Originally Posted by
nisora33
Okay, now that I've gotten the obligatory macho chest-thumping out of the way...
I'm putting this in the “Recovery” subforum because dietary habits determine, in part, the quality and extent of one's recovery (Stef, feel free to move this post if you disagree).
On to the "meat" of the post (hehe):
There is an ongoing "tension" between those who'd prefer not to eat big, fearing the negative health consequences and dreaded fat gain, and those who are "all for it," arguing that massive overfeeding over the short term has little impact on long-term health, while the boost to strength alone is worth any accompanying fat gain. Neither camp apparently understands the opposite’s view and every time the issue is brought up, it leads to inevitable shit-throwing (don’t get me wrong, I enjoy flinging shit as much as the next lifter).
I sympathize with the fellas who dig eating big, and don’t mind the fat gain, who crave the performance enhancement that goes along with it, etc. Because I took myself from 165 to 220 using GOMAD and other food (much of it “dirty”), consuming around 5,000-5,500 calories a day, understanding that eating of this nature wasn’t “forever.” So I don’t exactly feel partial to those of you out there who won’t just buckle down and commit to wild overfeeding, even though I can sort of understand where you’re coming from.
What’s the point of all this? In particular, I want to address the point of view that overeating and massive consumption of “dirty” foods containing high levels of saturated and trans fats plus carbs is unhealthy. Now, I’ve never argued that one should eat this way for all of one’s life, for the record, but I feel very, very strongly that short-term eating of this variety will not negatively impact your health.
Three months after starting GOMAD and “overeating,” I went by my doctor’s office for a routine check-up. He remarked on how much weight I’d gained, asked me why it had happened, and I explained to him my desire to get stronger and how I was going about accomplishing this. The gallon of whole milk raised a red flag for him, and he speculated that my blood test might come back showing elevated blood cholesterol levels. He wasn’t entirely dismissive of what I was doing, I should add, so long as I wasn’t doing this for the rest of my life. Long story short, my blood cholesterol appeared to be at normal, healthy levels, according to the tests.
This made me think about that movie Supersize Me, where the filmmaker basically did to his liver with fast food what drinkers do with alcohol by consuming McDonald’s food three times a day. In food debates, I’ve had folks bring up the documentary to illustrate just how bad junk food can be for you. And I agree with them. However, what few people remember about the film is its ending, just around the time where he went back for his final physical and blood work before ending his thirty day fast food experiment. Previous blood tests had revealed that his liver enzymes were extremely elevated, but this time, his liver panel showed that the enzymes were starting to return to normal.
Why is that important? I bring this up to illustrate how extremely adaptable and resilient the human body is, at least over the short term. The folks who experience severe negative health consequences from eating this way have usually been doing this to themselves day in and day out for many years. They’re bodies have coped and coped and coped some more, until they can no longer cope. If you’re a skinny fucking bastard, this is not you, and you’re concerns over your health, at least over the short term, are largely unfounded.
My thoughts on my personal situation are this: had I stepped into my doctor’s office a few weeks to a month following the start of GOMAD and fast food dieting, my blood tests may very well have shown elevated cholesterol levels—perhaps my liver panel, had one been taken, might have depticted elevated enzymes. But at the 2 ˝ to three month point, stuff had returned to normal.
My two cents, fuckers.
-Stacey
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