Setting up my food template for weight maintenance- Paleo & Primal, the transition

I'm blogging about my transition from a packaged food weight loss plan (Take Shape for Life/Medifast) to eating a Paleo & Primal food template.

Transitioning from surf to turf

Step 1- Was losing the weight and picking a weight transition strategy. I blogged about it here

 I'm a scientist so I formed a theory:
 If I use a plan that's been proven by other weight maintainers AND I customize the plan to support my life and health, then I will be successful for a longer time in weight maintenance.

Part of my theory involved learning about the Refuse to Regain author Dr. Berkeley referred to as a "Primarian" diet and the 90 day opt out- eating -page 129 "Lean meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, berries, and low-fat dairy... with one allowable treat"

Experimental Design: Customizing the food template

1. I knew I was a bit lactose intolerant so regular dairy is out.
1.5 I could still tolerate the dairy in the Medifast packets for now, one allowable treat.
2.  A Primal diet without diary is..... Paleo.
3. Research it! I had no idea what Primal or Paleo is, at ALL.

What I had: The internet and the library, and books.
What made total sense: Weight maintenance using whole, real foods, minus food triggers- wheat and processed sugar.
What I had no idea: How to eat Primal/Paleo
What happened in past attempts: a return to the Standard American Diet, weight gain, not effective, not sustainable.

Next Steps: Reading and testing

1. While I had about 10 pounds left to loose I read "The Paleo Solution" by Robb Wolf.

• I could relate to being previously sick and wanting to be well. ( I had Hashimotos in 1997)
• I could see how I could eat this way and that my overall health may be improved due to better gut health. 
• I was still scared about eating fat (years of conventional wisdom, Snackwell cookies, and Weight Watchers meetings)
• I was totally willing to give this a try. 
• I felt that my emotional/binge eating would still be in remission with this diet template.
• I was excited about low inflammatory and leaning out visceral fat . 
• I spilled coffee on the book and I now own The Paleo Solution
• That was totally a sign from the universe- I will own paleo from here on out! ;)

2. I need recipes, food I can feed myself first, then eventually feed my late elementary/middle school daughter.  I attended and Everyday Paleo Workshop with Sarah Fragoso and Jason Seib.

Sarah Fragoso and me Feb 2012

• Best $50 I could ever spend 
• I learned the science from Jason, as a scientist myself, I appreciated this
• I learned the food and how Sarah fed her family and her transition to Paleo
• I learned from the small group discussions how people in my community lived Paleo and how they fed their families
• I learned about the low inflammatory properties and how it effected overall health.

 3. Keep reading:  I needed to keep reading and start to incorporate the Paleo/Primal template foods into my diet.  I took the Everyday Paleo book on my trip to Georgia. And, I kept my food template steady during transition and the 90 day opt out.  More than recipes- I liked the exercises and overall guidelines, too.

• I learned how to eat out while traveling
• I incorporated the avocado, olive oil, salmon, nuts, and other higher fat food super slowly
• I made a note that I felt great, my weight was staying stable
• I started phasing out the Medifast Products, slowly but surely

What worked:
1. Reading about low-inflammatory foods
1.5 Eliminating high inflammatory foods. My hs-CRP is now <1
2. Taking a class to learn more
3. Actually practicing what was taught
4. Sticking to a 90 day opt out period
5. Going slowly on the natural fat

What did not work in the past:
1. Not considering, even for a moment, that processed foods MIGHT be a problem (hello WW 2 point bars, 100 calorie packs, Skinny Cow icecream sandwiches, and portions of 2 for 1 candy bars). What was I thinking?  I was not thinking. The SAD diet, sugar and carbs had a huge hold on my sugar/carb fueled brain. I totally forgive myself for this- by the way...
1.5 Not eliminating high infllamatory foods. My hs-CRP was 6.8!
2. Not investing some $$ in continuing education that complemented my highest priories
3. Not actually doing what I planned.
4.  Sticking to a structure plan that was tailored to me and addressed emotional/binge eating
5. Being to scared to eat Avocados because they were high in fat!

Next up.. how the Primal part works with a mainly Paleo (non-dairy) style of diet, and traveling and eating Paleo...