A little background a lot of motivation
November 27, 2012 marks the anniversary of a new dedication in my life. Four years ago I dedicated myself to getting my bachelor's degree. Two years ago I dedicated myself to being a mother and a wife. I thrive off of these successes and I feel wealthy in the life that I lead. Wealthy in love and knowledge. However, I got a bit off course with the physicality of my being. Once a constant athlete working out every day of the week, I missed the energy and the physique that I used to have. Granted, I had a baby and I wasn't a teenager anymore, but there are no excuses for not being completely happy with youself. You control your destiny and I decided that my destiny involved getting fit again.
So at the beginning of October I started to go to bootcamp's Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and my husband and I joined a gym so that we could work out when he could since he worked to early to go to the AM bootcamps.
Change 1) Waking up at 4:20 AM to better myself because lord knows I did not do it because I want to (I was always more of a hibernator-- 11:00 am preferable wake up time pre-baby and 9:00 wake up time post-baby)
I always aspired to get more out of the day and finally I realized how long the day can feel when you allow yourself to have the mornings.
Nautrally I slacked off with the workouts due to happenings (wisdom teeth removal), the habit of couch-dwelling, and my own laziness as Thanksgiving rolled around.
After Thanksgiving I'm back to it and sticking to it! I was fine with this transformation because I knew there would be a difference in my mind, body in, soul because I went from doing nothing to doing something.
My uncle-- who happens to be a fitness buff and my boot camp instructor-- asked me if I had ever heard about the Paleo diet. Meat, vegetables, fruits, eggs, nuts, oils. No grains, no processed foods, no potatoes... NO CHEEESE:(. This is what he told me and my mind was tainted with wonder and intrigue. I started to look at every food I had in the house... almost everything i'd eat on a daily basis was made out of grains: macaroni, pasta, bagels, bread, cereal, soda. All of the dairy I was eating: yogurt, milk, cheese. And the rest was processed foods. I wasn't all bad; I have always loved fruit and I do eat vegetables too, but the core of my diet was everything that paleo said wasn't good for you.
I started to read into this diet, in the most skeptical manner because it seemed impossible that there would be anything that I could eat if everything I normally eat was wrong! A paleo book had told me a lot, but a few things were about how grains aren't actually good for you and they tend to give you bloat... WHICH IS SOMETHING I'D BEEN STRUGGLING WITH MY WHOLE LIFE! It also talked about how grains led to things like depression, which is something that i'd also been struggling with a lot of my life.
After reading about the nutritional benefits and hearing stories about how people's lives, bodies, and energies had transformed I really wanted to try it. I also have struggled with digestion problems since I was a toddler... So originally I decided it'd be good to see if my body did have a positive reaction to this diet. But, what made it so easy to start was that it isn't a diet. It's a lifestyle change, and I'm all about personal evolution. To remove the unnatural aspects of my life and become the natural being that I am spiritually. I aspired to match my mind, body, and soul.
So I dove in last Tuesday. It's been a week of this new lifestyle and I already feel better. And even the skeptics of the diet are making comments about my body looking tighter (which i know isn't only paleo... it's the mixture of working out and eating healthier). I started to keep a food diary so that I could be conscious of what I was eating. Temptation has reared its ugly face, even on the very first day of my decision. A sales representative came into the office I work at offering homemade graham cracker, toffee, chocolate, and heaven cookies... a bag for each of us! I kindly took it and it stared at me all day, but I took the challenge and didn't even open the bag.
I don't want to set myself up for failure though... So on Saturday I did indulge in some popcorn with melted mozzarella cheese and a few handlfuls of nerds. 22 years of a certain way of eating is hard to go cold turkey... but i'm determined and I'm excited about all of the foods that I can eat and create.
The spark that really made me realize how exciting this lifestyle is happened last night. I wanted tuna but I can't really imagine eating tuna plain for lunch... i used to put a good amount of mayo in my tuna. So I googled paleo mayo and lo and behold, there is a recipe for it. So last night I acquired the ingredients and I made a jar of paleo mayonaise! It was so rewarding to have 1) made my own condiment and 2) have made something completely healthy and paleo friendly. I had been using a small amount of honey mustard (non-paleo) to flavor my salad because I didn't have paleo friendly dressings. I also made a paleo vinaigrette that I found online for my salad this afternoon. I must say, I'm not a fan! I probably should have tasted it before I drenched the lettuce in it. Ruined my salad, but hey you live and you learn.
I'll just put a list of foods that I've eaten so far:
eggs (boiled, scrambled, and over-easy)
banana
almonds, raisins, dried cranberries (trail mix)
lettuce wrapped sandwhich
peppers
apple
sweet potato (on occasion)
chicken covered in herbs & extra-virgin olive oil for moisture(made extra and ate it cold... YUM!)
squash
kale
apple cider vinegar
balsamic vinegar
light tasting olive oil
extra virgin olive oil
Naked juices... Green monster is delicious!!!
onions
cucumber
pumpkin
pumpkin pancakes (They were a hit!!!! I didn't have almond flour so they were thin like crepes but... yummy!)
honey
strawberries
watermelon
okra (hard to get used to it unfried, but I know i'll acquire a taste)
sea salt
ground pepper
tonight i'm having:
brocolli
cauliflower
asparagus
I'm excited for this journey!
