Hi Veronica,

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if you're gonna do this, you gotta go all-in at least in the beginning. When I started, I completely cut out all wheat, grains, and processed foods. I did allow myself to eat pretty much all the fruit I wanted to minimize the cravings. But a crazy thing happened; after about two weeks, my body naturally fell into a groove of eating about 50-75 g of Carbohydrate per day, all from vegetables and fruit only a few times per week.

So my suggestion is just that. Cut out ALL grain (beer, too). Eat all the fruit you want (within some moderation) and let your body get used to the way it's supposed to eat. After a week or two, all your cravings should be drastically reduced, you will naturally cut down on the fruit, and you'll start becoming fat-adapted.

All that being said, you've got to eat fat! I consume about 60-65% of my daily calories from fat and have lost almost 30 lbs in 3 1/2 months. I know it flies in the face of what we've been told all our lives, but it works.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any questions.

Relax, drop the bread, and quit weighing yourself for a while. This is not a crash diet; paleo is an informed way to nurture your body for the rest of your life. Results will come when your body is happy and repleted.

Previous experiences with dropping weight on LC were probably due to losing water retention, and nothing more.

Alcohol is burned preferentially (alcohol > carbs > and then fat) due to its toxicity in the body, you may have to cut drinking to lose weight - but moreover, a slice of bread daily is going to perpetuate your leaky gut and make your body prefer to spend any extra resources on healing that issue first and foremost. That is to say - you may not see any results until your internal healing is completed (and, don't forget: until your cortisol is in check. RELAX!)

My suggestion is to cut out the bread, beer, and any other grains and don't weigh yourself for a month. Eat all the veggies, meat, and healthy fats you want. Go easy on the fruit and seeds, but if you're just starting out you can lean on those for a bit while you get used to not eating the bad stuff.

In addition to the good advice above, take measurements of your waist, thighs, upper arms etc. Don't weigh or measure again for at least a month.

Stick to the diet strictly for 20 days before you start to worry about whether or not it is working.

You might also consider switching from cardio workouts (running) to brief, high-intensity strength workouts. When i did this i lost about 10 pounds and several inches off of my waist. The running was just not helping me.

Stop trying to weasel bad things into your diet. I know how difficult it can be. NO ALCOHOL & NO INSULINOGENIC GRAINS and you'll get into ketosis easily.

Unless you're eating bread from fermented grains, stay away from grains during low-carb induction. Alcohol essentially halts ketosis, so that's no good either.

I've done a couple of yo-yo's before I finally stuck to eating Paleo. Everyone is different but for me it goes in a few stages: by day 5 I'm feeling less bloated and gassy, just a general 'light' feeling in my gut. Day 10, I have more energy and don't get that tired feeling in the afternoon. Week 3 and 4 I start to lose a few lbs. Don't get discouraged after one week. Think of how long you have been eating a conventional diet. It may take a little longer for you to drop pounds. And like the other said, no cheating in the beginning. Be as strict as you can. Then you can play around and slowly introduce other things if you really want.