I have never been “on a diet” in my life but my wife and I decided to try out a Paleo-like approach — basically dropping sugar, processed foods and all grains (bread, rice, pasta, cereal, flour, any wheat product). I don’t know what the key aspect is here but after three weeks we both feel better, dropped a few pounds and have way more energy. I think it is probably the sugar, but we didn’t eat much of that anyway. Maybe the grains? I always loved bread and pasta, but I don’t really miss it right now. Could be that we are eliminating gluten too. I have been reading a lot of testimonials on the web and it seems that this way of eating has made a huge difference for many people — including lowered blood pressure, improved cholesterol and triglyceride levels, amazing weight loss stories and much more. I think this is a real thing because I feel great. Regular exercise is key to this as well. A few resources I have been looking at: robbwolf.com Beginner’s Guide to the Paleo Diet Loren Cordain - The Paleo Diet
I'd probably feel better and sleep better if I exercised, but between work and school, I'm too lazy to start at the moment.
A few observations after nearly 3 months on this. - I have lost about 10 pounds, from 175 to 165. I’m 5-11. - Been eating more bacon (including the fatty part) and other meats, and still the weight just dropped off. Research is showing that saturated fats are good for you, and do not make you fat or cause heart disease. Carbs and sugar are the culprit. My experience seems to bear this out, at least on the weight issue. - We do dairy, which some say is excluded from strict Paleo but we get raw milk and cheese from Stryk Farms in Schulenberg. They come to Katy High School every other Saturday morning and people line up in the parking lot to buy from them. The lines are getting longer every week. Their milk and cheese are first rate. They also sell bacon and beef when they have it, both of which are excellent. - We are doing Intermittent Fasting, which just means you do all your eating within an 8-hour window, say between noon and 8pm. That leaves you “fasting” for 16 hours a day, which puts the body into a fat-burning mode (rather than burning carbs, which I hardly eat any at all now). - Around noon or so I eat my first meal, usually some meat and veggies, or sometimes a salad with some chicken, mixing in fruit here and there. Also eating fish, mostly salmon and Tilapia which we like. Very little carbs if any, and no sugar, processed foods or grains. I feel full and satisfied for hours, with no energy drop or afternoon slump at all. I never get hungry between meals, and cravings for junk food have disappeared. - My wife and I have both noticed that we also feel more clear-headed and alert since eating this way. I think getting rid of sugars has been huge. (See Dr Robert Lustig’s YouTube presentation Sugar: The Bitter Truth.)
Exactly Sangre. I still have some red wine or a Corona in the evening and it hasn’t seemed to affect the benefits of the diet. What we seem to be learning is that the food pyramid is very wrong. There is the popular notion that “a calorie is a calorie” but Dr Lustig (in the YouTube link) challenges that to say that “no, it’s what your body does with the calories” you take in — they are not all alike in their effect on metabolism. There is even some research strongly suggesting that cancer may be a metabolic, rather than genetic, disease. And that dietary changes can dramatically alter our susceptibility to many cancers. A paleo-like (or ketogenic) diet is being shown to play an important role here. The ketogenic diet has already shown great results in treating epilepsy. I would encourage people to give this a serious look, especially if they are trying to lose weight and/or just feel more energetic throughout the day. I can’t overemphasize how much better I feel overall since dropping the carbs, grains and sugar.
Sangre, I have seen IF mentioned on some of the blogs and articles related to paleo and ketogenic diets, so I’m really just experimenting with it — but I can tell you that it just kind of happens naturally now. I eat a good meal around noon or so, and then I’m barely hungry again at dinner time. So I eat a little dinner and I’m done for the day. It all happens roughly in an 8-hour timeframe, so I’m not really trying to do it because the current eating plan keeps me satisfied. It may even be a controversial thing health-wise, I don’t know, but there seems to be some buzz around it now, for whatever that’s worth. Here’s one of the articles that got me to thinking about it, I can’t recall what some of the other sources are that I have seen lately. nerdfitness.com/blog/2013/08/06/a-beginners-guide-to-intermittent-fasting
I'm on a no-starch diet (or I was until I upped by running mileage) and dropped weight quickly. I've settled around 155 (5'10), it crazy - I haven't been this thin since 20+ years ago. no starch is basically = paleo diet. the no starch diet is in response to an arthritic condition, but again you can basically assume I am on the paleo. I do consume diary (cheese) and stick to only very ripe fruit (bananas need to be mushy).
envgeo, congrats on the weight loss. Hopefully you are also feeling great with plenty of energy. If you’d like to tweak things to improve energy and metabolism, you might consider dropping all grains and sugar for a month. I think for my wife and I this played a huge part. I just finished reading Grain Brain by Dr David Perlmutter and it lays out a lot of the research related to the low carb/high fat approach. Another thing we have incorporated is coconut oil — we put a teaspoon full in our hot tea every morning. There is some very interesting research now showing its benefits in treating neurodegenerative disorders, including epilepsy and Alzheimer’s. Coconut oil is very high in healthy saturated fats (MCTs or medium chain triglycerides) which is shown to be excellent brain fuel. Continued good health to you!
I have been on Intermittent Fasting and lost a lot of weight ( about 20 lbs) . If you google it you will find out a lot about the theory. I do most of my eating between 11:00am and 7 pm.
Olhorn, That's a great result. Aside from the IF have you changed what you're eating, or just the schedule?
Sunday paleo breakfast. Fried eggs, bacon, sausage, spinach and garlic (sautéed in bacon grease) and sliced avocado.
My wife’s paleo donuts. Made with coconut flour, eggs, baking powder, avocado, cocoa powder and a little maple syrup. No carbs, no white flour/gluten, very little sugar. Fantastic.
I'm also cutting out sugar and reducing starches to take off some weight. It has worked very well for me in the past and is already showing results this time. To keep the protein part of the diet interesting, I've been curing and aging different cuts of beef and pork. I highly recommend this recipe for home cured, smoked bacon. It is extremely easy, and I've never bought bacon this good in a store. Scale it up or down as needed. 10.5 lbs pork belly (Berkshire pork from Central Market is incredible). If necessary, have the butcher cut it into squares about 7 to 10 inches. 4.5 TBS Kosher Salt 4.5 Tsp Prague Powder #1, AKA Instacure #1. AKA Pink Salt(Cabela's, Bass Pro, Central Market) NOT "Himalayan Pink Salt" or Instacure #2 2 TBS freshly ground black pepper 6 OZ Dark Brown Sugar. Light is OK. 15 OZ real maple syrup. Grade B preferred. Grade A is fine. Mix the cure well. Put each piece of belly in a ziplock, divide the cure evenly and rub into the meat to cover all surfaces. Put it in the meat compartment in the fridge, flip it over daily and rub again to coat. After ten days, remove the meat and rinse it thoroughly under the tap, rubbing vigorously to remove all the cure. It has done its job, and we want it gone. The meat should feel firm from the cure. Recoat with fresh ground pepper if desired. Fire up the smoker to brisket/rib temp, about 230 degrees. Wrap 220 grams of Apple chips and 220 grams Cherry chips in foil, poking holes in the top only.Place directly on the coals. Smoke the belly to 150 degrees internal temp, taking several readings to make sure. Slice with a sharp knife, or firm up in the freezer and use an electric slicer for even results. I like it somewhat thick. Fry it in a skillet at medium temp or lower, taking care not to scorch the edges too much. No nukes. You may never buy bacon again.
I just realized I'm the only poster on this board so far this year. Oh, well, Hornfans ain't what it used to be.
Is it 2014 already? Nice bacon recipe, Jim Bob. I will ask the Mrs if she can duplicate your results, it sounds terrific. We are still on the Paleo plan and feeling great, eating generous amounts of bacon, roast, chicken, fish, etc. A little dark chocolate satisfies the occasional sweet tooth while also keeping the sugar intake low.
I've suffered from Irritable Bowel Syndrome for 43 years. I gave up caffeine in 1988 and had some relief, but over the years, my symptoms have increased to the point that I knew I had to see a doctor. The gastroenterologist put me on the low-FODMAP diet. What are FODMAPS, you ask? They are Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides, and Polyols. Put another way, I cannot eat short-chain carbohydrates. Eating them won't send me to the hospital or the morgue, but they may make me wish I were there. These cabs don't absorb in my small intestine; they pass on to the bowel, where they ferment and are fed-upon by bacteria and cause all kinds of unpleasantness. I had to completely change my approach to food. I am the person that, when I fell down, I would bleed salsa. I can still have salsa, but I have to make my own because I can't have onion or garlic. Here's a sample of what I cannot have anymore: - Wheat (but not because of gluten; it's the carbs) - Dairy (except butter and hard cheese -- these are OK) - High fructose corn syrup/regular corn syrup - Honey - Any sweetener than ends in -ol - Peas and beans of any kind - Apples, pears, watermelon, blackberry, boysenberry, cherry, peach, plum, apricot,among others - Cucumber, pickles, green bell pepper, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage,Brussels sprouts, kale, onion, leek, among other vegetables Garlic, fennel, soy sauce if it contains wheat, which most do - Cashews, pistachios - Meats that are cooked with flour, milk, onion, garlic Here's what I can have: - Wheat-free breads, pastas, cookies and crackers, as long as they don't contain inulin and othr FODMAPs. Udi's makes a few things I can have, like loaf bread and a pretty decent frozen pizza crust, but many of the gluten-free products contain FODMAPs. I call these "ticking time bombs". - Meat, including BACON!! - Tomatoes, lettuce, celery, carrot, chives (the green part of the green onion is OK, but NOT the white part) - Olives - Banana, cantaloupe, honeydew, all citrus, strawberry, raspberry, cranberry, blueberry, grapes - Cane sugar, beet sugar, golden syrup, maple syrup (which I HATE), molasses, treacle, aspartame - Basil, chili, coriander, ginger, marjoram, parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, mint (except that mint is bad for people with GERD, which I have) - Coconut amino (very similar to soy sauce) - Cocoa, but not milk chocolate - Arrowroot, millet, psyllium, quinoa, sorghum, tapioca (but not the tapioca pudding cups made by Jello or other vendors) - Peanuts, pecans, walmuts, almonds, brazil nuts, In short, I have to read every label. Ordering in restaurants is a nightmare, and there are some restaurants where there is little to nothing on the menu I can eat -- think Italian. I started this plan November 6 and have stuck to it well except for on my birthday. I've lost 34 pounds, and I could have lost more except that I just don't feel like exercising. I feel much better, and the best part is that I no longer feel like a slave to the nearest restroom. it's challenging and difficult, and I've had to learn to cook, but this diet works for me. If any of you know someone who suffers from IBS, tell them to ask their doctor about low-FODMAP.
Texanne, Glad to hear you are doing better. My wife had some gastro issues before we started eating this way last July, and also some mild but constant joint pain. I don’t know if it was IBS exactly, but when we dropped carbs, sugar and all grains she immediately felt better with none of the symptoms, and continues to be free of it. My daughter’s migraines disappeared completely, which we think was due to wheat. One thing we studied a bit last summer is Leaky Gut Syndrome, which if I recall correctly is often treated and cleared up with probiotics to replenish the beneficial bacteria. We take a probiotic every morning with our other supplements, so that may be something to consider too. I have been reading Wheat Belly by Dr William Davis and it is stunning how much trouble our “healthy whole grains” are causing for many people. This is due in part to the hybrid form of wheat that we eat now, which was not the case just a few decades ago. My wife and I are done with wheat-based products, and we don’t miss them at all. I haven’t had bread or pasta (which I used to love) in almost 8 months. Wheat also raises blood glucose considerably, provoking an insulin response and contributing to insulin resistance—which often leads directly to Type 2 diabetes. Just from our personal experience and many testimonials I have read in some of the online forums, dropping the carbs and sugar (and wheat for many) is restoring people to their ideal weight, increasing energy, improving mood, and clearing up chronic diseases that were previously treated (“managed”) with drugs.
Texanne, I'm a long term IBS sufferer, too. I've never heard about FODMAPS. Can you recommend any reading materials?
