Eat!

I was thinking why I couldn't complete planned workout on Saturday. Besides having some alcohol the day before I think the issue may be not eating enough.

Those who know me from IGx know my attitude to losing weight. Not that I am against it or particularly want the world to go opbese, but there are more important health issues. In any case, negatives brought about by being fat can be relatively easily corrected without actually losing that fat. My view on obesity is also that of the professional: it's a disease, not character trait or the sign of being stupid or lazy. Am I lenient to obese because I am overweight myself? My weight is around 70 kg, BMI of 22, body fat as measured by Tanita - around 17%. Excessive? To some maybe, but I am not interested in getting rippedcall me lazy if you wish.

I digress. On Saturday I had very light breakfast and was eating sporadically throughout the day. Usually I eat lots of meat and other protein, that day I was more into sandwiches and muffins. When I started the workout I felt fairly weak straight away and had doubts about finishing it from the very beginning. Looking back now I can clearly see that my food intake wasn't great on that day, and that may be the most important reason for not having enough strength.

Dan John emphasized pre-workout nutrition time and time again, as per his definition: eat something on the day of the workout. It also seems to me that these goals - losing fat and getting stronger - don't mix well. When Vasili Ginko was in Sydney he mentioned that couple of years ago he wanted to try compete in lower weight category (he is a big guy and competes in over 90kg). He said that after dropping about five kilos he was feeling too weak and abandoned the whole project.

The issue of weight control is an interesting one. It is completely solved for the general public (and many of my colleagues): fat people eat too much, they are too lazy, dumb, don't have will power and so on. For those involved in clinical research it is a serious puzzle. What controls appetite? What are physiological mechanisms of regulating body weight? How does metabolic adaptation work? These are the beginning questions, and by trying to get answers you open the Pandora's box of more questions and paradoxes. From time to time someone will go on a diet, lose weight and proclaim himself a guru of obesity solution. I wholeheartedly congratulate them on the achievement, just like I would congratulate anyone claiming to get cured of his cancer by taking vitamin C or barley grass. Just keep in mind that the study of one does not mean much. That's beside the point that there is a good chance of a relapse.

Anyway, this post is not about obesity but about eating when training. Eating enough that is. You want to lose weight with GS? It will work in untrained people very well. Those who have reasonable or high level of fitness must make a choice between getting rid of fat or getting their numbers up. Two together will not work. That's my opinion.