Ready, Set...Paleo!!!

And we're off! Paleo Challenge Day 1. No better time than the present to begin. I made a meal plan and shopping list, and we went on our big shopping trip to load up on all the ingredients I will need to get me through week one. It was a little more than usual, but not as bad as we anticipated. We actually are running out of room in our fridge because of all the fresh vegetables we bought!

Goals for the challenge (these may change slightly):
1. To follow a somewhat strict Paleo template for 30 Days (really focus on avoiding all grains and dairy).
2. To jump right back in without guilt if I indulge in something that does not fit with the plan.


Provisions:
1. I am nursing so I will not go as low carb as some may during the 30 Day Challenge.
2. I will eat dinner out for Valentine's Day. We already have reservations!
3. I will have an occasional glass of wine and piece of dark chocolate.
4. I will continue to have my 1 cup of coffee with Stevia on most days.
5. I may have an occasional Keurig Apple Cider.

So today we woke up and had Almond Meal Blueberry Pancakes (Everyday Paleo) with almond flour. It takes some practice getting used to using almond meal for baking. Without the gluten, the texture is a little different. I liked it, but I think next time I will leave out the coconut flakes because it changed the consistency. The kids loved the blueberries though!

For a snack I had 1/2 an avocado and the kids had apple slices with sunflower nut butter and some guacomole. I need to work on my snaking options because they usually leave me hungry.

For lunch I had leftover salad with lots of veggies and some canned salmon. It was more filling than I thought. To get some extra carbs I had a banana. I also need to work on my fruit choices to make them lower glycemic.

For a snack I made some kale chips with garlic and olive oil (you could use salt but I am cutting back). They were great. Alexis really enjoyed them and even the hubby had a few helpings. I highly recommend them because they are quick and easy.

For dinner we had Spice-Rubbed Slow Cooked Chicken (Everyday Paleo Book, Fragoso) and Mashed Cauliflower (Paleo Comfort Foods, Mayfield) and some more kale chips. I threw in an apple sauce for some extra carbs.

Overall, the day went well. We sat down for a nice family meal. The hubby loved the chicken and he said he would definitely do it again. The cauliflower was even tasty.

Pictures to follow...

I am ready for Day 2!

The Egg Experiment

Yesterday I woke up, got out of the house early and took the 2 little ones to my parents house for help making an egg cupcake recipe. This was my first attempt at a recipe in the book I am following and I needed a little help. I gathered up all the ingredients that we had at our house, dropped the kids off and ran to the grocery store to get the rest. I found the ingredients I thought I needed, got to the checkout stand and realized I left my wallet at home. Went home got the wallet, bought the food and went back to my parents and we started to prepare. What should have taken 15 minutes to prep took closer to an hour.

Some important things I learned:

1. I learned a blender does not chop vegetables nearly as well as a food processor even though there is a "chop" button (originally my parents didn't think they had a food processor but we found one).

2. I learned that I need to read the ingredients and how to prepare them very closely. Red and green peppers are not the same as "roasted red and green peppers" which I also learned come in a jar or need to be made prior to baking. We put them in the oven.

3. I learned how to cut peppers and that knives absolutely intimidate me.

4. Another great thing I learned is that we should include our kids more in the food prep. Alexis wanted to help break an egg and she put her hand in there and squeezed. After my initial surprise that it cracked sending both the egg and shell into the bowl, I fished the shell out and I let her do another one, which she loved. Originally I didn't want her to touch the eggs because of the raw yolk, and the messiness of it all, but we just washed her hands well and she was fine.

5. Lastly, I learned that I may need a lot of cooking help to get through this challenge. My skills are weak at best.

Overall, the egg cupcakes turned out just fine. We all had some for breakfast and I had enough to bring home for AJ and Scott. This Paleo challenge may turn out to be more of a family affair than I thought!

Now I Wait

As a await the start date of my 30 Day Challenge I find myself eating mostly Paleo/Primal, but slipping a little. For the past two weeks or so I had been increasingly Paleo/Primal cutting out cheese and most of my gluten free grains (minus the almond meal bread I made that is technically still a Paleo treat). But this week, a trip to Geneva with my parents turned into a lunch that was gluten free, but not Paleo due to the gluten free pasta and cheese on my salad. This was followed by a drink with a friend at a Mexican food restaurant by my house that included corn chips (again still gluten free) and guacamole (may or may not contain milk). Also, I have been finishing up a little extra of my dark chocolate and lower sodium gluten free sweet potato chips that somehow contain milk. Today, I am feeling extra anxious and a bit more off that usual. I had a Caesar Salad from Panera. I don't really feel guilty for eating all of these things, just a little nauseous and not great. While my big Paleo shopping trip will not begin for another few days, I think I may have to lay off the dairy early to start.

On another note, my husband bought a lot of fresh vegetables for me to use this week that I put on our shopping list. As of yesterday we have a lot left. He is concerned we are going to start wasting food. It is not that I don't want to eat them, I really do. But every time I open the fridge to see what I can make I realize that I don't know how to cut or cook any of these vegetables. Yet another obstacle to overcome. Hopefully today he will show me how to cut some and I can prepare some of them the night before or on the weekend to save time. Other option...the Internet or You Tube.

Why Paleo and Why Now?

So why Paleo and why now? I could go on for pages with background information of why I would like to start this now. For now, I will just mention five.

Top 5 Reasons for Paleo Challenge

1. Blood pressure spike after delivery freaked me out- my blood pressure spiked 3 days after delivery and people were wondering if some of my families high blood pressure genes had kicked in and this would be permanent. Had a short stint on BP meds which I hated. Thankfully it seems to be down now and I want to keep it that way.
2. I have had lifelong issues with dairy-I love dairy, dairy does not love me back.
3. It is a way of eating that just makes sense to me. All of my health related reading and research has always pointed in this direction, and the Paleo method seems to pull it all together.
4. This is a perfect time for a 30 day challenge. I am home on maternity leave, have lots of help with the bigger kids and Sienna still sleeps a lot. I don't have to worry about bringing my lunch to work or getting out of the house really early on most days.
5. I have lots of family support between my brother, my dad, my hubby and even my mom who may try to start eating this way as well. My brother is already hooked and my dad is pretty close.

I have been eating gluten free for over 3 years now so going Paleo seems like the next step to better health. I remember how I felt after I cut gluten out, especially the first few months. I lost the extra 20-25 pounds of baby weight that I still carried around from being pregnant with my son, my skin cleared up (as my friend at school says I have the glow that those eating gluten free seem to have), and my life long struggle with undiagnosed stomach problems eased up. Overall, I just felt better. I think when I first started eating gluten free no one thought I would stick to it. For at least a year after, my dad always offered me foods containing gluten and dinners (especially bread- he still occasionally does). But I have stuck to it. Now it is time to cut out the rest of the gluten free grains I have begun to rely on so much and most dairy and legumes.

30 Days...Are You Kidding?

This is my first blog. I have often thought about beginning one, but never knew exactly what to write about. Even as I sit here, I am struggling to figure out where to begin and how to progress. I am on maternity leave for a few months and have a new challenge I would like to try (as if 3 kids including 1 newborn isn't enough). I wanted to find a way to document my journey and believe this blog will do the trick.

The challenge is a 30 Day Paleo Challenge. Paleo is a way of eating that mimics the way our ancestors might have eaten, and by ancestors I mean cavemen. As with all "diets" there is a lot of controversy surrounding this way of eating. Paleo seems to be more like a lifestyle than a diet. It focuses on eating how we are genetically wired to eat. Paleo involves eating as many whole and unprocessed foods as possible. It focuses on eating meat, eggs, fish, veggies, fruits, nuts and seeds. People who eat Paleo try to avoid grains (especially gluten), dairy, sugar and legumes. As this blog progresses I will put up links to sites that have been helpful to me. Even in the Paleo world there are disagreements about what is best.

I have been reading books and articles on the benefits of eating Paleo (more on that later) and was inspired to begin this challenge after reading a book called Everyday Paleo by Sarah Fragoso. Her book contains a 30 day meal plan and shopping list with some great family friendly recipes. She made it seem easy although I am certain it won't be. I am going to tweak some of the meals (still Paleo though) due to budgetary restraints, but for the most part am going to give it my all. Since I would really like this way of eating to fit into my families lifestyle I may deviate a little on special occasions (Valentine's Day for instance). The 30 days will be even more of a challenge for me because I don't cook. No really, ask my husband. This week I couldn't even get the right burner on to steam some vegetables and my husband nearly cut me off because he was afraid I was going to burn down the house. Still, I am willing to give it a shot.

Start date: Feb. 5 or 6. Wish me luck!

By the way, here is a nice video that has been shared about Paleo/Primal/Hunter Lifestyle in general.