This month marks my 3 year anniversary since adopting a “paleo” diet. I put paleo in quotes because I don’t like referring to the way I eat by a name. Let’s face it, as soon as you label the way you eat, be it paleo, vegetarian, vegan, kosher, clean, or whatever you invite people into your personal life whether you mean to or not. When I find out that someone doesn’t eat animal products the first thing I ask is why? I just find it fascinating as to what led the person into eliminating animal products from their diet. On the same note, when someone finds out that I am “paleo” usually the first question asked is “what’s that?” Then I am faced with how to explain what paleo is without it sounding super negative (I don’t eat grains, I don’t eat dairy, I don’t eat legumes, etc.) or without sounding obnoxious (I eat a nutrient dense whole foods diet that consists of food I predominantly make myself or are found in nature.)
Now that I’ve been eating this way for 3 years, I feel qualified to give my insights on the topic and how I’ve been able to maintain this way of eating for so long:
1. It’s my forever diet way of eating-plain & simple when I eat grains (even gluten-free), dairy, and legumes I don’t feel well. My symptoms can range from just an uncomfortable bloated belly to nausea & malaise for days. I had some amazing hummus with a Mediterranean plate for an appetizer at a local farm-to-table restaurant last week. It was amazing-slightly chunky without an overwhelming tahini taste and it was drizzled with EVOO & served with fresh feta cheese, assorted olives, field greens, roasted almonds & cured ham. By the time my meal came I was already bloated and still felt sick the next day. I just cannot eat legumes. I wrote an entire post on why many people have a hard time digesting legumes that you can read here.
Before CrossFit & Paleo in 2011 & 2 years later at my daughter’s birthday party.
2. I eat a wider variety of more nutritious foods- you would think that by eliminating grains, dairy, & legumes that I must only eat salad, chicken & broccoli but honestly that’s not true at all. I focus on the nutrient density of foods-what foods are going to give me the most nutrition for the fewest calories. This is not because I am counting calories; this is just how a foods nutrient density score is calculated. Foods like kale, spinach, Swiss chard, dandelion greens, Brussels sprouts, beef heart, liver, lard, tallow, & grass-fed butter are just a few of the foods that make a recurring appearance in our diets now when they never did before.
Jeff & Carolyn at Potter Hill Farm with part of my beef CSA.
3. I care about where our food comes from now- before going paleo I just ate what I thought was healthy and never really gave any thought to where my food came from. Now I am a regular customer at my farmer’s market and I even bought a pig share and a cow share from a farm just a few miles away from my house. Potter Hill Farm offers beef CSA shares that are the equivalent to a quarter cow. Not only does buying meat directly from a farm help to support local farmers but it’s healthier for you and more cost-effective. Buying in bulk saves money whether it’s nuts & spices or meat. Potter Hill uses a local processing plant (about an hour away) called Adams Farms. This family owned & operated farm has been in business since 1946. Knowing that the animal that I bought to feed my family was not only humanely raised, eating the food nature intended it to eat, but I feel better knowing that it was humanely treated on its final day as well. I found my farm on the Eat Wild website.
4. I make the majority of our food now- eating this way means that I have significantly decreased the amount of processed food my family eats. Sure I used to cook; I’ve always enjoyed cooking. But now instead of buying protein bars I’ll make my own. And I’ll make my own salad dressings instead of buying the stuff in the bottle with who knows what for ingredients. Ultimately my family is eating better and the proof comes from my kids’ pediatrician. When my daughter had her annual physical last month her doctor commented to Brent that she hadn’t seen either one of the kids all winter. “That diet you guys follow must be working.” There is nothing better than getting a compliment like that from your children’s doctor. Right there it was all worth it. I always knew that the reason why my family rarely gets sick is because we eat so well. But hearing it from our doctor felt pretty darn good! I was proud!
5. We waste less food-because I don’t eat cereal or bagels for breakfast anymore I need to be creative if I want to eat more than bacon & eggs. It took some getting used to, but now I can eat any food at any time of day. Beef stew, chicken & pesto, and even chicken Caesar salad are a few of the breakfast foods that I have been seen eating. If I make a whole chicken in a Crock Pot I save the bones and make stock. Then I’ll use that stock to make “leftover soup.” Leftover soup is nothing more than making soup with all the vegetables that didn’t get eaten from the week and look like they are going to spoil in the next day or so. It’s a great way to use up all the leftovers in the house and make a meal at the same time. The best part about me eating soup for breakfast is that my kids don’t even flinch when they see it. Probably because they are eating deli rolls and leftover meatballs themselves. Oh and did I mention my kids are way less picky than they were a few years ago? Bonus.
6. I am more confident-I can’t say it any other way other than I like the way I look now. I see pictures of me before and although I do not think I was overweight, I do think that I look better now; I look healthier, stronger, and fitter. You just can’t help but be confidant when you are truly happy with the way you look. Do I feel like I am perfect? Do I look exactly as I did on my wedding day 10 years ago? Absolutely not, but I am finally at a place where I may never have 6-pack abs and I am just ok with that. My 2 children were worth it.
What a quarter cow looks like frozen and individually wrapped.
If you’re wondering if this way of eating could be for you and your family, I urge to give it a try. You have nothing to lose for giving up processed foods for a few weeks. If you still need more information I would suggest you check out the resource section for more information. A few I would suggest are:
Do this one thing to improve your health the most.
Let me know if you have any questions or if I can help you with anything. You can always just reply to this post or use the contact form here and shoot me an email.
Yours in Health,
