets the body defenses and cell metabolism decline until death. The body likes challenges, the body learns better from constant varied environments, the same thing over and over again will just lose effectiveness after a while. Stop challenging the body, never changing the environment and it starts to lose it’s survival instincts. Why you will also see it is never too late to start strength training and fasting…anyone at any age can do it (of course their state of health will determine the level at which they can really stress their body). Give your body a reason to get stronger and adapt and it will repay in kind. I’d be interested in reading it more, you can email me at mike@theiflife.com and I’ll let you know where to send it. Thanks!
# Sueon 16 Mar 2008 at 6:20 pm

Regarding amount of meals you have a day. Do you think its better to have 3 solid meals with atleast 4-5 hours between the next meal. I think the Cohen diet recommended these gaps between food - I’m not sure why? I think having these gaps between meals will ensure that some of the time your body is burning your fat stores for energy rather than what you consume??
# Heidion 16 Mar 2008 at 6:38 pm

Hi I’m a woman feeling like I’m having trouble getting enough protein without too many calories unless I use a whey protein supplement. What’s your take on whey protein supplements? Also, just for your FYI, in case you’re collecting data, I work out (swim, run, or downhill ski) 5 - 6 days a week fasted a.m. (either at 6 am or at 7:30 am), eat within 30 min. after (either at 7:30 am or at 9:00 am) mostly coconut oil, coconut, and nuts, a little bit of dates PWO, then continue eating until 2:00 or 3:00 pm, then stop eating until the next morning. Trying to eliminate grain products but having a lot of trouble with that.
# Mike ODon 16 Mar 2008 at 7:23 pm

Sue - I’m guessing the whole 4-5 hour rule is to have complete digestion before the next meal? Although most foods are digested in 3 hours (except protein which may take longer depending on the type of protein). Your body can burn fat all day long…as where do you think it gets the energy for digestion? It comes down to the hormones involved, calorie intake, your activity level..etc. If you are fasting you are doing enough gut cleaning.

Heidi - I wouldn’t really waste money on whey unless it is a last resort. You can try to add in some more beef, chicken, tuna, fish, eggs, etc. When you say you are having trouble, what specifically is the trouble part, not having it with you or finding it enjoyable to eat? As for grains, at least try to start and cycle it like skip it M-F and then be more free on the weekends. Your gut will thank you….and yes I am jealous you get to ski that much…not much snow in Atlanta.
# Jackon 17 Mar 2008 at 7:52 pm

Great site.. I’m really enjoying the content. This has become one of my daily stops besides CF, PM Boards and Robb’s blog..

Wondering if you have anything in the works on this sort of diet and it’s effects on your immune system? I just got wiped out for a week by the flu.. My diet came apart at the seams.. Went from a Paleo diet w/ about 50% of cals coming from fat to a “gatorade and bagel diet”. I’m now feeling better and just trying to pick up the pieces and get back at it.

Anyway, keep it coming!!
# Mike ODon 17 Mar 2008 at 9:35 pm

Jack - Thanks. Interesting topic on diet and immune response….I like it! Sometimes when you have the flu it’s best to stick to liquids…as you need that energy to fight off the evil doers in your body, whole food proteins take up a ton of energy in digestion. My usual routine (last time I felt like I had the flu couple years ago) was nothing but water and ACV (apple cider vinegar). It totally makes you useless for a day as I did nothing but sleep and drink that mix while laying in bed…but 24 hours later I am up and moving and 48 hours later I am at about 85% health (just little weak from lack of calories…but that comes back). In my mind it’s better to hit it head on for a couple days than carry it around for weeks and weeks and weeks like most people (or they just get it over and over again). We will all have set backs whether it be sickness, injury or just crazy lifestyle…that happens…but just get back into it again and you will be fine.
# The IF Life - Intermittent Fasting and Instant Freedom » General IF Q&A and Reader Commentson 28 Mar 2008 at 11:10 am

[...] that could be of benefit. But avoid the sugar spikes. Plus around here for longevity we stress the fat metabolism for fuel, so glycogen replenishment is not as big a factor once we can adapt to a fat based [...]
# Heidion 28 Mar 2008 at 5:06 pm

Mike - thanks a lot for your reply. I would rather not eat any grains at all, but it’s hard because I love them. I seem to eat a small bowl of popcorn and half an english muffin, or similar, every day. I might get away with a banana instead, but bananas have 25 carb gms as opposed to 15 gms per slice of toast. Am I crazy?

Jack - I just got over the flu, too, and I, like you, could not seem to tolerate fat and protein. I was down to apples and milk (is that heresy?). I hate gatorade, so milk it was. . . .
# gracieon 29 Mar 2008 at 1:53 pm

hi , just wondering about effect of IF on metabolism . I am hypothyroid on eltroxin and trying to loose last 7 lb , well am about 23 % bf , female and trying to lean out, .At a loss cannot seem to shift and wondering if IF would help since am not great at the 6 meals a day thing but was doing this on zone to try and boost my metabolism along with exercise ( havnt lost a pound)- is IF going to slow down the metabolism even further,
Cheers
Gracie
# Mike ODon 29 Mar 2008 at 8:37 pm

Heidi - Ahh yes, our “love” of grains. Remember that is all in your head…one thing I did notice when doing a longer fast of 24+hrs that my cravings would “reset” to almost a primal state of craving meat or fat…and it would only go back to carb cravings once they were reintroduced back in. Doesn’t sound like you are getting alot in anyways do don’t sweat it too much. Start with taking a day “off” of grains, or rotating your foods see how that goes. Just make sure you are still getting plenty of calories from protein and healthy fats.
# Mike ODon 29 Mar 2008 at 8:47 pm

Gracie - Yes it can be tough with a hypothyroidism (as I hit on that in my post recently about “Too fast a metabolism”…so read that as well as it has pro-thyroid tips). Fasting too often or the wrong way will drop a metabolism, so for right now I would say your best option is eating healthy foods all day long and make sure you are getting enough quality foods in. Make sure you are getting enough protein as well. If you want to add in a fast once in a while for health, then I would suggest starting slowly like 1-2x a week with a 15 hr fast….where you will eat for 9 hours and get plenty of calories. Lowering the metabolism is mainly due to lower calorie intake, so keep that in mind if you decide to start any kind of IF program. Where you are also on meds you may also want to check that out with your Dr first. I’m no Dr so I can’t tell you why your thyroid is low to begin…but it could of been from a long period of lowered calories (which explains why you lose weight and then plateau and get no more weight loss), lack of essential vitamins (A,D,B) or minerals (Iodine, Magnesium, Calcium), also chronic stress has a direct effect on the adrenals which have a role in thyroid T4-T3 conversion (metabolism regulator)…but hopefully it is something that can be reversed as the body has great abilities to do so. Just to give you an example, I like to eat IF daily M-F for 15-18 hours a day, make sure to get plenty of protein, veggies and healthy fats…and then leave the weekends free to eat whatever and get more calories to make sure my metabolism does not shut down. Hope some of this helps you out with some steps to take….and make sure you give yourself some time to stress relief as well such as no TV and just walking outside….lifestyle factors can also be a part of the problem.

Trackback URI | Comments RSS