Putting on weight, low energy, really need help !! :) page

[Savayla]

Hi. I have been primal for almost 4 months now. I was gluten free for years, and for the past year, grain free except for white rice and potatoes, which I had about once a week. My problem is that since going Primal, I have put on weight, almost 1 kg a month !! And it tends to be fat around my things, hips and bum, and for the first time in my life, I have fat on my stomach.

I have never put on weight, in the past 22 years. I was 46 kg, 5 ft 4 . I now weigh 52 kg and don't like it. The fat, that is.

I have been attending some meetings on primal diet and whenever I mention the fact that I am hungry, or feel nausea or no energy, I was told to eat fat. So I did. Butter, frying in tallow, etc. But instead of burning fat I am getting fat.

I also thought it may be too much protein so have cut back on the nuts, stopped baking coconut flour muffins and almond meal crackers. Also eating less meat, which I never had to avoid before.

I so believe in this diet , as does my husband, but it is scaring me at the moment and I have started dropping the fat and increased my exercise.

I am not doing 3-5 hours slow movement a week. I average only 1-2 hours a week, plus 1 sprint session a week, and about 2-3 20 minute sessions of cardio workout like push ups, squats, etc etc.

Where am I going wrong ?

[InSearchOfAbs]

Some of us here have found that adding more fat is not the answer, so we follow
a lower fat primal diet.

Not ZERO FAT, but lower.

We don't shy away from fat that's found naturally in primal foods, however,
adding a crapton of fat "just to get the fat" is off the table.

I think I, personally, average about 40 fat grams a day, and that's what works for me.

Good deal on backing off the nuts, coconut flour and almond meal.

Stick to foods that don't have an ingredients list or a package, up your carbs from
real sources, and try cutting back on *added* fat.

Let us know how it goes!

Julie

[reallygravity]

What kind of "fat" have you been eating? If you are eating things like coconut meal, almond flour, and other such stuff, yap--there is the enemy. Grok didnt have access to ground almond flour, such could be consumed in such an easy way! Things like this is what we over-do, and yap, naturally, gain weight.

Also nuts--if you are eating by the bag-fuls, thats a problem.

[Savayla]

I guess you don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that if you are eating lots of fat, you are going to get fat. I just kept on being told at our meetings to eat lots of fat. To have the fat literally lying in a pool on your casseroles, make mayo with butter, etc.

So, I was frying all my fried foods in tallow, eating lots of home made mayo made with oil and the last batch with butter, adding thick toppings of butter to everything.

Don't actually know how much nuts I was consuming as the bag was in the cupboard and every time I walked past I would grab a few. As I work from home, that cupboard gets passed a lot

I was making my own almond crackers and muffins, don't buy packaged biscuits at all.

Another point regarding the protein which I have been told could be causing my weight gain. I worked out that for my weight, I must only be eating 41 g of protein. Marks BAS Bad Ass Salad is 37 gm of protein. So there is all my protein for the day, and I haven't even had the lamb chop for dinner or the eggs for breakfast.

[LauraSB]

When I started eating primal, I was counting calories (still am) so I was very aware of which foods were expensive in terms of a calorie budget. Primal baked goods are the worst! They are typically higher in calories than wheat-based baked goods and I find I can suck them down just as fast. There a couple of things the kids like that I will make, but personally, I stay away from them.

[Damiana]

Mindlessly adding fat is not the answer for everyone. I am your height and I can sympathize. It's easy for us shorties to pack on the pounds without consciously counting higher calorie dense food consumption. I don't eat much fat myself when preparing foods, if I feel like I need to consume extra fat, I will eat a few tablespoon of butter or coconut oil, but I don't use much fat in my food prep and I never fry my food.

[Scott F]

To a hunter/gatherer like grok fat was a precious commodity. In that I tend towards Nora Gedgaudas' eat just enough saturated fat to satisfy your appetite. Nut fats don't seem to satisfy me anything like animal fats. Keep in mind, too, that grok was eating a lot of nuts this time of year an putting on fat for winter months. Do you use any sugars, including honey, maple syrup, agave, etc?

[Damiana]

Ok I just noticed you are baking with coconut flours and such. That is not helping, while technically primal, that's like replacing one bad choice with a slightly better one for weight gain. The point is to eat whole foods, not to find primal replacements for them. It's like if you turned vegetarian and ate soy meat instead of vegetables.

[Savayla]

I do drink wine every night. I don't use sugars, except for stevia if it calls for it. The only time I use honey is if I am baking . I do have some chocolate now and again, but not like I used to.

I think it is all the added fat.

[Savayla]

I upped my baking when I started my daughters, aged 10 and 12, on Primal , as I saw that they were always hungry and attacking the fruit bowl with a vengeance.