I’ve been talking about this recently, but to quickly fill you in- I wanted to change my eating habits when I started my 30 Day Bikram Yoga Challenge and after hearing a lot about the Paleo Diet (I originally read about it on One Twenty Five and liked what I read) I decided to give it a try.
The basics are no dairy, grains, legumes, starches, alcohol or processed food & sugar. It’s surprising how much of our food is processed. Not until you cut it out do you really see how it dominates our diets. The diet focuses on clean, whole foods- fruits, vegetables, lean meats, seafood, nuts and seeds & healthy fats.
After four weeks living the Paleo lifestyle, I can say that I really like it. I’ve tried a few different diets over the years and this one seems to fit best for me. Everyone is different, so when I say this one works, I’m only speaking for my body and myself.
One of my favorite parts of this eating style is that I can enjoy fruit. I’ve tried South Beach and other low-carb diets and I just love fruit too much; it’s really hard for me to give up. Also, mentally I know the sugars in fruit are natural and it’s a healthy food so it goes against my beliefs when I give it up in my attempts to be healthy.
Along with fruit, dominating my diet are fish, organic meats, vegetables, almond milk and smoothies. Because you can eat meat on this diet it hasn’t been too challenging when I’m out to find things I can eat on the menu. It takes some extra thought but I’ve always found something that satisfies me; something I’d probably order regardless of the Paleo plan. I’ve done a lot of at-home cooking as well (Paleo Plan Recipes & PaleOMG are excellent resources for recipes). One of the most important things to note is I rarely felt hungry while on this diet, so deprivation never even crossed my mind.
Have I cheated? Yes. While I tried to stick closely to the diet, I did allow myself a few treats here and there. I had a few glasses of wine and indulged in dairy only twice, plus a few sweets in moments of weakness (sometimes you just gotta!). Coffee technically is not allowed on this diet, but for me, that’s a deal breaker. I NEED my morning caffeine fix and don’t feel guilty about having it. I do however now use almond milk and Stevia instead of skim milk and Splenda.
Throughout these four weeks I’ve managed to lose 7 pounds and 4% body fat (this is also in part thanks to extreme amounts of Bikram Yoga) and feel lighter and healthier. I love how much I’ve been able to cut out processed foods and focus on plant based foods instead. I think that is a really positive aspect of this diet.
I plan to keep up with this way of eating but will likely allow myself more cheat days moving forward. If you’re interested in trying out the diet or have any questions, give me a shout!
