CRAVINGS.

I GET IT.

Everyone does.

Everyone dieting, or trying to go low carb, low calorie, etc, especially if they’re new to it, will get cravings.  I feel strongly this is due to the microbiome…our gut…that have established flora that will absolutely demand certain items from your diet, until you teach them not to…or replace them with flora (friendly bacteria) more willing to cooperate with our new lifestyle.

The research has been slowly but surely catching up to the importance of gut flora, and of equal importance, how everyone’s is different, and therefore we can have much different individual responses to foods.

We already know this is true via some easy to understand cause-and-effect: I took some very dangerous antibiotics back in 2005 that most of my story originates from.  My life is defined as “before the AB, and after the AB.”  The latter amounting to a changed body and both extended chronic pain, and a lifetime of aftereffects.

We know antibiotics can destroy specific strains of bacteria in the gut, such as O. formigenes, the strain responsible for breaking down oxalate in the diet.

If we are missing this strain of bacteria, although other forms of bacteria can compensate to an extent, we’re still missing what may be “the” primary strain responsible for helping us process that oxalate.

Hence, people suffering from kidney stones, and various other calcium issues in the body that cause sharp pain, such as joint issues and arthritis.

SO:

THOSE bacteria crave the oxalate.  And in turn help you avoid problems in the process.

Other bacteria will crave sugars.  And junk foods.  I believe in large part because we have taught them to.

SO HOW DO I CHEAT EFFECTIVELY, during those times when I have really severe cravings, in my effort to change my diet and lifestyle?

ANSWER:

RESISTANCE EXERCISE.

It sure as heck works like a charm in our maintenance phase, once we’ve achieved our results.

And it can only help when we’re in the journey getting there.

After all, the muscles USE sugar, and LOVE it.

So in the beginning stage of the new dieting, if I felt an overwhelming need to cheat and eat something sugary, I would indulge…to get the craving out of my system…and then I would exercise with either weights or resistance bands.  Just a mere three sets of any body parts that were next in my weekly line-up; if I were due for chest next, I’d get my resistance band out, wrap it around a support pole in my garage, and do three sets worth of flies/presses with the band, each to failure, as I’ll cover in my content.

One way another, whether via glycogen reserves, or blood sugar levels, sugars will be used.

In fact, diabetics have used exercise to reduce their blood glucose levels.

I cover my awesome, short-duration-high-intensity exercise system in a later chapter in my story.  I am no longer a fan of long cardio sessions, and haven’t used a treadmill in years.  However, I can certainly appreciate creative uses for them:

;->