30 Day Paleo Challenge

Found some dericious Lara bar flavors...peanut butter cookie, chocolate chip cookie dough and cashew something or other.

Those peanut butter ones are delicious...but not Paleo (The peanuts are a easy give away)...also beware of the chocolate too...sorry. On the other hand...their Lemon bar tastes VERY similar to the lemon breads you get at Starbucks....at least that's what I try to convince myself since it's been so long since I've had a bakery type item!
 
I picked up a bunch the other day on sale. I'm a sucker for pecan pie flavors, so naturally I bought 10 of em. They're really small and not that filling for someone of my size. I'd say they probably lasted me 30 minutes. :thumbsdown:
 
Guys...still with it? This has turned from a "challenge" to a lifestyle change! I knew there was still muscle under that flab I had put one...40 pounds down since I began...life changing. Literally...next week I meet with the doc to see what we can do about getting off the blood pressure meds. Good to feel fit again.
 
I've gone off and on over the last few weeks. Helping some friends at their Mexican restaurant while I was on summer break from uni didn't sabotage me, nor has making my way through various airports. It's been the world class benders with friends I haven't seen in ages that has set me back (this has been reunion summer).

Nothing like square one again. It's all good, though.
 
So at Day 10 1/3 I'm down 6 lbs. I've started drinking a lot more water so I'm surmising there's extra water weight. Started on the 2nd at Dinner. I'm at 100% strict, I drink coffee and have heavy cream...like wtf why can't I do non-dairy you know!:mad:

At lunch it will be Day 11 complete, sadly I'm not going to hit my first goal of 14 days straight, got a date tonight, but the rest we're going to I've already glanced at the menu, I'll be a good boy. Update on some recipes I've used.
 
Guys...still with it? This has turned from a "challenge" to a lifestyle change!
Okay... I'm convinced. THIS is what I need to do.

When one stops to think about it... my Big Green Egg obsession will fit right in with only some minor adjustments, like no (or at least less) cheese. I'm not sure that I can do this cold turkey like many have done here, so the plan is to REDUCE the amount of non-paleo foods and then maybe try the 30 days clean at the beginning of next month, I already don't eat very much processed food, it's grains and dairy that will be a challenge for me.

I just figure that while I'm going to be changing my lifestyle by going back to work in industry (I've been running a business and/or teaching since 2006) that could be a perfect opportunity to do a COMPLETE lifestyle makeover for me and, to a lesser extent, the whole family. I've been thinking that we need to simplify our lives and this Paleo thing could fit like a glove.
 
Okay... I'm convinced. THIS is what I need to do.

When one stops to think about it... my Big Green Egg obsession will fit right in with only some minor adjustments, like no (or at least less) cheese. I'm not sure that I can do this cold turkey like many have done here, so the plan is to REDUCE the amount of non-paleo foods and then maybe try the 30 days clean at the beginning of next month, I already don't eat very much processed food, it's grains and dairy that will be a challenge for me.

I just figure that while I'm going to be changing my lifestyle by going back to work in industry (I've been running a business and/or teaching since 2006) that could be a perfect opportunity to do a COMPLETE lifestyle makeover for me and, to a lesser extent, the whole family. I've been thinking that we need to simplify our lives and this Paleo thing could fit like a glove.

The food is pretty good too. I enjoy my food more now than I ever did before.
 
I kind of did the transition over a couple months being simple, the goal wasn't to really eat Paleo but more to be clean and kind of drop weight because I had gotten injured. Basically on day 12 1/3, I'd be at 2/3 but for that cheat meal on a date that fizzled and certainly did not sizzle.

Let me break it down, I'd been eating between 70/30 and 80/20 for awhile...my weekends would kill me or I was wrangling for something sweet. When I ate like 98/2 prior to my roommates parents coming, let's just say the diet broke down completely that weeked, I knew I could do it. It would just be a little tough. Well I threw down the gauntlet and purchased both the 30 Day Guide to Paleo and Gather from the Staleys. By supper tomorrow I'll have done 14 days. It can get expensive and doing what some of the people who write the books do has to be cost prohibitive for most people. I also don't follow their 30 day meal plan because I'm cooking for myself and I do most of it on the weekends with adding vegetables when I run out of prepped sides. I have to say it's really opened up different paths to cooking and once you get settled in and don't have to go down the aisles and only hitting the produce and meats it gets cheaper. I'm trying to get down to roughly $10 a day.

Physiologically, definite change, it pushes a lot of the toxins out, you find yourself with a lot of gas. I've lost weight, but at this point it's all about caloric deficits, a friend of mine at work said: "I read about your diet, it seems to be really good with weight lifting." I said I'm sure but I'm dropping weight right now so I must be doing enough with just 30 minutes of cardio at PT. So that tells me, once I'm ready to get back in the jungle, I can certainly just shred. Now onto things I eat:

Breakfast:
Kale and cherry tomato scramble, two pieces of bacon (basically every day)
Coffee (Agave/local honey and heavy whipping cream) I got advice from the Staleys and this is what they gave me, so no to non-dairy creamer fellas. I drink coffee as a diarrhetic anyways :hmm:. They also like raw milk so if you can find it you're looking at taking a sip a few times a week. But that's it in regards to dairy, having cheese makes it primal. :mad:

Snacks:
I haven't done much in regards to trail mix, and the Staleys push eliminating dried fruits from the first 30 days of your diet. :( However, I take an apple, a banana, and orange to work everyday. I then get grapes which I snack on over the weekends.

Lunch(Dinner)/Dinner(Supper)
This is where I get creative, most of my cooking is on the weekends I tend to plan what I want to do out by Thursday so I have a POA when going to the grocery store i.e. a list. I've made: http://www.feedtheclan.com/paleo-chile-verde-recipe/ With Cauliflower Tortillas
Meatballs and artichoke hearts over spaghetti squash.
http://paleomg.com/easy-shredded-beef/
http://www.primalpalate.com/recipe/butterflied-roast-chicken/ I made two of these last weekend, the second one I put my own twist into it with placing an orange slice under the skin on each quarter instead of the garlic.
This weekend I made: http://www.primalpalate.com/recipe/duck-a-lorange/
http://www.primalpalate.com/recipe/baked-chicken-thighs/
And Spaghetti and Meatballs.

Sides: Standard sautéed/steamed vegetables, cauliflower rice, guacamole, Bacony Sweet Potato Hash, chopped artichokes sautéed in bacon grease with dates and bacon, baked asparagus.

Desserts: I've only Paleo "PB" Banana Chocolate Ice Cream: 4 bananas, 2 TBSP of Almond Butter (any nuts will do I suppose) and a TBSP of cocoa, however you add a little more of each or less to give you the flavor you want. Not too much because then you're wrecking an awesome and healthy desert.

Stuff to drink: Water, H2O, Agua: it gets a little monotonous so I use Crystal Light to make a batch during the weekend. A little bit of raw milk, pas beaucoup. Alcohol, just a smidge, wondering how I'll work in my bourbon and coke?}:-)

Recent purchases: I bought Primal Cravings, a spiral slicer, a julienner, a zester, and duck fat.
Resources:
http://www.primalpalate.com
http://www.paleocupboard.com/poultry.html
http://nomnompaleo.com
http://paleomg.com
http://www.paleoplan.com/recipes/
http://www.health-bent.com

Basically as a normal person you can't do Paleo like the Staleys, all they do is write recipes and build plans, they're getting paid to do what they do.
 
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I would like to add for the guys who don't quite want to give up the beer, there are some pretty good gluten free beers making their way on the market. Although a gluten free beer is not completely "paleo", it's a great compromise for someone who doesn't want to give up beer completely. I personally prefer Red Bridge.
 
I've been kicking it around 186 for two weeks. Going off the diet as I'm in Alabama for Thanksgiving. I'm sure the Paleo Flush will occur when I get home again as well. So having lost 21 lbs…it was a great decision. I'm PCSing next Friday, so my goal is to come out of the Holidays at 186. PT, get some.
 
Week 1, still going strong! Leaning out, sleeping great, energy is through the roof. It's amazing what happens when you follow your own advice you give to people.

I'm sticking at roughly 1gram per pound of BW. 1/3 of this is made of fat and cycling my carb intake for whatever my training may entail. On days I am not training, I am raising the fat slightly to cover down on the carbs.

As I said before I am leaning out VERY quickly, workouts are awesome. No longer having to time or WAM my food, no protein/flax shakes either. In fact I am just about at this level of BF but at a heavier BW.

 

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Been off diet since T-Giving, brutal. This PCS has roughed me up, leave should be better. However, will be back on for a new 30 when I get back from leave.
 
Well let's see. I made it 10 days going 100% strict. Went on a date so there was a cheat meal. Then I went 13 days 100%, and off during a four day weekend that I spent with family in Alabama. And then I went 100% from OCT 1 to NOV 26. At first it was tough. And then when I got into the rhythm it was pretty easy as I spent a good amount of time trying to find awesome recipes to exploit my talents in the kitchen :sneaky:. Basically my current plan being single is to do 97.7%/2 weeks. That equates to 1/42 meals as a cheat meal. And as things progress shift between 1 cheat meal every two weeks and one every week. I did change my lifestyle in regards to how I ate, and I will go back into keeping it sustainable provided I do the cooking.

What I really need is an ice cream maker!
 
I try to shoot for an 85/15 strict to cheat ratio. The cheat either being straight up junk food that I just have a craving for, or stuff that is not really "cheating" but is not strict paleo either like corn, white potatoes, brown rice, wheat bread, etc.
 
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