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I created this response on the alt.suport.diet.low-carb newsgroup. And when I type this much, I’d rather it not be lost to antiquity, you know? Plus, my ISP seems to have been losing posts to newsgroups lately. So I’m archiving it on my blog. A guy who calls himself “Peter” has this to say:

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I’ve read the Atkins book and I’m on the fourth day of induction, feeling pretty awful and feeling especially sick at even the thought of another [expletive] egg! But the ‘Ketostix’ are showing deep purple (highest level on the scale) so I’m doing something right.

I’m eating as much as before; arguably even more, because nothing seems to satisfy my craving for carbohydrate of some kind. The result is that I’m raiding the fridge hourly in an effort to find something, anything that might make me feel better. Consequently, my food intake has gone through the roof.

Perhaps I haven’t understood the principles of the Atkins diet but I’m puzzled about something.Where does all that dietary fat (and protein) go. Does it just get excreted? If it doesn’t get excreted then it presumably gets burnt for energy? But if that happens doesn’t it mean that every gram of dietary fat I eat is one less gram of body fat that gets burnt? So I lose weight less quickly? And so, conversely (if my logic is right so far) if I eat more fat than my body can burn then won’t I just put weight on?

And if all that’s true then isn’t it the case that the Atkins Diet cliche that “you can eat as much non carb food as you like” just garbage? The cynic in me might even say that the reason most people loose weight on Atkins is down to the fact that the ‘allowed foods’ are so awful that they eat less anyway? So in my case I would have to cut down on my protein/fat intake if Atkins is to succeed? And if I do that then what’s the advantage of Atkins over any other calorie restrictive diet?

Obviously there’s a flaw in my logic……………..but what it it?

Peter

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My Response:

Here are some answers, Peter. Realize I’m just a low-carber that’s read a lot, and I could be totally wrong on a thing or two, but I *think* I’m right.

1. “… the ‘Ketostix’ are showing deep purple”

   The Ketostix showing “purple” means you’re processing dietary (and probably body) fat for energy. Good. However, the really deep color is far more an indication that you aren’t drinking enough water than that you’re “deeply in ketosis”. As long as the sticks are any color other than their original neutral beige, you can be sure you’re in ketosis/lipolysis. Drink more water to lighten them up.

2. “I’m eating as much as before; arguably even more, because nothing seems to satisfy my craving for carbohydrate of some kind. The result is that I’m raiding the fridge hourly in an effort to find something, anything that might make me feel better. Consequently, my food intake has gone through the roof.”

   What are you eating? Have you tried following the Atkins induction menu strictly for a week? Normally, after 3-5 days, most people lose the carb cravings, and within the two weeks, encounter far less hunger as well as a substantial energy boost. You may want to double-check what you’re eating to make sure that everything is on the “induction” list.

   I felt like I was eating more than before when I went on induction. After a week, I discovered Fitday and started tracking, then realized that I actually wasn’t eating nearly enough. Just a few days of tracking your usual eating habits is often enough to give you a clue of how much you should be eating to satisfy dietary requirements.

3. “Where does all that dietary fat (and protein) go. Does it just get excreted?”

   Yep. Ketones that show up in your urine are similar to carbs — they sport 4 calories per gram. If you’re eating your daily requirement of calories to (normally) not lose any weight, and you are on a low-carb diet, you’ll still lose weight roughly equal (over time), at 3500kcals/pound, to what you’re pissing into your toilet.

   Your body dumps those ketones into your urine because they are acidic, and it’s trying to maintain the pH level of your bloodstream. Yet it needs more energy, so your fat cells and the fat you digest are creating more ketones. It’s kind of like a nuclear reactor, in a way — reactors have to dump some hot water *somewhere* in order to keep temperatures equalized. Often this is to a massive pond where the environment can cool it off before it’s re-used. Your body is doing a similar thing, but it’s trying to maintain acid/base balance, rather than heat.

4. “every gram of dietary fat I eat is one less gram of body fat that gets burnt?”

   If you don’t eat enough calories to satisfy your Basal Metabolic Rate, eventually your body slows your metabolism to compensate. It’s a survival mechanism. So you need to make sure to eat enough food to be satisfied, yet not enough to be stuffed silly.

5. “if I eat more fat than my body can burn then won’t I just put weight on?”

   Yes and no. If you’re in ketosis/lipolysis, you have some “burn-off” of calories through your urine, so you can eat a bit more calories than you normally could and still maintain weight. However, pronounced evidence of this effect is generally short-lived for the first few weeks or months on a low-carb diet, and by the time you move from Ongoing Weight Loss to Pre-Maintenance, it’s virtually nonexistent. For most people, they will lose visible evidence of ketones somewhere between 40-60 grams of carbs per day. You’re not eating like Induction forever, you know. But the metabolic advantage that sticks with you is that a higher protein diet metabolizes in the liver at only 58% percent efficiency versus carbohydrates, and you’ll tend to feel more satiated when low-carbing vs. low-fatting.

6. “…Atkins Diet cliche that “you can eat as much non carb food as you like””

   Sounds like you didn’t really read the book. That’s a fallacy. You can eat as much as you need to be satisfied — but not stuffed. This also varies according to height. Short people often find they need to reduce portion sizes and accomodate their bodies to less food, even on Atkins. I’ve found that, even at six feet tall, I need to occasionally monitor my calories per day to make sure I’m meeting my Basal Metabolic Rate (to avoid the “famine mode” of metabolism), and to gauge how well I’m meeting my body’s requirements as I continue to drop weight. It’s a bit of a science project, really.

   The relevant Atkins philosophy is “if you are hungry, eat.” But, when eating, avoid the carbohydrate foods, and track the carbs of what you eat according to your current phase of the eating plan. This philosophy is not quite the same as “eat as much non carb food as you like”. If you’re not hungry, even if you’d “like” more, don’t eat. There’s still self-discipline involved on Atkins — it’s just considerably easier to maintain this way of eating than most low-fat or traditional calorie-restricted plans.

7. “The cynic in me might even say that the reason most people loose weight on Atkins is down to the fact that the ‘allowed foods’ are so awful that they eat less anyway?”

   I have no idea what you’re talking about. I just enjoyed a fantastic salad. Two cups of lettuce. Three tablespoons of pine nuts (I just like pine nuts — you may like other nuts). A handful of real bacon bits. And it was all topped with sauteed chicken breast that I made myself. A few nights ago I went to Carl’s Junior and ordered a Western Bacon Double Cheeseburger without the bun. It was excellent, and presented in an appealing way on a platter. I had to eat it with a fork and knife, but no worries. Last night I had an Atkins Endulge ice cream bar. I’ve been off the carbs long enough that that is “sweet enough” for me, though some people don’t like them.

   The food I get to eat, particularly now that I’m past Induction, are just awesome. Hamburgers (hold the bun). Low-cab pancakes, if I wish to make them. Cauliflower salad that I like better than potato salad. Creamy cheesecakes. Taco salads (sans the chips). Fantastically creamy, flavorful homemade soups. Alaskan King Crab, and other shellfish. Shrimp stir-fry. There’s a whole world of cooking I’m exploring now, after three years as a partial vegetarian (one year ovo-lacto, two years ovo-lacto, fish and fowl). It’s some great stuff.

8. “… So in my case I would have to cut down on my protein/fat intake if Atkins is to succeed? And if I do that then what’s the advantage of Atkins over any other calorie restrictive diet? “

   A low-carbohydrate, low-protein diet is a recipe for a heart attack, as your body pillages your body’s muscles (eventually, including heart muscle) to sustain your life. A low-carbohydrate, low-fat diet is very difficult to maintain, since you’ll feel both carbohydrate deprived, and starved for any satisfying foods. Some people are more weight-loss intolerant than others, and it’s important to make sure you’re following the plan exactly (including prohibited foods), as well as, in some cases, monitoring your caloric intake and making sure you’re receiving sufficient nutrition through supplements, vegetables, and the fats & proteins in your diet throughout the Induction phase.

   The carb cravings normally go away after a few days on Induction. If they don’t, you are almost certainly eating something off-plan. Try following the strict Induction menu provided in Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution for at least one week. Re-read Chapter 11 (I think it is) to remember the Rules of Induction.

   And remember that Induction lasts somewhere between two weeks and several months — how long beyond two weeks, if you choose, is up to you, keeping in mind that one of the most common causes of “stalls” in weight loss while on Atkins is staying below 20 carbs a day. People tend to lose more weight, and keep it off, if they transition from Induction, to Ongoing Weight Loss, to Pre-Maintenance, to Maintenance, than to Induct as long as they possibly can. If you stay on Induction much beyond six months (if you have a lot to lose), your body begins hoarding all the calories and fat it can in an effort to keep you alive with such a long-sustained low-carb regimen. You MUST increase your number of carbs (if you are of sufficient height that 20 carbs is too little for you) in order to be “doing Atkins”. It’s controlled-carb, not “no-carb”. I expect I’ll be eating somewhere around 100 carbs a day by the time I arrive at maintenance, which is only 1/3 of the U.S. RDA.

   The goal of Induction is to break your carbohydrate cravings and binging tendencies, plus set a baseline carbohydrate level for you at which you can prove to yourself the diet works; it sure sounds like you need it. It’s not a lifetime sentence on how to eat. I’m up to 35 carbs per day now, and still dropping weight rapidly (six-footer, 30 years old, nightly treadmill, exercise videos, or resistance training for 30-45 minutes). In the Ongoing Weight Loss Phase, you get to start experimenting with new foods, a little at a time, and it’s much more exciting.

As far as for the benefit versus a reduced-calorie diet: in the long term, the advantages as I see them are:

• Atkins makes people feel more satisfied with what they eat than low-fat plans. It’s an easy plan to stick to once you’ve broken your cravings, and the negative effect many people feel when they “over-carb” helps keep them on-plan when they do slip off. I don’t know what the statistics are like for people sticking to Atkins, but I’m finding it extraordinarily easy to make common-sense choices to keep my carb count down.
  Contrary to what some people think, eating low-carb cannot “make you diabetic”. It makes you more sensitive to the aftereffects when you over-carb, because it adjusts to a lower-carb regimen, but you’ll secrete insulin to handle it all the same. It’s just that eating excessive carbs with a high glycemic index will eventually make you feel kind of bloated, gassy, and tired.
• It stabilizes blood sugar for Type II diabetics and pre-diabetics much better than low-fat. Most morbidly obese people are pre-diabetic, many of the obese, and some of the overweight.
• Atkins offers more food choices. The only “forbidden” foods (post-Induction) are starchy or refined carbs like bread, potatoes, and white rice. This accounts for way, way too much grocery store shelf space, but on Atkins I eat much more healthy food. Wholesome grains, vegetables, meats, butter, dark turkey meat… “real food” rather than “low fat” stuff.

In the short-term (less than a year), those on a low-carbohydrate regimen drop fat weight much faster than those on low-fat, given equal calories, and maintain their existing lean muscle mass better.

It’s up to you — if you hate doing Atkins after the first two weeks, try something else. Some people like or need it, some don’t. That’s my lengthy two cents.

—
Matthew
Started Atkins@240lbs, Nov 1 2003

255/227/180 6’0″

Jean size:
40/36 (loose now!)/32

My wife and I celebrated nine years tonight. It’s been a long, hard road at times, but despite difficulties, changes, children, and challenge, there have been rewards aplenty to keep us happy and motivated.

I love you, Christy, with all my heart, more than anything else in my life. For now and always. — Matthew

Barry Smith has begun a series of articles reviewing various GNU/Linux distributions with a focus on the non-guru, non-clueless-newbie audience.

For the majority of computer users, that’s really where they fall, I think. Most know how to use the specific applications they rely on, and they understand where to find files, how to navigate the filesystem, and the difference between saving and running an application.

I take my buddy Justin Timpane as an example. For a while, he seemed to aspire to be a computer geek, then decided that it wasn’t for him and he’d rather do something more real, and more important, than fix computers for a living. These days, he’s both a nurse and an actor — a tall order to fill — and seems to be thriving, enjoying both, although he’s a lot more tired all the time than I remember him 🙂

Anyway, Justin knows how to turn his computer on.

I kid you not, there are people behind a screen every day who do not know this.

There was one lady at my former work (a bank) who had not turned her machine off for several years while working there. She was also one of our “frequent callers” on the helpline because she was so absolutely clueless. This appeared to be a problem endemic to her brain, rather than limited to the technical arena, since people complained about similar problems with her outside of IT.

Anyway, the bank instituted a “save power, turn it off” program (that also had a beneficial secondary effect of helping the IT dep’t roll out patches better) who called the helpdesk in absolute panic the day after we implemented this policy because her machine “wouldn’t turn on”. I went down to see what was the matter.

I saw that her PC tower was turned around backwards under her desk. Cables had obviously been pulled out and put back. The keyboard and mouse were plugged into the wrong jacks (they look identical in shape if you use a PS/2 mouse & keyboard, but you’d think the color-coding mismatch would tip people off).

I fixed the keyboard and mouse mixup. I made sure the cables were secure. I flipped the computer right-way-front again.

I pressed the power switch on the front of the PC.

“So that’s how you do it,” I heard in a murmer from her lips behind me.

Back to what I was saying. Justin knows where the power switch is. He knows his music recording application, Cakewalk Sonar, very well, and even gives me tips from time to time on how to use it. He uses Instant Messaging, email, and most of the web goodies. He knows how to use the pointy end of a screwdriver, is pretty smart, and has reinstalled operating systems. He’s an intelligent, competent, mainstream PC user who knows how to solve problems in general, and can figure out most technical problems he encounters. This, I consider the “mainstream, average PC user”, representing the middle 50% of PC users.

This kind of article is geared for people like him, without aspirations to guru-hood, who use computers as part of their day-to-day life and might be looking for an alternative to Microsoft Windows.

This first installment in the series focusses on the easy-to-use Windows competitor, LindowsOS. I thought it was pretty cool, and will cover the next installment when it comes out.

EDIT: I’ve been to Subway and tried their low-carb wraps. They are really quite good. Five of the eight carbs in the Turkey Bacon Wrap are from the wrap itself. While it’s not appropriate for Induction (you’re trying to break the carb addiction, after all), it’s a nice treat. You can convert any sandwich into a wrap now for an extra $0.50, and from what I understand, in a couple of months Subway is introducing low-carb salads to complement their offerings. Watch this space!

January 1 is often a time of quiet contemplation, reflection, and consideration of times past. Many of us sit down with a sheet of paper, a pencil, and perhaps our partners, and figure out what our goals for this year are going to be. Most often, it really doesn’t matter if we achieve these goals (and heck, how many of us actually keep them anyway?) but simply that we set them, and that we aspire to be better than we are.

What a noble tradition. However, this January 1, for me, isn’t about goal-setting, except for one: to go out and stuff myself silly on a Subway low-carb sandwich wrap!

Yep, Subway Sandwiches has jumped on the low-carb bandwagon. They are coming out with whole-weat sandwich wraps. The wraps have 5 carbs — add to that the sandwich meats and veggies, and you’re talking about a big sandwich that will probably come in under 10 carbs for most people. While not ideal for those on Atkins Induction (less than 20 carbs a day — blowing half the wad on one meal is not recommended), any time past the first two weeks, this might be a pretty good treat, or even a staple.

So, while I’m not saying “Forget the Jared Diet” (eat less and exercise while eating Subway sandwiches daily), this may cast an entirely new light on Jared’s diet for those trying to speed up their weight-loss or manage diabetes by reducing carbohydrate intake.

In related news, I bought a Carl’s Jr. Western Double Bacon Cheeseburger the other day. And I asked them to “hold the bun”. They presented the sandwich very attractively, with ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise on the side, all on a nice foam dinner platter with a plastic lid. The bacon slices were criss-crossed in an “X” on top of this bun-less double cheeseburger.

I was so freaking impressed I called the Carl’s Jr. number right then and there (1.877.799.STAR) to congratulate them. Other than waiting on hold fifteen minutes while my kids played in the play area, it was cool. It went something like this (though I can’t remember the exact wording):

“Thank you for calling the Carl’s Junior customer service line. I’m Judy; may I have your name please?”

“Matthew P. Barnson”

“Matthew, what can we do for you today?”

“Well, I was just calling to congratulate you guys on a job well done. I ordered a Western Bacon Double Cheeseburger tonight without the bun. The last time I ordered a hamburger without the bun, it was at McDonald’s, and they took a cheeseburger, threw on all the toppings, and wrapped it in paper. It was disgusting. This burger from you guys, though, it just rocked! I mean, the presentation was excellent, it looked attractive to eat, and they didn’t look at me weird or anything.”

“Sir, you mean you’re calling to thank us?”

“Yeah, that’s right. Just to say thanks for making keeping to my low-carb eating regime much easier and more attractive.”

“Umm… okay”

(there was a pause, clicking of the keyboard on the other end)

“So, erm, well,” (she’s obviously trying to read her script at this point and figure out how to respond) “I will be sure and notify the regional vice president and manager of the store about this probl… erm, compliment, and they will see to it that it’s resolved… erm, that they keep up the good work,” she finished lamely.

She asked me for some personal information (address, phone number, etc). I went ahead and gave them to her, and surprise of surprises, she told us we would soon have coupons for two free hamburgers arriving in the mail!

Anyway, that’s my rambling post for the day. Cheers.

I ran across an interesting utility in a post on kuro5hin.org. It’s called Instant Gratification. What it does is, if you’re running a weblog, and someone visits, you get sent an instant message to your IM client! This gives you the opportunity, if it’s a logged-in user or someone on a related weblog (like LiveJournal, Blogger, and others share user accounts among thousands of blogs — but I run Drupal, so it’s just among a few hundred and whether the user logs in is totally up to the user to decide, rather than involuntary) to actually send IM’s to your visitors to determine whether they liked what they saw, what improvements you could put in, etc.

I dig it, and I think I’m going to use it. Now to hack my HTML code to allow it!

There’s another cool utility on that page called Blog Change Bot What this little bot does is allow people to receive Instant Messenger notifications when a blog entry on your site is updated.

Now, I already track users IM addresses (once again, on a purely voluntary basis if they decide to provide them), so converting this to a Drupal module should not be a big deal. I think the two could provide some really useful little utilities to Jon’s, Paul’s, and my blogs. Those are the three I really check every day 🙂 It would be nice if I could avoid checking them at all, and just get an IM when they are updated so I can check them when that happens. I track them on my site cloud anyway, so I kind of get a delayed-reaction notification when they change. It would rock to be notified within moments if they change — that way I can log on, leave a comment, and even fire them off a Private Message while they are still online! Or do similar things when Justin or Sam leaves an entry up here at barnson.org.

The problem is, there seems to be somewhere in the annuls of employment, on page 8394, a sentence that reads: “You must be ill to the point that you cannot do your job, and know it hours before”.

This double bind is where I am tonight. After leaving work early last night, I struggled with the decision today of whether or not to call in sick. I am not severely or acutely ill at this very moment.. but I was for much of last night, meaning I have had no sleep. I have had bouts with aspects of this illness today (including as recently as an hour before the beginning of my shift), and I had a real fear that going in to work tonight would make me be even sicker for the upcoming week.

Therein lies this little nugget of a problem. Now I am here at home, feeling better with each passing hour because I am resting.. and my body needed this rest to recover. But I feel bad that I am not actively suffering for the night I am not at work.. I feel like I should be as bad or worse than I was last night (The possibility of going back to the Hospital where I work as an ER patient came up in conversation with my wife).

I guess its pointless to wonder if I would have felt better had I not stayed home to rest.. and I NEVER call in… I am glad I am recovering from this particular bug, I just second guess myself.

Download TightVNC here if you want to remotely administer your computer from somewhere else. I dig it.

This blog is mostly for my father-in-law 🙂

I recently discovered a very interesting website called blogosphere.us. I discovered them by analyzing my referrer log. Apparently, their program reads some 150,000 blogs to discover what the current “buzz” is, and links to those trends and articles that are causing a stir across the blogging world.

Talk about your grassroots journalism, that’s pretty freaking cool.

Today marks the first day I’ve been simply “overweight” rather than “obese”. The Body-Mass Index still says I’m obese (at my height and age, I won’t graduate to “overweight” until I go below 224 lbs), but my body fat percentage, according to mybodycomp.com is now 22.54% — a really nice reduction versus the nearly 30% I was at the start of November. I’ve also put on, according to them, 7 lbs of lean muscle mass in that time from my exercise program.

I’m consuming around 2,200 calories per day, which with my moderate exercise (3-5 days of light exercise per week) puts my caloric burn somewhere in the neighborhood of 3200 calories per day. If I’m totally sedentary, my burn rate is around 2600 calories/day. It’s actually really difficult to reach 2200 calories a day when low-carbing at 25 grams or less of carbs per day. I basically have to eat till I’m full (not stuffed!) six times a day. If I reduce my calories too much below 2040, though (my Basal Metabolic Rate), it could put my body into fat-conservation, a.k.a. “famine” mode where it becomes really, really tough to lose.

Here I was thinking that I was in trouble, because I thought I’d “stalled” right around 228 lbs, when in fact I was still dropping inches (about half an inch from everywhere significant), except in my shoulders where I added nearly half an inch (I guess those deltoid exercises are doing their job!).

Eating less, exercising, and following a low-carb eating plan has finally given me the energy, feeling of “satiety”, and diverse diet I’ve been needing for years when I’ve failed at low-calorie diets. 12 pounds down in my first month! If other people’s history is any guide, that will probably slow down to about 4-6 lbs per month over the next few months. As I pass 200 lbs, I will probably find the pounds trying harder to stick around — I’m thirty now, not twenty-one any longer like the last time I was less than 200 lbs! And at that point, I’ll be transitioning into pre-maintenance and maintenance on my weight, trying hard to make the weight loss such a slow drop that, realistically, transitioning to my “normal” diet won’t be more than a tiny adjustment to my eating habits once I’m at a level where I want to maintain.

My wife says I’ve put on a lot of muscle in the last ten years (carrying babies around in one’s arms, and coping with household duties tends to do that a little), and so she thinks once I get below about 200, I’ll probably be very comfortable with my proportions. I guess we’ll wait and see where that goes… I’d sure love to be my high-school weight. I remember that, even then, I saw some “pooch” on my belly in the mirror with which I was dissatisfied.

Anyway, if you’re into tracking your stats to see which way you’re going (and heck, I’m unemployed right now so I definitely have the time), this page really helps to understand one’s stats. mybodycomp.com and fitday.com aren’t perfect sites by any means, but they are really helpful in getting a realistic picture of where you are health and diet-wise.

As managers are so fond of saying, “that which cannot be measured cannot be improved”…

Hope ya don’t mind the rambling about weight and stuff. I generally get obsessive over my new hobbies, then my interest dies off after a few months as I simply make it part of my routine rather than an important focus in my life. It’s happened that way with everything else I do; I figure this won’t be much different. Rest assured, within a few months, weight changes won’t be the center of my world…

Well, my job hunt is still proceeding. I’m getting 20-30 jobs in my inbox every day from dice.com and other job sites I’ve registered for, and I diligently respond to the ones that match my skills. So far, the returns from my resumes have been very, very rare, and the interviews nonexistent.

The online route has failed to pan out for me. I’m now into the “desparate cold-calling”, “lots of networking with people,” and “hitting the want ads” phase of the job-search, plus the “look into self-employment options while we still have money in the bank” phase. If you happen to know of an employer looking for a systems administration expert with a specialty in the integration of various operating systems, let me know!