What is Glucogeneis

Glucogeneis is the process by which amino acids plus glucogon will be converted into glucose for energy during periods of real or imagined starvation.

The body only knows what the brain is telling it. If the brain gets a signal from the stomach that it has not had enough food for a period of time, it will send up the general signal that it is hungry.

If there is no response, the brain will then signal that non-essential systems will be shut down, kind of like a submarine running on only essential power during a deep dive.

The body feels sluggish and slow, maybe even heavy and clumsy. As the body grips with the feeling of starvation, the glucogon army is out pulling glycogen from muscles and the liver until those are drained.

Amino acids are being pulled from the hair and nails to be used for more important parts and functions of the body.

If you allow this starvation mode to go on for long enough, the body will resort to destroying its own muscle tissues and eventually its own organs trying to keep itself alive.Your body, for all its complexities is a remarkable survival machine, willing to stop at nothing, even eating itself from the inside out to stay alive.

During this time of starvation, you are doing your body another great disservice. You are in essence, resetting your basal metabolism, that resting metabolic rate we discussed earlier. While in theory the metabolism will return to its previous set point when you start eating again, that is not always the case.

There are times that you may have starved yourself into a lower set point permanently. The lower the set point is, the less food you will be able to eat without gaining weight. The less food you can eat, the more likely you will be to overshoot that mark and start gaining. The more weight you gain, the more likely you are to panic and begin another crash, fad or starvation diet and so the diet roller coaster begins the slow climb up another dangerous hill.

All Protein Diets

Remember the all protein diets? The ones that said you could have the burger, just not the bun? Or the one that said eat all the dripping with fat bacon that you wanted, just do not eat the toast or drink the orange juice?

Those diets were proven to be dangerous in that they raised cholesterol levels and caused other heart diseases and other body damage, but we will cover that in another post.

For now, let’s look at what protein can actually do for us and what happens when we do not get enough of it in our diet every day.

The body relies on protein to supply the essential building blocks known as amino acids to it. We use amino acids to build and repair our hair, skin and nails. Other body functions are started or ended with amino acids. Because they are so essential, we need a fresh, daily supply to work with or the body will start looking within itself for other sources.

A low protein, low calorie diet (often seen in many vegan or vegetarian diets if not supplemented correctly) may result in catabolism where the body literally cannibalizes itself in search of amino acids- scavenging it from muscles and other tissues.

The last place that the body will go for these amino acids is the organs, but those are not completely safe or untouchable either. Eventually, the body will be forced to go to the organs for its protein source if it is not given any to replace the amino acids it is already using.

Eat Lean to Get Lean- the Importance of Protein

Although the concept of the extreme protein or super high protein diet is a bad one, it should be understood that protein in and of itself is very good and very necessary. We do not need to neglect or ignore any one single aspect of the food pyramid, remember. Everything must be balanced for their to be optimal health. Just as carbohydrates had two main types, so does protein; the complete and the incomplete.

All animal sources of proteins, the meats, the eggs and the dairy are complete proteins because they supply all of the body’s necessary amino acids. On the other hand, non-animal sources of proteins are generally incomplete because they lack one or more of the vital amino acids that the body needs. Amino acids are the body’s building blocks for literally millions of uses throughout your entire being.

The problem with protein for many people is that it takes so long to digest- which should be a bonus. However, since most people have such a hard time wrapping their heads around the concept of “moderation” they eat way too much protein at a single setting and end up feeling gassy and bloated as their body struggles to cope with the enormous pile of meat you just crammed down your gullet.

Protein is a good thing, not a magic thing- no one food group should be eaten in amounts that eliminate the possibility of eating another, nor should one food group be looked to for all your daily nutritional needs.

Review Of How Much Protein

Disclaimer:
Before getting ANY book or product that involves your health, consult with a doctor first. Everybody is different and therefore, there is no guide of any kind that will work for everybody.


Having said that, of all the books out there on protein requirements, I think you will find this to be the most honest and complete. There is a lot of BS and misinformation on the Internet and we have to be VERY careful about what we listen to.

This author essentially blows the “you need tons of protein to get muscle” myth right out of the water. And considering that so many foods that are high in protein are also high in fat, this is a good thing.

Brad Pilon, the author, is a former supplement developer and research scientist. In other words, he’s not some hack. He knows what he’s talking about. Yes, you will find some of this stuff to be controversial and different from what you’ve been taught. That’s why I say, consult with a doctor first.

The book is filled with actual case studies that are documented. There is one that shows that you can actually burn less fat by eating more protein. If you think about this, given what I said about many protein foods containing high levels of fat, it makes sense. Also, take a look at people who live on Burger King Whoppers and at how much they weigh. Maybe there’s something to it.

There are tons of facts in this book and the author covers a lot of ground. There is no way that I can possibly do any justice to this book with an in depth review because you’d be reading it for a week…the review. So instead, why not just go to the site and see what Brad covers. There is a lot, so take your time going over it.

Bottom line is this…You will NEVER think about protein requirements the same way again. Here is the site Click here.