Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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Hello everyone, I have had a lot of input from doctors and other dieticians/nutritionists and I realize that the wonderful community of Paleo Hacks probably should have been my first place to go, but alas, after all of what I have done, I am wondering if you guys can help.

Here's my situation :

I am 5'9" 27yr old female, medium build, 134-138lbs, BMR = 1350, BMI = 21 ish Body F % = 25-27%

One year ago I was 167lbs, I went Paleo and counted calories and lost 30lbs. I have been strict 100% Paleo for about 4 months now, no 80/20 for me because I fear the slippery slope of old habits.

Ok, so I am having a couple things go on, first, I am having a hard time maintaining my weight (ideally i'd like to just stabilize at 135ish) but it seems to really really fluctuate, meaning, if i consume a little extra fruit, or a single nut, it goes up. I eat very clean, i IF 2-3 times a week, I train 4-5 /per week, mostly a combination of HIIT and running, some crossfit in there as well, but only 1-2 crossfit style workouts per week.

I used to be a junior elite athlete in my teens racing for the national team (triathlon) and grew up in competitive sports (my dad is a cycling coach and i was raised on the saddle, so to speak) I think that because of this history ( correct me if this is wrong) but I can build muscle mass shockingly fast (about 8months ago I cross-fitted everyday for about 2months and built sooo much muscle so quickly, people were constantly astonished) but the problem is that if i make multiple errors and get loose with my diet that muscle mass converts to body fat faster than i can control...

All of that said, my goal is to keep my body fat % low, I am currently at around 25% or so and I would like to get it maybe to 22%....

I eat around 1300-1500cal a day with macros around 40/25/35 (fat/carb/pro) keeping my carbs ALWAYs under 100 grams/day. I should mention that this is not working very well as I experience pretty intense satiety problems, constantly feeling like I am not satisfied (could be mental though).

I don't know why but even with all of that figured out and focused on, I am not pleased with the results, I feel like I still store fat, or so it is visible to me. I would like to just stay in a fat burning zone while building lean muscle. What am i doing wrong?

One quick additional hack help : I had a full blood workup my doctors said every was immaculate...but I am covered (my legs mostly) in bruises, i mean everywhere, way too many to chalk it up to clumsy. I had platelets checked and iron all check out...any ideas?

You guys are incredibly helpful so thank you in advance for any of your time put into reading this.

A true Paleo Hacks fan...

flag	asked Oct 15 2011 at 22:03 Paleo4ever 1,430●3●19

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My initial thoughts are that you could likely ramp up your metabolism by eating more and training less. I've gotten into patterns in the past with too little food and too much exercise, and my metabolism really slowed down. Do you IF two to three whole days, or just a smaller eating window on those days? There was a good IF study linked in a thread maybe yesterday that could help you maximize those days. Also, how's your energy level? – Rogue Nutritionist Oct 15 2011 at 23:59

Rogue...energy is ok. not great. I think you are right, I just am scared to increase calories I guess...will I gain initially as I eat more while my metabolism catches up? how long will my body take o adjust to an increase in food? and should i increase proteins mostly? – Paleo4ever Oct 16 2011 at 0:07

Sigrid · Answer 1 · 2011-10-15 22:23:03Z UTC

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I am no expert, but you really don't seem to eat a lot. I am also 5'9", 121 lbs and I eat around 1900 calories a day, even though I don't train as much as you. I'm not surprised you're hungry. Have you tried upping the fat closer to 60%, and cutting down a bit on the carbs and proteins? I find I'm less hungry when I eat more fat.

answered Oct 15 2011 at 22:23

Sigrid
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	Sigrid, I completely agree with you, and it is something I am quite confused about myself. I do create a caloric defecit but always meet my BMR...I just don't know if upping my calories will help me loose? or gain? or maintain? could you tell a little more about what makes up your 1900 in a day? I would love to be 121... :) – Paleo4ever Oct 15 2011 at 23:12
	I'm thinking along the lines of this also....just seems like at your activity level your calories are quite low, maybe to the extent of triggering storage. – JayJay Oct 15 2011 at 23:26
	Yes...Jay...that is what i was starting to think as well. – Paleo4ever Oct 16 2011 at 0:03
	Sigrid: Are you a weight reduced person? And if so, how much weight reduced? – Atkins-witha-loincloth Oct 16 2011 at 4:29
	No, have always been that weight – Sigrid Oct 16 2011 at 16:39

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Travis Culp · Answer 2 · 2011-10-15 22:14:35Z UTC

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I think the nutrient deficiency most associated with bruising is vitamin C, so increase your intake of that.

As far as losing fat goes, just decrease fat intake, increase lean protein intake and increase low intensity exercise.

answered Oct 15 2011 at 22:14

Travis Culp♦
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Thanks Travis, I was hoping for a response from you :) will do! – Paleo4ever Oct 15 2011 at 22:15

Travis, one thing that leaves me puzzled is that there is a lot of talk on here that says to loose fat one should increase fat...I just feel conflicted with that, I watch my types of fat and make sure that they are mono and poly but should i decrease it as a whole? – Paleo4ever Oct 15 2011 at 23:22

Well, I'm thinking you meant mono and saturated, but yeah you want to first decrease polyunsaturated fats down to a pretty low level and then decrease mono or saturated fats until you start losing again. – Travis Culp♦ Oct 16 2011 at 0:26

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do nooooot lower fat unless your SURE yoru hormones are perfect... – Mallory Oct 16 2011 at 0:59

Tom R. · Answer 3 · 2011-10-16 03:11:30Z UTC

I would keep tinkering and find that happy spot that works for you. There's no overnight solution as much as we would all like there to be. I tend to agree with Travis in upping your lean protein and adding a few carbs, especially considering your activity levels. If you are not feeling satisfied, that is certainly your body telling you something (and given your 100% Paleo claim it is not a reaction to sugar). Most importantly, relax. Continue to eat cleanly and stay active. Things will work themselves out.

Paleo-ish · Answer 4 · 2011-10-16 04:03:14Z UTC

I have ITP (idiopathic thrombocytopenia purpora) so when I hear about unexplained bruising, I always urge folks to get their platelets checked. Since you did that, I'd just urge you to keep an eye one them.

Other than that, vitamin K can be helpful. Also, if you're taking a lot of fish oil, that can act as a blood thinner/anti-coagulant, which could cause bruising.

tempomat · Answer 5 · 2011-10-18 01:22:02Z UTC

Please share all the data related to your platelets from the CBC like MPV, Pct, PDW plus the specific platelet number (lower or higher range?) You should test your bleeding time as well for deviations. All these provide a more complete picture and can indicate slight platelet abnormalities. Vitamin K does help increase platelet numbers and thus decreases bruising. Vitamin C slight deficiency might also be presents especially if you have bleeding gums and in general strict Paleo results in lower vitamin C intake. Also, consider if you take any blood thinners like fish oil, aspirin, etc...

Check this article and the referenced books: http://www.livestrong.com/article/411201-bruising-vitamins/

You might want to check this study if absolutely all platelet numbers are well in range and vitamin K does not help: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1080028

Weight Maintenance problems / Bruising ?

5 Answers