Paleo Weight Loss Mistakes

Over the years my Paleo diet has changed many times.  At the beginning I made many mistakes and from what I have read these are pretty common mistakes when your goal is weight loss.  Here are some of the most common.

1.  PALEO-IZING EVERYTHING!  Just because you can "make it Paleo".  Doesn't mean it is good or healthy for you.  Paleo pizza, Paleo cupcakes, Paleo cookies.  You can pretty much make all of your previous unhealthy foods Paleo with a google search.  Don't eat these.

2.  TOO MANY NUTS!  A lot of people think they need a snack.  Most of us don't and even if you do, nuts should be eaten sparingly.  They are super calorie rich food and so easy to overeat.  A scant handful at most, one time per day is plenty.

3.  NOT ENOUGH SLEEP!  We all know how important sleep is, but for so many reasons a lot of us are not getting enough of it.  When you deprive yourself of sleep this can make everything seem more difficult.  Two areas we as crossfitters care alot about is workout recovery and our diet for performance.  Both of these are hampered by lack of sleep.  When we are tired we are less likely to reach for those healthy foods or take the time to prepare our meals.  So shoot for a minimum of 8 hours of sleep per night.

4.  TOO MANY CARBS!  Paleo is not a low carb diet.  But when weight loss is your goal you definitely have to be careful of your carbohydrate intake.  Stick with protein, green leafy vegetables, and a little healthy fat during meals.  Fruits and tubers should probably just be eaten around your workouts (pre and post WOD).  And for those of you who do Paleo with rice.  NO RICE when weight loss is your goal.  Rice has pretty much no nutritional value and converts to sugar very quickly.  Excess energy or sugar in our bodies turns to FAT.  

5.  BUT I'M PRIMAL, I CAN TOLERATE DAIRY!  Again another very calorie rich food and little nutritional value.  STAY AWAY FROM DAIRY when weight loss is the goal.

If you would like more information on common Paleo weight loss mistakes please check out the links below.

The Caveman's Fixes for 5 Paleo Mistakes

Top 5 Common Paleo Weight Loss Mistakes

17 Reasons You're Not Losing Weight