Cavewomen Don't Get Fat (10 page)

Probably the most controversial aspect of the Paleo Chic diet is that I advocate cutting out all grains. (And you thought you'd just have to give up sweets!) Yes, you heard right: if you're going to really eat like a cavewoman, you have let go of all of the neocarbs. Neocarbs are postagricultural carbs and include all mass-cultivated grains, such as wheat, corn, oats, and rye. We're in an age when we're confronted with a host of illnesses that are the direct result of our love affair with neocarbs, and these include gluten intolerance, Celiac disease, and, of course, obesity.

Our cavewoman ancestors were hunter-gatherers, and so the carbs they ate—the true Paleocarbs—included fruits and vegetables that grew seasonally and in the wild, as well as roots and tubers. Modern-day equivalents include yams, sweet potatoes, squashes, jicamas, and Jerusalem artichokes, to name just a few. Once you try them, you'll see how satisfying and delicious they are.

It's not easy to give grains and gluten the old heave-ho, especially if you've been eating them all your life. Let's face it: grains taste good and have long been some of our favorite comfort foods.
But if you're ready to make significant changes in how you eat and how you look, then they have to go. I know how hard this can be. I've been there. It took me years to reach where I am now, because I wasn't emotionally or physically ready for it in my twenties. Start by making small adjustments. Have a Paleo breakfast every day, eat greens at every meal, or skip the sweets for one week. You will soon feel better, and that will keep you on the path to Paleo Chic.

Back in the early days of growing grains, farmers harvested grains mellowed in the fields for several weeks before they were threshed and beaten to separate the grains and seeds from the stalks. This gave the seeds time to sprout and even ferment, which reduced the phytic acid content and made the grains easier to digest. Nowadays, grains are grown using crazy steroid-like, biologically engineered methodologies (Would you like some delicious genetic modification with your bread, popcorn, or rice?), and as soon as they're “ready” (whatever that means), they're harvested, sent into whatever high-processing factory they're destined for, sprinkled with chemical fairy dust (sugars, preservatives), and boxed up in pretty packages that we find irresistible.

But with all of this dazzling advancement has come our greatest and most far-reaching health woes. Going Paleo, pushing past all of those glitzy grains, will lead you out of the food wilderness, and you'll find yourself standing on a verdant plain, feeling your absolute best.

Gluten is the protein found in wheat and other grains that is essential for the process of leavening. (Leavening is when the gases held within grains are released and lets dough ferment.) Gluten breaks down the microvilli that line our guts and allow for the efficient absorption of food in the small intestine. When these fingerlike projections become damaged or destroyed, we experience
uncomfortable and distressing symptoms such as bloating, gas, pain, constipation, and diarrhea. If the damage is severe, we might succumb to a condition called “leaky gut syndrome,” which is when the contents of the intestines—food particles and toxins—actually leak out of the bowel and into our bloodstream. This can then trigger a host of autoimmune conditions. (When under siege like this, our body will go into “fight” mode and will try to rid itself of these irritants.) Other autoimmune diseases exacerbated by gluten consumption are Crohn's disease, lupus, and multiple sclerosis. Studies show that cutting gluten from the diet lessens the severity of these very serious conditions.

Lectins, tiny proteins that are ubiquitous in nature (yup, they're inside of all of us), are found in all plants, particularly legumes, as well as in animals. These sugar- (carb-) binding, potent fungicides protect seeds from molds and insects. Think about that for a moment: lectins are basically naturally occurring pesticides. When we eat foods that are high in lectins, we are, in essence, eating a toxin, and lectin overload aggravates a number of health problems, including Crohn's, colitis, irritable bowel syndrome, Hashimoto's thyroiditis, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, and arthritis. Ingesting too much lectin can also cause depression, as serotonin is actually secreted in the intestines.

Most globally, lectin contributes to weight gain by disrupting the body's ability to break down and metabolize glucose. (Remember, lectin is a sugar-seeking protein.) When this happens, the hormone insulin can't do its job and, once again, we pack on the pounds.

Lectin also blocks the healthy flow of digestive hormones and makes metabolizing lectin-rich foods (legumes, soy, green peas, corn, potatoes, and especially wheat germ) tricky. Lectins can
increase our appetite, make us feel bloated and out of whack, and mess with the body's ability to extract nutrients efficiently. That's why any weight-loss program that even suggests a moderate to high amount of carbohydrates (especially modern grains) will set you up for failure.

The double-whammy of gluten and lectin intolerances leaves many feeling fatigued, fat, and out of sorts. Although there are tests for gluten and lectin intolerance, I suggest to my clients that they just give these foods a rest for a month or so and see how they feel. Many see and feel remarkable changes: increased regularity, less bloating and gas, and a feeling of being sated and even-keeled in such a short amount of time. They quickly get the message of how invasive and annoying gluten and lectins are.

Here is a quick hit-list of high-gluten, high-lectin foods to avoid:

Amaranth

Barley

Beans and legumes

Corn

High-fructose corn syrup

Kamut

Millet

Oats

Rye

Quinoa

Soy

Spelt

Wheat

Instead, stock your cave with these gluten-free, lectin-free Paleo Chic carbs:

Leafy green (especially dark) vegetables

Jerusalem artichokes

Jicamas

Low-sugar fruits: berries, peaches, plums, apricots, oranges, plantains, grapefruits, apples, pears, cantaloupes

Shirataki mushroom pasta

Spaghetti squash

Sweet potatoes or yams

Taros

Winter squashes

If you can make the leap and go all-out Paleo for just one month, I can guarantee that you'll get such an amazing glimpse at your glamorous, irresistible new self that you will never, ever want to go back to your old way of eating.

H
ere's the nitty-gritty on the Paleo Chic plan: protein is the new superfood. You heard right: protein is the mother of all macronutrients when it comes to being lean, strong, and healthy.

I have no clue why my very savvy, smart clients have a lot of resistance to eating protein—especially to eating meat.

I hear all kinds of crazy, messed-up thinking when it comes to why women shy away from eating more protein, including things such as:

“Won't eating protein bulk me up?” Actually, sweetheart, eating protein will slim you down.

“Doesn't red meat cause cancer and heart disease?” Actually, eating grass-fed, hormone-free beef can provide your body with necessary nutrients that can help to prevent heart disease and certain cancers.

“Won't I be hungry if I eat more meat and cut back on my carbs?” This is the one that drives me crazy because it's protein—
protein
—that best satisfies us and eliminates hunger.

Proteins are, quite literally, the building blocks of life. They are made up of long chains of amino acids. Dietary protein, found in meat, eggs, poultry, and fish, is essential for the body to function, because we don't produce all the amino acids we need and must ingest them.

Proteins make up a big part of who we are. Nearly 50 percent of our “dry” cell weight is protein. It plays a key role in so many of our vital metabolic processes, such as digestion, heart health (protein builds the heart muscle!), and muscle and cell regeneration—all of the things that make us strong, fit, and vital.

The beauty of protein as a nutritional superfood is its slow delivery. Proteins don't shock or overtax our systems the way carbs do. Instead, they immediately go to work by triggering the production of hormones that release key digestive enzymes, providing a sense of satiety, and working to restore cellular health.

Most forms of protein aren't convenience foods that you can toss into your handbag, but, calorie for calorie, protein packs a huge wallop in comparison to the same number of calories you'd get in carbohydrates. For instance, 6 ounces of salmon can have the same calories as a large chocolate chip cookie, but the metabolic consequences are entirely different.

How much protein should you eat every day? A good formula is to aim for at least 1 ounce per pound of body weight. So if you weigh 150 pounds, eat 150 grams of protein a day. There are 7 grams of protein in an ounce, so 150 grams of protein equals 21 ounces per day. This means that you can eat an average of 5 ounces at meals, and another 2 to 3 ounces for each snack.

A slew of recent studies shows that most women ages eighteen to forty-five (a good chunk of the population, in other words) aren't eating the recommended daily minimum of protein in their diets.

What?

You heard right. The US Department of Agriculture suggests conservatively that every woman's diet should include at least 10 percent to 15 percent of lean protein. That's far less than the 25 percent that many health organizations recommend. Studies have found that a diet consisting of 25 percent lean protein will lower blood pressure, improve cholesterol and triglyceride (fats in the blood) levels, and will boost key levels of nutrients such as iron, vitamin D, and calcium in women, thereby protecting us from osteoporosis (bone density loss), diabetes, and other diseases. Oh, and a high-protein diet also helps us lose weight.

And contrary to some popular myths, protein is not difficult on our systems. The minute that protein hits your tongue, it starts to work its magic by spreading the message throughout your body that it is being well fed and that all “starvation” concerns are now being addressed. Your metabolism begins to work optimally when you ingest protein—including your fat-burning processes!

Studies also show that making protein up to 30 percent of our daily intake means that we eat, on average, 450 fewer calories a day. This kind of radical reduction in calorie intake can lead to pretty dramatic weight loss—in the range of, say, a pound a week. And this is without making any other significant lifestyle changes. (No added exercise, no other dietary tweaks.) Now we're cooking with gas!

These studies also show that front-loading the day with a big dose of protein at breakfast (think 4 to 5 ounces) is the best way to jump-start those weight-shedding mechanisms. Eating animal protein for breakfast also does wonders for your blood sugar levels. Once you start eating some meat, fish, or poultry to break that overnight fast, that three-in-the-afternoon energy crash becomes a thing of the past.

Not all proteins carry the desired amino acid punch your body
needs. Just as there are good carbs and bad carbs, some proteins are better for you than others. Our Paleo ancestors were onto something when they opted for meat over, say, legumes, because not all plant-based proteins carry the nine amino acids our bodies need to produce lean muscle. Believe it or not, the most ab-friendly, belly-busting proteins are flesh proteins: pastured poultry, wild seafood, and grass-fed meats.

Eating protein sends a strong signal to your brain's hypothalamus that you are no longer hungry—even a significant amount of time after you've ingested some protein. You can snort a line of chocolate chips and inhale all the potato chips you want, but neither one will make a dent in the hunger signals sent to your brain. Most women tend to crave and binge on carbs, but I've never had a client who binges on steak. Protein comes to the rescue, which offers our bodies a calming, sustained sense of satisfaction, and so our relationship to feeling hungry changes dramatically. Often when we crave starches at meals and sweets for dessert, we actually just need to increase our protein, quality fats, and fibers.

Getting an adequate amount of healthful protein daily also prompts your brain to produce the right mix of neurotransmitters to keep your mental focus razor-sharp. And starting your day with a protein-rich meal—two eggs and some turkey bacon—triggers the release of all sorts of happy chemicals, so you'll begin your workday feeling fit and energized.

You aren't going to get those taut, responsive muscles that you lust for if you don't eat enough protein, which provides the essential nutrients that allow the body to continuously fine-tune your cells and muscles. This, I know, seems to fly in the face of that old-time
advice to load up on carbs in advance of a big workout or sporting event. Wrong. Eating protein—a vegetable omelet or a leftover steak—an hour before working out will give you the edge at the gym or on the playing field. Protein is your inner warrior goddess's best bet when it comes to being the lean, mean, fighting machine you yearn to be.

The principles for eating healthy proteins are the same as for produce: look for locally raised, ethically farmed, and organically nourished products. If you're going to become a cavewoman, then you're going to have to eat meat, fish, game, and eggs. Pastured cows (and sheep, and pigs, for that matter) provide the healthiest, most nutritious meat we can buy. Buffalo, elk, rabbit, ostrich, and bison also fit the bill. These animals get to roam around, take in the fresh air and sun, and feed on the native grasses and plants in the pastures.