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Are you hoping to look foxier by summer?

If so, what paleo-related goals have you set for yourself? They could be eating-, workout-, weight loss-related, or other!

What do you hope to accomplish with respect to taking care of yourself in the next three months in preparation for summer?

Do you have daily or weekly goals? Are you shaking things up and trying new methods - for example, food journaling, busting out of your exercise routine, working on a tan this year, signing up for a program like CrossFit, or going VLC or ZC?

I'm curious to know what folks are doing to gear up for fat loss and muscle gain as the weather warms. Before you know it, sandals, shorts, capris, and skirts will be practically manditory.

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17 Answers

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everyday is spent improving my former self no matter the season or circumstance.......we have but one life to live.

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 be satisfied enough to be happy, but dissatisfied enough to improve........ – DudleyP Mar 11 2011 at 8:39
The road may fork, so drive carefully... – Paola Mar 11 2011 at 9:58
Love the quote, DudleyP! – familygrokumentarian Mar 11 2011 at 20:10
familygrokumentarian, I appreciate your kind sentiment, but regrettably the credit for this recommendation, must, if memeory serves me correctly, go to Dale Carnegie - 'How to stop worrying and start living' – DudleyP Mar 12 2011 at 9:44
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My goals are...

  • to spend more time relaxing
  • to love the people close to me harder, better, faster, stronger ;-)
  • to start actually taking my lunch breaks rather than working through them (I work right by the Southbank in London and I feel it is a waste not to take advantage of this)
  • to start eating a wider variety of meats (I'm currently living off of steak which is great but variety is always a positive thing)
  • to hit the gym three times a week (I love going but have let it slide recently)
  • to eat more vegetables
  • to sleep longer each night

Not all directly related to improving my physique but all of them about overall happiness. When I am happy I am also committed to my health.

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Hmmmmmm. You made me think about this one. I am super happy with exactly where I'm at with my weight and body composition. It took me a long time and I'm excited to be holding steady. Maintenance is a really different place mentally than losing. It's a whole new balance and doesn't have the "reward" of the scale moving down each week. I want to continue to love and enjoy every minute of this new me to the best of my ability.

I really wanted to work on learning Olympic lifts as my new thing, but then I managed to find the worst Crossfit ever so that went down the tubes. I am certainly not comfortable enough to work on them on my own. I am hoping to possibly find a new trainer, but finding one close enough to work that wants to see me at 5am is not easy, despite my charming personality at that time. :p

I want to continue to learn about nutrition and understand the science of it all better. I am going to Diane @ Balanced Bites seminar on Sunday and I'm super excited!

I might try another triathlon this summer. I'd love to do a century bike ride.

Edit: Your wish is my command, darling. This is my favorite tri picture because it just shows how much I love to bike! In the swim/run portions I don't look near this happy.

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Have you looked into the Stronglifts 5x5 program? Or Starting Strength? Those are both really good ways to get into Olympic lifting but starting very light, so you can get your form down and avoid injury. – a hut full of spears Mar 12 2011 at 1:22
I hope that you find an excuse to post your triathlon pics somewhere and alert us all to their presence. :) (And sorry 'bout encountering a Crossfit with no chemistry!) – familygrokumentarian Mar 12 2011 at 1:25
Mr. Spears - I have the Stronglifts stuff and own Starting Strength. I just don't trust myself enough on form. I'll eventually find a new trainer! – sherpamelissa Mar 12 2011 at 2:13
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 Oh man you look like you are workin' the synergy - so excited, so fit, so thrilled to be alive. The energy is circular. You put in the quarter, you go up and down, and around. The music! The flow! All good things. :) imdb.com/title/tt0116483/quotes?qt=qt0420599 – familygrokumentarian Mar 12 2011 at 2:56
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I'll throw out my current goal before summer: fat loss. And a purely vain objective: in a couple of months we're meeting up with some good friends whom we see entirely too seldom, and I'd like to look significantly slimmer in whatever pictures we take then!

After swinging up and down in the same 10 lb. zone since the holiday season, on March 1 I buckled down and started documenting my food intake. My focus is keeping the carbs low, ideally around 50 g/daily or less. I'm avoiding fructose by and large - my main fruit is berries in moderation. No honey, no potatoes, no sweet potatoes, etc.

Writing things down has made a huge difference and is very eye opening! Though I know some paleo proponents insist that writing stuff down is not necessary, for me and my broken satiety switch, it has been instrumental. I may or may not do it long term, but there is a case in point: since writing things down on March 1, despite eating around 2200 calories a day (I should also note here that I'm nursing...makes a difference as it requires 300-500 calories a day to supply breastmilk...), with a low carb count, I'm 11 lb. down on the scale. I know that a good chunk of that is water weight, but it's the first reliable, steady weight loss pattern I've seen in a good while.

If anybody wants to join in striving for 3 months of improved body composition, join us over at FatSecret, where I've been documenting intake under the username primalkitchen (do say hi!). We're doing a 3 month primal / paleo challenge.

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\o/ You go girl! 11lbs in 11 days is awesome. Who cares if it's "water weight". It's still WEIGHT and makes in difference in your size and how clothes feel! The first time I logged food was really eye opening for me too. It can be surprising how many carbs are in a butternut squash vs acorn vs zucchini too and all are pretty satisfying. It helps me make better choices to see all the details in front of me. YOU ARE GOING TO BE SMOKING HOT for your meetup! – sherpamelissa Mar 11 2011 at 18:31
Familygrok, I've also been struggling with the last 10 or so pounds. I think I'm going to follow your lead and buckle down: lower the carbs and cut out my little "cheats" (square of dark chocolate there, bottled salad dressing here...it adds up)! – Ali Mar 11 2011 at 19:14
It was your methods that inspired me to seek that reality check, so props to the original journalling success story, and thanks again for all of your support and ideas. :) You could rake in tha dough as a paleo nutritionist / trainer! – familygrokumentarian Mar 11 2011 at 19:20
Ali - good luck on your buckling down, too!! :-D Here's to an increasingly svelte summer! – familygrokumentarian Mar 11 2011 at 19:23
:-* Thank you! I wish I could afford to give it a go! My gym girls tell me the same thing. One of them said if she ever won the lottery she'd put me through school! – sherpamelissa Mar 12 2011 at 0:50
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I have some goals:

Get more sun (a tan!)

Complete 100 push-ups in one sitting

And the goal I've been striving towards for the last year and will continue to reach for: Be the best me I can be. 8)

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Agreed on all points :). – mari Mar 12 2011 at 1:01
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It's true that when Spring starts to rear its head, I feel a sense of urgency to get "there". But I'm already doing what I feel is optimal given my current circumstances, so there is nothing to change. I'm working on focusing on "here", instead.

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I haven't yet decided if the bodyfat% associated with visible abs is a healthy point to be at for an extended period of time. I guess I haven't found what a safe narcissism% is either. When I figure those out I'll decide how much fat I'd like deposited.

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Goals for the summer:

1) Continue my exercise regimen as planned. The quantitative bit of this means I'd like to be deadlifting over 250# and both bench-pressing and squatting over 200# by June. "Be strong to be useful," as le Corre says.

2) Continue to eat paleo; cut down on carbohydrates in order to lose some bodyfat.

3) Concretely, I'd like to lose probably 15 or so more lbs of fat by June. That's five a month. That's completely doable. I'd like to lose 20 but I think I should set myself up for success, you know? I'll be continuing to lose fat during the summer anyway.

4) Increase natural vitamin D intake - currently I supplement; I'd like to get enough sun this summer where that isn't necessary.

5) Improve my sleep schedule. I wake up every morning dead tired, and I know it's because I go to bed too late. I want to fix that.

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On 5), I've decided also to try darkening shades in the bedroom. Fortunately the girlfriend's completely on board with that as well. – a hut full of spears Mar 18 2011 at 5:02
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I'm going for another 20 lbs off to being me down to a cool before-i-got-married-the-first-time 260. I'm really hoping my old clothes start to fit!

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I really need help with this. I have been paleo now since early October, and I really haven't seen many changes in myself. Hubby (soon to be) has lost around 30-35 lbs and is looking great. I've lost maybe 5 lbs. This is super frustrationg for me, as I was the one who instigated the change, and is doing the research, recipe hunting, shopping and cooking.

I'm starting to get disappointed and I know that is a bad road for me. So I am in need of a kick in the pants so to say. I'm in need of a new work-out routine, and I'm going to cut out another 50% of my carbs and try to raise the fat intake - which for me might mean adding in milk fats (heavy cream and greek yogurt), as I am really not loving coconut oil as a major staple - it seems to upset my tummy when I eat it too much.

This is all in anticipation of not only summer but my wedding in September - gotta look good for the photos.

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 I had some initial troubles with coconut oil but my perseverance has paid off - I could probably eat a whole jar and feel fine now. It is definitely something that some people need to build up to. Aside from the GI issues, do you like the taste of CO? Also I would add butter first before cream and yoghurt - it is probably easier to add (I put it on everything basically). The Jaminets over at Perfect Health Diet have a pretty good template for weight loss: perfecthealthdiet.com/?p=2145. Good luck! – Jason Mar 11 2011 at 15:44
I love the taste of CO, it just gives me a tummy ache if I eat too much of it. I will keep with it though! Thanks for the info and suggestions. I currently use ghee, so I guess I should try butter as well? That would make things a little easier as I make my own ghee. – Thumper Mar 11 2011 at 16:08
I feel your pain!! My husband effortlessly dropped 18 lb. since we went primal in July, even with fruit and lots of cheats (and no exercise), but I've only recently come yo the conviction that for me, it's going to take VLC to get the fat loss I desire. :-/ I've been tracking my intake over at fatsecret.com since March 1; if you would like to try it, be sure to say hi! I'm under username primalkitchen. :) – familygrokumentarian Mar 11 2011 at 16:35
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I'm all about stress management. I don't have any network where I reside, but I recently found a paleo meetup group and attended an 8 hr lecture by Mat LaLonde "The Science of Nutrition". He's a phenome! Going to hear Gary Taubes on WWGF soon. I'm hoping to maybe connect with some folks because this has been an incredibly solitary long haul.

I initially stumbled onto Paleo to try to manage multiple health problems. By the numbers (lab and scales), I'm in the optimal zone. But I feel awful, and as many of you know and have lent supportive advice, I am severely chronically sleep deprived, with many situational stressors over which I have no control and which appear to be permanent. The more I try to manage (read "control") stress, the more I make things worse.

I really, really, REALLY appreciate this forum and all of you great folks. Your advice and enthusiasm about living paleoish is a wonderful gift.

THANKS!

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I am hoping in 3 months time to have discovered more benefits of the Paleo lifestyle; or at least to still be pleased with the small improvements which it has so far brought me - in sleep less snoring - in eating less hunger - and in life more calm; which will encourage me to continue to reap the benefits, which so many of you have found and enjoy.

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I've been doing CrossFit for almost a year now, and I've been watching my calorie and carbohydrate intake for a few months. I've lost 20% of my body weight, and I think I'm probably looking better than I have in a long time. Still, my husband leaves for Afghanistan in July, so I do have some goals to accomplish before summer (so we can celebrate together!):

  • Pull-ups! I'm so close, I can practically taste them.
  • Reduce body fat by about 3%. I use an electronic scale, which isn't incredibly accurate, but it gives me a good idea of the trend.
  • Complete the 200-mile Ragnar relay here in southern California with my husband and the other crazies from my gym.
  • Buy some clothes that fit me and flatter me.
  • Give strict Paleo a try for six weeks - this is very challenging for me, as I was a vegetarian for 17 years and I'm still trying to regain a taste for meat.
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Well, it's been a month, and I got my pull-up! We also did the Ragnar Relay (yikes is all I have to say about that), and I'm doing the clothes thing a little at a time. The strict Paleo trial starts next week after my family visits this weekend, but we've been easing into it. I actually ate some sausage, which is the first red meat (except bacon) in 17 years! – VandyGear03 Apr 21 2011 at 17:30
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I need some fat GAIN (and muscle gain of course). From the abs down I'm starting to look pretty awesome if I do say so myself, but the upper body still looks sad and hungry in a bikini.

Just need to eat more. Cooking more always helps with that, I'm getting on it. Got to feed the BF too, otherwise he subsists on Clif Bars.

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It looks like I may be more...shall we say...unattached by this summer (!!!), so now I'm going into full-on hottie acquisition mode:

  • CrossFit like whoa! I am already getting some pretty nice-looking arms and abs through CF, so I'm going to hit the squats and deadlifts harder to get that tail lookin' less skinny white girl and more like it should as a native of Hotlanta, the booty capital of the US. Also, I'm thinking of getting a trainer friend to one-on-one help me with the movements I'm still struggling with (handstand push-ups. And kipping. I hate kipping).
  • Sunshine! I tan really easily and am already browning up nicely. My parents totally let me sunbathe nude in their secluded backyard. That sounds weird. We aren't one of those Southern families.
  • Eat even better! I'm pretty good, but I'm definitely cutting out cheese and cream and sticking to only very small amounts of GF ghee as my dairy. Working on moving my carbs from fruit to more starch to build muscle and reduce the fructose bloat.
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 Who says PaleoHacks isn't a dating site? paleohacks.com/questions/… :) Don't forget to add the end note that you enjoy candlelit zero carb dinners and long tabata sprints on the beach. ;-D Good luck further hottie-fying yourself! – familygrokumentarian Mar 23 2011 at 21:17
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To build my strength - especially in my core. To resolve all my posture, aching back and joint issues. My main goal is to go to Download rock festival in June and still be able to stand up and jump around when Linkin Park headline Sunday night. Despite a job which involves standing and moving around all day, a weekend rock festival always seems to leave me hobbling!

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the Alexander Technique is worth considering for posture – DudleyP Mar 12 2011 at 17:01
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My goals for the summer:

  • I've lost 6 pounds of fat, and I'm down to 135, but I'd like to go back up to 140 or 142 and have it be lean muscle mass.

  • I'd like to see a six pack for the first time in my life, ever. Workin' hard on it!

  • I'm doing work sets at 125#...my max is 165#x3 with a spotter now, and I'd like to be at a max of 200# or more for the bench press by the end of summer. It's probably more feasible that it'll be by the end of the year, if it's possible at all!

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