Paleo diet any comments? lately alot of triathletes have been advocating this diet…
i ate like this for 5 years. i was so skinny…wearing a size 4 suit with little bird arms and legs. but at the time was doing marathons and stuff…every now and then would eat half of a large pizza post long run. so, wasn’t 100% on it, but 90-95% I’d say. it will work for you, but gets old. no matter how hard i try, i can’t make myself do it these days…
granted i never was cycling while on it…only running. don’t know how it would hold up on long rides.
Somewhat like Kittycat I am not 100% on this, but pretty close. My diet is high in fruits, vegetables, non-fat or low fat dairy, nuts, seeds, whole grains, fish, and lean meats. Very few processed foods. This diet has been the best thing I’ve done in the thirty years I’ve been training. My body fat is down to 4%, I don’t get sick anymore, I recover faster, and I have more energy.
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TriDad…4% sounds unhealthfully low. How did you arrive at this number?
It’s funny, it’s basically the same thing as the South Beach Diet, but if you asked about that, you’d get flamed.
I eat the way of the Paleo (or whatever name anybody wants to give it). Lean meats/poultry/fish, nuts, friuts and vegetables, eggs. Very little processed food, and no white type starches (potatoes, rice, pasta, oreos) and no regular beer.
Lost 18 lbs. 1.5 years ago. More energy than ever, constant moods, and low body fat. Not to mention a dramatic dip in cholestoral and tryglycerides. It works.
it does work, and what i found is that as you go the hunger disipates…did for me anyway. i wasn’t really weight traning that much but got my bf to 19-20%. i didn’t eat that much fruit because it made me feel badly.
how much are you doing on the bike? I’m concerned by being out there for 3+ hours that I’ll bonk.
what do you take on long rides? how long are your longest rides?
Measured by ultrasound. May not be the most accurate, but I was a bodybuilder prior to tri and have been extremely lean for years. Most days I have fewer than 15 grams of saturated fat in my diet. I’ve signed up for the weight in water test to get a better reading.
kittycat - I rarely go over 2 - 2.5 hours on the bike as I only do up to Oly distance races. But, having said that, for workouts over 1.5 hours I have some carbs before and after. Never have a problem.
ok, so if you were into BB then this diet probably gives you much more leway. you’re used to eating strict and probably have pasta but once a year. lol. i wish i could still do it. it’s a mentality…once gone is sooooo hard to get back.
Everyone’s different and can tolerate different bf levels. If I got down to that I’d be sick all the time but good on you for reaching that level. As long as you’re healthy and all it’s all good.
Sometimes I eat 4 or 5 hostess cupcakes after a long ride. Does that fit into the diet?
how about a grilled met, white bun, and a couple of Rouge Dead Guy Ale’s?
no?
damn it.
You’re exactly right Kittycat. Bodybuilding gets you used to a very strict dietary plan and eating paleo does give me more leeway. Big mental component. Plus, it’s healthier and I feel like it’s “released” a lot of stored-up energy that I didn’t know that I had. By the way, I actually eat pasta a couple of times a year 
go check out gordo’s nutrition tips on byrn.org. the guy really has the best approach to diet and exercise. what he will tell you is that there is no short cut or easy way to nutritional excellence, and it is not about “x” or “y” diet or any other marketing gizmo - it is just about making nutrition a lifestyle choice.
the very term “diet” connotes an unsustainable restriction of “normal” eating habits, and thus almost by definition creates a vicious cycle of sticking for a week to a super-strict diet du jour (e.g., the all u can eat asparagus diet) losing half your body weight and then cracking and binging. so what I get from gordo’s approach is to not worry so much about following a diet book which promises “magic gains” from strict adherence (e.g., the “fat flush” fixation on super expensive flaxseed oil… hey it tastes like crap so it must be good for you) and just focus on feeding your body high quality fuel. fruit, veggies, and lean protein and h20 should be the core of your diet. maybe that coincides with paleoTM, but it also just coincides with common sense. Common sense doesn’t sell too many books though, so that is why the “eat good food stupid” book is not in the B&N diet section next to south beach, atkins, etc. And let yourself enjoy a good cheeseburger, fries and beer every now and then. Its not paleo, but tastes really good.
FWIW.
BB is something else. i know a woman who has been strict for over 30 years! i always wanted to do a show, but couldn’t diet past 4 weeks, let alone 12. i would get so pissed and anxious. it’s too bad because i would have enjoyed doing a show. who knows–maybe something will click in my head and I’ll be able to do it later.
anyway, I’m interested to see as an example what you eat in a day. I’ve got 10 to loose, but just can’t do the egg whites scrabled with zuchinii, and 2 protein shakes a day thing. Need more variety. so, lay it out! give us what an average day looks like for you.
lol. so true. i’ll check it out. this might sound stupid, but the biggest problem i have is not going to the grocery store enough. we eat practically every meal from home and it requires shopping 2 times a week. 1 i can handle fine, but it’s that second trip where it comes undone…it’s hard to make good choices without the right foods available. then suddenly a jelly sandwich seems like a good idea. or worse, a slice of cheese with mayo on it and call that lunch. lol–probably easy to see where i could improve to loose the 10, eh? 
OK. Today, after a cup of coffee in the morning, I did a track workout which totalled about 10K. Half-hour of abs and stretching. Breakfast: plain non-fat yogurt, strawberries, apple, banana, blueberries, almonds, cranberries, sunflower seeds. Biked to work. Mid-morning snack: Bolthouse Farms Green Goodness juice (blend of fruits & veggies). Lunch: chicken breast, raw broccoli, tomato. Afternoon snack, almond butter on fat-free whole wheat bread and an apple. Bike home. Dinner is usually up to my wife and varies a great deal, but is often either chicken or ground turkey, a vegetable or salad, and some kind of starch. No food after 7:00. No dessert. Oh, and lots of water all day long.
no food after 7? no dessert? yeah, only a former BB’er could do this. more power to you. i like it though. perhaps i could get back to doing it 90%.
ok, so I’m off to the grocery store. damnit, you’ve gone and inspired me–the both of u’s!!