What is Metabolic Typing?

Even your moderately interested consumer today can reel off half a dozen or so of the popular diet methods. Atkins, South Beach, Pritikin et al, they all offer to provide improved health and of course, a more aesthetically pleasing appearance. The obvious question that arises is "If they all work, why are there so many?". The answer lies in the idea that one size fits all when it comes to designing your meal routine. In this article I am going to show how Metabolic Typing seeks to overcome the one size fits all approach, and why it succeeds.

Each of us is an individual. We all look different, have different tastes in food and lovers and enjoy a range of activities. You are unique to this planet. So it stands to reason that the nutrition you require will be unique as well. This is where the majority of diet plans fall down. They expect creatures as diverse as human beings to all adhere to a single method of eating. It is also the reason why each method works for some people and not others. Everyone knows of a story of the Atkins diet (higher protein and fat ratios in meals) working for a friend of theirs, and conversely everyone knows someone who does well on a high carbohydrate, Pritikin style of diet. Each of these diets represents a small spectrum of a vary diverse range of nutritional requirements.

I want to illustrate unique requirements further. In the book Biochemical Individuality,Dr Roger Williams showed that people significantly vary in their nutrient needs. In an example that should interest many people today, Dr Williams cites studies that show adult males can express a 450% variation in calcium levels between individuals. Also in regards to calcium, studies have shown that supplementing diet with calcium products can result in some individuals demonstrating an increase or decrease in bodily levels of calcium (It is an interesting to consider what this means in regards to what we are told about supplementing our diets with calcium).

So how is Metabolic Typing different? Metabolic Typing works because it accounts for the variance in nutritional requirements between individuals. No one size fits all. And fortunately for us, no guess work either. A test is used to determine the ratios of macronutrients that you need to consume, and guidelines are given for foods that will suit your particular metabolic type.

How Metabolic Typing works?

Humans as we know them have been wandering the Earth for between 40,000 and 100,000 years depending on which scientific evidence you support - either way it is a long time. And while we have made technological and cultural changes along the way, one thing that has been relatively consistent was the food that we ate. This is because while nomadic people tended to follow their food around (they followed animals used for meat), their migratory travels remained in a relatively local area. This meant that these people developed requirements for the foods that their environment produced. To illustrate this with an extreme case, how many tropical fruits do you think indigenous eskimos ate? Very little I am assuming! In contrast their diets would likely have been high in foods that contain high amounts of protien and fat such as fish and blubber.

Contrast the Eskimos with peoples living closer to the equator. Warmer climate meant more plant based food in their diet due to its high availability. The food requirements for both types of people has developed over tens if not hundreds of thousands of years, meaning that they are literally requirements - not just tendencies. If you take an native Eskimo and feed him too many carbohydrates he will get sick. It is the wrong nutrient type for his body.

So you need to know your genetic heritage in order to determine how best to fuel your body. Now since it is impractical to trace your geanalogical history all the way back to your ancient ancestors, the Metabolic Typing test asks you questions in regards to the way you react to food. From this is it able to place you into three rough categories - Protein Types, Carbohydrate Types and Mixed Types.

A Protein Type is a person that converts the energy in their food into blood sugar very quickly. This creates a requirement for foods that slow down absorption of energy, typically meat and fats/oils. Unfortunately, in modern society (particularly in the West) we are carbohydrate addicts and are scared of eating meat. This spells disaster for protein types as while they try to exist on a diet of predominately grains and cereals (ala, the food pyramid) their body cannot cope with the constant onslaught of high starch, high energy foods.
Characteristics of a Protein Type.
Strong appetite. You don't want to get between a protein type person and their meal, particularly if it has been more than a few hours. Protein types also like to snack.
Cravings for fatty, salty foods. You love salted nuts, chips, scotch fillet steak, pizza and sausage.
Difficulty losing weight/fat. Protein types often have difficulty losing bodyfat, and can sometimes gain weight when dieting and cutting calories!
Energy fluctuations. Moods go up and down and everything in between. Prone to lethargy, listlessness and apathy.
Volatile with sweets. Once a Protein Type starts eating sweets they strongly crave more.
An archetypal protein type is an Eskimo.

A Carbohydrate Type person has a much slower energy conversion rate. This means they tend to gravitate towards lighter meals such as salads that are easy to process. Carbohydrate types are best suited to the modern western diet that is high in grains and cereals, but (anecdotally) are less aware of their reactions to foods (conditions such as diabetes).
Characteristics of a Carbohydrate Type
Tolerance for sugar. Carbohydrate types are able to eat sweets and desserts without many of the aesthetic consequences normally associated with sugar.
Low appetite. It is not unusual for carbohydrate types to only eat 2 meals spread across the day. This is fine until they succumb to the advice to eat several small meals which slows down their system.
Type A personality. Workaholic, short temper and "dont have time to eat" typifies carbo types.
Caffeine use. Because carbo types don't eat much and slowly assimilate energy, stimulants often become the start to their day.

A Mixed Type has all the good and bad traits of both the Protein Type and Carbohydrate Type (it's not just a clever name). Within this type are two sub types. The first is an even mix of both types with no traits really dominating. The second is characterised by dominance in each trait as either or.
Characteristics of a Mixed Type (aside from the combination of Protein and Carbohydrate type).
Need for both. Mixed Types need to get the mix of Protein and Carb types. They cannot just dwell in one category.

The metabolic typing characteristics have been edited from The Metabolic Typing Diet by William Wolcott and Trish Fahey, available on the recommended reading page.

My experience with Metabolic Typing

Metabolic typing began for me with the intent of losing body fat. Though I was not carrying excessive fat levels, I wanted to have abs 24/7. In the early stages it worked reasonably well, and i began to lose some body fat. The biggest change however, came when I took grains out of my diet. I knew them to be a caution food for my type (protein type), but as I was training like a bodybuilder I thought that I needed a high carb intake. Within 2 months of taking grain foods out of my diet I was 5kg leaner. Not just lighter, but leaner, retaining all the muscle I was carrying and just dropping the fat!

I finally nailed my metabolic typing diet when I had my shoulder reconstructed in 2005. Because I couldn't exercise i decided to fine tune my diet as much as possible. Over the following months without exercise I lost 13kg - and got leaner. In fact I got so much leaner that while attending a training course I was accused (albeit in a complimentary fashion) of using chemical substances to lean out.

While the aesthetic changes have been marked, the biggest change that I have noticed is in my health. I was consistently ill before beginning metabolic typing. I caught all the seasonal bugs and got myriad other problems year to year. Since eating according to my type I have literally not been sick since January 2005. No hint of illness in that entire time. Image is great but true health is worth so much more.

How to get 'Typed'

There are 3 ways to get Metabolically Typed.
1. Purchase the Metabolic Typing Diet by William Wolcott and Trish Fahey. This can be done by visiting the recommended booklist page.
2. Take the free test on this site. This will determine your metabolic type as a starting point, though minimal direction is provided (I cant just reproduce the MT book!).
3. Have a personal consultation with either a Metabolic Typing Advisor, or a C.H.E.K Holisitic Lifestyle Coach. This can be done via email, phone or in person. Contact me for a consultation.

A final note

Although Metabolic Typing begins as a way to lose weight and improve moods, its benefits are not limited to just physiological changes. Adhering to the MT guidelines causes you to increase your conscious awareness of yourself. You will become intimately aware of the way that your body reacts to each food type and more aware of why you make the food choices that you do. Continual awareness of yourself enriches life (some would say that it is the goal in life), because it puts the power and therefore responsibility of your life in your hands. 100% control comes from continued awareness. So enjoy the trials and tribulations associated with refining your diet, it is bringing you closer to your greatest gift - you.

Ryan Prigg