Is this weekend better than last? Are you able to handle social situations better?

Day 14

I don’t think any of our Paleo Challenge athletes should weigh and measure their food. I think a vast majority shouldn’t keep a food log.

The reason for this is the same reason why we don’t prescribe bicep curls or jumping on one leg while you rub your belly: the clinical evidence we’ve observed shows no improvement in how an athlete looks, feels, or performs, and in the majority of cases (including this one) this technique is detrimental.

After spending years pushing people to weigh/measure and log their food the vast majority didn’t see any significant increase in their health or fitness and many displayed neurotic behavior that led to a decline in their fitness and significant stress in their lives.

You, the human animal, knows how to eat. Somewhere down there in your psyche is an omnivore that knows how to survive, and what to eat to ensure that survival.

We have to draw it out of you by teaching and by pack behavior, but it’s there. And I don’t think that paleolithic ancestor used FitDay.com.

Another great meeting last night, thanks for all those that showed in person and online. To view the video and chat log, click here.

Cross Posted from PCF:

One of the hardest things to explain to people on the Paleo Diet is that you can actually enjoy eating. Most people associate “dieting” with suffering. Folks seem to want an extremely ascetic experience.

We have constantly tweaked our approach to the Paleo Diet to influence the “middle 80%” of the curve. There’s going to be 10% that just totally don’t get anything we tell them and are going to punish themselves and try to eat the same thing every day, low fat meats, and avoid fats in general.

There’s going to be 10% at the top of the curve that just kill it. They get the framework of the Paleo Diet, they do research on their own but know what to keep and what to throw away, and they have fun with the diet.

The middle 80% of the curve is a mixed bag. Some folks are going to do relatively well with minimal effort, some folks are going to just run into walls daily.

We try to provide as many ways to get that middle 80% solid results. We know that the bottom 10% isn’t going to listen, and the top 10% has got it cold from day one. It might take some folks in the middle 80% several Paleo Challenges and several years to finally get all the way there, but just like anything: if it was easy, everybody would do it.

A big part of the Paleo Diet is performance: we want to make better Crossfit Athletes.

We also want weightloss, and general improvement in health biomarkers, to include decreased inflammation.

“Inflammation is one of those words that people use without really thinking about its actual meaning. So today we’re going to take a bit of a break from the blood lipid series to cover inflammation. In later posts, I’ll dig deeper into how the inflammatory response works with stuff like exercise and heart disease, but for now, I’ll just get the basics out there.”

Read more at Mark’s Daily Apple.

Three questions:
-On a scale of 1-10, how strict have we been? 10 being perfect, 1 meaning cheating daily.
-On a scale of 1-10, how do we feel? 10 being fucking elite, 1 meaning constant agony.
-One a scale of 1-10, how helpful has the blog been? Same deal on scoring.

Missed the meeting last week? Video recordings are here! We’ll be back again at 1020 N Highland, 2nd Floor Party Room, live and streaming Wednesday at 7:15pm.

We find that most athletes can stay stict during the week, but get to the weekends and things get haywire. Have you made it through the weekend in one piece?

Great Sunday Football Paleo Foods:

Deviled Eggs

Beef Stew (sans Potatoes)

Roasted Acorn Squash

Spicy Drumsticks/Wings

Beanless Chili

Roasted Peppers

What are your favs?

A few Challengers expressed interest in frittatas at the Stay on Track meeting. If you’ve never made one, your life is about to change: there is no easier way to set your family up for breakfast success. Look for a Counterculture Cooking video on this very topic, with demos, when we launch next month. In the meantime:

Basic Frittata Recipe

The best thing about them is that they’re re-heatable vehicles for any veggies or meat you prefer. The list included in the recipe is NOT exhaustive. I pack ours up into individual portions with a spoonful of hot sauce on the side.

Happy frittata-making!
–AlisonPCF

Thanks god it’s Friday!!!

Unless you’re not drinking, which means you’re probably dreading this. Remember, stick to your guns. Compliance = Results.

Also, don’t be afraid to lie your face off. I go to restaurants all the time and tell them “I am deathly allergic to gluten and dairy. If you want to see me shit and throw up at your table, but some bread and cheese in front of me.”

Same goes for drinking. I’ve used the old “I’m on antibiotics” (easy to believe, I was a Marine) or conned the bartender into giving me a club soda in a cocktail glass with a lime.

If you’re gone out with friends drinking and managed to not drink, what tactic did you use?

Reminder: The PCF Paleo Challenge has a Tumblr feed where you can upload your own photos of meals and recipes! You can also follow our Tumblr RSS here.