Total weight loss: 33.5 lbs.

I have never felt better.

Everyday I find out new things about this lifestyle.  I have been made more aware of why we need to eat grass fed meats and dairy, organic eggs and also, organic fruits.  It is imperative to eat grass fed meats!  What an animal eats has a huge influence on the nutritional value of what we consume.  Grass fed beef is generally leaner and lower in fat content than grain fed, and for all you calorie counters, that means less calories!  If Americans all went to grass fed beef, they claim obesity would be down by a lot…so, perhaps we should give it a try?  But if you as an individual start eating grass fed, you would probably lose 6 lbs. in a year, by just changing that alone.  Also, it is much higher in Omega 3 fatty acids, which helps fuel our brains.  There’s also a lot of other benefits to having an Omega 3 rich diet, go Google it.  Grass fed beef is the richest source of CLA…it’s one of our best defenses against cancer and tumor growth!  Bring on the vitamin E!  Win-win scenario.  So go do yourself a favor, and get GRASS FED!  This is a really good article I found on why we should eat grass fed beef.  I would definitely recommend checking it out if you get a chance.

Has anyone read the book “Eating on the Wild Side” by Jo Robinson?  I am thinking about picking it up.  I also found out that if you buy meat and it says “from Australia” or “from New Zealand”, then it’s most likely grass fed.  I found some of the meat from “down unda” in ShopRite.  The reason why most of the beef from there is grass fed, is mainly because the weather conditions are ideal to keep cattle grazing all year.  We do have grass fed cattle here in the US, too…check out U.S. Wellness Meats.  I’m going to order some stuff from there this weekend.  Thanks, Noah.  Set up a freezer in my garage again for the occasion.  :c)

My friend at work is fascinated with my lifestyle, and she showed me a video she found online.  The video was titled “My Potato Project; The Importance of ‘Organic’“.  This little girl conducted an experiment showing why organic was the way to go.  Basically, some stores use something called “bud nip” or Chlorpropham to keep the potatoes from sprouting vines on the shelves and when they are kept at your home, while studies show no confirmed cases of toxicity in humans after consumption (at least not from what I read), the argument she makes is rather interesting.  :c) Check it out if you have a few minutes.

“Losing a pound isn’t necessarily a reward.  Being healthy and feeling good about yourself is the reward.”

-Nancy Peterson-

All of the content written here is based solely on personal experience and things I have read.

Okay so we know Paleo is considered the Caveman diet, so essentially the working out part is based on the Caveman lifestyle.  It should mimic natural movements, so that means you don’t have to go spend 45 minutes on an elliptical at the gym (all the non-gymrats rejoice).  “I pick things up and put them down.”  Seriously, repotting some plants or moving rocks around the yard would be the ideal workout.

In my opinion, for anyone who just goes to the gym to run on the treadmill, cut it out.  That goes for anyone following Paleo and is trying to achieve maximum results!  If you are trying to lose weight and get fit, all that cardio won’t do much for you.  I read that it causes your adrenal and thyroid glands to get over worked…ANNNNND it can accelerate aging!  Yikes!  But, fear not!  If you like your cardio, then you should start doing it at a slower pace.  Hiking, riding a bike, snowboarding…they all fit the “slow and steady” category which is ideal for Paleo people.  And just for the record, the graphs and fancy things on a treadmill that track fat burning zones and whatever else, don’t believe them.  ’nuff said.

Paleo workouts should include movements that mimic and improve skills that would help us in the “wild”, so to speak.  Paleo and machines at the gym are not friends.  Go over and use the free weights.  Do some lunges, dips, and a few pull-ups.  You need workouts that will give you functionality strength.  You can integrate P90X into your workout regimen…if you don’t own it, get it!  The “Plyometric” DVD will be your BFF.

If you’re not an outdoor-sy kind of person, you should start getting more acquainted with the great outdoors.  Pull weeds, move rocks, wash your car, push the lawn mower…all of these types of activities are good!  I am a big fan of spending hours cooking.  I’m on my feet, walking around the kitchen, mixing things in bowls, cutting things up…and it’s been working for me.  Plus, the reward of the delicious food you create, makes all that hard work worth it.  Whatever you decide to do, be creative!

Paleo is all about HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training).  If you’ve heard about Crossfit, then you know all about HIIT.  That would be any workout that you alternate between intense bursts of activity and periods of less intense activity or complete rest.  (e.g. 1 minute sprint, 2 minute walk)  You will have better results doing 15 minutes/3 times a week of HIIT, than that guy that spends an hour jogging on a treadmill.  HIIT will help you  burn calories during your workout…as well as hours after your workout!  That sounds like a sweet deal to me.  All you have to do is get that heart rate up; push it to it’s limit.

Steady cardio will encourage muscle loss, so if you’re trying to maintain your muscles…2 words: HIIT and weights.  Your weight loss will come from the fat stored, not your hard earned muscles.  Let me try to give you a visual…we’ve all seen marathon runners, usually their stature is lean and fit, but if you look at Olympic sprinters, they are generally more muscular than the marathoner.  Marathoners do steady cardio, but the sprinter does HIIT.  Make sense?  You’ll burn more fat at high intensities for a longer period of time than at a steady state, and HIIT will be the key for this!

There’s also something called EPOC (excess post exercise oxygen consumption).  With HIIT you increase your metabolism and your human growth hormone (HGH), this will keep you burning calories up to 24 hours after HIIT.  If you go for a jog, sad to say, but you burn almost ZERO calories afterwards.

I know that’s a lot to take in…but you got this!

For everyone just getting started with Paleo, check out the list on this site: Pillars of Paleo.

“Never say the sky is the limit when there are footprints on the moon.”

…in my opinion, no.

I used to be a HUGE milk drinker.  Whole milk-every day-pretty much with every meal.  As I entered my 20s I started to notice that the day after I would drink milk I would be terribly bloated with leg cramps and a headache.  I didn’t really attribute it to much, I simply cut down on how much I drank daily.  I also ate a lot of American cheese, not Kraft singles, the deli kind.  Since becoming Paleo, and cutting dairy out (except butter), I have felt significantly better.  Butter is mostly fat anyway, not much lactose, but I buy grass fed and I also use ghee (clarified butter).  <—if you haven’t bought it yet…do it…now!

I may have mentioned it before, and I’ll say it again: milk turns baby cows into big cows!  We needed milk when we are younger to help us grow and develop, and it also introduced a good form of bacteria to our gut flora.  But as grown adults, you don’t need to be growing.  I’m sure there are cases where people need to drink milk, but for most of us, we don’t need it.  Besides the fact that mammals shouldn’t be drinking other animals milk…we’re the only ones that do it!    We can get calcium from other sources.  Plus, almond milk is pretty good.  If you do want to consume dairy, fermented dairy is the best kind.  Fermentation helps get rid of most of the sugars too, so that’s way better for you!  Drinking calories will actually increase insulin response, so why even bother.  It isn’t that dairy isn’t nutritious, it’s just that there are other things far more nutritious to eat in place of dairy….fair enough?

Lactose and casein are pretty bad for us, as far as weight and insulin control go.  If you do buy your milk from the supermarket, that’s not a great choice.  The cows that produced that milk most likely had a diet of corn and soy…so when you consume that milk, you are also consuming that corn and soy!  And…if you drink skim milk, that means they “skim” the milk…leaving all the “important stuff” behind.  Oi vay.  Grain fed cows…they have high omega-6 fatty acids, and after awhile, elevated intake will cause inflammation, which by now we know, we avoid at all costs living Paleo because noone wants to be inflamed (that just sounds painful).   Lots of these cows are on growth hormones and antibiotics, when you drink their milk, you’re drinking the by product of what was given to them.  Stay far away!  We are sadly misinformed on so many things.

So for all the people who are anti-Paleo, and think the idea of eating like a caveman is ridiculous…foods are not rejected solely on the fact that caveman didn’t have them, we just like to have the evidence that the food choices we make have higher health benefits.  We are genetically adapted to living Paleo if you think about it.  It isn’t a diet made up by doctors and “experts”, this is how people lived…it’s “nature’s diet”.

Next on the agenda…

Do you suffer from osteoporosis, kidney stones, hypertension, asthma, insomnia, motion sickness, inner ear ringing, and/or exercise induced asthma?  If you answered yes to any of those, then I have a cool Paleo fact for you that will change your life (hopefully)!  People who follow a Paleo diet tend to have more alkalinity in their bodies because of the foods they eat, so any diseases related to an acid/base imbalance (listed above) will improve.  To all my vegan/vegetarian friends, Paleo is impossible for you.  Sorry.

Another note, I follow the recipes in the “Practical Paleo” book, but I have a few issues with them.  One, don’t assume that everyone knows how to cook poultry!  Her cook times stated are very short for a lot of the recipes, and the shopping lists are insufficient.  I printed out week 1, went shopping, and ended up having to make a few more trips to the store because certain key things were not on the list!  So for week 2 I will take her list, and go through all the recipes and make sure I write everything down.  I don’t know about you, but I don’t just have persimmons lying around.  Oh, and as if “Whole Paycheck (Foods)” wasn’t expensive enough…macadamia nuts, prevalent in a lot of her recipes thus far, are quite costly (for not that many)!  I’d rather fly to Hawaii, pick my own, and fly back.  Luckily they can be substituted for cashews.  I don’t want to break the bank, and I don’t think anyone should.  If you run into the same problems with the recipes, do a little research and do it within your means.  I want to encourage people to adopt this lifestyle, and in an affordable way (it’s possible).  I don’t want people to be discouraged by some of these “pricey” meals, or ingredients that you scour the earth in order to find.  Even that turns me off to it!

“You are only as strong as you allow yourself to be, never get discouraged, never give up.  Consistency and dedication is the key to success.”

Second day of my 30 day adventure.  Had some leftovers from yesterday, and a turkey leg for dinner.  It was interesting to say the least…not a fan of dark meat tho.  :c/   I got the recipe out of my Practical Paleo book, and the cook time stated is far too short!  Needless to say, we have a few people in this house with tummy aches.   So I put the other turkey leg back in the oven and cooked it on 425 for another hour or so.  Tomorrow, it’s lunch.  We’ll see how that goes…haha.

I’ve been reaching out to my twitter followers, asking them to share their stories with me about Paleo, or reading their blog…or anything really.  Hopefully someone responds.  If anyone reading this blog has a story they want to tell me, and I’ll share on my blog (with their permission), I’ll gladly do so.  You can reply to the post, or e-mail me at paleYoblog@gmail.com.  I really want to hear what everyone has to say!  You inspire me, honest.  So if you’re not following me on twitter yet…go do it!  @paleyoblog …let me know you found me from my blog.  I’m trying to reach new heights!

“I was smiling yesterday, I am smiling today and I will smile tomorrow simply because life is too short to cry for anything.”

Hey there!

Hope everyone is leaping into the new year with inspiration and determination!

I started another 30 day plan today…so far, so good.  Crustless quiche with bacon for breakfast, and then some mustard glazed chicken thighs with a salad for lunch.  Yum.  I forgot how much fun it was to discover new foods.  It’s going to snow pretty bad, so I may be able to get a few meals prepped over the next two days.  In the meantime, I’m hoping that a few people in the Facebook group I created can get motivated and can get excited about trying this 30 day plan with me.  I’m no expert, and I’m not trying to be.  It just so happens that I tried something that worked for me, and I want people to know that if I pulled it off, anyone can.  I want to offer information about my personal endeavors…failures and successes.  I feel great, and I just want everyone else to feel great.  I managed to drop 32 lbs. in my 30th year…so going into my 31st, I’m aiming to lose some more.  I want to see more of a transformation from the gym by the end of the 30 days as one of my short term goals.  I’ll most likely take a picture at the beginning and end of every week, see how I’m progressing.

Anyone else doing a 30 day challenge?  Let me know how it’s going for you!

“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off the goal.”

-Hannah More-

I’m sorry for my absence from blogging, but Christmas was a bit busy for me.  Hope everyone enjoyed theirs!  I kept mine pretty Paleo and clean, minus eating too many Paleo cookies and a gluten free cupcake that was purchased for me.  Other than that, I stuck true to eating clean and still feel great.  I haven’t fallen off or anything, so I’m pretty stoked about doing this 30 days of strict Paleo, plus working out.

I’ve been recruiting people (mostly friends) for my 30-day Paleo plan starting January 1, 2014.  It’s just a coincidence that it’s January 1st; not starting that day as a “resolution”.  January 1st just happened to be the next first of a month.  While this may be one of thebetter times to “start something new”, I think the idea of a New Year’s Resolution, sets us up for disaster.  We make “resolutions” to motivate ourselves, so for a whole year we tend to procrastinate.  Some of us aren’t ready to make the changes we resolve to do, so that’s why most people end up failing or achieving the goal of their resolution!  So before you go thinking that this will be impossible to do…just give it a week.  One week is all you will need to feel the difference.  I will be adding in a workout regimen, but it is not necessary that you work out (crazy, right?).  This is all about becoming a new, healthier you.  After you start feeling better…then you can make your resolutions.

I actually wanted to touch on the connection between Paleo and working out.  Working out will be a big part of my 30 days (I’ve neglected the gym since I started Paleo).  The Paleo diet has to be altered slightly, depending on your activity levels.  After a conversation this weekend, with a friend who spends a lot of time in the gym and wants to go Paleo, led to many questions and not so many answers.  I never really looked into it.  The only thing I knew was eating lean proteins almost immediately after a workout.  I couldn’t tell you why, just that I read that somewhere.  So here it goes…

If, for any reason, you are one of those cardio maniacs at the gym…I regret to inform you, that is no longer how it will be (if you decide to go Paleo).  You will trade the cardio in for brief and intense strength training.  Upon doing some research, I found that the “chronic cardio” keeps you in a constant fight or flight mode, which will increase cortisol levels, inflammation, and damage to your cells.  Plus, the high-carb diet required to sustain the “chronic cardio” harms your body in the long term by raising your insulin levels.  Working out should never feel like a pain staking chore.  You should want to workout to feel better and support overall health.  Make sure you get your rest in, as well.  Make sure your workouts are energetic and not leaving you exhausted and sore.  A workout schedule while eating Paleo is definitely flexible, so find what works for you.  The workout for a Paleo lifestyle is based on natural movement.  They say to not use machine based equipment, such as a treadmill, but rather, go outside and go for a hike.  If you do high intensity workouts, make sure you’re leaving plenty of time for your muscles to recover.  But remember, your rest days shouldn’t be spent on the couch watching TV…slow movement should be incorporated on these days.  Perhaps you can walk on a treadmill for a few minutes, or go outside for a walk.

StupidEasyPaleo.com had a good article on post workout Paleo meals.  If you’re working out and eating clean, you should definitely check it out here.  I think it’s important for anyone who works out, especially for those of you who have intense workouts and who eat clean, to make sure that you get the right nutrients.  I do a lot of research on things such as this to make sure I achieve the maximum benefits of eating clean.  When I start this 30 Day Plan, I want to make sure I supply as much information as I can for anyone who is willing to listen.  I will be working out more during this 30 days, so it was imperative I did this research.  Here’s another good link for “A Quick Guide to the Paleo Diet for Athletes“.  At the end of these 30 days I’ll write about more of my observations and personal experiences.  If you want to be included in the 30 Day Plan, contact me paleyoblog@gmail.com or twitter @paleyoblog.

Challenge yourself.  You’ll be surprised.

“Don’t change because a New Year is coming up, but change for your own personal growth. No matter what resolutions you make, they start with you.”

I just realized that maybe I’ve been slacking on talking about my meals lately…sorry.  I’ll work on it.

Let me start off by saying this recipe for pizza may be the most amazing thing I’ve found to date.  Not only did I make pizza (that everyone practically inhaled and didn’t even question), but I also used the same recipe to make pitas!  Everyone who I have made this pizza for (Paleo or not), loved it.  You can dress it up however you want.  If you eat dairy, you can add your cheese.  Now, of course you can’t be eating this every day, but it sure makes Friday nights a little more exciting…pizza night!  This recipe has changed my life!  (Not really…but you get the point)  If you would like further directions, contact me.

1 cup water
1/2 cup ghee, grass-fed butter or extra virgin coconut oil
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp granulated garlic
1 1/2 cups tapioca flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup coconut flour

I’ve been using recipes from the “Practical Paleo” book, and doing a lot of my own little creations.  All the mouths I feed have zero complaints.  So I went from zero to cooking hero in four short months.  I can’t wait to make some Christmas cookies!  (a week away…wow)  I’m going to make some not Paleo (that I will NOT be eating), and Paleo ones that I can enjoy before my 30 days of strict Paleo living begins (January 1…there’s still time to jump on the band wagon).  That means 30 days of no Paleo treats…I got this!  I should be able to lose a few more pounds, and I’m adding more gym days to my week again so I’ll get a bit more toned.

A few months ago I had filled a closet with all these clothes I was going to get rid of because they were too small.  This weekend I decided to clean that closet out; my pile was drastically reduced because a lot of the stuff actually fit again.  The clothes I wore last New Year’s Eve I am donating because now they are way too big.  (Can you see the smile on my face?)  I’m hoping that by my 31st birthday (March 31), that I’m close to my end goal.  I had this hoodie that I wore during last football season, I put it on…I looked like a 3 year old in my dad’s jacket.  I’m not even exaggerating.  Amazing.  After the new year I think a shopping spree is in order.

I read this article about Adam Richman (Man vs. Food), and how “he ditched the show, overcame his bad habits, and took control of his body.”  I met him a few years ago, nice guy.  Here’s the article: Man vs. Flab.  Glad to see he’s doing awesome!

I can’t wait to go snowboarding this season.  I want to see what Paleo does for riding.  I used to get a lot of leg and foot cramps, so I’m wondering if eliminating all the gluten and such will help with that.  I’ll keep you posted.

This is has been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made for myself.

“Skinny girls look good in clothes.  Fit girls look good naked.”

Four months and 1 week later…I have reached my (first) goal.  I have lost 30.5 lbs.  I can’t even think about where I was a year ago, compared to now.  I certainly view my life through a very different pair of glasses now.  I have a lot more clarity and meaning. Attributing all of that to my lifestyle change would be a stretch, but I’d have to argue the fact that if you “eat clean”, it will definitely “clean” your mind.  I would have never imagined myself getting out of the hole I was in mentally, let alone physically.  Today when I was at the gym, I was running on the treadmill and I thought to myself (and then out loud), “Wow.  I have really come a far way.”  Things were put into perspective, besides the fact that my yoga pants were too big and falling down, I just felt confident, and it felt effortless.  (so I pushed a little harder)  Still got some work to do, but I’ll get there soon enough.

I can’t take all the credit for my success thus far.  I really owe it to the people in my life that support me, and constantly encourage me.  It’s humbling when you have friends who say they are inspired by you.  People are forever inspiring me.  We all deserve that from one another: encouragement, support, and love.

January 1, 2014, I am still planning on doing a strict 30 days again.  I’m going to follow one of the plans in the Practical Paleo book.  The 30-day plan is called “Squeaky Clean Paleo”.   If anyone is interested in doing the 30 days, let me know.  Find me on twitter @paleyoblog or email me at paleyoblog@gmail.com.  If enough people want to do it, I’ll figure out how to get a little online group together.  I’ll post recipes, and everyone can post their stories, trials, and tribulations…and maybe even some progress pictures.  Just an idea.

“I want to inspire people.  I want someone to look at me and say, ‘Because of you I didn’t give up.'”

I’ve made it through November without getting sick for the first time in years!  Pretty much every year, since I was a kid, I always got sick in/around November.  From strep, to bronchitis, to viral infections…hardcore stuff.  The other day I realized it was already December, then I realized I made it through November without getting sick, and THEN I realized I haven’t been sick since starting Paleo!  I may have woken up with a sore throat once or twice, but nothing more than that.  Could it be coincidence, sure…but I’m attributing it to eating clean.  It’s been 4 amazing months and 1 amazing day so far!  Will I ever go back to eating the way I used to before this?  No.

I think I’ve managed to stay healthy since cutting out all of the foods that I have.  It takes a lot of stress off of my immune system.  The grains, legumes and processed foods can (and will) cause damage.  They cause our intestines to become permeable…allowing for “bad stuff” to get into our bloodstream (this shouldn’t really happen).  When this happens, our immune systems fight them off because they recognize that they shouldn’t be there.  When your immune system is consumed with fighting off these proteins and foreign bodies (that can be avoided), unfortunately, it has no other time to fight off actually illness.  Need to keep that gut flora in check!  Our immune systems are adaptive.  They sometimes falsely recognize the “bad stuff” as good stuff, and conversely attack the “good stuff”; autoimmunity follows. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, Leaky gut contributes to all kinds of autoimmune diseases, including Type 1 Diabetes, Crohn’s Disease, and Rheumatoid Arthritis.

My gut flora has been so balanced and awesome.  I do not miss the bloat whatsoever.  Forgot what it was like.  Sometimes I sit and wonder where it went…and try to imagine what it felt like and if I’ll ever feel it again…then I snap out of it and think…why would I ever wonder what that feels like ever again?  haha  I digress.

Basically, all I’m saying is that Paleo may be the factor that kept me healthy during the time that I’ve always been most susceptible to getting sick.  Only time will tell for sure.  I wonder if this lifestyle will have any effect on my allergies.  I won’t know until the spring time though.

I shared one of my SCOBYs with a friend today.  She seems really into it…I’ll keep you posted on how she does.  Keeping the lineage going, Noah!  She loved the story!

“Exercise to be fit, not ‘skinny’, eat to nourish your body, and always ignore the haters, doubters, and unhealthy examples that were once feeding you.  You are worth more than you realize.”

Peanuts…not Paleo.  Contrary to popular belief, they are a legume…a bean!  Who woulda thunk?  Well, most people think they are a nut, and that technically if you go Paleo you can consume nuts…au contraire, mon frere.  Just a note, nuts have a hard, protective shell; legumes have a soft, permeable pod. Peanuts grow underground, because they are part of the plant’s root system.  This leaves peanuts at the mercy of temperature and moisture conditions that allows for the growth of molds (more on that in a second). Peanuts, peanut butter, peanut brittle, honey roasted peanuts…anything with a peanut in it…is no more.  Listen, it’s not so bad…there are alternatives.  Almond butter for example…delicious, creamy, almond buttery…and does everything peanut butter can do, but better.  Don’t knock it ’til you try it.

When it comes down to it, legumes are really not worth it.  They really don’t have much nutritional value, and they are way high in carbs.  Can you say bloated?  Ain’t nobody got time for that.  Plus, most people are allergic to peanuts nowadays…cutting it out would save the world!  (not really.)  Don’t get me wrong…anything peanut butter was probably my most favorite thing in the world, and to be honest with you, I don’t even miss it.

Okay, so more on the mold…   Peanuts are generally stored in large masses, and during this storage time the peanuts commonly develop a mold.  They also can develop this mold when they are growing underground.  This causes a toxin (Aflatoxin) to develop in the peanuts!  Too much of this mold can cause a person to develop an allergy to the peanuts.  I read that Aflatoxin has been known to cause liver cancer, and our liver is really important for a lot of reasons; for detoxification and fat-burning.  In the U.S., usually the way we prepare peanuts is to roast them.  This rids them of most of the bad stuff, but in other countries like China, who boil or fry them (better proven ways of removing the toxins), they have less known cases of allergic reactions to peanuts.

It’s your choice of what you want to consume, but I wanted to shed light on this.  Just because by definition A is B, doesn’t mean your A can’t be C, know what I’m sayin’?  Everything I eat is so full of flavor, I don’t miss things I had to give up.  I had an unhealthy addiction to food (for taste), so now that my food is healthy and tasty…it’s a win-win.  Life is good.  By the way, if you don’t get the quote reference, go ahead and google it.  :c)

TTFN…ta-ta for now!

“Sometimes I lie awake at night, and ask, ‘Where have I gone wrong?’  Then a voice says to me, ‘This is going to take more than one night.'” 

-Charles M. Schulz-