Dan, First heard about you on the KNST while riding my bike. I'm 57 yrs., 5'9" 175 lbs. I first started to try to loose my beer belly by biking and diet then discovered that body building would help burn off fat. So, I started using my soloflex (clone) and also read Suzanne Sommers' book about the effects of sugars (and starches--high glycemic index foods) spiking the insulin level and causing fat to be stored. Now, I'm fearful of eating any potatoes, corn, carrots, rice. Here's my delima; I see body builder diets of chicken and RICE, all the time. I've also read that insulin is necessary for protein to be moved into the muscles for repair. It seems that insulin is a double edged sword!! How can I assure that when my insulin level goes up that, I'll be repairing muscle and NOT storing FAT! ? ?

Sorry it has taken so long to get back with you. The best way to make sure you are controlling your insulin and ultimately your energy levels in a good way is to eat a diet that consists of approximately 40-50 percent carbohydrates, 25-30 percent protein, and 25-30 percent fat. The other way is to simply eat healthy foods in smaller portions throughout the day and to exercise. However, I have found that if you do both, some amazing things can happen. You can maintain a much leaner body with less work, you will have a more consistent energy level with less fatigue and you may also experience positive changes in your cholesterol and triglyceride levels. A big part of controlling insulin and energy levels means controlling something called glucagon. Glucagon, like insulin, is released from the pancreas. However, it is insulin's biological opposite. Insulin is a storage oriented hormone whereas glucagon is a release or mobilization oriented hormone. If you want to release the stored calories within your body you need to balance your insulin-glucagon ratios. The balance of these two hormones is critical for survival and it depends on two things. One is the size of the meal you eat (overeating is not good no matter how healthy the food is!). The other is the ratio of protein to carbohydrate in each meal. That is why simply eating a diet that is more balanced in its macronutrient (carb, protein, fat) level like I mentioned above is so important. In closing, just remember that no special diet or training strategy is going to be the magical panacea for everyone. The opposite is just as true. Eating carrots or corn, as you mentioned in your question, isn’t going to ruin your life so you really don’t want to get too stressed out about the little things. Also, for some great tips on healthy eating, check out our basic nutrition section at: http://www.fitrex.com/nutrition.shtml Eat healthy, train hard,