Let them eat squirrel?

Posted Sat, 07/03/2010 - 18:32 by Melissa

Fit for Life was one of my first diets, too; I was probably 14.

I was raised vegetarian and so was vegetarian at the time, and I don’t lose weight easily so was restricting calories as well as following FFL. I believe the writers of the book were also vegetarian and made some minor encouragements in that direction.

I remember reading it one hungry day – I did most of my reading of diet books to remind me why I was staying hungry – and there was something about how “people aren’t really meat eaters: you don’t see a squirrel in a park and want to kill it and eat it.”

And I thought, oh, man, squirrel. I bet that would be delicious. If squirrel were a diet food and I’d feel less starving, I’d be out there with a trap.

That bugged me for a long time; it was the pinnacle of thin diet book writers with sufficient calories to their needs making pronouncements in cultural privilege.

An awesome comment on The Fat Nutritionist, which like Matt Stone's is a blog I enjoy reading despite the fact I don't agree with everything they say. But really they are a reaction to the fat-restriction "healthy" vegetarian and vegan deprivation diets that are so common these days. Such diets are heavy on emotional pronouncements and light on actual science.

Sure, some people lose weight on them. So? Losing weight should be a side effect rather than a goal. Do you want to eat up like Gwynyth Paltrow with her red-meat free healthy macrobiotic eating? It's so healthy that she is heading for osteoporosis.

I also totally agree that Fit For Life and other diet books that market vegetarian asceticism are examples of cultural privilege. My relatives have eaten delicious nutritious squirrels, turtles, and raccoons for hundreds of years.

I personally suspect whole grain-based diets work for weight loss sometimes because they are so hard to digest. When I was a whole-grain eating vegetarian it seemed like most of the grains I ate passed right though me without actually being digested....good for losing weight, but also a perfect path to malnutrition.

Matt Stone and Michelle are right- eat food, lots of it, don't leave yourself hungry. But I'd add that you should avoid foods that make you feel sick. Maybe there is someone out there who feels like a million dollars after eating cupcakes and pizza, but I'm certainly not that person.

Principle: you should NEVER be hungry. NEVER. If you are fasting and feeling hungry, stop fasting until your body is ready for it. And eat some damn bacon while your at it! 

Comments

Melissa, how did your ideas

by Michael - 07/07/2010 - 19:25

Melissa, how did your ideas of eating lots of "fat, fat, fatty fat" and eating to never being hungry evolve over time?

Did you just jump in that way by faith when you were being inspired by Mark Sisson, or did you come to them over time as you experienced your health improve?

I guess my point is that a lot of people still believe in order to lose weight, you have to be somewhat hungry, which means you're in a calorie deficit.

SNAP. "That bugged me for a

by Dan - 07/05/2010 - 13:21

SNAP.

"That bugged me for a long time; it was the pinnacle of thin diet book writers with sufficient calories to their needs making pronouncements in cultural privilege".

LOVE IT. Im subscribing to that site.

Seems like the perfect title

by chris - 07/05/2010 - 13:04

Seems like the perfect title of a Paleo/Libertarian blog would be:

"Squirrels and Dandelions"

I walked past a food giveaway for the poor one time. They were handing out bags filled with boxes of "food" that contained HFCS, grain and hydrogenated oils to people who were indeed poor but who were also overweight.

These people in line were walking past dandelions at their feet and squirrels overhead on the power lines. Imagine an hunter/gatherer choosing a box of macaroni over fresh roasted squirrel on a bed of dandelions.

We live in a strange world when sickly people line up for food products while marching past real, healthful food.

That was delightful fun,

by M. - 07/05/2010 - 12:07

That was delightful fun, thanks. When I was in my early twenties (a very long time ago) I I lived in the mountains of Northern California and regularly supplemented my diet with squirrel, rabbit, wild turkey (the bird, not the drink) and the occasional black tail deer.

It saved all sorts of money. for the price of a burger, coke and fries I could buy enough .22 long rifle ammunition to keep me in meat for a couple of months. For a poor student type this was a real benefit. Being reminded of this has me eying the squirrels behind my house with bad intent.

I have to disagree with you just a bit on the idea of being hungry. I find that a little hunger from time to time is a good thing. It sharpens the senses and brings you a bit more into your body in my opinion. I think though, that we, as a culture have become detached enough from our physical being that we lump a whole spectrum of feelings, from the pleasant sensation of an empty stomach and having used up your immediate store of blood glucose, to actual starvation as "hunger".

Just my opinion though. Thanks for an insightful article.

My uncle hunts and eats

by Tovar - 07/05/2010 - 11:47

My uncle hunts and eats squirrel regularly. I probably would, too, except that here in Vermont we only have the little red ones, not the nice, big grays.

"you don’t see a squirrel in

by Hannah - 07/05/2010 - 10:57

"you don’t see a squirrel in a park and want to kill it and eat it.”
Wow- this sort of thing really angers me. Why do so many vegetarian/vegan health advocates find the need to influence people to believe eating meat is unnatural, and assume everyone reading such propaganda will just nod their heads and accept it? When I see a squirrel I personally think -yum, dinner. It's delicious! @Erin- I would recommend browning in butter and then braising in a little stock with onion, tomato, celery and carrot. You can cook it slow like this and it won't dry out or toughen. Also check out this video of Andrew Zimmern eating various squirrel dishes to inspire you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbBINl-AE1I

Grandpa cooks bacon and eggs

by helen of troy joan of arc - 07/04/2010 - 15:48

Grandpa cooks bacon and eggs every morning and he is still on the golf course. Helen says "Eat more pig but don't forget alligators and opossums too". Joan says that is wonderful real Mississippi food.

Hmmm, does anyone have good

by Erin - 07/04/2010 - 15:09

Hmmm, does anyone have good squirrel recipes? We have tonnes of the invasive spp. at my house.

Yes, Hunter Angler Gardener

by NorCal Cazadora - 07/10/2010 - 18:22

Yes, Hunter Angler Gardener Cook does: http://honest-food.net/wild-game/rabbit-hare-squirrel-recipes/

A friend of mine was once

by Alan M - 07/05/2010 - 20:15

A friend of mine was once reminiscing about his mom cooking up squirrel and dumplings. Maybe the dumplings can be made out of almond flower. :)

4 whole squirrels, cleaned

by M. - 07/05/2010 - 12:36

4 whole squirrels, cleaned and dressed.

1/4 cup olive oil
2 tsp coarse ground salt
1 tsp coarse ground black pepper
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tbs fresh thyme chopped fine
1 tbs fresh sage chopped fine
4 cloves of fresh garlic, minced

put the spices in the oil, mix well then rub the mixture all over the squirrels. Let them set for 1/2 hour.

Barbecue over mesquite coals slowly until well done. Serve with wild foraged greens.

serves 2

"Never be hungry" - I am glad

by Matt Metzgar - 07/04/2010 - 11:14

"Never be hungry" - I am glad you had the guts to say this. I would enjoy more discussion on this.

Imagine what would happen to diet industry if this principle became accepted!

Even Harvey Diamond has seen

by Christopher Robbins - 07/04/2010 - 08:06

Even Harvey Diamond has seen the light and is no longer a vegetarian.

Just wondering, what's the

by archaea - 07/04/2010 - 01:35

Just wondering, what's the reasoning behind never going hungry? Would you say it only applies to people who are just starting out with paleo/healthy eating (so that they don't get derailed or feel deprived), or is it a general rule for everyone? Were you thinking of any negative physical consequences of hunger, or more the psychological ones?

THanks!

Because hunger is not fun.

by JP@Primaljournal - 07/05/2010 - 07:44

Because hunger is not fun. Because being hungry probably means your body is lacking nutrients.

But, as long as you eat healthy foods, you will notice how you won't be hungry as much as you used to. You will even be able to do some fast and not feel hungry.

My mother used to say : ''ton ventre crie parce qu'il a faim'' Translation : You stomach cry for foods. (When hungry that is).

JP

Well the good thing is that

by Michael - 07/04/2010 - 00:35

Well the good thing is that Harvey Diamond has long since left veganism (and vegetarianism) of the Natural Hygiene variety behind, and noted he was wrong in a later book that he wrote. Heck Harvey at one time even embraced the Warrior Diet!

I'm not sure his now ex-wife ever gave up veganism. Or if she did I haven't seen it in print.

I recently discovered that

by Christian W - 07/03/2010 - 23:53

I recently discovered that caffeine makes me eat too little.

The irony was that with the physiologic stress that comes from not eating enough, particularly when doing so on a very low carb diet (low glycogen stores), the increased glucose release by the liver triggered by the stress put me on the equivalent of a higher carb diet.

The combo of appetite suppressing caffeine and a high fat/protein diet is a recipe for prolonged under eating, which in turn is a recipe for problems.

Throw in some sleep deficiency (can also be triggered by caffeine and stress) and/or over-training and some of the good effects of a paleo diet are cancelled out.

Hi Melissa, I love reading

by tracy - 07/03/2010 - 19:30

Hi Melissa,

I love reading your posts. Not only do they echo some sentiments I think are common sense, they also acknowledge that men and women have different nutritional and exercise needs. I am no expert in any of these areas, and in fact, I am quite the opposite...a novice.

I am trying Paleo out for 30 days due to a public challenge I accepted. I accepted because of a number of reasons, the primary one being my husband has had amazing health benefits from the change. I have never in my life dieted, and for the most part, brutally mock them (for the exact reasons you point out...weight loss does not equal good health). Paleo makes sense to me.

Anyhow, the purpose of my post, to thank you!!!

Oh jeez Fit For Life. I tried

by Susan - 07/03/2010 - 19:28

Oh jeez Fit For Life. I tried that a few years ago. I nearly lost my mind. I was constantly watching the clock, counting the hours until I was "allowed" eat again.

That squirrel bit reminds me of a Harvey Diamond (the co-author of Fit For Life) quote: "You put a baby in a crib with an apple and a rabbit. If it eats the rabbit and plays with the apple, I'll buy you a new car." This at one point in my life was all the "proof" I needed that a vegan diet was ideal for humans. Oy...

I completely agree with your point about avoiding foods that don't agree with you. It is so important for people to listen to their bodies. If you feed your body right, it will get you to a healthy weight. No need to starve.