New to forum

[chiliholepunch]

Came here due to a article on Paleo. This is the first "carb depleting" type diet I have ever actually tried sticking to. I am 32 YO 5'7" tall and 225lbs. I am of stocky/muscular build. I have been a gym rat for most of my adult life. However I am now on the wrong side of 30, and my metabolism is starting to fail my destructive eating habits. I am a fast food and candy junkie. I pretty much hate 90% of veggies, and love carbs. As you can imagine, on the Paleo, I feel like I am dying. I am 4 days in, and every morning past the 1st that I have woken up, I feel tired and groggy. I started off not well prepared and ended up eating not much else other than eggs, steak, and salads the first couple days. I have since been doing more research for other food alternatives. I have to say this diet is MUCH harder than just calorie restricting. I thought counting calories was hard, not anymore. Trying to find foods that are non processed and without grain as ingredients is a challenge to say the least. I am trying to be fairly strict with the diet, but have allowed myself to continue to consume some milk (Fairlife 2% which is lactose free, almost 2x the protein, and half the sugar, and has no artificial sugars), and I have not given up caffeine (or my pre-workout). I guess just here to read other's experiences, and to maybe get some advice, especially when it comes to things Paleo.

[Guzzi]

You will find lots of advice in the Diet and Nutrition  section of the forum and there's also some really good sites like NomNomPaleo and PaleoLeap. If you're starting from a point of being very dependant on carbs and not eating any veggies then have you considered that a more gentle approach may work better?  It could be that slowly working your way towards more complex cabs and introducing vegetables one at a time could be something that works better for you in the long run.

 

We like to encourage people to make small changes that you can keep up forever rather than going on a "diet" to lose weight. Think of paleo as a long term lifestyle choice rather than a short term fix.  Do you think you can keep it up?

 

If not then you can still improve your diet.  Although you said you hate vegetables you will find that your tastes will change as you cut the sugar and processed foods. Things you thought you didn't like will turn out to be not so bad.  There was another thread recently that got a lot of good replies about what to do to make the transition to liking veg, but I can't find it now. Grrrr!

 

Are you going to join in the new challenge on the 17th? That could help you stay on track with your paleo goal, or any other goals you want to persue.  

[SevenofSeven]

Paleo is a hard diet to stick to, and it takes time for the taste buds to get used to the changes. More than a few people have found greater success at a 90% type paleo, allowing some type of carb, from grains, especially on workout days, porridge (oats), rice, whole grain pasta, but still steering clear of the white breads, donuts and other cheap fuel.

 

There is also the Primal Diet that is in the same vein as Paleo and there is a great site to help you out:

 

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/welcome-to-marks-daily-apple/#axzz4E2y1owy7

 

Wishing you luck on your journey.

[chiliholepunch]

Thanks for the replies. My plan is to get down to my goal weight (190lbs) and then probably continue a Paleo hybrid that will allow for a little more flexibility (such as brown rice, oatmeal, etc) but still continuing a healthier eating lifestyle that is void of fast food and junk food (chips, candy, ice cream, etc). I am thinking about how to coordinate a cheat day maybe one time a month after my goal weight. The problem is I am like a crack head when it comes to fast food and candy. It is extremely hard for me to eat bad one day, then cut it out again for 30 more days. Usually I have found myself having a cheat day, that turns into a cheat week, that turns into a cheat month. It is something that I am going to have to get under control for sure.