Part 2: The Letters P, C and F – The Fatty Truth

Posted by Fahad AlYehya | Core Fitness – Kuwait

It takes me 8 hours to write an article, 8 more hours to review it and 60 minutes to press publish; and I still make spelling and grammar mistakes. I shower 3-4 times a day, wash my face with the most expensive fascial cleansers out there and I still get mild acne. I see people train hard, diet hard and recover, but they still lack that muscular maturity. Females go through episodes of anorexia to look like that Cosmo model, yet they lose a lot of hair, the sparkle in their eyes diminish, their nails start to break off, their skin barely shines and their bones are as fragile as a piece of tissue.

The above are all side effects of a lifestyle low in fat. Has anyone seen those Lebanese, Jordanian, Syrian and Palestinian documentaries about how their senior citizens live above the age of 90? How do they do it? They have more energy and vigor than Kuwait’s older generation; but how do they do it?

“Ebnakul zaitoon,” or “bin7ib zait el zaytoon kteer.” (English Translation: we eat olives or we love olive oil a lot). Those are literally the two answers available to explain how they managed to live that long.

Or approach a Japanese dude and ask him how they live so long and why heart disease isn’t such an epidemic: “We uuuh, rive very hearthy rong rife because uuuh we eat sushi and aaah hearthy fatty fish high in omega sree! And when Godzirra come again, uuuh we can fight!” (English Translation: I’m not really sure what he said, but it had something to do with karate and sushi).

Fat is a lot more important than any other macronutrient. I’m not saying that fat should be consumed alone; in conjunction with other macronutrients, fat can do wonders. Unfortunately, I learned it the hard way.

When I started weight-lifting, I did what the pros did: ate a diet high in carbs and proteins and low in fat. I wanted to be as big and as ripped as they were. And come on, it’s common sense! Why would I listen to some nerd who majored in medicine and not a freak with veiny arms? Long story short, I paid the price and should’ve listened to the pencil neck. I had terrible acne, my short-term memory was a joke, my hair barely grew to considerable volume, my immune system was a disaster, every joint in my body hurt like hell, I was tired all the time, my muscles looked like soft ballons that only looked decent when training and I suffered constantly from overtraining. Why? Because I went low-fat, thinking that low-fat would get me big and ripped.

Dietary Fat
Fat is actually considered a vital nutrient. It is an important part of your diet. Dietary fats are more essential than beneficial! Simply put, fat supplies essential fatty acids (Omega 3-6-9) for cell growth, healthy skin, vitamin-absorption and regulation of bodily functions. Your body will not absorb a single vitamin or mineral without the inclusion of fat.

Stop dialing for Hardees
Not all fats are created equal. Since I promised not to go too technical, I’ll briefly explain the 3 types of fat you need to know:

Saturated Fat = SOLID FAT. The fat you literally see and feel on a tip of a fatty steak, or the skin from a chicken or turkey.

Unsaturated Fat = LIQUID FAT. That pretty much explains this.

Trans Fat = MAN MADE FAT. Partially Hydrogenated Oils. These are found in any baked goods, sweets, cookies, donuts, etc. A word of advice before eating anything that has trans fats: Take the food product and slap it on your butt, thigh, hips, waist and/or stomach, because eventually that’s where it’ll end up.

Details and Recommendations
Saturated Fats: numerous old school nutritionists shy away from this fat. It comes from meat, dairy, eggs and seafood. Too much of it can cause heart disease. However, do not avoid it completely.
Males: we need 5-10g of saturated fat daily for our thunder down under. This is equivelant to 3 whole eggs or a lean steak (filet mignon or rump). A lot of studies have been published in regards to how red meat is very bad for your heart; if it’s a t-bone steak or a fatty rib eye then yes, it’ll kill you. However, as an active person lean red meat will do more good than bad. Moreover, the dietary cholesterol from steak and eggs DO NOT increase bad cholesterol levels; the consumption of sugar does.
Females: 5g of this fatty-acid is enough to stimulate bodily functions, which is equavilent to 2 eggs and you may go up to 3 per day.

Unsaturated Fats: This type of fat is composed of two types of fat, which of course you need to know:

Polyunsaturated Fats: AVOID, turns extremely rancid when in high temperature (frying temp). High in omega-6, it may interfere with the body’s production of prostaglandins (Google it!). This can cause many adverse conditions in the body, including blood clots, sterility, poor immunity, indigestion, and cancer. I’m not saying you should avoid it completely, just make sure you consume more of the fat below and less of this. And if you see any product or restaurant out there that says “We switched to Vegetable Oil”, it’s this crap they’re talking about.

Monounsaturated Fats: I call this type of fat AWESOME, because it is indeed awesome. Let’s all look below and see the list of awesome benefits this fat has to offer:

– Lowers risk of heart disease
– Lowers cholesterol
– Provides essential fatty acids that are great for body cell repair and development, including hair, nails, skin and eyes
– Protects against colon cancer and breast cancer
– High in phyto-chemicals that promote great health and a boost in immunity
– Reduces workout induced muscle inflammations and enhances joint repair, which equals more muscle growth
– When consumed appropriately, the body prefers to burn it as fuel as opposed to storing it
– Increases natural testosterone levels for men
– Protects fat accumulation around organs, including the kidney and liver

Overall LONGEVITY! “Bin7ib zait el zaytoon kteer” remember?

Sources of Monounsaturated Fat (There are more, but the sources below have more mono than poly)
– Extra Virgin Olive Oil
– Canola Oil
– Almonds & Walnuts
– Avocados

Macro-Combinations
Insulin is produced to metabolize carbohydrates, however too much spiked insulin leads to the blocking of fat-burning (in reference to my last post). In order to keep insulin levels in check, we’ve established that whole-grain alternatives of carbohydrates are the answer. Moreover, adding healthy fats to a carbohydrate meal also lowers insulin release and slows down carbohydrate absorption, which enables better fat-burning opportunities.

Calculations and All that Crap
Calculating fat intake is easier than both protein and carbohydrates: 0.5g x LBM (Lean body mass in pounds). That’s literally it. I currently weigh 253lbs with 10% body fat, so that’s 227lbs x 0.5 grams = 114 grams of fat per day, divided into the amount of meals you eat. Personally, I don’t like going over 0.5 grams unless my activity and stress levels increase considerably, in which case I’d increase it to 0.8g per LBM.

Males:
Active (Weight-lifters & Athletes): do not go lower than 60g per day of fat consumption. For extreme dieting purposes, you may go down to 0g of fat for a maximum of 2 weeks ONLY. Our bodies take 14 days to flush out all dietary fat, and exceeding that duration will cause your inner functions to crash faster than our current financial state. For bulking purposes, 0.8 x LBM is more than enough.
Non-Active: Don’t go under 30g and never go over 70g. Since your activity levels are low to begin with, you don’t need any extra fat coming in since nothing is being damaged.

Females:
Active & Non-Active: 0.5 x LBM is the maximum. Never go below 0.3g x LBM, and never go down to 0g fat for more than 2 weeks. Females are physically more fragile than males, so they are more susceptible to extreme dietary changes.

I NEED SOME NUTS IN MY LIFE! (That’s what she said)

The take home message here is that a diet low in fat may be low in calories, since 1g of fat is equivalent to 9 calories (carbs and protein are 4 calories per gram), but is actually a lot more damaging than many think. We’ve got one more part to go, where all 3 posts will be put together.

Posted by Fahad AlYehya | Core Fitness – Kuwait

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