Health & Fitness
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Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Question for all the Paleo eaters!
I have been eating paleo for roughly 6 months. On average about 85%...sometimes more sometimes less (ie..Christmas) Wheat/flour/sugar are never in my diet, but where I shy from paleo is I use a small amount of dairy, sometimes rice/potatoes if I'm eating out, and unfortunately my finances dont allow me to buy grassfed meat very often. I am going to go strict and cut out the dairy, rice, and potatoes...but Im concerned that all my efforts wont make up for not getting grassfed meat. I feel great, but I havent lost a pound and I feel like I should have had some progress. Someone just encourage me!
ThBaker
Re: Question for all the Paleo eaters!
Southeastern Cycling
My Nest Bio and Cycling Advice
As long as you feel great, then I think you are achieving the purpose of eating paleo.
If your goal is to lose weight, then you need to make sure that you are eliminating foods that cause inflammation and eating fewer than 100 carbs (any source) a day (for serious weight loss, less than 50). Most of these on this diet are probably consumed through fruit or nuts.
If you are seriously gluten or soy sensitive, then eating grass-fed is a absolute necessity since the diet of the animal seemingly impacts reactions in your body. If you are not, well, I haven't seen any science that cinches the fact (although seems quite plausible) and you can probably slide on that strictness.
Do you work out? Are you building muscle mass? Is a particular number important when you're feeling great otherwise?
There is more to eating grass-fed beef than merely feeling better. It actually is better for you than conventional beef, which involves unnatural (ergo unhealthy) feeding habits and various pharmaceuticals.
With that said, it's not a weight-loss issue and you are unlikely to lose weight any quicker simply by eating grass-fed beef.
Ah, very true! There is way too much overuse of preventative antibiotics in the cattle industry among other issues which are beyond the discussion of this post.
Southeastern Cycling
My Nest Bio and Cycling Advice
Cutting dairy was more the key for my skin clearing up than cutting out grains. My stomach issues (bloating, constipation) were related to the grains in my diet.
If I were you, I'd go really strict with the paleo and mix in grass-fed and organic meats as you can afford them. I'm lucky in that our local grocery store (Shop Rite) has grass-fed meats on sale often (they are from Australia though). I once got grass-fed filet mignon for $4.99/lb whereas conventional beef was $6.99/lb.
Gluten is plant based. If you are eating straight meat with no breading, no processing, no lunch meats, there will not be gluten in it. Straight meat (think a steak, a chicken breast) contains no plant products.
Gluten is in things like bread, crackers, cookies, etc. If you think you have a gluten allergy, see your doctor for testing.
Southeastern Cycling
My Nest Bio and Cycling Advice
Agree w/ IIOY on this - it's not the quantity of calories and fat or just ethics that matter here: it's the quality of the fat in particular. Grass-fed animal products like dairy, eggs, meats, etc. have unique nutrient profiles.
Since it's the fat that's most affected by grass feeding, if OP is simply looking for a lean cut of meat, go with conventional and save your money for something like pastured eggs - better bang for your buck, imo.
Once you're eating real, whole foods and have ample intake of veggies, protein and good fat, your appetite will normalize so that eating when you're hungry will reflect when you really need food. Part of the point of eating this way is not to have to rely on measures like calorie counting.
Personally, I'm finding that I really have to be mindful and really examine hunger cues closely because this type of diet suppresses my appetite a great deal. If I'm just maintaining my weight I can eat more willy nilly and it's fine. But to lose, it seems I'm cutting back ~1/3 or more of my intake while paying more attention... that helps with the grocery budget, too
A lot people do fine on 2 meals/day. Right now I'm sticking with mostly the "core" foods: vegetable, meat, eggs. I quit snacking, too. I'm starting to think more and more that it's a very bad habit for me; I definitely feel more energetic w/ limited instances of eating. That might be something to look into and adjust.
So yes, eat less to lose, but not at the expense of starving. If you eat real, nutrient dense foods, get good sleep, and are honest with your body's internal cues (not external like the clock, environment, friends, calorie numbers) then overeating shouldn't be a problem unless you have some deeper hormonal or behavioral issues.
However, gluten is a protein - just an fyi - it's not unheard of for its components to be passed along via animal tissues/products such as from a mother's milk to her nursling.
For example:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9867098?itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum&ordinalpos=14
I don't think it's likely to be that sensitive (I've heard tale of individuals' problems with CAFO meat), but not outside the realm of possibility.
I would cut the dairy and starchy veggies and any grains like rice completely. My guess is those are hindering your weight loss. I'd take an additional Omega 3 supplement to help balance your Omega 3:6 ratio if you are only eating CAFO meats. What types of exercise do you do?
If you're feeling great, then that should be the biggest success, but I can understand that you want to see that success on the scale too.
Eliminate the starchy stuff. Just stick to a protein + veggie (green) for every meal. Eat 3-4 meals a day each having 4oz-8oz of protein in them. This will help to keep you full & satisfied.
For your nut consumption - only eat 1-2oz a day for ultimate weight loss. As for fruit, stay away from the "sugary" kinds such as bananas for instance and stick with berries. Only eat 1/4 C a day. I usually add 1/4 C or 2oz of blueberries to my protein smoothie.
As with any healthy eating plan, you also have to exericse. Make sure you are getting in both cardio and weight training. This can be as simple as taking a brisk walk and keeping kettlebells on hand.
Also, make sure to keep your alcohol consumption down too. I love wine but there is SO much sugar in it. Carbs are hidden everywhere. When in doubt, just stick to "safe" foods. You might want to log or track your daily eating too, so that way, if you have a successful week & lose weight, you can look back over your week and see what you ate/how much you exercised. A lot of the battle of losing weight is just trial & error...different things work for everyone.