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Dried cranberries give it a slightly sweeter flavour but you don't need lots to make a difference, so my guess is that the snack is still very high in fat and low in carb. I soaked the meat in brown vinegar but did not add any spices before drying so it was quite bland after drying. Then added regular biltong spice, salt, pepper, etc for flavour at the same time as mixing with the fat.

I tried making it, but could not find a fat that was sufficiently hard out of the fridge to hold it's shape in the form of a bar, so it sort of became a sloppy, oily mess Had thought of trying it again in winter when ambient temps are a bit lower. recipe here: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/how-to-make-pemmican/#axzz335BC0PrG I dried the meat in a biltong maker, then shredded it with a blender. The drier the meat is the easier it is to shred. Also added some cranberries and spices for flavour. Let us know if you get it right

Looks like there may be some diet/exercise studies on the way .... http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/early/2014/05/26/bjsports-2014-093824.extract

Yup, is very much a LCHF based approach .... would I recommend anything else?? Very important to note that this 'non-sat fats' approach is only for the first few weeks to kick start weight loss. Its NOT a long term feature of his diet. Please understand that I'm not in any way suggesting that Sat fats are bad for you ... if you can loose weight / be healthy with lots of Sat-fats in your diet, that is first prize. This approach worked for me when I plateaued far above my ideal weight and helped kick start the process again. Now that I'm where I want to be, I have lots more sat fats in my diet and all is well At the end of the day it's a very similar approach to the Spanish Keto diet study that was done some time back (good results, but a very small sample size). http://www.nutritionj.com/content/7/1/30

I got the the idea for limiting Sat fats from reading Ron Rosedale's Diet book. His focus is on leptin and controlling / kick starting it. Seemed logical and worked for me In Chapter 6 he states:

perhaps try these (woolworths and PnP both stock them). just right amount for a quick snack, add your own olive oil. http://www.woolworths.co.za/store/fragments/product-details/product-details-index.jsp?productId=5000171033987&_requestid=316932 Screen Shot 2014-05-22 at 12.35.59 PM.PDF

All the time. Favourites (in order) Health related stuff Primal Blueprint -Mark Sisson Living la vida low carb - jimmy moore fat burning man - Abel James bullet proof radio - by the bullet proof coffee guy ... i forget his name ask the low carb experts - jimmy moore. this seems to have come to an end late last year but there is still good info in the archives. You can also try Chris Kresser's revolution health radio but I find it a bit dry Vinnie Totorich's Angry trainer - has interesting guests but way to much bs, padding, swearing for my liking Other general interest stuff .... Comedy Nic Rabinowitz on radio 702's 'week that wasn't NPR's wait wait don't tell me, Tech stuff Macworld, MacPowerusers TechHive's clockwise It's not hard to subscribe or manage these things nowadays. very, very simple if you have iPhone / iPod / iPad (get the free podcasts app) or iTunes on a computer , slightly less simple with Android but still do-able.

No 'beef' ...... BUT ..... if you want to kick start weight loss (which was the request from the OP), I believe that limiting sat fats for a while will help in a big way.

No, that's called hungover

Not sure - right out of my depth here It seems to me that thyroid and lchf are often spoken about in the same context - my impression was that lchf was supposed to be good for low thyroid issues, but never really explored it fully. i remember reading some stuff by Anthony Colpo on why lchf and thyroid don't mix - google him, but be warned his attitude is extremely condescending towards anyone who disagrees with his view and blog language is not for the feint hearted. Chris Kresser is the other end of the spectrum - uses lchf to control hashimotos

Yes. Or direct from Crede http://www.credeoils.com/shop/food-oils/coconut-oil/

Some thoughts for you ... First, if you are a reader, I suggest you look at Jenny Ruhl's book "Diet 101 - the truth about low carb diets" She deals with why they sometimes fail. My take on your 'situation' is like this 1. we know that to loose body fat (which is different to weight) we need to get our bodies to burn (saturated) stored fat. 2. your body does not really mind where the saturated fat comes from, either diet or stored, but it will use dietary saturated fat first. 3. on top of this, if you are taking any carbs, the body will use those first and ignore the fats. This is really important because you may find that you are very carb intolerant and those small chocolates, etc are turning off your fat burning genes. 4. it sounds like you're maintaining your weight, and what is good is that you find it enjoyable, so it should be sustainable. It may be one item in your diet that is giving you grief, it may be a combination. The only way to know is a very restricted diet for a short period, see the effect, and then start adding things back So, I would try the following for 2 weeks and see if there is an effect. 1. limit all carbs to very low levels (<50g per day and only from leafy green plant sources). obviously this means no choccies, etc. 2. limit dairy to just a few grams per day, perhaps try coconut cream in your coffee. and if you have to have cheese, stick to the hard parmesan type. 3. talking of coffee, limit to 2 espressos per day. 4. no alcohol - it may be good for the heart, but not good for weight loss 5. eat whole meals, 2 or three per day and stop snacking in between. Last meal at least 4 hrs before bed-time (not always easy) 6. Limit saturated fats (with the exception of coconut products), rather go for mono fats (olive oil, etc) 7. eat lots of fish, salads, olive oil (minimum 20ml per day - take medicinally if you have to) green veggies, coconut products, avo's, and lean cuts of meat. I realise the lean cuts of meat sounds weird, but remember that you are trying to limit dietary saturated fat to get the body to burn your own. 8. keep protein to about 2 portions per day, each portion about the size of your palm (maybe 3 portions if riding epic that week!) ... no more chowing down on biltong all day long! 9. try to get at least 2 tablespoons of coconut oil per day in your diet - it speeds ketone production and satisfies hunger. 10. eat till you are full. DONT go hungry - its not sustainable. 11. for this period try to stick to moderate exercise on water alone. If not possible then take your Gu in the period 30min after starting exercise and 30min before ending exercise. What you are trying to do is get your body into a truly fat burning state by limiting other sources of fuel. I realise it's draconian, but you did ask for options and it's for a short period just to see the effects. What should happen is that you enter a state of mild ketosis and your body will start burning fat. And yes, a small amount of chocolate - especially at night - WILL derail this process because of the effect they have on blood glucose / insulin. If you are an analytical type, get a blood glucose meter and see the effect that foods have on your blood sugar. There is a correlation between blood sugar and ketones which is useful seeing as measuring blood ketones has become ridiculously expensive lately. I know that when I keep blood sugar levels under 4.8, then I loose weight reliably - your level will be different. If you develop halitosis or constipation, cut down on the protein, especially eggs, and increase salt & olive oil intake. Lastly, if you go this route and nothing changes, then you may have adrenal issues (thyroid) that are messing with your metabolism.

Listen for yourself ... http://www.capetalk.co.za/pages/podcast/podcasts.asp look about 10 lines down the list

how long is a piece of string? Seriously, it depends on MANY things, but the most important of these is are you referring to the start of a diet or after some time on it? Much of the weight loss in the initial week to 10 days is water loss as a result of the associated glycogen loss in the liver. You could get 1-4kgs in that first week alone, but then it should slow down.

I wonder if some folk are not trying to take this too far when it comes to hydration? While there have been plenty of anecdotal stories of people training for hours on very little water, I firmly believe that you can go longer on less food - when exercising aerobically - but you still need water. Perhaps not gallons and gallons, but hydration is critical. Perhaps they just got the wrong message?

Yup, smart words. Also I wonder how many riders at Sani are following some sort of Banting/Noakes/lchf diet .... my gut feel is that it's more than half, just based on conversations around the dinner tables each night. We had entry to the Nedbank hospitality tent and I noticed that there has been a distinct shift from beers to wine for many folk.

Nearly had another heart attack this morning Thought I would try another n=1 experiment and needed some ketone test strips, so popped in at M-kem in Bellville to get some. I use the blood strips for the Xceed meter. For the last 2 years have always paid around R120-140 for a box of 10, so not cheap but bearable .... this morning they are priced at R429 for 10!! So, I enquired from the manager on duty if it might be a simple pricing mistake? ... get told "that's the right price, the supplier has put the prices up" Supercharged inflation!! Seems Abbott health care has seen the recent interest in Banting / ketones and taken full advantage - bastards. I use them for experiments, but can you imagine how pi$$ed the diabetics and folk who have to have them will be.

Well done. Did you notice the food at McKensie this year? Avos, olive oil, spinach salad, cold meats .... bacon and egg for breakfast .... perhaps the farmers are on the Banting bandwagon? Also cream available at Jolivet breakfast

Well done. Did you notice the food at McKensie this year? Avos, olive oil, spinach salad, cold meats .... bacon and egg for breakfast .... perhaps the farmers are on the Banting bandwagon? Also cream available at Jolivet breakfast

Yup, am aware that you've been tinkering with this for a while and certainly NOT suggesting that your way is wrong ... just trying to figure out the logic behind carbo loading. I think I was trying to say something similar to the extract you posted - Cordain is just more eloquent - "recognition that the consumption of sugars and starches was necessary and useful only during exercise and in the post exercise period"

Another really quick desert option .... One tin coconut cream - chilled 250ml fresh cream 1-2 teaspoons Nomu skinny hot chocolate powder Put in blender together and whip together till it forms a mousse .... just watch it carefully as the consistency changes quite quickly once it starts to form. Very important that the bowl and ingredients are COLD ... otherwise the coconut cream won't whip nicely. Serve in wine glasses with grated dark chocolate on top

On the question of carbo loading .... are we not possibly missing something here? The logic behind using LCHF as a fuelling strategy is to train our bodies to use fat for fuel ... but ... 1. We know that we need glucose when exercising in an anaerobic state (roughly 80% HRmax or more). 2. We know that being fat adapted reduces the requirement for glucose during exercise, and, 3. We know that taking carbs when not exercising reduces the body's ability to burn fat. So ... why reduce the bodies ability to burn fat in the days before we want to make most use of this fat burning advantage? Surely it makes more sense to take those carb only when needed? What I am suggesting is that you stick with LCHF right up until 30min before you start the race, then start taking your carbs and continue for the duration of the exercise/race. Surely even a heavily fat adapted person would have enough glucose stored for the first half hour of exercise? Or am I missing something here?

Yup doing it. We're with the Trail event this year, so going to be a fairly sedate 3 days methinks

I think it depends on how hard you plan to race ... if you're anaerobic from the start, then you're going to need gels, high GI stuff, etc. If you're predominantly aerobic AND fat adapted, then much less carbs will do ... perhaps almost none depending on your fitness. We normally start slowly each day, going harder and harder as the day progresses. With this plan, the eating strategy that works for me is water for first 1.5-2hrs, then continuously nibble on salted cashews for the rest and possibly add some potatoes or other carb from a feed station. The harder I go the more carb I eat, but never eat carbs in the first hour (makes me feel sluggish). I generally try to stick to real foods, but have used Ucan successfully; just be aware that it takes 20-30 min to have an effect. After the crucial recovery beer, it's easy to stick to LCHF at Sani - plenty of salads and meat and butter around. Take some macadamia nuts for afternoon / evening snacks & cash for glass of red or two. Mornings can be a challenge if you need to eat before riding. I stick to coffee before a race, but YMMV. Which event are you doing?

Interesting post. There seems to be the perception out there that lchf lifestyle is good only if you want to go long and slow, so nice to hear an n=1 where that is not the case.