A year of study has broadened my knowledge on LCHF extensively, however sometimes it’s obscure little things that stick in your mind and make the LCHF approach make sense. My research involved conducting an 8-week low carb/high fat weight–loss study with 15 wonderful middle-aged women. Alongside a website resource, each week I posted 3 support posts to keep my ladies on task and to make sure they knew they were not alone in their undertaking. One little phrase that I added to a post explaining why LCHF works has stayed with me. While a myriad of research articles fuelled my thesis, it is little gems like this that stick in my mind:
SUMO wrestlers eat a lot of carbs and very little fat, and sleep after a meal. They recognise that large insulin responses as a result of a high carb meal is an effective way to store fat!
How many times have you eaten a meal high in your old favourite carbs and just felt like lying down having a sleep , or fell in to a food coma as my kids would call it; plenty I am sure!! So if Sumo wrestlers have known this for so long, how come it took the rest of us so long to get it?
Lets think about ;
Fat is a very effective blood sugar stabiliser so by limiting our fat intake we increase our desire for sugar. Foods popularised by low fat/high carb dietary advice such as rice, wholegrains, and potatoes, produce a quick spike in blood sugar levels, which in turn creates an insulin spike. As we know, an excess of insulin blocks our body’s capacity to burn fat and the resulting fall in blood sugar levels causes more hunger and a desire for more carbohydrate. And additionally, lack of essential fatty acids as a result of a low fat diet, creates the sense of famine, forcing our bodies to convert more carbs in to fat.
So that’s in it in a nutshell? If only it were that simple. There are so many more factors which impact our food choices. While the nutrient profile of our food is key to weight status and well-being, as humans, our emotions, our family and friends, and our environment, also significantly influence what, when, why, and how much we eat.
More on that I my next post, but now I need to round up my cameraman, and get started on the next of my ‘Living Low Carb Live Recipe’ series.
