Lonnie could you please quote your messages when you reply to them. I have noticed the experts haven’t been doing that lately thanks to the bonehead who complained about it. It makes it a lot easier to follow along. Thanks.
Funk Daddy,
The concern of abrupt, large kcal restriction would be a sudden decrease in thyroid function (i.e. T4 to T3 conversion… a.k.a. deiodinase function). This could slow basal metabolic rate within a week, which usually accounts for 60-70% of total kcal expenditure. That’s a big deal!
But then, slow progressive kcal restriction may not be better in the long run - it’s hard to say. The data are controversial or just not there. Still, I prefer to be cautious, dropping ~400 kcal off of my daily total, mostly from carbs, for a month before going lower. If protein or fat intake is excessive (say, >250g PRO or >100g FAT), they can also be targeted as a source of calorie reduction. I personally would not drop carbs when they’re already low (less than 200-250g or so) but that’s just my thinking. There is more than one way to “skin a cat” so learn as much as you can with a critical mind, then consider trying the diet change for a month to assess results, okay?
[quote]Funk Daddy wrote:
Hi Doc,
Man I need to drop bodyfat fast. Perhaps over the next 8-9 weeks. I have slowly been dropping calories from the ‘massive eating’ diet. Result are coming slowly but surely and I was wondering, are there negative effects of dropping calories quickly. I know it’s not a good idea to drop protein too fast but does the principle remain for carbohydrate. At the moment I’m on 350g Protein, 250g Carb, 90g Fat. Would it be unwise to drop carbs by 100g or more. Any tips or advise would be appreciated. Thanks.
Ben
[/quote]
Start Thursday Posts
I wanted to start off today with an old Buddhist proverb. It goes something like this:
[i]One day there was a group of children playing on the beach. Each one built a sand castle, saying “this one is mine!” As the day went on, they added to their creations, often reaffirming: “Mine! See? Look at mine!”
At one point, one of the children even insisted that his neighbor’s castle was his. This angered the first boy, who rallied two others to help him destroy the first child’s castle. And so, on the day went with each child playing with his sand castle until evening came.
Then the dinner call of parents could be heard and the now weary children contently watched the waves erase the creations that they so valued earlier. Some even kicked over their own castles as they went home to their families.[/i]
The moral of the story for us? Instead of marketing a proprietary system of training or exercise while feeling the urge to claim it exclusively - and attempt to degrade all others - we authorities should remember that at the end of the day, all we’ve really got are “sand castles”.
One last question, I promise 
I seem to be having some problems w/ some very low glucose levels(fasting and random).
My fasting glucose is about 3.7(mmol/L) which is just out of the normal range. My random glucose is way out of the normal range.
I have goten some adrenal/hormone panels done to see if I can find the problem but was wondering what I should do w/ PWO carbs in the mean time.
It seems to me my glucose is chronically low and is not low due to spiking and overcompensation as I eat a fairly low carb diet w/ all my carbs very low GI.
Does this mean that PWO carbs would be even more important because my glucose levels are so low naturally? Or would you not mess around w/ spiking insulin too much until my results come back?
I am not an MD and neither are you(duh) but MD’s dont know much about PWO nutrition either :-). Was just wondering if you would think changing PWO reccomendations till I get my results back(could be 4-5 weeks) would be a prudent course of action.
Hey Lonnie,
Great intro and fantastic application to our realm of fitness, quite true…
My question regards your opinion on Glutamine and CLA supplementation. I’ve heard great things about the GH boost and recovery and immune system aid of glutamine, as well as great fat burning and lean mass sparing/building effects of CLA, but only at high doses (3-5g/day) of the CLA for a prolonged period.
Your opinions/thoughts/recommendations?
Dr. LL
Could you give the readers a brief intro (or a link if it’s been discussed before) on how you got into the iron game, accolades in your BB careers and your academic background ? (for instance, I think you have two Masters degrees…but not sure)
Best
Lonnie,
When we going to get another “Down on the Pharm” article?
[quote]Helix wrote:
One last question, I promise [/quote]
No worries; I’m here to offer helpful info.!
If you’re serious enough to have some endocrine panels done, you should get serious about having an MD look at them. (That is, if you’re not already.)I have tremendous respect for the abilities of specialist physicians to diagnose related conditions. There may be some pancreatic issues that won’t be obvious upon casual inspection. (For example true hypoglycemia is pretty rare and can be the prelude to more serious things.)
Having carbs in hand before, during and after exercise, to sip on, could at least help keep one out of severe hypoglycemia. If there is concern about rebound hypoglycemia from a post-workout bolus, it might be a more conservative option for some persons to consume a similar amount more slowly, over a longer peri-workout period. (pre-, mid-, post)
Thanks for that understanding about limitations; very wise.
Lonman,
Glad to hear the recovery is going well. After all, we’re in the same boat…I’m just a few weeks ahead right now.
Trust me, it gets better…
Stay strong
MR
Thanks, Bauer97,
Glutamine: the data on that swings back and forth like a pendulum - both in clinical and potential exercise applications. I still think that Gln has applications, however, in the face of the “three way tug of war” between the gut, leukocytes, and skeletal muscle. (In which muscle appears to lose said battle.) I have a small literature review coming up on Gln in a review paper (a scientific paper on new perspectives for protein and amino acids in athletes) that I hope to have published. There are some facts that do suggest supplementation beyond just being a constituent of protein has promise. I myself added ~5g pre-breakfast (just before cardio) when I was near overtraining. But since I’ve had full blown OT syndrome before, maybe I’m just paranoid.
CLA: The preponderance of data is still in animals, making conclusions tough. Humans are often called “hypo-responders” and it could just be a species issue. It would be sad, after a decade and millions spent, that all scientists have done is find a cure-all to ensure happy, healthy, lean rats around the globe! This is another nutrient (actually a collection of isomers) that still look like they have something going on. There’s just too much promising animal data. Perhaps it’s an isomer-specific issue (c9,t11 vs. t10,c12 vs. mixtures). They appear to do different things (c9,t11 for anabolic or anticatabolic effects on muscle… t10,c12 for anti-lipogenic effects, etc.) Stay tuned.
Dr. LL,
When people come up with formulations (say the various formulations of the greens powders, or vitamins), by what method to they arrive at their “optimal” amount to include ?
ie. By what method does one include 2,171 mg of Phoshatide complex ? Why not 3 grams or 2g ?
Similarly, how do the people who set the vitamin RDA/ODA #'s come up with these numbers – based on a mean ?
Thanks bro. Just yesterday I cleaned up my little “couch camp out area” where I was mostly horizontal for weeks, in a daze. But it had to be done.
I can hobble around a bit now, even putting weight on the ankle some while in this “boot”. I even felt the sun today! Halleluja!
I appreciate the support.
[quote]Mike Robertson wrote:
Lonman,
Glad to hear the recovery is going well. After all, we’re in the same boat…I’m just a few weeks ahead right now.
Trust me, it gets better…
Stay strong
MR[/quote]
marcus,
You’ve asked a tall one! I’m not an expert on formulators, as there is such a wide range of quality in that “profession” but here goes…
Many formulators base their nutrient amounts on a literature review of certain size - whatever animal and hopefully human data they can find published. Perhaps there’s also some copy-catting done by looking at other companies’ products, I don’t know. (There’s a chicken-and-egg quandary!) And there must be some guess work that goes into entirely novel supplements based on “related” info. (the amount of various phytochemicals in a serving of broccoli or the mg found in the average inatke of a whole herb or root from a given culture, etc. ). Again, each company and product would have a different answer. There are new guidelines about formulation and testing that are bringing things closer to standardization, though.
more coming…
Lonnie,
Thanks for your response to my previous question. Your knowledge is invaluable and greatly appreciated.
Now, to further harass you with supplementation inquiries: What are your thoughts on the “patented high molecular weight carbohydrate made from Swedish waxy maize starch” being used in a specific companies creatine formula? It’s claiming to be far superior to dextrose or maltodextrin in terms of rapid absorption, insulin spike, etc.
Any thoughts/experiences?
These nutrients are generally known to be necessary (essential) for human health. And nowadays, beyond just setting a dose to prevent a deficiency disease (like scurvy from too little vit. C) the recommendations have evolved to optimizing health and reducing chronic disease risks. I don’t think most readers realize just how much history and how many scientists and how many research studies go into what we now know. it’s mind numbing and doesn’t get enough respect.
The Dietary Reference Intake (DRI)Committee is kind of a “nutrition science arm of the government” and is composed of prestigious scientists who carefully (perhaps even anally) analyze and interpret hundreds of published peer-reviewed studies. Not all nutrients have equal evidence behind them, though. That’s why we have different categories…
For example the Estimated Average Requirements (EAR) is based on data suggesting that a certain dose maintains a specific bodily function in about half of the population (considering gender and age differences) A bell curve (of low-to-high need individuals) can then be drawn which can then lead to…
The RDA (Recommended Dietary not daily! Allowances) which have more stringent criteria, and must meet the needs of about 98% of a given population (again differing for age and sex).
The Adequate Intake (AI) is more like a “second string RDA” in that there’s not enough evidence to give that nutrient full RDA status. Still, it’s far too well studieed to be considered a “guess” compared to the way many supplement formulators work.
Now there’s also the Tolerable Upper Level (TUL or UL) after which increasing amounts increase overdose risk.
WHEW! I feel like I’m in front of a class!
Hope this helps.
[quote]Lonnie Lowery wrote:
Now there’s also the Tolerable Upper Level (TUL or UL) after which increasing amounts increase overdose risk.
WHEW! I feel like I’m in front of a class!
Hope this helps.[/quote]
Great, fantastic info !
Thanks
I might get some flak for this but insulin is something that’s easy to spike. Look at the guts up and down your block And I can spike it in a cheap, enjoyable way!! Table sugar works great so I’ve always taken my creatine with Kool Ade, when I take it at all. I see creatine as more of a generic compound that can be bought separately and added cheaply to a sugary drink/ meal. I never did get too excited about delivery systems and whatnot. Remember the days when companies were charging $40 a can for a creatine product that was 3/4 sugar? Pfft. I can get a pound of sugar for a buck or two.
[quote]Bauer97 wrote:
Lonnie,
Thanks for your response to my previous question. Your knowledge is invaluable and greatly appreciated.
Now, to further harass you with supplementation inquiries: What are your thoughts on the “patented high molecular weight carbohydrate made from Swedish waxy maize starch” being used in a specific companies creatine formula? It’s claiming to be far superior to dextrose or maltodextrin in terms of rapid absorption, insulin spike, etc.
Any thoughts/experiences?[/quote]
Dr. L
If one were following your temporal eating guidelines, what type of macro breakdown would you usually recommend for someone just trying to maintain or slowly increase lean mass? Of course, at least 1gm/lb for protein, but what about the carb and fat gms/lb, or percentages?
Thanks.
That was a very astute question. Outside-of-the-box thinking! Always ask how and why like that and you’ll be teaching as well one day. …or just be hyooge and ripped! 
[quote]marcus_aurelius wrote:
Lonnie Lowery wrote:
Now there’s also the Tolerable Upper Level (TUL or UL) after which increasing amounts increase overdose risk.
WHEW! I feel like I’m in front of a class!
Hope this helps.
Great, fantastic info !
Thanks
[/quote]
Dr. LL,
Between various protein blends, let’s say whey for instance, one can often notice a small variance in the amino acid profile (I’m not talking about comparing a mix to just whey say). Is the human body “smart enough” to pick up on these differences ?
e.g.
Blend A has 2.0 grams of L-Histidine
&
Blend B has 1.96 grams of L-Histidine
per serving.
My hunch is no, but what’s your opinion ?