3. How the Machine Works
The Ultimate Equation
Feeding Your Metabolism
The Weight-Creep Syndrome
Low-Fat Is Not Low-Cal
The Old Binge Weekend
In a Nutshell
4. The Science of Eating
Macronutrients: The Big 3
Using and Storing Energy
Pace Yourself
Always Include Protein
The Right Proportions
The Evolutionary Perspective
The Caveman's Adaptive Mechanisms
The Common-Sense Solutions
The Magic of Fiber
What to Drink?
A Little More Effort
In a Nutshell
5. The "E" Word
Exercise Is Not Just About Burning Fat
Begin by Moving More
Boost Your Metabolism
How Much Exercise Is Needed?
Aerobics or Weights?
Hitting a Plateau
Just Do It - With a Buddy
In a nutshell
6. Tips and Tricks
Emotional Eating
Talk Yourself Out of It
Chew Your Food
The 6-Minute Rule
Get Enough Sleep
Drink Water
Drink Green Tea
Use a Smaller Plate
Weighing Yourself
Manage Your Stress
7. The 10 Golden Rules
Appendix A - High-Fiber Foods
Appendix B - Meal Suggestions
Breakfast ideas
Snacks
Lunches
Suppers
Use your imagination
Appendix C - References
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The Caveman's Adaptive Mechanisms
To understand why grain-based products such as pasta, breads and cereals are a shock to our system, we need to take another step back and consider the caveman's adaptive mechanisms.
The caveman's life was not an easy one; he did not have a steady supply of food, so his body had to be able to store food in fat tissues when the going was good (such as after a kill) and to draw on these body-fat reserves in times of famine.
The human body determines that food is abundant when either one of the following two conditions is encountered:
a) when lots of food is ingested at one sitting; or
b) when the blood-sugar level rises quickly, indicating rapid food intake.
If either of the above two conditions is encountered, the body concludes there is an abundance of food at the moment and decides to start storing some away as body fat for leaner days. The body does this by releasing insulin into the bloodstream, which acts as an instruction to start converting food into fat reserves.
Another coping mechanism which was developed by early humans is the ability to slow down the body's metabolism when food is scarce. In times of famine, digestion would slow down, brain activity would slow down and the entire body would become more sluggish and sleepy. This decreased activity level would allow the caveman to survive on less food until his environment changed for the better.
Now, let's consider how these control systems affect us in the 21st century. When we take a bite of a delicious jelly donut, the refined carbohydrates are absorbed very quickly because there is no "roughage" to process in this artificial food. Sugars and starches from this new food source are received in near-pure form as far as the body is concerned. The body is not used to receiving this much glucose all at once and concludes that there must be an abundance of food. As a result, an insulin response is triggered to signal that this ample food supply should be stored as body fat. This is an automatic response that we have no control over.
Our body is pleased at this sudden abundance of food, naturally, since the body is designed to optimize our survival. This is why sweet pastries are so appealing to us; we are eager to eat them because our body is keen to stash provisions to ensure our survival. Our body is also very happy to receive any other cultivated food that is rich in sugar or starch, such as rice and white potatoes, which is why we derive pleasure from these foods. The sweeter and the starchier, the more satisfaction we seem to derive from them. That's simply our body's reaction to receiving quick or plentiful nourishment.
The problem, of course, is that we have stored this excess energy for a rainy day and the rainy day never comes because we get our regular 3 meals a day without interruption; most of us never experience the extended periods of famine that our natural coping mechanisms are designed to handle.
So, we end up going on a diet. We count our calories and cut down on sweets and fats and breads, potatoes, rice and pasta. That's when the second adaptive mechanism kicks in: the body detects there is a sharp decline in the food supply and slows down our metabolism accordingly. As a result, we are eating less but we are not losing weight because our body has geared down into "sleep mode" to burn fewer calories.
What's a dieter to do?