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What was the moment when you realized what your paleo 'duh' or pareto-effect was? I.e. what was simple thing you stumbled on within paleo that made a huge, disproportionate difference in your wellbeing?

For me it was sleep. I'd read about how important sleep was (for me the order of importance is nutrition-->sleep-->training). I'd been staying up late a bunch, not getting good quality sleep and it was really starting to mess with, well, everything--including, gulp, sexual function/general feelings of strength/virility/testosteroniness*.

Anyway, literally just two nights of good 7-9 hour sleep in a totally dark room without exposure to artificial light for a half hour before and I felt WORLDS different.

So for me it was: DUH, everyone was right, sleep really is important.

what was your DUH moment?

*yes that is the scientific term.

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How to use oxytocin to my advantage. – The Quilt Apr 6 2011 at 5:08
How do you do that Dr. K? – Futureboy Apr 6 2011 at 17:32

19 Answers

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Mine is odd. It is related to reading the primal blueprint and the section about lifting heavy things. I have two small but heavy children (32 lb nearly 2 year old, 51 lb 4 year old), who always want to be carried. It used to get on my nerves and make me feel overwhelmed. Now I lovingly call them my heavy things and I happily carry all 83 pounds of them up and down the stairs (AT THE SAME TIME) when they ask. It's silly, I know. But that part of my life used to really stress me out, and now it brings everything together. I guess my duh moment was "I CAN DO THIS!".

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I love this!! I look forward to being a mother some day. This is encouraging. :) – gilliebean Dec 18 2010 at 2:05
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Love it! Change of mentality = reduce stress and better health. – Stephen-Aegis Dec 18 2010 at 3:40
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Thanks, guys ;) You should have seen the look on my face while I was reading that chapter. Heavy things? I have those! And they are always willing to be lifted! big smile – jenna Dec 18 2010 at 12:50
Yes, I agree. Now that my kids are too big to be carried around, I say to myself while doing "yard work...or whatever" this is my primal exercise. Especially like lifting the wood pellets 40#. – FanOfSunshine Apr 6 2011 at 4:06
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This is the kind of sweet we can all enjoy. – uep Apr 6 2011 at 10:20
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Sugar is sugar is sugar.

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Well said. :) . – foreveryoung Apr 18 2012 at 1:49
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Tying Evolution to Diet was a ... DUH.

Then Minimal Footwear/No Footwear.... DUH.

Then Tubers... as much as I wanted to believe the low carb stuff... was a DUH. again with Evolution.

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The three things I was going to say... – mari Dec 18 2010 at 0:23
im on the sweet potatos PWO now and loving it. – ben61820 Dec 18 2010 at 0:42
whats with the minimal footwear?? – Ivan Dec 18 2010 at 2:14
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But shoes are so CUTE! ;) I do workout barefoot and go barefoot around the house. – sherpamelissa Dec 18 2010 at 14:44
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I haven't switched to minimal footwear yet, but I'm leaving my heels at home and wearing flats. That's a start! 8) – Ali Apr 6 2011 at 15:20
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For me, it was when I was losing weight but still feeling fully satiated. That had never happened before in my whole life. That was the biggest, but there were others to follow. My allergies are mostly gone now. My hair got back the waviness it had when I was much younger. I sleep less and am less sleepy. And lots of other little things which I had never expected nor even thought possible in many cases.

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My hair is a lot curlier now than it was too (of course I'm a bloke, so this is perhaps less of a benefit)- clearly whoever said crusts make your hair curl got it wrong! – David Moss Dec 18 2010 at 9:11
Curly hair can be quite a benefit for blokes. I know I find it attractive. 8) – Ali Apr 6 2011 at 15:23
Me too, I was stoked and I still haven't quite got the hang of "not being hungry AT ALL." It's weird. – Oranges13 Apr 6 2011 at 16:57
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One big 'duh' moment was working out that the reason why I was cold, tired, feeling weak and thinking about food constantly even though I wasn't hungry (when first reducing carbs), was because I wasn't eating enough.

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This might just become my "duh" moment as I am finding myself snacking even though I'm not hungry. Perhaps I need to eat more during meal times. – Ali Apr 6 2011 at 15:24
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That "duh" moments are strictly n=1.

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My "duh" moment was when I realized that the worst place for me to be gauging my health is by looking at a scale or eyeballing my stomach in the mirror 5x per day. Even though I was looking and feeling better, I couldn't notice it because I was too busy looking at my offensive (yet future-infant-supporting) lower stomach fat. My hair had gotten ridiculously thicker, I was sporting claw-like nails, my skin was glowing, my breasts had spontaneously doubled, my energy was amazing, and here I was whining away to myself about how the scale said such-and-such yesterday, but now it says such-and-such, so am I failing? Tossed it. No regrets.

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that anything edible is a tool and if you view each item as that and know how that item will effect your metabolism you are free to eat anything.

For example: I know what carbs do with insulin and muscle glycogen, etc so i eat them PWO. I know what protein does for building and repairing and so i eat it all the time. I know how fat slows digestion, etc so i eat it when i want to slow digestion.

Sounds a bit too straight forward maybe but it took a while for this simple simple reasoning to hit me all at once.

That, and that this way of thinking/eating/living is not mutually exclusive with tastiness:)

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it can be mutually exclusive with tastiness. it really can! – jenna Dec 18 2010 at 0:47
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If your food isn't tasty, you're doing it wrong. – Stephen-Aegis Dec 18 2010 at 3:41
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I had a duh moment last weekend- ate a little bread and some breaded artichoke hearts at Cheesecake Factory. I took my digestive enzymes but they didn't help. I felt awful all evening, and it reminded me how crappy I used to feel all the time. Duh, messing with bread is a big gamble and it ain't worth the risk!

A duh-winning moment was reading "The Case Against Cardio" on MDA last summer- it just made so much sense to me, and I was so relieved to learn I wouldn't have to toil away on the elliptical any more! :)

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+1 for the "Case Against Cardio." Hopefully this means I won't ever end up in physical therapy again for an over-use injury. – Leigh Apr 6 2011 at 20:35
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As others have said, a big "duh" moment for me was realizing how much processed crap I ate even when I thought I was eating healthy foods. I cut those out and noticed an immediate change.

A related "duh" moment was finding out that better quality foods might be more expensive, but they're also more satisfying and, hence, don't really cost more than the junk I used to eat in the grand scheme of things. In fact, they probably end up costing less if you factor in the potential to avoid having to buy various medications. 8)

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Box of cereal = one sitting, still hungry. – StreakOfLean Apr 18 2012 at 7:53
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Hi everyone, just signed up. Anyways, for me it was finding out that light levels/types/colors affect your hormone levels. It's pretty crazy the integral part our environment plays in regulating our behaviors and inner state. So I decided to look at things that affect me and try to understand them through reasoning.

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Cutting foods out.

Robb Wolf always talks about the 30 day test, see how you look, feel and perform with and without something in your diet.

I started paleo and left dark chocolate in. I was having some inflammation issues and cut dark chocolate out. Worlds of difference in how I feel.

Though my "duh" moment has to be switching to paleo, period. I always thought that getting rid of processed carbs would be hard, but giving up all the processed junk has made my world so much better.

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I agree. I haven't cut the chocolate...might give that a go. – Ali Apr 6 2011 at 15:25
Oh GOD NO, NOT the chocolate! [cries] Now I know I should try it. Next week. – Joni Apr 18 2012 at 18:12
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My duh moment was realizing the ill effects of my over-consumption of fruit. I used to eat a big bowl of cherries thinking I was getting all these good anti-oxidants. But at what expense?? Being overweight and on my way to type II diabetes?

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When I started seeing the sugar cycle in my co-workers and the corresponding mood shifts.

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When I realized that I had negative, depressive thought patterns the day after I eat too much sugar.

It's tough, because then I want to boost my mood with comforting (and generally sugary) foods. It can be a vicious cycle. Now that I am cognizant of sugar's affect on my thoughts, I can take a step back and recognize that it is a false mood state. This makes it a lot easier to get back on track.

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Stress! Similar experience, similar results.

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I had a major DUH moment when I first heard about the paleo concept from Art DeVany on a podcast. He tied the diet in with evolution and I said to my self "Ah, yeah....DUH!"

Then I had another moment when I started learning about the reasons for minimalist shoes. A little time with my Vibram FF's gave me my 2nd paleo DUH moment.

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Natural is better for me.

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Ditto. Cut the processed foods and WOW what a difference – Ali Apr 6 2011 at 15:25
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When I realized I had to defend a diet rich in lean meats, fish, and veggies to an overweight coworker I was having a nutrition discussion with. Both a "duh" moment, and also a moment that I sort of pitied him and those like him.

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