Posted on 09/22/2022 6:21:00 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Popular with weight lifters, this dairy-heavy diet has been around for decades and is now making the rounds on Twitter.
In Too Afraid to Ask, we’re answering all the food-related questions you’d rather not have loitering in the search history of your corporate laptop. Today: What in the world is GOMAD?
The gallon of milk a day (GOMAD) diet is just what it sounds like: a diet that involves drinking a gallon of milk a day. Seems nauseating, sure, but as one viral Twitter thread recently reminded us, it’s what plenty of fitness bros do for the gains. “Never felt better great for bulking,” one person replied. “YOU DONT choose the milk life, milk life chooses you,” added another.
Dating back to the 1920s, when personal trainer Bernarr Macfadden published The Miracle of Milk, and repopularized by Texan strength coach Mark Rippetoe in the aughts, the milk-heavy diet is intended to build muscle. By ingesting the astronomical amount of calories, protein, and fat in a gallon of milk—on top of regular meals—the strategy promises lifting enthusiasts a quick route to Bulk Town.
Some GOMAD testimonials are glowing. “Quite frankly it has worked wonders for me,” wrote one Reddit user. “I’m lifting considerably more weight and feel so much better, loads more energy.” Others are painful to read, particularly for the lactose intolerant among us: “Let’s just say my butthole still hasn’t forgiven me.” And others still are even more skeptical. GOMAD is “fucking disgusting and not a way to live,” wrote another Reddit user.
While there’s some method behind the milk madness, drinking that much dairy can come with a slew of consequences. Here’s what you need to know about the GOMAD diet sweeping Twitter.
How does the GOMAD diet work?
Along with exercise, diet plays a major role in building muscle. Humans need to consume a certain amount of protein, carbohydrates, and calories to grow big and strong. The GOMAD diet works as a kind of nutritional shortcut: A gallon of whole milk offers 123 grams of protein, 127 grams of fat, and 2,400 calories (that’s more than the average daily requirements for some people).
The GOMAD diet probably will lead to muscle gains when paired with weight lifting, according to dietitians. But it’ll likely also increase fat stores as the body struggles to use all that consumed energy. And the results are going to be temporary—as soon as you stop drinking honking loads of dairy, any muscular gains will reverse.
What are the risks?
Consuming a gallon of milk every day can lead to numerous problems, and not just for your butthole. A gallon of milk provides nearly 85% of a day’s worth of sodium, 600% of the recommended daily saturated fat intake, and enough calcium to potentially impair kidney function and form stones. Some studies have also found that people who consume too much of the mineral might be at higher risk of prostate cancer and heart disease.
Then there’s the gastrointestinal distress. Consuming that much dairy when you are lactose intolerant is masochistic. If your body doesn’t produce enough lactase, the enzyme that breaks down the sugar in dairy, drinking a gallon of milk is probably going to lead to bloating, nausea, and some serious farts, at minimum.
Even if you’re not full-blown lactose intolerant, drinking too much milk can contribute to a leaky gut. This increased permeability of the intestinal lining can cause an imbalance of good and bad bacteria in the stomach, which might lead to chronic diarrhea or constipation, as well as fatigue and headaches.
How much milk is too much milk? Cow’s milk is nutrient-dense. It provides 18 of the 22 essential nutrients—such as B vitamins, vitamin D, zinc, and potassium. It also contains magnesium (which is good for bones and muscles) and whey and casein proteins (which can supposedly lower blood pressure). On the other hand, downsides include excess of saturated fat and gastro issues, especially if you’re lactose intolerant.
In the US, the recommended daily dairy intake is two to three cups. Many dietitians are petitioning to change those standards, which are the result of Big Dairy’s lobbying efforts and backdoor politics. The bottom line: You should not drink a gallon of milk in one day, and even two cups of dairy is most likely too much for some people. But enjoying the odd cup of cow’s milk probably won’t do much harm. Plus, you can always opt for one of the many dairy-free alternatives out there.
Probably drink a half gallon of chocolate milk everyday as my ‘breakfast’, doing fine.
A mooooooooooving article, udderly interesting.
People who try these crazy diets just crack me up. There’s one diet that works every time...
Just stop eating so much food. Skip some meals. Sure you’ll feel hungry but don’t let ‘hungry’ be your master. Take charge and overcome it on your own.
That diet works every time it’s tried.
I LOVE chocolate milk, but it gives me gas, so I drink it sparingly.
Trying to go to the extremes on any one food is generally going to bring bad times.
The only thing even close to this is the all meat diet. But you can eat all different kinds of meats, not just one. Even with that people find it gets real boring.
I always think of the Amish(Real Amish, not the Free Republic code word), and how with the exception of the older Amish, you don’t usually see a fat Amish person. Probably something to do with all that work they do.
Yup, they could all be fat tubs if they let themselves go like most of America has.
We did the same in the dorms at Texas Tech. The dorm cafeteria was all you can eat.
We also bought raw whole milk from a local dairy.
I love milk. I’m also lactose intolerant. I drink the lactose free stuff. It’s the only way for me. I could see me drinking a half a gallon, maybe, a day, but it’s crazy drinking that much.
Besides, it’s damn expensive, anymore.
THERE GOES THE OZONE HOLE!
WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIEEEEEE!
Photoshop?
I don't know. The thread poster asked what the risk was. Well there are a lot of people that say dairy is designed to turn a calf into a 500 pound cow over a summer.
So I googled "fat cow" and that was the first picture that came up. I didn't look to see if Rosie O'donnell made the top 10. LOL But I really don't know. Milk has some sugar in it. But all types of cheese are considered keto.
The gallon of milk a day (GOMAD) diet is just what it sounds like: a diet that involves drinking a gallon of milk a day. …No; it sounds like going mad. Sure it isn’t that?
I can not remember ever eating cereal for breakfast, I may have, but I don't remember it.
It’s strange that if someone offered you a glass of human milk, you’d turn up your nose in disgust, but then ingest animal milk every day…
I haven’t had a glass of milk in forty years. Yogurt and cheese sure but no actual milk.
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