Photographic Evidence: Low Carb is Over!
Well, it’s been over for quite a while.
But I might as well make it official. My first “bulk” purchase of rice & beans. Smart & Final is great for that. Costco prices with medium size bulk items, like in the 10-20 pound range. And also, it’s not fucking Costco. There’s that, too.
Rice, Beans, Potatoes, Bananas and Apples
Do notice that this is rice, legumes, starchy veggies and fruit. It’s not bags and boxes of junk and sugar water—and Hot Pockets. None of it is from the Atkins isle of junk food that’s virtuous because of a macronutrient. The low carbohydrate diet is deserving of ridicule in this area until it makes these critical distinctions. It never will, of course, and therefore, will always remain rather ridiculous as anything other than an intervention therapy for things like extreme obesity, diabetes, some cancer and some neurological disorders.
…Still waiting to gain all that weight I was predicted to gain (versus steadily and gradually losing, without hunger or cravings).
Onward.
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Richard, I can’t tell from the photo…what kind of rice did you purchase?
Uncle Ben’s Original Parboiled, also called “converted.” Here’s why:
https://freetheanimal.com/2013/12/parboiled-nutritious-resistant.html
Thanks, Richard.
I just wasn’t sure from the photo if it were, indeed, Uncle Bens. I hope it’s available at my Costco. I do understand why we want converted rice; I’ve been following along since the beginning of your RS posts, so I’m pretty clear on the rationale. What I would really like is to find converted jasmine or basmati rice at a reasonable price. GabKad (I think) said converted basmati is called Sella rice.
Judy
I’ve been experimenting with eating from the produce section/dried beans and seeds (quinoa) section four days a week, feasting on a reduced amount of animal flesh/produce the other three.
I noticed an immediate decrease in strength at the gym the first couple of weeks (damned produce!) then considered whether this may be a reverse-placebo effect, after four weeks of it I’m back to my usual self, felt like I could take on an adult Siberian tiger at the gym today.
If you give it a fair trial I think you find that eating plants and stuff that grows from plants isn’t all that bad. Won’t make your dick fall off.
I tend to think that basmati rice is so over-milled, I suspect that a lot of the nutrients are lost. Probably not the RS, but that isn’t the whole story with parboiled rice. To me, basmati has almost no rice flavor compared to shorter grain rice, such as sushi rice or jasmine rice. My parboiled rice has a very nice flavor and looks like a short grain rice. Bought in bulk at Winco, $0.68 per pound.
You probably have answered this elsewhere, aren’t the beans supposed to be as bad as grains for anti-nutrients etc.? Do you do the soaking preparation thing? What do you do to prepare your beans?
Adrian
No, utter BS and a total lie on many levels. Moreover, on my list is to do a post about how, on average, nuts have not only way too much n-6, but also more anti-nutrients than legumes. In my view, everyone would be far better off dropping nuts and adding legumes.
So much utter bullshit out there based on silliness. That silliness largely good (LC Paleo) and helped me and tons of others, but it’s time to really explore some of these issues more deeply.
Never understood the nut fetish.
Eh. Nuts are still awesome (and so are legumes).
If the n-6’s and anti-nutrients in nuts were a legitiment concern, then one might predict all the RCTs and epidemiology studies to come back with negative or at least null results.
But the opposite is true. Nuts have been repeatedly shown as healthy.
The most recent example (epidemiology, but in line with RCTs): http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1307352
Gabs
If you’d like to hit me up with what you think about nuts and why, well, you know what to do.
It always seemed almost as odd as lighting up an American Spirit to me, or maybe not as much. All the mixed nuts I ate. In Paleo nuts would have been a gather, no big payoff like a large animal.
It was more likely way less nuts than we really easy and cheap access to for most, and even in plenty, it would probably have been a single kind of nut.
Interesting comment on nuts. After binging on nuts for a couple of years, two months ago I decided to simply never bring nuts into my house again & the effect has been dramatic. Along with following other of your suggestions, I have finally started losing weight – 25 lbs of fat in two months. Still no no wheat, sugar, chips, or other junk food.
I’ve gotten in to grassfed liverwurst – finally an organ meat I can tolerate. Also, 4 tablespoons of potato starch daily & a little bit of Uncle Ben’s rice & corn tortillas with my meat & veggies. My “treat” is a daily dose of cottage cheese with berries & cantaloupe, and a couple of big spoonfuls of peanut butter. Dropping pounds and waist size like crazy. None of the problems I was suffering on strict low-carb.
At a guess, how long would that amount of ‘carbs’ last you? A month and a half would be my guess.
A good point DWMD, too, and the rice & beans don’t spoil. Rice & beans are really the perfect “preper” foods. Save the rest of your space for bullets and fishing gear, though. 🙂
@Edward, depends how you want to eat rice. I know that lots of Asians like to put their rice into soup. You really can’t do that with Basmatti rice; it will just become mush and lose form. You can’t make sushi with Basmatti either. However, Basmatti is really god as a side dish to steak and just about any meat entrée. It’s also slightly less glycemic than the short-grain sushi rice preferred in Asia.
If you are really into rice, get one of those Hamalayan ones from India. When you cook, sprinkle some turmeric and when done, spray some thyme on top of it. Let it cool for 1o minutes. The rice becomes as fluffy as angel dust and complements your steak really well.
here’s a study that shows beneficial glycemic results from adding resistant starch -plantain flour- to a cookie recipe. there is a table in the study that seems to show significant resistant starch in the cookies with plantain flour. this is good news to me because i found an awesome recipe for potato starch biscuits
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=potato%20starch%20resistant%20starch%20biscuits&source=web&cd=3&ved=0CDkQFjAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.researchgate.net%2Fpublication%2F222564987_Slowly_digestible_cookies_prepared_from_resistant_starch-rich_lintnerized_banana_starch%2Ffile%2F9fcfd50990f839e220.pdf&ei=ZVXCUtbKAq_IsASnioHgDQ&usg=AFQjCNESJBPyefsdeIj4ZyICzMp4lL-Okw&sig2=H3WFdIUbuj0C9OY0__Q4LQ&bvm=bv.58187178,d.cWc
and Julia Child is vindicated.
So far we have this guy who is going around bucking the low carb catechism by proclaiming the goodness of starchy substrates to all. At first, his message and grassroots efforts attract a small following, but quickly manifests into something greater, as those who choose to embrace his message begin to marvel at its simple wonder and attest to its many good graces and healing powers. This, in return, creates waves throughout the Paleo lands and riles the ardent LCers, shaking the very foundation for which they stand upon. . .
I think I’ve heard this story before. 😀
*GASP* Could it be that CW was right all along with their dietary advice to diabetics?
I’m in the middle of conducting my own black-eyed pea N=1 experiment on Hubby, and so far, his blood sugar went up +14 points after a 1/2 c. serving mixed with pork sausage (grass-fed) + 2T. red salsa mixed in. We’re having another go tonight.
As long as Richard sticks with real food, it’s all good. If he starts pushing ice cream, muffins, Domino’s Pizza and pretzels as the new health food, I’ll start to worry. Of course, if he does this, he’ll start looking fatter in his photos then he’ll suddenly stop posting any new pics of himself.
Had dinner tonight (shredded bison w/1/2 c. black-eye peas + 2 T. salsa verde), and here’s the results:
baseline = 100
after 1 hour = 105
after 2 hours = 125
Amazing–no gas at all during the whole experiment. Maybe these legumes are a good choice for a weekly Carb Night.
Richard –
New to your website….I like it.
Do you still eat meat?
Of course, Doug. Of all sorts. Seafood too. Essential in my view. But I’ve come to see the value of a starch substrate most of the time and rice, beans and potatoes are just perfect for that. So, just less meat over time is all.
Richard,
Looks like you’re coming around to pretty much the same way of eating as Dr. Kurt Harris did before he quit posting on his blog. Makes sense to me. He looked like he was in pretty good condition too.
Happy 2014 all!
fyi: During his 12/31/13 podcast with Chris Kresser (especially at 3m35s to 4m15s, and 7m20s to 8m55s, but Kresser also talks about it later on)…
http://robbwolf.com/2013/12/31/episode-212-guest-chris-kresser/
…Robb Wolf sings the praises of RS: “I started following some of Richard Nikoley’s stuff….I’ll be damned if my digestions isn’t a lot better! … 4 tbsp: check!” Chris agrees that RS can reverse FODMAP and other problems.
Hi Rich I am loving the RS stuff and am a little new to your blog but find myself reposting this stuff all the time. My question though is actually about low carb and RS in regards to Candida and SIBO. Do you think that RS should be avoided if you are dealing with these issues at all or do you think it would help aid in it. I know that you have posted about its affects on bifidobacteria but in your opinion can it feed the bad stuff as well?
“My question though is actually about low carb and RS in regards to Candida and SIBO. Do you think that RS should be avoided if you are dealing with these issues at all or do you think it would help aid in it. I know that you have posted about its affects on bifidobacteria but in your opinion can it feed the bad stuff as well?”
I think it’s totally an individual thing. I’m sure some can do the PS and be fine while others may have too much bad going on. In general, I think feeding the good ones is a good strategy, as in theory, they are what keep the bad ones in check.
RECIPE — Seasoned plantain chips 🙂
3 green plantains, sliced thin
Mix in a bowl until coated with:
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt or garlic salt
cayenne pepper to taste
1 T balsamic vinegar
2 T melted coconut oil
Spread in single layer in dehydrator & dehydrate @ 100 deg or so until they’re chippy.
3 plantains is a perfect fit for my dehydrator — harvest maid, four trays.
“I think it’s totally an individual thing. I’m sure some can do the PS and be fine while others may have too much bad going on. In general, I think feeding the good ones is a good strategy, as in theory, they are what keep the bad ones in check.”
Thank you for your response I really appreciate it. I found going to low carb made me feel like death cold hands and feet and poor body temp regulation. Not a diabetic but have been suffering from a year long sinus infection that was made worse by antibiotics. I just find it extremely hard to get enough calories on a super low carb and it bonks my sleep. RS seems like it helps though with the cold limbs on days I do do a low carb experiment. I haven’t tested with a glucometer yet but just from I feel personally I think it is having an affect. Whether its placebo or not I’m not sure since I’m not tracking blood sugar currently (just body temp) and have done stool testing at all.
I can barely remember what cold hands & feet feel like. In fact, I’m barefoot almost all the time in the house.
@Jared
Concerning sinusitis you may want to have a look at this page, it is,
you might have guessed, micro life, symbionts I prefer to call them:
http://lactobacto.com/our-story/
Bernhard and Jared, it’s a good thing to remember that workers in salt mines didn’t get sick. Number one: hypertonic saline spray. Use at least twice per day. Keeps mucous membranes moist and reduces inflammation. Sinus openings get unblocked. Spray, let the snot hydrate, then blow out all the snot. Check if nose is clear. If not, do it again. Then spritz the nose and leave. If things are really bad, do it a few times per day.
If it’s really bad beyond the above therapy, microdoses of steroid nasal spray will get the swelling down but still need to use the saline. Needs a prescription.
And very important: Breathe through the nose, in and out. The in breath will help to move mucous and whatnot upwards and then down the throat. The out breath will humidify so the nose doesn’t dry out easily.
Don’t use products like Otrivin or Dristan because they cause vasoconstriction and when they wear off, rebound vasodilation with stuffiness return with a vengeance. Longterm use can result in a lack of circulation to tissues like the nasal septum.
It’s all about nose rehabilitation. If there’s anatomical issues, like septal deviation or overgrowth of turbinate bones or so much chronically inflamed tissue, see an ENT. Some people live in places where environmental irritants and allergens make rehab very challenging or impossible. Moldy, damp places will forever cause problems and are actually very dangerous for people with compromised immune systems.
Well as far as mold goes I’m not sure I live in an apartment right by Lake Michigan so I am assuming that there is probably something going on there. I’m sort of locked in for the year though so I don’t know if it’s really an option to move. I was told I have a fungal infection so I’m not really sure if that is related at all to the sinusitis or not.
Jared, that low carb cold hands and sinusitis are a sign of immunodeficiency. I would go see a good allergist/immunologist and ask for my immunoglobulins and igg subclasses to be tested just to be sure. About 1/3 of long-term low carbers develop immunodeficiency, some severe. This is the other side of low-carbing that is not acknowledged. Those cold hands may be a sign of Raynaud’s but also may reflect deficient immune responses just like in starvation. The worst case scenario is being on immunoglobulin injections. I know long-term low carbers who get such injections monthly.
I am supposed to be going to an allergist next month. I got some tests back saying I had a fungus of some sort and I am supposed to be meeting with him to go over it for whatever reason. Does that sound right that an allergist would be someone you would go see for a fungal infection.
Richard, how’s your weight, etc. on the increased beans and rice? No horror stories, I hope.
Edward, I prefer not to say.
Yes, I understand. No matter what your results are they will be misconstrued by somebody. Sorry.
I will eventually do a reveal, but right now prefer to focus on the results others are obtaining. I’m suspecting that with an improvement of the gut, people will gradually and slowly normalize weight without much thought about it, provided the stick predominantly to real food and not edibles engineered to fuck with hormones so that you can’t get enough.