Cream Diet has been found and developed by Götz Heine in the late 20st Century. 80years before German doctors have already noted that cream could have a soothing effect on ailments and inflammations of the gall bladder, so some testing had been executed. The following observations led to the present form of the regimen :

observation 1

The personal experience being made that feeding a baby on all these highly recommended vegetable oils and fats off the shelves of modern health food stores would shift it into serious trouble rather than make it survive when instead fed on simmered butter or even better: fresh whipped cream. In times when it’s mother’s milk may be short both foods although full of saturated fats and rich in cholesterol can’t prevent baby to get along with it comfortably.

observation 2

If, from a nutritionist’s point of view, all fats belong to the same group of nutrients and those with a higher percentage of unsaturated fatty acids such as vegetable fats were superior, why is it then the human body doesn’t seem to know this?  In fact, it doesn’t even seem to bother when it comes to feed its own precious offspring with the best fats available. Mother’s milk consists of hardly any unsaturated fats. Of course this does not imply that the organism should live exclusively on cream for an extended period of time. It only goes to show that physical or chemical values do not translate 1:1 to living mammals at all times.

Being said that, how is it possible that some nutritionists seemingly forget that the human organism is a highly complex living system not designed for ’convenient’ foods off chemical laboratories? Instead fresh whipped cream proves to be highly convenient. It serves both, an ‘energy currency’ as well as a source of hormonal regeneration. Is it a ’side effect’  that its natural content of cholesterol serves the reproductive glands to synthesize vital hormones? Certainly not. On the contrary, the kind of weak fat metabolism we find in modern adults and kids alike is the result of continuous lack of exercise plus a focus on artificial carbohydrates and starches only. More than that, those individuals create metabolic trash like ketones which in turn block their proper body functions, a viscous circle continues.

observation 3

Men in general and athletes in particular who want to re-activate an effective fat metabolism need to specially prepare for it. Unless they do, results will be as an Australian study implies: Nil and void. The study examined the performance changes of athletes run on a nutrition based on fat, mainly fat. As scientists didn’t focus on a ‘zero’ carb diet the body of the tested athletes did simply not respond. However, deprivation of calories from carbs is crucial to make the organism convert to proper fat metabolism. Otherwise there is no notable effect of fat nutrition for endurance athletes. Instead proper function of a person’s fat metabolism even under extreme conditions is what makes them dominate in endurance sports (for a detailed view on the study click: http://jap.physiology.org/content/100/1/7.fullmaxtoshow=&HITS=10&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&author1=burke+lm&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&sortspec=relevance&resourcetype=HWCIT#content-block )

observation 4

Good news is that man’s ability to burn ingested and even stored fats can be re-activated in unprecedented ways by the help of the Cream Diet. Yes, burning fat can be trained like running, cycling and swimming. And: Who with sound brains would combine any of these disciplines together with the other one from scratch? Isn’t it a little short-sighted to train the fat metabolism with various oils, enzymes or even carbs in order to stay cholesterol-free? Wouldn’t it be better to train it with the most ‘human’ fat, blood fat, i.e. cream instead? That’s why the Cream Diet should be executed b e f o r e starting any serious exercise. Or what’s the use of sending obese people on the running course until – - they damaged their joints successfully ? What’s the benefit of running  them through carb-restricted regimen when they are still unable to access their own depots of excess fat?!

Plan: First condition necessary is that this source of energy can be used, so to say ingested, digested and properly burned. This needs the existence of enzymes which split up fatty acids plus the acceptance of tissues (muscles, nerves) which burn down the metabolic trash of fat and ketones completely. No worries, even this can be easily re-learned. Positive effect of this process in comparison to the well-known fasting is that precious muscle mass and protein depots will be saved instead of erased. So, no longer muscle loss during weight reduction (compare to: Ketogenic Diet of body builders http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/keto.htm and epileptics http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketogenic_diet )

Another ‘side effect’ of the Cream Diet is its positive influence on a healthy flora in the intestines consisting mainly of lactic acid bacteria. Instead of ingesting (expensive) heaps of bifidus, coli or lactic acid, krauts and sour dough the Cream Diet is highly efficient when it comes to clean and re-cultivate the intestinal flora for a comparatively small budget.

Beware – For getting started, to become a good fat-burner it should not be your primary goal to lose weight! First goal of this diet is, to exercise once well-known but forgotten mechanisms of digestion, gain competence in using milk-fat as a primary means of energy again and at the same time lessen the pressure on the intestines and the digestive organs opposed to them by complex combinations of foods. Sure, as a side-effect this will reduce body-fat depots like melting snow in the sun. When athletes who without any signs of fatigue or bonking (ketones!) can work for hours, build up less lactic acid and show significantly less sweat and thirst – all signs of a successful switch due to Cream Diet – then this serves as a good indicator for less metabolic trash in the blood stream, right?

Modern volumetric and gas measuring instruments as they are available on the fitness market will easily serve to back the claims on improved metabolic capacity.

In the following read 5time IRONdistance winner Joe Spindler’s comment on his experience with the CREAM DIET:        

( picture courtesy of: http://www.jospindler.com/ )

“I’ve been using the Cream Diet for a couple of years already and was able to win 5 IRON-distances taking advantage of this diet.

My fitness-test I execute at STAPS. That’s where they can monitor VO2max as well as lactic acid production rate separately and calculate performance at threshold.  We became aware of the influence of nutrition merely by chance: the test right after a Cream Diet noted a significantly lower lactic acid production rate at equal VO2max thus leading to a slight increase at individual threshold and a significant improvement of my steady state (G1/G2 or IRONMAN -intensity – in other words a higher percentage of threshold performance for a longer duration of time)!

Another season we tried to improve my performance by increasing VO2max. Due to the necessary stress training I was forced to ingest slightly more carbs, especially prior to the sessions. The following test showed an increase of VO2max (69 to 74ml/min/kg) but also a significantly increased production rate of lactic acid. The gain in VO2max performance had been eliminated by the deterioration of lactic acid production rate thus keeping threshold performance at equal levels in relation to prior to the training measurement – BUT with a significant loss of performance at steady state. 

Put into practice this meant I had to substitute carbs already after 2 hours in opposite to a fortnight after the Cream Diet where a hard training of two splits with a 4h race speed and a 25km-run (4min/km) I could  execute with just one 750ml water bottle.

I’m not a sports scientist therefore I’m not so much into figures but on performance and results. Since then I stopped testing and estimated my current fitness according to my need of carbs in long, heavy sessions (and average power/average speed). Basically, it’s no problem to exercise at a high level for hours living on cream, fruit, nuts and cheese (which equals a carb intake of 60-120gr/day) provided one has executed the switch to fat metabolism accurately.

IRONMAN -performances especially those at a professional level are always a matter of fat metabolism capacity, never of fitness i.e., the athlete with the better fat metabolism will always be in front because he can perform fast for longer.

 If your coach warns you to reduce carbs or doing a Cream Diet in order not to jeopardize training he is fitness –, not metabolism-orientated and misses out on the criteria decisive for long distance performance. Real long distance training must be metabolism-orientated therefore it looks completely different to what you get told in all current training advisers and tri-magazines.

 Concerning nutrition during a race I did not yet try Götz‘s advice to reduce carbs to almost zero. However I ingest non-solid foods and have 1-2 gels the utmost. The rest is plain water and a solution of carbs. Pasta parties the day prior to the race are counter-productive as the partially digested carbs will just float somewhere in the intermediary metabolism where they are of no use except for feeling terribly bloated and slow only to run you into stomach troubles during the swim. 

By the end of the day figures are of no big help. Instead what counts is practical experience. And experience everyone has to make himself – that’s the beauty in sports, isn’t it? This is why I’d recommend give it a try and let your body find the answer.”

Modus operandi:

After an entire Liver flush the athlete’s body gets nothing but fresh whipped cream (without additives!) and water to drink, of course. Quantities up to 1 litre of cream/day are no problem depending on the athlete’s training volume. The switch to decent fat burning takes about 7, the diet approximately 10 days according to the athlete’s fitness. Note that the Cream Diet is neither survival training nor a fast. Instead, it is merely kind of a regression to early childhood days when mother’s milk served as the main nutrient. Of course everyone will react differently on this voyage according to his personal history of illness, cures, drugs, remedies a.s.f.. This is why the diet should be accompanied by an experienced doctor or practitioner. Götz Heine guides the 10-day diet which includes daily e-mail exchange and, if necessary, a 24hour stand-by availability.

The value…

… of the Cream Diet for any endurance athlete can’t be overestimated. For the first time he can secure a sufficient nutrition based on cream and Crème fraiche for his oncoming events. No more pasta parties, no tiring carbo loading prior to what is supposed to be a personal highlight.

LEGAL DISCLAIMER                                                                                                       In cases of acute illness or chronic disease the diet described above may be helpful but does by no means replace the visit of a medical doctor or an alternative practitioner/naturopath. It is  n o t  a cure or remedy n o r  designed for self- therapy. Instead, it is a means of training regimen for anyone’s metabolism. Therefore the author declines any responsibility for individual illness or disease which may clash with the suggestions given above.