I couldn’t let International Bacon Day go by without saying a few words about the blessed humble bacon slice. Be it back bacon or gammon, pork chops or streaky crispy slices, smoked or plain, or even a nice bit of middle…..
Bacon is probably that thing you love…
A client said to me a few months ago “Bacon is proof that there’s a God” Now you may or may not agree with that sweeping statement but the truth is, if you’re a meat eater, then bacon is probably the thing you love…the best out the bunch. In fact I know vegetarians who still crave a juicy bacon sandwich. When I started eating meat again in my early 20’s after being vegetarian for a few years……the first thing I got my teeth into? Yes, a bacon sandwich of course! (During my years of being a vegetarian, I would eat smoked tofu on toast for that ‘bacony’ flavour, my favourite packet of crisps at the time?….Smokey Bacon of course!)
I’m not sure why we feel this great affinity to bacon…some have said it’s because the meat is very similar to ours, and we feel a sense of familiarity because of that…I find that theory a little dubious myself, but there’s no getting away from the fact that the smell of frying bacon will get even the laziest teenager bouncing out of bed and in the kitchen for breakfast in the morning. It draws people in the greasy spoon cafe’s from far and wide, and has a comforting smell that reminds us of happy eating moments in our childhood.
Why have we become scared of bacon?
We have been denying ourselves this primal, satisfying pleasure for too long now, in my opinion….cutting off the fat and having the skinniest bit of the middle of the flesh for fear of the dreaded saturated fat….the joy of eating bacon becomes greatly diminished, and so we end up treating it with caution, like its DELIBERATELY waiting to do damage to us as we fear for our rising cholesterol levels and shrinking arteries. I hear from clients all the time who say they don’t like the fat on bacon…and then we look a little closer, and then they give it a try, and they realise that all along they have been convincing themselves that they didn’t like the fat off bacon and other meats, because they were literally scared of it, and the imagined damage that it would do to their bodies.
The thing is with this fear….it is completely unfounded. It has no basis in science whatsoever. In fact, the tiny, extremely unreliable piece of science in the 70’s that showed us that ‘fat makes us fat’ is laughably out of date now, and is now shown to be completely overwhelmed by the hundreds of pieces of evidence out there that show us the fats are fine…it’s the processed carbs that are slowly raising our blood pressure and lowering our life expectancies….so it’s far more accurate to say that ‘carbs make you fat’….the way your body chemistry works is complex, but basically burning carbohydrates as a source of fuel prevents your body from efficiently metabolising your fats…take all that processed rubbish and starchy or sugary carbs out the equation and you burn fat efficiently and cleanly, like a well-oiled machine….what do you eat instead of those inefficient carbohydrates? EVERYTHING ELSE! Just like our ancestors did….with loads of bacon thrown on the side for good measure.
Let’s put it this way….did you ever see a single documentary about an indigenous population that shied away from eating fat? That trimmed the excess fat off the meat before handing it round? 
I imagine they would find the idea completely unthinkable…that you would be getting rid of the ‘best bit’! They celebrate and relish the fat dripping off the meat. Copious amounts of fat are used in cooking in so many societies, and these people are often slender and very very healthy, with far lower incidents of heart disease, obesity, cardio vascular issues etc. (Until you introduce Western eating habits into their diet that is, and then they suffer exactly the same as those of us in the west who are desperately battling against those unfortunate preventable illnesses).
Eating fat will help you lose weight, shrink your stomach and reduce your cholesterol levels
Historically, people have always been able to regulate their appetite through eating fat…again this is complex body chemistry, but let’s just say that sugary, processed and starchy carbohydrates interrupt the message that triggers your brain to tell you that you’re satisfied. Eating fat, completely unprocessed and along with complex carbohydrates and protein will drop your appetite through the floor and you will naturally regulate your intake….absolutely nothing else needed….so bacon and eggs for breakfast, with an avocado on the side, some fried cabbage and greens will literally keep you going all day….graze on some nuts and berries throughout the day, and enjoy a piece of salmon smothered in cheese with broccoli on the side or asparagus in butter and pepper, and you’ll likely lose a pound in weight in a day, and your stomach will have significantly shrunk the next morning….along with your cholesterol levels.
How do I know this?
Because that’s what I do….every single morning…and I mainly avoid the bacon from the supermarkets as much as possible…it’s full of nitrates that act as preservatives….I advise you to go for the organic meat from the butchers (if you’re not spending loads of cash on processed rubbish, you can use that to fund your brand new pure-bacon-habit). The fat from your breakfast will sit in the pan and not dissolve away either, as processed bacon does, so I tend to use it later on in the day to fry my greens etc in, and they get a lovely ‘bacony’ flavour to them…but that’s just me! (And all the generation of cooks before me, of course…including my granny, who was 8 stone wringing wet and lived well into her 80’s).
So don’t just take my word for it…..
Ask the hundreds and hundreds of clients who have sat staring at me in wide-eyed disbelief and delight when I tell them “Eat your bacon fat”…and come back months later….slender, buzzing with energy and vitality and brimming with health….their appetite has diminished considerably and their love of their meals has shot through the roof, enabling them to bring back the enjoyment in their food, with not one bit of guilt associated with it whatsoever…because they don’t see fat as their enemy any more….just their simple pleasure that they can enjoy….EVERY SINGLE MORNING!!!
Do you want to enjoy your bacon again? Just remember that you need to drop all the un-necessary carbohydrates out of your diet, or your body will store the fat….ditch the carbs, and you will become a fat burning machine….if you need more help with that? Contact me! It’s what I’m here for!
Please do leave a comment at the bottom of this blog if you enjoyed the read, and check out the recipes I’ve posted on the Breakthrough-Weightloss facebook page in honour of #Internationalbaconday 🙂
Bridgette x
