Happy Monday. How did everyone survive the 4th of July weekend? I gave myself the weekend off, so I have a LOT of comments to review and questions to answer. I'm working on them.
One word of advice. For the next 30 days, your ONLY job is to eat clean. That's it. Don't even THINK about trying to incorporate some new dietary strategy like Intermittent Fasting (IF) at this point. IF is a relatively "advanced" dietary concept. You don't start playing around with fasting and feeding until your food quality, quantity and macronutrient proportion are good and dialed in. At this juncture, especially for those of you having some trouble adapting to this new way of eating (headaches, lethargy, crankiness, etc.) IF would place a significant amount of stress on an already stressed system. Not a smart choice, at this juncture. Just focus on your food.
I'm going to call in the troops for the headache questions. I've skimmed the responses, but I owe this one some time, so give me a day or two to pull something together. In the meantime, stick with it. Drink plenty of water. Make sure you're eating enough. Get plenty of rest. To quote Robb Wolf, if you eat a Paleo diet, sleep 8 hours per night and exercise, I’d be shocked if the rest of your life does not dramatically improve.
Monday, July 6, 2009
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64 people drop some props (leave a comment here):
Okay, so I'm a little late joining the party, but I'm in. I'm also going to try following the 603 WOD's as best I can during this time, too.
I had a "Pat Sherwood" send-off last night (i.e. a pint of B&J's Peanut Butter Cup), so I'm feeling good and nasty this morning. And let me tell you, doing those 10min AMRAP of "man-makers" while recovering from a pint isn't that much fun.
I've been pretty much Paleo (like 90-95%) for a while, but the weekends have been a challenge to stick with it. So, I'm looking forward to these 30 days and seeing what happens. I'm predicting wonderful things.
Thanks for the tough lovin', Melissa!
Yesterday, was a bit crabby at times and a little tired. Mom and brother came over for grilled corn on the cob. I live in Wisconsin so this is a summer staple and it just seems wrong that it is banned. I had grilled zucchini instead- brushed with olive oil and sprinkled with some spices. Not the same, but survived it without being put through the 3rd degree from my mom about why I'm doing this, etc.
I was a little tired yesterday too. I drank a lot less coffee than usual because it tastes less than ideal not being all doctored up.
Angie
Good weekend here. May have gotten carried away on nuts and fruit but kept me from the "bad" stuff.
I actually found grass fed beef here and am going to get a dehydrator for jerky.... yummy
So the fourth of july was EASY! I scarfed ribs and watermelon like nobody's business. Turning down the alcohol offers was a bit of a challenge for my husband (the long pause in his answer drew a sideways look from me before he said 'no thanks'), and my lack of jerky led to a mid-day snack trip to Salad Creations, but otherwise all went well. I decided not to try Chef's jerky recipe in my oven seeing as my small apartment would likely turn into a heat box with the door propped open for 12 hours...instead I ordered some online to tide me over until I can buy some sort of smoker.
Right now - drinking coffee with coconut milk in it (the slightly watered down kind so that it mixes better) and not finding it half bad at all.
I'm still plugging away. Weekend was pretty easy but I did end up eating a ton of food to stave off too many cravings.
A full work week will be the real test for me.
I had a GREAT weekend! On the 4th, I had burgers sans cheese/buns with a side of veggies and tons of watermelon and fresh strawberries. I managed to say no to alcohol and kept chugging water. Having a big opague glass of water was a good decoy :) I'm actually really surprised that things went so well and I managed to avoid backsliding. Spent yesterday making a paleo friendly dinner and lunches for the week. Helps that my local Farmers' Market has ridiculously amazing produce at next to nothing prices. I just gotta keep this party flowing and rolling through the rest of the month!
hoping myers doesn't kick me out, but I originally planned to start 7/1 but gave some serious thought to the whole thing on friday and decided 7/5 would be a better start day with pending 4th festivities. I did drink and eat quite a bit of sugar but I spent the day with some olympic lifters talking about form and workouts and setting up some training with them. I'm on track and on day 2 and excited about the next 28!
Jumping on the boat a little late. Count me in.
I'm back from my pina colada + tortilla chip fest in Playa del Carmen, and ate clean as a whistle yesterday and this a.m. Already feeling back to fightin' mode. My workout this morning was AWESOME -- tons of energy? Could it be the kick from the coconuts in my magical pina coladas? I tell you, people, I drank every sip in the name of science ;-)
So far so good here. The 4th was kind of tough due to having to skip on the awesomely delicious potato salad and various pasta salads at the picnic, but I held strong and just had an extra burger (minus the bun of course) to supplement.
This hasn't been too hard for me yet because I ate pretty clean to begin with, so I'm basically just cutting out all cheating and other borderline foods like corn on the cob and peanuts/peanut butter. We'll see if I can notice any different in today's workout as it will be the first one since I've started.
I've been eating clean since you posted the challenge on the 1st and, OH MY HELL! I've lost 5 lbs. already and constantly feel good, rather than intermittantly feeling bloated and hungry. The biggest changes for me are no dairy (used to drink at least 1/2 gallon a day + cottage cheese and string cheese), and no refined sugars. Only complaints are headaches, and I seem to be more sore after tough workouts. Any suggestions?
@Adam: Nice to see you! Glad to hear you're liking the 603 workouts too. We've got a nice little community kicking over there, you'll make a great addition to the group.
@Angie: Try some fresh mango and pineapple on the grill next time through, and tell me people aren't drooling just watching you eat. :)
@Mel: Welcome back! I missed you, and I'm super glad your vacation was so awesome. Think about it this way - when you eat as clean as you do, every single day, you have a LOT of room to play on vacation. Meaning, you've built up a nice little Health Bank in the past four weeks, and you were able to spend some of your savings on vacation without even coming close to depleting the account. Nice work.
@Ben,
Start taking fish oil. Per Robb Wolf's recommendation, start with .5 grams per 10# of body weight. If you tolerate that well, add a pill or two a day until you're taking too much. (Your digestive tract will tell you... you just have to play around with quantity.)
Give it another week or so and most of these nuisance detox effects will disappear.
Melissa, what are your thoughts on Quinoa, it's an unprocessed grain so I hear. I've never had it, just wondering your thoughts.
Hello! The 4th of July festivities weren't too terrible. The only vegetables available were the ones for condiments. So, I ended up grilling chicken that I brought (the burgers they were grilling were questionable at best) and wrapping it in lettuce with tomato and onion. Not too shabby. Next time I will be sure to make a couple of vegetable side dishes to bring.
Headache update: Friday was the worst day for headaches. Since then, I have not really experienced any worth mentioning. I do have more energy and feel like my head is clearer. Yay!
Hi all! My husband and I started paleo today! We are super pumped about changing the way we eat and the way we live.
I feel like I've got a pretty good handle on everything that I can and can't eat but I have one question- our local health food store has a huge selection of seeds and nuts you can buy in bulk. Some of the ingredient lists include the nut and then peanut oil. Are nuts/seeds roasted in peanut oil acceptable or not?
I love reading all the comments and hearing how people are doing. Thanks!
Hello all! I'm here and chugging along. This weekend was relatively easy since I was sick (and still am) for most of it. Eating clean usually is when you don't have much of an appetite.
I tried to convince my husband to join in, but that didn't work, so he's at least agreed to eat whatever I cook for dinner, no questions or complaints. Not having to cook 2 meals, the few times I will cook, will certainly help.
I've made my grocery list and will be going to Whole Foods tonight to finish stocking up. So far, no headaches or anything, but since I have a cold, and I am heavily medicated, I'm not sure if I'd notice anyway. lol
@Samantha: Hey there, hot stuff! Even crazy hippie grains like quinoa are still grains. Just say no.
@KMR: Nuts in peanut oil = nope. Get plain old nuts. Almonds, macadamia (my favorite), walnuts, Brazil nuts, hazelnuts, etc.
I'm in for 30 days too.
A quick question though: what about larabars? The ingredient list seems paleo (nuts & fruit) but they're certainly processed to get into bar form. They sure would be a handy thing to carry around for snacking. Thoughts?
Dan, I am a huge Larabar fan. From their web site: "LÄRABAR RAW.
Uncooked and Unprocessed. The essential enzymes, which are necessary for the digestion and utilization of nutrients, remain completely intact in their most natural, powerful state. A diet abundant in raw, unprocessed foods is important for health and longevity."
So maybe they squish the nuts and fruit together into bar form, but that doesn't mean the ingredients were altered in any way. Therefore, Larabars = okay in my book.
Melissa
Had a great weekend with plenty of fruit, nuts,eggs and lean meats. I need to drop by the store and get some cold cuts or something for lean protein at work, I'm totally hitting the almond butter WAY too much right now. Regardless, my body is obviously in shock, as I've dropped 5 lbs. Wacky.
Any easy ideas for protein at breakfast besides eggs?
@ Sunny
Any meat will work. I often have steak & eggs, chicken drumsticks, meatloaf and pork at breakfast.
I should add, it helps if you cook too much a dinner, so you have leftover meat for breakfasts and lunches.
how do you feel about vinegar? paleo enough?
This will be even more interesting since Leslie will probably be losing her job soon... Oh well, thats not an excuse to feel sorry and eat shit. It will be fun to see how we can budget this but at least now we wont be able to eat out (or much else) so it may actually help us!
Justin NAILED it. Nice work. It would behoove everyone to stop thinking in terms of "breakfast" and "dinner". We just eat. Which means I'm as likely to have a burger at 8 AM as I am to have eggs and bacon at 8 PM.
Katie - vinegar isn't techically Paleo, but that's not why I'll ask you to avoid. You can't be certain that vinegar - even distilled vinegar - is gluten free. Check this link for more information. My take? If you're going to do this, DO IT. Better safe than sorry, eliminating gluten means no vinegar.
Day one today, oh i miss my splenda and my zone bars
you can replace vinegar with lemons and limes. Very yummy. And now, my hands smell fresh and citrusy - an added bonus. 6th day on paleo and feeling great!!
I also had the sudden weight loss: four pounds in five days. People get the same thing on Atkins and other low-carb diets though, so I don't know if it's just water. I'll be more interested to see a consistent change in weight AND bodyfat - dropping fat and keeping muscle.
I had a few cravings today. I made fish sticks and fries for my family and the cheap frozen french fries smelled sooo good coming out of the oven. Today's 'good' food fetish was wrapping everything in lettuce leaves. Shrimp and guacamole wrapped in lettuce is awesome.
I actually think today was a pretty great food day for calorie intake and macro balance. Here's my fitday journal for the curious. Oh, and the bass I ate for dinner was caught on a fishing trip yesterday just twenty minutes from my house - how paleo is that?!?!
For breakfast I cooked a bunch of cube steaks on sunday (cause they're cheap and cook fast and I hate eggs) and have been eating them with fruit in the mornings. I go for more quality cuts at night, but in the morning cube steaks will do. If the appearance resembling a cat recently run over by an army tank doesn't put you off... that's my suggestion ;)
Late starter here.. Today is day 2 for me. I am doing Crossfit Football along with paleo.
Started Paleo 15 June prior to hernia surgery and have lost 13 lbs thus far without a single CF WOD.
Melissa-
Is there any place in the Concord/Manch area that sells Larabars or can I get them pretty much anyhwhere? Need to find a new midday snack while at work and I am hoping that these might do the trick.
Crew in Concord is still chomping at the bit to do an Elements type class at some point. Hoping maybe we can put something together for August after the Doc gives me the green light to CF again. Keeping my fingers crossed for the 24th of this month.
The gym is looking good now that our new equipment has started rolling in. AgainFaster Rocks!!
Thanks for all your help.
Jeff
Today's day six and I feel pretty good - high energy and WODS are going well. Even got a nice little PR on shoulder press tonight.
Well hello there, I seem to have totally missed the start date of this challenge! and the next five days of it...
I would like to jump in anyway! oh but damn I just bought some organic butter and cream cheese. Guess I'll give it away. Okay I'm in! Please accept me!
Any coffee drinkers who can't take it black (I am one) should give Caribou coffee a try if necessary. You can get it at Target and its about the only coffee that I can manage to choke down in its virgin form.
As far as eggs go, does anyone have any thoughts on the issue of arachidonic acid in the yolks? I've been limiting yolks to two and making up the difference with egg whites alone. I'll typically eat 2 whole eggs and 6 egg whites four or five days per week.
@Jason
re: arachidonic acid (omega-6 fatty acid) and egg yolks.
not sure if all of this is accurate but a brief google search yielded this:
Article re: nutrient breakdown for yolk vs. egg
http://www.cholesterol-and-health.com/Egg_Yolk.html
post that has a brief list of arachidonic acid levels relative to total fat content in different protein sources
http://www.acneboard.com/AcneQandA/Forum5/000045.html
so i guess i wouldn't worry too much, but maybe make sure you're getting your omega 3's in to maintain good 6:3 ratios. yay fish oil!
Thanks for the 'breakfast' tips. Meat is good. Also, I love the awesome tips on the comment boards....going to pick up some Lara Bars today.
Are cashews nuts or fruits?
Melissa! I read your post about "just doing it" yesterday morning (I hit it through CrossFitNYC's website) and I decided then and there that I was "just going to do it". I'm on day 2 and so far I'm pumped.
What's this comment forum I'm reading about? Is this it? and is it kosher for a complete n00b to join the fun?
keep on!
@Jason: I've been back and forth on egg yolk for some time now. I've considered my acid/base balance, the amount of saturated fat in egg yolk, and the good nutrients found only in the yolk (not the whites). Here's where I end up - if your diet is Paleo, and you're getting plenty of fruits and vegetables, then acid/base balance shouldn't be a concern. If you're getting a variety of nuts and supplementing with fish oil, then your Omega 6:3 ratios aren't a concern. And I don't give a crap about saturated fat. So I eat the yolk when I want to, and skip it post workout.
@Bennie: These are the comments, yep. I'm throwing up posts twice a week, not more often, to keep comments more consolidated and easier to keep up with. But yes, it's totally kosher, and we're super happy to have you. Way to go for it. ;)
Melissa
just saw the vinegar comment. so does that mean i should drop the balsamic vinegar as a salad dressing/marinade for veggies?
also need suggestions. a few nights a week i go to class about an hour from home. these nights are hard, can't exactly eat a full meal while in a 3 hour class that usually has a 5 min break at the most. any ideas for good snacks that are okay with not being refrigerated for 4-5 hours? so far, i've done some fruit (bananas usually) and dates.
No-fridge snacks:
Larabar + beef jerky
fruit + cooked sausage
apple + almond butter + jerky/sausage
ok, I'll give this a go. Why not right? There is one problem though and it relates back to the "Healthy/F-off" scale. I get that the paleo purists say coffee is bad. Unfortunately in real people world I have been described as a hibernating bear that has been poked with a stick if I miss my morning coffee. I can cut everything, but the coffee is necessary to my sanity. I will however remove my 1/2 tsp of sugar in deference to this new thing.
I need snack ideas. Since I've said goodbye to my 94% FF popcorn and my Baked Doritos, I need a substitute.
Feeling great! I have more focus, more steady energy, better moods. This is not as hard as I thought it would be! In fact its easy. Prep and planning are the keys here. Thanks to MB for starting us up, and I hope everyone else is enjoying themselves! Will K, I'm with you..my coffee is my one and only true vice and I'm not giving it up. For those with LaraBar fetishes like myself, I found a recipe to make them at home. Not sure if can post a link here.....One love from the great white north.
Ronesshia, I whipped this up last night...had it for brekky this morn.....hope I didn't break any Paleo Commandments!! (I didn't eat the whole batch,oink oink)
Pie-less Paleo Pumpkin Pie
1can pumpkin,
2 diced apples,
2-4 stalks rhubarb(diced and lightly boiled)
1 tsp ground flax,
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon,
1tsp cloves
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2cup crushed nuts and seeds
1/2 cups diced dates or whole raisins
cook in small pot over medium heat, for 3min, let mingle in the fridge overnight, reheat and enjoy!
Did someone post a homemade Larabar recipe here? I saw it somewhere and now i can't find it.
A-ha...here is what i was thinking of. Going to try these tonight
http://www.sonofgrok.com/2009/01/recipe-sog-bars/
I guess we can post links...here's the one I found.
http://enlightenedcooking.blogspot.com/2008/02/home-made-lara-bars-energy-bars-part-3.html
I know I'm all over this board today...I'm just fired up!!
thanks for the snack suggestions melicious! and that recipe looks tasty robbie. sounds like a good dessert to take when i go over someone's house and want a sweet to eat that is safe for me.
I'm curious to know what the sources of calcium are if one eats Paleo, and whether those sources are bioavailable. I ask only because I recently had a DEXA scan (as part of a research study) and was shocked to see that my bone density wasn't very awesome. Something to think about, especially if looks is the motivation for avoiding dairy rather than lactose intolerance.
Danni,
Whoa... Back the truck up! If you think giving up dairy - or grains, or legumes - have primarily to do with appearance, then I haven't explained myself very well. Sure, many of these dietary changes will result in favorable body comp changes. I mention that you'll LOOK BETTER because, frankly, that's what people care about. We all want to look better. But these recommendations are about moving towards improved health and wellness, and improved physical performance. The fact that you will, in fact, also LOOK BETTER is just a nice little byproduct.
And to address your other point, my recommendation to skip the dairy ALSO has nothing to do with lactose intolerance, either. Not that it's not a factor - it is, to a degree - but there are far more pressing reasons to pass on the milk. I'm going to do a little post on dairy and calcium tomorrow, to address your concerns and questions. Thanks for voicing them here, so I can better explain some of the rationale for everyone.
Melissa
Day two, just had my first Larabar (banana bread) Yum!
Bad headaches from the lack of caffine but I am holding on.
I look forward to reading your post. And for the record, I'm not saying that looks are why you are advocating Paleo or that looks are why you yourself are doing it -- I meant if someone (like me) has no apparent negative reaction to dairy, and is cutting it thinking it will make my belly flatter, the potential trade-off is something to consider.
"Vanity Factor" gets poo-poo'd all the time, the hell with that! It's a 'prime directive' on a biological level! Ya gotta be HAWT! No kidding...
We are meant to be fast and strong, that wonderful state of affairs is required to express the genes that keep us healthy and disease free and to keep the genes that want to pluck the biologically frumpy out of the gene pool from getting a toe-hold.
We are also driven on a primary, reptilian level, to propagate the species and we MUST therefor give a crap what we look like. A 'beautiful' bird is a healthy and thereby desirable mate: a bird that can do Fran in 1:47 doesnt mean shite on a biological level if they look like a bag o' fertilizer.
Prior to our ability to fix all the bad biomarkers with makeup, surgery, fat burners, hair color, perfume, thighmasters, etc, the only way for a 'bird' to look like a hot candidate for recreation/procreation was to avoid all the sh*t that makes you sick/look like sh*t and to maximize ones potential shag-ability with moving fast under heavy loads (from the sumarians to the greeks to us, we know STRONG and FAST is HAWT!!).
So, yah, g'head, train/eat for aesthetics but be honest about NATURAL, WELL BALANCED aesthetics and you will find yourself executing natural movements at high intensity and living by 'The Thirteen Words: 'eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch, no sugar.'
Aggressively strong, wickedly fast, glaringly healthy/disease free and focused like a laser beam is the most compelling, sexiest thing on earth!
chef, do you have a newsletter I can subscribe to? That last post was funny!
Melissa I must thank you for your 'tough love' ! It got me through 2 nightshifts that were just full of bad bad carbs. Normally I'd give in and chow down on chips and candy and feel like crap and start "eating clean" again tomorrow.....I read your posts and said it's just not worth it!!! I grabbed my Larabar and a tea and watched everyone else fill up on crap ;)
I keep dreaming that things like tortilla chips and bagels fall into my lap -- but even in my dreams I resist! Maybe it's a little bit of 'fear of Melissa' keeping me strong. And despite my fear, I must confess that I did eat a little bit of mayonaisse yesterday...but only because it was that or starve. I ordered a 'chicken wrap' for a work lunch (intending to just eat the guts of it) and ended up getting a 'chicken salad wrap' instead. Lesson learned...always bring backup.
A few quick yes/no questions:
canned salmon?
olives?
cashews?
beets?
I've been avoiding them so far but will eat if they're ok.
Also, while I have no problem avoiding foods, I wonder if I have the quantities right. How many nuts are ok? How many of those Whole Foods date bars rolled in coconut? (Thanks Sadie!)
Took me awhile to find them in my town but these larabars are awesome! Day 6 now and things are getting tough so these things are a god-send.
Check the ingredients on the canned Salmon -- I noticed that in 95% of canned tuna, they add 'soy'...wtf?! But if it's just the fish and no other bad ingredients, I don't see any reason not to eat it.
LARA bars are the $hit!!!
Love the banana one and the apple crisp! Great for the snacks...I add Almonds and sm can of Chunk light Tuna, and it's a great snack :-) Or Turkey with Almonds and Lara Bar. . . Glad these were mentioned!!!
Brandon -- check for soy in your tuna!! :)
Ellen, Sunny,
Cashews are fruit and the part you're eating is a seed, so it's paleo. I looked it up because I'm a fan of cashews AND they're an ingredient in my favorite larabars - key lime pie.
I just bought a crap ton of larabars online and I'd recommend that others do the same. They're $18 for a box of 16 at netrition.com (http://www6.netrition.com/cgi/prices.cgi?manu_id=399), which is the best price I've seen anywhere.
On most "Paleo" plans, cashews are not technically allowed, because they are toxic in their raw state.
From the Wikipedia cashew entry:
"Although a nut in the culinary sense, in the botanical sense the fruit of the cashew is a seed. The seed is surrounded by a double shell containing a dermatogenic phenolic resin, urushiol, a potent skin irritant toxin also found in the related poison ivy. Some people are allergic to cashew nuts, but cashews are a less frequent allergen than nuts or peanuts."
...
"The urushiol must be removed from the dark green nut shells before the seed inside is processed for consumption; this is done by shelling the nuts, a somewhat hazardous process, and exceedingly painful skin rashes (similar to poison-ivy rashes) among processing workers are common."
That's the technicality. However, if you don't have a sensitivity to them, I'm A-OK with keeping them in your diet. I guess the question is, how do you know if you're sensitive? Give them up, then reintroduce them and see if you have a reaction. So... this one is your call.
Canned salmon - check your ingredients and make sure there aren't any additives or fillers. I prefer smoked salmon (wild Alaskan), in the seafood section of your local grocer. Eat cold with avocado or fresh chunks of honeydew melon. Super yum.
Olives - yep, as long as they're natural and not soaked in some kind of crappy oil, or preserved with a bunch of chemicals. I love egg whites with steamed spinach and Greek olives for breakfast.
Beets - heck, yes.
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