While in Boston over Memorial Day Weekend, my Brother and I took a day trip down to Brown to partake in an hour or two of commencement activities. Providence, RI may not have a lot of things going for it, but after 3 years removed - I still wake up some nights craving the food the city offers! On our walk down Thayer Street (think a way smaller, more providence-y version of Harvard Square for you Bostonites or M Street for the DC folks), I made it a point to pick up a sample of all my old favorites (and then eat them on the spot). So, for dinner that night I consumed a plate-sized Meeting Street chocolate chip cookie, an apple and brown sugar crepe, a bite of Antonio's pizza and hot apple cider. It was only because I was way overstuffed that I didn't stop in to say hey to the workers at my favorite Indian restaurant and get a huge piece of the best naan in the world. On the ride back to Boston I pondered the nutritional value of the "meal" I had pieced together... I came to the very optimistic conclusion that I'm normally a pretty healthy eater, so one night of extreme carb/sugar overload was not only excused - it was necessary! I then made the unfortunate mistake of paying attention to what I ate/drank over the next 24 hours (pancakes, fruit, pasta, bread, pizza, popeye's biscuit, cannoli, water, Blue Moon!) in a failed effort to validate my justification.Well, to my knowledge I'm not training for a marathon, nor am I an 8 year old kid with free reign of the kitchen for a day. I'm pretty sure those would be the only two excuses for my diet to consist almost solely of empty carbs and sugar (and beer?). Now, I'm not usually quite that bad - but carbohydrates, sugar and I have a very strong, complicated long-term relationship going.
Earlier this morning, I read the following two tidbits about low-carb diets:
* During the late 1990s and early 2000s low-carbohydrate diets became some of the most popular diets in the U.S. These were, in fact, noted by some food manufacturers and restaurant chains as substantially affecting their businesses (notably Krispy Kreme).
* A recent study from Stanford University ('07) comparing Atkins (low-carb), Zone (moderately low-carb), LEARN (low in fat and high in carbohydrates), and Ornish (very high in carbohydrates and extremely low in fat) diets found that "of the more than 300 women in the study, those randomly assigned to follow the Atkins diet for a year not only lost more weight than the other participants, but also experienced the most benefits in terms of cholesterol and blood pressure."
Now, as clearly demonstrated through the picture above, any enemy of Krispy Kreme is an enemy of mine. And, sure, the diet seems to have some benefits for the average American woman. BUT! What would happen if a chronic carb-o-holic like myself were to go on one of these no/low carb diets? Would I go through withdrawal symptoms? Would I starve to death?? [the only dishes I know how to cook are pasta, pancakes, oatmeal and microwave popcorn] Does the grocery store even sell anything but flour-based products?? Would it be the breakthrough I need as a Tour de France hopeful? * see below Well, I really just want to see if I'll feel any different. With my experimental history, though (which includes such backfires as the infamous "wooden rake to the face" incident) I'll probably slip into some sort of carb-deprived coma. The 1st of it's kind.
I don't really care what any studies say - I'm pretty sure carbs are a vital source of energy, especially if you're physically active. So, I'm only willing to stretch my experiment over a month's time (from today tomorrow til July 3rd). I'll do my best to stick to it, and report back with results/cooking mishaps along the way.
UPDATE: I made it one day, but was so carb-deprived I made blueberry pancakes the next morning. Conclusion: Stanford researchers are not to be trusted.
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