THE ROULETTE DIET: DON’T GAMBLE ON YOUR NUTRITION

 

As I continue to navigate the nutritional space and pick up bits and pieces along the way, I continue to refine my own approach and implement lessons learned to further perpetuate success.  That’s what I have done most recently in my current phase of training, focusing on leaning out and improving insulin sensitivity while prioritizing maintaining muscle and strength in preparation for a strongman competition.  I’ve dropped 4 kilograms (8.8lbs) of bodyweight in 9.5 weeks, and during such time my front squat has increased from 2x315 to 2x325 and my log clean and press has gone up from 3x200 to 3x215 and 1x220.  I’ve also observed steady increases in my ability to load the stone of steel and power keg, I’ve increased daily chins/dips, and improved my ability on prowler sprints, so just general physical improvements across the board WHILE dropping bodyweight and getting leaner WITHOUT experiencing hunger.  This is a winning combination, because it ensures continued perpetual compliance/sustainability, which are the keys to successful nutritional protocols.  So let’s explore what I am now referring to as “The Roulette Diet”: because everything needs a catchy name.

 

WHY THE NAME “ROULETTE DIET”?

Because "The Craps Diet" sounds more like something for IBS

The name derives from the colors on a roulette wheel: red, black, and green.  That’s because this is a further refinement of what I previously wrote as the “Red Meat/Black Coffee” diet, specifically because I realized that the name was ignoring the “Green” portion of the diet which, though it occurred less frequently than the red and black portions, was STILL a crucial part of the whole process. 

 

WHAT ARE THE COLORS?

Thankfully it's a bit more streamlined than this

Simple enough:

·       Red=Red Meat

·       Black=Black Coffee

·       Green=Meal with carbohydrate

If it makes it even easier, you can think of Green to mean “Greens” to represent a meal where you eat plants, but it’s not restricted to JUST “greens”: all plants are on the table (to include honey).

 

SELLING POINTS

Just when you thought I couldn't get any dumber...

·       No calorie/macro tracking/counting.

·       No hunger.

·       Continued athletic performance improvement.

·       Ability to include all foods (still no alcohol).

 

WHAT TOOLS ARE BEING USED?

And are they being used correctly?

·       Intermittent fasting: 1-2 meals a day, no snacks.

·       “Carnivore Diet”: Elimination diet with no plants consumed, emphasis on ruminant animals/red meat.

·       Ketosis: Low carbohydrate intake, fat and protein modular based on needs.

·       Cyclical Ketogenic Diet: Introduction of a carbohydrate meal to intentionally break/re-start ketosis.  Promotes metabolic flexibility.

·       Coffee/caffeine: Stimulants and polyphenols.

 

WHY THESE TOOLS?

Because success leaves clues...

·       Intermittent fasting:

o   Energy intake control mechanism that obviates need to monitoring/tracking intake.  By reducing the window of time one CAN eat, one typically reduces the amount that one eats.  Many Americans are the victim of a “death by 1000 cuts” nutritionally.  It’s not one big meal a day that does them in: it’s the constant snacking, nibbling, grazing, etc on hyperpalatable/non-satiating junk, before going on to engage in their ritualistic 3 meals per day irrespective of actual hunger levels (“I’m eating lunch because it’s lunchtime, even though I had a big breakfast in the morning and then 3 donuts in the breakroom at 0900”).

o   Reported benefits of improving insulin sensitivity, blood sugar, blood insulin, etc.  By reducing the frequency of eating, we reduce the frequency of blood sugar spikes and corresponding insulin response, which allows our bodies to develop insulin sensitivity.

o   Rests digestion.  For those that are coming from a period of heavy/frequent eating, reducing the frequency gives the guts a chance to rest and recover and redevelop the mucus lining.

o   Easy tool to leverage, especially for those inclined toward extremes.  You don’t need to eat less or more food at each meal: you just adjust how many days you have 1 meal vs 2 meals.

·        Carnivore diet:

o   Nutritional intervention: a carnivore diet is an “elimination diet”, which removes all processed foods (among others) from the diet, resulting in reduced systemic inflammation and the removal of any foods that could be triggering an autoimmune/histamine response.

o   With intermittent fasting driving the meal frequency, often resulting in 1 meal a day, in order to get the necessary protein intake to maintain/grow muscle, it’s necessary to emphasize protein intake.  With a carnivore approach, specifically premised around red meat, all food consumed will contain protein, and it’s possible within the realm of a single meal to reach one’s protein goal as there is no plant matter to occupy stomach space that could be allocated toward protein.  This also tends to allow one to eat to satiety without concern of overeating: it’s honestly just plain HARD to overeat ONE meal of meat and eggs, no matter how big a fan of it you are.  Because if you DO somehow manage to do so, you tend to feel so satiated from it you genuinely don’t want to eat again for quite a while.

o   High protein and high fat intake lends well to satiety, which helps perpetuate the intermittent fasting.  Intermittent fasting with a mixed diet that includes carbohydrates tends to result in a blood sugar spike, followed by a crash, which creates an “energy crisis” wherein we seek sugar to replenish energy.  This requires “white knuckling” through the fast until we FINALLY get to eat, which can result in us outeating whatever benefits we got from the fasting as far as energy restriction goes.  Keeping the nutrition carnivore results in a steady/sustainable energy level.

o   Red meat specifically emphasized due to ability of ruminant animals to better filter the toxins out of their food sources compared to monogastric animals, which tends to result in superior Omega 3/6 ratios and micronutrient profiles.  Whole eggs from pastured chickens are also acceptable for similar reasons.

·       Ketogenic diet:

o   Nutritional intervention.  Many people suffer from metabolic syndrome, often the product of a “broken carbohydrate metabolism” wherein they’ve lost the ability to effectively utilize fats as a fuel source and can ONLY burn carbs for fuel.  This, paired with low insulin sensitivity, results in overconsumption of carbs to satiate energy hunger, resulting in a negative feedback loop via the Randel Cycle.  A ketogenic diet forces the body to transition to fats as a fuel source due to the absence of carbs as a fuel source.

o   Puts the body in a state wherein it is producing ketones and relying on them as a fuel source, alongside fat (dietary and bodyfat).  This continues to perpetuate the “no hunger” angle of the diet that was started by eating in a carnivore manner.  We have FAR more stores of fat on our body than we do carbs, so putting us in a state where we’ve transitioned away from carbs as our primary fuel source allows us to rely on a sustainable fuel source that doesn’t put us in an “energy crisis” and, quite possibly, strips fat off our body.

o   This tends to be the natural outcome of complying with a carnivore diet.  Without counting/tracking macros and specifically attempting to employ a 2:1 or greater ration of fats to protein, the state of ketosis will most likely be “shallower” than an intentional ketogenic diet, but still present.

o   “Double fasting effect”: ketogenic diets are “fasting mimicking”, as is intermittent fasting, yet we’re never actually in a sustained/prolonged fast such that we deprive the body if necessary protein to sustain/build muscle

·       Cyclical Ketogenic Diet (by way of weekly carbohydrate meal):

o   Metabolic Flexibility: the ability to seamlessly transition between the fuel sources of carbohydrates and fats depending on availability.  The majority of the population is carbohydrate dependent and lost the ability to effectively metabolize fats, but we don’t want to cause the reverse issue by only knowing how to metabolize fats.  By inclusion of a cyclical ketogenic diet by way of a weekly carbohydrate meal, we allow the body to maintain it’s ability to utilize carbohydrates as a fuel source through regular controlled introduction of carbs.

o   Many individuals report issues with long term sustained ketosis/carnivore dieting in terms of hormonal health (thyroid, testosterone, cortisol, etc), electrolytes, blood glucose, etc.  If there is a concern with that, a cyclical ketogenic approach can obviate some of these issues through the inclusion of controlled carbohydrate intake to help reset levels.

o   With fasting being a stressor on the body, this break from fasting can help regulate cortisol levels, especially so given carbohydrates role in controlling cortisol.

o   Inclusion of a carbohydrate meal can help with sustainability/compliance.  There is no restriction/denial on the diet.  All foods are available: there is just a restriction insomuch as frequency is concerned.  Also promotes sustainability by allowing the diet to account for social situations.

·       Coffee:

o   During fasting periods, inclusion of coffee allows for easier compliance.  Caffeine is a known appetite suppressant, and a warm beverage is filling/satiating in and of itself.

o   Coffee has a variety of reported health benefits, to include polyphenols, a trace amount of fiber, associations with longevity, etc.

o   Allows for social elements during periods of fasting.  Can still go out for coffee with friends/peers.

o   Vehicle for electrolytes, which are necessary for athletes on restricted carbohydrate diets.

o   CAN be overdone.  Those that are caffeine sensitive should consider employment of decaf.  Also worth noting that caffeine is known to increase cortisol, which fasting does as well, so stacking them on top of each other can get a bit worrisome.

 

THE STRUCTURE: HOW IT ALL WORKS TOGETHER

Sometimes that's all the explanation we need

When you look at a roulette wheel, it’s got 18 red spaces, 18 black spaces, and 2 green.  This is a representation of frequency as it relate to when we’re having Red Meat, Black Coffee, and “Green Meals”.  It’s not 1 for 1 as far as frequency goes, as any gambler can tell you that there are some days at the table where it seems like you’re always coming up red or always coming up black, but green is definitely a rare feature.

 

·       When the goal is fat loss, 4 1-meal days and 3-2 meal days are the sweet spot.  My preference is Mon and Tues as 1 meal days, Weds (heaviest training day of the week) as 2 meal, Thurs and Fri as 1 meal, Weekend as 2 meals.  Yet again I emphasize that this is NOT “white knuckling”.  The more I fast, the more I LIKE fasting and am inclined toward it. 

 

·       If I’m trying to build muscle, I like 2 days per week with 1 meal (Tues and Thurs, non-lifting days), and the rest as 2 meal days. 

 

·       No set structure for when the meals fall.  My preference is 1 meal days have an evening meal and 2 meal days have a morning and evening meal, but there is flexibility here.  You’re eating based on HUNGER ultimately: not time.  In turn, this also means eating until I’m not hungry. 

 

·       On the above, I have found success during fat loss periods by heavily emphasizing protein compared to fats.  I specifically accomplish this by eating more egg whites and fewer whole eggs.  When I’m gaining, I like a ratio of 5 egg whites to 3 whole eggs, consumed at each meal.  During periods of fat loss, on single meal days, I’ll have 10 egg whites and 1 whole egg.  On the 2 meal days, I’ll do a 5/3 ratio for 1 meal, and 5/1 for the second.  This is consumed in ADDITION to red meat: not in place of it.

 

·       When not eating, coffee is on the menu.  I am a “caffeine non-responder”, and can drink it all day if I want to, but I still try to keep it reasonable. 

 

·       My “Green Meal” is Sunday evening.  Don’t get into the idea that this is a “cheat meal”: it’s absolutely part of the plan.  In turn, don’t turn this into a binge.  It’s not the “rampage meal” that Jamie Lewis wrote about in the Apex Predator diet: this is far more akin to the carb meal that Vince Gironda wrote about in the “Maximum Definition Diet”.  Key difference (for me) is that it’s not a PURE carbohydrate meal.  It’s a meal that INCLUDES carbs.  Fats and protein are still permittable.  For my run of this, the meal was typically pizza made on a homemade sourdough crust along with some sourdough cookies/baked goods with some raw local honey.  Do yourself a favor and make this meal a QUALITY meal rather than junkfood binge, for the sake of your guts.

 

·       Having the meal on Sunday evening allows for me to train on Monday morning and make use of consumed carbohydrates as a fuel source, which continues to promote metabolic flexibility.

 

·       It’s worth appreciating that, though I don’t consider it a meal or snack, before bed, I DO consume a 170g serving of full fat skyr or Greek yogurt mixed with 1 scoop of Metabolic Drive protein powder.  The primary function of this is a means to introduce calcium and bacteria cultures to the guts and provide some protein while I sleep/recover before my morning training session.  The full fat and minimal carbs tends to mean there’s no sugar spike while I sleep, and this is part of my nighttime sleep ritual.  I think it’s a worthwhile addition, and, if it helps with reconciling “the diet”, consider it within the “fasting window” of the evening meal and you’re set.

 

IN SUMMARY

In case the instructions were unclear, here's the infographic

The “Roulette Diet” is a combination of Intermittent Fasting and a Cyclical Ketogenic diet based around carnivore foods and black coffee.  It can be modulated to support fat loss or muscle building.  It requires no counting/tracking of calories or macros nor “white knuckling” through hunger: fasting frequency is the tool that is leveraged to account for goals.