Ok, ok, ok! SO! I finally looked at The Elimination Diet last night (couldn't help it). He lost me at "This eating plan is an all-or-nothing deal." All-or-nothing is bad news for the obsessive and eating disordered, but I'm glad I kept reading long enough to see what the meal plan is. It's mainly organic lean meat, fruits and vegetables. It's actually really simple, no counting, and not that far from the way I normally eat. HOWEVER, I really like wheat. Wheat bread, Wheaties, Wheatables, Wheat Thins, anything with wheat in the title, I'm all over. And caffeine? Hello! One needs that to function.
So, I won't be eliminating anything. I'll stick to my semi-vegetarian Precision Nutrition and just clean it up a little bit. Quit using Kit-Kats for carb portions and whatnot, maybe up the fruit and vegetable intake a bit more. I credit Precision Nutrition with saving me from years of low calories and obsessive counting, so I'll not be abandoning it to go on a diet. That would be crazy even for me.
I wasn't going to do measurements and photos, but of course I did. I'm like a moth to a bug zapper with that stuff! Not being at my leanest and feeling totally ok with it is fabulous. Not being at my leanest and seeing pictures? Holy crap! :-D
Don't worry; I still look like a fit healthy athlete. I am still in my happy range, but I'm bumping up against the top of what I consider my zone. I'd like a little more wiggle room rather than feeling like I'm one cookie away from disaster. So, I'm going to hit the kettlebells hard for 30 days and tighten up my normal eating without doing anything radical. I'm NOT going to officially enter into the KettleBelle Body competition. I'm NOT going to do anything ultra-strict like an elimination diet. All I need to do is focus a bit more, get my intentions straight, and be consistent. I can do that and still have fun.
Since I've been eating meat maybe twice a week instead of five time a day, I have not lost any lean mass! I got out the calipers today and confirmed that my muscle is not disintegrating. (See my Flexitarian Adventures post if you missed the part where I got flippin' sick of chicken a few months ago.) I'm a much happier eater when I don't pile up the animal carcasses, but back when I was a vegetarian for seven years, I got fat. I like to think that I'm smarter now and can go mostly veggie and do it right. (Tip: Don't eat bread 6-11 times per day. :-)
I ordered The Thrive Diet yesterday. It's a vegan meal plan for athletes and is supposed to be really good. I pre-ordered the paperback version that's out next month, so it will be a few weeks before I get it. I've had a couple of meals that were all raw food - fruits, vegetables, nuts - and they were good! I mean, really good, and fun to eat, and filling but in a light and happy sort of way. So, I'd like to learn more about vegan and raw food meals and include more of them in my meal plans.
