The Problem With intermittent Fasting ( or "What I Looked Like In 2016")
““What you eat can either be the best medicine or the slowest form of poison” ”
2016 was a weird year for me. I just got back from America (clearly). I was attempting to become the next Tiger Woods while attempting to get a degree — that didn’t quite work out. Regardless, I’m beyond grateful for my time in the small town of Oskaloosa, Iowa
Prior to the USA, in 2014, I had lost nearly 30 kilograms. I was shocked when I saw how I looked. I was fast approaching that same two-digit overflow number again. It’s always a good wake up call seeing your lovely fat-handles hang over your boxer-shorts like freshly baked Woolworths scone.
The day I arrived back from the USA I went to the local shopping mall with my mom and I purchased a book. That book was titled That Sugar Book. That book changed my life in many ways.
Books have a weird way of finding me at the right time. Maybe it’s my subconscious searching for confirmation biases? I’m not entirely sure. What I am sure of, however, is that throughout my life I have never been a reader. I thought reading was a skill you either had or not -- until I started reading the stuff I was genuinely interested in (another topic for another day, but this is the reason why school failed me — traditional education systems reinforce the idea that study must be standardised and tested and if you fail, you fail).
That night I got back from America I couldn’t seep. So I literally read the entire That Sugar Book back-to-front in one night. I felt so connected to the author, Damon Gameau’s, words.
I understood the flow of the science from a purely logical standpoint: carbs are the enemy (if you have insulin resistance, like me) and fat + protein is the way to go. From that point on I started prioritising high-fat and high-ish protein eating.
Euthymia seeped through my soul: for the first time in my life I had this feeling that I wanted everyone to have.
In 2017, while studying at the University of Pretoria I found out about fasting. Specifically, intermittent fasting. I thought, what I great idea; with my savage eating habits it makes more sense to not eat than eat only a select group of food items.
It worked like a fucking charm. I had substantial body fat to use. I would often go 16-18 hours fasted each day fuelled by coffee. I was training 6 times a week doing CrossFit and running.
Like any great thing, what is good for you can turn out to be bad for you in excess.
Intermittent Fasting shifted from being a great tool to something that became a band-aid for fixing broken weekend benders, These benders either involved eating a disgusting amount of RoccoMama’s chips, milkshakes and burgers while watching Arsenal lose or coming back from a festival on the weekend so hungover that you don’t know how you made it home in one piece.
Intermittent fasting is great if you want to lose weight fast. But the problem lies in the fact that it trains you to never eat properly. It can become addictive — another vanity metric.
You can get obsessed with tracking the amount of time that has passed since your last meal. Apps like Zero have confirmed this (I mean they have shirts that tell people you’re fasting?🙃)
I’m not against fasting or improving your life for that matter. I’m on a meat-based diet (call it carnivore if you will) but I don’t wear shirts proclaiming my eating habits to people. Sure, I think many people would benefit from eliminating carbs from their diet, but as the great Nassim Taleb wrote: “you cannot teach a man anything, only reality can.”
People will sooner or later find out what is or isn’t working. I can throw CrossFit into the same camp as fasting. Just because you do CrossFit doesn’t mean you can shove anything in your mouth. Just because you fast, doesn’t mean you get to do the same.
Here’s something that I think works biomechanically well: eliminate as much carbs as you deem necessary, and when you are hungry, eat mainly fat and protein — period.
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As always, I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
The conversation features Patrick Belem—a filmmaker, musician, and spiritual seeker—who offers an authentic perspective on plant medicine. Patrick co-directed the film 'Eskawata Kayawai,' which explores the culture and traditions of the Huni Kuin people in Brazil. The discussion touches on the film's depiction of the revival of the Huni Kuin culture, the intricacies of ayahuasca ceremonies, and the importance of honoring indigenous practices. Patrick shares his journey into spirituality influenced by his upbringing in a culturally diverse Brazilian family and his transformative experiences with ayahuasca. The conversation also covers the need for proper context and respect when engaging with plant medicine and the potential pitfalls of cultural appropriation. The episode ends with reflections on the integration of plant medicine experiences into daily life and Patrick’s insights into his personal and artistic growth.