How long have you been eating paleo? Was it a rough or easy transition? How strict are you with staying paleo?

Tricky question. I’ve tried Paleo in the past but it’s just something that’s not convenient living in the city. For one, I don’t like to cook. So there’s that. Secondly, the premade “Paleo” compliant meals that I found in stores like Whole Foods and Trader Joes tasted awful to me. So I wasn’t on the diet at all, LOL. But now that I have Kettlebell Kitchen meals, I am able to maintain some level of the Paleo diet. It’s about 70% of my meals.

You do lots of local CrossFit competitions. Have you figured out how best to fuel yourself on those multiple-WOD days and what’s that look like?
No I haven’t quite figured out the right mix. Just when I think I have, I get a side cramp in a workout or somehow mess up the timing. But what seems to work the best for me in general is a half a banana 30 minutes before the workout and then a protein shake right afterward. The banana just before the WOD helps my energy level peak at the right momement. But this does depend on the day – sometimes I peak quickly then feel like I crash right before the WOD.

And the multiple WODs in a day thing is always tricky. But usually all comps alternate between sprint workouts and metcon workouts. So I try to make sure I fuel way far in advance for the metcon workouts and focus on getting the right amount of sugar for the sprint workouts. The multiple day thing is just a matter of repeating this process and then mobilizing after the WODs.

How does diet play a factor into your CrossFit short term and long term goals? What are you doing to your diet to achieve these goals?

My short-term goals in CrossFit revolve around increasing my mobility and my engine. So for this my coach and friends have suggested I fuel like a endurance athlete rather than cutting back on calories. Just need to make sure the volume of food matches the volume of training. Now, I can drop about 20-30 pounds on my frame – and that would help as well. So if I can keep it mostly clean, I should be able to do this without sacrificing on performance.

In the past I’ve experimented with Tim Ferris’s stack and Slow Carb diet. In the short term it helped me lose weight which helped my metcons. But long term my weight fluctuated and my metcons never got better. I’m a bit heavier than I’d like, but at least my numbers are improving!

What are your go-to items on the Kettlebell Kitchen menu?

I LOVE the new 5 day special deal. Some of them have been stunning meals. Others are ok, but I love the variety. It’s hard to get bored with that. But in terms of the core items, I love the Salmon Hash breakfast, 5 Power Block Breakfast, Roasted Turkey, and Pulled Pork Meals. And I’m SUPER excited to have Tea-Rex Paleo cookies on the site! I love her stuff.

What’s the one thing not on the KBK menu that you wish was?

I would love to see pizza covered or at least attempted. That’s the biggest cheat meal I have every week (sometimes 3 times a week!). And when I cheat with pizza I go pretty hard – like a full pie. So I’d love to see that on the menu.

How has CrossFit or the Paleo diet helped you in other areas of your life?

The CrossFit community is so supportive. Of recent I’ve been hit with a lot of instability in my life, but I’ve always been able to lean on the tight group of friends I’ve made here. It means a lot when people get worried about you when you only miss a week’s worth of practice. God forbid I ever miss more than that, I’m sure some of them would file a police report! I really appreciate all the love that we give each other. And I think Paleo is an extension of that love. Paleo potlucks, paleo weight loss competitions, etc – it’s how we all keep tabs on each other. Really love this.

We’ve been making some changes here at the Kettlebell Kitchen blog to bring you more original content so we’ve decided to switch KBK Links from every Tuesday and Thursday to every Friday instead.

Here’s today’s links!

Two Thanksgiving appetizers from PaleOMG blog
The secret to perfect hard-boiled eggs from FED blog
Calorie burner: How much better is standing up than sitting?
The REAL paleo diet
Dying life of the tribe: Photographer captures the people who are in danger of disappearing forever

Photo courtesy DailyMail article posted above:

When you talk to people who understand the importance of nutrition and diet in a holistic manner, time and time again you will hear this piece of advice: it’s not just WHAT you eat but HOW you eat. That is, someone can take in just the right quantities of food of the highest quality but still not benefit as much as they could due to circumstances beyond the “what” of their diet.

I’m not just referring to the importance of plenty of quality sleep, exercise, and overall life satisfaction (family, friends, good job, etc.), though those factors matter as well.

I’m talking about the WAY in which you eat. Do you wolf down a meal when you’re super-hungry and end up eating more than you needed to because your body didn’t get enough time to “tell” you it was full? Do you eat every workday lunch at your work desk in 10 minutes or less while absorbed in the internet? For those who live alone, do you need the TV on as your dinner companion when eating dinner at home?

Kettlebell Kitchen meals are convenient and can be eaten just as they are because they’re already fully cooked. Even if you choose to re-heat the meal, it can be done in a couple minutes in the microwave right in the microwave-safe plastic container it comes in.

But does that mean you SHOULD eat our meals that way?

I’d argue that you should NOT.

If you’re eating at work, you might feel swamped with work and that you can’t spare more than a few minutes away from said work to enjoy that meal.

But if you can’t get away for an entire lunch hour outside the office, that doesn’t mean you can’t carve out a bit more time to relax and focus on your food. Here are the steps I’d recommend:

1) Have real utensils, a plate, and a bowl that you use to re-heat and eat your food with. Yes, it takes a moment to clean up when you’re done eating, but it’s time well spent so that the meal itself FEELS like a real meal, not just a momentary food inhalation.

2) Have a friend at work who also eats in (whether they order take-out or pack a lunch)? Plan to have meals together. Share a meal with someone whose company you enjoy, even if you’re not eating the same food (though you’re more than welcome to encourage them to try KBK!).

The social aspect of eating, especially if you can avoid talking about work, primes your body to better digest what you’re eating and even has the added cognitive/mood benefits of giving your brain a break from the multitasking and constant interruption faced in the modern-day office.

So what I’m saying is…you can be MORE productive and enjoy your day better if you carve out time to just eat, preferably socially.

3) What if you’re not fond of your co-workers and have to eat alone? Practice mindful eating. Mindfulness applied to eating is just like mindfulness meditation or being mindful walking down the street. It’s not New Age hocus-pocus, it’s not religion, it’s simply PAYING ATTENTION to the sensations you’re experiencing as you eat.

The flavors and textures of the food in your mouth, the colors of the food, the heat of the tea you’re sipping, even the sound of crunching on a raw carrot-it’s amazing how much more we can be aware of when we bring our awareness to what we’re eating. Notice also if you eat slowly or quickly and instead of judging that “good” or “bad,” just notice how it feels to eat quickly or slowly.

Does the food seem more plentiful if you go slowly? Does the actual act of ingesting food seem less comfortable if you do it quickly? Just pay attention and notice.

In addition to paying attention to the food itself and the experience of eating, notice if your thoughts wander (most likely to work tasks that await you, or maybe personal stuff that’s on your mind). When your mind wanders (and it will), don’t judge yourself for it, simply notice that the mind wandered and bring yourself back to the present moment of eating, bite by bite.

If you get overwhelmed with work thoughts, you can even keep a pen and paper handy and jot down notes so that you don’t have to worry that you’ll forget what you thought. But eventually see if you can make that lunch hour (or half hour or 20 minutes) a time apart from work concerns.

Your digestion will thank you for it!

Stay tuned to the blog for more articles on this topic, covering how to make the most of your KBK meals when you’re dining at home, eating on the go, etc.