Category: Strategy

You know those commercials on TV where they show a picture of someone who weighed over 300 lbs and then you see them wearing some sexy clothes and they are thin? They say, “I used Product X and lost 150 lbs in one year!” Then, there’s a small bit of text at the bottom of the screen that always says something to the effect of, “This weight loss was based on a healthy diet and exercise. These results are not typical.”

Well, I have good news for you! Those results are far more typical than you’d think! For those who actually eat well and get some exercise, they will lose weight. For every person who says, “But I eat well and I exercise but I can’t seem to lose weight,” I’m certain that you would find that they are not eating right. They may THINK they’re eating right, but ultimately, they are not. Why do I say this? How can I be certain? Because I’ve helped analyze diets of some of these people and when they are honest and send me the list of foods they eat every week, I’ve found 100% of the time that they are not eating right. What they think is healthy really isn’t. You can run, run, run until the day is done but unless you’re eating good food, it’s all for nothing.

The bad news is that you can’t rely on a lot of the established “Science” in diet and nutrition. So much of it is based on studies paid for by food lobbies that it can’t be trusted. The recommendations they give are sketchy, at best. Milk and grains, even whole grains, are not nearly as good for you as these studies make them out to be. To the contrary, they are bad for us. I won’t even get into sugar again. It’s literally toxic to us and is killing us.

The results I’ve experience since going Paleo are typical if you stick with it and you are strict with it. 100% typical. But you have to persevere, you have to be honest, and you have to resist temptation. If you can’t do that, you will not have the same results I’ve had. Plain and simple.

I know some people have a slower or harder time with it. I get it. Our bodies are all different. But what I’ve found is that these people often have a meal where they say, “Well, the weight’s not coming off, so I’ll just have this hamburger and get right back to the diet.” I’m sorry, but that’s not how this works. I know it’s hard. It’s been hard for me too. But the payoff is so much better than the short-term gratification of eating a burger that I can now easily resist these temptations. You can, too.

Get it in your head that you are on a new eating plan now. You are no longer the person you once were. This new you now eats a certain diet. You wouldn’t feed a fish to a koala bear. Be the koala bear and adopt the new lifestyle and stick with it. Paleo is delicious, healthy, and filling. It’s not all salads and baked chicken breast (thank God!).

I think my body has finally adjusted back to my Paleo lifestyle. How do I know this? Well, my weight continues to plummet and my cravings have subsided and now I only feel hunger before meals (as it should be). I feel energetic, my body is lean and without bloating, and I feel more focused. Waking up is easier, as is falling asleep the night before. My skin feels better, my clothes are fitting properly, and in some cases, even getting too loose. Yes, Paleo continues to be a good thing for me.

 

 

I receive emails from folks asking me questions about how I do this or that on Paleo, and ultimately, my answer boils down to a few truths. This is what I do in a nutshell:

1. I don’t eat anything at all with grains, added sugar, soy, legumes, and most dairy.
2. I eat a portion that would fit into a cup made of both my hands (this is a Whole30 trick that works wonders).
3. I don’t snack. This one is controversial to my wife, but I will admit that my cheat for this is to drink a cup of coffee whenever I get hungry too soon.
4. I don’t cheat. I call it sabotage. I never, ever, ever allow myself to go off-plan without a good reason. What’s a good reason? Vacation, special dinner with friends for a special occasion, holidays, and birthdays. Even then, I try to limit the amount I eat to mitigate the impact to my body.
5. I exercise at least three times a week. This is not for weight loss but for cardio, strength, and stress relief. It helps those three things far more than any effect I’ve seen it have on my weight. If anything, exercising has aided plateaus.
6. I keep track of not just my weight, but my size, body fat, how I feel, how clothes feel, etc. There are so many measures of our health that I don’t allow myself to focus on one. Only when a few or more of these measures are out of whack do I change what I’m doing.

Don’t stick to the diet? You will not have the success I’ve had. Don’t eat smaller portions? You will not have the success I’ve had. Eat snacks regularly? You will not have the success I’ve had. Allow cheats more than once a month? Guess what? You will not have the success I’ve had. Will you see smaller weight loss or other improvements in your health? More than likely, yes, but you won’t see the huge results I’ve had.

I am strict, almost to a fault. It’s because I put my health first and everything else second. I lived a life without rules as it pertains to food, and it nearly cost me my life. That’s not hyperbole. Had I not undertaken the steps necessary to get healthy again, I would likely be a far worse health than I was, with loss in mobility, flexibility, and even basic function. You are in charge of your health. There are no quick and easy fixes. However, the solution is simple. It just takes discipline and perseverance.

This is something I think all of us do to an extent: when we are stressed out, we tend to eat more. This is because eating is, in and of itself, a pleasurable experience. It’s hard-wired into our heads that we enjoy eating. When we are uncomfortable from stress, a quick and easy way to feel better is to eat something. It doesn’t solve problems, but within our brains, it sure does make us feel better. The problem is for people who are under a lot of stress, this can equal a lot of eating.

I haven’t had to deal with too much stress eating like my wife Sherry has. Not because I don’t get stressed nor is it because I don’t feel stress; I most certainly do. It’s because I have used another coping mechanism for stress relief: video games. I escape into video games to solve problems. The more stress I’m feeling, the more I dive into games. Or read books. Or research things online. Either way, I use escapism to relieve stress.

The key to cutting stress eating is to identify the cause. I’m not talking about identifying the cause of the stress. It is likely out of your power to get rid of stress altogether. But once you realize that the cravings are coming from stress, you can find something else to do to get your mind off of it. Something to give you a feeling of satisfaction or comfort. I’ve found running is an excellent way to get rid of stress.

Find something that will occupy your mind and allow you to feel a sense of satisfaction when you’re done. Maybe knitting, quilting, engraving, wood working, gardening, reading, playing basketball, playing video games, biking, running, hiking, or even walking. The list is endless. But when you are feeling stressed, and then you find yourself craving some foods to comfort you, engage in one of these activities to get your mind off the stress or to help relieve it.