Sweet Poison

I just finished reading David Gillespie's Sweet Poison. The book is a huge eye opener and a must read for everyone but especially anyone who has struggled with weight issues.

David has a similar story to mine, even starting out at a similar weight to mine at the moment, with plenty of diet failures leading to the conclusion that it wasn't about willpower. Something had gone wrong with the human machine in modern times and he set out to find out exactly what it was.

His conclusion is fructose, the other half of sucrose (table or cane sugar) which has been added to the modern diet in increasing amounts since the turn of the last century until the present day where we have an obesity epidemic, all manner of related illnesses and we even have to add fluoride to the water supply to cut back on tooth decay.

It's not so much about the calories. Fructose is like a catalyst to obesity (and a string of other problems). It stimulates appetite, encourages us to eat more, stops us feeling full, makes other foods in our system more likely to be stored as fat and it's addictive. If you suffer from an inability to feel full and/or dreadful cravings that make dieting impossible then you're addicted to fructose.

The solution is simple. Don't eat anything that tastes sweet. Unfortunately that's often easier said than done. Firstly you've got the sugar withdrawals to deal with (which can last anything from 3 days to 3 weeks) and then you'll discover that sugar is added to just about everything these days so it's easy to eat it without realising. Apart from the obvious ones like biscuits, softdrinks and most breakfast cereals, I was surprised to discover huge amounts of sugar in tomato & BBQ sauces, most mayos and some even in (flavoured) potato chips!

While I'd already reduced sugar considerably in my diet over the last few years I still found it tough going to cut it out completely for the first couple of days going cold turkey but then it got much easier. Then to my surprise I started to notice I was feeling fuller on less food and the night time cravings were almost completely gone. I dropped a couple of kgs in a fortnight but I kept it to myself because I'd gained a couple of kgs recently and wanted to wait until I started dropping below my 120 kg nemesis before I got too excited.

Then disaster. Third week in and I checked my weight and discovered to my absolute horror that I'd gained 4kgs in a week!

Why?

Well, when I thought it about it it was obvious. I was substituting.

For starters I'd increased my milk consumption recently, possibly in an effort to make teas & coffees a little less bitter. I also wasn't sticking to my one cappuccino a day rule, letting that creep up to maybe 3 or 4, possibly to substitute deserts or snacks. Together those would add up to at least 1 litre of milk per day, possibly more, and I know from past experience that I gain weight quickly with milk.

The second problem was an increase in salty snacks and adding salt to my meals when I normally wouldn't. Salt causes fluid retention.

A third problem was I was expecting better appetite control without sugar. I'm sure that will happen and I see very promising signs already but I may have rushed in & trusted that one a bit too soon. Related to that is the recent bad weather keeping me off the bike. I know that losing weight isn't about exercise but I expected less activity should mean a lower appetite. Again, a bit too soon for me to trust my appetite completely I think. While I am excited by the changes I have seen in my appetite and craving levels, I know I can still manage to overeat with relative ease at this stage and have managed to do so on many occasions.

Lesson learned.

While I'm convinced sugar has been my main problem all along I have to watch I'm not substituting with other foods. Plain old overeating will still cause weight gain even without sugar. My cat is a case in point...

Flood pics

Click here for some amazing pictures of the recent floods in my corner of the world. It absolutely hammered down without relent for two whole days so it's little wonder it made such a mess.

The Courier Mail is calling it the "worst flash floods since 1974" which is really saying something.

Thankfully we weren't too effected but it could be a while before I get to take the mountain bike out again... :(

Our First Family Camping Trip

We decided to use our Rudd Bux stimulus package on camping gear and finally do something outdoorsy and family-like to get us all away from our usual humdrum weekends. Pizzas, PayTV & video games are starting to get old, even for the older kids who seem to do nothing else but these days.

For our first trip we decided on Elanda Point due to its close proximity to home which would allow us to get our feet wet and work out everything we'd inevitably not thought of or considered. First up I think we're going to need a bigger car, which is something I never thought I'd say about our old land barge.

With camp set up I decided I'd check out some of the bushwalks while the kids paddled in the lake. However, I hadn't ventured more than a couple of metres into the trees when I was set upon by swarms of mozzies. The rotten blighters weren't even put off by a thick layer of aeroguard so I had to give that idea away and settle for lazing around in a fold out chair. (What a pity...)

I grew up not far from Lake Cootharaba, visiting frequently and cannot recall a mosquito problem so I'm hoping it's only temporary, perhaps caused by the recent floods in the area.

The next problem we discovered right after the sun went down. We weren't prepared at all for how cold it became. Holy crap! I only had jeans and a hoodie and had to sleep with the hood pulled over my face snuggled down into my sleeping bag which was a little too small for me to fit my shoulders into. The sleeping bag did turn out to be warm though, unlike the poor wife who basically shivered all night and got very little sleep. One of the first things we did on arriving home again Sunday night was to google Long Johns.

Another disappointment was that fires aren't allowed in the camping area, but aside from that the scenery is truly beautiful and the place packs out in summer when the prospect of hiring a canoe to paddle up the Noosa everglades might be a bit more inviting.

I didn't take the mountain bike this time but it turned out there wasn't really anywhere to ride anyway. (Too much sand and the damn mozzies).

The Neurum Creek Bush Retreat has mountain bike trails on the property and in the nearby Mt Mee State Forest. Plus they allow campfires (which are vital in my opinion for the proper camping experience) so it's looking pretty good for the next one. Just as soon as we've sorted out the long john situation...

Squeaky seat post

Further to my post on Monday trying to diagnose how and why I managed to break a Thomson Seatpost I received the following advice advice from Thomson. Basically, if you have a squeaky seat post, don't lube it.

"... in general the seat post/seat tube is a spot where you want friction and grease lowers that. Best to run dry. It is good to grease on the fastener in the collar that holds the post in the frame and to grease where the collar slides over the frame. Squeaking usually means you need grease on bolt threads somewhere. Don't grease the rails or clamps or under bolt heads, just grease the threads and tighten to specified torque. Double check the inside of the frame for any sharp edges or burrs."

While I can't say that greasing the seat post in the past on other bikes (ie gluggy bearing grease not slippery lube type stuff) has caused a slippage problem for me and has cured creaking & squeaking issues, it seems Thomson are concerned that it can lead to needing to increase clamp pressure and that can crush the seatpost enough to cause it to bend or snap. I've definitely increased clamp pressure recently but I've been running it greased for quite some time with no problems.

I'm starting to suspect that my recent slipping problem may have been the result of a slightly bent seatpost and my tightening the clamp pressure was the nail in the coffin. In future I'll treat seat post creaking with a thorough cleaning and only lube the bolts and the clamp to frame surface. Any slippage I'll regard as an early warning to replace the seatpost.

Update: It appears that the manufacturer specified the incorrect seat post diameter leading to widespread seatpost slipping problems with this bike (GT Peace 9r). The overtightening of the clamp necessary to stop the slipping would appear to be the cause of mine breaking. Check out this thread in the MTBR forums.

Broke my Thomson Elite Setback Seatpost

I've been noticing a creak coming from my seat or seatpost recently but didn't think that much of it until last Saturday morning. I was out riding a section of undulating trail, light in the saddle letting the bike do the work, when suddenly I hear a clink and there's nothing but empty space where my saddle should be. This didn't happen as a result of a big hit on this occasion, although I reckon it's experienced a few of those in its lifetime (bearing in mind I'm no daredevil so a "big hit" for me is more like 12 inches off the ground and landing a bit flat).

Apparently no one breaks these things so I might be special or I somehow copped the one dodgy one that managed to make it through the system, but it's definitely a bin job now:

Luckily I didn't take out a femoral artery or end up carrying around a colostomy bag while my bum heals or anything along those lines but it's these type of injuries that make me wonder if I bought the right product. ie I'm not saying the brand is rubbish but maybe that this model is perhaps a "light" version when I really need a heavy duty model.

However, light or heavy duty I don't think it should have snapped in this manner and especially not since it wasn't quite 12 months old yet. According to Thomson's website:

Original Goals of the Thomson Seatpost Design:

• Make the strongest post on the market.
• Make a post with the correct failure mode, bend-don’t break.
• Make a post with a long life cycle.
• Make a post that engages with the saddle and the seatube of the bike in a simple manner.
• Make a post that is light while being strong and safe.

I'd have to call that a fail in this case.

I'm not sure if I want to attempt a replacement under warranty if there's a chance it might snap like this again but maybe if I bought the wrong model for my weight or whatever I could be swayed to try another one.

I've emailed Thomson to get their thoughts anyway. In the meantime I don't want to risk a piece of jagged metal up the old alimentary canal so I'll stick with the cheaper ones that I know will definitely bend before breaking.

Update: I have a response back from Thomson already and they're keen to replace it. However, they say that "That type failure is from a stress riser at the clamp area. Did you have slipping issues? Have you checked the inside of the frame for burrs or sharp edges?"

Yes, in the last 3 or 4 weeks, along with the creaking problem I did have slipping issues which I attempted to cure with a little grease here and there and tightening the clamp a bit more and that usually did cure it for a while. There's no burrs or edges I can see or feel but from what they're saying it sounds like there's some possibility I may have contributed to or even caused the failure, but then what do you do with a creaking and slipping seatpost?

Update 2: It appears that the manufacturer specified the incorrect seat post diameter leading to widespread seatpost slipping problems with this bike (GT Peace 9r). The overtightening of the clamp necessary to stop the slipping would appear to be the cause of mine breaking. Check out this thread in the MTBR forums.