Alan Bennet wrote:I agree with the goal of losing excess fat. But it's hard to do safely, and 5% body fat is an unattainable goal for most male runners. The lowest I have been was about 12%. Right now I am at my college weight but a little "softer", about 14% and a little afraid to go down in weight. Certainly there is no hurry for that.
Yep. Certainly one needs to be cautious if one tries to maximize weight loss goals and maintain good health. He'd have to speak for himself, but it wouldn't surprise me if one reason Pete Magill doesn't race frequently, is that true race weight is not a healthy or sustainable weight (I know, that's pure conjecture on my part.) For myself, I can't ever imagine coming even close to my college weight of 134 lbs. I was rail thin then, not for lack of eating; in fact, I probably ate 30-40% more then than I do now (not to mention all that beer.....whew, those were the days!) Hence my unfamiliarity with the concept of dieting. Truthfully, at this point in my life, I'm not at all confident that I can rewire my brain to wholesale change my eating habits....I envision myself constantly falling off the wagon.
I've read medical studies that intermittent fasting (say 1 or 2 days a week of minimal intake), can be very effective in controlling weight, but more importantly can improve brain-function (and stave off brain illnesses) and possibly increase longevity. Here's just a couple of the many links on the topic:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/feb/18/fasting-protect-brain-diseases-scientistshttp://www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2009/09/reboot-your-brain-science-says-its-possible-a-galaxy-classic.htmlhttp://www.marksdailyapple.com/health-benefits-of-intermittent-fasting/This is something I can more imagine being able to pull off....starve myself on selected days, but eat as I like on the others. Anyone have experience with a plan like this?