Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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Hey all,

I'm a 25 year old female, 5'9", 153lbs, ~24% body fat (per my scale). I'm trying to lose fat and build muscle.

I've been eating Paleo (ala Robb Wolf) for over 2 weeks now and lost about 1 inch off my hips and waist. I've allowed myself 1 cheat meal. I will allow myself another in about 2 weeks.

I do CrossFit 2 times a week and use the elliptical 3-5 times a week (used to run - knee injury right now). I also take 1 or 2 walks a week with my dog and a weighted vest and go to Zumba 1 night a week. I like to workout twice a day when I can, early in the morning and again around 2pm.

I am planning to make some adjustments.

I am not hungry as often as I was but I still am in the habit of 3 meals and 2 snacks, so I plan to start Intermittent Fasting instead. So I plan to wake at 4am, go to CrossFit or the gym at 5am, have some espresso after, eat around 11am, and then eat again around 7pm.

I am also going to start doing CrossFit 3x a week. I also plan to cut back on the high intensity cardio and replace that with heavy lifting. I will probably do cardio 2 or 3 times a week. I will probably keep the walks with my dog and the Zumba because I enjoy them.

So what do you think? Any suggestions on how to improve my new approach?

flag	asked Mar 19 2012 at 21:40 mlmars 11●1

hile89 · Answer 1 · 2012-03-19 22:32:31Z UTC

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Don't cheat on your meals, and, as you mentioned, stop using the elliptical and crossfit more often (3 on, 1 off.) Also, I'd stay away from IF. In one of Robb Wolf's first few podcasts he talks about IF--it's only to be used by people who really have their diet controlled and their sleep regulated, which is also something to note. Sleep as much as you can, in a dark room.

answered Mar 19 2012 at 22:32

hile89
41●2

	I guess that I should have mentioned that one reason I want to do IF is because I'm just not hungry all that much. :) Thanks for the help though! – mlmars Mar 20 2012 at 1:06
	Definitely make sure you get enough food/calories during the day - with an IF eating window or not. – greymouser Mar 20 2012 at 14:50

Susan · Answer 2 · 2012-03-20 00:26:37Z UTC

Not sure why you even asked this question because it sounds like you've got a firm grasp on this lifestyle. I agree with hile about IF... IF isn't something to be used by "metabolically deranged" people, but with your height and weight it sounds like you're fairly close to a very healthy (aka lean) body weight. So, try IF-ing out. If it feels good, stick with it. If not, pick something else and move on. Just be consistent. Even if you go back to three meals and two snacks, which works for plenty of paleo people - especially those with families, more important than WHEN you eat is WHAT you eat. keep it healthy, keep it paleo, and, if leaning out is your goal, keep it lower carb. (but eat enough carbs to sustain your crossfit). Keep up the dog walks, I'm going to steal your weighted vest dog-walk idea. :)

ETA: Forgot to mention that you should rethink the cardio! It works against your leaning-out goals! http://everydaypaleo.com/2011/09/02/friends-dont-let-friends-do-cardio/

Good luck!

Tenacious B · Answer 3 · 2012-03-20 02:19:24Z UTC

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I'm 5'9, and 180, 24% body fat. I'm stressed about my body fat. I want to loose more, I'm considering fasting, is that the way to go?

answered Mar 20 2012 at 2:19

Tenacious B
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Research IF thoroughly. It has helped me, but don't fool yourself into thinking it's effective because of starvation - it's all about a smaller eating window with IF, but you're still getting a day's worth of food. YMMV, but I like IF for my own body. – greymouser Mar 20 2012 at 14:52

Relative newbie looking to lose fat

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