Archive for the ‘Nutrition’ Category
02/07/10 by Derek | Blog, Nutrition | 2 Comments »
4 weeks of eating real food…yup, no fancy packaged “foodlike products” designed to fool our senses of taste and smell; just REAL FOOD. So how do you feel? How are your energy levels? Mood? Performance at work and the gym? How do you look? Was it worth it?
Most of you are probably answering with a resounding, “YES!” Look how far you’ve all come in 30 short days. That is just a snapshot in the big picture. I saw most of you on a daily basis, and I could see the change happen right before my eyes. The same people who have plateaued and failed to thrive over the last couple of months, coming in looking leaner and crushing PR’s on a daily basis. From just 30 days! Think of what could be accomplished in 6 months… or a year… or 5 years.
Now what?
CrossFit is a lifestyle change. This isn’t some fad workout program you follow until you get bored in 6 months. We want it to be part of your new, healthy lifestyle. The Paleo challenge wasn’t designed so you could lose 10 pounds fast, just to go back to your old ways. We did it to get your butt in gear and show you it could be done. Live it. You have the tools now.
We don’t expect you to be perfect 100 percent of the time. Trying to will just set you up for failure, not to mention drive you crazy. Birthday? Have your cake. Friends visiting? Take them out for dollar beer night. Superbowl? Get you some hotwings (too late)! As long as your fridge and cupboards are stocked with whole foods, you have the flexibility to do these things guilt free when they come up.
Read this post from the Fitness Spotlight on how to handle “cheat meals” and stay on track.
01/20/10 by Derek | Blog, Nutrition | 10 Comments »
The New Food Pyramid
So we are about three weeks into this whole paleo challenge, and I’ve noticed a progression in the gym:
Week 1: “I can’t eat bread and sugar!? What am I supposed to eat!?”
Week 2: “I’ve dropped 6 pounds already! This is awesome!”
Week 3: “I tried this new paleo recipe -insert recipe here- it was delicious!”
Hopefully week 4 will bring some of you a new outlook on your food.
Some of the recipes people have been telling me about sound great (samples for the trainers are always appreciated). Darcy has a good one for Paleo Candy Bars; we are in negotiations with her right now to trade them for her membership. A few of you have been raving about the Roast Sticky Chicken found in our recipe section (try out some of the links found there to websites for more recipes). A couple of you asked about the Apple and Pork Roast I was bragging about (I held the sugar and added sweet potatoes)… yea, I love my crockpot. Here are some yummy breakfast options Kristin H. sent me.
So, you can see that whole, “What am I supposed to eat!?” question is easily answered. The possibilities are endless. I told someone today that I eat more variety and better tasting food now then before I started eating paleo. It’s about eating real, fresh food; not foodlike products made in a factory, packaged with a health claim on it.
So try some new recipes and let me know how they go!
05/02/09 by Derek | Blog, Nutrition | 8 Comments »
Hopefully, everyone is still eating like they should with me not there to pour Tabasco on your english muffins. Here is an email I got from my Dad (check out his blog) today about his progress:
“I remembered this morning that it’s been 90 days since I started Paleo. I’ve lost 20 lbs. It’s been pretty enlightening for me, and so easy. If only people would realize that high-carb, calorie laden foods don’t satisfy you, and before you know it you’ve consumed more calories than you need, and a short time later you’re hungry. I see it all the time. It’s so easy to understand, nothing magic or hard to prepare.”
He also told me about a lady at my Mom’s work dying of a heart attack at 50. Kind of reminds us that this stuff is for our overall health and longevity, not just looking good at the beach!
I’ve added a few blogs to our links list. Randy’s will be there so you can check up on him, as well as Kristin’s and Alex’s blog. Check’em out!
04/29/09 by Jonathan | Blog, Nutrition | No Comments »
A few weeks ago we did a Paleo challenge, to give you guys an idea how the food you eat effects your mood/energy etc. The next step is to learn how judge how much food you need. There are a few different ways to go about this (zone, guessing, etc), but by far the most instructive method is to nerd out and count calories for a week or so. Beginning Monday, I will hand out some sheets for you guys to use for a few days, and give a short clinic on how to go about counting your calories. There is no doubt that doing this will take time, and it is a bit of a pain in the ass. But it is way better than spending 4 hours a week in the gym and wasting it on overeating.
Remember: if you want to lose weight, YOU MUST BURN MORE CALORIES THAN YOU EAT! Unless you are eating a ton of veggies, most food (especially fast food) is energy dense, so it is easy to overeat. Spending a week learning how to judge portions will serve you well for the rest of your life (no pun intended).
04/23/09 by Jonathan | Blog, Nutrition | No Comments »
Here is a little nugget on sleep: Turns out if you don’t hit at least 6 hours a night, you significantly increase your chances (almost 5x!) of developing impaired fasting glucose, a “strong predictor of who will develop type 2 diabetes.” Prior finding have shown that this finding is consistent with prior study results, which suggested that chronic short sleep was linked with an “…increased risk for other adverse health effects including obesity, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and death.” This may seem pretty basic, everyone knows that sleep is good for you; now you know what can happen if you don’t make it a priority.
The good news? There is no statistical significance between those that get 6 hours and those that get 8+, so hit the sack at 11:30 and you will be ready to get some at 6 am!
Family Practice News: Sleep and Diabetes
04/21/09 by Jonathan | Blog, Nutrition | No Comments »
Yet another article for your reading pleasure pimped from American Family Physician: Commercial Diets and Cardiovascular Disease
No specific mention of paleo in here, but for our purposes it is closest to the mediterranean diet. Post thoughts to comments!
04/17/09 by Jonathan | Blog, News, Nutrition | 4 Comments »
Here is an article Brittany found in one of her medical journals: AmFam Green Tea Article. A bit dry and drawn out; but doctors are not known for their skills with prose…
Synopsis: Green tea is definitely not bad for you, and it may have some pretty significant benifits: as an anti-cancer drug (due to the antioxidants), it may give cardiovascular benefits, as well as help lower cholesterol and act as an appetite suppressant (good for weight loss), and it may even help with genital warts (you know who you are). So, read the article, there will be a quiz on monday.
04/10/09 by Jonathan | Advice, Blog, Nutrition | 1 Comment »
What do you eat for breakfast? Here was mine this morning: 3 eggs, some avocado, cheddar cheese, strawberries, and coffee. You have heard this before, and it is true: breakfast is the most important meal of the day- take the time to do it right!
tasty.
04/07/09 by Derek | Blog, Nutrition | No Comments »
Here’s a recipe Dawna sent me. She is taking the Paleo thing seriously, so keep an eye on her to make some great gains!
Ingredients:
4 cloves garlic
1/2 onion, cut into chunks
2 jalapeno peppers, halved and seeded
1 pound ground turkey
4 oz bleu cheese
2 whole eggs
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons wheat free Tamari (or wheat free soy sauce)
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 tsp ground black pepper
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.
- Pulse garlic cloves in a food processor until minced. Add onion and jalapeno, and pulse until minced again. Scrape the onion mixture into a large bowl along with the turkey, blue cheese, eggs, and olive oil. Season with tamari, dried parsley, Italian seasoning, and pepper. Mix well.
- Roll the mixture into 2 inch balls, and place onto prepared baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, about 25 minutes. These can also be prepared in a muffin pan for mini meatloaves or in a loaf pan for a full sized meatloaf. (Be sure to place on a baking sheet or tin foil to avoid a mess)
04/06/09 by Derek | Blog, Nutrition | 5 Comments »
I’ve had a few questions about going Paleo recently. Where does dairy fall in the Paleo Diet? Strict Paleo omits dairy altogether. Think about it for a second…what animal drinks milk from another animal? What animal drinks ANY milk as an adult? Kinda’ against the laws of nature if you ask me. There is also an insulin response from milk, and that is what we’re trying to minimize here. Also, many people are lactose intolerant, and MANY more are intolerant to a lesser degree and don’t even know it. You may be able to digest milk fine, but the symptoms can vary from person to person…everything from psoriasis and eczema to acne and arthritis. People live with these things all their lives and never think milk might be the causative factor.
So, do I drink milk? Yes I do, because it’s delicious and I love it! I went sans dairy for a while and didn’t notice any difference in my body composition, performance, and any other measures. But that’s just me. Will dairy derail your Paleo progress? I would say more than likely not. The grains and sugars are the real enemies here. But remember, if your going to drink milk, go for the whole kind. Anything else is more processed, and taking the fat out intensifies that insulin response.
Another complaint I get is Paleo is so hard! Well, that is a lame excuse. It is easy and affordable. I eat A LOT and am a poor Mo Fo. Which means I shop exclusively at Costco. Here are a few staples of my diet:
Trident Salmon Patties: (Wild Caught). At $13 for a pack of 12, this is poor mans Salmon. I cook 2 of these bad boys up, throw on a slice of cheese, and go to town! No buns!
Hunk-O-Turkey: Costco also sells a large chunk of deli style turkey meat. This is the stuff you see behind the counter at the grocery store before they slice it. They run about $19 for one (not sure how much they weigh, but they are big) and it lasts a long time. I usually cut it in half and throw one in the freezer so it doesn’t go bad. I slice it up and it goes on my 2 minute salad.
They also have a big tub of organic spring mix salad for $4. This is the same price you pay for a small tub anywhere else. See the salad above.
And one of my favorites…2 whole young chickens, for $10. See the roast sticky chicken recipe (scroll down), it’s delicious. Just one chicken serves 4 or 5 people.
There is a lot more, but this should keep you busy for the week. Do you have any Paleo recipes you want to share? Post ‘em to comments or email them to me!
While you’re cruisin’ the net, be sure to check out Alex’s blog. She has jumped on the Paleo bandwagon, and her and Jarod tell me they love it and have never felt better. I have definitely noticed Jarod’s performance improve in the gym as well.
Questions? Post to comments or ask me directly. Be sure to check the nutrition tab up top for more recipes/guidance.
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