The first question we seem to get from people within the CrossFit community is, "Most CrossFitters are doing the Zone Diet, why do you guys promote the Paleo Diet?" The answer is that you don't have to choose one over the other. You see, the Zone Diet is about macronutrient quantities and ratios (i.e. how much you are eating and in what proportions) while the Paleo Diet is about macronutrient sources and their level of quality.

When attempting to change the way you eat, it should be for the long haul. It doesn't do any good to go on a crash "diet" and change the way you eat for a few weeks or months just so you can eventually return to your normal eating habits and put on more weight than you lost.

Instead, you should work towards changing the way you eat with plans on sticking to it for the rest of your life, thus making it a "lifestyle" change. Only then will you be truly successful in attaining AND maintaining your goals. Nobody likes losing 50 pounds so that they can eventually gain back 75.

This is precisely why we stress the importance of quality over quantity. Lifestyle changes are generally very difficult to make, so don't make it any harder than it needs to be. Let's take it one step at a time. By focusing on the quality of our food, we are free from counting calories and being hungry.

You see, we can eat until we are full at every meal and still be making progress. This is because healthier foods are less calorie dense and therefore more difficult to consume in high quantities. Ever try consuming 200 calories from broccoli? A lot harder to do than 200 calories from pizza or beer! Therefore, by eating "clean", we will naturally consume fewer calories and more than likely, begin losing some weight.

So, let's all start focusing on what we are eating. Having an awareness of what we are truly consuming on a daily basis will be the foundation from which we will build on going forward.