Flesh Builds Flesh

John,

First of all I would like to say thanks for the awesome website and the wealth of information I found on it.  I have a quick question for you, what is your opinion on soy milk?  Would you recommend it for someone who can’t drink regular milk or should I stay away from it completely.

Thank you.

Taras Demyanchuk

I haven’t beat up on soy in a few years. In 2008, I launched a one man campaign on the CFB blog against soy and have not changed my thoughts. I had friend, (I stress “had”) which in hopes of being healthy started supplementing with soy. With each venti soy latte, he saw his muscles go soft and him go limp. Needless to say, a teary intervention resulted after he started lactating.

“Tofu was first used in monasteries in China about 2,000 years ago, in party to promote sexual abstinence, since the phytoestrogens in soy lower testosterone levels.” – Soy Alert!

The key problem with soy is that it contains phytoestrogens, which “mimic the physiological effects of the endogenous hormone, estrogen”.  So by consuming soy products, you’re could be pumping hormones into your body like you are taking birth control pills. Now imagine you take your days old baby boy or girl and start pumping soy-based formula into him or her 8 times a day. The flush of phytoestrogens wreaks havoc on the surge of testosterone that happens in newborn baby boys. If your intent is to create a living Ken doll out of your boy, soy him up. I can only speculate on what the extra estrogen does to young baby girls.

“Soy isoflavones are phyto-endocrine disrupters. At dietary levels, they can prevent ovulation and stimulate the growth of cancer cells. Eating as little as 30 grams (about 4 tablespoons) of soy per day can result in hypothyroidism with symptoms of lethargy, constipation, weight gain and fatigue.” – WPF

When it comes to proteins, the only ones I consume and recommend are those with faces,souls and mothers. If your protein does not have a face, soul or mother than you should it avoid like a kid huffing bath salts.

But what is soy milk?

Soy milk is a result of grinding up soy beans and mixing it with water. While it has the similar amount of protein, 6.3 grams per cup, (plant based proteins) as cow’s milk, 7.9 grams per cup, the amino acid profiles are very different. Mainly, it has about 1/3 the amount of leucine of cow’s milk. And if you are a regular reader of TTMJ, you know leucine is responsible for the anabolic effect needed to build muscle. But it doesn’t stop there as researchers have long recognized them as a poor source of protein because the proteins found in soybeans act as potent enzyme inhibitors. These “antinutrients” block the action of trypsin and other enzymes needed for protein digestion.

Finally, if you can’t consume cow’s milk than avoid it completly. Just make sure to supplement your diet with meat, preferably from grass fed cows.

In short, flesh builds flesh or FBF.

Personally, I recommend the crock pot to aid in meat supplementation quest.

Here is a recipe my wife made recently.

Dry Rub
4 tablespoons of espresso grounds
1 teaspoon ground chipotle
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 tablespoon dried oregano
2 tablespoon cumin
2 tablespoon sea salt

Mix all spice rub ingredients together in a plastic container and shake well.

Roast
2 tablespoon of pasture raised butter.
5 lbs beef chuck roast from GF cow
1 red onion, halved and sliced
2 cups of squash cut into ½ inch cubes
1 cup water
1 cup organic beef broth

Directions
Heat 1 tablespoon of butter in a skillet over medium to high heat and pour over roast. Take the spice mixture and rub on the roast. Throw the other tablespoon of butter in the hot pan, wait a few seconds for it to melt and place the roast into the hot pan and sear for 3 minutes on each side.  Make sure you pan is hot enough to hear a nice searing sound, but don’t burn it! You want the coffee mix to crust up the meat.  Place your onions and squash in the crock pot. Take the roast out of the searing pan and place in the crock pot. Add the water and beef broth, cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

Serves 1.