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Last time I updated this chart was Feb 10th, when I was just coming out of the Christmas carb fests and gradually working my way back to leanness and health.
March Setback
As you can see from the chart, and will know if you are a regular reader, I had a setback at the start of March when I went on an alcohol-fuelled cake rampage through Birmingham city centre and packed on about 5 lbs of water retention, fat and intestinal baggage in a single night.Keys to Success
However, since then, I have been pretty much on the straight and narrow. For me this means two things.1. Almost no alcohol.
As I discussed in the post about the March setback, the only thing I can't resist after a glass of wine, is another. So if I am feeling weak, which after the Christmas binges I still was, it's a recipe for trouble.
2. No post-dinner nuts.
I love nuts. I am convinced I could live on them. I could eat them all day. The trouble is, they are so nice, I gorge; and despite research suggesting that they can actually help you lose weight, I am pretty sure that my post-dinner nut guzzling goes beyond the applicability of those findings.
As you can see from the chart, this policy has been successful. You can see the steady decline of my weight from February so that I am now almost back to my pre-Christmas composition. Although it's not clear from the chart whether I have gained or lost muscle, I know I am a little stronger in the gym, which is the important thing.
I still have the odd glass of wine when I am feeling strong, and still eat nuts with lunch or breakfast, but have avoided the scenarios that lead to gluttony.
Paleo/Primal Rationale
I feel as if the last 8 weeks have been a more model Paleo/Primal routine. My focus has been very much on eating lots of wild or grass-fed meat/fish. If I am greedy, it is with vegetables and meat, not nuts.To me this makes sense as an extension to the rationale that we cannot regulate our consumption of sweet foods because they were scare when we were evolving so we didn't need to. How often would we have free access to handfuls of nuts?
When I restrict myself to foods we would have more ready access to like vegetables and meat (I am speculating a little here, I know) my appetite appears to regulate better and with twice-weekly fasting it leads to improving body composition.
Cordain on Nuts
I will now relax a little, but probably stick with the post-dinner nuts rule for a while. This excellent interview with Loren Cordain on Jimmy Moore's Podcast show does cast some doubt on the status of nuts, so whilst I do think they are a fantastic food, I should perhaps moderate my intake a little and continue to avoid throwing them back by the handful.Previous body composition updates:
November 08
February 09
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