Archive - February 2018

Not paleo related, but important.

Stop comparing yourself to others.

How often do you do that?  Hopefully your answer is never.  My answer is, “Always”.

Most people are guilty.  Guilty of looking at someone at hoping you’d look like them because they are skinny, or in shape, or tan.  Or maybe you look at someone’s art work and just start comparing your own work to it – thinking yours isn’t good enough.  It’s just not fair – not fair to you, not fair to them.  There is no fair comparison when you start doing this.  Just know that you have a lot to offer and you have a lot of things to be happy about!

I need to start looking at my own strengths and see my own value.  I’m drowning my successes because I just don’t believe in myself.  My successes in everything – work, home, personal, physical, mental.

It’s a natural thing to compare yourself to others, but it makes us unhappy all too often.  I need to tell myself to stop doing that.  I’m hurting myself, and as a consequence, I’m hurting people around me.  I do it without even realizing, so I need to work on my awareness.  Like with everything, it takes practice.  I’m guilty of being really hard on myself – which I probably should stop doing.  I always say I’m unique and if I start to conform to other standards – well then, I’m lying about being unique.

I am blessed in so many ways.  I am so lucky to have who I have in my life.  If there’s something I am not happy with about myself, I’ll work on it.  I will work on it to my standards (or at least I’ll try my hardest).  Believe that you are perfectly imperfect.  The world views perfection as something that becomes unattainable.  What one person has, you may lack, but what you have, they may lack – and that’s what makes the world go ’round.  That’s where the yin yang happens.  There is a balance.

If you always want what others have, you will live a very unhappy life.  You’ll never have enough and you’ll always want more – a vicious cycle.

All of this really sounds like wonderful advice that I should probably listen to…it won’t be fixed tomorrow, but maybe soon.

“her soul was too deep to explore by those who always swam in the shallow end”
-a.j. lawless-

I didn’t know much about it, to be honest, but recently it was brought to my attention that a B1 deficiency can really mess your body up.  By the time you finish reading this, you’ll see why living Paleo will make more sense (hopefully).

Thiamine is a vitamin that is needed to help our hearts, muscles, and nervous systems to work properly.  People at risk of having a thiamine deficiency are people who are going through dialysis, chronic diarrhea, people who take diuretics (for example, heart disease), and alcoholism.  Basically, all of these risk factors have one thing in common – malabsorption.  Our bodies cannot produce it naturally, so it is important that it is consumed through food.  Ensuring that you’re eating the right foods is extremely important!  Lack of vitamin B1 can cause severe brain damage!  The good news is that if you catch it early enough, you can reverse the effects – either through more conscious intake of thiamine, or through injections.

If you adopt a Paleo lifestyle, it will help you achieve great levels of B1!  Sesame seeds and tahini are a great way of getting B1!  Tuna, sunflower seeds, pork chops, asparagus, spinach and pineapples are a few of the foods you can add to your diet to get your B1 levels up.  In order to absorb thiamine, you need to have adequate levels of B6, B12, and folic acid in your diet.  If you follow Paleo, you’ll be eating foods rich in vitamins.  Just a side note, heat will destroy thiamine, so when cooking, try not to cook the food for too long (except pork chops).  If you cook spinach or asparagus, don’t overcook it or the benefits of them being rich in thiamine are no longer there.

If you’ve been feeling sluggish and you find yourself getting sick often, add more thiamine into your diet and you will feel much better!

Still doing more research on this – and I’m finding out some really interesting stuff.

“Those who move forward with a happy spirit will find that things always work out.”

Bear with me, it’s been awhile since I typed out a recipe.  I’ve been making up my own recipes, and they’ve been coming out pretty good – if I do say so myself.

4 Pork chops
2 TBSP EVOO
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 medium onion (or shallot), minced
1 Cup watercress, chopped
8 oz. shittake mushrooms
2 TBSP dried parsley
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup white wine
1/3 cup full fat coconut milk

Season the pork chops with salt and pepper.  Put EVOO in the pan.  Cook on both sides and then place in aluminum foil and put aside.  Add a little more EVOO to the pan and add onion (or shallot) and garlic.  Let that cook for a few minutes.  Throw in the sliced shittake mushrooms, dried parsley, and watercress.  After a minute or two, add the wine and coconut milk and let that cook down – scraping all the “good stuff” off the bottom of the pan.

Plate your pork chops and pour the mixture over the top.

For the salad.

Cut the beets into quarters and boil beets until soft (not too soft).  Toast pecans or walnuts in a pan.  After a few minutes, add a little bit of maple syrup and mix.  Put mixed greens on a plate.  When the beets are cooked, drain and place on top of the salad.  Add goat cheese and pecans!  Boom.

If you make this, send me pics and let me know how it came out!

“A recipe has no soul.  You, as the cook, must bring soul to the recipe.”

It’s probably pretty intimidating at first, any real lifestyle change would be – but when you break it down, Paleo is simple.  It shouldn’t be complicated.  At first you have to do a little bit of homework, but give yourself some time and you’ll have it down before you know it.

First off, go get yourself a book.  Preferably one with a 30 day meal plan – fool proof.  When I started, there wasn’t much out there, but now there’s so much!  The Practical Paleo books have a lot of information in them on the “whys” and “hows”, but the recipes are complicated, especially if you’re just starting out.

The stuff you need to stock your pantry with will be different than what you’re used to.  You’ll need things that you probably never even heard of – coconut aminos, tapioca flour, ghee…but after a few trips to the supermarket, it will become second nature.

You will buy meat that’s grass-fed.  Now it’s pretty much everywhere and labeled clearly.  Side note – if it says it’s from Australia – it’s grass-fed.  Trader Joe’s is a good place to go.

Don’t beat yourself up at first.  There’s a lot of adjustments to be made.  You should start with cleaning out the fridge and cabinets.  Then go shopping and buy all the stuff you need to fill them back up – Paleo style.

Browse the internet for blogs – people like me who are relatable.  You can always reach out with questions to other Paleo-goers (new word?).  I started this blog hoping that I would help others who were just like me – looking to go Paleo – dealing with the struggles of trying to figure it out.  I am no expert, but now, 5 years later, I get it.  The logistics of it make sense, and I don’t need to look at recipes much.

“Starting something new, or making a big change requires effort, persistence, and motivation.  Doubt, fear, and worry will only slow you down.
Focus on doing your best now, and celebrate every step of the way.”
– Doe Zantamata –