Why Do I Have A Beer Gut When I Don't Drink Beer?
I have always been skinny. When I was a kid, I was very active, riding bike, camping with the Boy Scouts and walking to school, but didn’t like sports. Mom fed us a diet that was mostly meat and potatoes. My parents were trim and also active. In college, I played badminton and archery to fulfill the gym requirement and continued to do serious bike trekking. When I got married in 1961, I weighed 130 pounds. By age 40, as a mid-career professional, I was heavier and began to develop a gut and “love handles.” My neighbor got me started running. At first, I couldn’t run a mile, but soon I was training at 5 miles, then 10 miles. After years of avoiding sports because I was no good at it, I found I had the genes for endurance running. I studied training techniques and nutrition, and followed the advice of world class runners. I ate a diet high in carbohydrates (complex carbs - lots of pasta). Beer was considered a refreshing beverage after a workout, and contains minerals for electr...