So yesterday, I posted my first edition of What’s Up. I got a few responses from people who were interested in exactly what I have been eating and how I have been eating Paleo.
Keep Calm and Eat Paleo
Let me start by saying I am not a Paleo expert. There are a lot of people out there who REALLY know how to cook and eat Paleo. All I know is I did what Larry told me to do and that was to eat only certain foods. Those foods turn out to be Paleo. Got it?
So…here is a rundown of what I have been eating for the last nine weeks.
Let’s start with what I can have:
- Protein – Preferably lean meat but bacon is acceptable. LOVE bacon. Lots of eggs.
- Veggies – Non starchy vegetables (no corn or potatoes). Preferably green veggies. Preferably veggies low in carb. The only type of starch acceptable are sweet potatoes.
- Fruits – Berries are best, Bananas are worst. All fruit is acceptable but I have to count the carbs in them.
- Healthy Fats – Nut butters (almond, cashew, NOT Peanut Butter), Avocado, Coconut Oil, Coconut Milk, Olive Oil, Almond Milk, etc…
Now, those are the general categories. I have LOTS of varieties within those but I am very routine and I stick to pretty much the same thing daily. Here is a rundown of what I have been eating most days:
- Breakfast – Eggs, meat, and peppers. I have been making egg cups on Sunday when I food prep. They are super simple to make and the weekday mornings are better because they can grab and go. On the weekends, I actually cook the eggs and meat and eat them then. Egg cups are simply a meat, peppers (Rotel) and eggs in a muffin tin. You bake it up and pop it out and you have something similar to an egg muffin. I might do a full recipe post on those later!
- Lunch – During the week, everyday, I eat a salad. It is the only thing that really fills me up. My salads consist of lettuce, lots of chicken or turkey, peppers, avocado or egg. And it is big! On Fridays my husband eats lunch with me and a lot of times he brings Chick-fil-A. I will either have a grilled chicken salad or grilled chicken nuggets with a side salad.
- Dinners – This is when I get a little creative (not much!). Some of our favorites are chicken cooked on the stove with coconut oil, salmon and tilapia, burgers on the stove topped with lettuce, avocado, and pickles. We also really like turkey burgers. If we are short on time and want to eat out, we go for Willy’s, Chipotle, or Moe’s. I order a salad topped with salsa, chicken or steak, and guacamole. We also have Rotisserie Chicken sometimes we buy at Costco or Jack Daniels chicken from Costco (that stuff is the bomb!).
- Snacks – I have tried to limit my snacks but usually I will have some almonds, a hard boiled egg, and some fruit. Again, snacks are saved for workout days.
The biggest thing I do is count the fat, protein and carbs in everything I put in my mouth. I measure and write it down in a food journal. My goal is to hit 100 grams of Protein and Fat a day and stay under 50 grams of Carbs a day. Now, with trying to eat more, I am trying to get up to 120 grams of Protein a day. That is really hard for me.
At first, I thought eating this way was going to be torture. I just knew that it would get boring and I would have horrible cravings and it would just be awful. However, I gave it a shot. And…you know what?!? I actually liked it. It is such clean, good eating. If it doesn’t grow out of the ground or walk on the ground, I don’t eat it.
Here are the things I haven’t had in the last 9 weeks:
- Sweets – I have not had one thing sweet. Not one. I was making a trifle for a work function and I washed my hands with soap when I had leftover brownie on them. Now that is committment!
- Dairy – No cheese or milk. I have had almond milk and whole cream in my coffee (even though technically cream is not allowed).
- White anything – No white rice, no white potatoes, no white flour. No white nothing!
- Grains – No whole grain anything either. No grains. No carbs. No oatmeal.
- Alcohol – That is not hard for me but this would be tough for some people.
Here is the amazing thing. I don’t have any cravings. NONE. I don’t want the crap my body used to crave. I feel so much better and have so much more energy.
Do I think you should go Paleo? Absolutely! Go for it! Is it restrictive? Sure! Does it take some planning and thinking about what you are eating? Yes! Is it do-able? I am living proof of that!
Plus, there are SO many websites that have great Paleo recipes that are much more creative than my boring old meals! I will save all of those for a later post! Don’t you worry!
What are your thoughts on Paleo eating? Again, I am not an expert but I do know that it has transformed my way of eating for the last 3 plus months!
You’ll Love Paleo
About Jennifer Swafford
