Authors note: BOLDANDDETERMINED.com will never link to a science study to verify and validate our opinion. The below article will clearly explain our views on traditional science. Each opinion stated herein can undoubtedly be simultaneously verified and debunked by science. We don’t care. We value our own judgement and we trust you to do the same.
Science is Man’s law. Man is not infallible. Man is never impartial. Man always has an agenda or is paid by someone who does have an agenda. Science is not 100% because it is biased in favor of the researcher. Even if science was 100% correct the interpretation of that science is up to the writer who will have an agenda of his own. Science cannot be trusted. The only thing that can be trusted is your own instinct. Not your mom’s instinct, not your friends instinct, not a writers instinct but your own.
A Lion follows his instinct and eats the same foods over and over again. A Lion understands that everything it needs is in these same foods. It does not need a researcher to tell it what vitamins and minerals it needs and what “super-foods” to obtain them from. A Lion does not need variety or moderation in its food choices. What will mainstream science tell us? It will tell us we need a huge variety of foods to obtain all the necessary vitamins and minerals. At the same time science will tell us to only eat foods (especially foods high in saturated fat) in moderation. This goes against all of man’s natural instincts. Instinct tells Man to eat animal foods high in saturated fat. When these foods are unavailable (again, usually the same animals over and over) instinct will tell us to eat vegetables to stave off starvation until fatty meat can be had again. All men notoriously love red meat, bacon, butter and other fatty foods. Because these are foods that men need. In the history of the world there has never been an emasculated man who ate red meat, bacon, and butter daily. The emasculated man eats soy, tofu, vegetables, grains and light fish - all of which science says are great. All children notoriously hate vegetables. What does most science say? Don’t eat a lot of meat or fat, eat a lot of vegetables and fruits and whole grains. This very obviously goes against our nature. Science will tell us that cholesterol is bad and will kill us. This goes against what our instinct is driving us to eat. Not to mention that even science has debunked the stupid cholesterol myth.
Science will say that jogging and eating low fat is a great way to get and stay in shape. Not so. All it takes is a pair of eyes and a willingness to look beyond the standard dogma to see that people who run to stay in shape and eat low-fat always have terrible bodies and even look sickly a lot of the time. Take a look at the Men who are in excellent shape, especially older men who have been in terrific shape for a number of years, and you will see two things in common: they rarely, if ever, do any cardio and they do not limit their fat intake. They lift weights and eat steaks. You may be saying to yourself “well bodybuilders have excellent bodies and they barely eat any fat!”. And you would be right. What you aren’t taking into consideration is their use of synthetic testosterone. You see, fat and cholesterol are essential for testosterone production. Testosterone is essential for muscle building. These bodybuilders take mega-doses of synthetic testosterone eliminating the need to actually eat any fat or cholesterol. Therefore, to cut down on calories they cut out the unnecessary fat. What you may not know is that bodybuilders get grossly overweight when they stop competing (stop using steroids) but continue to eat the same way - high carb, high protein, low fat. What you also may not know is that the very vast majority of them get incredibly fat in the off-season or what is known as a “bulking” stage. They use heavy doses of synthetic steroids to help shed the fat in a mere 12-16 weeks. If you don’t take steroids, you can’t eat like a bodybuilder and expect to look like a bodybuilder.
I have read a ton of scientific studies on so-called “super-foods”. These studies never mention eggs, red meat, or any other real food. They inevitably have blueberries at the top of the list. I’ll make a bold claim right now: BLUEBERRIES ARE NOT FOOD! Blueberries are a tasty treat to snack on when you want something sweet. They are not a food and they sure as hell are not a super-food. The next time someone asks you what you are having for dinner tell them blueberries and watch the bewildered look on their face. They are going to think you are an idiot because deep down everyone knows blueberries aren’t food. You couldn’t make it one week eating just blueberries. You would be weaker than a newborn kitten and you would be ravenously hungry. Now, tell the person you are eating steak and eggs for dinner. They will not question whether or not that is a filling meal because they know it is, though they will likely ask “aren’t you scared of cholesterol?”. Red meat is the ultimate super-food. Red meat could be eaten every day for a year with little or nothing else and at the end of the year not only would you be in excellent health but you would be as strong as an ox.
Science will say that moderate exercise 3 times per week for an hour is optimal for health and fitness. I don’t need to read an article stating otherwise to know that that is BS. All I need are my own 2 eyes to see that people who exercise only 3 times per week always look like shit. Especially the ones who use “moderate” weight. Never work out too hard or your muscles will fall off and you will die of overtraining! Go to the gym and see the guys in the best shape. Those are the guys that are in the gym MIMIMUM 6 days per week and they are always lifting the same: hard, heavy, and with little rest. Hardly using moderate weight, moderate rep ranges, or moderate anything. Moderation is for losers, quitters, and whiners. Extremity is for winners. A science article proving this daily observation is completely unnecessary.
Science says don’t eat raw meat or raw eggs or you will die. Instinct tells me that raw meat is delicious and much more nutritious than cooked, especially overcooked, beef. When I look at a piece of raw steak at the grocery I think it looks beautiful and delicious. Cooked meat does not have the same level of appeal. Instinct tells me to eat steak raw or undercooked for maximum benefits. This instinct is validated when I have incredible energy and stamina after consuming a meal like this. After eating like this (currently I fry both sides of a steak for about 10 seconds to kill all the germs on the outside, the inside is raw) I can tell a huge difference between eating undercooked beef and overcooked beef. Frankly, overcooked beef is horrible, terrible tasting and I can’t finish it when I try to eat it. Instinct tells me there is no value in eating it that way, all the excellent benefits of eating beef are nuked when the beef is overcooked. Science will say eating vegetarian is healthy. Instinct, and my own eyes, will tell me that vegetarians are chronically skinny, malnourished, effeminate, pathetically weak and have a giant guilt complex. No thanks, science.
Science will say eggs need to be refrigerated or they will kill you. Even I never questioned this scientific “fact” until I moved to China. Eggs in the grocery store are never refrigerated and are always kept with the vegetables. One hour ago, when I came home from the gym, I drank 6 raw eggs (nature’s protein shakes) that have been sitting on my counter-top since I bought them warm from the store two days ago. Clearly eggs do not need to be refrigerated. Any article stating otherwise is either written by a stupid person who is unable to experiment or is a bold-faced lie.
Science says breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Instinct tells me breakfast is unnecessary. Instinct is validated when I do eat breakfast and am sluggish, full and sloppy. When breakfast is not consumed I feel bright and alert and light on my feet. If I were to listen to science over my own instinct I would feel like shit every day. Science says 4-6 small meals a day are the best way to burn fat and avoid feeling hungry. Instinct tells me that is just plain stupid. Eat MORE to LOSE fat? Eat SMALL meals to feel full? Sounds too stupid to believe. Instinct, validated by experimentation, has told me 2-3 large meals a day, with plenty of fat, are excellent for keeping hunger at bay and feeling satiated but not sluggish during the day. Instinct also tells me hunger is a good thing. What kind of nonsense is that that you should never feel hungry? Instinct tells me to eat when I get hungry and to not eat when I am full. Pretty simple really.
The other day a fat associate of mine told me “I don’t understand how you stay so fit. You eat all this meat and butter and you never run on a treadmill.” I told her, for about the 19th time, that is precisely why I am fit and she is fat. She is a person who will only listen to mainstream advice and science and will pay a hefty (ha!) price for it. Don’t be like her. Carve your own path. You know more than you think you do.
Forget science.
Trust yourself.
Don’t listen to anyone else.
You will be better off.
Trust me!
Couldn’t agree more – there’s an oversupply of information out there, particularly online, under the guise of ‘science’.
Years ago I would find myself reading articles online about carb rotation and protein synthesis and for what?
Instead of simply working out and eating I got information overload and hypotheses. I would equate it with spending three years in college studying supply/demand cycles only to learn more in 12 months working in sales in the real world.
Nothing supplants experience – you can’t learn to surf by reading the book.
A big qualification here is necessary - we shouldn’t listen to BAD science. It’s bad science (and the political entities behind it) that promotes all these things. Good science, if you know how to find it, is a powerful ally on the road towards healthy living. Common sense and trusting your instincts can only get you so far. They can be wrong, eg common sense tells you that doing multiple sets is better than doing a single set for strength gains. If one set is good, two sets must be better, no? Turns out one set is all you need. See here: http://www.medicinasportiva.pl/new/pliki/ms_2011_03_08_Fisher.pdf
Furthermore, your instincts can’t answer many questions that science can. Should I eat before or after a workout? Should I run long distance or short sprints for cardio? Should I sleep on a mattress or on the floor? I have no “instincts” regarding these questions. These sorts of things can only be addressed by science.
Guy, there is a reason scientists and assorted overthinkers never look fit or healthy - they overthink everything and continually search for the perfect answer, while neglecting experiment and instinct. One set? You go ahead an do one set, I will stick with multiple sets. Your instincts can’t tell you when to eat? That should be the most instinctual thing in the world. If you’d ever eaten before a workout you know that it can make you nauseous. Should you do long distance running or short sprints? How about you look at the bodies of long-distance runners and compare them to sprinters. I’ll save you hours of scientific research - do sprints. Should you sleep on the mattress or the floor? Spend one week on the floor and find out. If it works for you but a scientific article says it doesn’t work for you, which will you believe? And why would you rely on science over your own eyeballs, instinct and experience? By all means look to science for answers to life’s mysteries, but looking to science for answers to everyday questions is an over-reliance.
Tell’em Vic.
Victor, i agree with this article about why you should follow your instincts. However, there is something i don’t seem to understand. Why avoid breakfast before a workout? I’ve tried this method and i can honestly say i feel weak when working out on an empty stomach. If i eat before a workout, i am much more energetic and can lift harder. By the way, my aim is to build up in size and strength.
Harps,
If your aim is to build up size and strength it is best to eat breakfast. I only recommend skipping breakfast if you aren’t trying to get bigger. Good luck.
Most pro Sprinters take steroids but the ones that don’t are way bigger and muscular. True. GREAT article!!
I eat lots of deer elk beef and eggs.
I also eat yams potatoes and vegetables.
They are a form of carbs your body needs for fuel for workouts
I get your article. But you need to eat vegetables and fruits too.
Its called the PALEO DIET.
Its the diet our Neanderthal ancestor’s ate.
perfect balance is key.
Grain are not natural in the hunter gatherer diet. Gluten and processed wheat carbs are poison
have you forgot about organic bananas? You need ruff age to shit properly.
I feel that much of this “science” is part of a consious attempt to emasculate and destroy males, specifically white males. I say specifically White males because it seems that men from other parts of the world (Africa, South America, southern and south eastern Asia) would do better off of a plant based diet as opposed to european males who do better off of red meat (just based on the different landscapes). Does anyone agree or am i being paranoid?
This is the best damn article I have read in a long time. I have gotten pulled in so many different directions over the years form believing different conflicting reports of research and have ended up depressed and frustrated, not knowing who to trust Never again. Thank you.
Just re-read this article and it’s definitely one of the best you have written.
Doing full-body workouts to failure 5-6 times a week and eating tons of meat might be against science, but it surely works better than training 2-3 times a week.
This is a classic article.
So true. According to my doctor’s science degree a high fiber high carb diet with 6 meals a day was the best way to treat my IBS. WRONG.
A high fat high protein low carb diet is ten times more effective despite what my doctor says.
very well explained …. you need fat to burn fat …. it’s that simple !!
Great article. Feel what your body needs, that’s what I’ve been doing all my life. Last year I’ve been listening to much to other science etc. Will start listen more to my body again now. Cheers mate, thanks!
Man sometimes I read some of Victor’s old articles. They ALWAYS nail it and makes sense. I specifically like honest, NO bullshit content anywhere. I can’t imagine reading articles like this anywhere online. I read other “health” and men’s fitness magazines online and they always say the same thing that the media is promoting. Politically correctness gotten so bad over the years that, finding honest truthful articles like these are just GOLD. It’s true. This is one of the best honest article on diet and nutrition.
Hello Victor,
This is my first comment and am very proud of it :D
Anyways, I would have to agree with you on instincts and experimentation, if you do them properly on yourself you can escape all the “bad” science (which according to me isn’t science at all) as one person in the comments said. But I would disagree in not listening to science at all. Mind you science ,on a basic level ofcourse, is a collection of truths and that is all. I would say that maybe somethings would seem better short term due to instinct but long term might be bad for you. All of what you said is true if we take a look at science from that angle, but objectively you or me or anyone getting results is what science is about.
Love your blog and hope I never stop reading it. Timeless content ofcourse.
All the best
I get strange looks from the treadmill crowd when I’m doing my Farmers Walks. But. . . . I look at all the fatties . . . .and I’m jacked!
They won’t listen though. Oh well………
I agree with a lot of what you say and try the obvious before trusting any research or any opinion.
In fact, I don’t even understand the concept of cutting animal fat. This is the lowest priority when trying to tune blood-work results! Exercise then eat accordingly to your faster, better body…
Special mention for fat fish like salmon steak, easy to eat almost uncooked or raw (especially in China).
Eggs can keep longer and fresher refrigerated (like almost any food), but it’s not necessary (you can preserve them weeks in a low temperature compartment).
Also, I wouldn’t feel right without eggs and fat bacon for breakfast…
It does increase TST and energy. If you eat a big dinner late, you barely need breakfast. But if you have a fast metabolism, lunch can be too late to wait.
Hunger puts you on edge but eating on a fixed schedule have bigger benefits than never being hungry.
Beef should be cooked according to the freshness and source.
It’s considered a sacrilege to overcook the best, thick pieces.
Farmer walk: very good full body warm up/finisher.
I train 2-3 times a week and still get progress. But I train at low speed and tougher moves (DL Bench Squatts Tractions) for maximum intensity and time under tension. I stop when I feel done. When stuck, I go for higher reps at higher speed but it damages muscles more, so recovery is indeed slower. I suffered several times from ligament damage and not training for a month is worse than 1 month of careful training.
Fat friends that pay a gym to run on a machine while watching their iPad/phones/screens whatever are managing their guilt and jeopardizing their results. Also, the idea of 4-6 meals a day is to eat even MORE, not to loose any weight!
Not to mention all these “you should talk to a nutritionist” BS, our ancestors had none of that shit and were healthy as fuck.
One day I told to a guy about the Steak and Eggs diet. “Steak and eggs? No way, I’ll get very fat”. I told him: “You ARE very fat already”. I know the S&E diet work because I’ve tried it, but now my friend is right there, spending tons of money in a nutritionist and fancy foods and getting more fat day after day.
“When I look at a piece of raw steak at the grocery I think it looks beautiful and delicious”. I can relate to that. I hadn’t realized it but in drawn advertisements the steaks are always drawn raw.
I would also add: Over-reliance on philosophy. Most people I know that tend to take everything with too much philosophy (including myself many years ago) end up doing nothing, they become nihilistic and their drive to succeed declines as they ask themselves “Why succeed? What’s the point?”.
Over-thinkers
On a similar note, part of the problem with most scientific research in regards to health, is that the actual study is inherently flawed. Anthony Colpo has an article about why red meat is often associated with poor health in most of our studies, and really, it’s quite simple.
anthonycolpo.com/another-bullshit-anti-red-meat-study/