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Yesterday was our last day of being Paleo month. And I have to say I'm a little disappointed. I didn't really notice much of a change. I have a little more energy now, so eating grain-free could have something to do with that.
But I also think that we weren't strict enough.
The main idea of the Paleo diet is to eliminate the three main toxins in the Standard American Diet (SAD): gluten/grains, processed/vegetable oils, and sugar. I nailed the first one. Not so much the other two. :\ My theory is that because I wasn't religious enough with the diet, it didn't really work.
When we started eating Paleo I would eat potato chips, nut/seeds, and dried fruit made with vegetable oils. That right there is a big no-no. And I was also eating some evaporated cane juice and regular sugar. Most dried fruit has sugar on it and TJ's sunflower seed butter has evaporated can juice in it. :( I try not to eat either very much anymore.
Now, I've completely cut out all vegetable oils, including grape seed oil. I've started to cook more with bacon grease and coconut oil, eliminate all forms of sugar, and try to eat a relatively low amount of nuts each day. (Not because of their calories, but because of their fat. I'll discuss fat in a later post.) My goal is to get more fat into my diet. Not just any kind of fat, saturated fat. (Again, I'll discuss this in a post specifically on fat.) I wish I could eat red meat, which is rich in saturated fat, but I can't for now. I haven't eaten red meat in over a year. The last time I had it I completely fell apart. I felt nauseous, my eyes were bloodshot, and I didn't feel like doing anything.
So I'm doing the best I can. Like I said, I've been trying to cook more with bacon grease. And coconut oil. I mentioned in an earlier post that I'm limiting my sugar/carbohydrate intake, too. That seems to be helping some with my intestinal problems.
I think there's another reason why the Paleo diet's benefits haven't kicked in yet, though.
Another big aspect of the Paleo diet is exercise. As a student who goes to school five days a week, this is hard. It's difficult to get some form of exercise in every day. I try to do at least a half hour of Just Dance or yoga Monday thru Wednesday. And on Wednesday we like to go to the gym in the morning, but sometimes our schedules just get in the way. Thursdays and Fridays are particularly difficult because I have play practice on those days. I just have to work on making exercise a priority. Right now, it's not. I like to procrastinate so that I don't have to exercise. It's a bad habit, I know.
Inquiry of the Day:
So would you like a post on fat or a recipe tomorrow? I guess it depends on how lazy I am tomorrow. ;)
But I also think that we weren't strict enough.
When we started eating Paleo I would eat potato chips, nut/seeds, and dried fruit made with vegetable oils. That right there is a big no-no. And I was also eating some evaporated cane juice and regular sugar. Most dried fruit has sugar on it and TJ's sunflower seed butter has evaporated can juice in it. :( I try not to eat either very much anymore.
Now, I've completely cut out all vegetable oils, including grape seed oil. I've started to cook more with bacon grease and coconut oil, eliminate all forms of sugar, and try to eat a relatively low amount of nuts each day. (Not because of their calories, but because of their fat. I'll discuss fat in a later post.) My goal is to get more fat into my diet. Not just any kind of fat, saturated fat. (Again, I'll discuss this in a post specifically on fat.) I wish I could eat red meat, which is rich in saturated fat, but I can't for now. I haven't eaten red meat in over a year. The last time I had it I completely fell apart. I felt nauseous, my eyes were bloodshot, and I didn't feel like doing anything.
So I'm doing the best I can. Like I said, I've been trying to cook more with bacon grease. And coconut oil. I mentioned in an earlier post that I'm limiting my sugar/carbohydrate intake, too. That seems to be helping some with my intestinal problems.
I think there's another reason why the Paleo diet's benefits haven't kicked in yet, though.
Another big aspect of the Paleo diet is exercise. As a student who goes to school five days a week, this is hard. It's difficult to get some form of exercise in every day. I try to do at least a half hour of Just Dance or yoga Monday thru Wednesday. And on Wednesday we like to go to the gym in the morning, but sometimes our schedules just get in the way. Thursdays and Fridays are particularly difficult because I have play practice on those days. I just have to work on making exercise a priority. Right now, it's not. I like to procrastinate so that I don't have to exercise. It's a bad habit, I know.
Inquiry of the Day:
So would you like a post on fat or a recipe tomorrow? I guess it depends on how lazy I am tomorrow. ;)
It's been interesting to watch you progress with the diet. I don't think you should be too hard on yourself - there is something to be said about easing into something =)
ReplyDeleteThat's one of my flaws- being too hard on myself. Of course, this is just the first month, so maybe (hopefully) I'll notice changes in the next three months.
DeleteStill, congratulations on sort of sticking with it:) I could never do that!!!!
ReplyDeleteAre you allergic to red meat?
Also, I vote fr a recipe tommorrow!!!
Thanks! I'm not exactly allergic to red meat, but last year, at the the peak of my sickness, I got really sensitive to it. I haven't tried it since, but hopefully the next time I do I'll have better results with it.
DeleteGreat blog I enjoyed reading
ReplyDelete