My Results - What can be achieved in 7 weeks of strict Paleo and Intermittent Fasting

Before

After

Before

After

Before

After

And a few amateur bodybuilding poses for your amusement.............

And for all those who think it's just genetics, here is the old me...........

Day 40 - 'Be the Trainer' Results

Thank you for all those who wrote in their feedback on my food diary. You guys have really embrassed this challenge over the last 7 weeks and from your comments you have a great understanding of how to maintain a paleo lifestyle moving forward.

Below are a few common themes in your comments:

1. Lack of variety, leading to a possible lack of certain vitamins and minerals

Agreed with this one and no real excuses other than falling into a routine and letting convenience over rule variety.
Fruits could have been more varied and also kept to locally grown sources. Protein sources could have consisted of more fish (did not eat enough fish) and leaner cuts of locally sourced meats.

2. The use of protein shakes is not paleo (chew your food)

This again led back to convenience, I get through a ton of meat protein and on my budget couldn't quite afford enough so a protein shake was a savour for me. I find post workout nutrition makes a huge difference to my recovery and recommend it to everyone. The protein shake didn't contain any artificial sugars, colourings or sweeteners and is a great option along side paleo eating.

3. Minor slip ups....chocolate, cake, alcohol, cruntchy nut etc.....

I set out in the beginning determined to stay 100% clean. Unfortunately I didn't quite have the will power. When the chips were down, I adopted Mark Sisson's from http://www.marksdailyapple.com/ 80/20 approached and 'treated' on 85% chocolate (low in sugar), chocolate cake post workout (quickly absorbed) and wine, less sugar/calorific than beer and cider. These few fixes kept me going for the long haul.

4. More fruit and veg throughout the day to off-set my high acidity levels brought on by meat


There is a fine balance with this one. In Lorain Cordains book 'The paleo diet' http://www.amazon.com/dp/0470913029?tag=paleotop-20&camp=14573&creative=327641&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=0470913029&adid=0WF5N6EVFAVXSW7D73FM&
Lorain suggest you eat all the fruit you can. Meat is quite acidic and fruit and veggies are alkaline so the fruit and veg can help balance things out. To much acidity is not good for things like osteoporosis.  I slightly disagree with this one when it comes to leaning out. The high sugar content (Fructose) in fruit can wreak havoc with our insulin levels which we need to keep a bay if weight loss is our goal.
   Once you have lost the weight you require and reach a maintenance stage, I definitely recommend uping your fruit intake. Moderate amounts of fruit won't make you put on weight but as Robb Wolf says, it will cock block your weight loss. In conclusion though, more veggies throughout the day would be a much better option in lowering acidity levels.

The Result


Thanks to all those who have wrote in, but there can only be one winner!

Congrates to Liam Philimore not only for his insightful comments but his overall enthusiasm and commitment to the challenge. Liam is 100% paleo plus dairy thus far. Looking forward to seeing the results big guy. You can follow Liam's experience here http://liamspaleo.blogspot.com/

Thanks again to all those who wrote in. Remember, I'm not a nutritionist  and everything I know is completely self taught. There is a universe of information out there in books and the internet, you just have to spend the time sifting through the bullshit. I'll be posting my results Saturday and i'm pretty chuffed with the way things have gone so watch this space!

Robb Wolf & Art DeVany- The Paleo Diet (Nightline)

12.30pm

Half a chicken
Home made soup containing sweet potato, brocolli, carrots (this is a really starchy soup and not ideal for weight loss but awesome pre workout!

3.00pm - post workout

Protein shake
Cold steak
2 eggs
punnet of raspberries
more soup

7.00pm - Eating out for Mr. Usher's 35th Birthday ; )

Chicken Caesar salad minus the croutons

Steak
home made chips (Starchy........ but had a big day of training so didn't lose any sleep over this)

Tomorrow, results of the 'you be the trainer competition'

Day 38 - Last chance to win the hamper!

For those of you, like me, who have a sweet tooth and often find yourself craving a treat. I may have found a solution.
Pataks coconut cream sachets!! These beauties are 100% coconut and a healthy alternative to a bar of dairy milk.
They can be purchased in any major super market and can be added to curries and sauces. I like eating them cold as a solid bar but be warned....they are super dense so make sure you have a drink on hand to help wash it down!

12.30pm

Chilli
Avocado

4.30pm

Pret Tuna and boiled egg salad

7.00pm

Roast lamb with loads of veggies!

Day 36 and 37 - 1 Week to go!!

Friday

12.00pm

2 Sausages
2 Bacon
2 poached eggs
Vegetable soup

4.00pm - Post 27 rounds + 10 press ups of 'Cindy'

Protein shake
Punnet of blueberries
Apple
Deli beef
handful of nuts

8.30pm

Tandori chicken tikka
Chicken madras
Sage paneer....oops
Onion Bajee ......oops again


Saturday

12.00pm

Lamb ribs
1 Avocado

7.30pm

Chilli
Broccoli

9.00pm

Chill
Sweet potato chips

Day 34 - Simple Chicken Tikka

Back into the swing of things now and feeling fresh!!!

12.30pm

Chilli
1/2 Avocado

4.30pm

3 Eggs
Steak (leftovers from night before, roughly 4 oz's)
1/2 Avocado

9.15pm

Fish and Seafood Chowder
Mountain Broccoli

My last couple of curry recipes have been a little complicated and time consuming. The recipe below is a super simple, healthy and quick paleo Chicken tikka masala.

Serves 4

Ingredients:
1 Large onion
2 chillies
1" ginger
3 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp turmeric
2 tsp garam masala
1 Tbsp tomato puree
400g chopped tomatoes
600g chicken
1 tin of coconut milk
1/2 bag of baby spinach

1. Fry onion, ginger, chilli and garlic for 2-3 minutes

2. Add chilli powder, turmeric, garam masala, and cook for a further 2 minutes

3. Add tomato puree, chopped tomatoes and allow to cook for a further few minutes

4. Blend mixture in food processor until you get the consistency you require

5. Brown off chicken and add curry mixture. Simmer for 10 minutes

6. Add coconut milk and baby spinach (as much as desired), stir until spinach has wilted.

7. Serve with cauliflower rice and enjoy!

Day 33 - Competition time - You be the Trainer

I have a challenge for my 2 followers. I want you to look over my food diary thus far and tell me how it can be improved. From quantities,variety and quality. I want to see how much you guys have learned and how well you can pass that knowledge onto others. 

Email, facebook or simply old fasioned pen and paper your comments by Monday March 1st 2011.

The best analysis will win a weeks worth of Fruit and Veg!

Good luck guys!

Day 30, 31, and 32

Sorry for the lack of posting guys, been ill most of the weekend and been struggling to get back into the swing of things.

I ate very little Friday or Saturday, could only stomach crunchy nut cornflakes which although tasted delicious, didn't make me feel any better!

Started feeling more normal by Saturday evening and had a perfect paleo dinner with my friends Bex and Gouldy as guest

Almond Chicken Satay's with side salad and a delicious banana cake to finish.

Sunday was still feeling pretty ropey but managed to eat clean.

2 Salmon fillets with baby spinach and coleslaw for lunch......

plus

Beef roast for tea.

  

Day 29

12.00pm

3 Eggs
Leftover pork from joint the night before
3 tsp of almond butter

3.30pm

2 chicken thighs
Leftover pork
1 egg
1 pear
4 tsp of almond butter

9.10pm

2 Gammon steaks
2 fried eggs
Cabbage
Broccoli
Carrots

Day 28 - Supplements

I have taken this exert from Mark's Daily Apple, which is a great resource while trying to live a primal lifestyle.


Living a healthy “evolved” lifestyle in this high-tech modern world isn’t easy. We all try to eat right, exercise appropriately and control stress, but the reality is, this world we’ve created conspires at every turn to make us look and feel old, ill, and weak. We breathe polluted air, we stress about bills, traffic and the economy, we don’t always get enough sleep or exercise, we don’t always eat as we should, and when we do, even the best natural foods are not as abundant in micronutrients as they once were. Some of the most critical nutrients are missing entirely - and it’s only getting worse as the commercialization of food continues to spiral out of control. Living in a thoroughly modern world with hunter-gatherer genes isn't easy."


This justifies the use of supplements! Below is a list of supplements I would recommend along with a healthy paleo diet. (Note: Supplements are not a replacement for good foods)                




Omega 3's - http://www.healthspan.co.uk/omega-3/super-strength-omega-3/productdetail-p3196694-c151.aspx  


Vitamin D - http://www.healthspan.co.uk/vitamins/vitamin-d3/productdetail-p414-c147.aspx


Magnesium - http://www.healthspan.co.uk/minerals/magnesium/productdetail-p334-c133.aspx


Whey Protein - http://www.sci-mentor.com/premium-whey-2-25kg.html

Day 27

Great Day at Dragon CrossFit Sunday! Thanks to all who came and showed their support

12.45pm

Chicken leftovers
Blueberries

4.00pm - Post Workout

More chicken
Blueberries
Apple

7.00pm (Eating out)

Starter
Butter and Garlic mussels

Main
Roast beef
Broccoli
Carrots
Potatoes (oh dear)

Damage wasn't to bad!

DAY 25 and 26

Well over half way guys!! You all sound like the early teething problems have passed and you've settled into a routine! Had some great feed back from people informing me of huge PB's, leaning out and generally feeling great!! Keep up the good work people!!!!

Had a little flood Sunday night, but all has been rectified and we're back open for business!

Friday

12.00pm

2 Sausage (97% gluten free)
3 chicken thighs
Handful of blueberries

2.00pm - Post workout

Protein shake
Remaining punnet of blueberries

4.00pm

Chilli
1 Avocado

7.30pm

Beef casserole
Loads of mix veg! Broccoli, carrots, cabbage

Saturday

1.00pm

3 pieces of Beef
Casserole form night before
Apple
Avocado

7.00pm - Way to long going without food!!

Spicy peri-peri roast chicken
Sweet potato chips
Greek salad - Little gem, peppers, olives, feta cheese (naughty me!)

NOT ENOUGH FOOD !!!

Real Life Testimonial: Long Hard Road out of Hell or Why Fat Girl went Primal (the unabridged version!)

12.00pm

Tuna and Egg Salad (Toms, baby spinach, peppers and a little olive oil)

Peach

2.00pm Post workout

Protein shake

Chilli

Sweet Potato

5.00pm

2x packs of 99% pork salami

1 Avocado

9.00pm

3x Home made burgers

Broccoli

Flat mushrooms

2x poached eggs
2 rashers of bacon
Baby spinach

Handful of nuts

2x Pineapple rings

The link below is a long read, but a great success story and more evidence that Paleo really works!!!

Real Life Testimonial: Long Hard Road out of Hell or Why Fat Girl went Primal (the unabridged version!)

DAY 23 - Rest Day

1.00pm

2x chicken breast
1x chicken leg
2x sausages (97% gluten free)
1 Avocado

4.45

4x chicken thighs
1x chicken leg
Handful of nuts (Walnuts, Brazil and coconut shavings)

9.00pm

Belly of Pork (Seasoned with Chinese 5 spice)
Home made Coleslaw

Sweet Potato mash

Day 22 - Lifestyle, Stress and Cortisol

12.00pm

4 chicken thighs
Handful of nuts and coconut shavings

3.00pm Post workout

Protein shake
(no fruit available)

3.30pm

Chilli
Avocado

7.45pm

Steak (approx. 7oz)
2 Sausage (97% pork gluten free)
Broccoli
2 poached eggs



If you're following my blog, you most probably are doing some form of exercise and understand the importance of staying active. You also, no doubt are eating a fairly clean diet (no sugar, grains etc) and if you have been listening, understand the importance of nutrition when leaning out and improving quality of life. But is this enough?

Our modern day way of living is at odds with our ancestral lifeway. They had things both harder and easier than us. Hard things include living without advanced communication and medicine.  This would explain their shorter lifespan. Our ancestors worked hard for their food, clothing and shelter and left them with an Olympic athlete skeleton. But they did not work as hard or a long as us, only about 10-15 hours a week. This is similar to hunter gatherers societies today like those that live in the Amazon rainforest. The work varied from time of year and location and consisted of mainly building shelter, hunting food and making clothes. The rest of the time was spent socializing and playing games. Scientist that have live among Hunter Gatherer HG tribes have     described them to be very content with life and there nearly no signs of misery. Admittedly they do need to deal with sickness and the odd dangerous wild animal, but on the whole the hunter gatherer societies live a remarkably good, stress free life.

Now lets look at the modern life.

Sleep


Our ancestor awoke when the sun rose and slept soon after the sun went down.

We awake with an alarm clock and without as much sleep as we would like. I think we can all agree that we feel a lot better when we've had sufficient sleep and we are well rested. Imagine what life would be like if we could awaken without the use of an alarm clock everyday!

Commute


Luckily in a city like Bath, commuting is not a major issue. But what if you work in Bristol, Swindon or as far as London. For many people this long commute can be frustrating and stressful and looks nothing like our HG trip to collect edible plants.

Work


I feel very blessed in my work. I get to improve peoples quality of life on a daily basis and it is extremely rewarding. But do you love your job? do you even like it? Or do you just tolerate it for survival? Who works 40 hrs. plus? Fifty? This represents almost 3 times the amount our ancestors would have spent working. I understand that some of us need to work more than others, but if you've ever felt you need to work less and have more variety in your life to relieve stress and provide you with energy, you would be correct.

Exercise 


Exercise is great but to much is not! There are certain people (and you know who you are) that attempt to commit suicide by exercise. Up at 5am six days a week, running, swimming and biking. Lifting weights at lunch, then a met-con in the evening. Working out, when sick, tired and injured. I have been guilty of this in the past but have realised that more is not necessary best. Louie Simmons once said "Train optimally not maximally"  and to me, that makes a load of sense!

Can you see how all these factors are at odds with our genetics? Lets have a look at how these all effect what happens on the inside, more specifically how they effect the hormone cortisol! Hang in there guys, I know this stuff is a little deep but it really matters.

Cortisol is a hormone released from the adrenal glands in response to stress. It's main function is to give us energy in the form of glucose and fatty acids released from the liver. Cortisol levels should be typically high in the morning and drop gradually as the day goes on, leaving us with very little by bedtime. This is natures way of making sure we are alert, energized and ready to go!

Our ancestors would have had a release of cortisol when fighting a wild animal and defending themselves from an ambush of a rival tribe. But this would have been infrequent and levels would have decreased quickly.

Our modern day way of living may not involve us fleeing from sabre-tooths, but it does come with alot of other stressors. Lack of sleep, commuting, kids, financial issues, boring job, excessive exercise! These stressors are frequent and culminate.

If we are exposed to these stressor frequently we release cortisol at times that aren't  natural, this effects our ability to sleep and relax in the evening. But also, more cortisol, means more glucose and fatty acids released. The glucose (sugar) enters our system and has no where to go other than our bums and tums! These chronically high glucose levels will also lead to insulin resistance and eventually type 2 diabetes. This simulates eating a high-carb diet!!

Oh, and one more thing, chronic levels of cortisol  gives you wrinkles! Cortisol disables the protein collagen in our faces.

So can you see how our lifestyle can stunt our fat loss?!?

Common signs of elevated cortisol levels are:-

1. Noticeably fatter around the midsection area
2. Needing to wee in the night
3. Low sex drive
4. Struggling to sleep at night and feeling more tired in the morning than before you went to bed
5. Poor memory
6. Elevated stress levels

So to conclude, sleep more, work a little less, get a life outside the gym, and CHILL OUT!
 

DAY 21 - Rest/Amazing Pork/Awesome Film

1.15pm

Usher Roast Pork (Amazing)
Mountain of Veg and a few sneaky potatoes

4.30pm

4 chicken legs
Handful of nuts

6.00pm

Cinema trip to watch "The Fighter"
No popcorn or sweets but did treat myself to a bar of Green and Blacks 85% chocolate

8.45pm

Home made Beefburgers
Guacamole

DAY 18,19 and 20

Apologise for the lack of posting, no excuses, just getting slack. I know my 2 only followers will understand.

Thursday

1.00pm

4 chicken thighs
Roast beef left over from night before
1 Avocado

3.00pm Post workout

Protein shake
Half a punnet of blueberries

5.30pm

2 chicken thighs
Loads of beef, again left over from night before
Veg, also left overs from previous evening (carrot, broccoli, leeks and cabbage)

9.20pm

Spicy chicken
Little gem
Sweet potato chips
Salsa
and garlic prawns

Pop all ingredients in the little gem parcels

Friday

12.00pm

4 pieces of chicken
Handful of blueberries

2.00pm Post workout

Punnet of raspberries
Protein shake

3.20pm

3 chicken thighs
1 Avocado

4.45pm Raviness at this point, not sure why?

Turkey slices (approx. 200g)
Baked sweet potato
Whole tub of coleslaw
Handful of grapes

9.30pm

Rogan Josh (Takeaway!!)
Sage Paneer (cheese...ooops)
Onion Bhaji


Saturday

1.00pm

Velo Breakfast
2x Sausage
2x Bacon
2x Bacon
Mushrooms

2.00pm
4 Chicken legs
Handful blueberries

3.10pm
Chicken breast (starting to think i eat way to much chicken)
Handful of blueberries (and blueberries for that matter)
Handful of nuts

4.45pm
Post workout
Protein shake
Chocolate cake (Yep chocolate cake!!!! attended the opening of CrossFit Cardiff and cake was available. It definitely wasn't paleo and it defiantly would have been rude not to try some!!) If you're gonna treat yourself, immediately after a workout is the time to do it. Future post on post workout feeding to follow.

7.30pm

Chicken, pepper and mushroom kebabs
Prawn skewers
Baked sweet potato
Side salad with dressing

Recipe for this one tomorrow, was epic!!!

Day 17 - The Biggest Loser

So, like me you may have seen at least a few episodes (or series) of The Biggest Loser and drawn some parallels to your own situation.  For me, I still find it amazing how food has so much of an emotional hold over us! Pre-Paleo, while at uni, I used to watch the show while gorging on a few slices of pizza and tucking into a few pre-lash beers, pitying the contestants. But the truth is, I had the same mindset as a lot of the folks on the show: struggling with my weight and falling victim the the high-carb, low-fat craze. I was also a little in denial about my weight. I've turned that around now, and knowing now what I know, I've developed a love/hate relationship with the show!

Hate

Everything comes down to calories and weight. As Gary Taubes taught us in Good Calories, Bad Calories, not all calories are created equal and those coming from sugars and starches are damaging compared to those coming from good fat and lean protein. The entire Calories In – Calories Out hypothesis for losing fat is inadequate for describing what actually happens in the body. If 3500 calories equals one pound of fat then it should be super easy to eat 500 fewer calories every day and easily lose a pound a week. Or eat the same and exercise to burn those 500 calories. But how many of you have tried that to minimal or no success? I know I have. You body is far more complicated than that, and fat loss comes down to food intake, metabolism, and most important of all, hormones.


Love

The show is an amazing motivational tool. Obesity is a rapidly growing epidemic in this country and world-wide and I would still put The Biggest Loser in the “trying to help” category. It’s good to see not only the people in the show taking an interest in their health, but also all the folks who watch the show. The trainers also do a great job of tackling the emotional problems surrounding food and body image.

Hate

Contestants come out over-trained, under-fed and stressed out. In the quest for fat loss, the Biggest Loser system falls victim to the traditional bad science that we’ve been bombarded with over the decades. In addition to the Calories in-Calories out hypothesis, there are the false assumptions that: whole grains are an important and beneficial part of a balanced diet; the more time you spend doing cardio, the more fat you will lose; multiple small meals a day are better than a few large ones; or that you can completely restrict calories without adverse side effects. These are all just plain wrong and it hurts me to see that the show is delivering the message that the only way people can lose large amounts of fat is to prescribe 5 hours of cardio a day and basing they're diet on grains. No wonder this week, some contestants didn't lose any weight at all!!!

The American version saw Adam Hurtado lose some serious weight in not a lot of time. He came off the show completely beat up, eating only 800 calories a day, not sleeping enough and doing 4+ hours of cardio. He reached out to LEAF Fitness to help him lose the rest of his weight before returning for the final weigh-in, and they did some pretty amazing stuff that is totally in line with what we recommend at Crossfit Bath. You can read the full story here but the short version is that he went Paleo, exercised a few times a week for no more than an hour each session, and SLEPT! It’s not surprising that food and sleep affect your body composition more than the work you put in the gym.

Love

Ending on a positive note. I’ll admit that even though the show gives out a lot of really bad info, they are trying to do the right thing by spreading the message of fitness and health. It’s hard to find fault with that and while I continue to cringe, I understand what they’re trying to accomplish.

Stick to these guidelines and you won't go far wrong!

Eat lean meat, veggies, and some healthy fat at every meal

Avoid grains, dairy and sugars

Move or exercise in some way for 3-5 hours a week

Sleep 8-10 hours a night in a pitch black room

Reduce the stress in your life

For those of you who thought i was joking, here's Chubby Me!!

Day 16

1.00pm - Post workout (Train fasted)

Protein shake
1 Apple

1.25pm

3 Sausages
2 eggs
2 chicken thighs
3 tsp of almond butter


4.00pm - Post workout

Protein shake
Handful of strawberries

4.45pm

Chilli
Avocado

8.00pm

2x 5oz Sirloin steaks
Side salad of Watercress, baby spinach and rocket
Home made dressing (Still working on this one, once perfected, I will let you guys know!)

DAY 14 + 15

Prep for lunches this week! Have you prepared?

Saturday 

12.00pm

3 eggs

2 chicken

2 sausages

Handful of coconut shavings

5.00pm

4 egg omelette

4 rashers of bacon

1 avocado

8.00pm

3 home made burgers

4 rashers of bacon

2 slices of cheese (oops!)

 Baby spinach salad, with tomatoes and jalapeños

Dollop of Mayo

Sunday

12.30pm 

3 Pieces of chicken

3.00pm

Roast dinner x2 (yep...I eat 2!!)

Mix meat (Pork, Lamb and beef)

Loads of veggie and a little gravy (Was eating at the century cafe, came with gravy)

To long to go without eating

8.00pm

Chilli

coconut cream

 

  

DAY 13 - More Curry!!!

Bex's attempt at my 'Green Curry'. Looks AWESOME!

12.30pm

More pork leftovers
2 chicken legs
1/2 an avocado

3.00pm

Protein shake
1/2 punnet of blueberries

3.45pm

2 chicken breast
1/2 an avocado

7.45pm

Paleo Rogan Josh with cauliflower rice and carrot salad.

Recipe for Rogan Josh

DAY 12

Some-one asked me the other day, did I feel bad eating pork from pigs that Meg's parents reared.  They suggested to me that it was cruel, yet they were not a vegetarian. This person was obviously incredibly stupid, but i proceeded to explain to them that I'd much rather eat meat that has come from here....

rather than here...............

 “Food, Inc.,” is an informative activist documentary about the big business of feeding or, more to the political point, force-feeding, Americans all the junk that multinational corporate money can buy.

It's a real eye opener. Below is a trailer!

1.00pm

Pork (left over from the night before)
home made soup
1/2 an avocado

4.30pm

2x chicken thighs
3x chicken legs
Handful of blueberries
1/2 an avocado

7.00pm Post workout

Protein shake
1/2 punnet of blueberries

8.00pm

Roasted mackerel, mushrooms and tomatoes
Large salad with mustard and olive oil dressing

DAY 11

1.00pm

2x eggs
2x chicken thighs
Blood Orange (not recommended if weight loss is your goal but dam tasty!)
1/2 an avocado

3.00pm - Post workout

Protein shake
1/2 punnet of blueberries

4.00pm

Left over satay chicken
Home made soup
1/2 an avocado

9.15pm

Shoulder of pork (Hand reared by Meg's parents and without doubt, the tastiest pork I have ever had!)
Cabbage
Brocolli
Carrots

Recipe for Chicken Satay

Day 10

1.00pm

2x 100% pork sausages
Left over Chinese steak
Spinach and bacon soup
Handful of coconut shavings

5.00pm

4x chicken thighs
Handful of nuts

9.15pm

Satay chicken Parcels

Satay chicken is one of my favourites! Recipe coming tomorrow!

DAY 9

12.45pm

Beef (leftover from evening before)
Home made bacon and spinach soup
2x tsp Almond Butter

4.00pm - post workout

Protein shake
Apple

4.45pm

2x chicken thigh
1x chicken leg
Handful of nuts

8.00pm

Chinese style steak
Bok choy and broccoli
Sweet potato chips

 Recipe for Chinese style steak and chips

DAY 8 - Intermittent fasting (IF)

11.00pm

2x fried eggs
3x Amazing 100% pork sausages (Pigs were reared by Meg's parents, more on that to follow)
Handful of coconut shavings

6.30pm

Roast beef
Swede and carrot mash
Cabbage
Broccoli
Cauliflower

If you unsure what Intermittent fasting is read this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intermittent_fasting.

I'm currently following Martin Berkhan of Leangains.com approach. This guy is super smart and you only have to look at his testimonials to realise he knows what he's talking about! http://www.leangains.com/2011/01/client-update.html

How does Leangains differentiate itself from some other intermittent fasting based diets? Here's a brief primer.
An  in-depth coverage of Martin's approach, and the benefits of intermittent fasting, can be read about here.

A much shorter summary can be found here.

Martin Berkhan himslf!

Day 7 - Eating out!!

Went out Saturday with some of the boys to Las Iguanas. Everyone there has had some exposure to CrossFit so I didn't need to explain myself when it came to ordering gluten free! The restaurant was pretty accomadating to my request and had some good gluten free options. I was slateing the place before we got there, but all in all, the food was good and we had a great crack! I think the 4+ glasses of wine helped to contrbute!

12.30pm

Chilli

Handful of nuts

5.30pm

2x chicken thighs

2xchicken legs

Coconut shavings

9.30pm

Las Iguanas

PERI-PERI POLLO Fresh chicken breast, coated in crispy crumbed cassava.with a garlic, chilli & lemon sauce

ALBONDIGAS Authentic & indulgent Patagonian-style lamb meatballs with apple, nutmeg & mint, braised in a light tomato & red chilli sauce 

ENSOPADO DE CARNE (n) (ask for gf) Tender slow-braised goat in coconut milk & tomatoes with chillies, carrot & cassava, served with coriander rice, crunchy coconut farofa (toasted manioc flour) to sprinkle & sweet plantain (Didn't eat the rice)

4 and a bit glasses of wine!

DAY 6

Bacan, chicken and pineapple tower! Joy!

12.30pm

2x chicken breast
Handful of coconut shavings

4.00pm - post workout

Protein shake
Apple

4.45pm

2x eggs
1 chicken thigh
1 Avocado

9.00pm

Chilli
Handful of nuts

Who loves curry?

1.00pm


2 chicken breast
Home made vegetable soup
Handful of nuts
Fish oils


5.30pm


Pork (Still leftovers from  2 nights before)
1/2 a punnet of blueberries


7.05pm (Post workout)


3 boiled eggs
1/2 a punnet of blueberries


8.30pm


Green chicken and broccoli curry with cauliflower rice


Weekends  are when this 'paleo' thing gets tricky! We work less, socialise more and seek to indulge! All these factors can lead to you going off track, diet wise! So what if you do?  We often say, “Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.” And for good reason. The target of a paleo lifestyle is deep-seated: the long haul of a healthy life, not a brief white knuckle ride. The necessary approach, then, is centered around sustainability. 100% paleo in principle is ideal, especially if you're sick or more importantly, looking to win the paleo challenge. But if we're talking about sustainability, and actually having a life, then we need to ease our grip from time to time to keep us sane! 


Take a 80/20 approach. When you go out for dinner, make smart choices with your starter and main (no gluten,  beans, lentils, potatoes) but reward yourself with a dessert! Try to drink wine or clear spirits with no mixers, rather than beer, cider and cocktails and drink plenty of water. 


Recipe for Green chicken and broccoli curry with cauliflower rice.

DAY 4 - Rest Day

Joys of a greengrocer for a dad!

12.45pm

Pork from previous evening (approx 200g)
1 1/2 Avocado
Fish oils

4.15pm

2 chicken legs, 2 chicken thighs
Coconut shavings

9.15pm

Amazing Burger stack! (Portobello Mushroom, Bacon, Egg, Pineapple ring, homemade burger*)
Mix salad (Tomatoes, cucumber, little gem, spring onion, radishes, coriander, squeeze of lime and extra virgin olive oil)
Fish oils

* Lean mince meat, 1 egg, shallots. season to taste. I used paprika and some cayenne to give it an extra kick!

I actually ended up eating 2 of these! Simply because the first one tasted so dam good!!!

Most of you now understand the importance of fish oils. If not, a simple google search will give you mountains of info on their benefits!

But how many Ollie?

I've linked up a nifty calculator on the left hand side. It works out how many you should be taking, depending on the brand and your current health.

I've also added a link to the Healthspan, which is the company I get my fish oils from.



On rest days, my nutrition doesn't really change other than 2 things!

1. My first meal of the day is my largest
2. I reduce my Carbohydrate intake, and increase my Fat intake

Day 3 - Gluten = Death

11.25am

2 Eggs
120g chicken
Handful of mixed nuts (Walnuts, Brazil nuts and Hazelnuts)

3.30pm - 5 mins post-workout

Protein shake
Punnet of blueberries

4.00pm

Chilli (left over from night before)
1 Eggs
1/2 Avocado

9.00pm

Epic shoulder of Pork
Sweet potato and carrot mash
Broccoli
Cabbage
Apple sauce

Shoulder of Pork is not the leanest cut, but if you're on a budget it's a great option. You get plenty of bang for your buck (leftovers are perfect for lunches for next couple of days) and it taste delicious!

Following our Paleolithic ancestors, our Neolithic ancestors lost an average of six inches in height. Most people now have those last 5-10 pounds that seem impossible lose. The causes for both, surprisingly, may be the same.

Robb Wolf can explain. Robb, a former research biochemist, has functioned as a review editor for the Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism and is co-owner of NorCal Strength & Conditioning, one of the Men’s Health “top 30 gyms in America.” He’s also a former California State Powerlifting Champion with a competition 565 lb. squat, 345 lb. bench, 565 lb. deadlift…

Robb was the nutrition guy for CrossFit, before a disagreement meant them parting ways. Since then he has published a book, ‘The Paleo Solution’. This book is a triumph in my opinion and the best resource when it comes to tackling a paleo lifestyle head on!  

The chapters on digestion and improving digestion, are extremely thorough and make a lot of sense. For that reason, this post is a book excerpt. It details a particular problem and specific solutions. Enjoy.

Enter Robb Wolf.

A Common Problem

Below I describe several people who at first glance appear different, but in fact they all share a common problem. They had significant health issues with no apparent cause or solution and assumed they had no treatment options, as their doctors were stumped and could offer few solutions.

For you, this chapter may represent the “missing link” in your quest for improved performance and health.