Paleo Links

I sent this in an email to a friend/co-worker who asked me about paleo eating because of my weight loss (100+ lbs) and my body recomposition.

To be a paleo evangelist, I've been slow to share more paleo info. Mea Culpa.

There are several good infographics that can serve as introduction:

The Ultimate Guide: http://pinterest.com/pin/187603140698928379/
Timeline: http://pinterest.com/pin/187603140699905232/
Bacon over bagels: http://pinterest.com/pin/187603140699898825/
Fat doesn't make us fat: http://pinterest.com/pin/187603140697640501/
Paleo/Primal Food Pyramid: http://pinterest.com/pin/187603140697507137/
PDF's from Practical Paleo: http://balancedbites.com/useful-guides

The best overall site for info is: Mark's Daily Apple http://www.marksdailyapple.com. He's got a lot of stuff to sell - I've bought a couple of his books, but the info is free. He calls his stuff Primal, rather than Paleo, because it's his brand.

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/primal-blueprint-101/ is the place to start.

There are few people who do a better job with the actual recipes:
Nom Nom Paleo is one of the top paleo food websites: http://nomnompaleo.com/recipeindex

I am currently using Diane Sanfilippo's recipes and I like them the best, so far. Her brand is 'Practical Paleo' and her FAQ is here: http://balancedbites.com/2013/03/faqs-what-is-paleo.html
and the book at Amazon - Practical Paleo.

Sarah Fragoso's recipes are also quite good and her brand is Everyday Paleo http://everydaypaleo.com/food/. I like her book as well, and it has some exercise basics - Everyday Paleo at Amazon.

The hardcore people - Dallas & Melissa Hartwig - and how I lost another 20 pounds in August - and their brand is The Whole 30: http://whole9life.com/2012/08/the-whole30-program/ and
their book is 'It Starts with Food'.

and finally a list of 25 top paleo websites from Nom Nom Paleo: http://nomnompaleo.com/resources

Yours,
Mike Ray

100 Pounds

Today I officially reached 100 pounds lost.
Paleo for Life.

Paleo Curry

2 pounds meat
1 bag of frozen cauliflower
3-5 tbsp of Curry powder - we use Madras or Sweet Curry
1 can (12.5 oz?) of organic tomato sauce
2 tbsp of a paleo cooking fat
1 medium onion
2 cloves of garlic
optional carrots or parsnips
salt
black pepper

- I prepare the bag of frozen cauliflower according to the microwave directions and set aside in a separate bowl (reduces vitamin breakdown).
- Crush the cauliflower with a potato masher or large fork until it has a rice-like consistency.
- In a fryer (a steep-sided 12" frying pan) or Dutch oven I begin by heating the fat on medium heat - I have used coconut oil, olive oil, pasture-raised lard, and ghee for this (about 2 tbsp).
- I cut the meat into even chunks, about half-inch cubes. I have used chicken, pork, lamb, and beef. About 2 pounds.
- Brown the meat on all sides and remove it to a bowl.
- As the remaining liquid cooks reduces to almost only oil, I add the chopped medium onion and occasionally a few chopped carrots or parsnips (even sized pieces) and cook them for about 6 minutes, scraping the bottom and mixing it with the vegetables. Then add the 2 cloves of pressed garlic for an additional 2 minutes and stir.
- Reduce the temperature to medium-low.
- Add the cauliflower to the pan and then mix in 2 tbsp of Madras (Indian) Curry Powder, coating everything.
- Stir in one large can of organic (Muir Glen) tomato paste. Mix well.
- Stir in the meat and another tbsp of curry powder.
- Lower to a simmer and season with salt and pepper and additional curry powder to your taste.
- The longer you can let it simmer the better, but stir to avoid scorching the sauce on the bottom.

The cauliflower gives the dish the rice consistency that is otherwise missing from many paleo curry dishes. It imparts little taste, but gives you its health benefits.

We ate this at least 4 times during our Whole 30, making it a little differently each time.

The whole Whole30

We finished our Whole 30 on Thursday. It was great.

Eating so cleanly has made us both feel so much better and I lost 16 pounds (you're not supposed to check, but it is my thing). We are both even further down in clothes sizes.

I will start posting many of our dishes from this past month this week.

CRL is doing the dairy check and then the gluten check this weekend. I don't appear to have real problems with either one, but I feel so much better without them both, I'm going to stay that way!

We have become so used to eating Paleo that none of the restrictions were a hardship - cooking nearly every meal is the tough part, but we have always shared the load there (I love to cook and do most of it), so it wasn't really a problem.

If you want to see results and start changing the way you feel for the better, the Whole30 is the way to go.

95 pounds

My weight is down to 265. Oh so close - down 95 pounds total. The Whole 30 paleo plan for a strict one-month diet is working. Down 13 pounds in 21 days.

Before - During

November 2009 and August 2012

Picture Update

Down to 267.

Walk One, Run One

Walked a mile this morning with CRL. Drove out to school and ran a mile on the roads around the back of the playing fields. It was slow, 13:05, but finishing never felt in doubt. I can now start trying to do it faster. Shooting for 12 minutes first.

I weighed at noon & I was 268. My lowest weight yet. Just 8 from 100 pounds lost. The Whole 30 is working, I'm down 10 pounds in 12 days.

The Whole 30

On August 1st we started The Whole 30 program. It is a serious paleo program with no dairy, no alcohol, no chocolate. and no cheat days. We are ready to kick it in.

Picture = 1000 words

May 2009 - February 2012

A Summary of our Paleo lifestyle eating

A lot of people ask me about our Paleo Lifestyle eating. It has been really effective for us.

We do as much as we can and have made compromises where we’ve had too. We like Mark Sisson, Robb Wolf, and, of course, Tim Ferriss.

The No’s:
- We try to eat no grain, absolutely no gluten (occasional rice, on cheat day).
- Eat no beans, no legumes (no peanuts) and no soy (lessens testosterone), if at all possible.
- No corn syrup
- Very little sugar, it may be in a hot sauce or something in a small amount.
- No milk or soft cheese (so no lactose, except occasional 1/2&1/2 when out). We use cream, & eat hard cheese. (CRL=lactose intolerant)
- No potatoes, (except cheat days), occasional sweet potato.
- No vegetable oil
- No artificial sweeteners (it took me a while)
- Virtually no packaged stuff
- Try to use fruit as dessert

The Yes’s:
- Kerrigold Butter & cheeses (grass-fed cows), Ghee, Olive Oil, Coconut Oil
- Meat, grass-fed when we can afford it (which isn’t often), but mostly burgers, steaks, chops, chicken (we get them pasture-fed locally, so when I can buy a grass-fed side of beef, I’ll have a guy)
- Eggs, a lot of eggs
- Spinach & Sauerkraut
- Veg – artichoke hearts, cauliflower, asparagus
- Coffee, Tea, both with no sweetener
- Salad with a variety of veg – I make a lot of vinaigrettes
- we have been making sauces with cream, egg yolks, cheese, olive oil, etc
- Dark Chocolate (Green & Blacks!)
- I have started a glass of red wine some nights
- I will have a beer when I want one – fermented grain has less of the bad stuff (lectins), just the carbs
- Almonds, Walnuts
- Blackberries & Blueberries & strawberries
- I take vitamins & Cod Liver Oil gels

- We cheat once a week, based on Ferriss’ concerns over hormone adjustment & insulin sensitivity. Usually with Jones Soda/Mexican Coke, beer, ice cream (me), sorbet (Cassondra), and mocha frappachino.

I’ve combined the Tim Ferriss longevity, testosterone, slo-carb, & fat-burning stuff with mostly Marc Sisson’s Primal Diet.

We do two high intensity workouts a week, cribbed from CrossFit stuff, and adjusted for 40+ year-old ex-linemen.

I weigh the lowest I have since 1994. I actually feel stronger than I have since high school, even in the army I was always hurting. I don’t hurt, except for tired muscles.

It seems counter-intuitive & a bit cultish, but it works.

Out in the Open

Excited that Living the Paleo Lifestyle is having a conference & building public momentum - Ancestral Health Symposium '11.