7 Red-Hot Reads To Awaken The Low-Carb Fire That Burns Within

Seven super sizzling columns to light up your low-carb fire again

There's so much positive news I've seen about livin' la vida low-carb lately in the blogosphere and even in the mainstream news lately that I can barely get to it all. So rather than hoarding all of it to myself and trying to blog about it when I can, I thought I'd share the following columns and posts with you today. These will absolutely get your fire lit again for low-carb living if you feel it has fizzled a bit. I have no doubt you're gonna LOVE these! ENJOY!

1. "For Guys Who Need To Lose 100 Pounds"
SOURCE: Mr. Low Body Fat's Blog

I just love Muata, the author of the blog Mr. Low Body Fat. This is the incredible transformational story of a man who took up the challenge of not just losing weight but quite literally changing his life forever. In the process he lost over 100 pounds and went from a chunky man into one with a six-pack. I have nothing but deep respect for what he has accomplished and I HIGHLY recommend you read his blog!

He wrote a column designed specifically for men who want or need to shed triple digits. Since that is something I have a little bit of experience with (*smile*), I was intrigued by what Muata had to say. And I was NOT disappointed. In fact, much of it echoed many of the same themes I have blogged about here--setting many small goals along the way, making the way you eat a long-term permanent and healthy lifestyle change, don't worry about loose skin following weight loss, and so much more! Whether you've got more than 100 pounds to lose or not, you'll learn a lot from Muata's experience.

2. "5 Reasons You're Not Losing Weight"
SOURCE: MSN Health & Fitness Page

One of my readers was so excited when she saw this column because she felt it was about time the low-carb message reached such a major media outlet as MSN. Of course, when I clicked on the link and saw the authors were University of Connecticut low-carb researcher Dr. Jeff Volek and Men's Health Features editor Adam Campbell, authors of the fabulous new low-carb fitness book Men's Health TNT Diet, a great big smile came on my face. I knew the column was gonna be outstanding. And it is!

Get a load of the five reasons you're not losing weight: You're Following Bad Advice, You Eat Fat-Free Foods, You (Still) Don't Eat Breakfast, You're Eating Too Much Sugar, and You Don't Lift Weights. This is one column you'll probably want to print out, tape up to the wall, and read often. Volek and Campbell are 100% right with what they share in this article and I think you'll agree with much of what they say.

3. "Saturated Fat Is Your New Friend"
SOURCE: Male Pattern Fitness Blog

Do you read Lou Schuler's Male Pattern Fitness Blog? Well, why the heck not? Lou is one of the minority of voices out there who espouses the basic principles of livin' la vida low-carb in a very entertaining and "daily news" type of format. He's like a talk show host going over the health news of the day and adding in his own one-of-a-kind commentary.

This post he wrote about saturated fat is absolutely, positively fabulous! As a former writer for Men's Health magazine, Lou is stunned that they would even dare run a positive story on the role of saturated fat in a healthy diet (which I'll be highlighting next). As a low-carber, he realizes the paradigm shift is happening right before our eyes and is excited about the prospects for the future.

4. "What If Bad Fat Is Actually Good For You?"
SOURCE: Men's Health Magazine

Here's that Men's Health column that has Lou Schuler all excited. It was written by Nina Teicholz and is quite a detailed look at how saturated fat became so vilified in the United States and around the world. The story is especially damning of Ancel Keys for starting this anti-saturated fat movement without having any real evidence to back up his claims that it is unhealthy.

A brand new 12-week study cited in the story conducted by Dr. Volek on the impact of saturated fat on overweight men and women was astonishing (although not to people who understand how low-carb diets work)! The low-carbers ate 36g saturated fat a day--THREE TIMES the amount of the low-fat dieters--but they saw their small, dense LDL cholesterol particles (the VERY dangerous ones for heart health) DECREASE, their triglycerides drop by MORE THAN HALF, and their HDL/LDL ratio improved more than those on the low-fat diet. Print this one out, too, and wave it at those people who tell you that saturated fat you're eating on your low-carb lifestyle will kill you. WRONG!

5. "Low-Fat vs. Low-Carb: Time for a Truce in the Diet Wars?"
SOURCE: Male Pattern Fitness Blog

One more post from Lou Schuler's blog was worth mentioning. He looks at the ongoing debate between low-fat and low-carb diet advocates and wonders if there is any room for common ground. In fact, Lou cites this blog post I wrote following my interview with Dr. Dean Ornish last year (and was aired on my podcast show recently) outlining 20 shared beliefs between the two sides.

You gotta love the way Lou just tells it like it is:

"Cut the crap out of your diet, exercise, and you'll probably hit a good, healthy weight relative to your genetics. If you need more intervention than that, go with more protein and less carbohydrate. The first data set I used, the one about total calories produced in the U.S., showed that about 13 percent of the calories we have access to come from protein. About 51 percent come from carbohydrates. If you double the protein and cut the carbs in half, good things will happen. If that's still not enough, go low-carb."

Don't miss a single blog post from Lou Schuler again! Bookmark the Male Pattern Fitness Blog TODAY!

6. "Stop Blaming Saturated Fat"
SOURCE: Men's Health Magazine

We go back to Men's Health Magazine again for a joint column from Dr. Volek and Adam Campbell to see further evidence why saturated fat is not the great evil it has been made out to be. If you're looking for the VERY LATEST research on why saturated fat is GOOD FOR YOU, then READ THIS ARTICLE!!!

Here are the key findings: Saturated fat is beneficial because it raises your HDL "good" cholesterol, there's no evidence from prior research that saturated fat leads to heart disease, saturated fat intake has gone down in the past three decades while obesity and heart disease have been on the rise, saturated fat is NOT harmful when you simultaneously reduce the carbohydrate in your diet, and an increase in consumption of saturated fat on a low-carb diet actually leads to a DECREASE in the amount of saturated fat in the bloodstream compared with a low-fat diet. Cutting edge research and you heard it here first!

7. "Curbing The Carbs"
SOURCE: The Ottawa Citizen

Finally, we head north to our friends in Canada for a superb story written by Mike Sornberger from The Ottawa Citizen about the continuing importance of livin' la vida low-carb STILL happening in the year 2007 despite the fact that the "low-carb diet craze" is long gone. The article quotes Stanford University professor Dr. Christopher Garder who authored this JAMA study that found Atkins was best among the diets earlier this year and is in general very favorable coverage for low-carb living that you should find interesting. It describes the unique role of insulin in weight gain and health decline--something New York Times science journalist Gary Taubes who wrote the 2007 blockbuster health book Good Calories, Bad Calories has repeated quite often based on his own look at the research.

Those will keep you busy a while, so check 'em out and tell me what you think. The low-carb lifestyle is DEFINITELY seeing a comeback and it's good to know these kind of stories are getting out there in the mainstream. Regardless of what the negative naysayers toward livin' la vida low-carb have to say about our healthy way of eating, this is our chosen method for not just losing weight but also maintaining our weight and health for the rest of our long and prosperous life! And we wouldn't have it any other way.

Have you seen some positive news in the media about low-carb that I may have missed? If so, then feel free to e-mail me a link to the story anytime at livinlowcarbman@charter.net. Mark my words, you're gonna see a dramatic change in the coverage towards livin' la vida low-carb real soon as a whole lot more research keeps confirming what we already know--this way of eating optimal for shedding the pounds and improving your health.

Low-Carb Footprints All Over The Internet

Have you seen all the references to livin' la vida low-carb on the Internet lately? The popularity of this supposedly "dead" diet just keeps getting stronger and stronger as those who advocate this healthy nutritional approach keep spreading the word boldly and proudly more than ever before.

And even those who disparage low-carb are only making themselves look foolish in light of the latest scientific evidence that is coming out about this miraculous way of eating. These people hope to get low-carb supporters down, but it ain't happening! :)

Here are seven tidbits about low-carb I've found online:

1. JUDY BARNES BAKER APPEARS ON KABC RADIO

Friend and fellow low-carb author Judy Barnes Baker, who wrote that fantastic low-carb cookbook called CARB WARS: Sugar Is The New Fat, was a guest on the major radio show "McIntyre In The Morning" in Los Angeles, California back in July. She did a FANTASTIC job talking about livin' la vida low-carb and you can hear the audio of the interviewat her CarbWarsCookbook.com web site. GREAT JOB, Judy!!!

2. AUSTRALIAN LOW-CARBER RAY KELLY CLIMBS BEN NEVIS

My Aussie low-carb fitness friend Ray Kelly, who you will recall trained the winner of the first season of The Biggest Loser Australia Adro Sarnelli with a low-carb regimen, was privileged to do something I've always wanted to do--reach the summit of a mountain! You can watch his climb up Ben Nevis on YouTube and ENJOY! CONGRATULATIONS, Ray!

3. FELLOW LOW-CARB BLOGGER AMY DUNGAN TRIES HER HAND AT YOUTUBE

After trying my hand at recording videos for YouTube about the low-carb lifestyle, friend and fellow low-carb blogger Amy Dungan from the "Healthy Low-Carb Living" blog decided it was time to get in on the action. You can watch her first episode on YouTube where she takes on the Frankenfoods that have helped her with her low-carb lifestyle. You did VERY well for your first time, Amy! Get those adorable kids of yours in the next video you make! :D

4. SEE INTO THE FUTURE OF YOUR WEIGHT LOSS WITH WEIGHTVIEW.COM

When you first start out on your low-carb weight loss journey, it may be difficult for you to visualize what will be different about you once you reach your goal weight. That's why I was glad to find a new FREE service at WeightView.com that gives people a picture of how they will look after they have lost unwanted pounds by utilizing technology. It easy to do this: go to the web site, fill out basic information, and upload a current picture of yourself. Within 48 hours, you will receive your picture back in your inbox with what you will look like once you reach your goal weight. COOL! It's FREE for a limited time, so take advantage of this while it lasts. This might be just the thing you've needed to kick your plan into high gear! YOU CAN DO IT!!!

5. OBAID KARKI DECLARES ATKINS IS "CRAP" AND IS GLAD DR. ATKINS IS DEAD

Just when you think the nut cases are at bay, along comes something like this to remind you they're still out there...in more ways than one! This Obaid Karki fella must really love hearing himself talk on just about any subject, but he obviously has no idea about what livin' la vida low-carb is all about. He blame it for the obesity epidemic and made some rather nasty comments about the Atkins diet and its late founder. Both my fellow low-carb weight loss success Kent Altena and I have left comments about this video with a rather intriguing response from Obaid himself. Check it out!

6. "MALE PATTERN FITNESS" BLOGGER LOU SCHULER FEATURES MY STORY

I previously blogged about an excellent blog by Lou Schuler called "Male Pattern Fitness" and he cited me and my weight loss success on the low-carb lifestyle in a post about the obesity crisis last week. He said my weight loss story goes against the popular notion that obesity is simply based on genetics. A worthy read! THANKS, Lou!

7. SIGN THE KIMKINS INVESTIGATION PETITION AND WRITE THE BBB

Finally, in light of all the revelations about the true identity of the woman behind the controversial Kimkins diet in recent days, I'd like to point your attention to two things. First is a Kimkins Investigation Petition to look into the individual who is promoting a diet causing some rather unpleasant side effects in those who are following it by the book. Second is a link to the Better Business Bureau in California where Kimkins is headquartered. If you are as concerned about this low-carb imposter diet as I am, then sign the petition and share your concerns with the BBB.

That's about it for now, but I'm sure there'll be lots more low-carb footprints happening all over the Internet. Whether the media and those so-called health "experts" like it or not, livin' la vida low-carb is here to stay, baby! ;)

If you see something related to low-carb living that's worthy of a mention here at my blog, then please feel free to pass it along to me at livinlowcarbman@charter.net. I'm always happy to hear from YOU!

Five Truly Eclectic Low-Carb Diet Blogs

One of my favorite new features at my blog this year has been highlighting the brand new low-carb blogs that seem to be growing like rabbits. :)

I have always said that if we are going to influence our culture with the message of livin' la vida low-carb, then we need more and more people who are living this diet as a permanent lifestyle change to start engaging others with their story. That's why I feature all the low-carb sites I can find in one convenient place at my "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Links" blog.

Whether it is on MySpace, Facebook, or right here in the blogosphere, we should always be looking for ways to share the positive message of low-carb living with a desperate and hopeless world full of overweight and obese people longing for a better life. We have dietary truth on our side and it's ready right now to set these people free from their obesity bondage! Will we have the courage to share it with them?

Continuing my regular feature over the past year highlighting the outstanding new low-carb blogs (see my previous blog reviews here, here, here, and here), check out FIVE MORE truly eclectic low-carb diet blogs that I know you will enjoy. If you like what you see, then leave them a comment and let 'em know. You'll absolutely make their day! :)

1. HAOLE FATS

This is one twisted, but absolutely hilarious blog

Wanna quick taste of what this blog is like? Just read the post called "Carbohydrate Intole-Rant" to see for yourself! Something just ain't right about that Anthony. HA! But he's living the life of luxury in the state of Hawaii. Lucky man! By the way, the name of this blog is a Malay-Chinese word meaning "White Fat Foreigners." Thankfully, he is seeking "to live a more healthy lifestyle." Well THANK GOD for that! If you think you can handle reading this blog and keep your sanity, then pay a visit often to "Haole Fats."

2. ILLUSIONS OF HAPPINESS

After a bit of a sabbatical from blogging, Joanne is back

It was about 1 1/2 years ago when I blogged about this Spokane, Washington mother of two, but her "Illusions of Happiness" blog was made private when Joanne Ziegler started struggling with her weight loss. But then she decided to try the low-carb diet earlier this year and her weight dropped from 270 way down to 172 pounds in only five months! That's nearly 100 pounds! WOW! Follow her amazing progress as she shrinks down into that radiant woman she was meant to be. CONGRATULATIONS, Joanne!

3. FATTY KATHY'S WEIGHT LOSS JOURNAL

Kathy has been through more turmoil in the past two years than most

Imagine you are living your charmed, happily married life with all the hopes and dreams of a bright future when suddenly your spouse is taken from you. That's exactly what happened to a 48-year old Morgantown, WV woman named Kathy who obviously fell into a deep pit of depression after this happened in 2005 and started eating food to soothe her pain. But now she is seeking to lose the weight she has put on in an open personal forum with a rather blunt title--"Fatty Kathy's Weight Loss Journal." I'm personally cheering this emotionally fragile and precious woman to weight loss victory. It's her time to move on with her life.

4. MALE PATTERN FITNESS

Lou Schuler brings his vast fitness experience to YOU

When you've written several bestselling health books, been the former fitness editor of Men's Fitness magazine and the former fitness director of Men’s Health magazine as well as certified as a strength and conditioning specialist (C.S.C.S.) by the National Strength and Conditioning Association, then I'd say you have a lot of credibility to talk about the subject of diet and health with authority. That's exactly what you get from "Male Pattern Fitness" from the sometimes strange and quirky, but always entertaining Lou Schuler. He recently updated his site to make it very user-friendly and power-packed with health news you can use!

5. LIVING LEAN FOR LIFE

Cheryl is another blogger finding success on low-carb

Finally, the "Living Lean For Life" blog is run by a woman from Hickory, NC named Cheryl who proudly shares what her "#1 Diet Secret Weapon" is. She is yet another one of the many new low-carb dieters seeking to lose the weight and get in shape. You're gonna do GREAT, Cheryl! GO GET 'EM! :)

Do YOU have a brand new low-carb blog that you'd like for me to feature here at "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb?" and at my links blog. Then please e-mail me your URL and a brief description of what your blog is about at livinlowcarbman@charter.net.