Am I eating enough? page

[Aspiring Caveman]

Okay, so here goes. I am 6'1 and 219.5 lbs. I have been crossfitting 4X per week for the last 8 weeks and just started eating primal/paleo two weeks ago. When I started crossfitting I was about 230 so I have lost almost 11 pounds. This came off in the first 2 weeks and was probably all water. I have stalled at around 219 for a few weeks now which I don't know if it is a result of putting on muscle from crossfit or my food intake not being enough or too much? I despise counting calories and weighing things which is why I like Paleo/Primal eating. Here is a typical day for me:

Crossfit first thing

Breakfast:
Coffee-black
Banana, apple or strawberries
3 eggs
1 Chicken Sausage cooked in a tablespoon of butter (ingredients and nutrition information below of chicken sausage)
Ingredients
Skinless Chicken Meat, Salt, Lemon Juice, Spices, in a Natural Pork Casing.
10 carbs
14 protein
7 fat 160 calories

Lunch:
Typically a fairly large salad with a piece of grilled chicken (free range from Trader Joe's) and any combination of the following ingredients:
Zuchinni
Yellow Squash
Broccoli
Some Avocado
Tbls Olive Oil
Tbls Apple Cider Vinegar
Carrots
Cucumber
Tomatos

Tablespoon of Cod Liver Oil if I am not eating fish later that day

Dinner:
Can be any combination of meat and veggies such as:
Chicken breast on salad again or with roasted asparagus
TJs grass fed ground beef in tomato sauce with half an onion, some garlic and a tablespoon of olive oil for Spagehetti Squash (out of Robb Wolf's book). Usually makes 2.5-3 servings. 1 for me, 1 for the wife and one for the next day at lunch
Steak and salad

I try to keep it pretty simple because I have no time to get fancy with it (although the other day I made primal ribs which were fantastic) and I really don't want to obsess about my food. I don't like the attention it brings when people ask me why I am not eating the bread and pasta. I am not starving and my meals definitely fill me up. My pants are getting bigger and my muscles are popping out more in my upper body. I just want the gut GONE.

Let me know if any tweaking is needed.

Thank you.

AC

[noodletoy]

if, by a "piece" of chicken, you meant skinless boneless breast, you may need more protein -- you're a pretty big dude, working out.

i am a 5'2" lady and get anywhere from 80-100 gms of protein per day. looks like you're just skimming about 100 or so from above.

more fats too.

i wouldn't necessarily eat bananas and apples everyday either. berries or melon are fine a few times per week. maybe have some tubers instead if you want/need the carbs.

sadly, gut fat is the last to go.

[The Return of Dado]

What is this? Come on.

Just eat when you're hungry.

[Aspiring Caveman]

What is this? Come on.

Just eat when you're hungry.

I didn't realize questions were discouraged...

This is me working out 4 days a week, eating clean and not losing a pound. That's what this is. I eat when I am hungry and stop when I am full.

Newbie at this whole Grok thing. Just trying to get it right.

AC

[The Return of Dado]

I didn't realize questions were discouraged...

This is me working out 4 days a week, eating clean and not losing a pound. That's what this is. I eat when I am hungry and stop when I am full.

Newbie at this whole Grok thing. Just trying to get it right.

AC

Questions are not discouraged and don't take my response as indicative of the general mood of the forum.

I am Dado.

But you should learn from my responses because I have thought more about life than your entire family has in all its aggregated generations.

[CourtTuttle]

Sounds like you're about the same size I was when I started working out. I also do CrossFit and can tell you that your body is probably changing a lot. Your meal plan looks dang good for someone you're size. Noodletoy might be right in that you may need to add some protein but I'm guessing that you will start craving it more at some point.

I usually get pretty hungry four times per day and eat similar to you in each meal. If I'm hungry at 11:00 at night, I just eat again and don't care if I already had dinner. In a typical week, I eat a fourth meal probably 5 or 6 times.

Don't underestimate the amount of muscle you're going to put on doing CrossFit, especially in your legs. I lifted upper body quite a bit before CrossFit but didn't lift as much on my legs. Now, as you know, I do legs all the time at CF. Since starting CrossFit, I've only dropped about 12 total pounds but my body is totally different. My waist is really really lean now and my body fat is below 8%. Again, I haven't lost that much 'weight'.

I would highly recommend getting a measuring tape (cheaper solution) or an ultra-sound body fat analyzer (expensive but awesome). I didn't give a rip about my weight because I was losing fat. The numbers showed I was putting muscle on which is also a bonus. For me, weight is the worst thing to track.

In case you're interested, I'm now at about 194 pounds.