The casual inclusion of lard, bacon grease and coconut oil in my cooking coupled with the fact that my blog is labeled “butter is better” may be shocking to those standard american cooks and consumers.  I’d love to start explaining my love for fat, showing why it should be endorsed instead of vilified, and convincing you to add more of the “right” fats to your diet.

Lesson 1- You need fat to fuel your body

Calories: a nutritional measurement of the energy content in food

1 gram of Carbohydrate has 4 calories, 1 gram of Protein has 4 calories and 1 gram of fat has 9 calories.

I want you to be able to see the above statements and change your view from “yikes, fat has more calories!” to “oh, fat supplies my body with more energy.”  This is proven below in the pathways of how carbs and fat get turned into cellular energy, or ATP

Carbs->glucose->glycolysis->Krebs cycle->ETC-> 36 ATP

Fats->fatty acid->beta oxidation-> 128 ATP

1 glucose makes 36 ATP, while 1 Fatty acid makes 128 ATP!! Which would you rather fuel your body? Which will get your through your day? Your high intensity crossfit workout? Something that creates 36 units of usable energy, or 128? If you have ever felt mentally sluggish, tired in the afternoon, or hit a wall while working out, you need more fat! I hope this makes you re-think your carb-loading and start eating eggs and avocados for breakfast instead of cereal and toast!