Gone Paleo And Gaining Weight? Often, An Easy Fix…

Gone Paleo and seeing the number on the scale go up?

Don’t panic.  There are many reasons why this can happen.  Following are just a few of the commonly made mistakes I see clients have issues with prior to beginning work together.

• Not eating enough veggies.  Veggies should comprise at least 40 – 50% of every single meal.  Yes, even breakfast, and even snacks.
• Not balancing macro nutrients.  Each meal should have that 40% veg, but also equal amounts of wild protein and natural fats.  Two bananas on their own or a quarter pound of bacon don’t cut it.
• Eating too many ‘Paleo snacks or treats’. Once in a while, sure.  For a birthday or an anniversary, but please don’t start every day with “Paleo Pancakes, Muffins or Waffles, topped with honey”.  Again, not Paleo.
• Going too long without eating.  Unless you really understand how to implement intermittent fasting, don’t make a botched attempt at it by randomly skipping meals only to gorge on the wrong types of food later.  That’s not Paleo; it’s a fad-diet.  
• Not sleeping enough.   Regularly getting less than five and a half hours sleep, minimum (but even that is the very bare minimum!) prevents your body from releasing growth hormone which is essential in the recovery and repair process.  It also creates unbalanced cortisol levels which disrupt your metabolism.   Hit the sheets!
• Not moving.   Find the type of activity you love and go for it.  If you enjoy it, you’ll do it much more often than if it feels like a punishment.
• Not being 100% for at least a month. If you have sensitivities to gluten or soy or dairy (just to name a few) and you reduce the amount you eat but still eat some, it’s enough to keep your body inflamed and prevent you from reaping all the Paleo benefits you’d otherwise see.

Whatever you do, don’t try it for two days or a week half heartedly and then go around broadcasting that “Paleo doesn’t work”. To do so would be unfair to all the other people who might be curious and would be helped tremendously by it, but could then be turned off by your feedback.