Fat-fueled brain: unnatural or advantageous? • Hacker News Board

Re: Fat-fueled brain: unnatural or advantageous?

#171

Post by tzs » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 6:28 PM UTC

wyager wrote: post #123

uhtred wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not aiming this at you but just people in general, but I'm pretty sure one could lose weight in a much healthier way by just eating a balanced diet (eating REAL food, not processed junk), not overeating, cutting out as much added sugar as possible (under 30g a day is recommended) and getting a little light exercise regularly. Sorry but I hate these fad diets.

> cutting out as much added sugar as possible Why do you count this separately from "not overeating"? The important thing is to be calorie-negative to lose weight.

Foods with a lot of added sugar tend to be foods that aren't very good at keeping you feeling full, so if you have too many of them in your calorie-negative diet you can easily find yourself quite hungry so often that it takes a lot of willpower to stay calorie-negative...maybe more than you have and the diet falls apart.

Re: Fat-fueled brain: unnatural or advantageous?

#172

Post by jerf » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 6:40 PM UTC

DigitalJack wrote: post #128

sfeng wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Obviously listen to your dr over me, but it's a common 'mistake' with keto to not up your fat enough. More fatty meat might actually work out better for you than turkey. Take a look at The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Living for more info on the importance of keeping your fat to protein ratio high.

Very good point. I didn't mention it, but I am eating garlic stuffed olives for electrolytes and fat. edit: forgot to mention too that I make the protein shakes with almond milk which has a few grams of fat per serving as well.

May I ask exactly how the garlic is treated and exactly what olives you are eating?

Re: Fat-fueled brain: unnatural or advantageous?

#173

Post by mtreis86 » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 6:42 PM UTC

xenihn wrote: post #168

rotwoof wrote: post #62

I've been doing Keto since Feb 25 2016. My primary goal when switching over was weight loss, which turned out to be easy. I'm 25, male and was experiencing growing health complications related to obesity. I've lost well over 60 lbs since making the switch despite the fact that I maintain a primarily sedentary lifestyle though I now work out weekly as well as take bi-daily walks. There are downsides though. It's not c…

My biggest problem with keto was issues with getting enough potassium. There's no easy way to supplement it in the US, unless you get a prescription for supplements. I tried using No Salt, but I hate the taste. Lite Salt was tolerable, but I'd end up exceeding my recommended amount of daily sodium.

I use no-salt, but not as a salt substitute. I just add it to water and coffee. Not enough to taste.

Re: Fat-fueled brain: unnatural or advantageous?

#174

Post by antisocial » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 6:43 PM UTC

serg_chernata wrote: post #111

shanusmagnus wrote: post #108

This has been scattered around the existing comments, but I'd be really interested to hear people who are keto comment explicitly on its perceived cognitive effects. I know a number of pretty successful scientists who have told me they feel that being keto provides them a significant performance advantage. I'm really interested in how it affects perceived energy, clarity of thinking, fatigue, and creativity. I'm gear…

I went through about 2 months of pure keto earlier this year. Small disclaimer, I generally follow a "warrior" diet and intermittent fasting. I think keto gave me a similar "sharp" awareness and energy. For whatever reason, not eating, while difficult at first, provided me with even more energy and clarity in the same way keto did. Even though I continued doing fairly intense workouts 3 days a week.

Can you please share your warrior diet experience? I am also on a warrior diet for the past 2-3 months (should have tracked better) and I like it so far. I am concerned about any long-term negative side effects.

Re: Fat-fueled brain: unnatural or advantageous?

#175

Post by olh » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 6:43 PM UTC

shanusmagnus wrote: post #108

This has been scattered around the existing comments, but I'd be really interested to hear people who are keto comment explicitly on its perceived cognitive effects. I know a number of pretty successful scientists who have told me they feel that being keto provides them a significant performance advantage. I'm really interested in how it affects perceived energy, clarity of thinking, fatigue, and creativity. I'm gear…

I enter ketosis for roughly a month or less every half a year or so. The main selling point for me is lowering body fat from my normal bulking diet that consists of 2-4 liters of milk per day.

But every time it surprises me as I end up able to stay focused for hours without interruption. It does not produce any kind of magic cognitive power but the simple fact that there is no preemptive signal going on my brain telling me to stop whatever I'm doing to eat something makes me really productive.

Out of ketosis I can get a similar effect by drinking some brands of energetic beverages but it only works for a limited amount of time and don't stack up very well: if I drink too much caffeine I end up anxious.

Re: Fat-fueled brain: unnatural or advantageous?

#176

Post by hx87 » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 6:44 PM UTC

rpazyaquian wrote: post #51

Nav_Panel wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The main problem I have with ketogenic diets is that it's actually quite difficult and sometimes expensive to eat a 90-95% fat diet From what I've seen, your diet should be ~60-70% fat, 5% or less carbs, and ~25-35% protein. Definitely not 95% fat. > I had several instances where my dinner in a pinch was melted down cheese and half-n-half. Your diet basically becomes cheese and avocados with some, but not too much,…

I prolly fucked the diet up, then. It certainly _felt_ like I was eating almost all fat...good to know that I can take advantage of cheap fatty meats like short ribs, oxtail, and marrow then. As for vegetables, I missed carrots and peas too much. Mustard greens and broccoli are apparently okay, though. I could always just make salads out of baby spinach and arugula, but I suck at making salad dressings.

Leafy vegetables can be difficult to eat in large quantities, but that's where the high-fat aspect of the diet comes in handy. Most vegetables are very tasty when stir fried in fats and oils.

Re: Fat-fueled brain: unnatural or advantageous?

#177

Post by whistlerbrk » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 6:44 PM UTC

abandonliberty wrote: post #68

rotwoof wrote: post #62

I've been doing Keto since Feb 25 2016. My primary goal when switching over was weight loss, which turned out to be easy. I'm 25, male and was experiencing growing health complications related to obesity. I've lost well over 60 lbs since making the switch despite the fact that I maintain a primarily sedentary lifestyle though I now work out weekly as well as take bi-daily walks. There are downsides though. It's not c…

Do you have some resources you'd recommend to get started?

I used Ferris' 4 Hour Body, and did a cheat day and then learned more from resources online. Highly recommend. Lost 19 lbs in 9 weeks with a cheat day on keto.

Re: Fat-fueled brain: unnatural or advantageous?

#178

Post by CuriouslyC » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 6:46 PM UTC

whiskers08xmt wrote: post #29

CuriouslyC wrote: post #4

While I don't think a ketogenic diet is an optimal diet in terms of longevity or overall health (as all blue-zone diets are carb rich), it does appear to confer some benefits in the short term which are fairly compelling. The vast majority of humans are adapted to seasonal eating, with high carbohydrate diets during spring, summer and fall, and very low carbohydrate diets during winter (or during the wet/dry seasons)…

Out of curiosity, are there any areas with a fat rich diet, which has good access to quality health care? It seems most cultures, which aren't based around hunting and gathering, have a carb based diet, as it's simply the most feasible for supporting a large population.

Not all blue zones have access to stellar health care. I'd argue that the health care of Nicoya peninsula in Costa Rica isn't much better than what keto-adapted people of Alaska or Greenland have access to, but the life expectancy difference is pretty large.

Re: Fat-fueled brain: unnatural or advantageous?

#179

Post by goldfeld » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 6:47 PM UTC

rhinoceraptor wrote: post #35

nefitty wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've heard some people also suffer from ammonia breath from ketosis. Maybe you have experienced that?

It's acetone breath, it is a temporary side effect of keto-adaptation. Other ones include excessive thirst, light headedness and headaches. Most people never heavily use ketones, so it takes the body some time to re-build the machinery to do so.

Yeah, the symptoms sound like detoxication, those generally having foul smells and needing extra water to wash away our old fears.

Re: Fat-fueled brain: unnatural or advantageous?

#180

Post by heimatau » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 6:48 PM UTC

rotwoof wrote: post #62

I've been doing Keto since Feb 25 2016. My primary goal when switching over was weight loss, which turned out to be easy. I'm 25, male and was experiencing growing health complications related to obesity. I've lost well over 60 lbs since making the switch despite the fact that I maintain a primarily sedentary lifestyle though I now work out weekly as well as take bi-daily walks. There are downsides though. It's not c…

I've been doing Intermittent Fasting [1] for about 2-3 months now. I didn't realize the electrolytes issue when the body switches into ketosis.

One thing I LOVE about IF is that my cravings have naturally leaned me in these directions. 1) I've been drinking more Gatorade because I craved it. 2) I've added salt, mayo, cheese to my sandwiches to 'make it taste better' even though prior to this diet, I'd have a fairly bland sandwich (no mayo, salt, cheese). 3) I also tend to crave high fatty/protein foods. Like burgers. (I don't tend to crave bad foods for me, Nutella might be bad...but it's keto-friendly. And I only eat it in moderation.)

I also added magnesium to my diet due to my nerves becoming unsettled.

It's remarkable. The things you suggest, my body has pushed me in the direction of your suggestions. One thing I noticed, is that I crave more Gatorade and now I know why. At first, I thought it was one of those 'unhealthy' cravings that pop up from time to time but...I think you're right, that my body needs it to aid in burning fat.

[1] - I know this is about a Keto diet. But IF (Intermittent Fasting) showed a lot of promise after I did a bunch of research on it and it's fairly similar to Keto but without restrictions. It's more convenient for my lifestyle (it exercises my willpower on fast days/times, quicker meals, condensed feeding times).

Namely, in my research, IF showed similar benefits as Keto but without the added hassle of changing the entire diet and learning a new menu. It also simplified mealtimes.

I do a hybrid of two different IF diets. 1) Saturday through Wednesday, I eat 'normally' without going overboard with foods. Also during this five day stretch, I only eat between 10am-3pm, so I'll be fasting from 3pm to 10am (19 hours every day). I'll eat ~3000 calories in that 5 hour window. 2) Thursday and Friday I eat only ~700 calories. I don't 'count', I just estimate one meal and it's eaten between 10am-3pm.

Heck, even Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) used IF to get ripped. http://www.vox.com/2014/12/22/7403247/wolverine-diet-hugh-ja...

P.S. I'm 29. Lost 30 lbs (in 2-3 months). I have 40 lbs more to go. I might get there by the new year. I hope the info is helpful as it has been for me.