By Sarah Robinson .
So here is an opinion from a fellow banter, a veteran LCHF since you asked. I first did it back in 2003 and lost almost 90 lbs and corrected my depression and IBS and obesity WITH NO EXPERTS, no book, only a biochem textbook and willpower to take back my life, called it my personal take on Atkins diet. Following a "moderation diet" over the last few years has resulted in insulin resistance. I am also a primary care clinician (Podiatrist) who happens to know a lot of stuff about how these meat suits we walk around in actually work.
RMR is great. Awesome. It is preventative. Have you ever noticed that Tim doesn't give advice to diabetics about Banting without prefacing it with "this is what I do as a diabetic" rather than saying "this is what you should do when you are diabetic/insulin resistant/high trigs" etc? I've noticed.
Why is it preventative? Because people with credentials are barred from giving health advice in an open forum without first assessing that person and looking at their health markers and extensive history.
A lot of the advice you see here in BB (Big Breakfast) is tailored to what you do if the $#*+ has already hit the fan. And a lot of it comes from the big guy himself and what he does personally to deal with quite a severe case of IR and DM type two, or is completely in keeping with RMR principles or simply a slight adjustment.
If you were under individualized care with a functional medicine doctor on board with the Banting lifestyle, they would be tracking your health markers. Charles recommends it so you can see measurable results BEYOND the number on the scale and the size of your jeans because this is about more than weight loss. Also, let's be honest here, a lot of people are still scared of fat but are reassured when they see health markers improving "in spite" (because) of the bacon and butter they shunned for years.
You would leave if a group said check your health markers? If you were 300 lb diabetic with high cholesterol and someone wanted you to make sure what you were doing was objectively benefiting your health you would leave. Okay.
I interact with Tim Noakes a lot on Twitter. We have both worked in research and see the continual censorship of medial professionals and of research findings. He is an interesting guy. And he is not following RMR to the letter: he reports he cannot have artificially sweetened deserts or sweeteners which are "allowed". He discusses how stress elevates his insulin level in absence of eating bad things. He often tells people eating too much to cut the lunch, keep the breakfast and cut the dinner in half. Sound familiar?
"How often should you eat?
Depends on how sick or obese you are. I’m diabetic, so in my opinion the less frequently I eat the better. I eat a big breakfast, snack a little at two in the afternoon and eat dinner at seven."
From Tim's own mouth.
If everyone could access a functional medicine doctor (there are hardly any) we wouldn't need the BB... We would have someone at our disposal to help us track health markers and tweak our nutritional programs. But right now, some of us have major problems that go beyond RMR's prevention plan and this plan is working for us.
BB principles take into account how the body works and when the body produces different hormones and uses timing of food to our advantage.
So yes I am sure I could lose weight if I only ate a big dinner like you do... But maybe I will lose faster if I do the big breakfast by kicking my metabolism into gear right from the start of the day. And I avoid temptation to stop and get garbage on the way home because I am not leaving food until I'm very hungry. Which with my messed up hormone signaling happens, I don't get told to eat until it's pretty damn urgent.
You don't need a big breakfast, I am loving it. If it stops floating my boat, I'll move on. What works for you won't work for me.
We are also in a group with a lot of people who need some guidance and structure to help them to completely change their relationship with food and stay on track. The strategies here help them do it.
