Ready To Join The Calorie Restriction Society? We Hope Not! (Episode 88)
20 09 2007
Calorie-restriction at a low-carb podcast?! What is Jimmy thinking?!
Hello and welcome to the Internet’s best-loved and most frequently cited low-carb podcast, “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show With Jimmy Moore!”
Today, in Episode 88, our host Jimmy once again tackles the concept of low-calorie, low-fat, low-enthusiasm, low-energy, low-pleasure diets so often foisted upon us by the mainstream media and those few remaining doctors who have yet to hop on the clue-train. The latest suspects are the “Calorie Restriction Society” and their insistence that you should keep lowering and lowering your caloric intake for the sake of health. UGH!
See that logo at the top of this post, dear friends? That’s really all you need to know about these dietary sado-masochists! Listen, enjoy, and engage in the comments section below.
LINKS MENTIONED IN EPISODE 88
- ABC News story on runway models and low-calorie diets
- The Calorie Restriction Society web site
- Dr. Luigi Fontana’s study in the Journal Of The American College Of Cardiology
- Related blog post: “Why Low-Fat, Low-Calorie Diets Fail And Low-Carb Succeeds
Did you miss anything Jimmy said? Hey, it happens to the best of us! That’s why we have a complete transcript of this episode at the other side of the following link!
TRANSCRIPT of Episode 88:
This is Episode 88 of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore.” We’re finally winding down with summer and the cool winds of the Fall season are already blowing a refreshing breath of fresh air into our lives as we get back into a routine again. Why wait until New Year’s to make a resolution to lose weight and get healthy? How about starting that low-carb journey right here, right now? By the time January 1st rolls around, you’ll be three months ahead over everyone else! Let me have the pleasure of helping you by visiting my LivinLaVidaLowCarb.com blog and my new LowCarbDiscussion.com forum.
Today I wanted to talk about a subject that has taken on an even greater importance in light of the health complications suffered by runway models over the past year suddenly dying in their quest to be smaller and smaller. This is but a microcosm of what is happening with so many people, especially highly-impressionable teenagers and young adults, that it is worthy of discussing in an entire podcast show today. In the seemingly neverending debate over which method of eating and lifestyle change is best for improving your health, there’s a study on low-calorie/portion-controlled diets that I want to bring to your attention to illustrate a point. As a nearly 200-pound weight loss success story on the Atkins diet, not only was I able to lose weight and keep it off, but my heart health is the best it has ever been and my energy levels are literally through the roof. If I had known that I would feel this good just by losing weight and keeping it off, then I would have done it a long time ago. Unfortunately, most of my previous attempts to lose weight involved restrictions on my fat, calories, and portion sizes — none of which worked particularly well for me.
Those low-calorie/portion control diets were not realistic when it came to the basic needs of someone like me who needed to lose a lot of weight. These include satisfying my hunger, maintaining proper energy levels, providing adequate nutrition, and enabling the body to exercise as needed to burn energy. Low-carb living, on the other hand, has given me all of those benefits of an optimum weight loss diet and much, much more! While I do not believe livin’ la vida low-carb is necessarily the right path for everyone, it certainly should be an option for people who have struggled in the past with reducing their caloric intake on their journey to lose weight. Unfortunately, the study I am going to share with you today conducted by the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis seems to provide evidence that a very low-calorie diet can be good for your heart. Published in the January 17, 2006 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, the study released by an organization called the Caloric Restriction Society shows that the hearts of 25 study participants age 41-65 who ate less calories appeared to be more elastic than those in the study who were of the same age and gender eating controlled, balanced diets. Additionally, the calorie-restricted subjects were able to relax between beats in similar ways that younger people do and had hearts comparable to people 15 years younger than them. Take a look at the slogan that this Caloric Restriction Society uses: “Fewer Calories, More Life.” Yikes! Somebody please feed these people something before their brains become as small as the amount of food they are eating in a day! With a picture of two vastly different sized tomatoes, is that supposed to entice me to cut back on my calories? I don’t think so. That’s EXACTLY why the low-calorie diets failed me. My appetite was big and it’s still big today leading me to eat upwards of 3,000 calories a day while STILL maintaining my weight. Simply cutting back on your calories and portion sizes isn’t going to be a successful way for me to keep my weight off permanently.
Can you lose weight doing this? Uh, yeah. If you are only eating 1,400 calories as the study participants did, then you WILL lose weight. But who can keep that way of eating up for very long. These 25 poor people who volunteered had to put themselves through this torture for an average of SIX LONG YEARS! Can you imagine doing that?! EEEK! I ate a low-fat/low-calorie/portion control diet for one year in 1999 and just about went crazy despite losing 170 pounds! Within four months of getting off my low-fat/low-calorie/portion control diet, I gained it all back. It wasn’t sustainable for me. But principal study investigator Dr. Luigi Fontana concluded from his research that long-term calorie-restriction with a nutritionally balanced diet can improve the heart. He believes the low-calorie approach will help curb the rate of heart attacks, stroke, and cancer deaths in the United States. Advocating a healthy diet of less calories along with a regular exercise routine, Fontana says that calorie-restricted diets help people live longer and get stronger even as they become older. In fact, Dr. Fontana contends eating a low-calorie/portion control diet can make the heart stronger, reduce cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, reduce risks of developing diabetes, and shrink body fat. He contends this diet is the only way to reduce and control inflammation.
What do you make of this study? Does it convince YOU that simply cutting back on your calories is the way to go to lose weight and improve your heart health? It is certainly a compelling argument based on this study alone. But I have to come back to what I believe should comprise a good and healthy diet. Here’s my criteria:
1. Will I lose weight and keep it off eating this way forever?
2. Will eating this way prevent me from being constantly hungry?
3. Am I getting an adequate amount of nutrients in my diet?
If you cannot answer YES to all three of those questions, then whatever “diet” plan you are on will not work to help you lose weight, get healthy, and stay healthy. For me, low-calorie diets are just not reasonable over the long haul and often left me so hungry and irritable that I couldn’t even think straight. While I might have been eating 4 ounces of so-called “healthy” foods, I was always left begging for more and more and literally couldn’t wait until the next meal. I felt so deprived that I was not satisfied with my lifestyle, despite the enormous weight loss I had accomplished. Ever since I started the low-carb lifestyle in 2004, though, I have never run into this problem. I eat the amount of high-fat, low-carb foods that I want to eat without regard for fat grams, calories, and DEFINITELY NOT restricting my portion sizes. That’s just not necessary when it comes to livin’ la vida low-carb. Just keep up with your net carbs and let the miracle of low-carb do what it does in you. As for your heart health on a low-carb plan, a study from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Health released in November 2005 found that eating more fat and less carbs resulted in better heart health than the government-indoctrinated message of low-fat/low-calorie/portion control diets. Additionally, another study from the Duke University Medical Center released in October 2005 concluded that getting 30 minutes of a moderate cardio workout daily will keep your heart strong and healthy. While Dr. Fontana is an advocate of eating less calories and portions, I do want to recognize something he recommended in his study conclusions that brings a smile to my face and gives me hope that there are people who understand the importance of reducing carbs in their diet. Here’s what he said: “Caloric restriction does not mean eating half a hamburger and half a pack of French fries and drinking half of a sugary beverage. These people [eating less calories] have very good nutrition. They eliminate calories by eating nutrient-dense foods.” As do low-carbers, Dr. Fontana. While we do not necessarily count the number of calories we are eating, several studies have shown that some of the healthy foods we eat such as eggs can help us eat less calories than those who consume high-carb foods. I’m sure you will agree with me that making better food choices is an important factor in ANY diet plan that hopes to produce lasting weight loss and improved health. There are many reasons why low-fat and low-calorie diets fail, but most of it has to do with the inadequate nutritional content in the foods that many people on those plans do eat. Just because a product packaging blares the words FAT FREE on them doesn’t mean you could or should eat them without any regard for the sugar and carbohydrate content in them. Oftentimes, there is even MORE sugar and salt in these foods just to make them taste familiar. That’s just not natural! Dr. Fontana says people who want to lose weight and get healthy need to avoid refined and processed foods, soft drinks, desserts, white bread and other “empty”-calorie foods. AMEN, AMEN, and AMEN! That’s good advice for people to follow regardless of your diet choice. There was one more comment Dr. Fontana made that I was VERY pleased to hear him say: “If you change the quality of your diet by increasing the servings of nutrient-dense food and reducing — actually, it would be better to slowly eliminate — all of the servings of ‘empty’ calorie foods, you improve your chances of living a healthier and longer life.” I couldn’t have said it better myself, Dr. Fontana! That’s why I’m livin’ la vida low-carb for life!
That’s it for Episode 88 of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore.” There’s a lot of debate over calories and what’s considered too low on a low-carb diet. Do you even need to count calories or do you agree with me that it’s simply not necessary when you are following a low-carb nutritional approach? Talk about it and share your experiences in the show notes section at TheLivinLowCarbShow.com. Come back again on Monday as we once again share with you an important subject about the amazingly healthy low-carb lifestyle. So, until next time, keep on livin’ la vida low-carb!
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From over 400 pounds to 230, Jimmy Moore is 
I have been following calorie restriction with optimal nutrition (CRON) for 2 years now, and have lost 67 lbs. (on top of 125 lbs. on the medically recommended ‘lo-fat/hi-carb diet). After suffering a mild MI 5 years ago, AND being diagnosed with diabetes, CRON has enable me reduce my BP to 100/60, BG to 70 fasting (4.2 A1C), and feel better with more energy than I can ever recall. I have done lo-carb now for the last year, and this has been a large contributor to weight control and blood glucose normality.
I agree with the vast majority of your site with regard to lo-carb, but you should keep an open mind for those who also wish to combine calorie restriction as part of the overall lifestyle. Believe it or not, as long as you ensure the ‘optimal nutrition’ part, you are rarely hungry and I eat as much food volume at 1800 kcal/day as when I was 180 lbs. heavier on a SAD.
Keep up the great lo-carb work, as we all know this is the key to good health, but don’t be so quick to denounce CRON as a sector of the total lifestyle!
CONGRATULATIONS on your success John and I appreciate your perspective. However, eating 1800 calories in a day would NOT be considered calorie-restriction by most people.
What I am concerned about are those people who go well below the 1200-calorie mark that is considered the MINIMUM calorie level for metabolic function and health. Sadly, many who do this suffer serious health complications that have been well-documented, including hair loss, dizzinessness and fatigue, as well as death.
Someone who chooses to artificially reduce their calories in an effort to improve their health may be misinformed and I would only urge them to take a look at all the research rather than mindlessly lowering their calories more and more.
THANK YOU again for sharing, John, and GREAT JOB on your success!
I have been doing calorie restriction for around 2 years 8 months and I chose to do it for a very different reason than to simply lose weight. In fact, my BMI was just under 20 when I started. I do calorie restriction for longevity… The life extension effect of CR is proportional to the degree of calorie restriction imposed.
My results have been remarkable, and so have almost every single person who have joined the CR society and done proper CRON.
Some of the results I have seen are:
Pulse 50bpm
Blood pressure 90/60
Glucose 77mg/dl
Total Cholesterol 109 mg/dl
Triglycerides oscillate between 35 – 53 mg/dl
CRP below
I also forgot to mention that my calorie intake is around 1700k/cal per day.
Half of my post never got sent through (max characters?) So I just thought I’d say that I enjoy listening to your potcasts, and congrats on the weight loss. However those who do CRON are primarily focused longevity and health rather than weight. There are plenty of studies showing improved immunity, reduction in cancer, neurological diseases, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, diabetes. Most of us that do CR have really studied the data for a long time before starting it. I would also like to point out that I am never hungry on a CR diet, the amount of food I eat is huge.
I saw a news show on CR a few weeks ago and the people they interviewed looked gaunt and sickly.
They said they felt great but anorexics say the same thing. They showed what they ate and it was sorely lacking in protein and fat. I don’t see how the people following CR can get all the nutrients their bodies need for health.
Great job, Jimmy.
Hi Carol, this is just a one day snapshot of what I ate on that particular day. My diet has improved even more now with more nutrient dense food. But as you can see… I eat plenty of food
get enough protein and fat too!
http://en.wiki.calorierestriction.org/index.php/Matthew_Lake’s_Diet
Please don’t confuse AN with CR, they are both completely different.
Matthew, at 1700 calories a day, you are most certainly NOT the kind of calorie restriction devotee that Carol and I are referring to. She’s talking about those people who push their calories well below 1000. Studies show that kind of eating leads to bone loss and so many other health complications.
CONGRATS on your health numbers (and, by the way, I eat a low-carb diet for health and not weight loss–that just happens to be a good side effect of this way of eating!), but again you are NOT a low-calorie zealot.
Just for fun, I sometimes track my caloric intake. Yesterday I consumed 4150 calories, today 3400. On average it’s mostly over 3100. Since I lost almost 240 pounds well over a decade ago this way, and kept the weight off ever since. And I’m certainly not the worlds greatest workout freak. This, plus the literal mountains of scientific evidence for the livin’lavida lowcarb lifestyle convince me that caloric restriction is certainly not necessary for weight control. My health markers have never been better, too, including heart health and -muscle. If people feel happy restricting calories then that’s fine, but personally I see no need nor any convincing, hard scientific evidence for tangible, measureable health benefits.
Agreed Science!
The evidence for low calorie diet is convincing, provided you look at the data that’s come out over the past 70 years. There is no consistent way other than CR to extend maximum lifespan without some sort of genetic intervention. We are talking about mice living abnormally long (equivalent to 160 -180 human years). Some papers you should take a look at in the next post. As for ‘measurable benefits’, it seems clear that you have done little research.
Long-term calorie restriction is highly effective in reducing the risk for atherosclerosis in humans.
http://www.pnas.org/cgi/reprint/101/17/6659
Calorie restriction appears better than exercise at slowing primary aging
http://tinyurl.com/2b45cc
Calorie restriction in biosphere 2: alterations in physiologic, hematologic, hormonal, and biochemical parameters in humans restricted for a 2-year period.
http://tinyurl.com/ynkk6o
The effect on health of alternate day calorie restriction: eating less and more than needed on alternate days prolongs life.
http://tinyurl.com/364p7h
Monkeys on calorie restriction have more youthful and robust immune systems.
http://www.technologyreview.com/Biotech/17856/
I appreciate the links you provided, Matt. But I could present just as many in support of low-carb regarding improvements in health.
And please don’t insult my intelligence by claiming I have “done little research.” Anyone who has listened to my podcast shows for any length of time over the past year KNOWS I live and breathe the studies.
Go back to ALL my shows in February 2007 which were EXCLUSIVELY on the research regarding livin’ la vida low-carb and I’ll accept your apology later.
[...] Kevin Flatt wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptAs a nearly 200-pound weight loss success story on the Atkins diet, not only was I able to lose weight and keep it off, but my heart health is the best it has ever been and my energy levels are literally through the roof. … [...]
[...] editor@just-drinks.com (just-drinks.com editorial team) wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptI eat the amount of high-fat, low-carb foods that I want to eat without regard for fat grams, calories, and DEFINITELY NOT restricting my portion sizes. That’s just not necessary when it comes to livin’ la vida low-carb. … [...]
Jimmy, my friend, I’m a little bit confused with this podcast. When you talk about CR are you talking about low-calories diets that go under the 1200 kcals or are you talking about folks who count their calories? What threw me off is your quote that you don’t have to reduce portion sizes when it comes to livin la vida low carb. I just want to be clear before I comment. Thanks . . .
You can count calories and portions all you would like, Muata (Mr. Low Body Fat, welcome!), but I am referring to those who go below 1200 calories. That’s when you begin damaging your health. THANKS for clarifying!
Jimmy, apart from those people who are burning off massive fat stores, people who are maintaining their weights with CRON are NOT eating fewer than 1200 calories a day. A typical maintenance diet for a 5′1″ gal is 1800-1900 calories a day. Those who claim otherwise are starving themselves on the days they report and then binging on days when they do not — and not reporting this. Trust me, no one who is measuring their food and in weight maintenance mode is eating fewer than 1000 calories a day — unless they are wildly making up for it on unreported, eating out, drinking-a-whole-bottle of wine days the rest of the time.
Jimmy,
This is a most disappointing and insulting post. You obviously have no idea how many calories it takes to maintain a healthy weight if you think that 1800 is not calorie restricted. My partner weighs 115 at six feet tall and eats 1869 calories a day. We know because we weigh and measure every gram. You don’t have any clue until you do that. If you eat out at all, you are consuming many more calories than you think.
No one is trying to push CR as a weight loss diet. We’re not about weight loss: we’re about health and longevity. And we are… actually… healthy.
The tone of your post was really inconsistent with your normally respectful, thoughtful style.
If you had done a touch more research, you’d recognize that we in the CR Society are CONSTANTLY urging folks to monitor their nutrition on software, to make appointments with their doctor at least every year for blood tests, and to not lose weight too fast! Many of us also urge those on low fat diets to consume more fat! I increased my fat consumption (of unsaturated fats) greatly on CR. Now I eat nuts, olive oil, flax oil, and avocado.
Why don’t you go find someone else to pick on? Someone who is trying to get people to eat lowfat diets, perhaps, or someone who sells a product that competes with yours.
We’re not selling anything. We’re just taking care of ourselves and living in a way that works for us. Leave us alone.
april
Whether 1200 calories or 1800 calories represents “Calorie Restriction” depends on the sex, age, height, weight, and activity level of the subject. This can be best judged relative to a normal control, as done by this calculator:
http://www.scientificpsychic.com/health/cron1.html
Tony
April, I respect people like you who eat a healthy calorie-restricted diet if you think that’s what you need. But 1800 calories very clearly is NOT calorie-restriction. Maybe compared to the Standard American Diet, but not to most people trying to lose weight.
The temptation is to lower calories more and more to shed pounds faster. But that’s mortgaging your health, something YOU don’t do. But there are others who take calorie restriction to this extreme and those are the people I’m referring to.
I appreciate your concerns, but don’t take offense.
[...] Kevin Kennedy-Spaien wrote a fantastic post today on “Ready To Join The Calorie Restriction Society? We Hope Not …”Here’s ONLY a quick extractAdvocating a healthy diet of less calories along with a regular exercise routine, Fontana says that calorie-restricted diets help people live longer and get stronger even as they become older. In fact, Dr. Fontana contends eating a … [...]
I appreciate your concerns,I often said Calorie Restriction is always good for health.