Deep Breath Before The Plunge

[TheArtofHealth]

Hey ya'll,

I've been reading various threads and forums on here for a couple of weeks and decided to stop being so veuyeristic and join in the conversation. Some background: at 18 I started acting and decided to also begin transforming my body. Since then I fluctuated weight via lifting and diet from my high school 130 up to 150 by the time I started conservatory. I'm 6 ft tall and have always been extremely lean. I was able to eat anything and pretty much did until my 3rd year in school at age 21. I then decided to really "bulk" up and began over feeding daily and shot up to 170. By my 4th year I realized I'd gained too much body fat for the aesthetic that I wanted as an actor and did my first juice cleanse and adopted a vegan diet. I leaned out to 152 again and felt good with where my body was at. Fast forward to my first professional job as an actor a year out of school that required more mass than what I had and I incorporated intermittent fasting with carb cycling and got my weight up to 165 while maintaining 6-7% bf while putting some animal products back in. Shortly after I became severely depressed due to an emotionally traumatic event that resulted in 20 lbs of weight loss in 6 months and then a series of yo yo diets back into the Veganism for two years and then low carb paleo for a couple of months. This was also accompanied by obsessive year round cycling while getting back into weight training and rock climbing along with yoga. So, way over exercising while probably under feeding and certainly taking in a lot of grains and fats to meet protein requirements on my vegan diet.

Anyways, much like Danny Roddy's story, around November of 2015, I started noticing hair in my shower drain. This had never happened before and MPB wasn't something that had ever crossed my mind. My dad at 55 still has a head of hair, my mother's dad passed at 96 with a little bit of recession at the temples, and my dad's dad at 85 has only really lost it in the past 10 years. But then again, these three men also didn't consider things like stress or diet very strongly in their life times. This of course spurred much anxiety and stress being an actor. Along with that, I was living in a constant flux of anxiety and depression. My energy was taxed and my sex drive was relatively non existent as of January of this year. I ended up moving back in with my parents for almost 4 months to try and recooperate. During that time I lost all motivation to workout and found myself obsessing over my thinning hair. Friends and family couldn't notice, but they also weren't having to pay attention to how I look in detail on camera. It's generally thinner on the top and sides of forehead, but only noticeable if I try to part it in a crew cut style like I've done for most of my adult life. I now just leave it alone and am letting it grow out longer as I've always wanted to do this and this has become an antithetical goal in the face of the distressing event of loosing some. Hours of research led me to Hair Like a Fox and now to Ray Peat. So much lines up for me: my waking temperature since starting to monitor for the past two weeks hasn't broken 97 and is often in the 95s. I rarely hit 98.6, much less higher. My pulse is also often below 50 upon rising. The thin and brittle hair that I was loosing, the low energy, the plummets in overall mood and ambition, the low sex drive. It all points to my hormones being way out of whack.

So, I got a copy of "The Peat Whisperer" and read this along with more of Danny's work. I know this isn't about following a "diet" to the "t" but I needed some sort of jumping off point to apply the science I hardly understand. My fridge is stocked with eggs, milk, OJ, coconut oil, cottage cheese, watermelon, and icecream. I also read Matt Stone's work a week ago and shattered my dietary past dogma and ate as much salt and sugary food as I wanted. I've felt more energized than I have in months and even got into the gym yesterday for the first time and had a solid simple compound movement weight lifting workout. I also had sex and was actually able to go a second round, which hasn't happened in perhaps a year.

I know this is a lot of information, but context seems important in approaching these things. Basically my hope is to feel like a happy healthy 26 year old and not someone who's already run down in life. Of course I want to grow out a full head of healthy blonde hair, and build up the strength and body I achieved before (part of my work is my look, after all) but I want to also regain the hope and joy I had two years ago. I have not yet gone in for blood work or labs, as I'm trying to move into all of this slowly. I have a tendency towards extremity and with all the amazing detail and science I've found so far, I can see how easily I could become sucked into obsession. I also truly have faith in my body. It was a strong, healthy, and happy one before, and I am hoping that with specificity and dedication, I can restore it to such by natural means. I've always been wary of medication and even supplements.

What this lacks in brevity, I hope makes up for in earnest enthusiasm and gratitude to jump in amongst people who are so dedicated to living the fullest and healthiest lives possible by exploratory means. Any recommendations to threads or people who might have similar experiences and more answers for what worked for them in regards to hair health in particular is of much interest. However, I recognize that this is about the body as a whole and a process, not a quick fix for a symptom.

Many thanks in advance for the discourse.

 

[tara]

TheArtofHealth

I've felt more energized than I have in months

Yay.

Of course I want to grow out a full head of healthy blonde hair, and build up the strength and body I achieved before (part of my work is my look, after all) but I want to also regain the hope and joy I had two years ago.

I won't make any guarantees about restoring your previous shape, but I expect that you can make big improvements in health and well-being.

My fridge is stocked with eggs, milk, OJ, coconut oil, cottage cheese, watermelon, and icecream.

Have you had a go at running your typical current diet through cronometer or similar to assess how much you are getting of basic nutrients?

 

[TheArtofHealth]

Thank you Tara!

I'm a pretty ambitious and optimistic person, so while I know no one can guarantee anything, I'm shooting big here

Yes, I've put the last two days through Cronometer (started Monday) and so far protein has been at least 100-400g, carbs have been 225-400g, fat has been 150-170g, and PUFA hasn't exceeded 12g. On both days I've been deficient in Fiber, Vitamin D, K, and E. And yesterday there was way more Phosphorous than Calcium. Any recommendations on balancing out those numbers? As of now, I seem to have all the "right foods" but the ratios and such are a bit tricky to manage.

Also observation wise, I've noticed way more dandruff and hairs in the brush... Coming from a "health" background, my knee jerk reaction is against the lack of vegetables, water, and increased consumption of sugar and dairy. But also, I'm only two days in going this far into a Peat based diet. Temperature was 96 upon waking today and has been rising after a strong session in the gym, so those are good signs!

Glad to be here!

 

[thebigpeatowski]

I'm a pretty ambitious and optimistic person, so while I know no one can guarantee anything, I'm shooting big here

Shooting Big is required for true healing.

Your body wants to heal.

Believe in yourself.

Mind is the Master power that moulds and makes,
And Man is Mind, and evermore he takes
The tool of Thought, and, shaping what he wills,
Brings forth a thousand joys, a thousand ills: —
He thinks in secret, and it comes to pass:
Environment is but his looking-glass.


p.s. Perhaps vitamin A for dandruff....so glad you're here!!!

 

[tara]

Yes, I've put the last two days through Cronometer (started Monday) and so far protein has been at least 100-400g, carbs have been 225-400g, fat has been 150-170g, and PUFA hasn't exceeded 12g. On both days I've been deficient in Fiber, Vitamin D, K, and E. And yesterday there was way more Phosphorous than Calcium. Any recommendations on balancing out those numbers? As of now, I seem to have all the "right foods" but the ratios and such are a bit tricky to manage.

If you can't get enough calcium from milk and greens etc, some here supplement eggshell powder (Peat's recommendation for the likely cleanest source).

I'd aim for always getting more carbs than protein at a feeding - optimum ratios may vary, but at least 2:1, maybe as much as 6:1.

Fibre needs seem to vary - some do well with very little, others seem to do better with more. Peat recommends the raw carrot salad or cooked bamboo shoots or boiled mushrooms as useful forms. ONe of the potential benefits of fibre is that it can help pick up and carry away bile-bound estrogen before it gets reabsorbed - so it can help with hormone balance for some of us.

The vit D you synthesise yourself with sun-exposure can be useful.

Leafy greens (incl stock) and liver can both by useful sources of vit-K. Some of us supplement it, too, Peat recommends getting a good amount (eg 1mg) if taking aspirin regularly.

You may have noticed some of supplement with Haidut's Estroban, which has a reasonable maintenance balance of A,D,E,K. Some people get benefit from higher amounts of particular one's - eg extra vit A seems to be relevant for some people for skin issues - and as TBP says, maybe dandruff. Liver is a good source of vit-A too. Peat has suggested 4-6 oz/week.

Some of us try to get the PUFA down lower than that - but it can take a while to change habits.

I'm shooting big here

I'm in favour of shooting big. Aiming at a specific past appearance isn't the only way to aim high. :)

 

[TheArtofHealth]

Tara and Peatowski, thank you for the responses. Peatowski, what you said resonates so deeply with me. I totally agree that the body WANTS to be at optimal health. And that at the end of the day, it's all about mind. I'm working to address the mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects as well, but it feels that drastically raising the baseline of my energy and overall vitality will assist greatly.

I hadn't seen/ heard of much vegetable consumption on a Peat style menu, but I will more than happily throw spinach and kale back into my mix! I feel like I read that it's best to cook these, so perhaps in a bit of garlic with butter and salt will go nicely with my animal proteins during the day. Any advice on carb sources? I feel pretty limited right now with fruit as the main source.

I am a huge fan of mushrooms, so I'll happily add those in for some fiber. Clear the estrogen out, say I! Any advice on when it might most beneficial to toss that in during the day? Or with what foods?

Been skipping the moisturizer with sun block and tipping my face up when walking about the city (NYC). Some days I'll go and do a bit of shirtless sun bathing in the park for about 20 minutes. However, come fall and winter, I'm thinking a supplement might be in order...

I had my first helping of liver this week and am looking forward to my second one on Saturday. However, I don't suspect it's a lack of Vitman A as I'm always at least 200% or more DV on Cronometer... I'm hesitant with supplements simply because I seem to be mostly getting everything from food and feel confident in adjusting diet as needed to fill in the gaps. Unless it's the Vitamin D in winter, as previously mentioned, I'd much rather source it from what I eat. That's also kinder on the wallet long term, I find.

You're also very correct Tara, I'm not shooting only for a past appearance, but a new awareness and gratitude for health and beauty that I didn't have when that had simply been my mode of operation and an expanded sensitivity towards those that do not live in those conditions. I also know that the growth that'll continue to accumulate along this journey will simply highlight any sort of aesthetic beyond what initially meets the eye.

Thanks for the responses!

 

[tara]

I hadn't seen/ heard of much vegetable consumption on a Peat style menu, but I will more than happily throw spinach and kale back into my mix! I feel like I read that it's best to cook these, so perhaps in a bit of garlic with butter and salt will go nicely with my animal proteins during the day.

There are different interpretations of that - there are threads discussing it. My interpretation is that he is not in favour of very large amounts of greens, or of eating them raw or undercooked, but that appropriately used they can be a good source of magnesium, and have a good calcium: phosphorus ratio. If they are fertilised with nitrates, that's a down side, so if you can get organic that may be better. He favours boiling well to neutralise goitrogens, and has suggested drinking the broth as maybe more useful than eating the solids. I think some people counter the high oxalic acid in some greens with a bit of baking soda in the cooking water.
Personally I eat the broth and the solids of some greens in my soup most days, mostly varying between spinach, kale, and beet greens, because that's what I can get easily.