I haven’t done a “book review of a book that I haven’t actually read” for a while now. I’ve been focussed on other things and just blanking out a lot of the moronic shit some of these fkn idiots out there are pushing on people.
This morning though… well I’ll post in the screen shot of the hilarity that ensued when this woman Kate Staples had the sheer unmitigated audacity to attempt to spam her new book in one of the industry networking groups I’m a part of.
Now, this happens to be one of the groups where I mostly just shut up and try to learn stuff from intelligent people with lots of experience, common sense and a good understanding of science. People who keep up on the latest research but don’t jump on and off the latest fads. The sort of people we need more of in the industry! So, attempting to spam such an outrageous load of nonsense as this there was never going to work out all that well.
Look at the screenshot again. You’re really going to talk about “switching on your skinny genes” in such company? Really?
I google Patrick Holford and wow, just wow. According to wikipedia the guy does not just push terrible dieting advice, but “Holford’s claims about HIV and autism are not in line with modern medical thought, and have been criticised for putting people in danger and damaging public health.”
Yep. There are also some interesting articles about him on the Quackwatch and Bad Science websites.
But anyway… what’s in the book? I checked the description on Amazon, and this appears to be yet another variation on the “starve every other day” type diets I’ve already torn to shreds on this blog over and over again. I like how the sales pitch on Amazon describes such approaches as “all the rage”, as if… well, they’re all the rage! Must be good and sensible then, in that case. Good lord.
My problem with so called “alternate day fasting”.
In case you missed it in other entries, I have a problem with the notion that people need to “starve” or “fast” in order to lose weight. You need to eat an appropriate amount, most of the time. If you’re currently eating an excessive amount, and you stop doing that and start consuming a more appropriate amount instead, you will lose weight. It’s that simple. Now, when we try to starve weight off with a restrictive approach, a “less than appropriate” intake, our body will adapt and compensate, meaning that we’ll stop losing weight even if we have plenty to lose and aren’t eating very much. What then? Start only eating one day out of three instead of one out of two? Fuck that. It is madness and cannot take you anywhere that you want to end up.
My problem with Glycemic Load Diets.
The glycemic thing is another myth that has been busted countless times already. All of this talk about “insulin being a fat storing hormone” that you need balance and so on. Absolute rot. If you’re consuming an appropriate amount as described above, you won’t store fat as there are no excess calories to be stored! It’s that simple.
Have a look at this quote from the amazon page:
As well as encouraging the storage of fat, insulin promotes disease and ageing, so combining a low-GL diet with alternate-day fasting will not only get rid of fat fast, but will also improve health and longevity.
What an absolute load of bollocks. Talk about taking alarmism to the next level and beyond. Insulin is a naturally occurring hormone within the body, created by the pancreas. Where the hell do these irresponsible cretins get the audacity to invent such outrageous, harmful lies as “insulin promotes disease” for fuck sakes?
These sort of books should be BANNED as the harmful abuse of free press that they are, using fear mongering and alarmism to exploit vulnerable people at the expense of their physical and mental health.
Shame.
OH, I almost forgot the 8 minute workout part.
No. You’re not going to accomplish anything productive in just 8 minutes. I believe an hour is ideal, but even a half hour might be sufficient if you really just focus on the “big” stuff seriously. If you truly cannot set aside as little as a half an hour per day to exercise, the last thing you need to do is stress yourself out trying to fit in 8 minutes of pointless nonsense between meetings or whatever. What you actually need to do is reassess your work / life balance and take some time out for yourself.
Lose Weight, No Bullshit 
You must be logged in to post a comment.