For many years I was around 13 – 14 stone. Muscular, young and with an excellent blood profile for all markers. I never have even seen let alone used steroids.

When I was a teen I was anorexic and a drug addict. I was 6 stone at 16 and nearly died. Body building saved my life. I doubled my weight in six months from 6 to 12 stone. This was a phenomenal ego boost.
Any way when I was about 27 I was introduced to a high starch diet. Again a massive gain in muscle occurred.

After years of struggling to gain weight my muscle exploded & I got up to 220 lbs pretty easy. But as you should know a high carb diet also packs on more fat. For the first time in my life , while I was muscular and athletic, fat actually became a health concern.

At 44 & 230 lbs 20% body fat it still is today so a few weeks back I decided to try Paleo Diet. I have been on Warrior diet for quite some time & that diet has helped keep my belly fat at bay some what. My hope was that Paleo could take me down to 10% body fat and maintain my muscle mass – or even increase it.

I have done Paleo for 3 weeks now so I can fill you in.

PRO: If you want to weigh around 180 lbs give or take 20 lbs then Paleo will work for you.

CON: If you want to be big and muscular Paleo wont work – its too hard to get the required energy intake to be say 220 or more lbs.

PRO: It is great being on a healthier nutrient profile

CON: I have felt very low in energy during many workouts

PRO: I lost gut fat fast

CON: I lost muscle size too (was it visceral fat ? – I don’t think so)

My verdict on Paleo – I will continue to shun dairy and grains – but apart from that this diet is for skinny men – not me.

OK so I will keep the aspects of Paleo I know are good. No dairy (except for whey, casein, colostrum) & no grains.

My experiment has led me to “The Anabolic Diet” which I read about before but never tried. You can do this diet while sticking to most of the Warrior & Paleo principles. Just that on Anabolic you add more fat during the week & you carb load on the weekend.

I am just starting Anabolic Diet – I know it has similarities to the Ketogenic Diet & BodyOpus Diet

Ok so I know already I am gunna end up with a Hybrid diet that suits me. I will keep you informed of the results.

Books you want…

Warrior Diet
Anti-Estrogenic Diet

Paleo Diet
Primal Blueprint

Anabolic Diet
Ketogenic Diet
Body Opus

OK there is enough reading & Dietary information there for you to experiment for a year and find the right mix for your goals and body.