Katie C’s First Guest Post- Part 2

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Part 2 of Katie C’s First Guest Post

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In terms of how to make the diet work, it’s not as hard as you would think.  You can find TONS of paleo recipes on the Internet, and if you ask around at the box, I’m sure people would be happy to share (I have a bunch and am always happy to pass them along).  Sometimes things don’t always turn out, but when you start with real foods–fresh meats, veggies, and fruits, it’s pretty easy to make a tasty meal.  Extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, and bacon fat are your friends.  Also, eggs are an easy protein source, and it’s super quick to scramble some up with some meat or veggies.  If you’re serious about sticking to this, get rid of of the crap at your house that isn’t paleo.  When you’re hungry, you’re going to eat what’s there, so it’s easier to eliminate the temptation.

One thing  I did that I would definitely recommend is to do a bit of meal planning if you can.  I’m a lawyer and work long hours during the week, so over the weekends, I try to plan out meals for the week, pick up what I need at Costco and Whole Foods, and spend a number of hours cooking up most of what will get us through the week.  I’m partial to pork and beef roasts (either in a roasting pan or crock pot), roasted chicken, paleo coconut chicken or shrimp, cauliflower mash, steamed broccoli, chicken soup, paleo chili, pecan- or almond-crusted chicken, or chicken salad for meals.  I usually try to make enough for Dave and me for lunch and dinner most days.  I know that you won’t always have time to do this, but it can be enormously helpful, especially when you’re first starting.

A typical daily menu for me might be a couple scrambled eggs and a few strips of bacon for breakfast, sometimes with a handful of berries.  Some beef or pork roast for lunch with cauliflower mash and a handful of almonds/pecans/walnuts.  If I’m hungry at dinner time, I might have some sauteed shrimp over salad or a hamburger patty topped with a fried egg with a side of sauteed spinach.  I also sometimes throw in a paleo cookie, piece of almond meal “bread,” or other paleo baked treat.  If I’m not hungry, I just don’t eat.  I mostly drink water, although I do usually have a cup or two of caffeine-free herbal tea in the afternoon.  I try to supplement with fish oil when I can, although I tend to have a sensitive stomach and hate the lethal fish burp, so I don’t take as much as I should.

I finished the 30-day challenge a couple weeks ago, and since then, I’ve allowed myself a “cheat” here or there but mainly am sticking to a pretty clean diet.  It really isn’t even hard for me anymore–I know how bad those foods make me feel, and I actually like what I’m eating and don’t get the sugar crash in the afternoon like I used to.  I did reintroduce vinegars into my diet for salad dressings, red wine, and a small amount of cheese, but I don’t use a lot of them and they don’t really seem to hurt.  One thing I would suggest is to try reintroducing foods one at a time after you’ve acclimated to the paleo diet to find out what you react to most.  I found out that anything with gluten in it makes me REALLY sick, like back to the first couple days of the clean, head in the fog, nauseous, sick.  But pure sugar doesn’t seem to affect me as much.  The only way to find out what affects you is to try it out in isolation.