Issue #294: Energy vs Fat
Good morning. It’s Tuesday, January 23rd.
In today’s email:
Learn: Energy vs Fat
Try: Eat & Move Together
Measure: ALT
In the News: A New Kind of GPS
Stat of the Day
The percentage of glucose (fuel) that is used by our brain. Despite being only 2% of our body weight, the supercomputer in our head takes 20-25% of our daily energy to keep up with all that processing. (source)
Learn
Energy vs Fat
Energy is why we started Thrive25 - whether because at 40 I was slowing down or because I was exhausted from my kids - I’ve been on a mission to feel like I did back in my 20’s and 30’s.
I never want to feel like I don’t have enough energy.
It’s one of the core currencies - along with time and money. How we live our life is based on the energy we have to make the most of every day and do the things we want to do.
The laws of thermodynamics tell us that we can’t create or destroy energy - so how can we transform energy to propel us to be our very best?
Glucose, mostly from carbs, is the primary fuel for us to create ATP.* It’s what we use for every energy-driven process in our entire body.
This is a complicated process, but here’s the basic outline on how this works and how we can control our energy metabolism.
Say we eat a sandwich - some of the glucose is used for energy immediately by hopping on a ride with insulin to go directly into the cells that need the energy right way. A lot of this goes to our brain (see Stat of the Day).
The rest of the glucose is stored to be used later - some goes to the liver, but ideally the rest goes into our muscles. Our muscles are incredible reservoirs for holding this future energy.
But what happens if our muscle storage capacity is full and there’s no more room for more glucose? That’s when the glucose gets stored in fat cells.
Now before you think that’s a bad thing - it’s actually not.
Humans were designed to survive for prolonged periods of famine. Fat is an evolutionary phenomenon that allowed us to eat a big meal - like when we successfully hunted a buffalo or found a huge crop of non-toxic berries - and then store away the energy we didn’t immediately need until our next meal, which might have been hours or even days away.
That’s why glucose that doesn’t go to muscles becomes subcutaneous fat.
This is the fat just below your skin. It makes us a little soft, but it’s not going to kill us - it often saves us.
But in today’s world of abundance - there is no more time of famine. We’re overwhelmed with sugar being available - even delivered directly to our house - 24 hours a day.
That’s why now we don’t just overflow our muscle storage capacity, but also the storage capacity of our subcutaneous fat. That’s when this glucose becomes visceral fat.
This is belly fat. It’s the fat around our waistlines that gets in the way of our organs and causes massive metabolic dysfunction. This isn’t just being overweight. Now we constantly feel lethargic and are at a significant risk of chronic disease (cardiovascular problems, Type 2 diabetes, cognitive disease, even increased risk of cancer).
Throughout history this hasn’t been much of a problem because of all the safeguards in place:
Stored Glucose —> Liver —> Muscles —> Subcutaneous Fat —> Visceral Fat
But in today’s world - too much sugar and not enough movement means we run out of storage capacity and we’ve reached the end of the line with too much visceral fat.
So what can we do?
It’s like any other math equation - focus on the variables that matter most:
Slow Down Intake of Carbs - processed carbs like bread, pasta, desserts add too much glucose at the top of the funnel.
Build Up Your Muscles - the more strength and muscle mass, the greater the glucose storage capacity. That’s why weight training is a huge part of managing weight, or more importantly increasing lean body weight.
Keep Moving - the more we move and exercise, the more we unlock the energy stored in our muscles and subcutaneous fat before it builds up as visceral fat.
*Ketones are another alternative fuel that we’ll cover in a future issue
Try
Eat & Move Together
Align Carb Intake with Intense Exercise - remember glucose isn’t a bad thing. In fact, it’s the fuel for the energy we need to live our best life. It only becomes “bad” when we either get too much or don’t use it and then it gets stored in the wrong part of our body.
So if you’re eating simple carbs - make sure you’re using all this energy. Get in an intense workout before or after that meal. I’ve seen Ironman triathletes even eating a pizza during the race (not my recommendation).
The more energy you exert today the more energy your body can produce tomorrow.
BONUS: Measure Your Waist Circumference. Body Mass Index (BMI) isn’t a helpful tool to see if you’re in good metabolic shape. Waist circumference is a better proxy for visceral fat - and here are the guidelines:
Men - Under 37 inches
Women - under 31.5 inches
For more check out Issue #36.
Thrive25 Partner Spotlight
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Measure
ALT
We just talked about metabolism. All that glucose gets processed by the liver - it’s one of the most underrated organs in our body. It does everything from regulating our metabolism, boosting immunity, supporting digestion, taking the lead on detoxification, and storing nutrients - among much more. You can’t live without your liver.
Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) is an enzyme primarily found in the liver that plays a key role in transforming glucose into usable energy.
Why is this part of a typical blood panel? Because ALT levels can provide an early indication of liver health.
What’s the right number?
Standard lab results would suggest that men should be < 45 IU/liter and women should be < 33 IU/liter. But these ranges are based on national averages and don’t correspond to the real risk.
The American College of Gastroenterology revised guidelines down to:
Men < 33 IU/liter
Women < 25 IU/liter
Some experts, like Dr. Peter Attia, suggest even lower results to prevent fatty liver disease (like under 20 IU/liter).
Now a single biomarker doesn’t provide the full picture - ALT in concert with AST, ALP, GGT, bilirubin and others (that we’ll cover in coming issues) provide the most complete assessment. And…always consult your medical professional to assess your results.
Just stop drinking?
In addition to reducing the glucose that gets stuck in the liver (see above), drinking is the other big culprit of liver disease.
This is because that’s the organ responsible for processing all that alcohol out of your body.*
But there are other factors that can influence liver health:
Meds: OTC pain relievers like acetaminophen (Tylenol) can cause liver damage.
Toxins and Chemicals: Regular exposure to certain chemicals and toxins, including some found in cleaning and industrial products, can harm the liver.
* Bodyweight and gender play key roles in how alcohol is metabolized - this is a general guideline. If you drink, figure out what is best for you. For more, check out these alcohol facts from the CDC
In the News
Centenarian Diet: More and more insights are coming out of research on centenarians that live in the five designed blue zones. It’s not all about their diet, but these four tips on nutrition could add a decade to your life. (Washington Post)
Miss Information: Always follow the money (Issue #241) - an ad campaign from a nonprofit that supports Big Food is sharing scientifically inaccurate statements as fact about lab-grown meat. I may not be into lab-grown meat, and you might not, but it’s another thing to present misinformation to the public. Right now the science and regulators in the US, Singapore and Australia say lab-grown meat is safe. (WIRED)
A New Kind of GPS: That’s Genetic Priority Score - helping you go from a different point A to point B. The Icahn School of Medicine created GPS as a way to better target genes for longevity drug development. (Source)
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We’re 40-something dads that felt our bodies and minds start to slow down and we’re not ready for that. We found too much information on every subject. So we started Thrive25 to transform what we’ve learned into something useful for the rest of us to spend just 3-5 min a day to optimize our health & longevity.
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The information in this newsletter is for informational purposes only and may not be appropriate or applicable based on your individual circumstances. Thrive25, Inc. does not provide medical, professional, or licensed advice. Please connect with your healthcare professional for medical advice specific to your health needs.