There is a well known phenomenon called the “runner’s high”. Ask any running junkie and they’ll probably tell you more than you ever could have imaged or even wanted to know about how good it feels to be on a long run.  You may have found yourself looking at them incredulously as you remember the one time you decided to try jogging.  After spending $150 at Dick’s Sporting goods on shoes and various Lycra containing garments (which should only be worn by people who are able to pass a strict fitness test), you hit the streets.  You felt pretty good for the first 50 feet but then the pain hit.  It was at that point that you experienced a sensation you were pretty sure was a heart attack:  chest pain, check; profuse sweating, check; heavy breathing, double check.  Needless to say the run did not last long and the Lycra shorts ended up in the back of the closet which is fine because you couldn’t fit into them anyhow.  Continue reading “How to Get High On Exercise” →

In 1971, a 27-year-old, 456-pound man went to his local university department of medicine to get advice on how to lose weight.  Their response was startling but simple: stop eating altogether. While most people would look aghast and think the doctors were nuts, this guy was desperate enough to give it a try. His results over the ensuing weeks were so dramatic that he decided to prolong the fasting deprivation—for more than a year!  He ate nothing but vitamins, non-caloric fluids, and yeast for a whopping 382 days. He lost 276 pounds and gained himself a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records. What’s more, he did so with no ill health effects.  When the doctors checked back in on him five years later, he had gained back only about 15 pounds.

Continue reading “The Skinny on Intermittent Fasting” →