Drakkoz

Amen to that. I see people at the gym who look the same (when they could look better either slimmer or stronger) after 5 months and I know 90% of it is their crappy diets.

For those veterans, and those who are wondering, ''should I really do this crazy thing called paleo?'' here are my 3 months in thoughts: Vitals for reference: 30 years old, male. Starting weight 161 ~ 16% body fat, currently 164lbs 12.5% body fat (lost 10 lbs at the start, gained back muscle). I am lifting and eating a ton, doing sl 5x5. Paleo has become one of the largest 'mantra' shifts I have ever done in my life and I am loving 100% of it. I dove in head first and went 100% paleo cold turkey. This sucked (I was STARVING for a week) but was worth it. My entire house (wife, 2 kids, dog) eat paleo and we all love it. I have boundless energy, and we are actually saving money even with buying organic. Our friends and family still think we are completely nuts and refuse to think outside the box in what our government tells them in terms of nutrition. One of our close friends who is similar in age recently had some troubling blood work results. I was educating her on doing this diet and told her there are hundreds of people out there with stories who have fixed many health issues after eating this way. She told her doctor about it, and he said it was a bad idea and then told her carbs were evil and said to not eat fruit!!!! I wanted to call the guy and tell him he was a blithering idiot to his face. So so sad. My biggest challenge is still eating enough. I am doing SL 5x5 and I run several times a week. I eat 3500-4500 calories a day and am SLOWLY gaining weight. Many days around 7pm or 8 I am starving and the temptation to cheat with something quick gets me, however we have been getting good at making paleo snacks. We have all the paleo cookbooks and they are a lifesaver. I really feel like an awesome cook now, something I wouldn't even touch before unless I grilled something. I want to thank this community and the knowledge base here, it has truly changed my family's life for the better. Drak / Adam

My situation is very similar to yours, (workout, body type) and I had the exact same pain. Mine was lack of hip strength and poor form. I cleaned up my form and I focused on flexing my legs and keeping them very laterally quiet during the movement. I recommend video checking your form, and doing a hard deload (I was at about 140lbs when I had my pain and deloaded to 120). If a lift hurts, don't do it more, lift less and stretch more, focus on perfect form. Lifting is a journey, not a race, and SL 5x5 is a very aggressive program. Ive made massive gains too (45lbs -> over body weight on dead lifts and squats in < 3 months) but you can't be afraid to deload or take a week off if you are in pain. If deloading and/or a break doesn't fix it, see a doc.

Hey all - Been doing SL 5x5 with great success. 2 weeks ago I hit 135 on squat when I started at 45. During my routine (which I did 135 x 5) my right hip joint was sore afterwards. The pain was dull not sharp. Ever since then any time I go down past parallel on squats I get a pretty good shot of pain as my joint and quad flex to raise up. I feel my form is very good as I was taught well and check it often. Other things don't hurt like running walking lifting my legs, although putting lateral stress on the join (like pushing a door open with my foot) makes it hurt. I took a week off from lifting and it didn't seem to do much. I was thinking from what I've read its hip flexor. I started stretching it quite a bit and I hope that will help. Anyone have some insight? Or should I just go see a doc. Adam / Drak

The diet is amazing, I am almost 60 days in and never looking back. Buy a cookbook or 2, plan out your meals, and enjoy eating like our bodies were meant to. The 1st week is the hardest, and I went cold turkey. Now I don't even think about my diet, I just eat. I do some dairy mixed in because I can, but it is technically not on the diet. @elly if you have any condition that is inflammation based (which is the root cause of several medical issues) this diet should radically help it. People have had some amazing changes in their blood work on this diet.

I've found it tough to gain weight, and I've been eating 3000k + a day (and lifting heavy). I highly suggest counting calories for a few weeks, get your macro-nutrients down, and then adjust how you feel, hunger etc. Everyone will react differently to a radical change in diet. I was eating a TON of grains and went cold turkey, so I slid 5 lbs in a week and I didn't have much to give up. If you comfortable giving more details about your goals, and starting stats I could help point you in the right direction.

I have read every book and internet blog on the two diets and I'd agree with what has been said. Primal seems to allow dairy, Paleo doesn't. Talk is cheap, results are facts. My personal experience is Primal for 2 months, very little cheating, I've lost weight (then gained back muscle) and I eat 50-55% fats a day. Fats don't make you fat, sugars, insulin and blood sugar spikes do. Everyone I talk to about the diet thinks I am insane, which is fine, results beat theorycrafting.

I've never had someone tell me no. Most are happy to share, they have to wait in between their sets anyways...

Indeed it is. I will try those out. There is a thread somewhere on the lifting forums about my topic. Most people just resorted to drinking milk during their bulk phases (due to price economy and ease), I am doing that to some degree, but 90% of my calories are from Paleo.

Great article. Calories are the biggest thing I've struggled with eating Paleo. I started SL 5x5 at the same time and I WANT to gain weight (at a healthy rate). During my 1st month of Paleo I LOST 5 lbs (I was only 160 I don't have much to give) and I was eating 2500 cals a day. I am up to almost 3000 and I am still not gaining much but I am losing body fat % which is fine.

If you are going to adopt the Paleo line of thinking in regards to diet and lifestyle, you are going to have to unlearn everything you know about nutrition (including the classes you took). The Paleo Solution is a great book (there are several out there) and it will cause you to totally rethink how you look at food again. I've been on Paleo for almost 2 months now, I've lost weight and body fat%, and feel great. Side note: I eat a ton of eggs and healthy fat. I haven't done blood work yet, but I highly doubt my cholesterol is skyrocketing if I'm losing body fat % and feel awesome.

People fear what they don't understand. Easter weekend with family was hilarious. My wife and I ate more than everyone but we look the best. People will ask us if we are on a diet, I say no, its a lifestyle. I am 5 weeks in, I've lost 7 lbs (which is bad because I want to gain weight) but I've lost all fat and I feel like a monster. Workouts go awesome, I sleep well and have unlimited energy. Let them knock it and be jealous, then when they come crying to you for help, show them the way.

Really? I did not know that. I buy the hormone free stuff and it usually doesn't jack with my stomach. I will start to drink milk throughout the day and we'll see how it works. I'll keep an eye on my body fat% and as long as it doesn't skyrocket I should be ok. I'm thinking I'll need to be in the 3000cal range. Thanks

Thanks for the ideas. GOMAD is something I have considered as a last resort. Cordain really has bad things to say about milk dairy and the saturated fats in them. I don't mind including a serving here and there but GOMAD is totally different. I suppose I could ease in and drink 3-4 servings a day of milk and see how it goes.

This is my 4th week of Paelo/Primal, haven't cheated that much. Observations: 1) I feel totally %(*#()$# awesome. I sleep better, longer, and have unlimited energy, even while doing a very demanding weight lifting regiment (SL 5x5). 2) Soy and Corn are in EVERYTHING. Holy shit, I have to avoid 90% of the isles in the supermarket. 3) I bought several cookbooks and the Paleo diet book (Cordain), great reads and helps out a lot with not getting bored eating. Questions: 1) In Cordain's book he says that eating more than 35% protein as a macro nutrient is toxic. I am struggling to stay under this % eating Paleo. Things like chicken and tuna and cottage cheese are almost all protein and really throw off my %. Red meat is perfect but I don't want to eat so much of it, has anyone else had this problem? 2) I am really struggling to gain weight doing this diet. In 4 weeks I've lost 5 lbs (I'm lifting weights hardcore, I want to be going the other way, I only weigh 155lbs @ 6'0''). My body fat has dropped a little, but not much. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy with losing fat, but I feel like I eat all day and barely manage to crack 2500 cal, I have a feeling I need to eat more, anyone have some tricks that worked for them? Thanks - Adam/Drak