Okay … let’s talk about Paleo!
Paleo is anything a caveman could hunt or find years and years ago such as meat, vegetables, fruits, nuts, fish and seeds.
I have just become more interested in the Paleo way of living (notice that I did not say diet). After taking a summer off from anything and everything healthy (seriously) I can tell you that I have felt miserable! I had spent about 6 months eating clean, working out everyday, lost 30 pounds, ran my first 5K, and felt AWESOME! Well, of course summer came … I took a trip, had some family emergencies, ate out a lot, and found every other excuse not to exercise or stay on track with my eating.
It is crazy how big of a difference I feel from the spring time (when I was on track) to now. I am more tired, feel bloated all the time, breaking out, etc. Although this probably isn’t the best way to experiment, this experience has taught me what my body can and cannot handle.
One thing I have noticed is dairy. Remember when I talked about my obsession with Pumpkin Spice Lattes and every other latte for that matter?
Well, I have noticed a direct affect with drinking lattes (loaded with milk) with breaking out and bloating. Also bread and pasta! They just make you feel ucky!!!!!
So, I made a trip to our local library and checked out this book …
Wow! This is a great book and I definitely recommend purchasing it! Practical Paleo does a great job explaining what the Paleo way of eating is and how it affects your body. I seriously felt that I was reading a story of how my body felt, according to my body! This book offers TONS of recipes and tear out cards to help you get on track with Paleo.
After reading this book, I continued my research online and talked to a few friends. Another popular thing is the Whole 30 program. For those individuals who are interested in starting the Paleo lifestyle, the Whole 30 is a great way to introduce you to it. It’s a straight, 30 days eating Paleo and no sugar. You also cannot create the Paleo cookies or other Paleo (awesome looking) desserts. It’s just straight up meat, vegetables, seafood, some fruit, seeds and nuts!
I decided against the Whole 30 :/ (for now at least) Mainly, because I know that I have the tendency to binge if I absolutely, cannot have something! I would rather ease my way into something then going cold turkey!
Here are the things I like about Paleo and why I will be easing my way into this lifestyle change …
- It’s all whole foods
- It teaches you to get creative!
- You learn a LOT!!
Since I have started looking at everything I eat, it’s CRAZY to see all of the additional things are added into foods that you may think are healthy or “clean”. This week is kind of my first week of beginning this process. For example …
- Breakfast: I have been eating French Toast Scramble, (from one of my FAVORITE blogs Carrots ‘n Cake!) With a big scoop of Almond Butter (can’t use Peanut Butter anymore!)
- Lunch: I cut up a couple of sweet potatoes into fourths and baked them in the oven,with honey drizzled on top, and garlic salt. I then cooked several strips of turkey bacon. I eat a strip of turkey bacon, sweet potato and some pineapple and feel very satisfied!
- Dinner: Hy – Vee has a lot of pre-made seafood. Last night I had a Sweet and Spicy Salmon filet, delish! Another place to check out is Trader Joe’s, they have a lot of frozen seafood items that can be thawed and cooked up quickly with some veggies for dinner.
- Snack: GREEN JUICE! If you did not see, I got a Hurom juicer for my birthday 🙂 Also, I have made my own trail mix using banana chips, sunflower seeds, and roasted almonds from Trader Joe’s. It’s the perfect combo of sweet &
salty!
Here is to the beginning of my journey eating Paleo! Any tips and suggestions are appreciated!
