Paradigm

I finished reading the Paradigm Diet this week, and wanted to share some thoughts.

The pursuit is to look for foods that are completely paradigm, or the best foods to eat.  What does your body really want? How can you eat to fuel a performance?  What do different foods and macronutrients do to your body during digestion?  The answers are paradigm. 

I really did enjoy this book.  The theories are very sound, and I wish there was more information available online.  Adam Dave has a good web site and blog about the diet.  But I could use more cheat sheets about things like the typical day's eats, or a searchable recipe list.  This is the kind of book and diet plan that should  be as popular as atkin's or Paleo.  Yet there is way more information about paleo out there than there is about paradigm. 

Make no mistake about it, this guy is a bit extreme.  It's a real vegan manifesto still based on whole foods.  Nothing processed, nothing out of a box.  Nothing even with flour (processed) like pasta or bread, just whole foods.  Sweets, greens, beans, and seeds.  This post of his really explains the plan very well. 

Nothing but fruit before noon.  Breakfast?  fruit.  Lunch?  fruit.  You can blend it into a smoothie and throw in some greens or seeds if you like.  Seeds like chia or flax.  I love the days when I get to have a fruit smoothie for breakfast and another one for lunch.  If I could get enough fruit and remember to make it every night it would be even better.  That's my plan for ironman training next year.

Dinner should start with three of your favorite crunchy vegetables.  Make it like a big salad.  Throw in some more fruit if you want to.  Finish it off with a starch like potatoes, sweet potatoes, or squash.  Add in some beans.  Beans are a great source of protein.

The result is an 80/10/10 macronutrient breakdown with unlimited quantities of the healthy foods.  If you can get 3000 calories a day, go for it.  Bodyfat will just melt off.  You'll have more energy since it's all carbs.  Since these foods all digest in the intestines, there will be no problems in the bathroom.  So much of the paradigm foods are very high in water content, so you will actually be hydrated without having to drink extra water.  And you'll have to pee about 55498797 times a day. 

The bad stuff?  Meat has to be digested in the stomach by acids and enzymes.  The good enzymes die in the process of digestion, and the process generates a lot of heat and a lot of waste.  I have started to notice that if I have some meat for lunch I get really hot sitting in the cube at work about 20 minutes later.  That doesn't happen when I go all fruit for lunch.  There is no water or fiber in meat. 

Same thing with oils.  Whole olives are good, but olive oil is nothing but fat with no water, fiber, or protein.  The program isn't necessarily all raw, but if you want to cook he says to saute in a bit of veggie broth or water.  Otherwise boiling or steaming is ok.  There is no need for oil in paradigm foods.

The final thought?  I really hope this book gains more popularity.  The approach is a bit extreme, but it does work.  I have been thinking about going vegan for a while now.  The toughest thing for me to put down has to be cereal in milk for a nighttime snack.  I can't really get into a decent breakfast pattern yet either.  If I don't remember to make up a green smoothie for breakfast it's usually scrambled eggs with turkey bacon and some cheese, or another bowl of cereal.  Once I can work out a few more kinks like that it will be easy. 

Give this book a shot!  The science is sound and it is a really interesting read.  This type of diet can fully support me in ultramarathon and/or ironman training, it just takes volume.  Knowing more about how our bodies process nutrients and how plants produce them is really interesting.  This is a great read and I'm taking a lot of useful information out of it.