Almonds & Broccoli

So, if anyone is offended by a little foul language you may not want to read this post; I'm a little fired up about a couple of things.

First, I've been trying to go paleo for a couple of days and I feel like complete shit. I'm hungry as hell! I'm not talkin' a little hunger pang; I'm talking completely famished! Stomach growling all day, just can't get enough to eat, weak, irritable kinda hungry. And I'm totally sick of eating handfulls of almonds and brocolli with every meal. I know the paleo guys are gonna say that I need to give it a couple of weeks and you'll feel better; but, I'll be honest, I don't wanna feel like this for any amount of time. I think I'd rather be fat and happy than be feeling like this.

With that being said, I do believe the Zone or Paleo line of thought is on to something. After all, Americans do eat way too much processed crap. We should be eating more natrual foods; not foods that we've made in a laboratory. I wish I could do the paleo diet full force but I don't think it's for me. I've seen it work in several of my friends but not in my case. A person should look at a given diet and personalize it. For me, I'm taking parts from the Zone and Paleo diets, listening to my body, seeing how I feel when I wake up in the morning, paying attention to how strong I feel during my workouts; then I tailor the diet to what my body demands. For me, that means some oatmeal in the morning, a little brown rice in the afternoon, and lots of fruits, vegetables, and meat throughout the day. I find that gives me the best performance. I like to stay away from processed foods and basically shop on the paremeter of the grocery store.

Second thing I've got a beef with: I read an article in Reader's Digest and then found a couple of articles on the internet talking about how the medical community has it all wrong when it comes to weight loss. I believe that's true. The traditional food pyramid put out by the government is completely schewed. But these sources went on to say that exercise has no affect on weight loss. WTF?! It rationalized that the only thing exercise does is make you hungry and you eat more; thereby negating the benefits of exercise. First, that's complete crap that exercise won't help with weight loss. My brother has started decreasing calories and exercising more and has lost a ton of weight (way to go Barry!). Also, I worry that people will read these articles and just give up on working out. Not a good idea. Not only does exercising help with weight loss, it also has so many other benefits. Exercising improves your mood, helps mental accuity, and improves physical fitness. Additionally, weight loss should not be the only goal for exercise. That's why I believe crossfit really is on to something - it's a functionally based regimen that helps you in all aspects of life. By doing crossfit on a regular basis, one will feel better spritually, physically, and mentally.

Well, that's my rant. Thanks for reading!