Whenever making adjustments to your lifestyle, the main markers that you should consider are changes to how you look, feel and perform.
One of the great beauties of the CrossFit training program that I follow is that your results are totally quantifiable. Lift more today than yesterday and you are stronger. Complete a workout (WOD) faster today than yesterday and you are fitter.
Since going strict Paleo (and I started a couple of days early) my performance has really lifted. Yesterday I smashed what had been a longstanding personal best for a workout called Helen. Helen involves 3 rounds of 400m run, 21kettlebell swings @24kg and 12 pull ups. I finished in 7mins and 51 sec, taking 19 secs off my previous best time.
I have also noticed gains in strength and muscular endurance, despite losing about 3kg since the last time I weighed myself.
You don't have to be a crossfitter to measure your performance. Have you found doing the housework a little easier (I'm sorry even Paleo eating can not make it more enjoyable!), perhaps walking the dog isn't quite as hard as it used to be.
What changes have you noticed to your performance?
5 comments:
Hey Zane,
great blog, like others you have inspired me to get off my a*rse and fix a few things in my diet. My main issue is getting enough vegetables. Made a batch of the breakfast egg muffins you suggested, worked well. Also made the meat/cabbage/spices dish and am eating that for lunch today
Haven't got to the 'giving up coffee' stage yet!
Keep up the good work.
Quick question - Do you think 100% paleo is maintainable? I don't think it is, well certainly not for me. What are you thoughts for when the 30 days is up, do you think you will push on or strike a balance ie. 90% paleo.
the few times I have tried to go 95%-100% paleo , i seem to fall off the wagon hard, where as if I eat 75%-85% plaeo I seem to be able to maintain it consistently.
Hey Aaron,
Glad you like the blog. I am enjoying writing it and it's good to know that someone's reading it.
I think 100% Paleo is attainable, but only with a lot of hard work. You really have to way up the risk and reward. I feel that when these 30 days are finished I will loosen things up a little. However, the benefit of these 30 days is that it allows me to start with a clean slate. I can monitor how the foods or drinks that I reintroduce make me look, feel and perform. If something affects these markers too much, then I will know that that is something that I will just have to live without.
I also don't think that a big blowout once in a while is too bad a thing. My focus nowadays is simply on avoiding Gluten when I have a blowout. For me this means only drinking Gluten Free beer or wine or spirits, eating doritos or corn chips rather than breads or biscuits. Making these small efforts makes sure that even when I have a blowout I don't mess things up too much.
If all you can handle is 75-80% adherance, then that is OK!(although you really should make sure that there is no gluten in there if you can)Remember, that makes you 75-80% better off than the average joe.
was reading 'talk to me johhny' and there is a mention of giving their crossfitters whole milk, it 'continue to eat paleo' but drink whole milk, (this is if you want to gain muscle )also on cross fit football it says how they gave their athletes milk?? How does this fit with no dairy?? I am confused
Grasshopper, The crossfit football nutrition prescription is paleo + dairy. This is because milk is a potent stimulator of growth. If you have ever seen the size of some of the American football players you will understand the importance of gaining size.
They recommend whole milk. This is different to full fat milk. Whole milk is milk from grass fed cows that is as close to it's raw state as can legally be. Just as what we eat affects us, what cows eat affect them. Cows fed a grain based diet have different fatty acid profiles to cows that eat grass (their traditional, anthropological food source). The grains also change the profile of the milk that they produce.
CrossFit football's nutrition prrescription is a perfect example of taking a paleo diet and adjusting it to meet your specific needs.
Breakfast
3 egg muffins
bowl of berries
Snack
Tuna and Oil
Too many cashews
Lunch
leftover chicken curry
Snack
Sardines and Olive oil (small)
Carrot
Dinner
Chicken
Moroccan spice
coleslaw mix
Mango
Drinks
2X Green Tea
1x Earl Gray
Water
Mineral water with lime
Supplements
2x L Glutamine
Fish oil
1x Maca
200/400mg magnesium
2000iu vit d
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