Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

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Okay, I've been reading paleohacks for months now but have never asked a question. . . so bear with me please.

I am female, 27, 5'6", 128 pounds & do Crossfit 3x/wk as well as some walking/sprinting on my off days from Crossfit. I deadlift 255, squat 165, press 90 & power snatch 75-80. I reliably get two rest days a week, always get 8-9 hours of sleep per night & take 6-9000mg of fish oil per day.

I started eating Paleo last fall & did it probably 65-70%. I saw a loss of 10 lbs while gaining strength. Then did a 40 day strict Paleo challenge starting in March & have stuck with it ever. I do have the occasional (once every two weeks or so), conscious cheat of something dessert-ish, usually ooy-gooey chocolately goodness or cheesecake.

My goals are SO close & I just need some direction as to what I can do to push myself over the edge.

I don't really have a specific body weight goal, I just want to shed enough body fat to have more visible muscles, specifically in the stomach area. I have a persistent layer of fat covering my abs that I'd like to shed, to prove to myself that I can do it & then evaluate just how hard it is to maintain.

In the past week I've gone completely sugar free & higher fat & am now in mild to moderate ketosis.

So all of that to say. . . what now? Do I decrease my overall calorie intake to promote fat burning? Up the exercise? Sleep more? Do some IF? I'm just not sure what is the best course of action here. I don't want to lose strength, just fat.

I'm looking forward to the wealth of knowledge here at paleohacks pointing me in the right direction.

flag	asked Jun 10 2011 at 14:33 MeFisher 81●3

Absolutely great lift numbers. I love strong women! – ben61820 Jun 10 2011 at 17:32

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Thanks! :D Worked hard to get there & proud of it! Strong is the new skinny! – MeFisher Jun 13 2011 at 16:52

L. Peltier · Answer 1 · 2011-06-10 16:32:31Z UTC

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You've already made dramatic changes and its only been a week. My advice, is to see if you can maintain mass on your current level of activity. Just DO NOT REDUCE calories!

answered Jun 10 2011 at 16:32

L. Peltier

Pete · Answer 2 · 2011-06-10 15:27:47Z UTC

Do less high heart rate activity. Keep your heart rate 75% of max or below on the days you do not do crossfit. I'd even suggest taking 2 of those days to just do a brisk 30-45 minute walk.

You have low bodyfat already, and your body is holding onto the remaining fat for dear life because of your intense workouts. Let it know that it will be safe if it burns that belly fat, and it will listen. It does seem counter intuitive to slow it down to burn more fat, but give it a try.

Everything else seems to be in order, including your age. You should shed that last amount of troublesome fat quite easily once you find the right balance.

Eric · Answer 3 · 2011-06-10 15:41:21Z UTC

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Sleep at least 7 hours. To get the very last bit of weight ketosis is very helpful. Make sure you run less than 45 min a day if that applies (dont over do running). If you do run do sprints (8 sprints with rest 3 times / week) Lift with your legs and abs and benchpress.

EDIT

Cortisol kicks in around 45 minutes. How long are your crossfit workouts? The intense part?

edited Jun 10 2011 at 15:41

answered Jun 10 2011 at 15:00

Eric
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Thanks for your input. I do always get adequate sleep, more like 8-9 hours most nights. When I walk/run I incorporate 50-100yd sprints into my circuit. The longest distance I've ever run was 5 miles & that was only once. My 'long distance' running is usually a 5K, takes me less than a hour & is a once a month thing. Running isn't my thing, I just do it on my off days because I like to be outside & its easy & free. – MeFisher Jun 10 2011 at 16:12

Dexter · Answer 4 · 2011-06-10 15:21:51Z UTC

That persistent layer of fat covering your abs is there for you to expand to have a baby. All females have it.

I don't think anyone wants to look like Kim Smith in the first photo in this posting: http://paleohacks.com/questions/33826/do-you-aspire-to-be-an-elite-runner#axzz1OscZFnLM You can see her abs and every other tendon in her body also.

Trying to lean out so much just goes against our evolutionary melieu. Yes some of our pre agriculture ancestors leaned out due to starvation. But our goal is to live an optimized life and starvation is not optimal...just to see your abs.

I suspect with all your workout your cortisol levels are pretty high. Cruise over to Dr Kruse's blog and he has a lot of info on hypercortisolism... http://www.jackkruse.com
Read it all but I think Hormones 101 applies very well.

Accept your female evolutionary biology and work within it...not against it.

You are doing great in ketosis. Add a couple of yams a week and you will be operating optimally on the edge of ketosis.

With no wheat, sugar, or industrial oils, I suspect if you did a lipid panel your numbers would be great...but you might see a little higher than one would like to see in your C Reactive Protein due to all the exercise raising cortisol.

Congratulations on your paleo journey.

Edit: If you are not supplementing with Vit D3, you should consider it. It is great for strengthening your immune system. Dr Kruse wants his patients to be at serum Vit D3 70 to 100ng/ml. Most folks are deficient even if they are in the sun a lot. I maintain my level with 5000IU a day of Now Brand 5000IU gelcaps avail from http://www.swansonsvitamins.com I use this brand because the carrier is olive oil..not soybean oil.

Mild to Moderate Ketosis. . . now what?

4 Answers