EAT MEAT AND VEGETABLES… NUTS AND SEEDS… SOME FRUIT… LITTLE STARCH… NO SUGAR.

You can’t out-train a bad diet.  It’s unfortunate but true.  If we are all trying to be as healthy as possible, we have to accept the fact that diet is 80% of health.  Clearly whatever Americans have been doing recently hasn’t worked.  Dietary guidelines are hard to follow.  South Beach Diets, Cantaloupe Diets, ______ Diets.  We try and keep it as simple as possible.  We strongly believe in Paleolithic Nutrition spelled out in Greg Glassman’s World-Class Fitness in 100 Words. No weighing, or measuring.  No calorie counting.  Just eat as much high quality food as will support exercise and not body fat (which if you’re doing CrossFit storing calories will not be a concern).  It’s really all encapsulated in the World-Class Fitness in 100 Words:

EAT MEAT AND VEGETABLES…

Pretty simple.  Eat as much meat and vegetables as you want.  The higher quality the better.   We strongly suggest free range, grass fed beef, chicken, pork, lamb, bison, you name it.  If you’re a vegetarian, you’re probably unhealthy.  Seriously,  you should read this book if you disagree.  Protein is the one nutrient your body can’t create from other nutrients.  Animal protein is absolutely vital to health.

Your grandmother was right.  Eat your veggies.  Don’t like vegetables because they don’t taste good?  That’s probably because you’re buying them from your crappy local grocery store.  Those vegetables were grown in California 2 weeks ago, shipped here with a bunch of other vegetables that were rotting, then thrown on a shelf in UV light and picked and proded by other people.  No kidding they don’t  taste good!!   You need to buy the freshest produce possible.  We strongly advise setting yourself up with a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA).  You get all your veggies delivered to you and they are INCREDIBLE.  Try some fresh vegetables and then tell me you don’t like vegetables.

NUTS AND SEEDS…

Paleolithic nutrition is a high fat diet.  Yeah we said it: IT’S HIGH FAT.  Gasp!  We love fat and the best source of it is nuts and seeds.  Almonds, pistachios, brazilian nuts, walnuts, pecans, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, squash seeds.  All of them are fantastic for you, ultra high in great fats and absolutely delicious.  Word of warning though: peanuts don’t count.  They aren’t nuts, they are legumes (or beans).

SOME FRUIT…

Ahh yes, “some fruit” the most controversial of the dietary prescriptions.  ”What does some mean?”  ”I thought fruit was really good for you!”   Some fruit is exactly what it sounds like: some.  Not a lot, not none, just some.  Are you eating fruit with every meal?  Then you should probably cut back a little bit.  You don’t have to cut it all out, just cut it down to “some.”  Be your own judge.  Try and stick to berries too, they are rich in anti-oxidants and are fairly low glycemic.  As an addendum, DON’T DRINK FRUIT JUICE.  Fruit juice is bad for you.  Yeah, thats right I said it.  It’s BAD FOR YOU.  It’s ultra high glycemic and the carbohydrates will immediately be stored as body fat.

We know you thought fruits were good for you and they are… in the right doses.  The problem with fruits is that they have a lot of carbohydrates.  Carbohydrates trigger an insulin responses which will trigger your body to store body fat.  In order to avoid a thorough (and boring) discussion of biochemisty I will just say read Good Calories, Bad Calories by Gary Taubes.

LITTLE STARCH…

Starches are usually found in potatoes and root vegetables.  They aren’t bad for you per se but again, you have to watch their carbohydrates.  There are a lot of carbohydrates in starches. They absorb very quickly into your body which is great if you really need some carbohydrates to replenish muscle glycogen stores from a hard workout; it isn’t good if you’re sitting around watching TV and your body doesn’t need that quick absorption.  That’s why we strongly suggest eating starches as a Post Workout Meal.  They will help your body recover fast and after working out you can get away with quick absorbing carbs because your body experiences heightened insulin sensitivity.

NO SUGAR.

Yeah pretty simple.  Don’t eat sugar.  It’s THE WORST thing for you.  Don’t eat it.  Stop.  Now.

That’s pretty much it.  You will feel better than you ever have in your entire life if you dedicate yourself to eating this way.  You know that feeling you get when you sometimes drink 6 cups of coffee instead of your usual 1 and you are AMPED and feel like you can do anything because you have so much energy?  Yeah that’s how you feel all the time when you eat Paleo. Give it a try if you don’t believe me.  You won’t be disappointed.

A note on “cheating”:

We believe cheat meals are 100% necessary.  Do we stick to this diet flawlessly?  Absolutely not.  I love drinking some “adult beverages” on the weekends.  I LOVE ice cream.  The key is just to do it in the right way.  Don’t cheat with crappy meals like McDonalds.  Enjoy your cheats and cheat the right way!!!

Here are some incredible resources if you’re looking for more information:
www.robbwolf.com
www.paleonu.com
www.everydaypaleo.com
www.feastingonfitness.com
www.fathead-movie.com
www.high-fat-nutrition.com

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