I Can Drive 55 -- 185 lbs (-44) [25X]

While Sammy Hagar can't drive 55, I can and do-- .055 BAC (Blood Alcohol Content) that is. In 1982, Roger Volger and Wayne Bartz published one of the first low-dose alcohol programs in a now out-of-print book called "The Better Way To Drink".



Their primary guidance was to "savor the good effects as your blood alcohol is rising up to a maximum of 55 and then quit drinking", as costs and risks begin to outweigh benefits above .055 BAC:

● The good feelings produced by alcohol decrease above a BA of 55 for most drinkers
● Impairment of physical functioning such as coordination accelerates above 55, along with the risk of all sorts of accidents
● The negative effects on physical health are considered greater above that level
● Emotional control becomes more unpredictable above 55
● Stress relief ends above 55 for most drinkers, and more alcohol tends to increase anxiety rather than to reduce it
● Hangovers occur mainly at BAs over 55, with their attendant negative effects on job performance, family, etc.

My personal experience is totally in line with these findings, though I tend to stay below .030. How can I drink so much and maintain a low BAC? By creating several "alcohol waves" throughout the day. An alcohol wave is created by drinking 2-6 oz of whisky (of equivalent other alcohol) over a period of 1-3 hours, and then stopping for at least a couple of hours before starting the next wave. I theorize that this provides the maximum health benefits of alcohol, without the risks associated with higher BAC. And any benefits are probably amplified by the reduced BMI that comes from substituting alcohol for bad carbohydrates.

As far as driving at 55 BAC is concerned, it's nothing to get your knickers in a twist about, despite what many folks would like you think. The majority of driving fatalities don't involve any alcohol, and the majority of alcohol-related ones occur at a BAC of .15 (aka 150) or higher. The legal limit of .08 is there for a reason-- respect it.



[+] What I Consumed Since Last Post ...

What I consumed Wednesday -- 185 lbs (-44) [25X]:
[cold]
● 3.25 oz Bankers Club
● McDonald's sausage & pancake w/ bit of syrup
● 4 oz Evan Williams in coffee
● Small piece of chicken breast, 2 small pieces of rock fish, & some broccoli-like vegetable
● 5.25 oz Pipers Clan
● 2 oz Clan MacGregor
● Thick hamburger w/ big handful of grated cheddar cheese & Tabasco sauce

What I consumed Tuesday -- 187 lbs (-42) [27X]:
[cold]
● 2 oz Clan MacGregor
● Small bowl of chicken curry soup w/ Tabasco sauce
● .75 oz The Laughing Cow Light French Onion wedge
● 4 oz Evan Williams in coffee
● 1 cups Columbia Crest Amitage red wine
● 3 slices Boston Pizza
● Big bowl of scrambled eggs w/ bacon, onions, green peppers, and Tabasco sauce
● 6 oz Clan MacGregor

What I consumed Monday -- 187 lbs (-42) [26X]:
[cold]
● 3 oz Bankers Club
● Slice of ham
● Heaping plate of Indian food
● 4.5 oz Evan Williams in coffee
● 3 slices Boston Pizza
● 6 oz Pipers Clan

What I consumed Sunday -- 188 lbs (-41) [23X]:
● 9.25 oz Old Crofter
● 40 pretzel M&M's
● 2 slices of bologna w/ 2 slices of American cheese
● Small bowl of Safeway Mongolian vegetables
● 3 oz Pipers Clan
● .3 bag of Ruffles beer-battered onion ring potato chips
● Several Hawaiian Luau Bbq potato chips
● Several Sun chips
● 1.5 oz Evan Williams in coffee
● 1 cups Columbia Crest Amitage red wine
● Thick hamburger w/ 2 slices of cheddar/colby cheese & 3 slices of bacon
● 6 oz Clan MacGregor

Muscle Repair and Alcohol -- 189 lbs (-40) [11X]

I went into this diet with a left shoulder injury, and as it didn't get better after several months, I suspected 2 issues:

● Not eating protein (or anything else) before or after exercise
● Drinking while metabolizing protein

It is widely known that protein is needed to repair and build muscle mass, and that protein is either used or lost once it is consumed. While the exact timing of the window of opportunity for protein synthesis is still under debate, my initial pattern of not eating ~10 hours before and after exercise was well outside of any plausible anabolic window.



It is less clear if alcohol interferes with protein anabolism, but given its ability to pre-empt and deplete other nutrients, it is reasonable to suspect that heavy drinking during muscle repair is suboptimal.

Given these observations, in December I started taking a combined casein/whey protein supplement after exercising, and avoiding alcohol for at least an hour after taking it. Also, in January started taking drinkwel mulitvitamins, which target nutrients depleted by alcohol. Although I haven't lost any weight over the last few months, I have maintained the weight I lost, repaired my shoulder, and increased my overall strength.



[+] What I Consumed Since Last Post ...

What I consumed Saturday -- 189 lbs (-40) [11X]:
● 2 drinkwel multivitamins
● Coffee w/ 18 g Syntrax Matrix Chocolate protein powder
● 12 oz Budweiser Select
● 3 oz Absolut vodka in seltzer water
● 1.5 oz Absolut vodka in diet Coke
● 3 oz Evan Williams w/ coffee
● 1.5 oz Evan Williams in Nissin Cup Noodles Spicy Chile Chicken & Beef broth (no noodles)
● Bologna sandwich w/ american cheese on white bread
● .25 Starbucks cinnamon bun
● Hot dog (no bun)
● 2 cups Columbia Crest Amitage red wine
● Corn dog w/ 6 cheddar cheese cubes
● 3 Pepperidge Farm Golden Butter crackers w/ 6 cheddar cheese cubes
● Bowl of Peanut Butter Toast cereal w/ milk
● 2 Jade Dragon pork rolls w/ dipping sauce
● 12 pretzel M&M's
● Jar of pickle asparagus
● ~60 Juanita's tortilla chips
● 10.5 oz Passport

What I consumed Friday -- 188 lbs (-41) [16X]:
● 4.5 oz Passport
● Eggs, sausage link, & 2 bacon slices
● Westernco chocolate-covered cruller
● 6 oz Evan Williams w/ coffee
● 1 oz peanut butter Ritz Bits
● 9 oz Columbia Crest Amitage red wine
● 3 pieces wheat pizza w/ bologna
● 3 oz Crown Royale Maple in seltzer water
● 10 Trader Joe's chocolate cat cookies dipped in Trader Joe's Cookie Butter
● Bowl spaghetti w/ 4-cheese sauce & italian sausage
● 3 oz Passport

What I consumed Thursday -- 184 lbs (-45) [12X]:
● 3 oz Passport
● Trader Joes No Iron Multivitamin
● Coffee w/ 20 g Syntrax Matrix Chocolate protein powder
● 4.5 oz Evan Williams w/ coffee
● 3 oz Crown Royale Maple in club soda
● Bowl of taco-seasoned beef w/ grated cheddar cheese, lettuce, salsa, & tortilla strips
● 1 cup Columbia Crest Amitage red wine
● 4.5 oz Passport

Intro Video -- 187 lbs (-42) [2X]

Without whisky or work to distract me this week, I'm having a bit of fun putting on a bunch of weight I lost. My new wager with myself is how much weight will I gain on before resuming the diet?

Meanwhile, I put together this video about some of my recent experiences:



What I consumed Monday -- 187 lbs (-42) [2X]:
● Carrot bread
● Krispy Kreme sour cream donut
● Couple of bites Nissin Cup Noodles
● Subway 6-inch hot pastrami sub on Italian Herbs & Cheese bread
● Bowl of Breyer's strawberry ice cream
● 17 Pepperidge Farm Harvest Wheat crackers w/ 2 slices of swiss & 2 slices of cheddar cheese
● .5+ peanut butter & jelly sandwich
● 3 scrambled eggs, cheddar cheese, 4.3 slices bacon on toast w/ ketchup & tabasco
● Bunch of asparagus

What I consumed Sunday -- 186 lbs (-43) [6X]:
● McDonald's egg, bacon, & cheese sandwich (half the biscuit)
● Starbuck's apple fritter
● Taco-seasoned ground beef w/ lettuce, grated cheddar, and Newman's Own lite Italian dressing
● Krispy Kreme Banana Kreme & Strawberry donuts
● One-third bag Snyder's buffalo wing pretzels
● 10 green grapes
● Cheese-only lasagna
● Carrot bread

What I consumed Saturday -- 186 lbs (-43) [5X]:
● McDonald's egg, bacon, & cheese sandwich
● McDonald's hash brown
● 2 mini Dum Dum lollipops
● 16 Rold Gold tiny twist pretzels
● Starbucks turkey & swiss sandwich (half the bread)
● 6 bites McDonald's pancake w/ syrup
● Dairy Queen Peanut Butter Buster
● One-third bag Snyder's buffalo wing pretzels
● Taco-seasoned ground beef w/ lettuce, grated cheddar, and salsa
● 16 cheddar cheese cubes

What I consumed Friday -- 184 lbs (-45) [2X]:
● Jack In The Box Loaded breakfast sandwich
● 20 Snyder's peanut butter pretzel sandwiches
● Campbell's chicken noodle soup

The Edge Of Control -- 192 lbs (-37) [3X]

"So what is the role of alcohol in this diet?", a colleague asked yesterday. A mighty fine question for which I've done a mighty poor job of answering thus far.

A few diets, such as the Banting Diet and Drinking Man's Diet prominently feature alcohol, as well as diets that have been practiced by contemporaries such as Lady Gaga and Christian Bale, but mine is decidedly different. These other diets include food restrictions, carb and/or calorie counting, and/or exercise--none of which would work for me. Instead, I use alcohol as a tool to avoid all of these things.

As mentioned previously, I practice a form of "intermittent fasting". Usually, intermittent fasting involves consuming no calories for at least 16 hours, and while I do this sometimes, it can get uncomfortable. I find that alcohol in moderate doses does a fabulous job of turning the discomfort of hunger into an enhanced pleasure, and that whisky has a mental simulation effect beyond that. This is no secret--whisky drinkers have known this for hundreds of years. It is also no secret that alcohol in excess leads to all sorts of bad effects, the least of which is over-eating, so you can see where drinking to lose weight takes a certain amount of discipline, and is not even an option for many people's situations.

So anyone who thinks this diet is about getting drunk is mistaken. It is about riding the edge of control for maximum gain, like a tow-in surfer, formula racer, base jumper, or anyone that wants to push the limits of what is possible. But I'm not remotely as crazy or skilled as these extreme sport folks. It is rare that I pull off the perfect whisky diet day--if you go over my consumption logs you can see that I've over-eaten on many occasions--and yet, I have achieved impressive weight gains in spite of my follies. While I am certain someone more disciplined could do much better, a more rapid weight loss may be too much strain on the body, so perhaps I am striking the right balance here. Perhaps the key to a successful whisky diet is riding the crest of hunger, alcohol, and feasting--let's call it "alcohol surfing".

What I consumed yesterday:
● 2 coffee w/ 3 tbsp whiskey & 2 tsp fiber
● 3 cups syrah (I forgot to note the brand)
● 5 buffalo chicken drumettes w/ small cuts of assorted cheese
● .6 cup Lauder's scotch whisky
● 4 slices Boboli pizza w/ 3 slices bacon
● Apple slice dipped in Jif peanut butter