Doing a little challenge at my gym - need diet advice

[Sho'Nuff]

So as many of you know I have become a crossfit junkie. Say what you will about CF but it has worked wonders for me.

Anyway I have decided to participate in the 2015 "beast mode" challenge that my CF box is hosting. The competition starts today and is basically structured as follows.

Competition lasts for 6 weeks
2 man teams
$50 per person buy in
Prior to the start of the challenge, record a bunch of 1RM and best times for a variety of lifts, runs, etc.
Eat in accordance with a nutrition guide (see below)
Each time you violate the nutrition guide = 1 cheat point.
Over the course of the last 2 weeks, re-do the same lifts, runs, etc. Each lift/run that you improved on = 1 positive point.
Team score = #positive points - cheat points for both partners.
Team with the highest score wins 2/3 of the pot (in this case, ~$500 per person.

The nutrition guide basically specifies a "paleo light" diet. Basically no cheese, bread, or starchy/sugary vegetables, with the exception of rice and potato which are allowed in small amounts (<4oz daily). Also cannot have refined sugar of any kind, milk, and certain legumes.

The workouts are not a problem, but the diet aspect is presenting a real challenge. Since you all are a bunch of health nuts, I thought I would ask you for your favorite low carb, high protein meals. I could also use some suggestions for snacks other than fruits and nuts.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Kaido]

My diet is more or less paleo (due to food allergies, no dairy or gluten). Basic meal plan right now:

http://catch42.pbworks.com/w/page/78929159/Meal Plan

Energy bites might make good snacks for you:

http://catch42.pbworks.com/w/page/84297007/Energy Bites

Fruit bars are pretty good if you want something off-the-shelf. That's It Fruit Bars & Trader Joe's make pretty good flavors:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2337267

Some starter ideas:

1. Frittata (basically a scrambled eggs in a muffin tin with veggies & meat)
2. Meatloaf (paleo versions typically use almond flour)
3. Chicken cutlet (magic trick is here, flavor ideas here)
4. Tuna & mayo with some kind of chips or faux-bread (you can make pretty good flatbread out of chickpea flour)
5. Beef & bean chili (slow cooker)

Have you had spaghetti squash before? That's an easy one to throw in a stir-fry or with paleo meatballs (again, almond flour).

 

[z1ggy]

And what reason do they give you to keep carbs low as shit right before you have a big lifting meeting? That seems dumb as hell.

The hell are you supposed to eat?

 

[blackdogdeek]

Here is my log from when I did 30 days of strict paleo:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2261360

 

[Sho'Nuff]

My diet is more or less paleo (due to food allergies, no dairy or gluten). Basic meal plan right now:

http://catch42.pbworks.com/w/page/78929159/Meal Plan

Energy bites might make good snacks for you:

http://catch42.pbworks.com/w/page/84297007/Energy Bites

Fruit bars are pretty good if you want something off-the-shelf. That's It Fruit Bars & Trader Joe's make pretty good flavors:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2337267

Some starter ideas:

1. Frittata (basically a scrambled eggs in a muffin tin with veggies & meat)
2. Meatloaf (paleo versions typically use almond flour)
3. Chicken cutlet (magic trick is here, flavor ideas here)
4. Tuna & mayo with some kind of chips or faux-bread (you can make pretty good flatbread out of chickpea flour)
5. Beef & bean chili (slow cooker)

Have you had spaghetti squash before? That's an easy one to throw in a stir-fry or with paleo meatballs (again, almond flour).

Thanks, will check those out. The chili option sounds particularly appetizing. I have a great recipe from which I could easily remove the beans. The chicken breast ideas are good too. I think I will be eating quite a bit of grilled chicken over the next few weeks.

 

[Sho'Nuff]

Here is my log from when I did 30 days of strict paleo:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2261360

Thanks dude.

 

[Sho'Nuff]

Here is the full nutrition guide if anyone is interested. Sorry for the formatting - I just cut and pasted from an excel spreadsheet.

Beef YES
Game meats YES
Pork YES
Poultry YES
Fish YES
Shellfish YES
Bacon cured with sugar NO
Deli & cured meats with nitrates or artificial ingredients NO
VEGETABLES & LEGUMES
Most vegetables (see below) YES
Legumes (except soybean) YES
Sweet Potatoes YES
Potatoes (use sparingly) YES
Corn NO
Soy NO
Taro NO
Yucca NO
FRUITS
All fresh fruit YES
Dried fruit with no added sugar YES
NUTS, SEEDS, FATS & OILS
Nuts - butters, milks, nut "flours" YES
Avocado YES
Coconut - flakes, milk, flour, aminos YES
Most cooking oil (except below) YES
Animal Fats (e.g. butter, lard, duck fat, tallow) YES
Corn oil, soy oil, vegetable oil NO
GRAINS, STARCHES, CORN & SOY
Sweet Potatoes YES
Yams YES
Almond Flour, Coconut Flour YES
Buckwheat YES
Oats & Oatmeal YES
Rice (brown, white or wild) YES
Quinoa YES
Amaranth YES
Soy, fermented (tamari, miso, tempeh) YES
Potatoes YES
Corn, fresh NO
Soy, unfermented (tofu, soy sauce, edamame, beans) NO
Tortillas (flour, whole wheat, corn) NO
Corn, popped NO
Yucca, taro, arrowroot powder, tapioca starch NO
Pasta (All types - wheat, rice, etc.) NO
Flours of any non-compliant grain NO
Bread, flat breads, naan, etc. NO
SWEETENERS, SUGAR, CANDY, DESSERT
Agave YES
Coconut Sugar YES
Gum / Mints YES
Stevia YES
Sugar / Sweetener as ingredient in store or restaurant bought prepared foods (e.g broths or fresh meals) NO
Artificial Sweeteners (e.g. Nutrasweet, Splenda, Equal) NO
Sugar / Sweetener as ingredient in dessert, baked goods, oatmeal, home recipes, etc. NO
Flavored coffee drinks (e.g. mochas, syrups) NO
Candy, Chocolate NO
DAIRY
Butter YES
Yogurt or Kefir (unsweetened) YES
Whey Protein YES
Milk, sour cream, cottage cheese NO
Cheese NO
BEVERAGES
Water YES
Carbonated Water YES
Coffee - NO MORE than 2 cups daily YES
Tea or Kombucha YES
Lemon or lime juice (fresh squeezed only) YES
Coconut Water (unsweetened) YES
Vegetable Juice (homemade & low sodium if possible) YES
Fruit Puree (homemade if possible) YES
Wine or Spirits 3 per week
Cooking with alcohol YES
Fruit Juice NO
Soda (regular, diet) NO
Beer NO
JUNK FOOD, ARTIFICIAL & OTHER INGREDIENTS
Sweet Potato Fries, Sweet Potato Chips, Veggie Chips YES
Citric Acid, Calcium Chloride, Yeast YES
Xanthan gum & guar gum YES
MSG, nitrates/nitrites, benzoates, hydrogenated oils NO
Artificial colors and flavors NO
Potato chips, corn chips and french fries NO

 

[Sho'Nuff]

And what reason do they give you to keep carbs low as shit right before you have a big lifting meeting? That seems dumb as hell.

The hell are you supposed to eat?

Carbs are not verboten. Just certain sources of carbs. I think the idea is to try and get participants to "eat clean." Not to totally avoid carbs.

For example - Fresh fruits (loaded with carbs) are fine. Carbs from bread and certain grains = not ok.

 

[Sho'Nuff]

One more thing - can anyone suggest any egg free breakfast meals? I got horribly ill from eggs about 6 months ago and ever since I cannot even be in the same room when they are being cooked. The smell of them makes me want to retch. Obviously meats like bacon or (natural) sausage are on the table, but what else rounds out your breakfast plate besides fruit?

 

[blackdogdeek]

Looks like you can do oatmeal for breakfast. What's the story on honey?

 

[Kaido]

And what reason do they give you to keep carbs low

It's just a fun gym challenge he's doing.

Although, I am useless without carbs

 

[Kaido]

Thanks, will check those out. The chili option sounds particularly appetizing. I have a great recipe from which I could easily remove the beans. The chicken breast ideas are good too. I think I will be eating quite a bit of grilled chicken over the next few weeks.

This is my "perfect" chicken breast procedure:

1. Buy fresh boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Make sure they do not have broth (or water) added (doesn't cook out right using this procedure).

2. Trim off any cartilage with a sharp knife. The yellow one from this $25 knife kit is the best I've ever used for this purpose.

3. Put in a Zipbag bag & pound flat with a rolling pin (not a meat hammer). I usually go down to about 1/4" thick. The rolling pin does a much better job of not breaking up the meat fibers, so you can get a whole chicken piece that is simply flattened rather than shattered & broken.

4. Pre-heat a cast-iron pan to Medium on the stove. A 10" or 12" Lodge will do. This one for $27 includes a silicone handle cover (bonus: makes the best steak I've ever had, a la Alton Brown's combo skillet/oven method).

5. Spray one side with Pam & place onto the skillet. Set timer for 7 minutes. Spray top with Pam, flip, another 7 minutes (or 8 minutes if it's a bit thicker). That's it!

Optionally add lemon juice for an extra-fresh flavor, as well as salt & pepper. From here, you can do anything:

1. Grilled chicken sandwich. This procedure makes the chicken both soft AND juicy, like a McDonald's grill chicken sandwich, which is a million times better than dry chicken.

2. Simple chicken cutlet. Eat alone with a sauce (honey mustard, BBQ, etc.) or on top of noodles, zoodles, or spaghetti squash.

3. Slice it up in strips for a salad.

4. Optionally fry it up with a crust. I use potato flour & coconut flour sometimes. You can use almond flour. Cornflakes. Anything really.

It's a very simple procedure, but it's changed my chicken game in amazing ways. All I ate was "struggle chicken" before (unless I had time to grill it or put it in the crockpot). I often make this daily because it's so good & I don't get sick of it due to the way it's cooked, along with a microwaved sweet potato (poke holes in it with a fork or knife, microwave for 5 minutes, flip the sweet potato, cook for another 2 to 4 minutes depending on the size, then let it steam itself in its skin for 10 minutes or so to soften up a bit more). On the sweet potato side, throw some coconut oil (let the heat from the potato melt it down) & sea salt, +1 for yumminess, or just use garlic salt. Chopped onions & jalepenos are also good. Chicken + sweet potatoes are a big staple in my diet :thumbsup:

 

[blackdogdeek]

I make my pan-seared chicken breast similarly but I'm obviously much lazier than you, Kaido.

1. take chicken out of pack
2. dry chicken
3. liberally sprinkle salt and black pepper on chicken
4. preheat cast iron pan on high
5. put extra light olive oil in pan and wait for it to just start to smoke
6. put in chicken
7. flip chicken every minute or so until it feels done (for me "done" means that I can split the breast by pressing down with the closed tongs)
8. eat

 

[z1ggy]

It's just a fun gym challenge he's doing.

Although, I am useless without carbs

meh, n/m I wrote out a rant about low carb in the body before sporting events, but screw it.

OP will get his answer and doesn't need my ranting. GL on the meet.

 

[Kaido]

I make my pan-seared chicken breast similarly but I'm obviously much lazier than you, Kaido.

1. take chicken out of pack
2. dry chicken
3. liberally sprinkle salt and black pepper on chicken
4. preheat cast iron pan on high
5. put extra light olive oil in pan and wait for it to just start to smoke
6. put in chicken
7. flip chicken every minute or so until it feels done (for me "done" means that I can split the breast by pressing down with the closed tongs)
8. eat

Give the ziploc pounding trick a try (or use saran wrap or a plastic grocery bag or whatever you have), especially if you already have a cast iron pan...makes a big difference in cooking evenly & being juicy. Medium for 7 minutes per side does it for me...no pink, nice crispy outside thanks to the Pam, juicy on the inside :thumbsup:

 

[Sho'Nuff]

Looks like you can do oatmeal for breakfast. What's the story on honey?

Will have to ask. That and maple syrup are two major "paleo friendly" sweeteners that are not addressed in the nutrition guide. I suspect they might be ok but low sugar is a focus of the diet.

 

[blackdogdeek]

Give the ziploc pounding trick a try (or use saran wrap or a plastic grocery bag or whatever you have), especially if you already have a cast iron pan...makes a big difference in cooking evenly & being juicy. Medium for 7 minutes per side does it for me...no pink, nice crispy outside thanks to the Pam, juicy on the inside :thumbsup:

Oh, I use enough extra light olive oil that mine seem to always be juicy. I'm essentially frying them.

 

[blackdogdeek]

Will have to ask. That and maple syrup are two major "paleo friendly" sweeteners that are not addressed in the nutrition guide. I suspect they might be ok but low sugar is a focus of the diet.

Kaido has some recipes for wheat-free tortillas. You could chop up some turkey sausage and/or bacon and saute it with some veggies like peppers and onions and then make a breakfast burrito with it.

 

[smackababy]

You guys are way more friendly when it comes to chicken. I literally buy 5 boneless, skinless breasts; throw some salt, pepper, herbs, and a bit of olive oil on them; and bake them on Sunday nights. Dinner for the week. =) But, when cutting, I am far more forgiving of taste / repetition than most.

 

[Kaido]

Oh, I use enough extra light olive oil that mine seem to always be juicy. I'm essentially frying them.

Oh, gotcha. Yeah, that makes a difference!

 

[Kaido]

Kaido has some recipes for wheat-free tortillas. You could chop up some turkey sausage and/or bacon and saute it with some veggies like peppers and onions and then make a breakfast burrito with it.

Oh yeah:

http://stupideasypaleo.com/2013/08/23/simple-paleo-tortillas/

 

[Sho'Nuff]

Holy frig this diet is tough. Can't eat 95% of what is available in a grocery store! Gah! And yesterday I felt as though I literally wanted to gnaw my arm off between lunch and dinner. Ran out of snacks and had to work late. Was not a happy camper.

On the plus side, I am losing weight again. Down ~2.5 lbs over the last 5 days. Doubt its water weight because I am drinking ~1.5 gallons a day. Diet has me really thirsty for some reason. And yes, I am supplementing a little bit to ensure my potassium and sodium levels don't get all out of wack.

 

[blackdogdeek]

I'm pretty sure that when you severely cut down on carbs you lose a lot of water weight in the first several days. It's what usually happens to me.

Yeah, at the grocery store you end up only shopping around the perimeter as opposed to down the aisles.

What did you have for lunch yesterday? When I was doing a similar diet I would eat a rotisserie chicken breast with veggies and oil/vinegar at lunch and then eat the leg and thigh with more veggies and oil/vinegar about 3 hours later. Then I'd have dinner when I got home. So, I was essentially eating 2 lunches. I found it pretty much imperative to eat every 3 to 4 hours. Do you have a fridge at work? I used to keep packaged cold cuts (the kind that you can reseal) in there for times when I was sick of cashews and had a while before dinner.

 

[Sho'Nuff]

Yesterday I grilled up a few chicken breasts before work and ate them both for lunch with a garden salad (mixed greens, onions, a few cherry tomatoes) and balsamic vineger (sweetener free). Had some trail mix and homemade paleo bites (almond butter, raisins, flax meal, and unsweetened coconut). For dinner my wife made rosemary chicken and sweet potatoes. Had a few strawberries for dessert.

I'm finding that following this diet is all about preparation. There are few if any foods that you can buy at the store and eat immediately. With the exception of fruits and veggies of course.

I would do the cold cuts thing if they were allowed on the diet. But alas, they are forbidden. On the plus side this morning I asked the trainer running the competition whether honey and maple syrup are OK, and she said yes. That was the best news I had heard in days. Went home after working out and made a really nice oatmeal - steel cut oats, some almonds, a few raisins, and a little bit of maple syrup. Best breakfast I've had in days.

 

[blackdogdeek]

You should add olive oil to your salad to stay satiated longer. Any meal which you know will precede a long interval until your next meal should have significant fat content.

I think the mistake most people make when doing similar low carb diets is that they eat their normal diet but just drop the carbs. You need to up the fat and protein otherwise you'll feel awful.

Also, McDonald's has pretty mediocre salads but you can always just get them for the grilled chicken and the veggies if you're in a bind. In fact, most fast food places have some kind of bland salad option.