Paleo Marine

You can’t do sit-ups and make the fat on your stomach go away while the fat on the rest of your body remains. Losing weight and reducing your body fat percentage works the same as deflating a balloon. The fat goes away from your body as a whole, not from certain areas.

I thought about how this myth got started, and I can only imagine that it began with people who work out exercising arms, chest, or legs. When you exercise those parts of the body, the muscles get bigger. This makes any fat on them appear to go away, when in reality, the muscles underneath are creating more volume which in turn creates more surface area which spreads the fatty layer out more, making it appear thinner. So, without really understanding what’s going on under the skin, an easy observation to make would be that fat goes away when you exercise a certain area.

But it doesn’t work that way.

I spoke to a co-worker who told me she was doing sit-ups to get rid of tummy fat. I told her what I said above, and she seemed saddened by it. I told her the good news is that she doesn’t have to do a bunch of sit-ups (which are really bad for your lower back anyway), and that instead, all she has to do is eat right. Of course, that wasn’t good news to her, because she says she doesn’t like vegetables.

You can lead a horse to water…

You lose weight in the kitchen and get fit in the gym or on the track. Not the other way around.

Losing weight. When you first start to lose weight, you lose pretty quickly. The first 10-20 lbs, as long as you’re doing the right things, comes off easily enough. Then, however, things change and it gets more difficult to drop those pounds. I’ve found that when I track my weight (which I have been doing since I started in September 2015), my weight drops like steps on stairs rather than in a nice, linear fashion (like a slide).

I held steady at 179-180 lbs for the past two weeks. Then, in one day, I weigh 176 lbs. How did that happen? I have no idea. I’ve read theories as to why that is: fat cells get flushed after 30-45 (I’ve also read it’s up to 90) days of non-use. So, if you can keep from allowing those fat cells to store fat, the body will decide that they are excess and let them die. Is this actually what happens? Maybe. Maybe not. Did they over simplify it for us non-medical people? Perhaps. Either way, the fact remains that in my experience, my weight has dropped in steps, and I don’t lose weight little by little, day after day.

It’s important to make note of these trends when you are trying to keep yourself motivated and having to stick with a diet when faced with temptation and options that are not healthy for you. When you know what to expect, and you know that there will be many days when your weight doesn’t actually change, you know that you have to just keep doing the right thing, eat right, and wait for it. The drop will come. It’s a matter of when, not if.

You are not alone. It’s aggravating, and sometimes no matter how perfect you are doing everything, results don’t show up immediately. You have to wait. You have to trust the process, be patient, and just keep doing the work. Besides, when the drope does come, you will feel so much more accomplished because you waited it out. You stuck with it, and you persevered. Nothing easily gained has value.

OK. I know a lot of people are desperate to lose weight and to get healthy and they are always on the lookout for some shortcut or easy way to drop some weight and to lose some fat. There are as many products out there designed to steal your money help you lose weight and fat as there are colors in the world. There’s one huge problem with these products: the vast, overwhelming majority are nothing but lies.

Just this morning, I saw an ad on Facebook for a fat flush. Allegedly, if you drink this concoction, it causes fat in your body to somehow be flushed from your body. If only stuff like this actually worked!

Products like this ignore science, and prey on those who are desperate to make progress in losing weight. These people are the ones who have been lied to by educators, by friends, family, the medical profession, nutritionists, and the government. These people have tried so many other methods that have all failed that they’ve lost nearly all hope of losing weight in a healthy or safe manner. If only more people realized that sugar really is the root of obesity and so many health problems, and not fat.

Is there such a thing as a fat flush? No. There is not. I wish it were illegal to advertise fraudulent products like this designed to literally steal money from people, but somehow, it’s not. All they have to do is say that their results have not been confirmed in a lab or study and somehow that makes it legal. Let’s not point out the fact that the print that says so is often very small and visible for only a few seconds. But I digress.

Don’t fall for the products. Lose weight and get healthy the right way: through diet (and exercise, if you also want to get fit). I have laid out the basics, and the Internet is full of sites that can help you do it the right way. Remember: if something seems to good to be true, it usually is. Fat burners, fat flushers, and weight pills/powders/products are all nothing more than elaborate schemes to empty your wallet and to fill someone else’s.

I have no idea how it happened, but this is something I used to experience back when I  first embarked upon my journey to better health, and it’s something I never quite got used to: plateaus and jumps. This morning, I realized a jump of three pounds lost.

Wow.

What did I do different than the past few weeks? Well, I ate food my wife made, I ate proper portions, and I didn’t drink any alcohol. I didn’t run after work as I had intended due to impending bad weather (which, incidentally, never came but threatened menacingly for hours after I got home), and I’ll be unable to run tonight due to a dinner engagement with my wife, but I plan on getting back to running for the first time in nearly two weeks. I hurt a nerve in my lower back stretching while I was on annual training, and it’s taken a week for it to stop hurting. I should be okay to get back to running. I can’t believe how much I miss it. Not the work or the running itself, but how I feel afterward.

So… don’t despair. Keep doing the work, keep eating right, and stick to the plan, and eventually, your body will get the hint and drop the pounds. At least, that’s how my body works.

Motivation is like the tide; it ebbs and flows. Sometimes, I find it hard to get going on a run, while other times, I look forward to it all day. The same holds true for eating right. There are days when I feel like I can conquer my appetite or any cravings that come my way, and there are other days where I feel like I will succumb any moment. How do I keep riding the Motivation Express?

I do lots of things.

First of all, I try to do lots of things (see what I did there?). Keeping my mind occupied helps me get past cravings and false appetite. As long as I’m doing something, I find that eventually, the craving will pass.

Second, I get out and do some exercise. Even when I don’t feel like exercising and I’m looking for just about any excuse to not run, I run. Exercise has the double effect of being good for me (cardio is good for my heart, and running keeps my run times fast for the National Guard) and when I run, any cravings or appetite I had fades for at least an hour or more.

Third, I tell myself that it’s not an option. I MUST eat well, or I MUST exercise. There’s more at stake than the short-term instant gratification. More often than not, if I do succumb to a craving or false appetite, I end up regretting it almost immediately. I remind myself how bad it feels afterward, and usually, that’s enough to keep me on the straight and narrow.

Motivation wanes every now and then. I liken it to a pendulum that sways back and forth. It’s normal to lose motivation every now and then. Don’t beat yourself up about it. Just learn how to get past it, how to push yourself beyond a lack of motivation, and how to keep going toward your goal. Sure, it’s not easy (or everyone would be healthier/lighter/fitter/etc), but with some mind hacks, you can do this.

I had intended (or rather, hoped) to lose about 5 lbs on this past annual training (AT), but it was not to be. I ended up having alcohol on some of the evenings, and ate out for lunch far more often than I otherwise do or normally can during AT due to our being at our home station, but I have to be happy with the fact that there was no weight gained, either. I stayed pretty much flat at the weight I went to AT at.

How do I feel about this? I’m okay with it. Sure, it would have been nice to drop a few pounds, but ultimately, I didn’t gain any, and I had a really good time. I ate good meals, drank good drinks, and had memorable conversations and experiences. I wouldn’t trade that for anything.

Now that AT is done, I’m back to eating right and my normal routine. I still have 15 lbs to lose to get back to my final goal, but I have time to get there. I know that I will; it just takes some patience. And I have a lot of that.

This is a very personal subject. The reason for that is because we all find motivation in different places and for different reasons. I can’t tell you how to be motivated any more than I can you what your favorite color should be. What I can do, however, is tell you what motivates me and how I found that motivation.

When I was overweight and unhealthy, there was no single moment that caused me to change my eating habits. There was no single incident that made me decide I needed to get healthy and lose weight. There was a straw that broke the camel’s back moment, but that wasn’t the only reason. It was something simmering inside me for a long time.

I hated how I looked. Whenever I’d see myself in the mirror, I was disgusted by what I saw. I hated that I used to be thin and fit, and what I saw looking back at me was an overweight, unfit man who had given up on being healthy. It bothered me, and I despaired over it.

I hated how I felt. I was always tired, out of breath, and sweating. No matter how cool it was, I was always sweating. I couldn’t climb a staircase without getting winded. When my wife and I were on vacation or day trips, I would have to take breaks often. My size kept me from being able to partake in certain activities that we otherwise might have enjoyed.

I hated how I made others feel. I could see the look of despair on people’s faces when I boarded a plane and people would be hoping I wasn’t sitting next to them. I would notice people looking at me with disgust when eating in restaurants as I stuffed my face with unbelievable amounts of food. I would see people stare at me as I pushed a cart at the grocery store with all the 2 liter bottles of Coke and bags of Dove chocolates.

I hated being told by every doctor and health professional I ever made contact with that my lifestyle was unhealthy and that I was in poor health. I needed to lose weight, and I was reminded of this every time I went in for anything at all.

Most of all, I hated that I had given up on myself, on health, on fitness, and ultimately, on living a long life. I began realizing that I might not ever get to meet grandchildren; to spoil them, hug them, and love them. Worse yet, they would be denied having a grandfather.

One morning, I got up, and I couldn’t tie my shoes without holding my breath because my gut was so large. Right then and there, I realized something had to change. Fortunately, my cousin had discussed Whole30 and Paleo with me, and my friend Matt had also discussed eliminating sugar from my diet. The rest, as they say, is history.

What motivated me first and foremost was wanting to lose weight for my wife and for my kids. I felt that life was ending for me soon, and it scared me. I didn’t want to leave my wife and kids at a young age. I wanted to be around for them, for whatever they needed me for. I wanted to become fit so that I could start having adventures with my wife. She always wanted to be able to share experiences with me; I was denying her that. A simple thing like taking dance lessons was out of the question for me.

I was further motivated when I lost enough weight to begin exercising. I was able to finally run, and lately, I’ve taken up mountain bicycling. I enjoy both greatly. Then, there’s my military service in the National Guard. It was always something I felt was unfinished: my military service. I wanted to complete my 20 years, and the prospect of being able to get back into the military via the National Guard was a motivator to me as well.

Today, I am much healthier, lighter, fitter, and in the National Guard. With some luck, I will be around a lot longer for my wife, kids, and friends. What motivated me to get to where I am today may not resonate with you, but hopefully it encourages you to find your own motivation. When you do, hang on to it, treasure it, and honor yourself by feeding off of it to reach your goals. You are the only person who can do that for you.

If I had the ability to make you listen to just one thing I say, and to follow through with it, I would say it is this: CUT GRAINS. In every form, grains are not our friends.

Sure, drinks/foods with added sugar are bad, but many of those tend to be grain-based. Most meat (with the exception of bacon and sausage) tends to be sugar-free, and most vegetables are better for us than any grain.

With that said, if you only listen to two things I say, I’d add “Anything with added sugar” to the list.

Cutting grains and anything with added sugar will yield you the most impact on your health and weight. Just cutting out sodas alone can help you lose around 2.5 lbs a month. The more sugar you cut, the more weight you will lose. Give it a try.

I am asked this question pretty regularly, and my answer is very specific: It depends.

It depends on a lot of things. Here is a list of considerations when trying to determine the appropriate portion size for you:

• Your weight/overall health
• Your level of physical activity prior to/coming up after the meal
• How hungry are you?

Let’s take these individually.

Your weight. Are you overweight? Do you need to lose weight? Do you need to gain weight? Even with the Paleo Diet, you need to be careful to not over-eat. If you are underweight, you obviously need to eat more. But, to figure out the right portion size? Keep reading.

Physical activity. If you ran 5 miles before your meal, you can probably safely have that extra slice of bacon or the extra egg. Contrary to popular belief, you don’t burn fat when you exercise. You are burning energy. What you are trying to create is a deficit of calories over a period of time to keep your body from storing excess energy. If you know you are going to be running after a meal and need some energy, bump the carbs a bit. I usually will have an apple or some almonds 30-45 minutes before a run to help with energy during my run.

How hungry are you? This is my guide. If I’m hungry, I need to listen to my body. If I’m not, once again, I need to listen to my body. There’s nothing worse than over-eating or not eating enough. There is a big difference between hunger and cravings/appetite, however, and you need to be able to recognize the difference

In the end, you know what the right portion size is. Experiment. Eat smaller and smaller portions until you find the right size. Also, put less on your plate than you think you need. My wife and I also use the small plates for meals, now. It’s easy to go get more if you need it, but if you’re like me and tend to clean your plate, don’t load up. You’re just asking for trouble with a loaded plate.

Wow.

This is not the 1,000th post on PaleoMarine.com: that happened a few days ago. But only now am I recognizing the fact that I’ve posted over 1,000 times here.

That’s quite a milestone.

I’ve been a blogger since the 90’s, before MySpace, back when Napster was still a thing. AOL was still being used by most people, and ISP’s were finally starting to connect people to high-speed Internet. I began blogging on a self-hosted server, and after transitioning it a few times, I finally settled on WordPress.com where it’s been since.

This blog started in the fall of 2015 when my wife and I finally decided to do something about our health and weight and did our first Whole30. Afterward, we adopted the Paleo Diet with some stints of doing Keto. Nearly three years later, we have successfully kept the weight off, we are both fit, and I’m even in the National Guard.

1,000 posts of my opinions, experiences, tips, recipes, and mind hacks. That’s a lot of info to digest. I recommend you not try to read it all at once!

So, here’s to another 1,000 posts! I hope to be able to provide value, knowledge, and my experience to help others get healthy, get fit, or to lose weight.