Week 60: The Paleo Diet for Athletes

Last week I wrote about my decision to change up my diet. I've been stuck at the same weight range for about six months and I feel like I need to make a change in order to continue to show progress.

After doing some research I narrowed my search to two diets: Thrive: The Vegan Nutrition Guide by Brendan Brazier and The Paleo Diet for Athletes by Loren Cordian. I purchased both books and scanned through them. After careful consideration I've decided to start following The Paleo Diet for Athletes.

The Paleo Diet for Athletes is a modified version of the original Paleo Diet. Loren partnered with Joe Friel, a well known endurance coach and athlete, to provide additional information on the timing and type of food needed to fuel endurance athletes. This information alone is worth the price of the book.

Why not Thrive?

Well, there were a few things that bothered me about the Thrive diet. First, when I leaf through the menu at the back of the book, I didn't recognize a lot of the ingredients or names of the food. And some of the food that I did recognize (like the pizza) didn't seem anything like the name implied. In contrast, I can easily understand and see myself eating the meal examples in the Paleo Diet. In Brendan's defense, he has released a new Thrive cookbook intended to address these concerns.

In addition, I was turned off a bit by Brendan's frequent pushing the products from his nutrition company. I don't have any issue with someone promoting their business. What I do take exception to is the need for special products. If Brendan promotes a whole foods diet, you should be able to get everything your body needs from the whole foods that you consume without having to purchase special products. I suspect his products make the Thrive diet more convenient. But again, if the menu is so complicated that you need to create a more convenient product line, than that diet isn't for me.

Finally, the Thrive diet is void of any animal products. This one is a bit of a DUGH because the diet is intended to support a Vegan lifestyle. But the abstinence from lean meats is not for health reasons but instead for the moral convictions of the Vegan community. I have no problem with the Vegan lifestyle. I just don't personally share those convictions. I'm not willing to give up my wild Arctic Salmon!

So, The Paleo Diet for Athletes it is!

I started following the diet early last week. As the book recommends I am only making a couple of changes initially. Once I get used to those changes I can dial it in a little further. Baby steps.

For starters I have eliminated wheat/grains from my diet and increased the amount of veggies I typically eat. The wheat/grains part is a big change for me because I eat wheat/grains at just about every meal. So this drops a significant portion of my food choices.

What was the result of my first week's changes?

I LOST THREE POUNDS!!!

Ya baby!

The focus of the diet is on eating good quality whole foods, NOT on losing weight. However, as the author indicates, losing weight is a natural biproduct of eating the right foods. So if I can eat a more healthy diet and lose weight at the same time, I'm on board!

Anyone else out there following The Paleo Diet? Any suggestions?

Weight Loss Summary

• Week 01: Lost 4.0 lbs 
• Week 02: Lost 3.1 lbs, 07.0 lbs total, 3.5 lbs per week 
• Week 03: Lost 2.6 lbs, 09.7 lbs total, 3.2 lbs per week 
• Week 04: Lost 2.0 lbs, 11.7 lbs total, 2.9 lbs per week 
• Week 05: Lost 1.6 lbs, 13.3 lbs total, 2.7 lbs per week 
• Week 06: Lost 1.5 lbs, 14.8 lbs total, 2.5 lbs per week 
• Week 07: Gained 0.4 lbs, 14.4 lbs total lost, 2.1 lbs per week 
• Week 08: Lost 3.1 lbs, 17.5 lbs total, 2.2 lbs per week 
• Week 09: Lost 2.2 lbs, 19.7 lbs total, 2.2 lbs per week 
• Week 10: Gained 0.9 lbs, 18.8 lbs total lost, 1.9 lbs per week 
• Week 11: Lost 3.5 lbs, 22.3 lbs total, 2.0 lbs per week 
• Week 12: Lost 2.2 lbs, 24.5 lbs total, 2.0 lbs per week 
• Week 13: Lost 0.2 lbs, 24.7 lbs total, 1.9 lbs per week 
• Week 14: Lost 1.9 lbs, 26.6 lbs total, 1.9 lbs per week 
• Week 15: Lost 0.6 lbs, 27.2 lbs total, 1.8 lbs per week 
• Week 16: Gained 0.5 lbs, 26.7 lbs total lost, 1.7 lbs per week 
• Week 17: Gained 2.0 lbs, 24.7 lbs total lost, 1.5 lbs per week 
• Week 18: Lost 3.3 lbs, 28.0 lbs total, 1.6 lbs per week 
• Week 19: Lost 0.3 lbs, 28.3 lbs total, 1.5 lbs per week 
• Week 20: Lost 1.7 lbs, 30.0 lbs total, 1.5 lbs per week 
• Week 21: Lost 1.6 lbs, 31.6 lbs total, 1.5 lbs per week 
• Week 22: Gained 1.1 lbs, 30.5 lbs total lost, 1.4 lbs per week 
• Week 23: On holiday break, didn't track 
• Week 24: Lost 0.4 lbs, 30.9 lbs total, 1.3 lbs per week 
• Week 25: Gained 0.4 lbs, 30.5 lbs total lost, 1.2 lbs per week 
• Week 26: Lost 2.6 lbs, 33.1 lbs total, 1.3 lbs per week 
• Week 27: Gained 2.0 lbs, 31.5 lbs total lost, 1.2 lbs per week 
• Week 28: Lost 1.8 lbs, 32.9 lbs total, 1.2 lbs per week 
• Week 29: Gained 2.0 lbs, 30.1 lbs total lost, 1.0 lbs per week 
• Week 30: Lost 0.6 lbs, 30.7 lbs total lost, 1.0 lbs per week. 
• Week 31: Lost 1.3 lbs, 32 lbs total lost, 1.0 lbs per week. 
• Week 32: Lost 1.3 lbs, 33.3 lbs total lost, 1.0 lbs per week. 
• Week 33: Didn't track. 
• Week 34: Didn't track. 
• Week 35: Gained 5.0 lbs, 28.3 lbs total lost, 0.8 lbs per week 
• Week 36: Gained 1.6 lbs, 26.7 lbs total lost, 0.7 lbs per week 
• Week 37: Didn't track. 
• Week 38: Gained 0.9 lbs, 25.8 lbs total lost, 0.7 lbs per week 
• Week 39: Lost 0.5 lbs, 26.3 lbs total lost, 0.7 lbs per week 
• Week 40: Lost 1.1 lbs, 27.4 lbs total lost, 0.7 lbs per week 
• Week 41: Lost 1.7 lbs, 29.1 lbs total lost, 0.7 lbs per week 
• Week 42--47: Didn't track. 
• Week 48: Gained 3 lbs, 26.1 lbs total lost, 0.5 lbs per week 
• Week 49: Lost 1.3 lbs, 27.4 lbs total lost, 0.6 lbs per week 
• Week 50: Lost 0.9 lbs, 28.3 lbs total lost, 0.6 lbs per week 
• Week 51: Didn't track. 
• Week 52: Lost 2.2 lbs, 30.5 lbs total lost, 0.6 lbs per week 
• Week 53: Didn't track. 
• Week 54: Gained 0.5 lbs, 30 lbs total lost, 0.6 lbs per week 
• Week 55: Lost 0.7 lbs, 30.7 lbs total lost, 0.6 lbs per week 
• Week 56: Lost 0.4 lbs, 31.1 lbs total lost, 0.6 lbs per week 
• Week 57: Lost 0.8 lbs, 31.9 lbs total lost, 0.6 lbs per week 
• Week 58: Lost 0.6 lbs, 32.5 lbs total lost, 0.6 lbs per week 
• Week 59: Lost 0 lbs, 32.5 lbs total lost, 0.6 lbs per week 
• Started The Paleo Diet for Athletes 
• Week 60: Lost 3 lbs, 35.5 lbs total lost, 0.6 lbs per week