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PhilosophersNotes
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More Wisdom in Less Time

THE BIG IDEAS Wired to Eat

One Size
Turn Off Cravings, Rewire Your Appetite for Weight Loss, and
Does NOT fit all.
Determine the Foods that Work for You
BY ROBB WOLF · HARMONY © 2017 · 400 PAGES
Discordance Theory
The omnivore’s real dilemma.

An Anti-Inflammatory Diet
Aka Paleo. “The Ancestral Health or Paleo diet model I talked about in my first book is
incredibly powerful, but these concepts are tools and starting points, not final
Personalized Nutrition
What works for YOU? destinations. As you’ll soon learn, one size does not fit all, and that has never been
Other Pillars of Health more evident than now with the newest research on Personalized Nutrition. As
Sleep, community, movement. you will discover in Wired to Eat, you now have the opportunity to go beyond
Lotteries & Work general guidelines and find which foods, including which carbs, work best for you,
Genetics, environment and hustle. regardless of your age, weight, or health status. And that’s what makes the plan in
this book so unique. By the end of your journey, you will understand the genetic
and epigenetic factors that govern how you are wired to eat, but perhaps more
important, you will finally have a plan customized to your body to help you lose
weight, regain your health, and live the life you want to live. No more guessing
which foods are right for you. In a little more than thirty days, your life and health
could be radically transformed for the better as you heal your gut and refine your
personal eating plan.”

~ Robb Wolf from Wired to Eat

Robb Wolf is a former research biochemist and is one of the leading thinkers/writers/
practitioners in the Paleo or Ancestral Health movement.

“With Wired to Eat, I
attempt to reach people with
two key concepts: one, an
understanding of the genetic
and environmental factors,
such as sleep, stress,
hyperpalatable foods, and
The essence of this book can best be summarized by looking at the front and back covers.
First, the front cover tells us: “Say Good-bye to One-Size-Fits-All Diets with the 7-Day Carb
Test.” Now flip over to the back cover where we find another blurb: “One month to reset your
metabolism for lasting fat loss. One week to discover the carbs that are right for you.”
So... Two primary things. 1) There isn’t “one diet” that works for everyone. (Robb walks us
through the science of “Personalized Nutrition” and how we can apply it to our lives via his
30-day reboot and then 7-day carb tests.) Yet... 2) There are some general things that apply to
EVERYONE that we want to keep in mind. (Broken record: Refined carbs are evil. lol.)
While glancing at the back cover, we’ll also notice some testimonials by authors we’ve featured.

community, that make it
easy for us to overeat; and
two, the powerful tool of
Personalized Nutrition.”
~ Robb Wolf
At the top we have Melissa Hartwig whose book It Starts with Food is the most closely aligned
with Robb’s. (That book, as I’ve mentioned before, is the one I read 6+ years ago when I
ventured out of my low-fat vengangelical phase. See Notes for more.) Then we have a blurb from
leading neurologist, David Perlmutter, MD—check out our Notes on Grain Brain, The Grain
Brain Whole Life Plan, and Brain Maker. Finally, we have Mark Sisson; we recently did a Note
on his great book The Keto Reset Diet.

As always, nutrition discussions can elicit a near-religious fervor. Although I very much lean
toward paying attention to carb intake if you have any insulin/weight/energy issues, I’m
committed to avoiding dogmatism and currently see my job as sharing the Ideas I find very
compelling/worthy of contemplation while personally running experiments on my body (and in
our family) while encouraging you to consider doing the same.

1 PhilosophersNotes | Wired to Eat


“We will use the 30-Day
Reset to get your neuro-
regulation of appetite back
on track and then we will
use the 7-Day Carb Test to
precisely dial in the amounts
and types of carbs that work
best for you.”
~ Robb Wolf
“The 30-Day-Reset is
incredibly effective at
resetting your neuroregulation
of appetite, healing your gut,
and reducing inflammation.
Those are the features; the
benefits are that you can get
healthy, increase your energy,
and lose weight easily.”
~ Robb Wolf
2 PhilosophersNotes | Wired to Eat
With that, I’m excited to share some of my favorite Big Ideas and share some powerful
distinctions we can apply to Optimizing our lives and our family’s lives today. So, let’s jump in!
ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL
“If I have learned anything over the years, it’s that we all tend to benefit from general guidelines,
but our individual needs may be profoundly different than those of our neighbor. This can create
a bias that makes us think what worked for us or someone we know will work for everyone. So
although we’d like to keep things as simple as possible, when we gear things for an individual’s
needs, things can get complex in a hurry. ...
There is a (likely) fictional account of the famous artist and inventor Michelangelo that describes
how he produced his masterwork sculpture David. He was asked what his process was for
creating such detailed lifelike work, and he responded with something to the effect of, ‘I cut away
everything that did not look like David.’ Sculptors, woodworkers, engineers, and artisans of all
types use a variety of tools and strategies to produce their work. The tools used in the beginning
are for the ‘rough work,’ while other tools are used to produce the refined, finished product. As
powerful as the Paleo diet or Ancestral Health perspective is, in this book, that strategy is used as
a ‘rough’ tool. Ultimately, I will help you find your own customized eating plan that will help you
achieve your goals.”
Welcome to Part 1 - “Know Thyself: How You Are Wired to Eat,” Chapter 1: “One Size Does Not
Fit All.” Those are the very first words of the book.
Let’s start by focusing here: “If I have learned anything over the years, it’s that we all tend to
benefit from general guidelines, but our individual needs may be profoundly different than
those of our neighbor.” As we briefly discussed in the intro, that captures the essence of the
book: There are general guidelines that apply to everyone AND we need to move beyond that
and find what works best for each of us as individuals.
In my work with Phil Stutz, we’ve discussed the same basic theme many times. As Phil says,
we need to embrace the paradox that we are all simultaneously EXACTLY the same *and*
COMPLETELY different. (Hah. Gotta love paradoxes.)
It’s like two sides of the same coin. In this case, Robb is telling us that the coin has “general
guidelines” on one side and “Personalized Nutrition” on the other.
Which leads us to the statue of David and the tools Michelangelo and all craftsman use to create
their masterpieces. We start with tools to help us do the “rough work” and then we use different
tools to help us polish off those rough edges.
The primary tool Robb provides for the “rough work” is a 30-day reboot (which is kinda like the
Hartwig’s Whole30 protocol in which we get rid of sugar, flour and grains). Robb makes the case
as to why following that basic approach is a really good idea for everyone.
The primary tool for the next phase of precision work to figure out what works specifically for
us is his 7-day carb test in which we test our glucose response to 50 grams of particular carbs
first thing in the morning to see what works and what doesn’t. Remember: Despite what many
nutrition authorities would like to say, one size does NOT fit all.
P.S. Speaking of David... Jordan Peterson says this in 12 Rules for Life: “It is for this reason that
every good example is a fateful challenge, and every hero a judge. Michelangelo’s great perfect
marble David cries out to its observer: ‘You could be more than you are.’ When you dare aspire
upward, you reveal the inadequacy of the present and the promise of the future.”
P.P.S. You know what moment Michelangelo decided to capture in his iconic statue? It wasn’t
the moment of victory. It was the moment of DECISION—the heroic moment when David
decided to step up to the challenge. <- Isn’t that amazing?!

“If we consume more
calories than we need, we will
tend to get fat. If we are
insulin sensitive, this fat will
tend to be evenly distributed
around the body. If, however,
we are insulin resistant (for
whatever reason—lack of
sleep, stress, inflammation)
*and* if those calories
come in the form of refined
carbohydrates, this fat tends
to be stored around our
internal organs and is called
visceral fat.”
~ Robb Wolf
“It’s worth remembering that
although modern degenerative
diseases appear to be quite
different (they affect
different organs and systems),
the root causes tend to be
the same: poor blood sugar
control, elevated insulin levels,
systemic inflammation, and
intestinal permeability.”
~ Robb Wolf
PhilosophersNotes | Wired to Eat
Question: What challenge do YOU need to step up to? Is now a good time to do so?
Here’s to the heroic sculpture capturing YOU at your finest moments!!! (You know, the ones
right before the infinite (!) number of times you decide to step forward destiny-math style. :)
DISCORDANCE THEORY: THE OMNIVORE’S REAL DILEMMA
“The reason we get fat, sick, and broken, the reason it’s so hard to affect change in our diet and
lifestyle, is simple: our environment has changed, our bodies have not—at least not enough to
forestall the development of a host of degenerative diseases. Our genetics are wired for a time
when our meals were relatively simple in terms of flavor and texture. We had access to foods that
changed with the seasons, and we always had to expend some amount of energy to get the goods.
Now, with the magic of food science, convenience stores, and supermarkets, we have access to
every flavor combination imaginable, and many that were not imaginable only a few years ago.
More than ten thousand new ‘food’ products are created every year in the United States, and
the average grocery store stocks tens of thousands of food options. Do you like nachos? French
fries? Then you will love chilli-cheese nacho fries, especially with some mole sauce. Given these
complex food combinations and our nearly limitless food options, it’s no wonder we’ve broken
the neuroregulation of our appetites.”
That’s from Chapter 3, sub-section “The Omnivore’s Real Dilemma” in which we learn about the
“discordance theory” which, basically, says that we’re facing a mismatch between our genetic
tendencies and our modern reality.
One of the most frequently-repeated phrases of the book is “the neuroregulation of our
appetites.” And, one of the most frequently-repeated words: “hyperpalatability.”
They go together. In short: Want to disrupt the finely tuned “neuroregulation” of your appetite?
Just overconsume “hyperpalatable” foods like doughnuts, chips, sodas, and other highly refined
CARBAGE. Yep, that will do it.
As I say in pretty much every Note on nutrition, E V E R Y O N E (pretty much) agrees that sugar
and flour are toxic. The simplest way to 80/20 Optimize your nutrition and as a result your
energy and health and vitality? Eliminate the refined carbage. Period.
We know that sugar, for example, acts on the same addiction centers in our brains (the nucleus
accumbens) as drugs like cocaine, tobacco and alcohol.
Check out this +1 (and our Notes) on David Ludwig’s research from Always Hungry? that says
our nucleus accumbens light up “like a laser” after fast-acting carbs. Remember: “The nucleus
accumbens is considered ground zero for reward, craving, and addiction—including alcohol,
tobacco, and cocaine abuse. Activation of this brain region on a weight loss diet would erode
willpower, making that sticky bun exceedingly hard to resist.
The concept of food addiction is controversial because, unlike substances of abuse, we need
food to live. However, this study suggests that highly processed carbohydrates may hijack
basic reward circuitry in the brain, not because they are inherently so tasty (both milk shakes
had the same sweetness), but instead because of direct actions on metabolism. Hunger is hard
enough to fight under any circumstances, but once the nucleus accumbens joins in, it’s all over.”
Susan Pierce Thompson succinctly echoes this wisdom in her great book Bright Line Eating:
“Yup. When it comes to food, these are the two culprits. Sugar and flour. In fact, I want you to
consider looking at sugar and flour in an entirely new way. People tend to think of sugar and
flour as foods. I invite you to start looking at them as drugs.”
Want a shot at Optimizing your health? Once again, throw out the carbage. Get rid of the
“hyperpalatable” foods that disrupt the “neuroregulation of your appetite.” :)
3
 “This research helps us
understand that as long as
the carbohydrates we eat
are unrefined (and our guts
are generally heathy), the
amounts of macronutrients
we consume may not matter.
Conversely, if our guts are
damaged and we are suffering
from SIBO or related
problems, a low-carbohydrate
diet (which prunes back the
microbiome) may be a smart
treatment option, at least
until we can fix the gut.
Some people (like myself)
seem to do better long term
by keeping carbs on the
low side (100 to 150g/day),
while other people find they
tolerate larger amounts of
unrefined carbs.”
~ Robb Wolf
“What will the kids eat?
Same stuff as you. They
need the crap formerly living
in your pantry even less than
you do.”
~ Robb Wolf
4 PhilosophersNotes | Wired to Eat
AN ANTI-INFLAMMATORY DIET (AKA PALEO)
“One of the greatest challenges surrounding the Paleo diet, both from a research perspective
and implementation, is the tendency to make the recommendations written in stone as if it were
religious doctrine. I’ll detail where and how this has happened and how this rigidity has created
significant drama and confusion. For now, we can look at the Paleo diet in two complementary
ways. By inclusion, the plan is generally composed of fruits, vegetables, roots, shoots, tubers,
nuts and seeds, meat (including organ varieties), seafood and fowl. By exclusion, a Paleo diet is
one that generally avoids grains, legumes, and dairy. If we simply called this way of eating an
‘anti-inflammatory diet’ and then looked at how certain foods cause inflammation, either in the
digestive system or the rest of the body, we’d arrive at largely the same place and avoid a lot of
the confusion on this topic. Similarly, if this way of eating had been called an evolutionary diet
and some specific caveats were applied, we would also likely see less backlash from elements of
the research community.”
That’s from a chapter called “Is There a Case for the Paleo Diet?”
Note: Robb Wolf is one of the earliest and most prominent Paleo advocates. And... One of the
themes he comes back to a number of times is his disappointment with the dogma that has
arisen around the approach.
Alas, again, nutrition discussions can quickly devolve into irrational dogma and cherry-picking
feasts. But there ya go. That’s the high-level look at what constitutes a Paleo diet—by inclusion
and by exclusion. And... As I said, It Starts with Food was the book that guided me out of the
low-fat/high-carb/tons of grains approach I followed for a decade. I got a lot of benefits from it.
I’m smiling as I type imagining how people would respond to this diet if it was called an “anti-
inflammatory diet” and/or an evolutionary diet. In any case, the Paleo approach is our “rough
tool.” (Check out Robb’s Food Matrix on how to rock it!) Then we remember that one size does
NOT fit all as we move on to “Personalized Nutrition.”
PERSONALIZED NUTRITION
“Conventional wisdom would have us believe that ‘a calorie is a calorie,’ and equal amounts
of carbohydrate should cause the same blood glucose responses. Clearly, this is not the case.
More sophisticated models that look at glycemic load, fiber, and cellular versus acellular refined
carbohydrate would tell us that we should see a uniformly better blood glucose response from a
banana relative to a cookie. However, this was also not the case. What the heck is going on here?
It appears that most of this variability can be ascribed to differences in the gut microbiome.
There are trends to this story, with certain species of bacteria being more strongly associated
with favorable gylcemic responses, but there was still significant variation. The next bit of
information I’ll share with you cements the need to use big-picture nutrition models, even the
Paleo diet, with a bit of caution, as even the most benign of foods can prove problematic for
some people.”
That’s from a chapter called “Personalized Nutrition” in which we learn about some stunning
research that demonstrates the fact that different people respond to the same foods in very
different ways—whether we’re talking about bananas or cookies or hummus.
Again: Did I menton the fact that we’re all different. No ONE diet will work for everyone.
As Robb says: “The groundbreaking highlight from this research was that a person’s glycemic
response (how much blood glucose increased for a given meal) appeared to be influenced by
genetic factors, exercise, body fat levels, and perhaps most interesting, the composition of
the gut biome. One of the most interesting findings of the study showed there was a massive
variation from person to person in how they reacted to various foods.”

“Calories do count, but not
all foods produce the same
hormonal and metabolic
effects. The strict calories
in, calories out folks
would have us believe that
2,000 calories of sugar are
metabolically equivalent to
2,000 calories of pork loin,
broccoli or sweet potato.
Intuitively, this should smell
as bad as products from
Fukushima Fish Farms, Inc.,
but we do not need to rely on
intuition—science shows this
overly simplistic view, that
‘it’s just about calories’ is
simply not true.”
~ Robb Wolf
“We work much more and
sleep much less than we did
even in the 1980s, about 2.5
hours less per day on average
for most Americans. This
change in not only sleep but
also our constant exposure
to artificial light (which
affects every body system
you care to consider) is
perhaps the most profound
change humanity has
experienced.”
~ Robb Wolf
PhilosophersNotes | Wired to Eat
Plus: “It’s perhaps worth noting that the two main variables that determine what foods work
best for folks involved eating either more fat and fewer carbs or avoiding problematic foods.”
We talk about a similar idea in our Notes on The Art and Science of Low Carb Performance
where the authors tell us about research done in the A to Z Study. Short story: Generally
speaking, people lost weight on both a low-fat diet (like Ornish) and a low-carb diet (like Atkins).
BUT... When the data was analyzed based on the individual’s level of insulin sensitivity (vs.
resistance), we see that people with unhealthy insulin responses lost 4 times MORE weight on
the low-carb diet (11.9 lbs) than they did on the low-fat diet (3.3 lbs).
Again (echo!): One size does not fit all. We need to personalize our nutrition. Rob has his 7-Day
Carb Test to help us personalize. Check out the book for more. And... This book isn’t just about
nutrition. It’s time to move on to the other areas of our lives we need to Optimize!
P.S. Before we jump into that, know that Robb’s #1 tip for getting started (like all the great
nutrition teachers) is to GET RID OF ALL THE JUNK FOOD in your house!! It reminded me of
James Clear’s Atomic Habits and his #1 rule to break a bad habit. We need to make it “invisible.”
No better way to do that than to throw it all away!!
P.P.S. Robb’s take on ketosis: He sees it as an important tool to have in our tool shed and says:
“Five years from now, we will know much more about ketosis, fasting, and the potential use of
exogenous ketones. Currently we have far more questions than answers.”
SLEEP, STRESS, COMMUNITY, AND MOVEMENT
“We’ve come a long way together, and if you have absorbed 10 percent of what we’ve covered you
likely know more practical information about human health than most health care providers.
We have clearly focused the bulk of our attention on food, but there are a few other pieces to this
story that are of similar, if not greater, importance. The final pieces of the puzzle involve sleep,
stress, and social connectivity. ...
Before we dig into the topic of sleep I’d like to make an important point: if people ‘just’ slept,
we’d likely not need to concern ourselves about diet much at all. I’m not saying you could eat
refined junk all day long and not suffer the consequences, but good sleep buys us a lot of latitude
in our eating. The opposite is also true, as poor sleep necessitates a fair amount of focus on our
food, lest we find ourselves facing some serious health problems. If you want more latitude on
your food, you need to sleep better. If you can’t sleep well due to work demands, you really need
to pay attention to your food, particularly carbohydrate amount and type. If you want to get the
best health and aesthetics possible, you will make both good sleep and good food your priority
more often than not.”
We’re now ready for the chapter on “Rebalancing the Pillars of Sleep, Community, and
Movement.” It’s packed with a bunch of goodness. Highlights include the fact that sleep is WAY
more important for your health/weight/etc. than you may think. Like WAY more important.
Again, rule #1 (see Sleep 101 and all those Notes) is simple: Turn off your electronics. Decide
(de-cir!!!) to relentlessly actualize yourself rather than incessantly entertain yourself. (I also
turned the temperature down to 66 degrees after reading the book.)
Stress-wise, Robb echoes wisdom we cover in The Upside of Stress. Remember: To a great
extent, it’s all about how we PERCEIVE the stress in our lives. (Challenge vs. Threat!)
Community-wise: Know that our social connections are SUPER important. Invest energy here.
Movement-wise: Exercise is important but... (another echo!) “we cannot out-exercise a bad
diet.” As Jeff Volek and Stephen Phinney tell us, exercise is a WELLNESS tool, not a weight-loss
too per se. Key takeaways here: Do something you LOVE not something you think you should
do. And, remember that Movement transcends and includes Exercise.
5

“As you now know, we have
a bit of a challenge as we
begin our health and weight
loss journey, in that our
normal human tendencies (eat
more, move less) are quite
at odds with our modern
world. This is a legitimately
complex problem. Therefore,
our simple solutions must
address this reality and involve
eating, sleeping, moving, and
loving in a way that works
with, instead of against, our
genetic wiring.”
~ Robb Wolf
If you liked this Note,
you’ll probably like…
It Starts with Food
Grain Brain
The Grain Brain Whole Life
Plan
The Keto Reset Diet
Bright Line Eating
The Overfat Pandemic
The Upside of Stress
No Sweat
6 PhilosophersNotes | Wired to Eat
GENETIC + EARLY ENVIRONMENT LOTTERIES
“Some of us won the ‘genetic lottery’ by having super-healthy parents who imparted to us a low
likelihood of problems such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, or neurodegeneration. Some of
us were additionally lucky in that we had all the early life experiences that seem to set us up for
success. Then we have people like me, who appear to come from the ‘shallow end of the gene
pool.’ The good news is that even though I do not have optimal genes or a perfect early life story,
it may no longer matter. Using our knowledge of Personalized Nutrition, I can monitor my carb
intake such that my metabolism functions as well or better than the most genetically talented
person. How is this possible? By finding the foods I do best with and largely sticking with those
options, I will maintain an optimum blood glucose level while ensuring my gut biome remains
healthy and strong.”
That’s from a section near the end of the book when Robb’s walking through “Phase Two” of his
approach and playfully asks, “So, Robb, remind me why I should do this?”
If you won the genetic AND the early-environment lotteries and you’ve lived your life like a Blue
Zone baby from the moment you were conceived (breastfed, never took an antibiotic, never ate
any sugar or refined carbs, etc. etc. etc.), then CONGRATS!! (Seriously. High fives. I’m slightly
jealous!) You’re probably doing great and can continue doing what you’re doing.
That wasn’t Robb’s case. And it wasn’t mine. He and I share a similar story—super sick as kids.
So... If you, like Robb and me, kinda sorta lost that genetic AND early-environment lottery then
you need to do the work to figure out what works for you. :)
Good news, as Angela Duckworth tells us, “effort counts twice.” We can use our vulnerabilities as
catalysts to be even stronger than we otherwise would have been—turning poison into medicine
and serving as exemplars of what’s possible for our families, communities and the world.
We’re wired to eat and sleep and move and connect with others in a certain way. We’d be wise to
step back, figure out where we’re aligned with those ancient rhythms and what needs work.
Here’s to the most Energized version of you giving us all you’ve got!!
Brian Johnson,
Lover of Wisdom
About the Author of “Wired to Eat”
ROBB WOLF
Robb Wolf is a former research biochemist, health expert, and author of the New
York Times bestselling The Paleo Solution. He has been a review editor for the
Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism and Journal of Evolutionary Health; serves
on the board of directors of Specialty Health medical clinic in Reno, Nevada and is a
consultant for the Naval Special Warfare Resiliency program. Robb is also a former
California State Powerlifting champion and holds the rank of blue belt in Brasilian
Jiujitsu.
About the Author of This Note
BRIAN JOHNSON
Brian Johnson loves helping people optimize their lives so they can actualize
their potential as he studies, embodies and teaches the fundamentals of optimal
living—integrating ancient wisdom + modern science + practical tools. Learn
more and optimize your life at optimize.me.