Written by Jack Davey, FitPro Intern
Edited by Tia Norris, FitPro President and Head Trainer
THE WARRIOR DIET: SUMMARY
The concept of The Warrior Diet is based on a daily period of fasting, or an “undereating phase”, followed by an “overeating phase”, preferably post-workout. This diet is one of the first to implement the principles of “Intermittent Fasting”, which has since been shown to have significant health benefits in human and animal studies.
The Warrior Diet is based on the way that humans ate during a large portion of our 2 million year existence, similar to the Paleo Diet. However, unlike the Paleo Diet, there are no restrictions on the consumption of dairy or grains (although the author does not recommend consuming wheat or non-organic dairy). The author proclaims that the Warrior Diet allows for an optimal amount of freedom, since those who practice it are able to follow their naturally ingrained pattern of feeding.
The words “primal” and “instinct” are used frequently in this book, since the author believes that humans are instinctually meant to hunt/gather during the day and eat/sleep at night. I recently listened to an interesting story about the health consequences that may affect graveyard shift workers, summarizing studies showing the health detriments of humans sleeping during the day and being active at night. After reading this book, I am starting to wonder if years from now there will be studies showing that eating large meals during the day has a similar effect on human health. The Warrior Diet made contemplate the potential benefits and hindrances that could come from following its outlined principles. I believe that for many, following the Warrior Diet could be very beneficial.
I found the Warrior Diet to be a very interesting and informative diet book that covers many of the issues that formal nutrition education programs fail to address. Being a Nutrition minor who has completed roughly 30 nutrition credit hours, I can say with confidence that modern university nutrition programs are based on streamlined, outdated, horse shit foundations. While most university professors will speak out against processed foods and advocate eating a healthy diet based on whole foods, you will rarely hear them address the issue of dangerous food additives and genetically-engineered ingredients that are found in so many foods labeled as “healthy” (many of these ingredients are carefully labeled with a warning, or even banned in other countries!). The author of this book addresses some of these often overlooked topics, such as inflammation, fermented foods/probiotics, good fats vs. bad fats, “enzyme-loading”, xenoestrogens, and how all these factors which contribute to overall health can be manipulated through diet.
To go into more detail about the specifics… The Warrior Diet is based on two phases: the overeating phase and the undereating phase. The undereating phase takes place during most of the day, when food intake is limited. During the undereating phase, you are allowed to consume “live” veggies and fruits, and even light protein if you feel it necessary. The author places a real emphasis on what he calls “live” or raw foods, which he claims are more easily digested and contain important enzymes. The main goal of the undereating phase is to detoxify, and this daily detoxification process, in my opinion, is what makes the Warrior Diet so intriguing. The author states that the daily cycle of undereating and consuming only “live” foods allows our internal organs to detoxify (since they are not taxed by hard-to-digest foods). This concept makes a lot of sense to me and I feel that it may be the main reason why intermittent fasting has been shown to improve health. The author of the Warrior Diet also claims that the undereating phase will lead to an increase in energy and alertness. In the book this is referred to as “dematerialization”, when the body is breaking down its food stores and converting these stores to energy. I am not sure if this claim is backed by any meaningful evidence, but it certainly adds to the appeal of the diet. The only case in which the typical undereating phase is not recommended is for an active individual. Those who exercise are advised to consume protein and carbohydrates following their workout, although it is recommended that they work out on an empty stomach (due to an increase in growth hormone shown to take place during periods of fasting). The Warrior Diet is based on following your instincts, and the duration of the undereating phase can vary based on individual needs.
The overeating phase begins in the evening following a day of fasting/undereating. As one would imagine, the principles of the overeating phase are relatively straightforward. However, there are “three rules of eating” that apply to the overeating phase. The first rule is that one should start with more subtle-tasting foods before moving to more aggressive-tasting foods. Raw vegetables are considered the most subtle foods, and it is recommended that everyone start their phase of overeating with raw vegetables. The reasons for this are based on a number of claims by the author; involving the sensitivity of the stomach lining, the sensitivity of our taste buds following the undereating phase, and the absorption of vitamins and enzymes. The second rule of overeating is to include as many tastes, textures, colors, and aromas as possible into your meal. This rule is based on the belief that inclusion of a variety of different foods leads to more complete satiety. Following this rule may also ensure that you are receiving all the necessary nutrients from your diet. The last rule of the overeating phase is to stop eating when you are more thirsty than you are hungry. As stated before, the Warrior Diet is based on listening to your primal instincts and intuitions, so it is believed that your body will tell you when you are ready to stop eating by sending a thirst signal to your brain. I find this rule to be quite bizarre and likely unreliable for determining when it is time to stop eating. I could probably keep eating for hours without feeling a sense of thirst, but maybe this rule is more reliable for others.
There is a wealth of interesting nutrition-related information within the Warrior Diet. The author does a great job of thoroughly addressing the nutritional advantages of different foods and food groups. One topic that I found particularly interesting was the differences between cooked and uncooked foods. As previously stated, “live” or raw foods are recommended during the undereating phase and beginning of the overeating phase, but the author does not advocate for a strictly raw diet, as he claims that cooked food also has its advantages. The thermogenic effect of warm food is said to aid in satiety from a meal, while more flavonoids and phytonutrients may be released from certain foods and more easily absorbed when these foods are cooked. One particular phytonutrient, lycopene, which is found in tomatoes, is shown to be much more easily absorbed when the tomatoes are cooked. The information within the Warrior Diet regarding whey protein was another topic I found particularly interesting. Most people are aware of the fact that whey protein is the highest quality form of protein available. Another reason why whey is considered the gold standard when it comes to sources of protein is that it may also contain immunoglobins and growth factors which can improve overall health. However, these two health-promoting compounds are destroyed during the processing of most commercial whey proteins and these commercial proteins may also contain estrogenic chemicals due to the antibiotics and steroids commonly fed to cattle. For this reason, the author strongly recommends choosing organic whey protein from grass-fed cows.
Despite the abundance of interesting topics and information found within the Warrior Diet there are at least a couple of chapters that I feel could be omitted or skipped by the reader. One of the chapters within the book explains the history of ancient warriors, including the Spartans, Romans, and Macedonians. The author obviously based much of the principles of the Warrior Diet on the lifestyles of these archaic soldiers. While I enjoy learning about history and respect the significant impact of the past on current trends, I feel that much of the information contained within this chapter is irrelevant. I also think that the diet and eating habits of man prior to the agricultural revolution would have been a better basis for the Warrior Diet, mainly due to the fact that these ancient humans did not eat any refined grains/sugars and lived more of a hunter/gatherer lifestyle. The book also contains a lengthy chapter outlining the “Warrior Workout”, which in my opinion, seems inferior to many other modern fitness trends. Much of the warrior workout involves resistance training using dumbbells, but the creator of this workout does not believe in training to failure because he claims it trains you to fail. To me this is a ridiculous statement that is not based on fact, and this is part of the reason why I would never follow an exercise program designed by the author of this book. Another reason I would not follow the Warrior Workout is due to the fact that one of the exercises prescribed involves walking on a treadmill while pumping dumbbells overhead. To me, combining resistance and aerobic exercise in that manner would decrease the benefits associated with each (not to mention you would look like a jackass).
While I do find some of the assertions made in the Warrior Diet to be subjective or even specious, most of the book seems to be based on objective data and commentary that keeps the reader engrossed. I consider this book to be quite innovative, since it was published nearly a decade ago, before the phrase intermittent fasting was even coined. Since reading this book my interest in the topic has peaked, and I hope to find more interesting books about IF. I expect that much more has been learned regarding this topic in the last decade. Hopefully, more authors have been able to capitalize on the growth in popularity of IF and the research that inevitably followed. Regardless, I would recommend the Warrior Diet to anyone interested in the topic of nutrition and especially intermittent fasting, not only to learn the principles of the diet itself, but to learn about the anomalous information contained in the book.
THE WARRIOR DIET: QUICKSTART GUIDE
When I first started learning about Intermittent Fasting, I didn’t have much faith in my ability to go for extended periods of time without eating. However, despite my lack of confidence initially, I quickly found that I was more able than I had thought to make it through the undereating phase easily.
Here are a few tips that I found to be quite helpful in implementing a Warrior Diet/Intermittent Fasting strategy:
1. Drink coffee or tea to help control your appetite. I’ve found that drinking coffee during the undereating phase really helps me power through the day without spending too much time thinking about eating. I tend to wake up hungry in the morning, and coffee really helps me gain the energy I need to hit the gym on an empty stomach (if you don’t like coffee, tea is a great alternative!).
2. Know the difference between fasting and undereating. The Warrior Diet involves an undereating phase, not a true fasting phase. The important difference between the two is the allowance of fresh fruits and veggies during the undereating phase, which supply your body with easily-digested nutrients and enzymes. Other diets may involve a strict fasting phase, which may be beneficial for sedentary individuals. However, those who participate in resistance and/or aerobic training should always eat following their workout (this is how you gain muscle!).
3. Customize your eating habits to fit your needs. I like to complete my daily workout in the morning, so I will typically fast from the time following my post-workout meal/snack until around 6pm when I start the overeating phase. Ideally, I would fast all day and then workout in the evening right before starting the overeating phase, since following a workout your body is more likely to utilize food for muscle-building and repair. However, I much prefer hitting the gym in the morning, which is why I follow my previously mentioned routine. If you are considering incorporating this diet plan into your routine, know that IF and the Warrior Diet can be utilized in any way that best suits your schedule and your individual preferences.
4. Try to focus your cooking efforts on your one big meal of the day. Since you are fasting for much of the day and you don’t need to worry about breakfast or lunch, try cooking an amazing meal for the overeating phase. The book recommends incorporating as many tastes, textures, and colors as possible into your meal.
5. Try high/low carb days. The Warrior Diet advocates carb cycling (alternating days of high carbohydrate and low carbohydrate consumption) for optimal fat loss. This concept has been embraced by many in the fitness industry, and has shown to be very effective for increasing fat loss. Convincing evidence now exists revealing the effectiveness of “tricking” your metabolism to burn more fat. This is why I recommend cycling between days of low and high carbohydrates while on the Warrior Diet. I also believe that one day per week of not implementing the undereating phase may aid in fat loss (more info regarding carb cycling and metabolism tricking to come in the next article!)
FitPro, LLC 