The Path is Too Deep

For much of my life, I have operated as a "fixer" in my relationships. If someone I cared about came to me with a problem, a frustration, or a point of friction, my immediate biological response was to rapidly formulate a solution. On the surface, being a fixer sounds like a positive trait. It feels helpful. It feels supportive. But clinical psychology offers a different perspective: constantly stepping in to solve other people's problems is often less about helping them, and more about soothing our own internal anxiety. The Mechanics of Rescuing When we see someone we care about in distress, it creates emotional discomfort within us. For those of us with hyperactive or anxious mental baselines, that discomfort is intolerable. Source:  Shutterstock In psychology, there is a model called the Karpman Drama Triangle , which maps out destructive social interactions. The "Rescuer" (the fixer) is a classic role. The rescuer intervenes to fix the situation, which tempo...

In the world of Quality Assurance, we trust two things: clean data and rigorous audits. On February 6, 2026, the Journal of Hepatology published a significant audit - a study by Qadri et al. titled "Distinct effects of ketogenic and non-ketogenic weight-loss diets on hepatic steatosis and mitochondrial metabolism in MASLD." For years, critics have claimed that Keto is "just another way to cut calories." They argue that a calorie is a calorie, regardless of the source. This study just proved them wrong. Here is the Executive Summary of the findings and what they mean for your system. The Specs (The Methodology) This was a rigorous "Crossover" trial, the gold standard in testing. The Subjects: Individuals with Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease ( MASLD ) - essentially, "Fatty Liver." The Protocol: Participants were put on two different 6-day diet "sprints": Ketogenic Diet (KD): Low carb, high fat. Non-Ketogenic D...

In the world of nutrition, the term "superfood" is often thrown around as a marketing buzzword. However, when we look at the biochemistry of cruciferous vegetables, the title is actually scientifically earned. For those of us on a ketogenic lifestyle, vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and kale are staples because of their low carbohydrate content. But their value goes far beyond simply being a vehicle for butter or cheese. They contain a potent compound that actively communicates with your DNA to boost your cellular defense systems. The compound is called Sulforaphane . But here is the catch: it doesn't exist until you create it. The Binary Weapon (Glucoraphanin + Myrosinase) Cruciferous vegetables do not contain sulforaphane while they are sitting intact in your fridge. Instead, they hold two separate precursor compounds in different compartments of their cells: Glucoraphanin : A sulfur-rich compound. Myrosinase : An enzyme. When you chop, chew, ...

In the world of culinary arts, the egg is considered the ultimate test of a chef's skill. Why? Because an egg is a biological masterpiece of chemistry, and cooking it correctly requires a precise understanding of thermodynamics. Most of us are used to the "Diner Style" omelet - browned, crispy on the outside, and often dry on the inside. The Classic French Omelet is the opposite. It is pale yellow (zero browning), smooth as silk on the outside, and soft, almost custard-like, on the inside. It is a perfect Keto meal - just fat and protein - but mastering it requires us to respect the science of Protein Coagulation . The Science: Coagulation vs. Browning The goal of a French Omelet is to denature the proteins just enough to set them, without triggering the Maillard Reaction . The Maillard Reaction (browning) happens around 280°F (140°C). Egg Coagulation happens much lower. Whites set at 140°F–149°F (60°C–65°C), and yolks set at 149°F–158°F (65°C–70°C). The "Game...

My best friend sent me a text on the weekend that gave me pause. He asked: "When keto diets make general claims about staying under so many net carbs, they never consider a person’s size or activity. I assume someone who runs a daily 10k could eat way more carbs and stay in ketosis since they’re all getting used." It is a brilliant question. And scientifically, he is absolutely right. The "20g Net Carb" rule of strict keto is not a universal law of physics; it is a safety buffer designed for the average, sedentary metabolism. When you introduce high-intensity activity (like a 10 kilometer run), the biochemistry changes. Here is the science of why athletes can "get away" with more carbs, and the mechanism that makes it happen. The Two-Tank System To understand this, we have to look at where your body stores carbohydrates ( glycogen ). You have two distinct fuel tanks: The Liver (The Thermostat): This tank controls Ketosis. If your liver glycogen is full, y...

Sleep is not a state of biological shutdown, but an active, mechanical cleaning cycle essential for cognitive survival. For decades, the prevailing scientific thought was that sleep was simply a period of rest - a time for the body to conserve energy and recover. However, recent discoveries in neuroscience have completely shifted this paradigm. We now know that your brain is performing a vital, physical flush of toxins every night through a biological process known as the Glymphatic System . Here is the science behind what actually happens when you close your eyes, and why treating sleep as a passive luxury is a physiological mistake. The Mechanics of the Wash During waking hours, your brain consumes a massive amount of energy. This intense metabolic activity produces waste byproducts that accumulate in the surrounding tissue. To clear this, the brain initiates a fascinating mechanical shift: The 60% Shrink: When you enter deep, slow-wave sleep, your glial cells (the supportive cel...

I was watching an interview recently with Andrew Rea (the creator of Binging with Babish ), and he made a comparison that stopped me in my tracks. He compared the fact that our internal monologue - that constant voice narrating our lives - is similar to a Large Language Model (LLM) , just like the AI we use today. He said: "It's the sum total of your experiences and your projections of the future... and it works about as well as an AI language model does, which is not quite well enough." As a guy who has spent a lifetime in technology, this clicked. We tend to believe that the voice in our head is "The Truth." But if we look at it through the lens of computer engineering, we realize it isn't truth. It’s just predictive text . 1. The Training Data (Your Past) An AI like Gemini or ChatGPT is trained on a massive dataset of text. It doesn't "know" anything; it just recognizes patterns in the data it was fed. Your inner voice works the same way. I...