Archive for the ‘Paleo Challenge’ Category

You want fries with that? Negociating the Fast Food Waters.

Saturday, November 20th, 2010

Strict Paleo rocks! Why? Because of the focus it gives me, and because of last week’s Mexican fast food triumph.

I had a two day workshop in King of Prussia last weekend. Late to bed and late to rise, I didn’t have time to pack anything for lunch. Saturday was going to be an 8 hour session, so skipping lunch wasn’t an option (as if it ever is). I knew there was a Baja Fresh across from the workshop site, so I hoped for the best.

A little background is in order here. I’m a sucker for Mexican food. The real thing, the pseudo stuff (Qdoba, Chipotle, Baja Fresh but definitely NOT Taco Bell) and the fancy nouveau Mexican cuisine.  Stick salsa, cheese, guacamole and sour cream on anything and you’re alright with me. Luckily salsa is Paleo/Whole3o approved as long as it’s sugar-free and made from real food. Even guacamole is approved, and since I make my own simple guac with avocados, fresh lime juice and sea salt, I’ve been able to indulge freely. But cheese, black beans and sour cream, not to mention tortilla chips, are not on the Paleo list.

So, it was with a bit of trepidation that I entered Baja Fresh on Saturday. I scoured the menu board for approved fare. It seemed like everything was on the “no” list. Time to get creative.

Luckily BF does actually have lots of fresh, “real food” items. So, my creativity involved omission and substitution.

“I’ll have the Skinny Chicken Bowl with no corn, rice or beans.”

“That’s what I like”, said the workshop attendee standing next to me, “a woman who knows what she wants.” (Little did she know I had spent the last 5 minutes staring at the board in absolute indecision).

“That’s all you want?”, said the cashier as she looked at me as if I was crazy. “Yes”, I said. “You don’t want any corn?” “Nope. Oh! But could I have avocado?!”, I said like a child asking for her favorite toy.  “Could you put extra avocado on it?!”

Then she went to get the chips. “Oh, no chips please” (the hardest words I have ever uttered at a BF). Second crazy look from the cashier.

Lunch that day (and the next) was a Baja Fresh Skinny Chicken Bowl with Pico de Gallo, onions, chile peppers, extra avocado, double extra salsa from the “fixins bar” and half an orange from home. It was a delish, and a triumph for me.

I have 3 full days left on my Whole30, and although I’m going to break it for a few days for Thanksgiving, I’m thinking that this is the life.

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So, what CAN you eat?

Thursday, November 11th, 2010
Giant Omelet Muffin

Giant Omelet Muffin

I’ve always been the odd one at family gatherings. The one who didn’t eat collard greens (oh, how that has changed), the one who didn’t eat meat (at least not for 13 years), the one who passed on the cake. It’s hard not to get scrutinized at large events. Now that I’m eating strict Paleo again, thanks to The Whole30, the scrutiny is in full effect.

Passing on meat or cake is one thing, but when you’re passing on grain, all sugars, legumes and dairy, people notice. . .

First come the looks, then the questions and then THE question – “So, what CAN you eat?” (usually preceded by – Oh my God, I could NEVER do that!)

Back in January/February I did a Paleo Challenge with my friends over at CFDV. For seven weeks I cut all grains (yes, even whole grains), sugar, alcohol, dairy and legumes (even soy and peanut butter) from my diet. The goal, well I’m not sure what my goal was originally. Perhaps I needed a post-holiday hard core clean up, or maybe I just wanted to prove to myself that I could do it. That, and I didn’t want to be left out. After all, all the cool kids were doing it. Whatever my motivation, I ended up losing 15 pounds and a bunch of inches.

People choose a strict Paleo route for a variety of reasons. The Paleo Diet has been credited with helping people improve their workout performance (the more work you can do, the more calories you burn, the better your body will look and fell), lose weight and increase their energy levels. For some people, Paleo is the answer to their nagging food allergies or sensitivities. A few weeks without gluten or dairy, and the headaches, skin problems and bloat are gone.

I don’t have food allergies. I can consume gluten and dairy with the best of them, and I’m thankful for it; a girl needs her pizza and ice cream once in a while. What I do like is the way that eating strict Paleo makes me feel. I’m not sure exactly how to describe it. I do have more energy, but in addition to that, I just feel better in my skin. My body feels and looks tighter – at least to me. Eating strict Paleo also forces me to be a more creative cook. I try new recipes and cooking becomes fun.

After the original Challenge I maintained my Paleo lifestyle about 75% of the time. Weekends, when treated myself to desserts, alcohol and pasta, were a different story. Then, over the summer I fell off the Paleo wagon  – face first. I needed to do something major to get back on track. Luckily I found The Whole30, 3.0 (30 days of strict Paleo eating). Even better, Lynn, my rockin’ assistant, has joined me in The Whole30.

But back to the question at hand. What CAN I eat? Well, lots of things. Here’s a partial list of this week’s intake:

  • Baked eggs with vegetables and chicken sausage
  • Omelet with smoked salmon and shallots
  • Sauteed peppers and onions
  • Salads with tuna or chicken
  • Sardine fillets
  • Homemade mayo (this was a big fail in terms of consistency, but still usable)
  • Acorn squash
  • Salmon with avocado sauce
  • Chicken breast with mango salsa
  • Chicken w/ “Sunshine Sauce” (Thai satay sauce made with sunflower seed butter)
  • Greens – collards, beet, turnip and mustard
  • Kale
  • Swiss Chard
  • Zucchini
  • Roasted broccoli
  • Spaghetti squash with ground turkey sauce
  • Tilapia
  • Cod
  • Fruit – oranges, Blackberries, grapes, bananas
  • Almonds
  • Almond butter
  • Macadamia nuts
  • Baked Sweet Potatoes
  • Sweet Potato “fries”
  • Larabars
  • Coffee with coconut milk
  • Chocolate tea

Again, this is just a partial list and based on my tastes, but it sure looks like a lot of food to me. Considering that most people eat the same 20 foods day in/day out, week in/week out, I’d say I’m doing pretty well in the variety department.

I’m on day 18 of The Whole30. There’s no food that I miss, although on day 5 I did leave a party early when they brought out the cake from Clay’s Bakery. I can resist cake but this was Clay’s!

I’ll keep you posted on my last 12 days and the holiday season Paleo style.

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Living in a Paleo World but am I a Paleo girl?

Monday, February 8th, 2010

I started the Paleo Diet Challenge, the team challenge that I doing with the folks at CFDV, on January 4th.

I broke the news about The Challenge to The Husband on Christmas Eve while we were in Giant doing our food shopping for Christmas dinner.

“So, I guess I should tell you now… I’m doing this thing with CFDV called The Paleo Challenge. I can’t eat grain, legumes, dairy, sugar or alcohol for 7 weeks. I’ll probably be a total bitch.”

Looking at me as if I head 7 heads he said (actually, he yelled), “Why do you do these things? You’re crazy!”

It’s week 6 of The Challenge. I haven’t been bitchy (no more than usual), I haven’t lost my mind and The Husband has been extremely supportive.

Giving up grain, legumes, dairy, sugar and alcohol hasn’t been as difficult as I thought; although sometimes when I’m at the store I do find myself gazing longingly at the fancy cheese. The biggest challenge of The Challenge has been all the meal planning and food prep. I’ve long had a Sunday routine of boiling some eggs and cooking a huge pot of oatmeal for the week’s breakfasts and snacks, but Paleo takes this prep to a whole ‘nother level.

Lost is the convenience of whipping up a protein shake in the car or when I get home after a long morning of appointments. No more oversleeping and leaving the house without snacks and with the certainty that I can run into Wawa or Whole Foods and get a protein bar or bag of peanuts.

Paleo = Planning and Preparation. Preparation that begins with marathon grocery store trips. Produce Junction after Saturday’s workout. Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and Giant or Acme on Sunday.

Then there’s the food prep (and did I mention the planning). The Paleo diet calls for a significant consumption of protein (meat, chicken and seafood), unlimited vegetables and some fruit and nuts.

My Sunday afternoons have been reserved for vegetable prep – washing, peeling, chopping and in some instances cooking. All so I don’t have to think or have to opportunity to stray each night when I get home and it’s time to make dinner, and so I have vegetables for breakfast, lunch and snacks.

Then there’s the eggs. Since I don’t eat meat – no poultry or red meat – I’m left with eggs and fish for protein. Pre-Paleo my main sources of protein were fish, tofu and other soy products, wheat gluten and dairy. Did I mention that I hate eggs? Did I mention mercury poisoning from over consumption of fish?

Thank God for Mark’s Daily Apple and his awesome recipe for omelet muffins.

And the fish – I don’t think I’ve ever eaten so much fish in my life! Because of mercury concerns (the jury’s still out on whether it’s hype or fact), I’ve had to take care to select low mercury fishes – Tilapia, flounder, salmon, shrimp and sardines (fillets sans heads, tails and bones). Hopefully, I haven’t turned into a thermometer; my post-Paleo mercury blood test will tell.

So what are the results so far of the 7 week challenge? Well, according to my friend, H., my skin is clearer. Not sure what that means since I’ve always had clear skin.

In terms of body composition, I’m down 2 inches around my “true” waist (in spite of what Old Navy thinks, that’s above the belly button, not around the butt crack), 1.5 inches around my belly button and at last week’s “weigh-in” I was still down 11 pounds. I couldn’t bear to weigh myself this morning; I had my only major cheat last night with Indian food. Yum!

All in all I feel great and my jeans are fitting, if not loose. Thank you, Paleo Man!

What about when the challenge ends in two weeks?

First, I have a date with some Thin Mints and a bottle of Grey Goose. Just kidding (OK, not really).

Through The Paleo Challenge I discovered that I was definitely consuming too much sugar – a little Agave in my coffee, a little honey in my Fage, the added sugar in some of the low fat products I ate. My intake was nothing like the average American but too much for the healthy lifestyle that I advocate.

Although I’ve been a vegetarian for over 10 years my vegetable intake was no where near the levels of the Paleo Challenge. I have veggies with breakfasts (collard greens), my morning snack (leftovers from the night before or peppers and onions), lunch (usually salad greens and other assorted veggies) and dinner (Brussels sprouts, broccoli, spinach and kale to name a few). Definitely a habit worth keeping.

I’ve also discovered that I don’t “need” my Friday night (or Saturday night or Sunday morning) cheat meal, but it did provide me with something to break of the routine. That Friday night cheat meal will definitely be reintroduced but will be much less gluttonous.

Dairy products (Fage, milk in my coffee or tea) will be the other non-Paleo habit that I’ll reintroduce. I think I’ll take the same attitude with cheese that I have with chocolate – nothing run of the mill; only select and savor the highest quality.

In terms of soy and wheat gluten, I’ll have the occasional veggie burger, soy sauce when I go out for sushi and Chinese and wheat gluten a few times a year at vegetarian restaurants.

Outside of those few, perhaps infrequent deviations, I think that I’ll remain a modified-Paleo girl; much to The Husband’s chagrin.

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