The chicken on my pizza is Paleo...

That was my Facebook status a couple days ago. For good reason. Short version, full confession: The deck was completely stacked against my diet and I caved.

We had a pizza party at work, a meeting with delicious baked goods, and a filming weekend coming up. I had no prep done, I was busy and drained. So I had a cheat day.

I don't feel too badly about it, I do feel bummed that I broke my streak, obviously, (I was at 11 days!) but I don't really feel like a failure. I hadn't planned right, I had literally nothing else -- but starving wasn't an option. My spirits also were just not up for such a fight because of the sheer busy-ness of the day. So I had some pizza, and a delicious slice of a coworker's baked creation, a strawberry sweet cake. It was divine. It also filled me up for the rest of the day.

I promised myself to make up for it by adding another day at the end of the 30. I did the math, I cross the challenge finish line on July 13th. I'll make it the 15th because I'm a superstitious gal. I think there's something finite and official and lucky about the ides of any month. (Even March. Hail poor Caesar.)

So. For good luck, I'm calling it on July 15th. At that point I will re-evaluate what this diet means to me, how I feel, and most importantly, what I will plan to do next.

The oddest thing on my cheat day was, that whenever I had a non-paleo meal, I felt sluggish. It's weird, because it was so subtle and completely not noticeable unless you're looking for it. I certainly never noticed it before I started eating salads for days on end and realized by stark comparison what bread made me feel.

I think at least some of what they say about wheat and diary is true. They are heavy foods. If you're used to eating them all the time, it makes sense that you get used to feeling a bit slow after every meal. But now that I've been eating better and obsessing over labels, the difference is clear.

In that observation, I've achieved the real goal of this test. I saw for myself how it feels to eat clean and then compare the feeling to what happens when I eat what I previously regarded not only as normal food, but in most cases, as healthy food. My life is changed forever by this experience.

I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I know now, because of this challenge, that wheat is going under the 'treat' category of my life. It really truly is low in nutrition and high in sloth content. I felt the difference for myself, there's no question.

Gone are the days of sandwiches several times a day and toast on the side of my eggs and bacon. I'm genuinely concerned with things like vitamins and proteins and healthy ways to fuel my system. It's like my view has changed on what gives my body the best bang for its buck.

I've learned to shop in the produce isle. I've found a good groove for dealing with meats and prepping my kitchen. I love fruits and veggies so much, I can barely understand the sweetness levels of candy anymore (I had M&Ms on my cheat day. Even a Twizzler. Holy pajama pants, what a jolt! Fun, but you know what? I would have traded them for raspberries in a heart beat.)

I feel re-synced with the natural order of things. I feel great. That said, I won't cut bread out of my life completely when this is over. Doesn't everyone deserve the occasional buttered roll? And I still believe that rice and oatmeal are healthier than the rap they get from Paleo aficionados. But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

For now, I've got my eyes on the finish line. July 15th, here I come! There are more bumps ahead. I have filming today and two endurance races that stand between me and the final goal.

I feel like I'm going to need these next two weeks to figure out the balance I'm looking for.

Diets never work. It has to be a steady constant life choice, that's the only thing that will stick and work for anyone.

It's that way of life I'm trying to figure out now. I'm testing and tinkering -- and ultimately choosing what I'm going to commit to. That stretches way past the reaches of this challenge. I'm not thinking of these next 14 days anymore. (I've got these two weeks in the BAG!)

No, I'm thinking of what happens after that.

:-)

RIDICULOUSLY CLOSE CALL!

WOW, was yesterday fun. But bad news bears in food land!

Let me explain.

Yesterday, I had the pleasure and privilege to go to the "Children's Grownups Museum Party", which, on top of being awesome in and of itself, was also 80's themed this time!

I got to blow bubbles, climb a pint sized rock wall, jump rope (I won the contest!), do a crazy photobooth with my friends and siblings, double-dutch, put together a puzzle in the kindergarten room (why did we grownups ever stop playing with blocks???), mess around with water dams and buckets, sit on bird statues and dance the electric slide. It was a top night, one for the record books!

But food-wise, I came SO ridiculously close to breaking the diet, it's not even funny.

So I had a good 6 hour gap between lunch and dinner -- plus a bike ride commute in between -- I was, therefore, hungry when I got to the museum. I had no emergency stash on me, even the granola bar I keep in the car for hunger emergencies has oats and grains in it :-(

At the party, they had a make-your-own-taco bar. Fantastic! It was also literally the only easy food option for miles (not counting precious-time-sucking sit-down restaurants). All the cafes and shops in that area close at business end times. Even Au Bon Pain right next door was closed at 6:30. Their loss, they would have made a killing last night.

Anyway, to the taco line I went. Here were the options, in order:
-- Hard/soft taco shell
-- Chicken/Beef
-- Rice/Chili/Black Beans
-- Tex Mex salad (corn, tomato, cilantro, onions, & who knows what else)
-- Sour Cream/Cheese/Verde Sauce
-- Tomatoes/Onions/Lettuce

Yeah. Delicious, right? The problem is that only the last line and the meat options are Paleo compliant. But I was with a bunch of people, and they were hungry too, so I quickly formulated a master plan.

I built the best taco ever (soft shell, chicken, chili & rice, bit of corn salad, sour cream, cheese), then on the side, I PILED (and I do mean piled) on several scoopfuls of tomatoes, onions, and lettuce. The plan being, I eat the greens and one of my cohorts takes the taco I wish I could eat. Two folks eat for the price of one! Genius, right?

For a bit, I thought my plan backfired! My buddies were horrified that I had built the dream masterpiece and planned NOT to eat it. What a crime! they said. "Go on, just today, it's not that unhealthy!" They were right of course, it really wasn't unhealthy food, but I whined about my streak and how I had 6 days under my belt and really wanted to make it to 30 without having to start all over... It was really hard!

My sister finally stepped up. Just in time, too. I was milliseconds away from caving. I'm not exaggerating, my next forkful was aimed at the chili - beans and all.

Saved thusly from the woeful abyss of failure, I happily enjoyed the rest of the night. The veggies were definitely no dream-taco, but they held me up pretty well :-)

Later on, I won a free drink from the jump rope contest. I really wanted a beer. But I wasn't going to break that easy after my recent willpower win, so I picked the red wine -- the healthiest alcohol "allowed" on Paleo. (Though, question, since Mead is made from honey, can I have that? Short answer - yes! Here's a full list of allowed adult bevies if you're interested.)

After the party, we found a nice place for dinner. One of those places that doesn't serve burgers and where the chef signs the menu.

There came my second challenge! I looked over all the delectable offerings woefully. All of them sounded divine, but most came on a bed of bread or with special cream sauces or cheese spreads...

I wound up ordering a side. The ONLY side that was Paleo friendly was the beets/cauliflower/greens/horseradish dish.

After we all ordered, the wait staff came out to each of us with a specialty roll, warm from the oven, with butter on the side. This was a gourmet mini-bread, specially made for individual consumption. It smelled amazing. It looked really good. I had a hard time saying no. (Don't worry, it definitely got eaten. :-p)

Out came the meals. My side came out in a tiny dish, looking small but smelling like heaven. It was late, I wasn't in the mood for a full meal anyway. My friends shared a bit of their giant chicken with me, too, so I was very soon legitimately stuffed! I was surprised by that :-)

So. Thus ends the thrilling tale of my brush with dietary failure. Yes, readers, I dodged many a bullet yesterday! I am super pleased with the outcome :-) I ate well, I wasn't starved at all, and - most importantly - I hit day 7 today!!! :-)


WOOHOOO!

The Swings of the Pendulum

Ooooooh, dramatic title! I feel like it could grace the cover of a Romance Novel or maybe a Grisham thriller....

ANYWAY.

Earlier on in this diet, I went though the phase of wanting to inhale everything under the sun. Now the pendulum seems to have swung the other way.

For the past 5 days, I've not been very hungry at all. It's the weirdest feeling.

Friday I ate 3 eggs in the morning, a pint of raspberries for lunch, some snow peas, and then some strawberries and a banana for dinner. I drank coffee and tea with honey. That's not a lot of food. I used to comfortably eat that much in one sitting.

Saturday, I ate pretty normally. 3 light meals - a strawberry & banana shake in the morning, chicken & peppers stir fry for lunch and again for dinner. (I was all about the chicken stir fry that day :-) )

Sunday, filming day, I ate very little but I didn't feel too hungry. I had some red cabbage in the morning, a couple carrots and a celery stick for lunch, a Larabar, a baked potato, a bit of tomatoes and peppers, and some snow peas for the midnight drive home. It's a lot of ingredients, but the amount itself could seriously fit onto one plate and have room left over.

Monday I had a bit more, 3 eggs in the morning, a steak (small -- I fried it for myself to take to work with me), and dinner was at a seafood restaurant where I had salmon and artichoke hearts. It was a very good meal.

Tuesday was scary. I woke up, ate nothing, rode my bike into work (6+ miles), ate nothing, drank some coffee, felt hungry, ate a small plate of mixed fruit, some water, long break of nothing, then Larabar for lunch - but I couldn't finish it in one sitting. I literally had half at noon and the other half at like 3. Then there was a salad and smoothie for dinner, after which I went kickboxing with a friend, after which I rode the bike 8+ miles back home.

And I wasn't hungry at all at the end of all that. Most of the time when I work out for 2 hours I feel like a food vacuum. Yesterday, nothing. Not the slightest pang of hunger.

Today is just as bizarre. This morning I had 2 eggs (3 is too much now), a handful of mixed nuts & seeds for a snack, and 6 small bits of sashimi for lunch. I know there's a light dinner somewhere yet to come, but I don't anticipate it being a big affair.

All I can say is WOW.

It seems a bit low in calories, which worries me. I'm terrified of triggering the starvation reflex. I think my total caloric intake these past few days ranges between 600-1200 a day... but I'm choosing to listen to my body on this one. I literally don't want to eat more, so I won't.

Maybe it's the summer? I can't be sure. I don't know what's going on, but I do know that I feel wonderful. I'm eating super clean and I feel fueled and happy.

I wonder if the pendulum is doomed to swing back to super-hunger territory again... I should squirrel away some nuts just in case. ;-)

Getting Help

I'm being strict in my tracking, so it's technically officially day 4 of this challenge since I started properly COUNTING. I know I'm going to make it to day 30 (Goonies never say die). But even so, I had a nightmare last night that I broke my streak again.

I was out with friends and we went to a fair, there were tables set up selling and giving away all sorts of goodies. I was doing fine resisting temptation, but one table had gluten-free muffin/donut hybrid pastries that were coated with a nice sugar-glaze and someone pulled me into taking not one, but TWO of them. Gluten-free doesn't NOT mean Paleo, I knew as I took the first bite. I devoured both of them and immediately felt guilty for breaking the diet.

Worse nightmares have been had, right? But wow. I woke up feeling so relieved that it was only a dream!

Yesterday I was up in Maine helping my friend film. I was a bit nervous. Not about the long shoot, but about what I'd eat while I was there. I had to plan. I was determined not to break. 

So I packed a fruit bar (Larabaars have amazing stuff that really is Paleo, and Trader Joe's recently started making dried fruit bars that only have two ingredients. Both brands really have no preservatives. Just dried fruit.) and some pre-washed veggies for the road. It was an early morning drive, so I stopped off to get some coffee. I refused the temptation of cream and sugar and pastries and just asked for a large black coffee.

I felt very proud of myself :-)

My friend's mom cooked for us film hands. She took amazing cares. There were loads of goodies. Sadly, I very much felt like this:

Still, there was a lot to pick from and I didn't go hungry. I had an amazing baked potato with bacon, salt, and two types of green onions. I know that doesn't sound much without, say, sour cream or butter, but I'm telling you, it was it a real treat. 

(For the record, if it weren't for bacon and salt, I legit would have lost my mind on this diet by the second blog entry.)

A friend last week told me another key to actually succeeding in this challenge was to tell people that I'm doing it. There are impromptu sponsors to be had when you're facing temptation. If folks know what you're trying to achieve, they'll help keep you both sane and honest.

That's so true. It was pretty noticeable yesterday, for example, when I couldn't make myself a sandwich or have any of the amazing homemade chili. So I told my peeps why. I was really afraid of being "That Guy", but it actually made for fun conversation and I got a lot of support. :-)

I feel good :-) I have my goal and I have support.

This is going to be a fun 26 days :-D

Number of Days Since Last Incident

We all know these signs, right?

I need one. It should read "___ Days Since Last Incident". So far, I think my record is... five days? I'm not sure. This is why I need the sign.

So, I mentioned that Empty-Fridge-Monday was a bit of a scrounge day, but since then it was Paleo and fruits and all good things. Until yesterday. My boss took our team out for lunch. I sinned hard. Pretty dumplings in noodle soup. It was divine, I refuse to repent. But I did break my streak of 3 days, which makes me feel a bit bummed out.

I heard a report on NPR this morning about rehab programs. I feel like I'm a wheat addict. I can't quit it completely and I'm constantly surrounded by temptation.

When I'm fending for myself, it's not a problem. I've even learned how to order smart at restaurants. Some restaurants, I mean. You know you're in trouble if you go to a noodle place or any cultural food establishment. But I can deal with any place that has salads and steak tips and fried chicken. I went to one yesterday. I didn't eat the mashed potatoes that came with my dish, I'm very proud of myself :-)

I prefer cooking for myself because I know what goes into my food and I can really play with spicing if I want to live it up. I'm planning to toy more with dehydrating recipes and I eventually want to make my own beef jerky. THAT would be such a win. I miss beef jerky. I used to think it was healthy before I started reading labels more closely.

I didn't really have a goal set in mind when I embarked on this food adventure. I was thinking I just want to try this out, as well as add benefit to training for some races I have coming up.

Now I'm thinking I should try the proper "30 Day Challenge" that I hear everyone tries. I'm terrified at the prospect. I have a lot of busy people-filled traveling weekends coming up, and I just don't know if I'm going to be able to keep the diet, strictly speaking from a logistics perspective. I mean, I guess I could stuff home-made nut bars into a fanny pack....

So here I sit, starting again with Day 1. Contemplating my surroundings.

I don't know how I'm going to make it 30 straight days.....

The Case of the Empty Fridge

The trip is over. The journey home was long. I got home groggy.

To an empty fridge.

Sigh.

I tried to stick to my promise, so I grumpily scrounged for the next two days. I had a couple fruits lying around, I bought a salad here and there... until I finally found a moment to get to the grocery store.

Last night I went food shopping at last! Bought a family size pack of chicken, eggs, snow peas, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, and kale. Yay!

I was hankering for nuts when I was out shopping. I looked at a bunch of bags of trail mix and mixed nuts, I couldn't buy any! Peanuts. Peanuts everywhere!! I miss peanuts. I enjoy them. But, alas, not allowed. Sneaky legume.

I prepped the chicken and made a stir fry. I even had some peppers left from before the trip. I love peppers. Bless those little guys for their long fridge life :-)

I think I overdid it for the fruit buying. NEVER shop on an empty stomach! I'm a little worried about eating it all before it goes bad! I think I will. ;-)

Boring and short, this update is. But not all of Paleo is glamorous and adventurous. ;-)

Next week, I'm going to bake. Bread. I miss it. Buttered toast, specifically. So I'm going to try to make crumpet-type muffins and see how well they toast :-)

In the meantime, yay fruit smoothies!

True Confessions of a Modern Nomad

Ooooh dear readers. What a ride this week has been!

So. The conference was a whirlwind of amazing feasts and broken Paleo promises. Here's a basic confessional of everything I ate this week....

Monday night (after my last entry):

-- For lunch, I went back to that "Place to get a Great Salad" place, which I learned is called "Leaf". It was amazing! And I did what I promised! I had a proper Paleo meal! Cobb Salad, no cheese, no bread, just olive oil dressing. Go me! Funny thing is I was able to eat the whole salad at once. I was hungry, yes, but I also think the lack of cheese didn't make me feel like it was a heavy meal.

-- For dinner, we went to Perla's on South Congress St. I had grilled Alaskan Fish, white wine, and a crazy amazing cream fruit dessert. I can't tell you how amazing the meal was. This was one of those super fancy menu places. And I didn't feel stuffed. It was perfect. Paleo-wise, there was a wine sauce on the fish, but that was the only rule that I broke for my meal. The dessert was definitely not Paleo, but it was tiny and really artsy and special, so I'm not even going to fuss about it! YUM!

Tuesday:

-- Breakfast: black coffee, apples. Great breakfast! I win!

-- Lunch: Ruh-roh! The conference had a sandwich selection. I went with a roast beef, potato salad and cole slaw on the side. siiiiigh. I even had chips. I don't know what possessed me to have the chips. *hangs head in shame* I felt a bit full, definitely not my best decision. At least it tasted good! :-D

-- Dinner was at La Condesa. We had amazing culinary delights again. Tapas style appetizers. I ate salsa, guacamole, cactus, octopus, beef, and a artisan sherberty fruit dessert. The whole meal was like eating art. This food wasn't cooked, it was designed. No, not Paleo. But not really unhealthy either! :-D

Wednesday:

-- Breakfast: black coffee, dried apple bars. Yay Paleo!

-- Snack at the conference: More dried fruit. Persimmons. Still being Paleo!

-- Lunch: Pasta buffet at the conference. Deeeefinitely not Paleo. (womp womp.) What blew my mind was how I felt after. This was the first pasta I'd had in about 3 weeks, but I didn't load my plate and I didn't feel full. Still, despite not overdoing the amount, I still felt SUPER TIRED. And I do mean tired. Sluggish. I had the 'itis' so bad.

     I drank 2 cups of coffee to try to make it through the day, but I still had the food coma worse than I remember in a long time. On this diet, I actually forgot what food coma feels like. Weird, right??? I was so surprised. I absolutely blame the pasta.

-- Dinner: Ranch 616. Straight up comfort food heaven. Food styles spanning from the Gulf Coast to midland Texas and further south. We ordered an appetizer plate the size of our table, on which we had samples of quail, frog legs, veal, beef, chicken, and a bit of cabbage and mashed potatoes on the side for fun. Yes, I said appetizer. I also tried my first Mexican beer, "Tecate". Me gusto. Me gusto mucho.

     So my meal was a steak on a bed of boiled potatoes in a butter sauce, topped with buttered crab meat with asparagus on the side. Super in line with Paleo! Though I can't be sure it's all Paleo, because I'm not sure what else was in the butter sauce.

     I was so full. What a wonderful feast!

Thursday:

-- Breakfast: black coffee, dried figs and banana chips. Go me!

-- Lunch: A couple friends and I went back to Leaf. I had the tuna fish salad with red wine vinaigrette. I think it's Paleo, because I'm allowed red wine and vinegar, but like the butter sauce, I don't know what else is in their vinaigrette recipe. Everything else was definitely Paleo :-)

-- Dinner: We found a cute coffee/sandwich place called Jo's. The kind of cafe that makes breakfast tacos and dinner plates. I totally went for it. Frito pie with pulled pork and fries, and homemade pecan pie for dessert. Followed by a beer or two. (*cou-THREE-gh*)



Let's be honest here, I wasn't even trying. Mostly because I just had to know what a "Frito Pie" was.

Friday:

-- Breakfast: black coffee and fruit.

-- Lunch: I wasn't really hungry today, I was running errands and didn't feel hungry until later.

-- Dinner: Southern comfort food care of Threadgill's. Cheese grits, collard greens, Salisbury steak and rolls. The Southern Last Supper. I never had collard greens and I only had cheese grits once ever, so I was dying to try. The meal was so rich and flavorful, I couldn't finish it all. Wow.

Saturday:

-- Breakfast: Coffee and an apple.

-- Lunch: Caught up with a friend for one last lunch before going home. We wound up going to Threadgill's again, where I had chicken livers and popcorn shrimp with fries. Again, so delicious and rich, I couldn't eat it all.

-- Dinner: Coffee and another apple. It was a looooong flight home.



What a week! I don't think I was very Paleo, but I did my best in my alone time. I came home to an empty fridge, too, so I'm going to need to food shop tomorrow. Today I spent part of the day with family, and, full disclosure, pizza may or may not have been involved.... sigh. *hangs head*

Okay, okay. Tomorrow's Monday. Monday, the diet starts again!

Texas Paleo

So staying Paleo in Austin is not as impossible as I was afraid it would be! I'm not perfect, but I'm doing really well :-)

The trip here was pretty good. I only had black coffee on the plane. I didn't feel hungry that early in the morning, so sticking to my promise for the morning leg was easy.

I got hungry in Dallas, where my flights connected. I was still determined to keep my promise, so I was already reaching for the dried fruit in my carry-on. But guess what they had in the food court? A smoothie bar! And I don't mean with the fake stuff, I mean straight up fruits and ice in a blender. SQUEE!!

The hardest part was ignoring the myriad of delicious smelling food joints on the way. Taco places, burrito places, pizza places, both big chains and local mom&pop booths... The very hotbed of southern food temptation!

But I'm glad I did. That fruit smoothie was delicious and it held me over for a good few hours.

After I got to my hotel, I took a walk-about town. I thought for sure that I needed to find a grocery store or something in order to keep my food promise, but I ran into the perfect place!

The place is called 'Leaf' and has a sign outside of it that reads "The Place for a Great Salad". Awesome! Of course I went in. And the name was not a lie!

I got a giant bowl of Cobb deliciousness. I sinned a little, because they had a bit of cheese and dressing in the salad, and I have to confess that when the guy asked me if I wanted a slice of bread, I caved. But it was an amazing meal and I had some left for dinner later because the portion was so big. I'd say I did quite well!

True, not 100% Paleo. But a much healthier food choice than I thought I had a chance to find!

I went grocery "hunting" later. I found a CVS. Not exactly a Wholefoods, but I raided the shelves for anything I could eat.

It was a heck of an adventure. I passed by shelves and shelves of snacks and crackers and jerky and trail mix that I used to think were healthy but now I can't even touch. I didn't see a single thing without wheat for three rows straight. And nothing gluten free (though, true, CVS isn't the place to look for that).

I couldn't have any trail mix because of the peanuts. I couldn't have the dried fruit because of the chemicals and preservatives. It's such an eye opening experience to read labels in the store now. You always think "Natural Flavors" sounds a bit sketchy, but when you stick to this diet and have to force yourself to put it back and keep going, it opens your eyes to just how little you can eat.

It limits options, yes, but, for me, it also raises my standards. There's a line in the sand now. Because of my experiment with this diet, I have a new rule: If I can't pronounce it, I probably shouldn't eat it. I think I like this rule.

I finally found a box of raisins. I flipped it over, expecting to read more "polysorbates" and "hydrogenated oil" or "treated with nitrate to retain freshness", when all that greeted me was Ingredients: Raisins. YES! I totally got some and went on my merry.

The next morning I went to see what my hotel's breakfast options were. Pretty much what I expected. Snack bars, muffins, oatmeal packets, granola bars, apples, oranges, coffee, tea, even Sanka. I grabbed a cup of black coffee and two oranges. Pretty super :-)

I went sight-seeing. I got hungry after a few hours, so I sat down to have a snack. I ate a couple packets of raisins on a nice bench just outside the statehouse. I'm not much of a raisin person. I used to think they were very plain. Now I'm surprised to find that they were almost too sweet for me!

I don't know what's happening to my taste buds. But since I don't snack on just anything anymore, fruit seems much sweeter than I ever remember it being. So weird. Very cool. :-)

I tried to go to the same salad place for dinner. I was fully planning to skip the bread and ask them to hold the cheese and the dressing this time. Olive oil and salt make a pretty great dressing. But they were closed! Ah!

I went to the sushi place across the street. It was the healthiest option at hand. Again not Paleo, but better for me than Taco Pizza. :-) I ate a plain salmon roll and an eel avocado roll. They were delicious and filling.

I am torn when it comes to rice and oatmeal. I love them. I love how I feel when I eat them. I feel satisfied, not overloaded. My body feels happy. I don't know how long I plan to try sticking to Paleo, but I don't think rice and oatmeal are evil and I don't think I can give them up forever.

I understand the science behind avoiding wheat, but everything I've read so far proves problems manifesting in people with legitimate allergies, and things that happen when people eat too much wheat. But... everything in excess is bad! You can even drink water until you die! So, is it really a surprise that folks who eat too much wheat are going to get sick?

In a related argument, try reading the bread ingredients when you go to the grocery store next. Behold the wall of text that greets you. Look at all those chemicals!

So now I'm led to ask -- the research that's done on wheat -- are part of the effects reported actually from that OTHER stuff? I think any scientist would be hard pressed to find someone alive now who doesn't have these other chemicals in their system. So I'm not sure I believe that all of their conclusions about long term digestive damage is solely caused by wheat. (For average, non-allergic people like me, I mean.)

People have had food enemies since the onset of global media. In the 80s, people feared butter. Olea and crisco and margerine made names for themselves. Then it was eggs. Then, wait, no, just the egg yokes. Then, sugar. Say hi to Nutrasweet! Then, soy. Then, not soy! Then milk. Cream. Now it's grains and wheat?

So pardon me if I raise an eyebrow. I do think too much is bad, but I definitely need to read more before I can slam down all wheat completely.


Meanwhile, back to Austin, this morning I went for a run and had a nice dried fruit breakfast. Dried bananas and mangoes and black coffee. I feel light and full of energy. I feel very good.

Today is the first day of the conference. Tonight I'm getting together for dinner with some of my coworkers. We're going to a famous local restaurant. I am curious to see what the menu offers :-D

Maybe I'll tell them about my blog and ask if they have Paleo menu options.

Or maybe I won't. Maybe my mouth will be too full of burger ;-D