I’ve been toying with the idea of Paleo eating for a while, but I didn’t really understand the “why” of it. I was not sold on the concept of “eat like a caveman” and didn’t really believe that our bodies haven’t adapted since caveman days.
I’ll be honest, I’m still not 100% sold on the idea, but It Starts with Food did a great job of explaining the science and biology behind that way of eating.
The basic premise of the book is that grains (even whole grains), dairy, sugar, and legumes cause inflammation in the body and that removing them from your diet can lead to improvements in a large number of medical conditions. Instead, they recommend eating meat/seafood/eggs, healthy fats, vegetables, and fruits. And they want you to start the lifestyle by following the program 100% for 30 days. After the 30 days (potentially a little longer), you can add small amounts of the off limit foods back in to see where you individually can cheat.
The Whole 30 is not an endeavor to be taken lightly. I found this out the hard way when I tried it for a little over a week (and I was only “perfect” for 5 days).
My body did not handle the change well. Despite eating a ton of food (including more sweet potato and fruit than they recommend) and drinking a boatload of water and green tea, I dropped five pounds in five days. I had zero energy and I was crabby as all hell. While they do mention in the book that you might feel this way for a week or two, I don’t think it was emphasized enough. And trying to do it while running mileage that is twice my “normal” running? Yeah, not a great idea. I also found that I was not prepared with enough options to make sure I had enough to eat each day. And only eating 3 times a day was just not going to happen.
I do think the book is a must read if you are serious about going paleo. It lays out a good framework and is a well-written, easy to read book. I know I’ll be re-reading parts of it as I move forward with this journey. But I also believe that for most people, a pre-Whole30 period, where you begin removing the offenders and start working on replacements, would be a better start than diving in cold turkey.
For me, the plan for now is to slowly eliminate specific offenders, while cutting back on others, until I both get through my five half marathon challenge and figure out enough meals to not get tired of eating. Running the kind of mileage I am + not eating enough is exactly what pushed me off the wagon.
If you want to try it, here are my tips:
- Read the book. Then read the parts about when and what to eat again.
- Surf the web and Pinterest for good ideas for meals. There are a lot of bloggers doing the Whole30 right now who have some good suggestions up. Here are a few blogs: Running to the Kitchen, Caroline Calcote, Gabby’s Gluten Free and Eat,Run,Sail
- Make a detailed shopping list. Have back up ideas for things. (My grocery store had no ripe avocados, so I had a really hard time finding enough fat while I was waiting for those to ripen.) Pencil in a second trip for later in the week when you run out of food.
- Be prepared to not feel awesome (ok, I totally felt like crap) and your runs to not feel great (mine flatout sucked) for a week or two. Celebrate if this doesn’t happen to you. Eat more sweet potatoes and pumpkin if it does…
- Plan your social activities. I have no problem not drinking a beer when we are hanging out with friends. I have a much harder time not drinking a beer if we go to a brew pub for dinner.
All in all, I do believe it has a lot of valid information and is a great starting point for eating healthier. If nothing else, it’s worth the time to read and understand why they (and others) recommend this lifestyle. Good luck!
Disclaimer: As a FitFluential Ambassador, I was offered a free copy of It Starts with Food to read and review. All opinions are my own.
I agree with you that you really need to be prepared! The more you can read and understand about WHY you are doing this, the more likely you will be to succeed.
I have just completed day 12 of my first Whole30 challenge and am doing well. I feel great, have only had one slight dip in energy (day ) and haven’t had the cranky stuff at all… but I am very carb sensitive and I think this way of eating agrees with my own body very much.
p.s. Loved the ‘sciency’ stuff in the book!
Thanks for the mention in your post… I just posted about my Days 6 through 12.
As I sit here drinking my Chai I’m thinking I could never do the Paleo diet. For me the idea of completely giving up so much stuff just makes me want it even more.
I applaud you for trying it – hopefully your new approach will work out better with your tough training program! (I have enjoyed learning more about the eating plan, too!)
My husband and I are toying with paleo, it is so hard! I ate paleo yesterday and so far today although I did eat some chocolate…
This post could NOT have come at a better time! I feel much the same way you do; I have been wanting to try, but not sure if I buy into the entire idea. I would say what I am doing now is a modified paleo. I already don’t eat processed mean and I have eliminated bread and pasta. However, I still eat potatoes and I am not willing to give up diary. As for alcohol, I have mostly cut it out but won’t deny myself on special occasions. For instance, I drank at my friends Bachelorette party, but prior to that didn’t drink for 15 days.
With all that said, I am definitely going to check out the book! Thanks for posting!
Also, I meant to note that I currently eat many times a day. Breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner and a snack. And if it is a hard workout day, sometimes two snacks between lunch and dinner. Three times would never work for me.
it sounds like torture…I guess I will just watch what I put in my mouth and watch my portions..
I really need to read this book- I am so interested in it! I think it’s so funny that there are a million different ways to eat healthy. This book supports eliminating grains etc. Other books (like Forks Over Knives) site studies that show that animal protein leads to inflammation and a million diseases… I tend to think moderation is key in whatever you do… but I would like to learn more about what ‘science’ they site in this book. Thanks for the great post!!
I’m debating giving it a shot, just to see if it helps with my asthma. I mean, that’s like inflammation with a capital I, right? I don’t know if I have the willpower for something like this though!
I have been debating whether to buy the book or not. I went to the website and read about it, I just hate having to eliminate foods from my diet. It makes me want them more. And since I am upping my mileage so much I need all of the energy I can get. Maybe I will just get the book and read about it.
I know I couldn’t do it. I believe in balance in diet. Extremes make me go crazy and heaven knows I’ve battled with low energy so much in the last two years that I just couldn’t make myself voluntarily do it again.
I’ve never been able to get on board with paleo because I find that eating a lot of meat makes me feel sluggish and weighed down.
I’m fascinated by this. I’m not nearly strict enough with my diet to do this, but I do find that eating less processed crap makes me feel about a billion times better.
Thanks for the shout out! I’m on Day 24 and feeling fantastic. It was definitely rough the first week, but has been progressively better every day since. I had no intention of doing the Whole30 when I started the book. I just enjoy reading about nutrition so I thought I’d pick up a few tips. The amazing testimonials won me over and I decided to give it a try to possibly help chronic IT band tendonitis in my hip. I ran 6 miles on Saturday and 2 miles last night with NO HIP PAIN. This is amazing to me, as I have been battling this pain for a year despite seeing an orthopedist, doing physical therapy, and oral and injectible steroids. I can’t say for sure that the Whole30 is what has helped, but nothing else has changed and this is the first time I’ve been able to run without pain in so long! I’m very encouraged.