In search of contructive criticism...
rainunrefined
Posts: 850 Member
Would any of you mind taking a look at my diary and offer some advice or constructive criticism about my diet choices?
A side note: I know that counting calories isn't advocated in the paleo world, but it is something that I do. I also know the scale is a load of crap, but I still weigh myself. I would like to get away from calorie counting and weighing myself, but with all of the dietary changes I've made I'm reluctant to let go of everything all at once.
I have been at the same weight within a few pounds for the last 8 months. About 6 weeks ago I decided to transition myself into a paleo lifestyle and find what really works for me. I have been fairly strict, no grains (except 3 beers on one occasion and one slip up at lunch on another occasion), no dairy except full fat homemade ice cream once or twice a week, no legumes, no processed foods or refined sugars. I have lost some inches here and there, but they fluctuate and I've lost a pound or two but if the wind blows wrong the scale changes. (I know, again... don't worry about the scale) BUT I'm not any less than I was 6 months ago? I truly feel like I'm stuck.
I have changed my workout style to more of an at-home crossfit-style than running and slow strength. It's more intense I guess. I have transitioned to more healthy fats and less carbs for the most part.
What I do eat that I think I need to reconsider:
honey
coffee (caffeine intake)
wine
SO, anyway... who wants to look at my diary and tell me to suck it up and toss the scale? ha!
I think I'm doing okay, just need some peer advice. I recently added the "sugar" macro to my diary so I can keep tabs. I really think that might be my problem. Oh, if you do check my diary and I didn't log that day, read the notes.
Edit: BTW, I think my diary is open to the public. If you can't see it, please let me know.
A side note: I know that counting calories isn't advocated in the paleo world, but it is something that I do. I also know the scale is a load of crap, but I still weigh myself. I would like to get away from calorie counting and weighing myself, but with all of the dietary changes I've made I'm reluctant to let go of everything all at once.
I have been at the same weight within a few pounds for the last 8 months. About 6 weeks ago I decided to transition myself into a paleo lifestyle and find what really works for me. I have been fairly strict, no grains (except 3 beers on one occasion and one slip up at lunch on another occasion), no dairy except full fat homemade ice cream once or twice a week, no legumes, no processed foods or refined sugars. I have lost some inches here and there, but they fluctuate and I've lost a pound or two but if the wind blows wrong the scale changes. (I know, again... don't worry about the scale) BUT I'm not any less than I was 6 months ago? I truly feel like I'm stuck.
I have changed my workout style to more of an at-home crossfit-style than running and slow strength. It's more intense I guess. I have transitioned to more healthy fats and less carbs for the most part.
What I do eat that I think I need to reconsider:
honey
coffee (caffeine intake)
wine
SO, anyway... who wants to look at my diary and tell me to suck it up and toss the scale? ha!
I think I'm doing okay, just need some peer advice. I recently added the "sugar" macro to my diary so I can keep tabs. I really think that might be my problem. Oh, if you do check my diary and I didn't log that day, read the notes.Edit: BTW, I think my diary is open to the public. If you can't see it, please let me know.
0
Replies
-
It's also quite possible that I'm over eating... but I'm really listening to my body and when I'm over on cals, I was hungry. I should also mention that I eat 300-500 extra cals a day for breastfeeding which probably contributes to my hunger somedays.0
-
The big thing that stands out is that you've been over -- often by no less than 100 calories -- more days than not on the days you've actually logged. While a lot of Paleo circles discourage calorie-counting, it's still a useful tool to make sure you're getting the right about of calories, and to help re-learn how much food you're actually consuming.
Additionally, keep in mind that breastfeeding, itself, might be stopping you. A lot of women find that they'll drop a bunch of the baby weight right away, but then stall out until they stop breastfeeding, then the rest of the weight drops off. Additionally, keep in mind how much you're breastfeeding. If it's still full-time, then you probably are burning that extra 500 calories or so, but if you're down to part-time, then it's only about 200.
Also, you're tending toward a lot of calorie-dense foods (nuts, nut butters, etc). Ease up on them, and trade them in for lower-calorie, but filling options, such as vegetables (or pair them with the veggies and just eat less of the nut butters). That way, you feel full without eating as many calories (nuts and nut butters are notorious for being high-calorie and not terribly filling for the calorie load).
You might want to check out this article for some tips -- http://www.humansarenotbroken.com/youre-getting-too-good-at-paleo/0 -
Dragonwolf - GREAT article. Thanks for that.0
-
A side note: I know that counting calories isn't advocated in the paleo world, but it is something that I do. I also know the scale is a load of crap, but I still weigh myself. I would like to get away from calorie counting and weighing myself, but with all of the dietary changes I've made I'm reluctant to let go of everything all at once.
I still weigh myself, too. The hardest thing about my first Whole30 was not the food restriction -- it was the not-weighing!
And I log on MFP and keep an eye on calories, but not because I'm trying to count calories to keep them low. It's more a matter of -- when I'm keeping carbs low, I'm never hungry. I'm satisfied on 800 calories a day, or less. I count calories so that when the evening comes, I can make up for what's lacking earlier in the day. If I drop below an average of 1500 daily calories, my weight stabilizes or even goes up. I suspect my metabolism slows down when I average 1200 daily calories. Now that I'm home and cooking for myself most of the time, I'm dropping weight quickly (I'm in that first fortnight "honeymoon" stage, I suspect, and the weight loss will stabilize in a week or two -- when I look at "reports" the steep downward curve this week resembles the steep downward curve I saw when I first started Paleo/Primal last year, which then turned into a slow, gradual downward line on the MFP report).
So anyhow, I'm watching the calorie count to make sure I'm getting *enough* calories to keep losing weight.
I never had this problem with Weight Watchers. *g*0 -
Such great info, thank you! I'm going to go check out that website. I do need to bulk up on veggies and lessen the nuts. I think I'm using nuts, butters and almond flour as a crutch. I'm typing this as my homemade granola is in the oven. Ha!
Thanks again. I'm going to reread all of this info and that website until I can refocus and make some tweaks. Including reevaluating where my calories should be.0 -
Glanced through your diary. The thing that really stood out to me was your carb count.
Mark Sisson's carb advice works well for me.
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-primal-carbohydrate-continuum/#axzz375g9oFWi
I've set my macros so that I aim for 75 g of carbs a day. Some days I manage 30, others 80. If I approach 100 g in a day, I have to watch for carb cravings the next day. (That doesn't seem to be the case this week -- don't know if the Bulletproof Coffee is keeping carb cravings at bay or not, but I do know that I'm playing with fire if I get close to or over 100 daily grams several days in a row.)
Anyhow, your diary seems to fall in the "Primal Blueprint Maintenance" or "Steady, Insidious Weight Gain" categories most days. You might want to re-think your carb count, aim at the 50-100 daily grams range (since you're breastfeeding, I'm not sure that ketosis is the best idea, don't know enough about ketosis and body function to say yes or no). Maybe try to average 80 daily grams, or so.
As someone said above me, nuts are very calorie dense. They also add to your carb count, and they're high in the less-healthy Omega 6 oils (I think I got that right. I know "less-healthy" is right, but I don't always get the technical terms right).
Also, you might be on the right track to look at wine with some concern. I have found that drinking wine (even just a glass or two) stalls my weight loss, causes a plateau or even a small weight gain, even if I'm careful to fit it into my macros (as in an 80g carb day). I don't know why wine would have that effect, but because I'm aware of it, I can make it a deliberate choice and not just a casual thing that derails my progress without me knowing why.0 -
Odd how we're all seeing a few different things. Just looking at the past two days, I'm seeing that you could use more fresh veggies.0
-
Since everyone is giving you good info, I'll refrain - other than to point out that when we're referring to carb counts we're talking TOTAL carbs. Not that 'net carbs' nonsense. Carbs should be in the 50-100g/day range, and most of those should be coming from plants - and not sugars or nuts or tubers.You might want to re-think your carb count, aim at the 50-100 daily grams range
Have fun fine-tuning. We all have to do it from time to time.
0 -
I haven't read all the responses. I agree calories do matter. But, if you are only over by a small amount it probably isn't tha calories. I have a paleo friend that has been paleo for over a year, fairly strict. She saw no change in body composition (measurements) or the scale until she was consistently eating paleo for a year. She has not made any recent changes. There is a good chance that it is the right amount of calories and exercise for you and your body is focusing on healing right now. Once the internal healing is finished then the weight will chow a change.0
-
Does MFP calculate "total" or "net" carbs? I never thought about it before, I just enter the food I eat and look at the bottom line.
Since everyone is giving you good info, I'll refrain - other than to point out that when we're referring to carb counts we're talking TOTAL carbs. Not that 'net carbs' nonsense. Carbs should be in the 50-100g/day range, and most of those should be coming from plants - and not sugars or nuts or tubers.You might want to re-think your carb count, aim at the 50-100 daily grams range
Have fun fine-tuning. We all have to do it from time to time.
And yes, most of the carbs should come from plants other than tubers, and "sugars" includes minimizing fruit and watching starchy vegetables (carrots, parsnips, beets come to mind) and tubers. That said, when I eliminated grains and legumes (including green peas) I had a whole lot of foods to choose from, and have never been bored or hungry. I still eat starchy vegetables, and some evenings when my calorie count is below 800 for the day, and my carbs are well below 50, I'll deliberately add a cup of sweet potato, or a medley of roasted starchy vegetables, to the dinner menu. I only eat fruit about once a day, and some days I don't have any fruit. I get vitamin C from home-brewed kombucha and water kefir, and eat a variety of vegetables, so I don't think I'm missing nutrients.
Early on, I tried adding in a half cup of rice if carbs/calories were low for the day, but rice (for me) leads to carb cravings. I do better making cauliflower rice instead.
I do still add white potatoes/rice/gluten-free pasta to our meals for *everyone else* to up their calories. Our teens inherited their dad's metabolism and need all the extra calories they can get. We eat dinner together, so I usually base dinner on primal/paleo principles -- that's what I eat -- and the rest of the family starts with that and adds the starchy filler. On days when I serve something I absolutely can't eat (tomato-based things, like chili, for example), then I have a paleo-style salad and serve them the main meal.0 -
Does MFP calculate "total" or "net" carbs? I never thought about it before, I just enter the food I eat and look at the bottom line.
Since everyone is giving you good info, I'll refrain - other than to point out that when we're referring to carb counts we're talking TOTAL carbs. Not that 'net carbs' nonsense. Carbs should be in the 50-100g/day range, and most of those should be coming from plants - and not sugars or nuts or tubers.You might want to re-think your carb count, aim at the 50-100 daily grams range
Have fun fine-tuning. We all have to do it from time to time.
And yes, most of the carbs should come from plants other than tubers, and "sugars" includes minimizing fruit and watching starchy vegetables (carrots, parsnips, beets come to mind) and tubers. That said, when I eliminated grains and legumes (including green peas) I had a whole lot of foods to choose from, and have never been bored or hungry. I still eat starchy vegetables, and some evenings when my calorie count is below 800 for the day, and my carbs are well below 50, I'll deliberately add a cup of sweet potato, or a medley of roasted starchy vegetables, to the dinner menu. I only eat fruit about once a day, and some days I don't have any fruit. I get vitamin C from home-brewed kombucha and water kefir, and eat a variety of vegetables, so I don't think I'm missing nutrients.
Early on, I tried adding in a half cup of rice if carbs/calories were low for the day, but rice (for me) leads to carb cravings. I do better making cauliflower rice instead.
I do still add white potatoes/rice/gluten-free pasta to our meals for *everyone else* to up their calories. Our teens inherited their dad's metabolism and need all the extra calories they can get. We eat dinner together, so I usually base dinner on primal/paleo principles -- that's what I eat -- and the rest of the family starts with that and adds the starchy filler. On days when I serve something I absolutely can't eat (tomato-based things, like chili, for example), then I have a paleo-style salad and serve them the main meal.
MFP only does total carbs, though there are tools out there that customize that screen to also show net carbs (takes the fiber and carb totals and does the math on them, then shows the result in an added line).0 -
MFP only does total carbs, though there are tools out there that customize that screen to also show net carbs (takes the fiber and carb totals and does the math on them, then shows the result in an added line).
Thanks!0 -
Thank you everyone! I really appreciate the feedback! You all have confirmed a few of my thoughts and pointed out some things I hadn't thought about. Time to embrace veggies! 0
-
Okay, so I just had a chance to check out the website mentioned above http://www.humansarenotbroken.com/youre-getting-too-good-at-paleo/
Wow. That was a very much needed read. THANK YOU!0 -
This was a great article- Thank you Dragonwolf ! It makes perfect sense to me now since my experience with Paleo over the last 5 months has been somewhat confusing & disappointing at times(no weight loss the 1st few months) until I figured out I was replacing all my previous bad eating habits with Paleo approved goodies(high caloric stuff) Now that I quit eating all those treats except very occasionally, my weight is finally starting to drop again!0
-
That's great to hear drmartz55! I hope I can say the same in a couple months. 0
-
Loved the article! Very informative, and all to easy to forget that any diet (food lifestyle) has a dark side.
Couple of tips for you that I would try:
Lower carbs a bit. Easy way to do it, omit the coconut water. If you want coconut water, get it straight from the coconut.
When I was nursing, my body didn't want to lose weight. The danger here: I decided if I wasn't going to lose, that cheats now and then wouldn't hurt, which turned into cheats just about all the time. So even if you change things around and your still not losing, don't give up. It will most likely start to happen when LO starts eating more whole foods.
Water: Drink more. Drink lots. Our bodies are more efficient at getting rid of excess weight, water, and waste when we drink more water. The less we drink, the more our bodies hang on to what it has. Especially in the sense of water, if you drink less, your body won't want to give up what it does have. (I am still working on it too).
As for listening to your body, I also say be careful. After all, we can crave cake, cookies, candy, etc. which we know are not good for us. So some cravings might be a signal we need something else, but our bodies haven't quite learned where to get that something else yet. Loved this chart for cravings. http://www.dailytransformations.com/food-cravings-here-is-what-your-body-really-wants/
As for the scale, great tool, but it isn't the end all. Use it to track trends. Take and average for the week/month and that will tell you more of what is going on than a day-to-day. (Kind of similar to stocks...interesting..) If the trend says nothing is happening, then make changes. (Remember though, a woman can lose/gain up to 10lbs a month with her cycle.)
Almost it's own post on it's own, so I will call it there. No stressing! You will find what works for you.
KR0
