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The beginning of week 3 has been kinda rough. I feel nauseous and sluggish. I don't want to do anything. I haven't even felt like blogging! *Gasp!* Hopefully, this funk ends soon because I'm tired of feeling so lethargic.
Our month is almost over and we're doing really well so far. No one's cheated- yet. We even went out to dinner on Saturday! My grandparents came with us and my grandpa ordered apple crumble. Imagine how hard that was for us (especially my dad and sister)! It was topped with ice cream and caramel, too. It looked so good. But we made it through unscathed. And, to be honest, it really wasn't that difficult. Maybe because I didn't look. ;)
The hardest part is just detoxing. Planning meals isn't so bad, because all that you need is meat and veggies. And we've got plenty of those. Variation isn't to hard either when there are awesome bloggers like the Matt and Stacy from the Paleo Parents, Danielle from Against All Grain, and Jenni from the Urban Poser. Plus, there are awesome cookbooks out there like Dana Carpender's 500 Paleo Recipes. Seriously, get that cookbook because it is amazing.
I've also learned more about my body. (For those of you who get squeamish talking about going to the bathroom skip the next two paragraphs.) For example, I've discovered I can only handle sugar in moderate amounts. I think that goes for everyone, but I have to watch my sugar intake more closely than most people. Why do I have to watch how much sugar I eat? Well, to say it as discreetly as I can, I don't expel my feces very well after eating too much sugar of any form.
I'm still waiting for those amazing affects of the Paleo diet to kick in. I want smooth, clear skin, to stop taking melatonin, to get rid of my constipation for good, to decrease the amount of supplements and homeopathic medicine I'm taking, to have more energy, and to build some muscle. I want to be able to show off my calves and biceps this summer! ;)
Getting rid of grains hasn't been a problem for me, like I expected, and neither has getting rid of legumes, which was unexpected. Not having these things in the house is really helping. We still keep a few cans of beans for cheats, but those are all the way downstairs so I haven't been tempted to eat them. ;)
The hardest part, is avoiding sugar. Because sugar is every where. Even in sunflower seed butter! It's on dried fruit, in hot sauce, fish sauce, ketchup, salad dressings, tomato sauce, etc. Making all these things ourselves is very tedious and time consuming. Instead, of trying to replace old ingredients, we find new ones that work just as well.
I also try to limit my fruit/dried fruit, honey, maple syrup, evaporated cane juice, etc. consumption. It's pretty near impossible to avoid all kinds of sugar, though. My solution? To eat as little of these items as possible. It's hard, but it can be done. I have fruit in the morning and sometimes at lunch. Occasionally, I'll eat dried fruit for a snack. And I have one modest dessert during the weekend. It works pretty well for me.
I've also discovered the awesomeness of stevia, which I will be trying to use more often in recipes. It's a miracle sweetener, literally. No calories, no carbs, and no sugar! Plus, it's 300 times sweeter than sugar. I made some ice cream using a bit of stevia and honey Sunday and it was delicious!
So that's how the Paleo Month is going so far. I just hope that the results I've been promised by some many authors and bloggers really do come.
Inquiry of the Day:
How do you stick to resolutions that you've made?
I like to have other people do them with me. It makes things so much easier with the support of others.
Our month is almost over and we're doing really well so far. No one's cheated- yet. We even went out to dinner on Saturday! My grandparents came with us and my grandpa ordered apple crumble. Imagine how hard that was for us (especially my dad and sister)! It was topped with ice cream and caramel, too. It looked so good. But we made it through unscathed. And, to be honest, it really wasn't that difficult. Maybe because I didn't look. ;)
The hardest part is just detoxing. Planning meals isn't so bad, because all that you need is meat and veggies. And we've got plenty of those. Variation isn't to hard either when there are awesome bloggers like the Matt and Stacy from the Paleo Parents, Danielle from Against All Grain, and Jenni from the Urban Poser. Plus, there are awesome cookbooks out there like Dana Carpender's 500 Paleo Recipes. Seriously, get that cookbook because it is amazing.
I've also learned more about my body. (For those of you who get squeamish talking about going to the bathroom skip the next two paragraphs.) For example, I've discovered I can only handle sugar in moderate amounts. I think that goes for everyone, but I have to watch my sugar intake more closely than most people. Why do I have to watch how much sugar I eat? Well, to say it as discreetly as I can, I don't expel my feces very well after eating too much sugar of any form.
I'm still waiting for those amazing affects of the Paleo diet to kick in. I want smooth, clear skin, to stop taking melatonin, to get rid of my constipation for good, to decrease the amount of supplements and homeopathic medicine I'm taking, to have more energy, and to build some muscle. I want to be able to show off my calves and biceps this summer! ;)
Getting rid of grains hasn't been a problem for me, like I expected, and neither has getting rid of legumes, which was unexpected. Not having these things in the house is really helping. We still keep a few cans of beans for cheats, but those are all the way downstairs so I haven't been tempted to eat them. ;)
The hardest part, is avoiding sugar. Because sugar is every where. Even in sunflower seed butter! It's on dried fruit, in hot sauce, fish sauce, ketchup, salad dressings, tomato sauce, etc. Making all these things ourselves is very tedious and time consuming. Instead, of trying to replace old ingredients, we find new ones that work just as well.
I also try to limit my fruit/dried fruit, honey, maple syrup, evaporated cane juice, etc. consumption. It's pretty near impossible to avoid all kinds of sugar, though. My solution? To eat as little of these items as possible. It's hard, but it can be done. I have fruit in the morning and sometimes at lunch. Occasionally, I'll eat dried fruit for a snack. And I have one modest dessert during the weekend. It works pretty well for me.
I've also discovered the awesomeness of stevia, which I will be trying to use more often in recipes. It's a miracle sweetener, literally. No calories, no carbs, and no sugar! Plus, it's 300 times sweeter than sugar. I made some ice cream using a bit of stevia and honey Sunday and it was delicious!
So that's how the Paleo Month is going so far. I just hope that the results I've been promised by some many authors and bloggers really do come.
Inquiry of the Day:
How do you stick to resolutions that you've made?
I like to have other people do them with me. It makes things so much easier with the support of others.
Interesting progression so far. That's great that your whole family is doing this together, that must make it a bit easier at least. Sounds like you're not missing too much.
ReplyDeleteI don't have the same issue as you do with sugar, but I know I get terrible, terrible mood swings. I basically avoid any sort of granulated (or even cane for the most part) sugar like the plague and have maple syrup, honey & agave in moderation. It works well for me. I found it hard at first too, as it's everywhere. But I have found replacements for most things or make my own (which gets less time consuming once you have a routine down).
I can usually stick to something if I find it is beneficial to my health. If I know it is going to be better for me, I usually don't have too hard a time sticking to it =)
Even if I know it's good for me I have a hard time sticking to resolutions. I've always been good about not eating foods that I shouldn't, but even though I know exercise is good fro me, I have trouble doing it every day.
DeleteI do believe in everything in moderation as well, and I do my best to eat a variety of foods.
Thanks for commenting and have a great week! :)
I hope the Paelo diet works out for you!Oh my gosh, I know how you feel with the apple crumble-it's like how I feel when people have popcorn (Yeah, I'm a brace-face...)! I'm always drooling, even if the popcorn isn't neccessarily vegan.
ReplyDeleteI usually stick to my resolutions if they're fun and stupid, like going zip lining or if they will make the world a better place, like voulunteering somewhere:)
I would NOT stick to a zip lining resolution. Heights scare me to death! Now if it was scuba diving or something like that I'd be all over it. I normally stick to resolutions if they have to do with something I love like reading, writing, swimming, eating ;), etc.
DeletePopcorn is tempting fir me too. Sometimes all I want is a big bowl of salty popcorn during a movie. Sadly, I can't anymore. :( It's all good, though. I normally go with chocolate instead. ;)
Awesome blog you have hhere
ReplyDelete