I first want to talk about Mike Glab's claims in response to increased energy after giving up meat. I have no idea if the steroids and GH pumped into these animals has any effect on energy levels and I cannot find any study that can conclusivelt make such claims. It is my though that based on the short functional time that these hormones have in the body they have no effect directly on eaters, but they could possibly change the meat composition. I doubt that it does much, though, since organic meat seems to produce many of the same effects when much is consumed. In addition, the increased energy is probably not due to simply cutting out meats, but cutting out fatty meats. Fats take the longest for the body to digest, followed by protein, and then carbs. This also accounts for more energy expended by the body trying to digest these fats.Digesting also causes an influx of parasympathetic activity, which is basically chemicals in your body that make you feel like you want to sit down and do nothing and just relax so as not to shunt blood away from digestion. Things that digest faster do not cause this much parasympathetic activity. In addition, red meats are acidic and may also cause one to feel pretty bad based on the increased acid in the stomach. I believe that the increased energy is based on eating less saturated fats that slow one down, and I think cheese fries or pizza would cause the same kind of slow down and acidity as meat. Lean meats like turkey, lean beef, and chicken would still be OK, but fatty meats will wreak damage on the stomach.

I had the opportunity to go to a casino in New Buffalo this weekend for my mom's birthday, and I must confess that the amount of pure gluttony here was quite impressive. Watching all the people with elastic waistband jeans smoking Marlboro reds and sweating while they slowly stretch forward to press down on the button that activates the slot machines was alarming, to say the least. The oily stain left upon the button as a result of the slim jims that they held at all times became the perfect image of overindulgance. I cannot claim that I did not want to take a bite off that pseudo-meat stick when they turned their heads, or that I did not crave the thirst-quenching Miller Lite's that were on tap. However, I resisted and took my black coffee to the blackjack table and proceeded to lose the loan money that just got deposited into my account. The casino was a great place, but the temptations were numerous. I was happy that I could avoid breaking temperance, but I cannoit wait to go back post-temperance and make some bad decisions.