I know, I know. Why do I feel the need to always be doing some sort of food challenge, right?? I just find it interesting to try and see why people become so loyal to a way of eating and wonder how I’d feel eating it that way. I never really understand something until I try it out, so for a couple days this week, I’ve been eating (mostly) paleo. ‘Mostly’ because I’m still not sure I know all the rules. Like sweet potatoes… yay or nay? I’ve been yay. And bacon? Allowed? Anyway…
Breakfast was a 2 egg scramble with mushrooms, onions and spinach. A slice of all-natural bacon on the side.
I attempted a wog outside, but between being sore, the humidity and perhaps the lack of carbs in my breakfast, I felt zapped.
I got in 1.1 miles. Haha. But 1.1 is better than none. I am still, today, seriously sore from a PiYo class I took at the gym. It’s a blend of pilates and yoga, but upbeat (think Usher’s OMG song).
It was an odd class and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it, but the time passed quickly and I’m still sore two days later, so maybe I’ll give it another go.
Post run was a smoothie with organic frozen berries, half a frozen banana, MILA, spinach and almond milk. Plus a spoonful of almond butter, since peanuts and peanut butter isn’t paleo approved. Almond butter reminds me of eating batter. It’s good, but it doesn’t stand up to my usual peanut butter.
I had a lunch meeting at BluStar Grill and opted for the salmon salad. It was incredibly hard to pass off my corn muffin, but I did.
After a two hour meeting, I was whipped. Thankfully Hailey slept for 2 hours (!!!) yesterday afternoon, which gave me time to play in the kitchen.
I snacked on homemade jerky (it’s unbelievable) and dried apple rings (x2) while I made my favorite, cool ranch kale chips from the Fitnessista.
I proceeded to eat a tray and a half of those while I made dinner.
Paleo cobb salad! Iceberg and mixed greens with natural bacon, boiled egg, tomato, avocado, red onion and leftover chicken. Topped with Newman’s Own light balsamic. It was so good that I surprisingly didn’t even miss the bleu cheese and ohhhhh my gosh, was it filling. I didn’t know a salad could actually make me feel so stuffed.
A special thanks to my personal paleo consultant, Maria, for answering all my twitter questions!
I feel like Regina George, but the paleo version… Is butter a carb?
What do you think of Paleo?
If you eat paleo, what is your favorite paleo meal?
Parita @ myinnershakti says
Personally, I enjoy reading about your challenges and love that you do them out of understanding and not as a way of following the latest fad. Question for you – do you think you could follow the Paleo diet for a prolonged period of time? Is it sustainable in your opinion?
Brittany says
That’s a great question and I’m not sure yet, as I’ve only eaten paleo for about 2 days. Though I haven’t been extra hungry, I’ve noticed my energy for morning workouts has been dwindling.
Personally, I don’t think it would be a sustainable way of eating for me. I enjoy all foods and believe that you can eat everything, in moderation, and be as healthy as anyone. I enjoy experimenting, but will most likely be back to my normal habits by the weekend. It is a fun challenge though! 🙂
jessica says
I have been following you for a few months now.You eat like my husband and I eat.We did Paleo for a few months last year until we had a bad motorcycle accident.Our diet went out the window during recovery.We were unable to cook for a few months so we relied on people bringing us food or ate whatever was in the freezer.We still eat healthy but also mix whole wheat pasta with spaghetti squash,use nut flour when possible,eat sweet potatoes instead of white potatoes…things like that.
Paleo is hard to get used to but once the first 2 weeks or so passes and your body adjusts you start feeling better.
I have some web sites that have good recipe ideas if you are interested.
I actually started following you because you were the ONE positive blog I came across about having a baby.I am due with our first one in October after a 10 year struggle with infertility.So i became a huge fan!!
Good luck with the Paleo thing!
Brittany says
Oh my gosh, I am so thrilled for you and your husband! Congratulations on your sweet baby. I loved having a fall baby and am sure you will, too.
Thank you for commenting (and I’m glad you’re healing after the motorcycle accident- scary!)
And yes, please shoot me the sites with recipes. I need some more help with creative meals!
jessica says
Thanks! We were shocked to learn we were actually pregnant,like for real this time!I love the fall anyway so this will make it an even better time of the year.We are adjusting to our new “normal” life after the accident.It’s still a learning curve but we are alive,and thankful for that.
Here are some web sites we used a lot,www.primal-palate.com.They used to be known as The Food Lovers Primal Palate.This one was my favorite because it had a lot of sweets!!yummy!
Cavemanstrong.com and Cavegirlinthekitchenblogspot.com had good recipes and ideas too.
I found a lot by searching cross fit web sites.Seems they go hand in hand.
The only food we haven’t found a good substitute for is pizza dough,so we made our own whole wheat dough at home.
Hope these make it a little easier for your paleo adventure!
Courtney @ Pursuit of Healthiness says
This is such a great idea! I’ve been wondering about Paleo and it always seems to puzzle me. I think I would get bored of eating nothing but meats and veggies. Are you considering doing a vegan challenge to see the other side? It would be a cool experiment to see how different they are but also their similarities. They both are seemingly restrictive, it would be interesting to find out which is easier while cooking, eating out, going to dinner parties, etc. You’ve inspired me to give something like this a try!
Brittany says
Definitely! I’d love to try vegan. I’m not sure David will love that challenge as much, but he’ll deal with it 😉
For my day to day eating, I agree, both styles are probably too restrictive for me long term, but I love experimenting with the different styles. If you try out a similar challenge, let me know how it goes!
blackhuff says
I also know someone who is on the Paleo diet and she is also missing her peanut butter due to the fact that Almond butter is just not the same.
I like the eats you had. 1.1 miles is better than nothing, for sure.
j3nn says
I love eating Paleo meals! It’s basically just real food anyway, but it’s neat to come up with grain- and legume-free meals. I love reinventing the wheel and pushing the limits of what’s acceptable. 😛
chelcie @ chelcie's food files says
I love cobb salad! sounds like an interesting challenge! i’m not sure I would be able to do the whole no grains thing but I like how it emphasizes eating whole foods
Michelle @ Lifewithacrazypup says
Woah girl! That salad looks fantastic! I definitely should not have read this while I was hungry!! I’m interested to see your complete thoughts on paleo eating. I’ve sort-of wanted to try it for awhile — stressing sort-of!
Maria says
Nice! While I don’t do Paleo all the time, I love to sneak in a few meals of it here and there. When I do it fully and do it right, I feel really good and have MORE energy. But it usually takes a few days or a week. Its very similar to the Whole 30 Diet, if you want to look up that as well.
Oh and sweet potatoes are fine. Butter is gray area, but I do know that a lot of Paleo followers use olive oil or coconut oil for their fats.
Jenn L @ Peas and Crayons says
This is terribly inappropriate but…
http://celebs.icanhascheezburger.com/2011/03/01/funny-celebrity-pictures-butter-is-everything/
=) happy wiaw gorgeous!
Sarah says
I haven’t tried Paleo, but I like doing eating experiments, too! Right now, I’m cutting out ALL added sugar, with the exception of special occasions. I feel great! I think this “experiment” might turn out to be a keeper.
christina says
i suddenly want a giant spoonful of peanut butter.
Lisa says
I love how you do these challenges, and note how it makes you feel. Instead of making judgements of the diet. That’s really awesome! I definitely love the idea of paleo, especially if its something that makes you feel better and healthier. I think it all varies from person to person on what type of diet will work from them. And no one should be judged on the diet that makes the feel best.I personally, can not imagine my life without oat bran or oats or carbs like that in general! P.S. above you said after your meeting you were whipped, I think you meant wiped 😉 hahaha just thought you should know.
Kristen @ notsodomesticated says
Never tried it. And I try to stay away from eating just a certain way … I fell into too many fad diets in college, so I think it’s safer for me just to try to eat as healthy as possible. But that’s just me! 🙂
Ellen says
I tried paleo but very quickly modified it to include breakfast carbs, mid morning snack carbs, and every other day lunch carbs. (of course those meals aren’t only carbs!) Never carbs after noon meal (unless it’s a rare cheat day!) My husband is a personal trainer & sports nutritionist, and this is his preferred meal plan… Used with lots of folks who are competing, etc. You are courageous for testing so many things & sharing with us all!
Brittany says
Oh I love the way you do it! It sounds like something I might try long term. I like Paleo, but miss whole grains. The modified version sounds much more realistic. Thanks for sharing!
Ellen says
Since you’re interested… I should have also said that one main reason to eat this way (in my husband’s opinion), is that you get carbs early in the day when you need them & still have time to burn them off. The amount of carbs tapers with the day, according to the fact that you’re most likely more sedentary in evening/night.
Kelly@Runmarun says
Very interesting about the paleo diet. Question- do you love your food dehydrator? How frequently do you use it? I have considered getting one in the past but wondered how frequently I would actually use it.
Brittany says
I got our dehydrator used from a friend for $30. I think they usually are around $80, so it was a good deal! I haven’t used it a ton, well, until recently. It makes the best kale chips (better than the oven IMO) and David LOVED the jerky. I want to try and dry some of my own herbs this summer, too. I don’t know if you’d use it a lot, but I do enjoy the fun things mine allows me to make. I look forward to experimenting more 🙂
Kelly@Runmarun says
Thanks for writing back- I do love kale chips and it would be nice to not use the oven and heat up the whole house during the summer months. Nice price!
Mackenzie says
I love PiYo! One of my girl friends is certified and she lent me a few of her videos to use.
Lindsay Maddox says
Oh my goodness, I seriously love me some PiYo! I started doing it a couple of years ago, then decided to get certified to teach it. It was so much fun! 🙂
lindielee says
I have the same kind of dehydrator. Don’t you find that the Kale sticks to the tray? I wonder if there are screens or sheets for this dehydrator?
Brittany Dixon says
I’ve heard you can cut and use parchment paper, but I haven’t had too many issues with it yet!