Okay. You're all sold on the philosophy of the caveman diet written about here right? You're all sold on the science behind why it works written about here right? So now it's time to get to the specifics of the plan. What you've all been waiting for. In this post is going to do the following:

A. list the 5 goals of the TTT Caveman Diet
B. list foods that are acceptable to eat on the caveman diet
C. list foods/substances that are not acceptable on the diet
D. Introduce to the concept of "TTT caveman mixing and matching"
E. Give specific examples of what I eat and how you can start to make meals based on this philosophy
F. dispel false concerns that may arise around this philosophy of eating

A. list the 5 goals of the TTT Caveman Diet
1. Normalize your insulin levels and keep them low by eating between 50-150 grams of carbs per day
2. Maximize nutrition content by eating a lot of live foods
3. Balance out the omega 3 and 6 ratio while getting plenty of good fats
4. Optimize amino acid quality and quantity
5. Make it taste good and eat until you're comfortably full



1. Normalize your insulin levels and keep them low by eating between 50-150 grams of carbs per day
I write extensively about this here and here. If you're serious about losing fat this is the TICKET. This is IT. Keep in mind, that paleo-anthropologists suggest that our ancestors consumed, on average, only about 80 grams of carbohydrates a day. Keeping your carb levels between 50 grams per day and 150 grams per day will get you lean. It just depends on how quickly you'd like it to happen. Here's a chart that shows what I'm talking about:


2. Maximize nutrition content by eating a lot of live foods
Eat vegetables!!! TONS of them. Eat a variety of them. Eat fruits (within the context of your carb range). Also, take a quality vitamin, mineral, and antioxidant supplement. The goal is to be HEALTHY as well as lean. Vegetables and fruits are ticket. NOT enriched food.

3. Balance out the omega 3 and 6 ratio while getting plenty of good fats
Eat fish! As often as possible. Eat GRASS fed meats as often as possible. Get ground flax seeds as well. Sprinkle flax on salads, eggs, etc. Gives your meals texture and they're actually tastes really good. Also, take a quality fish oil, cod liver oil, or krill oil supplement. Use olive oil for your salads. Use coconut oil. Use organic butter. Absolutely avoid transfats like the plague. It will kill you, seriously. Avoid mainly polyunsaturated fats, such as corn, soybean, sunflower, safflower and other vegetable oils. Their popularity arose from the widespread belief that saturated fats and cholesterol cause heart disease. This is absolutely NOT TRUE.

4. Optimize amino acid quality and quantity
Make sure you're getting enough protein. I try to get around 1 gram per pound of body weight (195 lbs so around 195 grams). This isn't some hard science rule, it's a principle/guideline, it can be broken but aim for it. To do this, I focus on having a source of protein with every meal (eggs, meat, nuts, etc.). Also, get a NATURAL whey protein if you'd like. I don't recommend doing whey more then once or twice a day (best around workout times).

5. Make it taste good and eat until you're comfortably full
Don't worry, eating caveman style is actually very tasty. The best part about it: it's not about counting calories or micro analyzing your portions. Eat til you're COMFORTABLY full. Being comfortably full means the hunger feeling is gone, yet you could still be up for a run. Don't stuff yourself silly. Use common sense and your intuition.

Use any sort of seasonings/condiments that come from the food sources listed below. Also, cook with saturated fats (butter or coconut oil is my choice usually). Saturated fats stay stable at high heat. Non-saturated don't, which makes them go rancid and creates free radicals that you consume (not good). Eat foods on the list that you LIKE. But again, get as many live foods as possible.

B. list foods that are acceptable to eat on the caveman diet
Eating caveman style is about PRINCIPLES. If you like onions, eat onions. If you hate onions, don't eat onions. Eat vegetables, nuts, fruits, animal products that YOU ENJOY. Experiment too.

Acceptable Vegetables
(link)
Acceptable Fruits
(link)
Acceptable Nuts
(link)
Acceptable Herbs and Spices
(link)
Acceptable Seeds (- the grains)
(link)
Acceptable Meats and animal products
-eggs
-meats of your own choice (mix it up)
-cream (limited)
Acceptable Fats
-butter (limited)
-animal fats (from naturally raised sources, grass fed, no hormones, no antibiotics, etc.)
-coconut oil
-olive oil
-other omega 3 containing oils that you may stumble upon
Acceptable drinks
-water (try to get filtered pure stuff)
-coffee (NO SUGAR)
-teas

C. list foods/substances that are not acceptable on the diet
The PRINCIPLE of what to avoid is basically processed carbs, processed foods, and artificial stuff. It's really that simple. This is hands down the hardest part of the TTT Caveman Diet. Cutting out the junk. This is really about forming NEW HABITS. Changing your desires. Creating a lifestyle. The first month will take alot of willpower. ALOT. I'm going to be posting alot of information on the science of HABITS and how our mind links things up. Stay tuned if you're struggling.

-processed carbs (white flour, white sugar, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, soda, juices, etc. )
-grains (it's virtually impossible to meet the GOALS of the caveman diet while eating grains)
-artificial flavorings, artificial ingredients, artificial sweeteners, artificial everything really
-high omega 6 oils such as corn, soybean, sunflower, safflower and other vegetable oils
-milk (if you MUST drink milk, keep it within the confines of goal #1, milk has quite a bit of sugar, which means LIMIT it....alot. Also drink raw if possible)

D. Introduce to the concept of "TTT caveman mixing and matching"
Creating meals and living the caveman diet is SIMPLE. It really is. Just mix and match. Create meals that have a good source of protein, and get a bunch of plants and fruits in with it.

So the concept of mixing and matching goes like this (I'm going into caveman role here):
a. Sam like eggs
b. Sam like onion
c. Sam like mushrooms ugggg
= scrambled eggs with onions and mushrooms
a+b+c=meal.....simple

Here's how this meal meets all 5 of the TTT Caveman Diet goals:
1. Normalize your insulin levels and keep them low by eating between 50-150 grams of carbs per day
-no sugars, limited carbs
2. Maximize nutrition content by eating a lot of live foods
-free range eggs are packed with nutrition, onions are too, mushrooms are as well
3. Balance out the omega 3 and 6 ratio while getting plenty of good fats
-I buy eggs that have high amounts of omega 3, plus the flax seeds, plus the cod liver oil shot I took
4. Optimize amino acid quality and quantity
-eggs are filled with quality amino acids: a full range of them
5. Make it taste good and eat until you're comfortably full
-Cooked the shrooms and onions in butter, then added the eggs and mixed them together, added some sea salt and pepped them, added a natural salsa. Tastes great.


The finished product:
Tasted great. Filled me up for 4 hours or so. Felt great.
-Scrambled eggs-
Ingredients: 4 free range omega 3 eggs, mushrooms, onion stems, cooked in butter and coconut oil (less stick on pan when you combine the two), sprinkled with sea salt, pepper, flax seeds, and salsa.
Prep time: about 6 minutes
Cost: maybe around $2 or $3



What else did I eat?

-Spinach salad-
Ingredients: spinach, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, sea salt, pepper, flax seeds
Prep time: 2 minutes
Cost: maybe around $1 or $2


-Stir Fry-
Ingredients: mushrooms, brocolli, carrots, garlic, onion stems, bell pepper, sea salt, ground pepper, salsa, balsamic vinegar, lamb steak.
Prep time: 20 minutes (cooked enough to save and eat today as well)
Cost: maybe around $7 (lamb was a bit expensive, but it's 2 meals)


I also had 2 blueberry protein shakes yesterday: 1 before and 1 after workout
Ingredients: around a cup of blueberries, some cream (maybe a few tablespoons), coconut oil, natural protein powder
Prep time: 1 minute
Cost: maybe around $2 or $3


F. dispel false concerns that may arise around this philosophy of eating
1. "it takes too long." BS. It does not. Total time preparing food for me yesterday was about 30 minutes. All it takes is a resolve and a TINY bit of proactivity
2. "it's too expensive." BS again. it really isn't. When you don't buy the crackers, breads, and JUNK, you cut your grocery bill in half. And realistically this is your health. THIS IS YOUR LIFE. Freaking take care of yourself.
3. Saturated fat is bad. BS once again. I'll be doing future posts on this.


Final note:
Get organic and natural animal products as much as you can. Don't freak out over it, but it's optimal. Stay within the confines of the caveman philosophy and your life is going to soar. Don't, and you're probably going to end up overweight and sickly. The extent that you follow this will be the extent of your results.

Also, set yourself up to win. Start off by eating this way 5 days a week. Monday thru Friday for example. This will produce results for most of you. You'll start to gain momentum, and you'll give yourself a much needed psychological break. When you start getting results, and you start feeling more powerful, more energetic, and vital, you will have begun the process of REWIRING what your brain desires. When this happens, you'll find yourself wanting to go 6 days a week. You'll get even more results. Your desires will change a bit more. Then you'll get to a point where one cheat meal is all you want/need. Eventually, you will have completely reprogramed yourself. A new lifestyle. THAT is awesome.


Thanks for reading.

Tell your friends.

Sam