April's Challenge, Fat is the Preferred Energy Source

The color egg yolks should be deep orange

One of the beautiful aspects of Primal living is the switch in the paradigm of the body's preferred source of fuel. It is not carbohydrates it is fat. The body loves to burn fat for fuel. The heart and brain thrive on ketons which are produced by the body when we eat fat and protein. Yes, the brain needs some glucose. The liver is able to create enough of this to supply the brain with it's minimal need for glucose. For most of it's energy source the brain prefers ketons. This energy source is long lasting and there is ample supplies of it on our bodies. This reassures the energy hogging brain it will have all the energy it needs to thrive. It quiets down. Fat is clean burning, long lasting and stable source of energy and nutrients the body needs to function. The fat I am talking about is natural fats, animal fats, butter, full fat dairy, eggs, beef, pork, fish, lard, olive oil, avocadoes, nuts and seeds, foods our ancestors would have recognized and known what they were hundreds of years ago. 

What do I mean by clean burning energy? When the body breaks down nutrients to use an inevitable side effect is oxidative stress, free radicles are created. A part of the process no way around it. Different foods create differing amounts of free radicles. Sugars, carbohydrates, hydrogenated oils, these cause significant amounts of oxidative stress. We need more antioxidants then to clean up these free radicles. However, when we eat protein and healthy fats like I mentioned above, there is significantly less free radicles created in the break down processes. The body is able to more readily clean up after itself when fat is the primary source of fuel. We need less antioxidants to clean up after eating. Instead of putting those precious antioxidants to use cleaning up from our food choices, the body is able to put those to use in other ways protecting us from other damage, chemicals, toxins, stress. 

Another reason we prioritize fat for fuel is the amount of energy availed in fat. It is stable, fat doesn't disturbed our insulin creating peaks and valleys, high and low levels of insulin. This peak and valley in insulin leads to crashes in energy levels. With fat and protein insulin remains stable. Stable insulin relates to higher, consistent energy levels, fewer energy crashes, better mood, greater focus and higher quality sleep. 

For  endurance athletes, you know bonking all to well. When your body is able to burn fat for fuel and you are able to dig into your body's fat stores, you have abundant energy available to you. You become virtually bonk proof.  

Your body has to come back to it's God given natural state of being able to burn fat for fuel. Your mitochondria, the power plants of your cells, where your energy is produced, they have to readapt to burning fat. When you eat sugar and carbs as your energy source, your body changes at a chemical, cellular, physiological level. It has to relearn how to be a fat burner. Once it has gone through this period of time, around 21 days, you are on your way to better health, effortless weight loss or weight maintenance, stable moods, better sleep, mental health improvements and so much more.

The benefits of burning fat for fuel are endless, You have more bang for your buck when eating fat, there is a lot of energy in fat. It helps keep stable insulin levels leading to increased energy and more stable moods. It tastes amazing! How could eating a steak dripping in butter not be one of those most amazing things to eat?! 

Where your mitochondria goes your health goes. 

All my best

Jen