Thursday, October 30, 2014

Thursday, October 23, 2014

A new direction

For some time now I have been struggling with my weight. Paleo did not help, but then I had lost a bunch of weight, coming from 158 down to 92 kgs on low carb, whole foods, which is paleo, atkins, LoBag, sort of concept anyway. I explored a bunch of programs, all of which said " just follow this program and you will lose weight ". None of those programs were of a sort that I could follow. Hunger, cravings, temptation, environment, desires, habits, physical issues, maladaptive eating issues, food addiction, all non-rational effects, made following those plans impossible. So I digressed into spiritual, ie, non-physical endeavors seeking relief. Those did not make much difference either. My weight is climbing, and I seemed unable to not eat.

Now what? Spiritual is largely bullshit, but there is a non-physical part of life, a thinking system that exists. Everybody seems to be trying to describe it but not in real terms, rather as something that might explain it sort of, if we believed that there was a spirit. Consciousness is all we really have control over. Unconscious mind, behaviors, automatic responses, and the like occur, hence they exist if only as the sum of our past experiences. There may also be an interface between the body and mind, as well as the body.

Ok, so we have four potential sources of cravings, the body, primal body-mind interface, unconscious mind, and conscious mind. Hunger arises out of the body, and a bit of fat removes that, but not the craving, the urge to eat.

Now radicalization has become the issue in the media. Is weight loss a form of radicalization against yourself  while we are losing? We become driven, raising an urgent want, but then enthusiasm wains, the need is reduced, and we become unable to maintain. We have not corrected the problem, just controlling the problem, and we have once again lost control.

So when we look at the stages of change, we return to the action stage three times each day. Maintenance and termination are not possible.

But what do I know and where is this going?         

Friday, October 10, 2014

For later digestion

Somebody is making me think a bit. I will need to re-read this a few time before I know if it effects me or not.

http://itsthewooo.blogspot.ca/2014/10/hypometabolism-ion-channels-and.html

Is this why the third day of a fast is so different? 

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Separation of bullshit from fact

Separation of bullshit from fact is a difficult thing to do.

There is even a book: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0691122946

 Christianity is full of it, the nutrition industry is full of it. According to Stranton Peele the Recovery industry, psychology and philosophy is full of it. I know the construction engineering, testing industry is full of it. We have a heath industry that does not care about nutrition and a food industry that does not care about health. That suggests that the health care is full of it.

"Suspend judgement", the skeptics cry. 

So how should we humans decide what is real food and what is not? If it is natural, it might be food. If it is processed, it is likely not good food, but may be eatable to prevent starvation. Since we are a long way from that, I will suggest that processed stuff should stay on the grocers shelves. 

Buddha nails it:
Believe nothing on the faith of traditions, even though they have been held in honor for many generations and in diverse places. Do not believe a thing because many people speak of it. Do not believe on the faith of the sages of the past. Do not believe what you yourself have imagined, persuading yourself that a God inspires you. Believe nothing on the sole authority of your masters and priests. After examination, believe what you yourself have tested and found to be reasonable, and conform your conduct thereto.

Note that Buddha never defined what he meant by god; but from the contest I will suggest that it was the product of a dream like state, or random generation mental state. This is not like the Christian supernatural all knowing all seeing concept, nor the late stoic nature, reason concept. The truth is likely closer to the skeptic void without purpose, empty, meaningless; we need to impose a purpose on it, so we invented philosophy and religion.

So I know nothing, and silence is the easy way of maintaining virtue.

Testing of the separation cravings from hunger and ignore cravings is underway.