Binary Thinking

Last year I watched all of Star Trek: The Next Generation. I'd highly recommend it. I love so much about it. There are so many great episodes that truly made me think. And I think I get why modern Star Trek productions are so upsetting to many.

What was most surprising about Star Trek: TNG was the Borg. Like most people, I was vaguely aware of the Borg. I had the basic understanding that most have about them through pop-culture osmosis. If you don't know, the Borg are a pseudo-species of cyborgs that assimilate technology and species into their collective hive mind. Their only purpose is perfection through absorption. In this way, they are the perfect foil for Starfleet. "The first duty of every Starfleet officer is to the truth. Whether it's scientific truth, or historical truth, or personal truth. It is the guiding principle upon which Starfleet is based." – Captain Jean-Luc Picard, 2368 ("The First Duty")

But what was so surprising while I was watching the show was how terrifying they are. Despite out-dated VFX and costumes, I found myself squirming in my seat whenever the crew was in close contact with the Borg. After thinking about it, I found out why they bother me so much. They represent something scarier than death. They represent a total loss of autonomy and individuality. This is not a new discovery. This is why they are scary to everyone. In TNG we see the effect that this has on Picard. He has PTSD from being assimilated by them even though he was only with the Borg collective for a short time.

Frighteningly, I see a corollary to the Borg in our culture: binary thinking. It's fitting. Just as computers run on binary code, 1s and 0s, this type of thinking forces a person to see the world in black and white. This is our modern-day Borg problem, and just as the Borg represented an existential threat to future earth, this type of thinking poses the same threat to our society.

Binary thinking is antithetical to critical thinking, and that is why it is so scary to me. So I'd like to lay out some problems with binary thinking as I see it.

Binary Thinking is Illogical

Binary thinking is illogical because it sets up false dichotomies and then suggests that a person choose between two options. Usually one of the options is so morally egregious that it forces a person to agree with "the one right answer." This is disingenuous. If there is only one "right choice," there isn't really a choice, and the binary itself is falsely constructed.

This is also deceptive because the one who is behind creating the options in the binary pretends that these binaries are spontaneous, natural, and obvious when in actuality they are manufactured and precisely worded to achieve a specific outcome: conformity.

This isn't how the world works. Everything around us exists in gray areas. Degrees of certainty. Ranges of nuance. A dazzling array of spectra. Insisting that our complex world can be whittled down to simple binaries is an affront to objective reality.

Binary Thinking Foments Conflict

This is done by forcing people to choose sides. It doesn't matter if the binary is falsely constructed, especially when moral binaries are involved. People usually feel so strongly that they immediately choose a side and demonize not just those on the opposite side, but those "in the middle."

As stated earlier, because of the nature of a binary, there can be no middle. 1 or 0. No in-between. The reasoning goes: If you claim to be in the middle, you are actually on the opposite side, and therefore my enemy. It's no wonder that people can't seem to discuss their differences nowadays. A false binary exists solely to stop disagreement. Once a false binary has been created, the discussion is over.

Binary thinking only alienates people. It slows down progress. It stops dialogue. It is intolerant of nuance. It is reductive and arrogant. It doesn't allow for exploration or new data or third-dimensional possibilities. It forces those with different opinions underground. It creates violent extremism. Stick with one side of the binary long enough without opposition and people will push their ideology to its limits.

Conclusion

Whenever you see someone express something like, "I can't imagine how someone would disagree," you can be pretty sure that a false dichotomy has been erected.

This is one of the reasons why the Borg scare me so much. From a Star Trek Fan Wiki: "Individual [Borg] drones have demonstrated puzzlement at other species' unwillingness to be assimilated, the drones believing in the superiority of their way of life."

I can see why this type of thinking is alluring. It's safe. It gives people common enemies. Something to fight against. It gives people purpose by anchoring to "sure knowledge." It's neat. In this complex world of ours, binary thinking is a safety blanket.

However, it seems many people have forgotten one of our oldest Socratic dialectics:
"True knowledge exists in knowing that you know nothing."

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I Can't Relate

For those of you that are out of the loop, I started teaching high school this year. I'd like to share something. The gifs should help. It has been an adventure for sure. After teaching 6th grade for four years, I thought I knew what teaching was. I thought I knew what I was doing. But I don't. Teaching is one of the most complex things I've ever done.


To put things in perspective, here's an analogy:
Imagine for a second what a computer programmer does (I  know this is reductive, but bear with me for a second). They sit down at a computer and they write complex directions for the computer to follow. The computer does exactly what it is told. Sometimes that isn't what the programmer wants, so he iterates until the computer is doing what he wants. But all in all, the programmer speaks in a language the computer can understand and together they make something greater.

Now imagine for a second that the computer doesn't even have the database to understand the language the programmer is typing in. Imagine that the programmer had to teach the computer basic logic and give it an operating system before he could give it directions. Now imagine that each computer that he works with is different. Some have gaps in their operating systems. Some were taught to do certain functions really well, and others not at all. Imagine that some computers opened up random programs and starting browsing the internet of their own accord while the programmer was trying to do his job. Then imagine some computers didn't eat breakfast that morning. Then imagine that some computers had been abused by previous owners. Some are even missing basic hardware. Now imagine that the government mandates that every single one of the 200 computers he's given needs to understand and successfully run the new program, and he has 9 months to do it. Oh yeah, and cut his average pay in half.

Hopefully this gives you a better understanding of what it's like to teach. I'm not complaining, however (except maybe about the pay). All of this is a digression. What I really wanted to share was a realization that I've had about teaching high school.

6th graders idolized me, mostly because I was the first male teacher they'd had. It was much easier to build rapport with them because they are so young and they just want to be heard and appreciated. Most high schoolers have a thicker shell. They need to be coaxed into a relationship of trust with a tremendous amount of patience. I naively thought that this would be easier than it has been. I thought the rapport would come naturally as it did with younger students.

Here was my misconception: "I'll be able to relate to high school students because I was in their shoes not too long ago."

I hope you just laughed at my naivete. I can now. There's two major things wrong with this statement:

1. "Not too long ago" was actually a very long time ago. I'm old. I don't think I'm old. But to my students I am. I'm twice their age. I graduated when they were infants (2005). I might as well be their grandfather. I know they know I'm younger than most of their other teachers, but they don't care. I'm still old.

2. I can't relate.

Here's what the rest of the post is about. I really can't relate to these kids. I consider myself caught up on my pop culture. I know the memes they joke about. I understand their slang (although I can't use it. Trust me, I tried, and it had disastrously awkward consequences. But we joke about it now). I can intellectually understand some of the things they might be going through. But intellectually understanding is akin to sympathy, not empathy.

For instance, I can't relate to having the social acceptance of my peers revolve around my online presence. I can't relate to never being able to escape judgement. When I was their age, even if I was made fun of during the day, I could go home and leave it behind for at least a few hours. I had a reprieve, they don't. In fact, the instrument of their torture and delight is forever attached to their bodies. And while the majority of my students have a somewhat healthy relationship with their phones, I can't relate to the ones who literally cannot fathom having their phone taken away. I'm being serious here.

The phone rules are pretty relaxed in my class. They just can't have them out when I'm teaching. I can remember the first time I tried taking the phone away from a girl. When I asked for it in a private moment, the look she gave me was not one of anger or resentment, it was of confusion. It was almost as if no one had ever suggested to her that she be without her phone. Once she understood what I was asking, she panicked and started bargaining and causing a scene, which was not my intent, so I told her to see me after class. In our ensuing conversation she apologized and rattled off ten excuses. And it has soured her attitude toward me for the rest of the year. Despite all this, she still needs to be reminded to put her phone away almost daily.

Some not in my shoes might think I'm being too easy on her, but I know I'm making the right decision when I think of that look she first gave me. Old-school hard-ass teachers might suggest the rules are the rules and they need to be enforced, outside consequences be damned. She's the student, she does what she's told. But what they fail to comprehend is that taking away a phone doesn't mean taking away an entertainment device. For some of them, it is like sending some students into drug withdrawals. For some of them, it means removing social connection. For some of them, it means removing an (artificial) self-esteem booster. For some of them, it means not knowing where their friends are going for lunch. For some of them, it means social death.

Now, I haven't commented on the ethics of their co-dependency on technology because that's a huge discussion. The simple fact is that it is what it is. Regardless of how we may feel, we need to meet these students where they are if their situation is going to improve.

Again, I can't relate with any of this, so my approach has been one of compassion rather than condemnation. And if that means trying to teach them healthy boundaries with a reminder every single day, then that's what I'll do.

I can't relate to kids struggling with suicidal ideation. I can't relate to the staggering numbers of girls self-harming (1 in 4). I can't relate to the boys who hate girls because they are so incredibly lonely and hurt.

I simply can't relate.

But I can try. And I won't stop. Despite the crappy pay.





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Rian Johnson Doesn't Care About Star Wars Fans.

I knew it. I knew as soon as the blue credits started rolling. As enthusiastic as the midnight premiere crowd was, I could hear the overwhelming praise underpinned with rumblings of discontent. There was an unease that I could sense more than I could actively discern. I felt it within myself, too. I decided to withhold my own judgement because I had had such a change of heart after my first viewing of The Force Awakens. After the first time I saw TFA, I was heartbroken. I had watched all the trailers and was up to date on all the fan theories, and I felt that the movie was nothing more than a rehash of the old Star Wars. A shell of recycled beats and themes. But after a few more viewings I came to like it more and more. I fell in love with the characters. I proceeded through a grieving process and finally accepted that despite some recycled themes, the movie had accomplished its goal. It rebooted the franchise without ruining it.

This time around, I reserved my judgement for The Last Jedi. I tuned out the rabid fan-base and wild speculation. I didn't watch the trailers or TV spots. The only thing I carried into The Last Jedi was faith in Rian Johnson and Disney. Now after seeing it for the second time, I'm ready to share my thoughts.

Rian Johnson doesn't care about Star Wars fans. In fact, I'm pretty sure that at some point he saw this T-shirt and thought, "You know what? Let's go with that."

And actually, when I googled this image, one of the first images that came up was this:

So I'm actually fairly positive that I'm right. What I mean by saying that Rian Johnson doesn't care about Star Wars fans is that he cares about the story. Not your feelings. Or theories. Or preconceived notions about what Star Wars is or isn't. His script seems to thumb its nose at everything that the fans expected. It subverts everyone's expectations. But that subversion is performed such passion and fiery dedication that it has injected the franchise with new possibility and life. Johnson didn't give us the Star Wars movie we wanted. He gave us the Star Wars movie we needed.

That said, here is a list of ways (good and bad) in which the movie subverted my (and many others') expectations. I believe this is the cause of the divisive feedback the fans have given the movie. Feel free to message me or comment about ways (good and bad) in which the movie didn't go where you expected.

*SPOILERS TO FOLLOW. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED*

1. Rey: Just Rey. No last name. Her parents are no one. In fact, she's not a Kenobi or a Skywalker, her parents are actually scum. I LOVE this. I would have HATED it if she had turned out to be related to someone important. We already have Skywalkers in the story and the story simply can't go on only being about them. It's unsustainable. It would start to get stale. Plus, it is even  more poetic that someone who is "unimportant" can make such a difference. That is what Star Wars is to me. It's not about midichlorians and bloodlines and chosen ones. It's about "nobodys" who grow up to be "somebodys." Also, another way in which Johnson subverts your expectations: Rey is untrained and yet she is strong in the force. Get over it. Luke spent a week with Yoda before he rushed off to face Vader in ESB. Training doesn't equal strength. It never has. Johnson has set up a world in which force wielders don't have to be tamed. They can be wild and instinctual. I find this exciting.

2. Luke: Luke's character is not what many wanted, including Mark Hamill himself. In TLJ, Luke is world-weary and discouraged. He is actively pessimistic about himself and especially about the Jedi. Finally we have an acknowledgement from someone that the Jedi Order are not perfect. They are not saviors of the universe. They are another piece of the puzzle. A balancing force on one end of the seesaw. What both Snoke and Luke know is that light and dark always rise to meet one another in equal measure. And what Luke learns is that this is inevitable. There's no sitting this one out. Also, Johnson subverts your expectations by giving Luke a power no one has ever seen before. Force projection is amazing. It is truly a powerful pacifistic weapon. It is the perfect weapon of a Master Jedi. It fits with what Luke has turned into as a character and allows him to become one with the force. He did plenty of "laser sword waving." Now it's time for another approach to solving problems.

3. Leia: She can use the force. Something we've always kind of known but haven't been sure about until now. I like the idea, but hated Johnson's execution of it. It pulls me out of the movie because it just looks so utterly ridiculous. But oh well. Too late to change now.

4. Finn/Rose: This is the first time we've ever seen a "desperate rebel sneak attack" fail. People universally seem to dislike the whole Canto Bight story line. And I don't like it either, but it does serve the story. It solidifies Finn's resolve to fight for the rebellion and not just Rey. Which brings me to my next point.

5. Holdo/Rebellion: Admiral Holdo and the rebels can make mistakes. Johnson has finally shown us that the rebels can be disorganized, uncommunicative, and prideful. What makes them the good guys is that they still come together to fight for what is morally correct and teach each other. Even if it means demoting and slapping and arguing and scolding. Holdo doesn't need to fill Poe in on the plan. If Poe is going to be a leader in the rebellion going forward, he needs to calm down and make hard decisions. Holdo is able to teach him this in her poignant, brief tenure in the story.

6. Snoke: He isn't a typical "sith." He just wields the dark side and wants to rule. He doesn't need to be some character from previous films. I wish we had a little more information about where he came from, but again, Johnson did what was right for the story. After TFA, the story was headed in a predictable direction. We had an ultimate bad guy with an unsteady apprentice who could have been redeemed. Now we don't. Snoke is dead and the story has room to breathe.

7. Kylo: No one saw this coming. Ben Solo is truly gone. Kylo ain't coming back to the light. This isn't Vader all over again. Kylo is far more chaotic and dangerous than a typical sith. There is no cold calculation in him. He is an angsty, rage-filled sociopath. He scares me much more than he did before. I get the feeling that he will literally go to any length to get what he wants, and that is a bad guy we can love to hate going forward. We didn't like Snoke because we weren't supposed to, but we never really knew his true motivation. We know Kylo. We know how he thinks, and we can understand his motivations. That is a great bad guy.

8. Hux/First Order: Another way in which Johnson has undercut our expectations is by making Hux angry and impetuous. This psychopath now has more power? Snoke always seemed to keep this "cur" in check. But now he's off the leash and doesn't respect Kylo as much as he did Snoke. Again, going forward, this makes the First Order seem that much more menacing and chaotic. This is not the cold, calculating, bureaucratic Empire. This is an organization with an arsenal and an army and there's no telling what devastation they are about to unleash on the galaxy.
  
Each time that I've seen the movie now, I kept thinking, "I didn't even know I wanted this until I saw it." There are some truly breathtaking moments. I've not been to a movie in a long time where everyone around me audibly gasps at what happens. When Holdo rams the cruiser at light speed, everyone's jaw drops. The throne-room scene might just be the best lightsaber battle of the entire franchise. The bombing run at the beginning has given me chills both times. Luke becoming one with the force has made me get a little misty-eyed both times. Even though Leia floats like a witch, and even though Finn and Rose ride beasts that crash through a city, and even though DelToro overacted his character (to be expected), I still really appreciate that Rian Johnson made a Star Wars movie, and not a fan film.

After The Force Awakens I was prepared for more of the same. Now, for the first time in a long time, I am excited about the future of Star Wars. 

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The God of Promises

During the first transfer of my mission in Switzerland, we taught a woman named Tanya Mader. She was our only investigator. We would spend so much time preparing our lessons because my companion knew how rare a progressing investigator was. Her husband and small son would listen politely during our lessons, but never really engage. We were so excited for our weekly appointments. We would pour out our hearts to this woman because we so rarely got to testify to someone who would actually listen. We got even more excited when she committed to baptism. The two weeks before her baptism flew by. She accepted all her commitments and began bearing her own testimony to us. Then, then on Saturday morning of her baptismal day, while my companion was ironing his white pants that he had never used, our telephone rang. After a short conversation, my companion pulled his white pants from the ironing board and hung them back in the closet. Immediately, my mind went to my Patriarchal Blessing. It states that my testimony would be accepted and relied upon during my mission. Even though I had about 20 months left, I still wondered, could God fulfill his promise?

Brothers and Sisters, our God is a God of promises. You probably know this if you’ve read a single page from anywhere in the standard works. His covenants and promises are everywhere. President Spencer W. Kimball said, “There are so many beautiful promises. To read the scriptures and turn the pages, it seems that it is almost all rewards, evidence of living the commandments of the Lord.”[1] We often see the Lord’s promises fulfilled in glorious and dramatic ways. We see this when prophets and people are delivered from oppression, saved from wild beasts or fiery furnaces, and when the enemies of the chosen people are miraculously defeated.

If we are supposed to liken the scriptures to ourselves, we must inevitably ask: could the Lord do this in my life? If he needed to, could the Lord deliver me from physical danger? Does the Lord really care enough about me to perform miracles in my life? In a recent Conference address, Elder Bednar said:

"Is it possible to exercise faith in Him, follow Him, serve Him, but not believe Him? I am acquainted with Church members who accept as true the doctrine and principles contained in the scriptures and proclaimed from this pulpit. And yet they have a hard time believing those gospel truths apply specifically in their lives and to their circumstances. They seem to have faith in the Savior, but they do not believe His promised blessings are available to them or can operate in their lives.”[2]

            When I read these words, I can’t help but feel that Elder Bednar is speaking to me directly. Often I think, “Yes, yes that’s fine for others, but those types of miraculous events and fulfillment of promises only apply to others. People who deserve it more. People who are special. The Lord won’t do that in my life because he never has.” I mean, think for a moment of some of God’s wonderful promises:

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”[3]

“Ask, and it shall be given unto you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.”[4]

“And all saints [...] shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones; And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures; And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint. And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them...”[5]

“...though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”[6]

Do you really believe that you can find rest in this tumultuous world? Can you really be given special revelatory knowledge from God? Can the Lord really make you healthier? Can the Lord truly erase your sins? Make them as if they’d never happened? The answer to these questions is yes. But maybe these aren’t personal enough blessings.

So instead think for a moment of something personal that the Lord has promised you, perhaps in a Patriarchal Blessing. Do you still believe the Lord can fulfill His promise to you? If you’re not sure, I know of someone who may have felt as you do. His name was Abraham. Wisely, the scriptures not only contain straightforward examples of promise-fulfillment, they also contain covenants or promises that have not yet been fulfilled, or promises that weren’t fulfilled in the way one would expect. The book of Romans speaks of Abraham as “being fully persuaded that, what [the Lord] had promised, he was able also to perform.”[7]

            That is truly amazing when we think of what Abraham experienced. Year after year, he waited for the promised blessing of a son. And year after year, nothing. Surely he prayed. Surely he wept. Surely Sarah felt inadequate. After all, the Lord had promised a son, hadn’t He? Surely one or both members of this couple wondered if Hagar bearing Ishmael was the fulfillment of that holy promise. Perhaps they had misunderstood. And perhaps once they reached old ages they assumed that the son would come in the afterlife. But sure enough, Sarah bears a son in her old age, Isaac. What a time of astonished joy they must have felt. The Lord did it! Against all odds, He did it! The answer to that promise flew in the face of everything they knew about God and the natural order of life. But the Lord promised posterity and fulfilled His promise despite impossible odds.

And yet, a short few years later, Abraham hears this from the Lord: “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering...”[8] Even the Lord’s phrasing here is telling. The reference is clear: thine only son. Perhaps Abraham understood Isaac’s similitude to the Savior, perhaps not. Either way, how can the Lord ask this of Abraham? This is the most tender part of Abraham’s soul. Is the Lord going back on His promise?

            Hasn’t Abraham suffered enough? Hasn’t Sarah? Abraham is intimately familiar with the evils of human sacrifice, and this is what the Lord asks? Of all things? Is this not the covenant child? Isn’t Isaac the living fulfillment of a lifetime of waiting? And the Lord asks Abraham to kill his little boy? There is no example in all of scripture that demonstrates so fully what God asks of us as his disciples. The Lord asks for us to lay everything we have on the altar. All of our pride and selfishness and disbelief. And sometimes, just sometimes he asks for that which may be the most precious to us: a child, a parent, a spouse. President John Taylor said: “You will have all kinds of trials to pass through... God will feel after you, and He will take hold of you and wrench your very heart strings, and if you cannot stand it you will not be fit for an inheritance in the Celestial Kingdom of God.”[9]

The scripture reads: “Therefore, they [who profess discipleship] must needs be chastened and tried, even as Abraham, who was commanded to offer up his only son. For all those who will not endure chastening, but deny me, cannot be sanctified.”[10]

            Think about that! We all have to be tried like Abraham in order to be sanctified.  This may sound harsh, but remember the Lord also says “after much tribulation ... cometh the blessing.”[11] So what then is the blessing? What is the point of this suffering? President George Q. Cannon said:

There is no sacrifice that God can ask of us or his servants whom he has chosen to lead us that we should hesitate about making. In one sense of the word, it is no sacrifice. We may call it so because it comes in contact with our selfishness and our unbelief, but it ought not to come in contact with our faith. Why did the Lord ask such things of Abraham? Because, knowing what his future would be and that he would be the father of an innumerable posterity, he was determined to test him. God did not do this for His own sake for He knew by His foreknowledge what Abraham would do; but the purpose was to impress upon Abraham a lesson and to enable him to attain unto knowledge that he could not obtain in any other way. That is why God tries all of us. It is not for His own knowledge, for He knows all things beforehand. He knows all your lives and everything you will do. But he tries us for our own good, that we may know ourselves.[12]

Two things stand out to me from this quote. One, that God knows what we need so well, that he can tailor your trials to fit your exact circumstances. He knows not only what you need, but how you need it. If you let Him, He will teach you things that you wouldn’t be able to learn in any other way.  

And two, God knows you. God loves you. God not only knows you as you are right now, but He knows who you’ve always been and who you eventually will be. The problem is that you don’t know who you are. He does. He isn’t asking you to wait or withholding blessings to torture you. He is trying to teach you who you are. He wants to tell you what He knows about you. You are here to find out what you are capable of.

D&C 132 states “Abraham received promises concerning his seed, and of the fruit of his loins—from whose loins ye are [...] This promise is yours also, because ye are of Abraham [...] Go ye, therefore, and do the works of Abraham; enter ye into my law and ye shall be saved.”[13]

            So what exactly are the promises of Abraham? What did the Lord promise Abraham in exchange for laying everything he had on the altar? And by extension, what has the Lord promised us if we do the same? His promise is of exaltation. Godhood. “For whoso is faithful... They become... the seed of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God. ...therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto [them].”[14] This is no small promise. Yes, it hurts to lay all that we have on the altar. Yes, it will be the most difficult thing we are called to do. But the promise is sure: everything. You get everything. All you have for all that the Father has is worth it. He promises that it will be.

            With 4 months left to go on my mission, I was in the Mission President’s home for a leadership meeting when the zone leaders from my first area approached me. One of them had a photo in his hand. It was a picture of Tanya Mader, dressed in white. But she wasn’t alone. Her husband was standing with her, dressed in white as well. Today I still carry that picture in my scriptures as evidence that the Lord always fulfills his promises. I know that He can fulfill his promises. Not only do I know it, I believe Him when He promises me all that He has. That’s not to say I never waiver. I’m far from perfect. But I’m getting better at trusting Him. Truly Moroni was right when he wrote: “For the eternal purposes of the Lord shall roll on, until all his promises shall be fulfilled.”[15]  In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

---

[1] Jan.1974, The Rewards, The Blessings, The Promises

[2] Nov. 2016, “If Ye Had Known Me”

[3] Matt 11:28

[4] 3 Ne. 14:7-8

[5] D&C 89:18-21

[6] Isa. 1: 18

[7] Romans 4:21

[8] Gen. 22:2

[9] Journal of Discourses, 24:197

[10] D&C 101:4-5

[11] D&C 103:12

[12] Gospel Truth, 89

[13] D&C 132: 30-32

[14] D&C 84: 33-38

[15] Mor. 8:22

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Ketogenesis, Or How I Stopped Being Fat

I’m tired of getting asked about my diet.

Well, a lot of the time I’m not asked at all, I’m told. “That’s dangerous!” they’ll say. Or, “Don’t you know that’s unsustainable?” Or simply, “You probably shouldn’t be doing that.”

Well, I want to put this to bed. I’m on the Keto Diet. You may know it by its popular offshoots, Atkins and South Beach. Keto isn’t that. It isn’t a fad. It is a diet that uses a natural process in your body to switch from burning carbohydrates as your main fuel source to burning fat as your main fuel source. Sound too good to be true? It’s not.

A typical dinner.

If you didn’t know, most modern diets consist of large amounts of carbohydrates, or carbs for short. Carbs take many forms. They can be plain sugars or starches like sugar in soda, bread, pasta, and potatoes. They are one example of what is called a macronutrient (the others being protein and fat). Food can consist of any amount of combinations of these three macronutrients. But if you’ve ever read a food label, you’ll notice that carbs are sneaking into almost everything we eat. Most people’s diets now consist of anywhere from 50%-70% carbohydrate. Carbs are in places you’d never expect to see them. Some strange examples: Ketchup, Salad Dressing, Yoghurt, and even some canned vegetables. My mom even recently discovered her turkey bacon has added sugar. Sometimes they are in small quantities, and sometimes large. Either way, they add up fast. Just take the “Complete Breakfast” that cereal companies have peddled to us for years in their commercials. Juice = carbs. Toast = carbs. Jelly = carbs. Fruit = carbs. Cereal = carbs. This breakfast is basically 100% carbohydrate.

Why is this a problem? Well, for years the common opinion of doctors has been that diabetes, fatty liver, and heart disease are all caused by eating too many calories in general. Whereas now doctors are finding that people who exercise frequently and live relatively healthy lifestyles are falling victim to these same diseases, even when they don’t eat too many calories. Traditionally, these health problems were seen as a “calories in” vs. “calories out” problem (essentially overeating), whereas now many doctors and dieticians are more concerned with the types of calories going in. Doctors used to say avoid sugar because it had so many calories in such small amounts and would therefore lead to a “calories in” vs. “calories out” problem. Now research is beginning to suggest that what you eat is just as important as how much you eat.

Obviously eating 500 calories of broccoli is better than consuming 500 calories worth of sugar. But don’t blame doctors, they weren’t educated with the right materials. A doctor named Ancel Keys duped the FDA and the American public. To find out more about how that happened back in the 70s during the anti-fat movement, go watch Sugar Coated on Netflix. It will piss you off. Learn more about this here.

Just before World War II, sugar consumption was about 4 pounds a month per person. By the early 1980’s, Americans were eating 10 pounds a month per person. By 2000, it was about 12.5 lbs/per month/per person. (source) It’s even worse today. The World Health Organization guidelines for healthy amounts of sugar in an adult’s diet is about 2 lbs/per person/month. (source)

Back to Keto. The problem is that carbs are a quick fuel source for your body. “In normal circumstances, the body's cells use glucose as their main form of energy. Glucose is typically derived from dietary carbohydrates ... which the body breaks down into simple sugars. Glucose can either be used to fuel the body or stored in the liver and muscles as glycogen.”(source) In a healthy person, a rise in glucose in the blood triggers the pancreas to release insulin which helps cells absorb the glucose where it is used as fuel.

Funny that the most unhealthy thing about this is the bun.

Put simply, the pancreas cannot keep up with the amount of glucose that is flowing through the average person’s veins nowadays. This puts extreme stress on a delicate organ and the body has to adapt. For most people, that excess glucose is stored as fat. In extreme cases, the pancreas shuts down and diabetes is the result. With the Keto diet, we get around this by limiting our carb intake to about 30 grams to 50 grams per day, or 5% of ones total macro intake. To give you a sense of how much that is, ONE kiwi has about 21 grams of net carbs. (Net carbs are carbohydrate minus the naturally occurring dietary fiber.) We supplement this lack of a major macronutrient by eating a diet consisting mainly of fat and some protein. This may sound gross if you think of fat in the traditional sense, which for most people is lard. But fat can come in many forms: olive oil, butter, avocado, cheese, nuts, and (yes) bacon. Lest it sound like all I eat is meat and cheese, let me tell you, I’ve never eaten more vegetables (or drank more water) in my life than on this diet. Most leafy vegetables are packed full of nutrients and fiber and contain very little protein, fat, or carbohydrates, so load up! The best part is that I love the vegetables I eat! Yes, I eat a lot of protein, but there are even vegan versions of the keto diet. The reason I eat a lot of protein is because I lift weights and I want them “gainz, bruh.”

Here’s a good explanation of what is going on in my body. “If there is not enough glucose available to meet energy demands, the body will adopt an alternative strategy in order to meet those demands. Specifically, the body begins to break down fat stores to provide glucose from triglycerides. Ketones are a by-product of this process. Ketones are acids that build up in the blood and are eliminated in urine. In small amounts, they serve to indicate that the body is breaking down fat.”(source) Thus the diet’s nickname: Keto.

Can you tell when I started Keto?

I could go on and on, but I’ll finish with my results and let them do the preaching. I’ve lost 38 pounds. I feel fantastic. I sleep better. I have way fewer gastrointestinal problems. I have more energy. I love feeling good about what I eat. Even the Mayo Clinic agrees: “Low-carb diets may help prevent or improve serious health conditions, such as metabolic syndrome, diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.” Read more here.

Do I miss carbs? Occasionally. But I had a realization recently. I realized that I miss carb culture more than I miss the actual carbs. Think of all of the occasions in our lives when we use sugar as the centerpiece! But while I may miss the culture from time to time, the feeling fades away quickly when I’m eating cheesy eggs and bacon. Or cheeseburger casserole (no noodles). Or eating my grandma’s pot roast recipe. Or a gigantic salad with fresh-sliced avocado and lime. You can keep your sugar. And your “DIBEETUS.”

If you want to know more, take a look at these sources: Added Sugars and Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Children: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association- http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/early/2016/08/22/CIR.0000000000000439
"The committee found that it is reasonable to recommend that children consume ≤25 g, or ~6 teaspoons of added sugars per day and to avoid added sugars for children under 2."

The Heart and Stroke Foundation Owes Canadian Parents an Apology: https://youtu.be/PfGzJ4mkSa0

Dr Mary Vernon, MD, is one of the world's foremost experts on treating obesity and diabetes with low carbohydrate nutrition: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kaquSijXJkQ  

http://www.mensfitness.com/nutrition/what-to-eat/truth-behind-worlds-most-cutting-edge-fat-burning-performance-meal-plan-keto

https://www.reddit.com/r/keto/wiki/keto_in_a_nutshell

As always, consult your doctor before making an extreme change in your diet. My results are typical of those on the diet, but that doesn’t mean that the diet would be right for you.