The day after Labor Day (six days from today) our new book comes out, and our publisher finally gave us permission to excerpt it. I’m going to post the entire introduction so you’ll know why we came to write this particular book.
The story you will read will be true and the names won’t be changed to protect the ‘innocent.’ Until the events transpired that you will soon be reading about, I was not especially a proponent of fast weight loss. I mean a low-carb diet will make people lose weight quickly, but that’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about the people who used to come into my office saying, “I’ve got my high school reunion in a month. How much weight can I lose by then?’ I always considered these as fairly ludicrous requests because the requesters clearly weren’t concerned about health issues, but simply about how they would look in the short run, without an eye to maintaining their lifestyle.
As a consequence of dealing with so many of these patients, I really developed an aversion to the notion of quick weight loss to meet some sort of deadline where appearance counted. But, as with so many things in life, it’s easy to pontificate until you find yourself in the same position as the people to whom you’re pontificating.
Go ahead and read this excerpt so you can see what I’m talking about, and we’ll pick up this conversation after. This excerpt is from the manuscript version and not from the actual book so there may be slight differences, if you’re comparing the two. I used the manuscript version because I could paste it in – had I used the actual book version I would have had to type it in.
Bob Hope famously quipped that middle age is when your age starts to show around your middle, and the audience always obliged him with a hearty laugh. But for millions of adults the sad irony of the middle-aged middle is anything but funny. Except for a select few metabolically-gifted individuals, crossing the threshold into middle age heralds the beginning of a battle of the bulge that seemingly never ends. Granted some reach that threshold sooner than others; some acquiesce to the larger belt and the broader silhouette with some degree of aplomb, while others rail against time and fate. They take up and discard first one diet and exercise program and then the next in a frustrating quest to recapture the slender waist they can still recall, but no longer see in the mirror.
We’ve spent the majority of our medical careers helping people of every description with just this battle, combating overweight and weight-related health issues. Although some were in their teens and twenties and some were in their seventies and eighties, the vast bulk of the many thousands of patients we guided to better health and lower weights were in middle age. What we learned from these many years in the diet trenches is that middle-aged weight is stubborn; it’s different to deal with; it doesn’t respond readily to modest dietary changes or the incremental increases in exercise usually recommended by the purveyors of received medical and nutritional wisdom. The factors driving middle-aged weight gain—which really does go straight to the middle—are like a perfect storm, metabolically speaking. A confluence of changes in hormones, stress, lack of sleep, alcohol intake, medications, fat and cholesterol phobias, and a mountain of other nutritional misinformation combines to create a mid-life tsunami that seems to swamp the metabolism and fill every nook and cranny of the middle of the body with fat.
For more than twenty years we have researched this area of science, refining the tools to deal with it effectively, writing about it, lecturing on it, so you’d think that our expertise would make protect us from the tsunami, if it came our way. But it didn’t. Like everyone else, when the middle-age wave hit, we found ourselves floundering in the tide, paddling as fast as we could, and still not making much headway. At least not until we dug back into the medical bag of tricks we had used with success in our middle-aged patients and applied them to ourselves. Here’s how it all began.Mike’s Story
Our wake up call came the morning we walked onto the set to film the pilot for our TV cooking show. Years before, I had gained a tremendous amount of weight while pursuing my career as a busy, practicing physician, then lost it on a diet I cobbled together from information I got rereading my old medical school texts and delving into the medical literature. My weight loss did not go unnoticed by my patients, and soon many were clamoring for me to put them on the same diet I had developed for myself. I did so with great success. In short order my practice changed. My wife, Mary Dan, left her busy family practice and joined me in what became a huge bariatric (the treatment of obesity) practice. We refined the original diet and wrote about our methods in Protein Power, a book that sold nearly 4 million copies. During the never-ending promotion of the book, we met a producer who proposed that we star in a TV cooking show designed around the precepts of our diet and a cookbook we had written. We said “Let’s do it.” He put the deal together and set the shooting schedule for the pilot.
We walked onto the set in sunny Southern California one morning filled with both enthusiasm and apprehension. As we wandered through the semi-organized chaos that is a film studio, stepping over giant cables, ducking under the scaffolding for the overhead cameras, and dodging production assistants darting here and there, we began to wonder what we had gotten ourselves into. The whirlwind of activity and the 30 or so people on the set were intimidating to say the least. We had done countless live and taped television and radio interviews in the previous years, but never a project in which we were the sole actors on the stage, the ones who had to carry the entire show on our own shoulders. A young man recognized us and directed us to the Green Room, telling us the director would be in to talk with us shortly.
The director, a total stickler for every aspect of the production, didn’t mince words when he joined us in the Green Room. “We’re going to have to do something,” he said, “you guys are too fat to be starring in this kind of a cooking show.”
We were stunned. I was a much lesser version of my former fat self and thought of myself as pretty slender. Mary Dan had gained a little weight in the ten years since the publication of Protein Power, but certainly wouldn’t have been considered fat by anyone’s estimation. People we met at lectures, book signings, and other appearances uniformly commented on how thin and healthy we looked and always added that we were good advertisements for our diet.
“Yeah, well, it doesn’t work that way on TV,” said the producer. “If you’re the stars of a show on healthy eating, you’ve got to be thin. Granted, you look better than the average Joes and Janes out there, but they don’t have their own health show. TV is a youth-driven medium. You’ve got to look young to make it on TV and young means thin, especially around the middle. It’s like the golfer, Lee Trevino, says, the young guys are the ‘flat bellies.’ You’ve got to have a flat belly if you want to make it in this biz. The camera is going to put 10 pounds on you and you’ve both got bellies starting out. Imagine 10 pounds added to that.”
Bellies…?
“When you do lectures you’re dressed up, right? You wear suits, don’t you?”
We nodded.
“At book signings you sit behind a desk, shake a few hands and sign books. It doesn’t work that way on TV. You’re going to be moving around, bending over, putting stuff in the oven; you’re going to be seen from all angles. If we try to hide the fact that you’ve got a little extra weight around the middle, which will be hard since the camera will magnify it, the viewers will know. Putting you in baggy sweaters or loose clothing will just make them think you’re fat and trying to disguise it, and the show will lose all credibility.”
In a flash, Mary Dan and I had both gone from being confident in our own 50-plus-year-old bodies to being aware of the small paunches that had suddenly seemed to materialize out of nowhere. What before had seemed nothing more than a little tightening of the waistband now suddenly assumed Falstaffian proportions.
“What can we do?” we asked. “If we try to hide it, they’ll think were fat; if we don’t, they’ll know for sure. It’s a Catch-22. We can’t win.”
Our director said, “I haven’t worked in this biz for over 40 years and not learned a trick or two. Here’s how we’re going to make this work. Since you, Mary Dan, are going to be the main cook, we’ll keep you standing behind the counter. You’re short enough that with the height of the counter and a little work with wardrobe we can keep you covered without appearing to do so. Mike, we’ll have you do all the moving and bending, so you’re going to have to take the bullet.”
“Take the bullet? What do you mean?”
He reached into his large canvas bag and pulled out what appeared to be a giant piece of black foam rubber. “Before you go to wardrobe, let me help you put this on under your t-shirt.”The giant piece of foam rubber turned out to be a device called an abdominal censure; in other words, a giant girdle.
“I can’t wear that…” I said.
“Hey, don’t think you’re the Lone Ranger,” he replied, “why do you think I have this? I didn’t buy it just for you. A surprising number of the people you see on TV daily are wearing one of these. Lift up your shirt.”
“Who?” I asked.
“I’m not going to tell anyone about you and I’m not going to tell you about anyone else. Lift your shirt.”
I lifted my t-shirt; he wrapped the thing around my abdomen and put his knee in the middle of my back to cinch me in. Feeling a little like the male equivalent of Scarlett O’Hara in the corset scene, I dropped my t-shirt down and looked in the mirror. I had to admit, I looked better.
I wore the girdle and Mary Dan stayed behind the counter for the two days it took to film the pilot. (Now we shoot two shows per day, but then we were raw beginners.) Our show got picked up by PBS and we scheduled to start shooting about three months later. Fortunately, the pilot was only shown to others in the industry, and now the show with me squeezed into neoprene and Mary Dan cloistered behind the counter has been relegated to the never-to-be-shown file. What we took away from that day was the certainty that something had to be done and quickly…but what?
Not long after returning home from this experience we attended a large charity event at which we were seated at a table with several middle-aged women. One was significantly overweight, but the others would be considered within or close to their normal weight range. The discussion turned to weight loss. The constant thread through the conversation was how much easier it was to lose weight overall, compared to the difficulty of losing it in the waist. All the women bemoaned their stubborn middles.
Meanwhile, still stinging from our recent brush with abdominal truth, we had begun looking at the mid-sections of non-obese middle aged men and it quickly became clear that they all had paunches of various sizes. It appeared that there were no (or damned few) middle-aged flat bellies out there of either gender. Young people who were a little overweight didn’t seem to have protuberant guts; they carried their excess weight all over. But in middle age, it went straight to the middle. Even young people with guts don’t look the same as middle-aged people with big bellies; there is a difference, easily recognized. We realized that our director had been right; it’s not just normal body weight, but a flat belly that is the real sign of youth, so we set out to get one, too. . Drawing on two decades of experience in clinical practice, helping thousands of patients of all ages, we dusted off and examined every weight loss trick in our armamentarium. We did the same thing we had done years before when we did our research for Protein Power, combing the worldwide medical literature for insight and scientific substance, but instead of concentrating on weight-loss in general, we focused our search on abdominal weight loss, more specifically abdominal fat loss. We discovered that, although spot reducing is impossible, the diameter of the mid-section can be reduced quickly with the right nutritional tools. Fortunately, many of those tools dovetailed perfectly with those we’d used successfully over the years with patients in our clinical practice. After a couple of weeks of intense effort, we put together a flat-belly program for ourselves that combined a reworking of our old Thin So Fast and Protein Power diets that we had used in many thousands of patients, a number of nutritional supplements we had learned about from our wide-ranging medical research in the intervening years, and a unique, but simple, abdominal exercise plan, based on the laws of physics.
We had exactly 6 weeks before our next shoot, so we launched into the program with full vigor, with the goals of avoiding the dreaded cinch and the safety of the counter. The regimen vastly exceeded our expectations. The greatest changes occurred in the first two weeks with smaller, but still significant, changes taking place over the course of the next 4. We appeared for the shoot with flat bellies, much to the delight of our director. and were able to move from refrigerator to sink to counter, showing full physique and with nary a trace of neoprene. We no longer had to suck it in every time we changed positions for fear that the camera might catch our mid-sections at an unfavorable angle. The regimen had been a slam dunk.
It’s been a little over two years (and 26 episodes of our show) since we developed and took The 6-Week Cure ourselves, but our success has inspired countless readers, viewers, relatives, patients, friends, and friends of friends to want to know exactly how we did it. This book provides those answers. In it, you will discover not only what happens in middle age that drives fat into your middle body, but more importantly, what you can do, physically and nutritionally, to harness the metabolic forces at work and turn the tide. With a little hard work over a very short stretch, you, too, can regain a more youthful silhouette. When you do, we’re sure you’ll agree with what we discovered: there’s nothing that restores youth like curing your middle-aged middle.
MD and I have been on a low-carb diet (sometimes stringently; sometimes not so stringently) for about the last 25 years, so some may take this story to be a repudiation of such diets, but it isn’t. Our diet wasn’t really at fault; it was the inexorable creep of time that caused the problem.
As we age, things change. What worked 25 years ago, doesn’t work exactly as well now. Especially when we get a little sloppy with it. One of the problems with carb restriction is that people who do it for a while, get good at it. They become experts at both abiding by the carb restriction yet consuming a lot of calories and tending to overlook small carb indiscretions—a small piece of bread at dinner, just a bite or two of dessert, an extra glass or two of wine or beer—that they would have scrupulously avoided during the first heady days of low-carbing. We were certainly experts on low-carb diets and we fell into those traps. And time marched on making us even more susceptible to little indiscretions and to carb creep.
Now, we never came close to Orson Welles or Mamma Cass proportions – in fact most people would have described us a slim – but we had picked up little middle-aged middles. So we set out to lose them. Fast. To do so, we relied upon our 25 years in clinical practice, pulling out every tool we had learned to help solve stubborn cases of middle- aged overweight.
As we describe in the book, the kind of fat people pack on around their middles in middle age is different than fat packed on earlier in life, which is both good news and bad. Middle-aged fat is, by and large, visceral fat, the kind that accumulates within the abdominal wall and around the organs. The bad news is that it is a dangerous kind of fat – the good news is that it’s relatively easy to lose. Especially if you do it the right way. Which is why you can make enormous strides in only six weeks even if you have a lot to lose.
Although it does contain plenty of information you’re not likely to have read before, this book isn’t intended as a giant treatise on everything known about health and weight loss. It’s, quite simply, a primer on how to get rid of middle-aged abdominal fat fast and safely. We solved our own problem. I hope those of you who grab a copy and give it a try achieve the success that we did. And I hope you give us your feedback so that we can improve future editions.
I pre-ordered months ago. Can’t wait. But I’m leaving for Paris in four weeks!
You could be well on your way when you’re on your way. 🙂
OK, we’re ready for your new book. My husband’s 40th high school reunion is in six weeks – no kidding. We’ve been Protein Powering for many months now. My hubby, Dana, has lost 50 pounds and I’ve lost 37. Dana is thinner now than he was in high school. We’re both thrilled. But now we’re both at a plateau and we’ve both still got that damn belly fat. We can’t wait until your book arrives.
Hope you enjoy it.
Fascinating story. I’d no idea whatsoever that either of you were ever–GASP–fat!! Seriously? Amazing…. Anyway, count me as a future reader of your latest tome–and thanks so awfully much for the three I’ve read that came before. (By the way–and forgive the apparent stupidity of the question: is your show still ON, and still in production? I’m not a TV person, so I have to ask.)
Yes, we were fat. At least I was. That’s how I got into this biz. I had gained about 40 extra pounds and needed to lose it, which led to the program that ended up as Protein Power.
We are under contract with PBS for another 6 months on the show. They have the option to show it however much they want during this time. Some areas show it – some don’t. You’ll just have to check with your local affiliate to see if is showing in your neck of the woods.
The saying in the bodybuilding world is: “abs are made in the kitchen”. They may be narcissistic knuckleheads but bodybuilders know their nutrition – they have to.
Look forward to reading it.
Can’t wait – I am in the same boat…been doing it 12+ years and as a 52 yr old woman, I see the middle flab. And I’ve gained 5 lbs in the last 2-3 years.
Can’t wait! It’s pre-ordered, and I’m counting the hours!
Judi
Omg, this was so funny! I know it wasn’t supposed to be, but I can just picture the two experts, proud of their physique and hard work and research and reputation waiting in the Green Room to meet and greet and be told how fab they and their upcoming cooking program are, only to get bodyslammed to the floor with “You are too fat to be doing this kind of show”!!! I’m sorry, I am taking far too much pleasure in this little story! I am so crazy about the two of you, and am so grateful for all of your wonderful work, and I hold you in such high esteem – I have chuckled for a while over this “neoprene and counter camo” recounting!
So from a fellow middle-ager, who’s rocking the hell out of the high protein/low carb, thank you from the bottom of my healthy heart! And if you want to read my blog about training for the Ironman in 2010 (the year I turn 50), go to http://www.epiphanyhealth.wordpress.com. Not to be overly dramatic, but I do indeed owe it all to this low carb way of eating in general, and the guidance of your books and blogs in particular.
A neoprene girdle? Are you serious?
…still chuckling…
In retrospect I think it is funny. Kind of. I wasn’t real thrilled at the time, however. I can assure you of that. But we both soldiered on and did the show.
I’ve already got the book on order, and I’m looking forward to reading the details.
Fascinating glimpse into your motivation for this book! Mine is on order through your site on Amazon, looking forward to it.
I’m a person who was fat since birth, maybe due to gestational diabetes. Lost over 100 lbs on Protein Power and have kept most of it off. But I’m middle aged and have gained a pound a month for the last 18 months. Looking forward to the next set of tools in my maintenance toolbox.
Thanks for ordering through the site. Hope you enjoy the book.
Would you mind me asking how many pounds you lost? I’ve got a little paunch myself and I was wondering how many pounds away I am from losing it; it can’t be that many, I can see changes in definition with three or four pounds (as-aided by your lovely programs).
Thanks again, doc,
Paul
I really don’t know because I didn’t weigh. I virtually never weigh myself because I go much more by how things fit. If I had to guess, based on what I’ve seen happen to other people around my size who do weigh themselves, I would say I probably lost around 12 pounds. Maybe a little more. But, you’ve got to remember that 12 pounds represents about two gallons of fat, so it’s a lot of space.
Looking forward to reading this and thanks for the exerpt.
Have you heard about the latest, brutal approach to rapid weight loss being employed by the rich and famous? 😉
The Amputation Diet
Yeah, I read about this on Twitter today. Probably a little too extreme for me, though.
Well, I’m glad you were fat. Both times. You put your corpulence to good use.
I guess you could say that my corpulence has been an inspiration for me. That and the fear of a large, black corset.
Is this any use to me? I’m 28, 5’6″, ~185 pounds. I’ve dropped about 20 lbs in the last six months with a fairly strict low-carb diet (and a lot of exercise, though I’m aware of your suggestion that that’s irrelevant). I’ve got at least another 20 to lose, and I do seem to carry most of it around my waist. (FWIW, I’ve been overweight since my early teens, and topped out at 250 when I was 22.)
You’re not quite at middle age yet, but if you’re carrying most of your weight around your waist, it will probably help.
Will this be available in ebook formats other than Kindle? I notice the pre-order/Buy now link goes to Amazon. Will it ever be available to buy as .txt, .doc, HTML or Acrobat reader format?
I don’t know. That’s entirely up to the publisher. At this point, it is available in Kindle format, but that’s all as far as I know.
I really had no idea that you and your wife have a cooking show on PBS, as alas, it is not available in the Milwaukee area.
Any plans to make the episodes available on DVD?
Strange that it’s not available in Milwaukee as that’s where we filmed it. We did a deal with the PBS affiliate there and filmed the whole thing in hi-def. We were even up there for one of those loathsome telethons where you go on air for hours on end trying to raise money for the station. Hated that part of it, but it was part of the deal.
Hey, what was the name of that girdle? I think I need to order one.
Order the book instead, then you won’t need the girdle. And the book is a lot less expensive. 🙂
I don’t know if I can say this in “public” (just delete this comment if I can’t), but I’m on Day 3 of The Cure and I’m down 3.6 pounds, and my blood pressure has gone from 117/95 to 111/87. Good things are coming!!!
Glad to hear it’s going well. Keep after it.
I’ve had the book pre-ordered for quite a while now. I guess I will find out for myself shortly, but I’ve been wondering if it contains info for women on bio-identical HRT. You’ve indicated a few times that you’ve had patients for whom it is helpful, but never did an in-depth discussion of it. Will your book help middle-aged women make a decision about trying HRT as part of their weight loss/health regimen?
It does contain that info, but it doesn’t get into specific dosing because that has to be done by a physician.
People who have experienced the problems they consel others on tend to have more empathy.
I’m looking forward to trying your new ideas. I did well, on PP but some weight has crept back on as I hit my 50’s
Believe me, after our experience, we have nothing but empathy.
LOL, loved the story. I’d love to see your TV show too. I wonder if they show it in the New York City area? I’m not a TV watcher so I never paid attention. In fact, I wonder if my TV still works? It has not been turned on in several years so I’m not sure. I’m like Linda’s husband, have a high school 40th reunion next month. I had hoped to be a lot thinner for it, but have not lost any weight in the last 7 months of strict low carbing. I’m really curious to see if your plan will work for me, and I do have the book on pre-order through Amazon. Most of my excess weight is in my hips and butt – but I do have some around my middle as well!
They used to show it about ten times per week in NY, but I guess they’ve quit their run.
I am just wondering how sustainable the program is as a lifestyle after the six weeks. Do you transition people into that via the info in the book?
Can you talk about that a little ?
Thanks.
Greg
Yes, we do transition into that after the six weeks. The book is a recipe for rapid but safe loss of visceral fat.
I’m interested by your comment “so some may take this story to be a repudiation of such diets” – is “The Cure” antithetical to low-carb?
No, it’s far from antithetical to low-carb. I meant that our own slow gain while semi-sort of folowing a low-carb diet shouldn’t be taken as a repudiation.
Boy did I enjoy reading that.
I look forward to getting the book. I will also tell some of my friends to get it.
They think I’m weird with my steak and butter habits……hey at age 42 I have the flat belly, not them.
My low carb experience taught me that for the flat belly, wine was a lot more evil then I thought 😉
Congratulations, I hope the book is wildly successful, you deserve it. Thank you for your great blog!!!
Marc
You are correct about the wine. You’ve got to be careful with it.
Glad you’ve enjoyed the blog.
As a middle age woman within “normal” BMI range I’ve noticed that my visceral fat is what fluctuates most quickly when I fall off the low carb wagon. I have managed to lose most of it, although at the moment I’ve added a little. What I really need to lose is the 10-20lbs of normal all over body fat (you know those rolls along the torso that are only seen from behind in middle aged women). Will this new program help with this kind of weight loss too?
Also, would it be too extreme for one of my family members who is pre-diabetic who has just been put on metformin?
Shouldn’t be too extreme for one on metformin, but just to be sure, it would be best to confer with the family member’s doc.
Sadly, the sub cutaneous fat comes off a little more slowly. But it will come off.
Your cinch was an abdominal cincture, rather than a censure. 😉
I think a cincture is something men in holy orders wear. If you look up the definition of censure, that’s exactly what this thing did to my abdomen.
Have the book on pre-order, and I can’t wait to get it. I’ve been following PPLP since 3/11/09, and have lost 32 pounds (with another 27 to go). I have no expectation that I will look like I did at 17 because … well, that was 36 years ago.
The “flat belly” thing always amuses me. Ever seen the Playboy spread of Marilyn Monroe, circa 1953? This is for research purposes only, of course (otherwise, how would I know about it?) But take a look (Google it) or you can see a cropped, family friendly version at my blog at http://www.lowcarbage.com/?p=74
That tummy bulge would be considered “fat” by today’s standards. I include some pics of modern-day actresses that are closer to concentration camp victims than they are to real women. Longevity studies have shown that being underweight is worse than being overweight. When you were active in your practice, did you deal with realistic expectations and body image issues? Does the book deal with that?
There is an entire section at the start of the book about what is a normal and healthy where bellies are concerned. A lot of historical evidence combined with recent science pretty much defines it.
What a GREAT POST, Dr. Eades!! I am SO looking forward to reading your new book. I’m planning to do some posts about it on my blog… a book review, before and after photos, etc. It should be fun: plus I hope it gets your good words out to more people!
p.s. I hope your internet people are still working on your comments display… I still only see the top 4-6 lines of each comment on my PC running IE6.0.
I hope your comments are fixed by now.
Thank you for posting the very funny intro to the new book. I can’t wait to get my pre-ordered copy. I’m so grateful that you and MD let enough fat creep on to inspire a cure!
We didn’t do it on purpose. 🙂
I’ve seen your Low Carb Cookworx on Create TV. This is on the digital lineup of our local cable station. I didn’t know you had new episodes.
Here you are under the alphabetic list of hosts on Create TV. Oops — they spelled your book as Protein Power Lifespan instead of ‘Lifeplan’.
http://www.createtv.org/CreateProgram.nsf/TVHostsDisplay?ReadForm&Index=M
Since Kathy upthread broached the topic, I’ll testify, too. It’s Day 13 and, on visual inspection, my middle has shrunk quite a bit. Too bad subsequent improvements will come more slowly–I’ve still got a fair amount of shrinking to do.
I’m almost 40 and despite very diligent restriction of carbs below 20g I am unable to lose weight and in fact am actually experiencing weight gain even while the KetoStix are pink! I have tried different ratios of fat to protein and do 30min SuperSlow strength training twice a week but nothing seems to get the numbers on the scale to go down instead of up. If I should happen to increase my carbs to around 50g I gain a couple of pounds and so the number goes up again. I am depressed and fearful of eating anything because I feel like I am not in control of what is happening with my body. I suspect my hormones (insulin, leptin, cortisol etc) might be seriously messed up but don’t know what to do about it. I don’t really have a problem with belly fat as all fat goes to my hips, butt and thighs so is there anything I can learn from this new book which will help me reverse the insidious weight gain and help me feel like I am in control again?
I hope so, but you may have to avail yourself of the services of a doc familiar with bio-identical hormones and hormone control. MD’s story – buried later in the book – tells of her experiences along these lines.
I just pre-ordered your book. I hope it works for me too. I’m not exactly middle-aged (67) and the belly fat I want to get rid of is what is left after losing half my body weight. I was morbidly obese for decades. The only visible fat I still have is belly fat. I believe that is dangerous and looks awful. I know I will not look like the twenty-something gym rats I train with but I would really like to decrease the belly fat as much as possible. Do you think your plan might work for me?
I would be surprised if it didn’t.
Your story is quite timely. I had just noticed the photo of you on this page a couple of days ago and thought you looked thin, younger, and had a healthy glow. I even got my copy of Protein Power and compared photos. What a difference! I thought you looked fine before, but the old (younger) you can’t compare. That alone is a testimonial for your new book, and I will happily be purchasing a copy. Well done, sir!
Thanks. The photo is a couple of years old; currently I look older and much more haggard. 🙂
I am excitedly awaiting your new book! It is EXACTLY what I need to know — I am a 58 yo female and have lost 30 pounds on LC (within the first six months) and practically have no fat anywhere… EXCEPT the middle. The fact that both my weight and my BMI are “normal”, according to those formulas used, is amusing in light of my obvious mid-riff bulge. It is so frustrating as I continue to adhere to my LC lifestyle (for 2 1/2 years now) and don’t regain any weight yet, I continue to see this flab around the middle. Mind you, I am thankful it doesn’t increase; I just don’t know what more to do to get rid of it. I am not a “cheater” nor to I do the “vacations” from LC for ANY reason. Yet, even with doing Fred Hahn’s Slow Burn exercises once a week now for about three months, though I am quite pleased to increase my muscle tone and strength at my age, that 10 or so pounds of fat just stays and stays.
I wonder if this method works for those with IR/Type 2 diabetes because everything I’ve read says that belly fat just naturally goes along with these conditions. To clarify, I am not talking about those whose condition is “out of control” but rather those who can and do control it with LC diet (no meds), keep their A1cs below 6.0 (true normal), exercise regularly, and otherwise maintain normal weight. Many seem to believe these people have a metabolism that “prefers” to store fat there which at some point leads to IR and the IR leads to storing fat around the middle and fat around the middle leads to more IR… It’s supposedly an endless and automatic progression to obesity and/or diabetes with or without meds. Of course, I am wondering which came first; a chicken or the egg kind of question. In any case, have you had the opportunity to observe any differences between non-diabetics compared to diabetics regarding this belly-fat reduction method?
People who store visceral fat typically have metabolic syndrome to some degree. Diabetics have it to a greater degree. This program is designed to rid the abdomen of this kind of fat quickly by reversing many of the mechanisms of the metabolic syndrome. Diabetics do fine with it, but it can be strong medicine, so those who are taking meds to reduce blood sugar need to be monitored.
I lost 13 pounds with PP, then a “specialist” said I should be on the paleo diet. So I tried it, and I have gained the 13 pounds back and more! ARGH. Now the PP diet seems so much tougher. Someone said I might need to “Kickstart” my diet. I am not sure what that means. I am middle aged. most my weight in the belly area. Finding it really tough to get the first few pounds off me. I am hoping that the six week program will work well with me!
It should definitely kick start your diet.
I’ve just pre-ordered the book and hope it’s here when we’re back from our 2 weeks driving the CA coast and touring wine country– we’ll need it!
I’m so glad you posted that even good low-carbers fall victim to creep– I JUST had a battle with my mother about how LC isn’t a sustainable life-style… of course it is, but like any lifestyle, you have to flex and bend and be willing to change things up now and then (sometimes you allow a piece of bread, sometimes you do a 6 week challenge…). I’m looking forward to trying out the plan in the book and proving my mother WRONG (again, sigh)– even though I’m not quite middle-aged (36.75yrs old, is that middle aged?) I know that when I stick to my LC guns, I am capable of showing great results both in weight loss and overall health improvement (I’m pretty ok, but could be better).
Thanks for keeping up with your blog and keep up the great work! Hi to MD 😀
Soren (long time viewer, blog reader, and LC’er since 2003, first time blog commenter)
I’ll pass your ‘Hi’ along. Thanks for hanging in there with us for so long.
Funny about the girdle…but I’ve been noticing on TV just how many people, young and old, have bellies!!
Most of the “thin” ones don’t have much of a belly, but it’s there! More noticable in the men I think….the women probably tend to suck it in more!
Can’t wait to get on the program. I’ve lost almost 20# getting ready for my daughter’s wedding (last weekend) and want to loose even more. Still at least 30-40# from goal!
I’m counting the days until I can purchase your new book! I’m not middle aged (31) but I love your work so much and maybe this can give me the motivation I need, as I have a wedding to go to in 7 weeks. Sadly mine is the all over body fat, losing the first 80 pounds came off easy and now I’ve been stuck since January with 40-50 pounds to go. I had no idea you had a cooking show! I need to see if it plays in the Minneapolis area. Wishing you success to be in the top sellers list!
Thanks. If you’ve got seven weeks, you’ve got a week to spare.
Dr. Mike, thanks for all you do to offer this blog !
Overall, the Protein Power lifestyle works for me.
I am a soon-to-be 50 y.o. male. My blood test numbers are all excellent. I exercise regularly and feel great. My sleep is sound and I’ve never needed a prescription medication. ( Well, not for more than a temporary one, like a brief course of antibiotics, etc.)
At 5’11”, I weigh approximately 180 with an approximately 33 inch waist. People tell me I am trim. In fact, during courses of intermittent fasting, when my weight dropped several pounds, I am told that I am “too skinny” or my face looks, “gaunt, drawn, tired.” [ Nice! Here I am trying to attain & maintain robust, vigorous health, and I get those comments 🙁 ]
I was a (fat? chubby?) large kid. At 13 y.o., at 5’3″, I was about 170lbs, before my growth spurt, discovering exercise and beginning the journey of trying to understand and pursue healthy nutrition. (Like the boy with pants down, waiting for his shot, inspecting the doctor’s diploma in the famous Norman Rockwell illustration, I remember as a child peering over my family doctor’s shoulder at the Camp Physical he was completing for me and seeing the word “OBESE”.)
So, no matter how lean I’ve gotten over the years, no matter how much I’ve exercised, there is a layer of, the best word is, blubber, around my middle at the level of my navel. I can pinch a few inches right at the side of my belly button. Of course I’d like defined abs. I’d also like a hard middle, not one with a jelly consistency. Not worth the expense or risk of liposuction to me, but I’d love to be rid of that blubber.
Might the new book help ?
Vain
If you can pinch most of the fat your concerned about, said fat is probably subcutaneous fat, which doesn’t evaporate as quickly as does visceral fat. And the book was written specifically with visceral fat in mind. But if you’re soon to be 50 and have a history of being overweight, you’ve probably got a little visceral fat as well, which will come off quickly if you follow the plan.
I’ve got the book pre-ordered for my wife but I may use it also. I put on the pounds during the summer as I tend to drink to much cold beer after a hard days work on the weekends(I’m building a cabin mostly on the weekends up by Lassen National Park). Last winter I was able to get down to a very low %BF by going ultra low carb and counting calories. My abs were showing except for right around my belly button. I looked the best I ever had at 45 years old so it can be done. The only exercise I was doing was some pushups and pullups. Hopefully with the help of the new book I will be able to get rid of the last bit of fat on my lower belly and see my six pack instead of the 4 pack this winter.
I hope so.
Looks like you’re already doing well on Amazon. I preordered and am eagerly awaiting its arrival. I am another one who lost successfully (and comparatively easily) on Protein Power in my early fifties, but I have regained about 5 lbs in the last couple of years–all around my waist. I just hope the answer to a flat belly doesn’t include a lifetime “on the wagon.” I’m not sure it’s worth it!
You don’t have to spend the rest of your life ‘on the wagon.’ Knowing my proclivity toward Jameson, do you really think I would have a hand in designing a program proscribing booze for a lifetime? Puhleeze.
I don’t know if I can say this in “public” (just delete this comment if I can’t), but I’m on Day 3 of The Cure and I’m down 3.6 pounds, and my blood pressure has gone from 117/95 to 111/87. Good things are coming!!!
Did Kathy from Maine get in your list? Dr Mike I cant believe you traded her Maine Lobster from Maine for my pure black caviar from Russian deep sea, lol! Its ok, I am a gentleman anyway! Hey by the way Maine Lobster are overated! I have tried some from other New England places and they all taste exactly the same as NY ones. Just saying! Oops, that wasnt very gentlemen like, was it?
Dr Mike I cant believe you never weigh yourself while loosing weight. Ok, that is unbelievably unhuman. I read about people like you in fairtales but have never met in real life, lol. I know, I know its all about health and not some stupid number. But it is a human freaking nature to be inquisitive and noisy.
You were probalby that nkid that would never read your sibling’s private diaries ? I was a very nosy kid, therfore got beaten a lot by my siblings. I grew out of it but still nosy. If my mom wanted to hide something from me she would leave it right in the open and tell me I can pick at it. And I wouldnt, reverse psychology always worked.
I am still attempting to concur a protein shake and one meal only plan. I have tried it at least 5 times and failed miserably each and every time. I finally gave up on it saying it was more manly to give it up than keep trying and failing. Until my friend just completed 4 weeks of protein shakes only plan. It was shakes only and relatively low carb with an exception of fruits. She would drink 6 of them in a day. In 4 weeks she lost almost 25 pounds and looks great. Damn, my competitive juices are boiling all over again. I cant let a woman beat me! My stubborn and stupid nature wouldnt let me. i am Russian after all. Ok, I have tried it time number 6 . Here is the result. I lost 2 pounds and my mind. I went off today eating everything in site!
Dr Mike, please help me beat this evil female friend of mine who is rubbing it in now. Is there any way to concur it? Or should I just throw in a towel, kisss her on a chick and admit one more time that women are indeed superior spiecies in many ways!
I would give it another try.
The Low Carb Cookworx show used to air in Milwaukee on one of MPTV’s subsidiary digital channels. They don’t currently air it.
Dr. Eades,
I read your blog and your Twitter posts faithfully, and used to watch your cooking show until our local PBS channel stopped carrying it. I can’t wait to read the book. I pre-ordered it through your site awhile back, and ordered a book for my grandson while I was at it, since you get a piece of the whole order, if I remember correctly. Thank you for all you and your wife have done to help me and countless others. Keep fighting the good fight!
Pam
Since you’re ordering all these books, why don’t you throw in orders for all the members of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and any other large groups you can think of.:-)
Great! So the show must go on, I will give it another try then. I will try to tweak recipies for the protein shake a bit to keep it from getting psychologically boring. Cant wait to buy your book. By the way from the link another blogger shared few comments before I found out from your biography that you are gemini. Not that I am a huge believer in this stuff but there is something to it. I am a gemini too. Happy belated Bday! You dont strike me a typical gemini though, at least not from all the cooking shows I have observed you from. You seem to be way too calm, collected and even tempered. Come on there has to be few traits to you being gemini that you dont let your viewers see. Gemini are notorious for being intelligent, emotional, stubborn, adventorous and very argumentive.
Well, I am adventurous.
Oh the agony of the delivery of physical product! Am eagerly awaiting delivery of the Eades Masterpiece “Middle Age, Big Tummy” and the Taubes opus “Good Butter, Bad Bread”, and at the same time awaiting the latest John Eliot Gardiner set of Bach Cantatas, when I get an email that their shipping office cannot cope with the demand and the CDs haven’t gone out yet. Hopefully your book will be inundated with as many orders as poor J S Bach, sitting there in his huge wig trying to post out recordings of his music out to outlandish places like Oodnadata, Australia or Wallah Wallah, Washington.
Naturally, I ordered the books through your site so that you’ll get your baksheesh. Hope Amazon’s accounting cycle for kickbacks is shorter than most publisher’s and that you’ll get your royalties before 2050!
Downloads are so much quicker!
Thanks. All baksheesh sorely welcomed and greatly appreciated. Just so inquiring minds will know, Amazon’s ‘kickback’ schedule runs 30 days behind, i.e., earnings for July paid at the end of August. The publisher’s ‘kickback’ schedule runs three months in arrears, i.e., earnings for July-Dec get paid at the end of the next March. But even then, they usually stretch it out to mid April.
Actually, I found out that it’ll be available in a lot of ebook formats. Thanks for the quick reply, and I’m looking forward to this! I’m only 31, but I carry most of my fat around the middle, and I’m female. This should help me out too, right? I can’t seem to lose it!
Jorid
If it’s around the middle, the book should help.
I have a question. I loved the Protein Power book and have been low-carbing for half a year now except for a 2 week period when I was on holiday, and I also take one day off every week when I go nuts and eat my vices such as donuts, chocolate, baguette, ice cream etc.
I’m 25, slim and muscular. I don’t know if it’s the Scandinavian genetics or what, but despite my efforts I don’t seem to be able to lose fat on my lower abs. After reading the excerpt, I was wondering if the information in your book is something that works only for middle-aged people, or is it something that can be applied also at this age?
It can be applied to visceral fat at any age; most people who are middle-aged have primarily visceral fat causing their increased waist size, so the book is aimed at that demographic. If your fat is mainly of the subcutaneous variety, the techniques in the book will help, but it just takes longer to lose subQ fat than it does to lose visceral fat.
Dr Mike, thanks for this delightful and informative blog. I pre-ordered the book through your web site (with several other books at the same time to give you the credit). I am delighted to know what the book is about (at last) and am sending your blog to everyone I know. We are all middle aged or older and all have that gol-darned middle! Maybe this one will trigger for them what your other books did not do — start controlled carb eating.
I am hoping to find the answer to those last, stubborn, twenty pounds. They are well distributed, but I assume the book will give me new ideas to work with. So glad to hear MD has a section that just may answer my questions and help me. (I wonder if my GP knows about bio-identical hormones. Sure hope so.)
Thanks again.
I hope the book will give you the answers you seek. I think it will certainly help you get rid of your middle. It worked for me.
Poor Vadim. Yes, the good Doctor chose me to be among the first testers (other than family and friends). I think it was my limerick that got him:
There once was a Wench from Maine,
A Wench we call Bawdy by name.
She ate food low carb,
But still she had lard.
Doc, PLEASE pick the good Wench from Maine!
(Remember the guy selling winches on the side of the road, except his sign said “Wenches for Sale” and hubby remarked, “If they’re Bawdy, I’ll take two!” Hence my user name of BawdyWench.)
Anyway, Maine lobsters are the best! You can get a two-lobster dinner here for $15.99! Vadim, you may not always be a gentleman, but I am always a lady. If you were to come to Maine, I’d treat you to a lovely lobster dinner to show you the error of your ways.
Hey, if MD and I come to Maine do we get the lobster dinner, too?
Oh, and, sad to say, it wasn’t the limerick, much though we liked it. It was that you fit the profile laid out by the publisher.
Squire have ordered Ye Olde Book for me as well as The Father.
One quickie…do you say owt about cutting cals low and to what given taking in sufficient protein to maintain and repair etc ?
Yep. And there is some evolutionary psychology thrown in, to boot, which should please you.
Now, if it could treat the middle age prostate, you’d really have something. 😉
Yes, but we’d lose half out audience. 🙂
My comment: Your cinch was an abdominal cincture, rather than a censure. 😉
Your reply: I think a cincture is something men in holy orders wear.
—
Cincture is also still a fashion term. http://tinyurl.com/l6fmrx : “…a unique, chic and modern alternative with updated corsets and waist cinctures that women have used for many years to contour their waist.”
I stand corrected. I still say that my body was censured and not cinctured, though. There was nothing ‘chic and modern’ to the thing I wore for two days.
I have the book on order and am real curious to know if you provide a chart like you did in PP for extrapolating fat loss. I know I can use mine in PP, but have you made updates? Also, are there more measurements than the waist and hip as in PP? Some weight loss plans have you measure four places, the natural waist, the lower waist at the navel, the hip at the largest part of the abdomen, and the hip at the largest part of the buttocks—which is basically for women, since men’s pelvises are narrower and shallower.
I’m just wondering if you did something different for the middle-aged paunch. Four days and counting.
Yes, we did something different to measure fat. We teach readers how to measure a sagittal abdominal diameter, and look at the difference between standing and lying to determine what is subcutaneous and what is visceral fat.
Geezum crow, Doc! Of COURSE I’ll treat you and Mary Dan to a lobster dinner! As long as you forgive my hubby for ordering the batter-fried fish and chips and a chocolate brownie sundae for dessert (I’m working on him, but he’s a hard nut to crack, depsite his being in his 4th trimester). Of course, he washes it all down with Jameson’s, so at least we’ll all have THAT in common!
And despite what you say, I know it was the limerick! 😛
Woohoo! I just picked up my copy from the Post Office. The weekend will be spent in reading, full plan implemented for my husband by next week. There are a whole lot of skeptical middle agers (with varying sizes of middles) waiting to see how it works out for him before they’ll consider making any changes themselves. Sadly, even if it works a charm, there will be many who rationalize as follows — ‘Well, it’s fine for you, but we’re all different you know ….’
How did you get it? As I understand it, books aren’t shipping until Sept 8. What did you do to score one?
Kathy from Maine, I loved your limerick! It was deep, well thought out and touched every fiber of my soul. Did I say I thought Maine lobsters were not special? Silly me, off course they are. Can you cook them smothered i batter along side of sauteed baby spinach and a glass of wine? I can skip Jameson and pass it to good Dr Mike. I never tried Jameson but everything but vodka and wine taste like liquid penicilin to me. I can gladly exchange my protion of the Jameson for Dr Eades portion of the lobster. Dr Mike would you find it an even value exchange? And to compliment your wonderful dinner I will provide traditional Russian food, vodka that is and will you play Balalayka. Have you ever heard anyone play Balalayka? It is kind of an premature version of the guitar and it sounds completely different. Some people find it exotic, but to me it always looked like an instrument created by a drunken farm boy who ran out of wood! But I learned to play Beatles on it when I was younger to impress girls. I can play my favorite song ” All you need is love, love is all you need! I couldnt win over lots of girls with my looks so I won them with my Balalayka. Dr Mike have you heard Balalayka being played? lol, if you didnt you havent lived! lol, at least in Russia that is!
I’m spending a lot of time on a college campus lately and I have to say that more than a flat belly (which many do not in fact have) the thing that stands out to me about the young adults is that most of them look like they have more muscle than an older adult of the same approximate build.
Plus they carry their fat differently. If you saw a silhouette of an overweight 18-year-old girl and one of her 45-year-old mother who was the same weight and same height, you could tell who was the mother and who the daughter. You could tell because young people and middle-aged people carry their excess weight differently.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VT1LxvYVWrM&feature=related
This guy is called Russian Poganini and he manages to play even classical music on it. Even Bethhoven sonata comes out amazing in his hands. Well, I dont know how he does it. I went to see him in person once with my ex-girlfriend. Women love him especially becuase he gets extreamly emotional and his whole body gets insidiously orgasmic as show goes on. I only learned to learn a few songs though, its really not easy at all. That little balalaika requires enormous amount fo work.
“How did you get it? As I understand it, books aren’t shipping until Sept 8. What did you do to score one?”
Nothing special, just ordered from my favorite bookseller. I know I also received Gary Taubes book ahead of the official release date. Should they be in trouble for sending it early? Maybe I should have kept quiet, but like everyone else we are excited to finally see it.
Hmmm. I was led to believe that no books would be shipped until Sept. 8. I know books are in the warehouse, so I wondered why they weren’t shipping already. Maybe they’ve started and I’m just the last to know.
With the book coming out, I guess you’ll be making TV appearances? Can you let us know (when possible) when you’re going to be on national shows?
I will. Assuming we will be on any national shows.
Kind of off-topic, but you might get a kick out of this: Froot Loops and Fudgsicles have both earned the “Smart Choices” seal of approval:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/05/business/05smart.html?hpw
http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2009/09/05/business/05smartA.ready.html
Yes, I saw this. Unbelievable. I guess $100K is a cheap price to pay to get the seal of approval that lets parents buy this crap guilt free.
Hi Mike,
I’m a fit young guy who had a six pack three months ago but has lost it from being on a very long holiday for a few months. Will you new book help me get back lean whilst keeping my muscle, better than a regular low-carb diet (I just eat meat and fish, with green vegetables… no sources etc as I really don’t care about taste as long as I stay healthy and look good).
Hope you do as well as you deserve with this new book… your blog is amazing, and I’m stunned by how much work you put in giving us so much great value for free.
Thanks again,
Michael
The new book probably won’t help you as much as it does other, but you will find a trick or two in there that will assist.
i got mine yesterday from Barnes and Noble. I preordered it from them.
Interesting piece on the relationship between meal timing and body composition:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8234386.stm
Dr. Mike and Dr. Mary:
Just an encouragement although you must get so many, perhaps they get tedious:
I gave your PPLP book to two dear relatives in their 60’s. I told them to trust you (and me) and to not trust what they read in the newspapers and magazines, that this was THE LATEST RESEARCH and that I KNOW these authors and that they REALLY REALLY know what they’re talking about. (I’m sure you don’t remember me but my having met you helps people in my circle trust you). Anyway, they have lost over 75 lbs between them, they say they feel great, they no longer have aches, gout and diverticulis, and they find low-carbing to be a very easy lifestyle especially compared with their previous attempts at weight management. They are now touting “their niece Wendy’s plan” to others. (Sorry to be most unintentionally taking some of the credit). If you ever want pix, stories, etc I bet they’d love to contribute theirs. They (and I) are grateful to you.
Unfortunately I’m one of those people who got careless and I’m up 7-9 pounds. Back on “Dr. Mike and Dr. Mary’s PP Plan” this AM and eagerly awaiting your new book.
Hope you enjoy the new book. Believe me, we never find it tedious to hear success stories. Thanks for sharing yours.
Earlier, I noted a comment regarding whether it would be available on Kindle. I was able to pre-order for my Kindle 2. I went via this forum, I couldn’t tell whether it credited protein power. I join the happy throng counting the days until it’s delivered with my newspaper. I’m so glad the publisher allowed/thought it best to Kindle it. Best wishes and continued success.
Thanks very much.
Is the middle-aged-middle the same kind of fat as the post-pregnancy-paunch that I can’t seem to get rid of? Will this diet get rid of that too?
It’s not exactly the same kind of situation exactly, but the book should help.
It’s an even SADder world out there than I imagined!
Not content with SAD – Seasonal Affective Disorder
and SAD – Standard American Diet
now we have SAD – Sagittal Abdominal Diameter.
So the four decades of the Age of Aquarius are over with the Dawning of the Age of Sagittarius?
I hope to find when my copy of Six Week’s Cure arrives across Atlantic that you will have quoted from Roger & Hammerstein’s “Honey Bun” to the following effect:
I dedicate this book to all wish to become
“Where . . . narrow (you’ll be) narrow as an arrow”
but remain
” broad where a broad should be broad”
Desmondo
Clever. I suppose we will be adding a new term to the lexicon. At least a new term for the lay reader.
12 pounds in six weeks doesn’t sound fast on a low-carb diet, especially for men. Is it because this is 12 pounds of stubborn visceral fat (after already being on low-carb for awhile) that makes it considered fast? But wait, you said “sub cutaneous fat comes off a little more slowly”. I’m a little confused. Will the book explain about both types of fat and the best approach to losing each?
It does discuss both types of fat and the whys of each. The reason I lost only 12 pounds – if that’s how much I lost; it was only a guess – was that I didn’t have that much weight to lose. And 12 pounds represents about two gallons of fat, which takes up a fair amount of space.
Hello Dr. Eades and low-carber friends: This is not related to this specific topic. But this is just to congratulate you for the new look of your website. It looks pretty nice. Thanks and have a nice day
Thanks.
Hello again: I am sorry to bother you again, but this is just to remind people that the less carbohydrates i eat, the more fat i can burn, and the more water i can expel out of my body. And indeed i’ve been lower even more the amount of carbohydrates i have in the day, and i have noticed the change of my symetry and looks in the mirror. I don’t understand how can many sports doctors and fitness “experts” advocate weight-loss diets with potatoes, bread and rice to their readers. Because the more carbohydrates people eat the more insulin they produce, and the less glucagon hormones. And high insulin combined with low glucagon levels is a recipe for weight gain.
Sami: Oh i think that must be that you have a faster thyroid and faster metabolism. Because i can’t have controlled cheat-meals often. My controlled cheat-meals are not once a week like you, but more spaced out like once a month, or even once every 2 months.
However i think i will have a controlled cheat meal once a week. The problem is not the kind of foods we eat on the cheat-meal day. But the amount of it. Many people run the chance of planning a controlled cheat-meal of about 1000 extra calories, but some times that cheat meal of 1000 extra calories turns into a binge-eating crazy all you can eat meal of 5000 to 12000 calories. (real damage)
.
.
Re: “Froot Loops and Fudgsicles have both earned the “Smart Choices” seal of approval,” I think the most tragic part of the article was the “expert” who said she was trying to help frazzled parents make healthful decisions at the grocery store, such as whether to buy their children doughnuts or cereal for breakfast. What, are there no whole-grain Pop-Tarts yet?
Any relation to Lyle’s http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/the-rapid-fat-loss-handbook ?
I don’t know as I’ve never read Lyle’s book.
Is there an age cap on “middle-aged” for purposes of your new plan?
Not really.
Why do I only see the first 6 or so lines of each comment? Why can I not open them up to see the rest and any reply?
Don’t know. What browser are you using? What kind of machine?
OK, the book is read, caffeine detox begun ……..
I’m confused on one issue. Page 70 tells us that canola oil is to be avoided, and I’ve heard plenty on the evils of soy oil. Page 74 urges us to add Enova oil—which is made from canola and soy. Is there a short explanation?
Otherwise, the Cure looks great, and very doable, especially for an already committed low carber. Can’t wait to see results that I’m certain will ensue.
The short explanation is that the DAG oil made from soy and canola oil doesn’t resemble either of the parent oils. Numerous studies done over the past few years have shown that the addition of a little DAG in place of regular oils (made of triglycerides) brings about a faster weight loss, especially of visceral fat. That’s why the DAG is in the book. If I were going to ditch any part of the program for convenience sake, the DAG would be the part I would ditch.
I’m looking forward to receiving a copy of the book–I pre-ordered it as soon as Amazon had it listed and before I got pregnant. I really enjoyed my success with Thin So Fast but had to stop when I found out that I was pregnant. I can’t wait to give your new book a full-fledged try once I’m finished lactating.
I can’t read all of the comment lines either, although I can read a bit more of them now than I could on the day the post first went up. I just figured it was a glitch that was waiting correction.
While not as fast as Barnes and Noble in releasing your new book, Amazon informed me today 9/6 that they have shipped your book. Guess that meets the 9/8 release date. Looking forward to reading it.
Mike,
I’d really like those Low Carb Cookworx DVDs!! Why isn’t PBS releasing them?? Is PBS even airing the show anymore? I know it never aired in my area (Arizona), although I have written and asked. Needless to say, I’ve never even seen the show!
I’m fine eating the simple low carb way, but my parents are very traditional, i.e., they want the “comfort foods”. They don’t think it’s possible to easily cook them low carb, and the few attempts I’ve made have not turned out right. The videos would be the visual proof I need to get them going! So short of send me some yourself 😉 ;), is there anywhere I can get them??
I don’t think they are available any longer. The ones that existed were in VHS format, not DVD, and all are gone at this point. We can’t really make DVDs as long as PBS still has rights to the show. Once our contract with them expires (providing we don’t sell it to another entity), we can burn the DVDs.
Dr. Eades,
Kind of an off-the-wall question for you: how much does protein stimulate insulin relative to carbs? I’ve read that protein also stimulates glucagon, which can counteract insulin’s fat-storage affects, but I’m having trouble finding solid data on the protein/insulin connection. Does protein only stimulate insulin when carb intake isn’t sufficient to maintain adequate blood glucose levels?
I really need to do a post on this as so many people ask this question. Protein stimulates the release of both insulin and glucagon. Why the glucagon? Because if protein stimulated the release of only insulin, the excess insulin brought about after protein consumption would drive blood sugar too low. Nature has insured that blood sugar stays normal by accompanying the insulin release with the release of glucagon, a hormone that stimulates gluconeogenesis, the production of blood sugar. In the end, it’s not really the insulin level that counts so much as it is the insulin to glucagon ratio.
Hi Dr. Eades,
Happy Labor Day (and weekend).
I know you are specifically discussing belly fat, but I had a question regarding what I hate most in the world -my love handles…
specifically, looooooooooove handles
My gosh, I have had mine in some fashion since I have been young, and have never been super lean or lean in general. I hate them and despite my broad shoulders, they have always colored my stance and look.
Due to matters of the broken heart of a recent collapsed relationship, I have found solace, not in high calorie/carby food of yesteryear, but in the gym and eating ultra low carb, we are talking raw organic grassfed beef, raw organic egg yolks, and not much else except for organic spices (cinnamon, turmeric, cumin, cayenne pepper).
Will this program help with love handles? or the better question is what kind of fat are love handles? Does it matter for different people. I have read that first place you put on is the last place you lose? I am assuming that is true but would like your opinion.
Now to be totally open, I could stand to lose about 40 lbs of fat to be about 10% bodyfat, so I am not implying I am one of your loyal listeners who has taken the time and effort to get to a low bodyfat but still have ‘stubborn’ fat on their body, despite their diligent diet and exercise.
I am one of those clowns who eats a certain way, sheds some weight to meet girls, meets someone attractive, then gains it back… trying to break that cycle – thanks for all of your help
The last on, first off (as applied to body fat) is a pretty accurate description of how things work. If you have 40 pounds of fat to lose, I can pretty much assure you that there is a fair amount of visceral fat in place.
Love handles are pretty much subcutaneous fat and are a little more difficult to lose than the visceral fat, but you lose so much visceral fat so quickly that you hardly notice the love handles.
I just bought your book at B&N yesterday! Sorry, I couldn’t wait for it to be delivered!! I guess I cheated since it wasn’t supposed to be available yet, but I asked if they had it yet and they did…
I haven’t gotten to read more than a couple pages yet since I have 3 kids now. I had my baby and he’s a perfect little sweetie! He’s a strong little guy ( tummy time champ, holding his head up way earlier than any baby I’ve ever seen) and my guess is from Protein Powering it my whole pregnancy! Hands down easiest pregnancy ever. No heartburn, peaceful sleep, no weird aches and pains – NADA – not sure if I should credit it to low-carbing, the fish oil or Vitamin D or a combination of all 3, but I felt great and still do. Baby weight is already off a month after giving birth. Again I just have to thank you for all of it, because of all of your invaluable information. I’m not “middle-aged” yet at 26 but I know I’ll find it interesting and useful anyway.
Hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think.
I’ve been all over Ft. Collins, CO (your good energy is still around!), and nobody carries Enova Oil here anymore–I went to King Soopers (Kroger), Safeway, Albertsons, Vitamin Cottage, and Whole Foods. I left a card to special order it at King Soopers, and their special order lady comes in on Thursday. If she can get it, it should take 2-3 weeks, I’m told. I hope other people don’t have the same problem.
I remember seeing Enova a year or so ago in City Market (also Krogers) in Grand Junction, where we used to live. Ft. Collins is now a city of 130,000 people, and I can’t believe I’m having such a hard time finding it.
Please tell Dr. Mary Dan I said “hello.” I’m from Hot Springs, AR originally, and I’m the one who sent her the Stardusters (HSHS) picture.
I have one book ordered through your website, but I scored an early copy at Barnes and Noble on College Avenue here. The book is AMAZING! I am THRILLED with it! Now I have one to read and another to share. Think I have the entire collection, including Thin So Fast! You two are the best!
While you’re on a buying spree, don’t forget the entire Mormon Tabernacle Choir and others who may appreciate your generosity. 🙂
Dr. Mike,
I was watching a show on TLC channel last eve called ‘1/2 ton dad’ This guy weighed 1022 lbs. !!! He was at the Renaissance Hospital in Houston. They cut huge slabs of fat off his legs etc and were going to do a gastric whatever surgery on him. Some very gross scenes as you can imagine. There was also a 19 yr old at 800 lbs on the show.
What was quite interesting and relevant though was when the Doctor was asked what the cause of obesity is he said “carbs, sugar” !! no mention of fat at all.. Maybe the message is starting to get through…..
George
Let’s hope so.
I’ve read your stuff before, and others in the same vein, and I’ve also read the stuff that goes in the other direction. For example, longevity and health studies always point to traditional diets that go in the opposite direction of yours, generally leaving meat as a garnish. How do you respond to the evidence from traditional diets that go contrary to your argument? Since I’ve always had a good metabolism, I do fine no matter what my diet, so although the question of the best diet has always fascinated me, I’ve never been able to answer it myself.
As far as I know, there is no reliable data on longevity and traditional diets. If there were, it would basically be observational data, which doesn’t prove causation. We know the Japanese live a long time as do the French, and these two groups have widely differing diets, not to mention differing genetics.
Dr. Mike,
I finished the book over the weekend. One question, in the book it is noted that an “all meat diet” is a “safe, filling, rapid way to help patients lose abdominal fat while improving their health” If this is true and I believe it is, would it work just as well as the 6 Week Cure?
I don’t know because I haven’t tested it as I have the other. You could give it a try and let us know.
Years ago I was an Atkins dieter. Worked GREAT til I hit the plateau! A couple of years ago went on hcg, works great but very limited and not enough protein, so adjusted that. but had trouble maintaining until I discovered Protein Power. I can maintain with NO problem what-so-ever now, but still have a lot to lose with the dreaded belly fat. Looking forward to getting it in the mail in a couple of days!!!
Hope you enjoy it.
I got PPLP and Slow Burn from the library. I’ve been getting a ton of good info off your website as well. I have felt bad that you haven’t gotten any of my money! I will now rectify that, as Borders has a copy of your new book set aside for me and I’m on my way to pick it up. I just want to say that I have tremendous respect for the work that you do.
Thanks. I appreciate it.
After reading part of your post, I went over to Amazon and ordered the book. It was delivered to my Kindle before I returned here and finished reading the post.
I’ve lost 60 pounds over the last two years on low carb, thanks to Protein Power, but still have a big belly. At 62 years old, it’s getting hard for me to haul that blob around. I’m eager to get started on the new plan.
Good luck. Keep me posted.
Since renewing my commitment to the lowcarb way in September, 2009, I’ve continued to lose another 40 pounds, for 102 pounds down from my lifetime high.
I didn’t lose in the first two weeks, three shakes a day plus one meal, maybe because I’m one of those people sensitive to whey protein. However, the second phase, mostly meat, works for me. I find that I can still choose whether to lose, gain, or stay the same by regulating my intake of salads, low-starch vegetables, nuts, and berries.
Even after a period of holiday indulgence involving a box of Whoppers, a bottle of rum, and a half-gallon of eggnog, I was two pounds below my pre-holiday weight by January 4. I simply got right back on “mostly meat” when the goodies were gone.
I’m 6′ 2″, medium frame, and 207 pounds. My target of 175-180 pounds now seems an achievable goal rather than a hopeless fantasy.
It’s really hard to imagine you and your wife fat. But with respect, thank goodness it happened otherwise these informative blogs and books would probably never have been written! Thank you for sharing your story with us. I’m looking forward to reading your book, especially since I’ll be hitting middle age soon and already have carb creep problems!
Dr Eades,
In the cause of promoting sales of your new book, perhaps you might expand the purchase options link from your blog home page to encompass the other digital delivery options available, beyond the Amazon Kindle option.
If one goes to the publisher’s home page for your book, they set out a range of electronic delivery options beyond the Kindle format and including a PDF file or the Sony eReader format. See:
http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780307450968&view=ebform
This may be particularly useful for international readers who cannot wait for a physical copy and who are not able to download a Kindle copy, which is restricted to the USA
In my case, living in Australia, I have downloaded a Sony eReader version.
I hope you enjoy the book. I’ll look into making other electronic delivery options available. Thanks for the tip.
Hi, me again, the young-but-viscerally-fat geekgirl asking about ebooks? Although I discovered that Randomhouse offers it in several ebook formats accessible via my beloved non-Kindle reader, they do so only in the States. I love your work so far, and think I *need* this book to finally get off this plateau, but I’m in Northern Europe. The FAQ page I read on the problem @Randomhouse suggested you guys probably still own the digital rights, and/or the English-language non-US rights. Could you let us European fans know, will this be available any time soon in ebook formats over here, so we don’t have to carry a heavy hard-cover book around? My shelf-space is limited, and I can only carry so many low-carb books in my purse (Although, I admit said purse is frankly HUGE) to read on the tram. Please help me out? Thanks.
Never mind, Mobipocket does not make it available for some reason, but Ebooks does. I’m downloading it now. Thanks for letting me panic at you! I’m gonna shut up now and start reading. 🙂
After all the trouble you went to to get it, I hope you enjoy the book.
Dr. Eades,
I originally preorderd the book from Amazon, but cancelled when it wouldn’t be here til next week. So I went and got it at my local book store yesterday.
I don’t remember the last time I read a book in one afternoon. I am so fired up about giving The Cure a chance to work on me. I’m compiling a sheet of the items you list, and I start Monday.
Many thanks,
Glad you enjoyed it. Hope it works for you.
Dr. Eades,
I was always thin until I started taking anti-depressants and Klonapin for restless legs 8 years ago. Even
having a child at 41- within a few months I was back in a size 8. Fast forward and now 8 years later I have
tapered off the Lexapro and am trying to tackle the Klonapin and am 35 lbs heavier. I have gained about 8
additional lbs since coming off the Lexapro 45 days ago mostly belly fat. I try to eat very good and eat really sweets (rarely) and use Stevia although I know I need to up my protein and low carb veggies. I also have always had low body temp (about 97) and low blood pressure according to the stats and wondered about thyroid ect. I am going to get your new book today and am looking forward to implementing the program
This is so very hard for me as I never worried about calories/ weight until the dreaded drugs. I am trying to
deal with restless legs naturally also so I can get off Klonapin- do you have any thought restless legs? It
seems to be a 21st century problem to me and it seems everyone knows someone that has it. I found out
as I was coming off Lexapro that it makes RLS worse AGGG!! I feel so deceived by doctors as I was not put on Lexapro for dizziness from an ear problem and now that I am off of the Lexapro the unsteadiness seems to have gone mostly away- maybe it was making it worse all along. I hate being on the drug!! I take D3 (6000), magnesium , high quality fish oil, CO-Q10, vitamin E., potassium
Thank you so much and I am excited on getting your blog delivered to my mailbox- I should have done this much sooner.
Pat
Yes, sadly, antidepressants often cause weight gain. I don’t know if it’s still done, but during my training certain of those drugs were recommended for people who wanted to gain weight. Probably not to many of those people around today. 🙂
Hi Dr. Eades,
Great book. Picked it up yesterday but now my father won’t let me take it to work cus’ he wants to read it! Still a little confused about the heavy cream maybe impeding fat loss versus butter, but I’ll just avoid the cream until I get closer to my goals. That ab exercise looks really interesting, really hoping it works!
I am sorry I was put on Lexapro for dizziness- that made no sense:)
Pat
Hey Doc, Longtime follower of your principles…verified in my good Chol. test results each year. Love my eggs and meat!
What’s your latest feeling on the beef industry….I’d love to eat only organic , but am of modest means….at $2 a pound, hamburger seems like a luxury right now. Thanks!
I buy in this order: grass fed, organic, regular old beef at the Safeway. I eat them all. The only thing I’m really careful about is ground beef, which I like to get organic because I figure there is a lot less chance I’ll get an E. coli O157:H7 infection.
It used to be that grass fed beef was more expensive, but a lot of people don’t like it because it isn’t as tender as non-grass fed. Because demand for it is lower, so is the price. At our local natural foods market, grass fed is the cheapest beef we can buy.
Still only able to view first five lines of every post. It started when the blog went to the new format. Love the way it looks, just sorry I can’t read your responses to many/most comments now… 🙁
What kind of machine are you using (Mac or PC) and what kind of browser (Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari, other)?
Hi Doc–would like to offer some feedback to all the commenters asking about subcutaneous fat. I’m pretty lean now and a few years ago, got to under 8% bf with a six pack (am trying to get back into that shape now but it’s harder at 43 than at 37). Worked like a maniac in the gym and I ate a high protein, med. fat, med. carb diet (no refined carbs but I got about 120-130 grams of carbs per day–less than that and I would flatten out and look “stringy”). Main lesson I learned is that getting really lean (say under 10% bf for men, or under 17-18% for women) takes TIME. The bulk of excess subcutaneous fat will come off pretty quickly. It’s the last 5-6 pounds that hang on and can take months to lose. When you get down to the last few excess pounds, seemingly minor adjustments in one’s diet can make a visible impact.
All very astute observations and all very true.
Finally finally after a year wait I was able to read the long awaited book. Got to B&N the first thing in the morning yesterday, and had it finished this morning. I do have some questions:
1. What is the allotted amount of carbs in the first 2 weeks? i can’t find that info in the book. Although you give the exchange list, I would still like to know the carb amount. Also in the menus you give a portion of veggies and a portion of fruit, are they both required?
2. In the list of supplements you mention potassium twice. Is that just a typo?
Rabbi Hirsch Meisels
Jewish Friends With Diabetes International
http://www.FriendsWithDiabetes.org
Sorry I’m tardy in answering this, but for some reason your comments get caught in the spam filter. I just found another one from you there, too.
By design we did not give a specific number of carb grams because our publisher didn’t want this to be perceived as a low-carb book. Instead we made specific food and portion recommendations that would insure, if followed, that not many carbs would be consumed. You’ll have to calculate the carbs based on your own food choices. And, no, both veggies and fruits are not required. Either will do alone.
The double mention of potassium was an oversight more than a typo. Thanks for pointing it out – we’ll add it to our FAQ we’re putting together. The amount in the box on page 110 is the correct amount.
Hi Doc,
I am obese I wiegh 205 and I am 5 ft tall (female), I was hoping to try your new diet most of my wieght is in my adomen .My husband is about 10 lbs overwieght and he is more fitted to your plan ,do you think I could do the six week plan and then go back to meat and egg diet when I am done ?
PS what do you mean by no wine for two weeks (LOL)?
Cheers Sherry
You could certainly go back to mean and eggs when you’re finished.
Went out and bought the book today- did all the measurements (boy do I qualify!) and have all the supplements ect. I am looking forward to this and will post and let you know how it is going. Here’s to a new leaner belly.
Thanks Pat
Good luck! Keep me posted.
Dear Doc,
Amazon says they shipped on the 7th, so I’m watching for the mailman today. Before I was aware of your new book, or started following your blog, I went all-meat, and in a few weeks have lost an additional 5 lbs. That’s after following PPLP since ’01, with occasional cheating, and down 32 lbs from my peak in the “carbs good fat bad” days. And that’s all without exercise or hunger (I’m just now getting back to resistance training after a few years off for other reasons). Now I’m down to BMI 22.6 and WHR .92. I’m a 51 year old male. Total-C is 312, LDL 215, HDL 64, and TG 43. Those numbers look good to me, even if not to most doctors or nurses, because I assume the LDL isn’t real and is mostly large-fluffy. But I’m wondering whether I should ask for a VAP or Berkeley just to be sure, and because my CRP is a little up at 1.37. Another concern is new night-time leg cramps (charlie-horse in the calf near morning). Wondering whether some Mg supplements along with my new D3 regime would help with that (6000iu/day), as well as counter the mild osteoporosis recently seen in a thoracic spine x-ray. My serum D was only 19mcg/ml, and that’s at the end of summer and after two weeks of actual sunbathing and a diet that regularly includes Alaskan salmon.
Thank you so much for all your good work. I’ve been recommending PPLP to family and friends since ’01. I LOVED Fat Head, and my sister wants to start using it in her new medical practice, somehow. Of all your “colleagues” (Cordain, Enig/Fallon, Atkins, Audette, etc.), you and MD are the best. I don’t know where to find a doctor around here who knows anything.
Hilary
Thanks for the kind words.
Great job on the WHR. I suspect you’re right about your labs, but one of the tests you mentioned would at least give you a better comfort level. If you really want to know what’s going on, find someone with an EBT scanner and get a calcium scan. If that’s okay, you don’t really need to worry.
I would add some potassium and calcium along with the magnesium for leg cramps at night. You might also drink a little diet tonic water because quinine also relieves leg cramps. Keep me posted.
Dr. Eades,
I see the part about adding egg and I did to my shake this morning. I am wondering if I feel the need for something solid during the day is it okay for me to eat a boiled egg- or should I keep the egg to 1 a day?
Day 1 in progress with all added supplements 🙂
Pat
A boiled egg would be fine.
Dr. Eades,
Had shake at 7 and 11- feeling dopey; I guess from large drop in carbs. I am assuming my body will adjust or at least this is normal?
Sorry to be so buggy but I have used low carb- just not this low. I am planning on having my “meal” this evening.
Pat
You should adapt. Most people have trouble getting all the shakes down, so I don’t think hunger will be a problem.
In the book you scared me again about not frying scrambled eggs. You wrote about it in PPLP, but then I was relieved reading what you wrote @ http://www.mreades.wpengine.com/drmike/weight-loss/two-eggs-per-day-keeps-the-belly-fat-away : “You may get a tiny bit of oxidized cholesterol, but not nearly as much as if you cook them until they’re like rubber”.
BTW would you worry about the cholesterol being oxidized when frying in butter?
Thanks for answering.
Rabbi Hirsch Meisels
Jewish Friends With Diabetes International
http://www.FriendsWithDiabetes.org
Nope, wouldn’t be worried about frying in butter at all.
Yay! Got my book yesterday and finished it.
I have a question regarding the Sagittal Abdominal Diameter Test. My L-SAD is 7 1/2 inches. My S-SAD is 8 1/4 inches. Is this 3/4 inch difference far enough apart to be in the “good” column?
I’m 5′.3 1/4″ tall. Weight is 118 (thanks to following your Blog and having two of your books).
My WHR is .88
Last question in this comment box is: Can I add an egg to all three protein drinks daily? I read your answer to Pat above that you said it’s okay to add a boiled egg in addition to her raw egg added to her shake in the morning. You said it would be fine…so are three eggs then too much?
No, three eggs aren’t going to be too many. If you do add them raw to your shakes, make sure they’re pasteurized.
You SAD differential is kind of right on the border for your height.
I finally got tired of waiting for Amazon.com to ship the book, so picked it up at the local B&N. It turned out we’d pre-ordered it so long ago the card we charged it on was no longer valid. I’m on day 3 (still tapering off caffiene though, down to one double-shot half-caff Americano). Deep in ketosis and already my pants feel looser. The three shakes per day are a bit of a challenge, I’ve only been able to manage two so far. I normally eat twice a day (lunch and dinner).
I started out with 2 scoops (24g whey protein per scoop), but have cut back to 1.5 because the shakes were repeating on me. Questions: a) is the weight given for estimating scoops of protein one’s current weight (170) or target weight (140)? b) would it be advisable to add fat in proportion to the number of scoops? I found myself craving fat and ended up having a bedtime snack of about half an oz. of goat butter. Normally I don’t snack at all, but I was craving fat and the idea of another shake was completely unappealing.
I’m looking forward to the meat weeks, it’s pretty close to how I normally eat. The shakes seem like a lot of artificial flavor/sweetener that I don’t normally consume. They have noticably increased my energy level and fat burning though.
Three shakes per day were a challenge for me, too. I had two most days. But, people have to learn this on their own. If we had put two shakes and a meal, people would have thought they would starve, so we went with three. As you’ve learned, though, they are filling shakes.
I would use current weight because the protein itself increases thermogenesis and helps with the weight loss. You can cut your protein as you drop the weight.
I would keep the fat as per the recipe because that’s what keeps you from getting hungry, and it helps clear the liver.
RE Leucine….I bought some today and the label says it contains soy? I bought this at Vitamin Shoppe….other brands listed don’t mention soy….it doesn’t say it’s in it, but also doesn’t list in the “does not contain” area. Is soy a source? is it possible to buy without soy? I’m allergic to soy!
I doubt that it contains much soy. L-leucine is a specific molecule, so it shouldn’t much matter where it came from as long as it’s truly pure L-leucine. There is a mail order source in the appendix in the back of the book if you’re worried. I would try a little, though, to see what happens unless you have anaphylactic reactions to soy.
Hey Mike, just got our books and we’ll be starting ‘The Cure’ very soon. I meant to ask the other day while reading your excerpt of the book, about your experience treating individuals with large amount of weight (and VAT) to lose. What happens to the skin? We’ve seen how the skin stretches out, so much that it would seem to have no limit… but when significant amount of VAT and SAT are lost, does the skin returns to where it was before? I had the same question when I watched a documentary of a morbid obese individual who started a nutritional approach to lose a massive amount of weight, which he did, but in his documenting photos, there was also an equally massive amount of skin hanging, for which surgery was to follow to remove the extra skin that did not return back to ‘normal’. I don’t know if this issue is blog worthy… so whenever you have some time to share some thoughts on this, I’ll appreciate it very much.
Cheers
Typically, morbidly obese people have a lot of fat under their skin – Sub cutaneous fat (SAT). In fact, they have a lot of fat everywhere, but especially under their skin. This SAT stretches the skin so there are large folds left after weight loss. People with mainly visceral fat don’t have that problem. It’s been my experience that this excess skin will slowly tighten back up, but most people don’t want to wait and go for the surgery.
Would it be acceptable to use MCT oil in the shakes instead of Coconut Milk or Heavy Cream? Not that these things are difficult to find, but I already have the MCT oil.
I guess you could use MCT, but it probably wouldn’t taste for flip.
OK, I got the book today. I already cut the coffee last week. So far so good. I am shopping for my whey powder and found Kaizen Brand Natural Whey Protein, which according to the label already has all the required nutrients. But it also contains Soy Lecithin. Should I be concerned about this?
Wouldn’t worry about that one too much. The lecithin is one of the components that make the shake thicken.
Hi Mike~
I still can’t read all of the longer comments on your new format. I have windows xp and internet explorer.
If I change the text size to the smallest I can seem to read one more line of the long comments.
PS I have your new book on order. Thankyou for all the important work you and MD do.
~P
Apparently you’re using Internet Explorer 6, which causes the problem. If you can upgrade to IE 7, your problem should be solved. I will run it by my tech guys to see if they can do anything about it.
I downloaded Mozilla Firefox, which solved a number of problems with reading website. My old IE has an occasional advantage, but Firefox is very helpful, and free.
RE: Leucine…..no anaphylactic reactions to soy, so I’ll give it a try.
Did also want to mention, since you’ve changed your blog, that I’m not getting all the emails noting new posts to comments. I have GMail, so I’m not sure if it’s on your end or mine, but wanted to mention it.
Just started day 5 and feeling good! Still have a touch of a headache, I’m sure from caffeine withdrawal, but otherwise great! I don’t weigh and measure until Tuesday, but I can already tell my pants are looser! I’ve put my coffee pot and tea kettle in the cabinet! Big change for me!!
Oh yea….may be coincidence, but NO reflux issues at all since day 1! I’ve taken aspirin once a day for the caffeine headache without problem. I have motility problems in addition to relaxed but spasming sphincter and hiatal hernia. Thanks to low carb (and loss of insurance) I’ve been off all meds for several months, but have still been using Tums, especially after taking aspirin. Now no Tums, no indigestion!
Good to hear your reflux has improved so quickly. Such improvement is pretty common.
I’m working on all these issues with the blog, but it’s a real pain in the you-know-what. My web guy is tired of my constant whining, so I’m trying to gather all the problems and present them at once instead of chronically calling and complaining. I’ll do my best to get it all fixed.
I am almost 43, and I have the middle-aged middle. People don’t think I’m fat, as I wear a size 6 and can dress around the dreaded muffin top, but I recently started experiencing high blood pressure (healthy on all other accounts), and my doctor told me that even a ten pound loss would be beneficial. I lost weight on lowcarb a few years ago, but over the years, I’ve let carbs creep back in, and I am maintaining at ten-fifteen pounds over my ideal weight. For my health (and my vanity), I’m excited about The Cure, which I’ve started today after reading the book twice.
The protein powder I bought (Jay Robb) shows 2500mg leucine per serving on the label. If I do your 6WC, should I supplement an ADDITIONAL 2500 mg?
Probably not. If you’re using three servings per day, that’s 7.5 g plus whatever you get in the meat. You just need to get between 8-12 g per day to prevent muscle loss. It’s okay to go over that.
Upgrading to IE 7.0 is not feasible (I’m using work laptop); I am using IE 6.0.2900.2180.xpsp_sp2Pqfe.090206-1239 . Using smallest font option, I see about 8 lines in each comment box. Is there some way I can read text only, w/o formatting?
If you’re asking me, you’re asking the wrong guy. Readers? Any suggestions?
I just commented – download Mozilla Firefox. That solved my problems, and I’m still using Windows 2000.
Just found a work-around for the IE <7.0 compatibility problem: Click on the IE ICON for Edit in Windows (looks like a "W" in a box); from the drop down pick Edit with Microsoft Word; scroll down to the comments.
Sorry for the multiple postings. In 6WC pg 119 where you list suggested flavorings for the shakes, the first one uses food (berries) instead of S-F flavourings or S-F soda. I would probably favour that choice over most of the others for most shakes. You do mention that the plan allows for using the same flavoring repeatedly, but would using that one slow weight loss with the added carbs?
No, you may use the berries. It shouldn’t have much, if any, effect. If you do notice weight loss slowing down, you might want to cut it back to just once.
HI Dr. Eades: I’m reading the 6 Week Cure and find it very interesting and informative. Once again you’ve written an excellent book. I am going to do the 6 week cure, but I have trouble with dairy, including whey protein used in protein shakes. In the book you also said a person could use rice powder or soy protein. I can’t stand soy. I’ve not tried the rice yet but if that is my best option, I will get that. What about hemp protein or egg powder protein? Are those also good options or do they present other problems? Thanks,
I’m not familiar with hemp protein, so I can’t comment on that one. As long as it’s a complete protein and doesn’t contain a lot of carbs, it should be okay. Egg protein is fine.
The ‘Resources’ section leads me to believe that there is both leucine and PowerUp! Shake powder to be had through your http://www.6weekcure.com site but I am unable to find them. Are they hiding someplace or just not yet available?
Thanks,
mc
At some point we will have those. We just don’t have them yet.
Hello Dr. Eades and friends: I know that maybe your time to answer all the questions in this blogger, because maybe your personal time is limited. But i just have one simple question about the content of starches in green-vegetables. My question is: Does broccoli and brussel sprouts have starch in them? Because I’ve noticed that green-cabbage is a lot lighter than broccoli and brussel sprouts. Because when ever i eat more brocoli than green cabbage i feel heavier and more bloated than when i eat cooked green-cabbage. Thanks and I would like your opinion.
The vegetables you mentioned don’t have much starch in them. They do contain a fair amount of fiber, however.
Good news for you, bad for me …… my pre publication order for multiple copies has been delayed …… not enough in the warehouse and they’ve had to re order from the supplier already!
Sorry to hear that…for you. 🙂
Hello,I’m starting the 6 week cure and am very excited about it.
Could you explain the 1000mg phosphorus you recommend as a supplemental nutrient? I’m having a hard time finding it and people at the health food store are telling me I don’t need it. I did find vial of homeopathic pellets that says “phosphorus 30 c” on it. Is that what I should be taking? And if so how many? Thanks!
You don’t need to worry about taking supplemental phosphorous – you get plenty on this particular diet. The table is what you should be getting in what you eat and what you take supplement-wise, and with this diet you’ll be getting plenty of phosphorous.
Having just read the book, it tells you how to compute S-SAD and L-SAD, but then does not go on to give you a feeling for what a good separation is. I’m a 50 year old male who is 5’11” and 165 lbs. My hip to waist ratio is a little under .9 and my S-SAD is 9.5 while the L-SAD is 7.5. I’m assuming that all of these numbers indicate that I don’t have much in the way of VAT, but your comments in the book about many thin people still having excessive VAT makes me wonder. I’ve been on a low-carb diet for several years now, and have been doing a slow-lift weight training protocol for about 13 years. My % body fat is about 12%.
BTW, I love the shake recipes in the book. I’ve invented a few of my own over the years, but these are excellent! I also noticed that the book refers to Torini syrups when I believe the actual brand name is Torani (I have several bottles of them.)
Glad you’re enjoying the shakes. You are correct on the Torani vs Torini – it’s a typo that made it through. We’re keeping lists of these so we can fix them next printing.
Your SAD numbers show that you have primarily SAT not VAT. Two inches is a pretty good excursion for one so thin. We purposely didn’t put figures in because there is so much variation as a function of height and weight that any tables would be way too complicated. What’s more important is the change over time.
Day 6 report. I started with an L-SAD of 7 1/2″ and a S-SAD of 8 1/4″ and scale weight of 118.
Today, my measurements are L-SAD – 7″; S-SAD – 8″; and scale weight was 115.5 this morning. So the SAD differential is down from 3/4″ to 1″.
I’m a 66 year old female, 5’3 1/4″ in height.
And everyone told me I was too thin before I started the program 6 days ago, but I knew that my body could be improved. Thank you Drs. Eades!!! You’ve guided me for many years and will still continue to guide me the rest of my life.
My 5 p.m. glass of wine is now a protein drink in a wine glass with Brandy or Rum, etc., extract or one of the Torani Surgar Fee flavorings. Or it’s made with a defizzed Hansen’s soda sweetened with Splenda. So I have something to sip and enjoy while hubby is drinking his glass of wine. 🙂 It takes away the sting of giving up wine for so many days in a row – thank goodness. Actually, I thought I could never do this two week part. LOL
I’m happy to hear you’re doing so well. Nice change on the S-SAD to L-SAD over only 6 days. Keep it up. You’ll be bereft of your wine for only a few more days.
“Hmmm. I was led to believe that no books would be shipped until Sept. 8. I know books are in the warehouse, so I wondered why they weren’t shipping already. Maybe they’ve started and I’m just the last to know.”
They didn’t ship “retail” until the ship date you were given, but copies go out to reviewers so their reviews can be live when the buying starts, and some book clubs aren’t considered “retail” shipments. They’re more like legal insider trades. *grins* Industry accounting for “books you probably won’t get paid the same percentage on”. sorry to be the bearer.
BUT! Looks like retail sales will be good, I’m happy with my copy, sure others will be too.
I know the date on this page is a while ago, but I got my book Sept 12th or so, ordered thru this site’s Amazon link. Also got Protein Power, and trying to read them both, looking at my kitchen in fear and trepidation. I have SO many beloved carbs resting in cupboards, waiting to be called on to do their thing. I’m proud I have avoided eating them up before starting my LC or 6-week. I feel guilty fobbing them off on my huuby and son! Since I haven’t gotten thru the books yet, I still don’t know what exactly is safe to eat, so I’m just avoiding anything that doesn’t look like meat, egg, or coffee.
Should start in earnest in 2 days, wish me luck!
Good luck. I think you’ll be surprised at how easy it is.
Do I really need to buy yet another diet book? I have so many sitting on my shelf already. I just want to lose my [mid-life] belly fat. I’ve gotten rid of the stuff hanging around in other places. Can’t the new good news be summed up in 10 pages or less?
Probably takes a few more pages than that. If you don’t want to purchase the book, grab it at the library.
US News online has just reported on a study published in the Sept. 16 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association that holds implications for low carb diets. The study found that medications, including insulin, that helped reduce glucose levels in diabetics didn’t affect inflammatory markers any more than a placebo did. The expectation was that lowering glucose levels would address also inflammation. But, this did not happen. Although diet was not mentioned, I think it safe to assume that the participants were not following a low or even a reduced carbohydrate diet. One of the researchers acknowledged that the distribution of body fat is probably a factor since abdominal fat tends to have more of an effect on inflammation (than other forms of body fat).
http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/healthday/2009/09/15/diabetes-medications-dont-lower-inflammation.html
On a related vein, CNN has just posted an article called ‘The 10 most important nutrition stories of the last two decades’ authored by Sally Squires (Cooking Light). A few highlights:
– polyunsaturated fats have health benefits
– saturated fat promotes heart disease
– whole grains boost foods nutritive value and don’t raise blood sugar levels the way refined grains do
http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/09/08/food.for.thought/index.html
Well, you can see that CNN as usual is up to date with all the latest info on nutrition and health.
While reading your book, I was very surprised to read about the abdominal breathing because I have several workout tapes (called Oxycise) that is basically that type of breathing, but with the addition of stretching, isotonic, and isometric exercises. One of those things I’ve owned for lots of years and did off and on (more off than on as it seemed too easy and simple to really work), and now after reading about it in your book, I’m definitely more motivated to do my oxycising more consistently, and now I think my husband may actually believe me about the benefits of my “alien breathing” as he calls it. Thought you may be interested to know.
Thanks.
@Pat about RLS
I have RLS too, and a very bad case of Periodic Limb Movement Disorder in all 4 limbs! I stopped all meds for these conditions about 5 years ago, and now use only supplements and a low carb diet to deal with my symptoms.
I’m not a doctor, but I find that eating more animal fat and drinking enough water helps my RLS and PLMD. I started this last year when I read Good Calories, Bad Calories, and threw out all my reservations about dietary saturated/animal fat.
The Cure’s high protein, lower calorie weeks 1-2 (I am on day 7), is making me a little more twitchy than usual. For the first time in a while, I can literally feel all four limbs twitching any time I hold still and focus on my body. Raising my protein has given me a big burst of energy and puts my RLS/PLMD a little out of balance… to which I guess I have not adjusted yet. However, for me eating more saturated fat helps a lot. It calms the PLMD quite a lot, and I can eat plenty of protein as long as I also get plenty of fat. This lower calorie phase has a lot less fat than I’m used to, though, so I am a little more restless and twitchy.
I am really looking forward to weeks 3-4, which I might stay with for a while, since I have lots of abdominal fat and more than 100 lbs to lose overall. Good luck with your RLS, Pat!!
Just wanted to let you know, I am a 49 year old woman and I have been eating low carb for pretty much the last 12 years and doing well. A couple of years ago I developed the dreaded middle-age middle and nothing, nothing was getting rid of it! Got your book on Sept. 9th, officially started the Cure on Sept. 15th. As of today, Sept. 23, I have lost 10 lbs and finally broken past that stupid set point I’d been at forever!! You can’t even know how thankful I am to you and your wife for putting this info out there!! Loved the book, love the recipes!!!!
Thank you so much!!!
Diane
I’m delighted to hear that you’ve done so well. If you’re interested in telling your story to a journalist who’s doing a piece on the book, write to Lisa Maxbauer, a writer for First magazine at: lisamaxb (at) yahoo (dot) com. She would love to hear from you.
Hi Dr. Eades!
Just read 6WC and and am on day 5! I’m 37, 6’3″ and 205 lbs. and would like to get down to 190 lbs. Over the last 5 months, I’ve been working out 6 days a week using the P90X workout program (60-90 minutes/day weight lifting and cardio) and have gained lots of strength and stamina and definition in my chest, back and arms, but still have my stomach bulge (which is where the 15 lbs are hiding). I have a couple questions:
1. Can I continue this level of weight and cardio training during the initial 2 weeks of 6WC? Do I have to worry about getting enough carbs?
2. I’ve been adding an additional 2500mg of Leucine to my shakes even though my 3 scoops of protein contains 4890mg. Does your shake recipe take into account the leucine already in the protein? Or should I stop adding the extra 2500mg?
thanks for your consideration!
A.J. in Los Angeles
Here are my stats:
Female/Age: 32/Weight: 147/Height: 5’5″/Waist: 35″/Hips: 34″ Goal: Waist: 27″
I am not overweight by most standards, most would just say I am a little thick in the middle (apple to the core). I have small hips, skinny legs, good arms and 90% of my weight is stuck in the middle.
I stumbled across your website after a very stressful day arguing with my husband about why the fat in my stomach is not going away and how it is directly linked to his attraction to me and he can’t help that it turns him off. (which now I understand a little better after reading about the history of WHR). He is frustrated that it just does not seem to be improving.
In just over a year I have lost about 30 lbs, on a lower carb diet and consistent exercise plan (3 days of heavy interval spin 60 minutes 1 day of interval cardio 40 minutes and 3-4 days of weight lifting) However I feel that it should have been more… hopefully your book will help me to understand why its coming off soooo slow and how I can change that.
A little bit of my medical history/family medical history:
Father: Died of Lung Cancer AGE: 47 (inshape, thin, no stomach buldge, no heart problems, smoked in his early 20’s but quit when I was born 16 years before he died)
Mother: Died of Heart Attack AGE: 64 (smoker, depression, overweight, hyperglycemia)
Grandparents (paternal): Multiple heart attacks (5-7 each), bipass surgery, both died in their early 80’s
Grandparents (maternal): Grandmother died at 72 from bleeding ulcer, she was a smoker on Oxygen for over 20 years. Grandfather died at 89 of “natural causes”
Me: high Triglycerides (900 range… I know crazy for someone my age and not overweight. Yes I have been tested multiple times. My doctor originally just had me on a low glycemic diet and I lost a little weight 15 lbs, but it didn’t lower my tri’s all that much. So after looking at my history and my age he determined that this must be genetic and I have to be on meds… Vytorin… for the rest of my life) and I am pretty sure I am insulin resistant.
I am going to go buy the book in the morning and give it a shot. I hope I see quick results 🙂
Sarah
I hope you enjoy the book and do well with the program. It’s a plan designed with people like you in mind.
Hi Dr. Eades!
Just read 6WC and and am on day 5! I’m 37, 6′3″ and 205 lbs. and would like to get down to 190 lbs. Over the last 5 months, I’ve been working out 6 days a week using the P90X workout program (60-90 minutes/day weight lifting and cardio) and have gained lots of strength and stamina and definition in my chest, back and arms, but still have my stomach bulge (which is where the 15 lbs are hiding). I have a couple questions:
1. Can I continue this level of weight and cardio training during the initial 2 weeks of 6WC? Do I have to worry about getting enough carbs?
2. I’ve been adding an additional 2500mg of Leucine to my shakes even though my 3 scoops of protein contains 4890mg. Does your shake recipe take into account the leucine already in the protein? Or should I stop adding the extra 2500mg?
thanks for your consideration!
A.J. in Los Angeles
Hi there,
My husband I just read your book and he has been doing the diet for 6 days now. He has been having a pretty bad time with feeling crampy and heavy, almost bloated in his stomach – “just not right”. Also his bowel movements have been extremely smelly and sporadic. He doesn’t normally have any intestinal issues so this has been very hard on him. He says he feels like the the shakes are just not agreeing with him. Could that be?
Can he do something else for the rest of the first two weeks? He was suggesting maybe just very small meals instead…but we don’t want to mess up the program. any suggestions would be very helpful
thanks!
Dr Eades,
Apologies for posting a comment so long after the blog entry was published, but I was curious to know if the above would apply to me. I’m a 22 year old male, and quite fit compared with other people my age. My muscles are quite well defined but I’ve never been able to boast six-pack abs. My body fat content was, some time ago, 5.9%, but I don’t feel that much has changed since then. Would I be right in saying that the sort of fat I want to lose is subcutaneous? Does your latest book address my situation?
Kind regards,
Jeff.
Given your age and body fat percentage, I would guess your fat is basically subcutaneous.
With so numerous weight lifting programs accessible it was very tough to pick the proper a single for me. Once I found a single that got me results I stuck with it and I merely modify it occasionally.
Today was the first day on the 6 week cure. The shakes were very filling; the third one really knocked out my desire for dinner – “the meal.” I did eat the meal; however due to nutritional concerns.
I am taking 3 scoops of protein per shake per weight instructions. I am wondering if it is OK to reduce the number of scoops to one or two on the third shake. I don’t want to mess up the success “formula.”
I have to say, this was very enjoyable – I love the shakes! I have never had a more satisfying 1600 calorie day.
Drs. Eades: I LOVE you guys! Thanks for the 6 Week Cure! I did Protein Power about 10 years ago and loved the results. Being a lifetime Weight Watchers member, I had never experienced such success with a “diet” until I read PP. I lost about 2 pounds a week. Now, at 52, my husband and I are both in the first week…my husband has that horrible Sydrome X and I can’t wait to see his progress. Thank you for your dedication!
And thank you for the nice comment.
Katherine – Based upon my experience last year, I’d say you can easily reduce the number of scoops for the third shake. Works well – until you just give the third one up!