I’ve been eating pretty strictly recently, but have found that I’m eating more than ever before. I’ve also lost a bunch of weight – although I have much more to go – and am enjoying my food choices. It’s taken some realigning of my thinking, though. Eating primally essentially means to rid your diet of refined foods – including grains. I have not eaten any bread, cereal, oatmeal, cookies or other refined items in about a month. I’ve caved a couple of times – I had a bun with a burger last weekend (and felt sick after) and ate the crust of Kiara’s PB and J, just because I wanted to. I caved on homemade pizza too, because we make killer pizza. Not sure if I’m ready to give up that one. Have to find a replacement for the crust. Any suggestions?
My biggest struggles have been getting rid of hot cocoa in my coffee in the morning. I’ve reduced it, but haven’t eliminated it and getting rid of dessert at night – although I have done really well with this and have had maybe one bowl of ice cream and a couple of ice cream bars on really hot nights with the kids. I love ice cream, it’s my hardest treat to give up. I have had zero problem not indulging in cookies or brownies or whatever – but ice cream is killer for me.
I eat some fruit, but not a ton. I generally cook a few eggs and some bacon if we have it for breakfast. If I get hungry mid-morning, which is rare, I eat a handful of nuts or some trail mix with dried blueberries and goji berries. At lunch I try to eat a salad with salmon or chicken, hard-boiled eggs and avocado. Last night for dinner, I had a great burger John cooked, smothered in sauted onions and mushrooms with mozz cheese on top. It was amazing and I didn’t miss the bun at all!
I was such a bread lover that I never thought I could learn to eat this way, but it’s not nearly as hard as I thought.
The best thing about eating primally is that I am able to eat as much as I want, yet I actually feel less hungry than I did before. I have more energy overall and am working out and “playing” more than I did. Rather than killing myself, and my knee, by trying to run and walk for miles, I am enjoying leisurely walks and sprint workouts. I even get the kids in on it by racing them!
My best resource so far has been Mark’s Daily Apple. It’s a wealth of resources and encouragement. I highly recommend checking it out – I haven’t seen definition in my arms and legs for about 7 years at least, now. All of a sudden, my muscles are starting to make an appearance again and my pants are – dare I say it – loose!
I have had some interesting side effects while exploring this new lifestyle – I will share more later!
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