I remember the times when I was more concerned about how muscular I was than my athletic performance. I trained for 2+ hours a day lifting weights, never did any cardio, and had terrible eating habits. I jumped on the “fat is bad” bandwagon and only ate low or no-fat foods, plus I eventually bought into the hype that “all carbs make you fat” and avoided those as well. The extremes that I went to in my diet could be qualified as “disordered eating”, as timing my meals and worrying about the things I ate were affecting other aspects of my life (such as my social life). This type of eating allowed me to gain muscle, but I was chronically sick, fatigued, and had numerous injuries. I was also consuming 200+ grams of protein a day, mostly in powder form. I took massive amounts of pills ranging from NO (nitric oxide) to amino acids, and I was also stacking creatine, glutamine, and arginine religiously. I eventually gained 25 lbs of muscle over the course of a few years, which is about 30 lbs heavier than I am presently. Luckily I stayed away from steroids, but I had my fair share of accusations that I was on them. I had been bitten by the so-called “bodybuilding bug”, and I foolishly let my pursuit of size overshadow the development of my martial arts.
If I would have spent half the time I wasted gaining mass and used it to train my Karate, I’d probably be a black belt by now! If not a black belt, I’d at least be at a much higher skill level than I am currently. Luckily for me, I’ve rededicated myself to the martial arts and my own athletic performance. With my AthleanX training and Karate, I’m developing the kind of body that I never knew I wanted. I’m more concerned now with endurance and performance than trying to “get yoked” or whatever stupid term is used nowadays to describe the obsession of gaining mass. I’m in the greatest shape I’ve ever been, and I look much better at a toned 155 lbs than I ever did at 185 (at a relatively short 5′ 6″ height, 185 is pretty big). When some people see me now, the first comment they usually make is “Wow you’ve lost some size. Are you trying to get cut?” I usually start talking about martial arts or performance training instead, which usually causes me to lose their interest. The majority of the people I talk with aren’t interested in “functional” training, they just want to ask me how I got so big at one point and what to eat to gain weight. I wish someone would have slapped me in the face and told me to work on my Karate instead when I was younger and asking the same questions.
In 2006 the movie 300 was released in theaters, and with the rampant display of impressive physiques, I was motivated to train to look like King Leonidas. While researching the training methods for the actors, I stumbled across a website advertising a diet called the Spartan Health Regimen. It sounded interesting, and with a growing case of laconophilia I ordered the program and began reading the Spartan Health manual. I could go on for hours about everything I learned from the book, but basically it changed everything I thought I knew about nutrition. It introduced me to traditional diets that were made up of animal fats, full-fat dairy products, seafood, and even fermented or soaked foods. I began drinking raw milk, cooking with butter, and soaking the grains that I consumed regularly. 6 years later and I am still eating the same way, and I have never been healthier. In a typical day I usually drink about 3 glasses of raw milk, eat 4-8 eggs both cooked and raw, use 1-3 tbs of butter, and have some form of fermented beverage or food. My blood test always come back with everything in check, and I’m considered “low-risk” for heart disease, despite eating all the foods that supposedly cause high cholesterol and heart disease. If you have some time, check out this interview with the Spartan Health Regimen author and Spartan Warlord Anthony Bova:
http://www.trulyhuge.com/spartan-health-regime.html
Also check out this website I frequent that has many different recipes for a traditional diet:
http://www.freshhealthycooking.com/Nutrition_for_Athletes.html
Osu.
The Path of the Warrior 