I'm shocked how little attention metabolic health gets, specifically how people should be paying attention to their glucose levels.
I had my awakening to this in college. I used to have toast with Nutella for breakfast on a regular basis. I noticed that around 9:30 each morning I would have a major crash. Tired. Dizzy. Difficulty focusing.
After digging deeper, I realized that I was pumping my body full of carbs, spiking my insulin, then following with a crash. My doctors thought I had a mild case of hypoglycemia from it.
I've since completely changed the way I view nutrition. My mornings now start with a greens drink (essentially my multivitamins), a fasted workout, then a protein shake. My first dose of heavy carbs won't come until lunch, if not dinner. This, along with a focus on building muscle, has lead me to have far less ups and downs in the day.
I'm shocked, too, but not surprised. In the Functional Medicine circles I hang out in, metabolic disease is a common topic. But I'm not surprised how little attention people at an individual level pay to blood glucose levels.
I've used a glucose monitor - although not a continuous glucose monitor - to test my levels. What I've found really interesting is how the same carbohydrate will trigger different blood glucose spikes in different people. I do well with rice. I feel super sleepy after potatoes.
But I'm also not shocked because there is so much information about metabolic health that it's really easy to not see the wood for the trees.
Increasingly like the smaller the delta in blood glucose ups and downs, the better not just for metabolic health, but for gut and immune health too, plus longevity.
I've gone as far as a 3 day fast, and adopted a ketogenic approach after I found out that we - including our brains - don't need eat carbohydrates to survive. My brain and energy levels have never felt better. Yet, for me, I feel the best with a moderate carb + paleo template approach, with carbs (as minimal refined carbs as possible) flexing to my energy demands that day.
So glad you found the path to better metabolic health!
That's a common occurrence with time restricted eating.
One of the things I've noticed is the tendency with fasting, like many other health breakthroughs (cold water exposure / cryotherapy, ketogenic diets, HIIT (eg crossfit)) is "benefit creep".
"I feel great" 👉 "I'll do more of this"
There's usually a goldilocks sweet spot for all of these interventions, particularly when we look at these as stressors on our body. It's the eustress we're aiming for, so if the initial wave of benefits starts waning, it's a good opportunity to re-evaluate.
In practice, this means I lay off fasting in the morning if I've had a bad night's sleep, or I'm experiencing more stress than usual.
It sounds like you've got a good intuitive rhythm with your approach to TRE.
I've done the "I feel great" 👉 "I'll do more of this" and tried extending the TRE but around midday, hunger starts to kick in and most my additional "sharpness" starts being used to try to focus.
Regarding: "In practice, this means I lay off fasting in the morning if I've had a bad night's sleep, or I'm experiencing more stress than usual." I've never consciously thought of it but I do do that. I found hunger kicks earlier if I've had a bad night's sleep like today.
I've learnt to use hunger as may gauge. When it starts, there's no point trying to fight it.
The profile of the couple was the sugar of this piece that made it go down so well. I so appreciate you setting this useful information in a well-storied context. All health writing should be like this. Which is kind of a meta thought, that there is something about just shooting straight information into people's veins that seems as unhealthy to the spirit as sugar out of context from natural foods is to the body.
I'm touched by your comment: "All health writing should be like this"!
And I definitely echo this spiritual vs bodily dynamic in health. Sometimes we need to bring along our spiritual side in order to change our bodily function
Eric, what is your perspective on sugar intake during a high intensity strength training session or post workout?
I’ve been lifting for a year now, and per a recommendation from my bodybuilder friends, I drink a Gatorade or eat a few gummy candies in between sets for a burst of energy.
After an intense strength training session, I’ll drink a glass of juice as I understand this will aide my recovery and tissue building during a “build / massing” phase.
Would you advise against this?
In any case, I’m starting a “cut” next week, so it’s time to say farewell to sugar as much as possible 😂
Such a great piece! I’m biased, I’m as anti sugar as you can get, so when you were talking about sugary drinks, I was vigorously nodding along. When I cut sugar out of my diet, I started to religiously read the nutrition label on everything. I was so shocked to see that most “healthy” smoothies have the same amount of sugar as a Coca Cola. Beautiful imagery in this piece too!
I was just about to DM you that I'd committed treason against the King by putting heavy cream in my Yorkshire Gold :)
As a tea lover, this is a tough habit to change. I love black tea with milk and a teaspoon of sugar or honey. How do you handle this one, Eric? Just take it black? Switch to green tea or oolong?
I didn't know that was on the statute books as a form of treason! 😎
Heavy cream is high in good fats and usually very low in milk sugars (aka lactose) that it doesn't tend to spike blood glucose. You'll find folks who are on keto adding cream to their coffee / tea and still staying in ketosis.
Half and half or regular milk DO have more lactose, so - depending on how your body responds to lactose - you might see a moderate increase in blood glucose.
Honestly, though, I wouldn't sweat it. If it's a dash of milk in tea and a spoonful of sugar or honey, that's a drop in the ocean compared to the sugars in a soft drink or a fruit juice.
If you're shovelling sugar in other ways, or taking in more refined carbs (think things made with flour, like breads, pasta), or you're on a keto diet or something like low-FODMAP, then I'd carry on taking your teas how you prefer - sweet and milky!
Oh, I just found this, and thought the visual guide one page down was really helpful to see the relative amounts of lactose in different dairy products. https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/dairy
I'm shocked how little attention metabolic health gets, specifically how people should be paying attention to their glucose levels.
I had my awakening to this in college. I used to have toast with Nutella for breakfast on a regular basis. I noticed that around 9:30 each morning I would have a major crash. Tired. Dizzy. Difficulty focusing.
After digging deeper, I realized that I was pumping my body full of carbs, spiking my insulin, then following with a crash. My doctors thought I had a mild case of hypoglycemia from it.
I've since completely changed the way I view nutrition. My mornings now start with a greens drink (essentially my multivitamins), a fasted workout, then a protein shake. My first dose of heavy carbs won't come until lunch, if not dinner. This, along with a focus on building muscle, has lead me to have far less ups and downs in the day.
I'm shocked, too, but not surprised. In the Functional Medicine circles I hang out in, metabolic disease is a common topic. But I'm not surprised how little attention people at an individual level pay to blood glucose levels.
I've used a glucose monitor - although not a continuous glucose monitor - to test my levels. What I've found really interesting is how the same carbohydrate will trigger different blood glucose spikes in different people. I do well with rice. I feel super sleepy after potatoes.
But I'm also not shocked because there is so much information about metabolic health that it's really easy to not see the wood for the trees.
Increasingly like the smaller the delta in blood glucose ups and downs, the better not just for metabolic health, but for gut and immune health too, plus longevity.
I've gone as far as a 3 day fast, and adopted a ketogenic approach after I found out that we - including our brains - don't need eat carbohydrates to survive. My brain and energy levels have never felt better. Yet, for me, I feel the best with a moderate carb + paleo template approach, with carbs (as minimal refined carbs as possible) flexing to my energy demands that day.
So glad you found the path to better metabolic health!
I stopped eating breakfast altogether about 2 years now. I feel like my brain is so much sharper without anything in me.
That's a common occurrence with time restricted eating.
One of the things I've noticed is the tendency with fasting, like many other health breakthroughs (cold water exposure / cryotherapy, ketogenic diets, HIIT (eg crossfit)) is "benefit creep".
"I feel great" 👉 "I'll do more of this"
There's usually a goldilocks sweet spot for all of these interventions, particularly when we look at these as stressors on our body. It's the eustress we're aiming for, so if the initial wave of benefits starts waning, it's a good opportunity to re-evaluate.
In practice, this means I lay off fasting in the morning if I've had a bad night's sleep, or I'm experiencing more stress than usual.
It sounds like you've got a good intuitive rhythm with your approach to TRE.
I've done the "I feel great" 👉 "I'll do more of this" and tried extending the TRE but around midday, hunger starts to kick in and most my additional "sharpness" starts being used to try to focus.
Regarding: "In practice, this means I lay off fasting in the morning if I've had a bad night's sleep, or I'm experiencing more stress than usual." I've never consciously thought of it but I do do that. I found hunger kicks earlier if I've had a bad night's sleep like today.
I've learnt to use hunger as may gauge. When it starts, there's no point trying to fight it.
The profile of the couple was the sugar of this piece that made it go down so well. I so appreciate you setting this useful information in a well-storied context. All health writing should be like this. Which is kind of a meta thought, that there is something about just shooting straight information into people's veins that seems as unhealthy to the spirit as sugar out of context from natural foods is to the body.
Ah, Rick. Thank you.
I'm touched by your comment: "All health writing should be like this"!
And I definitely echo this spiritual vs bodily dynamic in health. Sometimes we need to bring along our spiritual side in order to change our bodily function
Eric, what is your perspective on sugar intake during a high intensity strength training session or post workout?
I’ve been lifting for a year now, and per a recommendation from my bodybuilder friends, I drink a Gatorade or eat a few gummy candies in between sets for a burst of energy.
After an intense strength training session, I’ll drink a glass of juice as I understand this will aide my recovery and tissue building during a “build / massing” phase.
Would you advise against this?
In any case, I’m starting a “cut” next week, so it’s time to say farewell to sugar as much as possible 😂
Such a great piece! I’m biased, I’m as anti sugar as you can get, so when you were talking about sugary drinks, I was vigorously nodding along. When I cut sugar out of my diet, I started to religiously read the nutrition label on everything. I was so shocked to see that most “healthy” smoothies have the same amount of sugar as a Coca Cola. Beautiful imagery in this piece too!
I was just about to DM you that I'd committed treason against the King by putting heavy cream in my Yorkshire Gold :)
As a tea lover, this is a tough habit to change. I love black tea with milk and a teaspoon of sugar or honey. How do you handle this one, Eric? Just take it black? Switch to green tea or oolong?
I didn't know that was on the statute books as a form of treason! 😎
Heavy cream is high in good fats and usually very low in milk sugars (aka lactose) that it doesn't tend to spike blood glucose. You'll find folks who are on keto adding cream to their coffee / tea and still staying in ketosis.
Half and half or regular milk DO have more lactose, so - depending on how your body responds to lactose - you might see a moderate increase in blood glucose.
Honestly, though, I wouldn't sweat it. If it's a dash of milk in tea and a spoonful of sugar or honey, that's a drop in the ocean compared to the sugars in a soft drink or a fruit juice.
If you're shovelling sugar in other ways, or taking in more refined carbs (think things made with flour, like breads, pasta), or you're on a keto diet or something like low-FODMAP, then I'd carry on taking your teas how you prefer - sweet and milky!
Oh, I just found this, and thought the visual guide one page down was really helpful to see the relative amounts of lactose in different dairy products. https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/dairy