Just starting can use some advice

[Mike ODonnell]

Originally Posted by sarena kopciel

Not to piggyback here but to help all understand perhaps better, MOD ! You recommended greens at every meal. I went thru a short cycle where for breakfast before Oly practice, I only ate my meat/fish/eggs w/ fat (avocado generally). Is that a no-no??

Not that I dont like the greens, I am eating pies of raw collards and kale now w/ fresh homemade hopped liver (even made h/m EVOO may!!). I was just looking to see how practice would be w/out any AM carbs!

Thoughts?

Greens are healthy...give you phytonutrients...help in cell repair...have useful vitamins and minerals that are needed for muscle recovery/growth. Do they need to be at every meal? No. The Protein+Fat+Veggie is just standard line for most people wanting to lose weight (as they usually want carbs so veggies fill them up and down cravings, plus the added fiber helps clean them out). I don't think a constant ongoing diet of meat and fat only is healthy as it will make your blood ph more acidic and leave you more deficient in some vitamins and minerals (unless you are eating livers and other organs). You don't need veggies in the pwo meal either. Pre workout like you said you may also feel better with out the veggies. Pick and choose when you add them in as they can only help curb hunger and improve your health.

[sarena kopciel]

Originally Posted by Mike ODonnell

Greens are healthy...give you phytonutrients...help in cell repair...have useful vitamins and minerals that are needed for muscle recovery/growth. Do they need to be at every meal? No. The Protein+Fat+Veggie is just standard line for most people wanting to lose weight (as they usually want carbs so veggies fill them up and down cravings, plus the added fiber helps clean them out). I don't think a constant ongoing diet of meat and fat only is healthy as it will make your blood ph more acidic and leave you more deficient in some vitamins and minerals (unless you are eating livers and other organs). You don't need veggies in the pwo meal either. Pre workout like you said you may also feel better with out the veggies. Pick and choose when you add them in as they can only help curb hunger and improve your health.

Thanks, I eat tons of greens a day. Probably 2 or 3 different types (collards, kale, swiss chard, bok choy, spinach), bunches!!
I have also been eating asparagus, brussel sprouts, and cawliflower a lot! Been doing less salad greens in winter as I prefer the warm foods more when it is cold!

[Mike ODonnell]

Originally Posted by sarena kopciel

Thanks, I eat tons of greens a day. Probably 2 or 3 different types (collards, kale, swiss chard, bok choy, spinach), bunches!!
I have also been eating asparagus, brussel sprouts, and cawliflower a lot! Been doing less salad greens in winter as I prefer the warm foods more when it is cold!

Cauliflower, cabbage and broccoli are good anti-estrogenic foods....so really important in women with the prevention of breast cancer. (which has been linked to high estrogen levels). Mix it up and have fun with it. Variety is good and keeps you sane.

[sarena kopciel]

Originally Posted by Mike ODonnell

Cauliflower, cabbage and broccoli are good anti-estrogenic foods....so really important in women with the prevention of breast cancer. (which has been linked to high estrogen levels). Mix it up and have fun with it. Variety is good and keeps you sane.

Yup I even had breast cancer a few years ago! Oh I forgot to list cabbage which I eat a lot of too!! It was funny, I have a woman who helps me a bit in the house and when I took the collard greens to eat as a wrap today for my h/m chopped liver, she asked me if I really like it and I said yeah. She knew me when I was fat too. I said that when someone gets rid of the junk from their nutritional program, there body really learns to like what they have. So that's the long answer which is really quite simple!!

[Mike ODonnell]

Originally Posted by sarena kopciel

I said that when someone gets rid of the junk from their nutritional program, there body really learns to like what they have. So that's the long answer which is really quite simple!!

So true....a lesson I learned just again recently as I water fasted for 40+ hours...and cravings shifted from initially sugar (which I never crave anyways...it was more fruit)....to just wanting to dive into a pile meat and fat....almost ate a whole package of raw bacon walking through the supermarket during the fast....never go to the market when fasting!

Which makes me believe more that everyone needs a long fast (24-36 hours) here and there....to help reset the natural mechanisms of survival with food built into our genetics from paleo evolution.

[sarena kopciel]

Originally Posted by Mike ODonnell

So true....a lesson I learned just again recently as I water fasted for 40+ hours...and cravings shifted from initially sugar (which I never crave anyways...it was more fruit)....to just wanting to dive into a pile meat and fat....almost ate a whole package of raw bacon walking through the supermarket during the fast....never go to the market when fasting!

Which makes me believe more that everyone needs a long fast (24-36 hours) here and there....to help reset the natural mechanisms of survival with food built into our genetics from paleo evolution.

Wow as I am an Orthodox Jew, we have do serious major fasts of 25hrs each year. One most ppl know is Yom Kippur. Then we have one that is less known in the summer as a remembrance of the destruction of the 2 Temples in Jerusalem eons ago. Well I guess I shouldnt dread them anymore

On a side note, that date this summer is the weekend Greg is doing his seminar in Boston!! And I cant go!

[Tracy Kay]

OK, I am on the way to clean and IF living! Thanks MOD for the additional information! Very simple really, protein, vegetables, and fat all of a clean/paleo variety! The cheat is OK - just not every day. Timing of fasting should be flexible so not impossible to maintain, fasting for 24-48 hours every so often is a reset to the system and good, vegetables will help feel satisfied and keep carb cravings down, but they do not have to be consumed with every meal.

Sarena thank you for the questions, definitely helped me get a better understanding! I really am committed to making a change in my life and I really appreciate all the feedback.

I am on the board now, so will be accountable and keep you all updated.

THANK YOU!!!

[sarena kopciel]

Best of luck. Eat well and train hard. Rest and sleep as appropriate. RInse and repeat!