Raw Milk Therapy Update: Days 5-10

Despite trying to catch up on six days of this experiment, there's not really that much to report. After 3-days of water fasting, and 3-days of just milk, I added some meat to mix on Day 7. It wasn't so much that I was ravenously hungry, because I wasn't. It was just that I really wanted some meat! Since Day 7, I have added one or two meat feedings per day and have continued to feel very good. I have had nothing by meat and milk for going on 11-days, and I feel fantastic. I haven't really missed the vegetables or the fruit. I have discovered that I really enjoy the simplicity of this way of eating and my body seems to be responding very well. The one annoyance has been some constipation, but I have treated that with pemmican and that situation is a non-issue, so long as there is enough fat on the meat I am eating. The addition of the meat is not part of Dr. Crewe's Raw Milk Therapy. However, he also was dealing with very sick people who were confined to a bed for the entire duration. I'm not saying that I couldn't have continued just drinking milk. My hunger was satiated and I felt fine, but I really did miss my meat and so I decided to make that adaptation to the program. 

My weight dropped to 246 (-13lbs) from a starting weight of 259. However, as is always the case with water weight, as soon as I started eating the meat and drinking the milk, I quickly regained 4 of those pounds. When you are strictly water fasting for 72-hrs, the body dumps a huge amount of water. (this is why you will inevitably find yourself making more bathroom visits...especially at night) I am holding steady at 250 right now and that is despite the fact that I am eating/drinking lots of calories, lots of fat, and a significant amount of carbohydrates in the form of milk sugars. My blood sugar is very stable and my ketones are low but measurable.

I would like to lose some more weight, but I'm not really interested in getting any more severe in my diet. The milk/meat combo makes me feel very well physically, and my hunger is definitely under control. Despite the fact that the entire area around Central Virginia is absolutely smothered in pollen, my (formerly serious) allergy issues have been non-existent this year. The kefir is known to have a therapeutic effect on the histamine response typical in people with allergies. It was only a few years back that I was basically house-bound for several months at this time of year. I now work outside as much as I want, and I've been walking 1.5-2 miles/day whenever possible, all with no allergy symptoms. It's a miracle!

I plan to stay on this way of eating until the end of the month. Ideally, I'd like to see 5-more pounds go away, but we'll see. I'm contemplating getting back on the ice to play some hockey, so perhaps that will kickstart some more weight loss.

Day 4, 5, 6 Raw Milk Therapy Update

 Update, Day 4, 5, and 6

Well, Day 6 is not quite in the books just yet, but since it is almost 7pm, I figured I'd get the update done. So, here are the numbers from the last 3-days:

Weight:

Day 4: 248.6

Day 5: 247.2

Day 6: 246.8

I have not drunk anywhere near the amount of milk recommended by Dr. Crewe in his 1929 book, Raw Milk Therapy. For my size, he would suggest a minimum of 6-quarts, ideally 7-8 quarts per day! Now that's a lot of milk. Don't get me wrong, I love the raw milk, but I also have to work and can't be sipping milk continuously every waking hour. That is exactly what is recommended for therapeutic value. Well, I'm going to try to ramp up my milk consumption over the weekend as I have stockpiled lots of milk and the self-life is about 8-days. I'm also drinking 1-2 pints of raw milk kefir each day. That is a nice change. I find my evenings are the only time I'm really craving...steak! That's really no surprise since beef is my favorite food, but to get around the craving I'm having iced milk (not ice cream) each evening. That seems to make it easier and gives me something to chew.

I also experienced the onset of some constipation on Day 4. I introduced some pemmican on Day 5 and again on Day 6 and as I suspected, that dealt very nicely with that issue. Pemmican is another aquired taste, and is basically shredded beef and tallow (fat), with some salt for flavoring. I find that (at least for me) fat has a laxative effect and this seemed to very easily deal with the milk's counter-effects. 

Overall I have felt pretty well, and have my usual energy and strength. I do miss some foods, especially the meats that I eat regularly. However, since my body is getting nourishment, this is much easier than the water fasting. There is lots of milk sugar in the raw milk, lots of fat and protein as well. I'm really not feeling any hunger at all. Daily caloric intake has been around 2000 calories, but I'm still losing weight pretty fast, about 2-pounds a day. Since I started at 259, I'm down just over 12 pounds in 6-days.

At this point, I'm planning to continue for at least another week. I had originally said I wanted to to until the end of the month, and that's still an option. I'll see how I feel next Saturday.

Despite all the milk sugar, my blood sugar has been extremely stable, about 84-86 mg/dl no matter what time of day I test it. Ketones are low (as expected), but I'm often surprised to see that I'm still in low ketosis. How can that be with so much milk sugar?

The work week was very challenging! It is very difficult to keep up with the milk while working through meetings, going into the office and doing the day-to-day duties of a technical trainer. I suspect that if one was on constant bedrest, you would have nothing to do but drink milk and would probably be able to consume much more than the 2-3 quarts I am able to drink on a workday. I'm thankful for the kefir because it is a nice change of flavor and texture from the fluid milk. The kefir is like a think, drinkable yogurt, and is tangy and definitely not sweet. I really enjoy it and am glad I decided to include it in my regimen. 

Well, that's all for now. On to Day 7 tomorrow.

Raw Milk Fast Day 2 (Second day of water-only fast)

 

Day 2

Weight: 251 lbs (-5, total loss -8 primarily water loss)

Blood Sugar: 85 mg/dl

Ketones: .7 mmol/l (low ketosis)

GKI Score: (Glucose/Ketone Index) 6.7 (low ketosis) 

Day 2 of the water fast was pretty uneventful with the exception of some major cravings as my family was invited to a baseball game where the dinner just happened to be catered by Cracker Barrell. Now, I'm ashamed to admit that I was looking for all sorts of reasons not to go, but in the end, I decided to go and thus, I was "that guy" (you know, the guy that is fasting at a dinner party and making everybody feel slightly weirded out?)

I'm not much of a baseball fan, but since it was a beautiful night, and Liberty University was playing Virginia Tech, I actually really enjoyed myself. I was able to relax, enjoy the game, and almost taste the delicious dinner that was being consumed in the private box all around me. There were the inevitable comments, such as, "What's wrong, are you sick?" etc. It made for several awkward moments, but once everyone realized you are just a weirdo, everything pretty much goes back to normal. 

Upon arriving home, I sat beside my teenage son who had been unable to attend the game because of work. As we watched the Leafs lose...again, I had the pleasure of watching (and smelling) him eat a couple plates of food that my wife brought home for him. (Why not increase the suffering of your fasting husband?) In reality, it really wasn't that bad. Liberty beat Virginia Tech, and it was one of the those rare, gorgeous warm Spring evenings, when the air is thick with pollen, but ever living thing is absolutely bursting with color and life. Looking out over the Blue Ridge Mountains from the private box at LU's baseball stadium, I could almost forget that it was approaching 48 hrs since I last ate.

Other than the occasional hunger pangs, which pass quite quickly, I felt great and even got out for an early-morning walk with my wife. It was another opportunity to experience the absolute beauty of a Virginia Spring morning. Before you know it, the humidity will arrive and we will be slogging it through the wet blanket moisture of Summer in Virginia.

 

Day 1 Report

Note, if you haven't read the intro to this experiment, please go here:Raw Milk Therapy Intro

Weight: 256 lbs (-3, primarily water loss)

Blood Sugar: 83 mg/dl

Ketones: .2 mmol/l (not in ketosis)

GKI Score: (Glucose/Ketone Index) 23.0 (not in ketosis) Glucose Ketone Index, is a simple formula that tracks the ratio of blood glucose to ketones as a single value. It's a biomarker for tracking your metabolic health as well as your level of ketosis

 

After a wedding celebration for our fifth son on Sunday, Monday was the perfect day to kick off this 19-day experiment. For a quick review, I have planned for a 2-day water fast for preparation, followed by a 17-day Raw Milk Therapy experiment that is based on the research of Dr. J.R. Crewe in 1929. For the 2.5-day fasting portion, I will be drinking my usual 16oz of black coffee, no sweeteners in the morning.

Some have questioned the sanity of taking advice that is nearly 100 years old. I have to say that the more I see of the craziness and absurdity of the FDA and the CDC here in the US, the more I'm inclined to go back to our forefathers' generation when the overall health (and sanity) of the general population seems to have been just a little more robust than what we see today.

Having just completed Day 1, I'll admit that water fasting is just not that exciting. It is especially difficult when your wife decides that for the first time in a while, she is going to cook an entire pound of bacon, "just to have on-hand for the boys". It was at this point that I decided to go outside to work in my garage. 

Escaping the smell of that glorious meat candy was absolutely essential, as my stomach was growling and trying to tell me that starvation was surely imminent unless I gave it some bacon. Having recently done a 10-day water fast, I'm smart enough to know that despite what my stomach and brain tried to tell me, I was in no danger of starvation. So, after working in the garage for a few hours, I came in to watch my beloved Maple Leafs LOSE to Montreal. Not snacking during a hockey game is like a wedding without a bride, or a police officer without a donut...it's just wrong. But, I persevered and went to bed at my normal time of 10pm. 

I was up three times during the night. Now one of the benefits that Dr. Crewe discovered with the RMT was with respect to prostate health benefits. As men age, the prostate becomes much more a focus of life. An enlarged prostate gland affects men in several ways, none of them good. Thankfully, I haven't had any major issues, and at (nearly) 56, I certainly hope that continues. However, fasting triggers a symptom very similar to an enlarged prostate: frequent urination. While fasting, this symptom has nothing to do with the prostate. It is simply the body dumping unneeded water from the cells and it is usually over with by the time you get to Day 3 of a water fast. I am only planning on a 2.5 day water fast, so hopefully, once I introduce the raw milk, I'll get better sleep. 

Overall, the first 36hrs of fasting went pretty well, minus the bacon incident. Now, on to Day 2.