On January 15 fifty athletes started a 45-day long journey with dreams of increased mental clarity, better sleep, fat loss, and better WODs. Would a month and a half of eating like our cave dwelling ancestors really be long enough to make a marked difference in athletic performance and body composition? For those at CFJAX that stayed strict in the cave, the answer is a resounding YES!
After 45 days without grains, dairy, sugar, artificial sweeteners, and any processed food, EVERYONE in the challenge saw a decrease in body fat percentage. Five athletes saw a decrease of at least 5%, with the winner losing 8%! As a testament to Paleo’s effect on EVERYONE, even the leanest athletes in the gym saw dramatic changes as well. Our second place overall finisher went from 11% body fat to 9%. 
Massive changes in physique weren’t the only benefits bestowed upon the cave people after their 45 day challenge. Three WODs were tested before the start of the challenge and then retested upon completion. If you don’t think nutrition has an effect on something as simple as a mile run time, THINK AGAIN! All athletes improved their mile time, including an Ironman Triathlete. Twelve athletes saw a decrease of at least 5% with the top finisher knocking 26% off her time.
Sure, proper diet and nutrition can easily have a drastic effect on body fat and your mile time, but there’s no way it could increase strength, right? WRONG! Ten of our athletes PRed their one rep max shoulder press after the challenge! TEN! The top scorer in press improvement moved from 65lbs to 80lbs—a 23% increase! Maybe all those protein shakes and supplements they sell at the globo-gym aren’t really that necessary after all.
All said and done, maybe losing weight and gaining strength weren’t the most important things taken from the challenge. We heard a lot of talk throughout the gym about better sleep, clearer heads, and more energy during the 45 days. Did anyone learn anything about discipline and dedication? Did you cough up a few too many greenbacks into the Paleo Bucket? Either way, just remember the challenge didn’t end on March 1st; it’s still going on every day.