Encyclopedia of Diets - A Guide to Health and Nutrition

W

Warrior diet

Definition

The Warrior diet is perhaps better described as a
total exercise, nutrition, and fitness program; a diet
regimen is only one part of the program. The diet is
controversial on account of its proposal of a daily
undereating/overeating cycle. The author of the diet
claims that this daily undereating/overeating pattern is
a natural biological tendency that modern humans
ignore to the detriment of their long-term health. The
diet’s slogan is ‘‘It’s when you eat that makes what you
eat matter.’’

Origins

The Warrior diet was designed by Ori Hofmekler
(b. 1952), a former member of the Israeli Defense
Force (IDF), an artist, and a contributing editor of
Penthousemagazine for 17 years. He was health editor
ofPenthousefrom 1998 to 2000. Hofmekler created
the Warrior diet on the basis of his own experiences in
the Israeli army and his own theories about how such
warriors in ancient history as the Roman legionaries
ate and trained. He stated in an interview with a body-
builder named Mike Mahler that ‘‘I did not really
come up with the idea [for the diet]; the idea came to
me. It really started when I was in the Israeli Special
Forces. I found out that some of my friends and I were
doing much better when we reduced the eating during
the day, or active time, and ate during the time when
we knew that we could rest. I realized that when I ate
the traditional 6 to 7 army meals plus snacks, I got
more exhausted than ever. I suffered from energy
crashes and my brain was not as focused and alert as
I wanted it to be.... I felt a tremendous difference
when I reduced drastically the amount of food I con-
sumed during the day. Later when I went on to uni-
versity and started my career as an artist, I realized
that when I minimize eating during the day and have

one main meal, I feel much more creative; much more

alert....After doing some research, I found out that

other warriors of the past used to live like this and that

is where I really got intrigued.’’

As Hofmekler’s biography indicates, he is an

artist who specializes in political satire as well as the

author of a diet book. According to his art website, he

graduated from the Bezalel Academy of Art and

Design in Jerusalem after his army service and has

received study grants from the Israel Museum and

the American Israel Foundation.

Description

Nutrition

Hofmekler bases his concept of a daily cycle of

undereating and overeating on what he calls instinct

rather than control. He has criticized other diets for

being ‘‘designed according to some kind of theme or a

goal that’s based on control.... Just about every diet

you can think of is about control. This [Warrior] diet is

based on the assumption that your body has the

instinct, like any other instinct, to control itself and

to manipulate it very well.’’ The basic human instinct,

according to Homekler, is survival. The Warrior diet

website states at the top of the home page, ‘‘The War-

rior Diet is based on one master biological principle:

Human Survival.’’

This human survival instinct, according to Hof-

mekler, was well served by the eating and exercise

patterns of Paleolithic (Stone Age) people. Hofmekler

believes that ‘‘The current epidemic ofobesity, diabe-

tes and impotence bears testimony to the fact that

humans today have betrayed their biological destiny.’’

He maintains that there are four reasons why modern

people ‘‘fail to maintain primal health’’: they eat too

many meals during the day; they eat when they are not

hungry; they make poor food choices; and they do not

keep a proper balance between physical activity and

relaxation.