The Last(ish) Hurrah

Folks, this might be among my last entries for this blog.

I hope you've enjoyed the ride with me! I sure had fun sharing all these odd thoughts and experiences with you all :-) I'm hanging up the quill for now, as there's not much new news I can report. I know if I think of any more awesome recipes or have a particularly hysterical ball of yarn to spin for you, I'll post again. Just not as consistently or as often.

On the whole, I've hit a good plateau with Paleo. I think I've figured out what I want to do next.

Paleo is definitely awesome. I feel great, I lost a few pounds, even my skin looks better. I genuinely love the food and I love how I feel. So I'm sticking to it. Just not 100%. That would feel a bit too strict for me. So I'm gonna try the 3 cheat-meal limit per week approach and see if I can hack it.

My first sin is behind me - I had pizza the other night, to celebrate the done-ism of the 30 days. I kind of regretted it after, I felt all globby and guilty. Partly because it was pizza, partly because I tore into said pizza like a honey badger tears into a cobra.

Below is a picture of my second, most favorite, most long-awaited, most glorious sin of sins.... (Ah, my dear sweet Boca Grande, how I've missed you!)...

... and then I have a 3rd cheat, but I think I'll leave #3 in the bank this week. (I really did do a number on that pizza.)

We'll see how this approach goes! Cheat days are definitely easier, but I don't want to limit stuff on a timeline and lose all flexibility. What if my cheat day rolls around and I don't feel like cheating? What if I'm out with folks trying a new fondue dinner spot but it's not my cheat day? Seems like a bit of a bummer. Nah, I'ma try the occasional meal thing first. I think I have the willpower to pull it off. (I hope!)

So that's it for a while!

Enjoy your days, dear readers! I do hope you got a kick out of this blog, such as it is. It's been a real pleasure :-)

I wish you health and happiness and success in your own diet journeys, whatever they may be!

 "♪ Reunited! And it feels so GOOD! ♫ ♪ "

Let's Go Bar Shopping!

Everyone knows what it's like to be on the go. We all love the convenience of grabbing a quick snack, jamming it into a bag or coat pocket, and blazing a trail out the door.

Things like grab-and-go yogurt, string cheese, and breakfast bars just make life so much easier. Granola bars were my personal favorite :-)

You know, before Paleo...

Here's a TOP 5 Review list of some Snack Bars and Health Bars that used to be my friends, and where I stand with them now that I'm post-paleo-experiment.

#5 Quaker Oat Bars:

HISTORY:

I LIVED by these things! They were the best! I'd pop into CVS, stock up on the cheap, and not have to worry about having granola bars on hand for ages! I liked the variety packs the best.

NOW:
I read the label. Wall of chemistry. I ate my first one in a long time (since Paleo wouldn't let me near it) and the moment I opened the package, I regretted it. The smell hit me like a brick; the taste was so sweet it was bitter; the consistency was grainy and plastic-y... my taste buds rejected it immediately.

VERDICT:
Never again. Yikes.

#4 Nature Valley

HISTORY:
I discovered these when I started caring more about hiking and having healthy snacks at work. They were great! 200 calories at most, depending on your favorite flavor, and most of the ingredients looked normal and good.

NOW:
There's too much chemistry in there. Canola oil, four different types of flour, sugar, corn meal, and my personal favorite: "Natural Flavors". Gah!

VERDICT:
Sadly, I'm not going to get these ever again.

#3 Clif Bars

HISTORY:
I had these for every hiking trip, rock climbing excursion, and day out I can remember. It was my sport bar. A delicious snack for a gal on the move.

NOW:
Maldextrones and Sodiums and Food color 9 and who remembers what else... I'm so sad :-(

VERDICT:
I can't. There's more science lab refuse in these guys than actual food. :-(

#3 KIND bars

HISTORY:
When I really started focusing on healthy eating, just before starting Paleo, I came to hear of this company. My first reaction was "Wait, what? NO preservatives or anything???

I couldn't believe the ingredients list!! I, of course, fell in love!

NOW:
I'm still in love with KIND. Very few bars are Paleo friendly, but they're so delicious and made entirely from the good stuff, that I still think they're awesome.

VERDICT:
It's a treat, and I have to read each label, but yes indeedy, they are SO on my to-buy list.

#2 Lara Bar

HISTORY:
I didn't hear about this company before starting Paleo. So... there is no history...

NOW:
WHAT??THIS IS THE GREATEST THING EVER!!! 100% REAL FOOD! YESSSSSS!!!

VERDICT:
Yes! Like with KIND bars, I have to read the labels, but I absolutely plan to have these around :-)

#1 Trader Joe's Fruit Bar

HISTORY:
Just as I was starting Paleo, I remember being worried about a Filming weekend that would have me away from fresh produce. I went to Trader Joe's in a desperate last-ditch effort to TRY to find something I could actually eat. They had these in the "we're trying these out" section.

I bought some. And was stunned. Each bar really only has two fruit ingredients. That's IT.

NOW:
They seriously only mashed up fruit and dried it into bar form. I'm in awe. And so happy that it's available.

VERDICT:
Aaaaaabsolutely!


So! There you have it! My personal review, with limited commercial interruption.

I'm so happy there are companies turning back to the rawest ingredients. I feel like I have more options. And, philosophically, I feel like I'm not the only one out there that wishes for more companies to create things like this. Supply and demand, right? Now I don't feel like such a "That Guy" in the stores anymore :-)

Burrito Blocker and Bars

Gah!! Why?? WHYYYY???

Today of all days is so busy at work that I can't duck out for lunch to Boca Grande for that burrito I've been craving. Deeeee-NIED.

Yes, I said Boca Grande. My favorite. My tried-and-true. There are other burrito places like it, but this one is mine. ;)

They closed down a location near me, so I can't get it on the way home anymore, but there are others where I work that I was planning on visiting. Even though it's storming outside! Even though I'm on my bike!

But meetings and work picked up and I can't get away. So. Tomorrow, or Friday even, I'll live the burrito dream :-)

"Paaaatience, my pet." *strokes imaginary cat* "It'll taste all the sweeter for the waiting...."


On top of this burrito-blocked crisis, I remember that I promised to do a review on the grab-and-go bars I like. A little share-all critique that stemmed from my adventures.

I haven't forgotten, my lovelies! I am putting together a top-5 list of my favorites and ex-favorites with that scathing expose I promised ;-)


Meanwhile... the ticker in my brain continues...

The Last Supper!

It's July 15th!

Do you know what that means??

I'm DONE!

FREEDOM! Burrito time! Nom nom paleo nom nom! Good heavens, I miss burritos... It's all I can think about for the past week... like a CNN ticker in my brain... "burrito burrito burrito"...

So, I did the whole day today also, just as extra penance for my GoRuck training sins. But I didn't suffer. Check out my last Paleo supper:

Not bad, eh?


Oh, delicious steak on a bed of amazing salad... yeah, cry for me.




Now that the 30 days is up, I find that I don't really want to change that much. I'll be relaxing the rules a bit on burritos, I guess, but that's pretty much it.

I really like this way of eating. I am a Paleo convert. Not in everything, mind you. I've done more reading on rice and some grains, and though maybe they're not the easiest things to digest, they are really not the evil that hard-core paleo fiends will tell you they are. And that's fine, everyone is free to make their choice and judgments.

But I remember many times when I had an achy tummy and a bowl of oatmeal helped. (Note: I'm not talking about that processed natural-flavors stuff, I'm talking about "Ingredients: Oats" oatmeal.)

And I remember how warm and soothing a fresh bowl of rice with a bit of butter and sugar felt after a long day of shoveling snow in the wintertime. (Note: If you haven't tried rice with sugar and butter mixed in, you're missing out.)

So no. I won't cut them out of my life completely. I believe they are fine in moderation.

The thing is, I have a re-calibrated sense of what "moderation" means.

I think bread and rice and grains are WAY too predominant in people's diets. Folks don't eat their vegetables anymore! Kids grow up thinking fruit is something your mom torments you into having instead of the freezer pops and instant pizza that are in constant supply in the fridge at home.

I feel like I don't really miss bread, beans, milk, beer, and so on, that much. I do like them, yes. But now that I know more about them, and I've actually had to live without them, I think I will continue to limit how often I have them and I will be more than okay :-)

One switch that has forever flipped is that all processed stuff is out of my life forever.

I just can't look at a wall of text on a label anymore and justify putting all that weird science into my shopping cart. I am now always going to ask "but what does 'natural flavor' mean? and why isn't what's in this flavorful enough?"

I was in a meeting at work today. Big group of people. There were cookies. The topic of why I wasn't having one came up. I was a bit shy about it, ever fearful of being "That Guy", but I told them I was on the last day of the 30 day Paleo challenge. We had a nice chat about what that was and my crazy reasons for trying it. It was a fun and interesting chat and everyone was super awesome about it.

I read one of the packages on the table. There were boatloads of random things I couldn't pronounce in it. I just looked at the size of the paragraph and thought again to myself -- "you've worked so hard... why would you mess with the good clean feeling you get from healthier eating to have this periodic table in your colon now?"

I don't mean to be the critic of critics... some uppity food aristocrat.... and I know I'm going to have treats again in this lifetime. But this is one major life-changing result from this experiment that I believe in and am going to live by: If something on the label sounds more like the contents of a petri dish than a garden, I'm going to pass.

Sorry, Keebler Elves. Our relationship is over.

Now.

Where's that burrito?

The Paleo GoRuck

So this weekend and July 4th weekend, I did two GoRuck events. If you don't know what GoRuck is, it's basically a military oriented company that both designs military gear and hosts intense team-building endurance events led by cadres with experience in the Special Forces of all branches in the military. It's basically team-boot-camp-hiking where the cadre assigns team objectives and doles out PT pain.

I did the Light last weekend and the Challenge this past Friday-to-Saturday. It was intense. It was grueling. And it was so much fun I can't wait to go again.

But why am I telling you this?

Because it is HARD to stick to Paleo when you're training for and doing these events! I have to admit, during the Light I had two granola bars on the breaks. How sad is that that that's a crime? And yet. So sayeth yon Paleo gods: Thou shalt not partake of yon grainy granola deliciousness.

I also had toast and cheese with my breakfast on the day after the Challenge. Because after 12 hours of pushing, you deserve sweet cheesy carby goodness. I mean, look at this holy mess and tell me you can't cut me some slack!

(I'm the second one on the left.)

Earlier this week, I got myself to the grocery store in time and loaded up on Larabars. If you haven't heard about these, get ON that! These things are wonderful. They add nothing to the recipe except for the things you want to eat!

It's always nice to have a quick snack on hand. Larabars helped keep me honest and paleo-compliant. Other than that, it's been bacon and eggs, chicken, veggies and fruits.

I've decided that tomorrow or the day after, I'm going to do a nitty gritty expose on granola bars. As a finely tuned label reader, I will share my personal reflections on what I like to eat and what I now choose to avoid. So many things claim to be healthy when they aren't.

So! That's the latest update from this end. Not a lot to report.

Three days to go!

WHO AM I ANYMORE???

I went into a pizza joint and ordered a salad.
I went to an ice cream shop and had sorbet.
I went to a fancy dinner and DIDN'T have the risotto. (I really wanted that damn risotto.)

Today I went out to dinner and ordered a salad that had greens, beets, hummus, apples, corn, carrots and cashews in it.

I picked out the corn.

I ... PICKED... out... the corn.

Who is this person??? Ah!

Well, I'm the git that has 7 days to go until the 15th releases me from this tyranny of no burritos. I have one week left until I get to re-evaluate the core principles of how Paleo will fit into the rest of my life.

I miss risotto. I miss rice. I miss desserts at restaurants that have more than 2 stars. I miss burritos. No, you don't understand. I really really miss burritos.

A friend and I were recently talking about Paleo, and what to do after the 30 days. We both agree it's a heck of a difference in how you feel. Maybe even how you look. I think my skin looks better. Also, I lost 6 lbs.

The greatest dilemma any dieter faces is "to cheat-day or not to cheat-day". One of my buddies -- not on Paleo -- is dieting, and takes Saturday as his cheat day. I don't even know if I can say "cheat day". It's more like "complete and utter resolve annihilation day" or "letting loose the hounds of hell day". He rips into the nastiest unhealthiest -- I mean, he really goes for it! And heaven love him, he's strict the other days in the week, and he's already lost 40 lbs, so it works for him. That seems too extreme for me.

My Paleo friend says when her 30 days are up, she's going to stick to it, but treat herself to one cheat-day a week. I was telling her my almighty plan to split that over my week and do 3 cheat meals. Say, on a night when I go out with friends for beers and chicken wings. Or a day when there's pizza in the office and I forgot my lunch.

The problem with that idea though is self-control. Does it count as a meal if someone offers me cake and I have some?  What if I have pizza an hour later? Is that one meal or two? Questions that boggle the mind...

I'm still deciding.
I have a week left before I even cross that bridge.

Maybe my hell-hound-loosing friend has it right.

But I know myself. If I had a whole day of naughty fooding, I'd buy so much, there'd be leftovers... and then where would I be?

Maybe I'm over thinking it.

Or maybe I should just have that damn burrito.

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!

Bonus giggle on the headline for you Archer fans ;-)

So here's a picture of my winner winner chicken dinner last night:

Spinach, kale, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, red peppers, and nice fresh fried up chicken bits on top. A bit of olive oil, salt, onion powder and paprika for dressing.

UNBELIEVABLE, I'm telling you. My head was in that dish like a hungry horse in a troth.

So yeah! Life is going good! I have 10 more days of Paleo left, but I'm not scared.

It's funny, though. In this season of cookouts and summer fun, I feel extra-surrounded by tons of deliciousness I can't eat.

I have a few friends who are health-conscious, too, (shout-out to my Facebook homies!) who are trying to eat right and exercise. Not necessarily Paleo, but they're overall trying to live a healthy life. Being surrounded by potato salads and cole slaw and burgers and hot togs and mesquite sauces and chips at barbecues and cookouts this summer is a challenge! Cuz you know what? That stuff tastes good!

So one of these friends and I were talking about cookouts the other day. She was nervous because the fourth was coming up and she was worried about how she was going to stick to healthy options and resist temptation and not overdo it on the delectable naughty stuff.

It's a common concern for dieters and healthy lifers alike. Barbecues are the staple of summer. You're meeting with friends and family and so much of the fun is derived from collectively eating massive quantities of food that you don't often see outside that setting.

But so many things at cookouts are heavy, unhealthy, rich or otherwise sinful. So what does a poor dieter do?

I think I have the answer. And it's one I accidentally stumbled onto... It's a switch in my brain I didn't realize got flipped. I don't know how or when it happened... but...

I separated the food from the friends.

Let me explain.

I think part of the pressure of eating wrong at these gatherings comes from the fact that you're going to a place where naughty food is and you feel expected to partake of said naughty food in the company of those around you. I think we've collectively associated that as part of the cookout ritual.

I don't have that association in my brain anymore.

When I think "cookout" now, I think: friends, laughter, maybe a drink after sunset, summer dresses and flip flops. Do you see what's not on the list?

I do understand that food is part of the package, and I am definitely concerned with side questions like "what do I bring?" and "I hope there's steak". But, if it makes sense, I don't have the two ideas related in my brain in terms of translating a cookout into being forced to eat wrong.

I used to have the instinctual reaction like my friend does, like she was telling me the other day, ie. "I'm going to a cookout, watch out, waistline!". Now, it's so separate in my head. I think "I'm going to a cookout, how fun! I get to see so-and-so and so-and-so"... my focus changed and I don't even know when.

I suspect that practice with this Paleo diet, being "that guy" a little bit, did it. I think those trips to restaurants with friends when I had to say no to that delicious roll or the do-it-yourself taco line forced me out of thinking that I had to eat what my friends were eating... I think that changed how I think about eating in public.

I feel, in part, that this Paleo adventure started out like a joke or a shameful secret. Kind of like "look what I'm doing at home! Tee hee! When no one's around, I'm going to try this and this and this..." and now I feel that because I've been trying to stay healthy when I'm out and about, and I learned the real value of eating well, I realize that I don't have to feel bad about being different -- that's it's not wrong to label myself as a healthy eater when I'm in public.

It's kind of empowering. It's kind of invigorating. And now I see that it severed an association in my mind I didn't know I ever had.

Food is separate from friends.

If I go to a cookout alone, would I eat everything that's on the table? No. I'd eat like I eat at home, something lean, something with a salad, maybe some fruit for dessert. So, why does that change because there are people around me?

Now, I can answer, that it doesn't.

I'll never be worried about cookouts again. I love my friends and I love going out to barbecues and seeing the roar of fires and crackles of meat on the flame. I'll bring spring salads and cuts of ribs and desserts I invented and thought people would like. I'll bring a 12 pack of something for the grownups and I'll have a merry time.

But I won't be tempted by the potato salad drenched in processed mayo. I can't look at a S'more and not think of the chemicals in the graham cracker, the natural flavors in the chocolate, and the bleach in the marshmallow. I genuinely don't want any of that stuff.

Not because I'm above it, I hope that's not how it sounds, just because, that's not where my attention goes anymore. I love that people are enjoying those nom noms, I love seeing the smiles on the kids' faces, smeared with chocolate and joy. But I don't want that food anymore. I like the way I eat now. And after working so hard for so long, and really learning about how some foods are really bad for me, there are things I just know for sure I'll never want again. Going to a party where that food exists won't sway me off that mindset.

I wonder if that makes sense to you dieters out there. I hope it does. It was a very strange thing to learn about myself, that part of the temptation was rooted in a self-created sense of peer pressure... super interesting.

I wish all of you a merry cookout season!! And to my waist-line worriers out there... If you haven't found that switch flipped for you yet, keep on fighting the good fight! Make a battle plan before you arrive! Pick the things you know are good for you ahead of time and don't be tempted off your goals! It's hard at the beginning, but it's worth it in the end :-)

Enjoy barbecues for the company, the sunsets, the laughter.

That's where the real joy is :-D

PRO-TIP: Don't leave your lunch at home!

Empty belly. Neglected salad waiting sadly at home, wondering what it did to upset me. Disappointed dreams of a lunch plan not realized.

Cuz I'm special. I forgot my lunch at home.

Irony of ironies, today's the day I remembered to take pictures, specifically with you in mind...

Behold how nicely I separated the veggies and the spinach... everything's all washed and cut and seasoned...

Check out those colors. All that deliciousness. So so far away.

D'oh!

Ah well. At least I have dinner ready.






Last night I made Kale Chips, too. 6 batches worth!

I ate a bunch last night, I saved some for today in a great big silver bowl, covered, at room temp, to see how they hold.

Will they still be crispy? Will they still be salty and amazing? Ooh, the suspense is killing me.

I tried one this morning, a particularly crunchy fellow at the top of the pile....

It was divine.... :-)








And, finally, just for fun... Behold, my favorite breakfast!

Yum yum eggs. Oh yee sweet delicious egginess. All ready to go. Just add bacon.










So, in conclusion -- as I sit here, hungry, lucky that there was a bit of sushi lunch to be had at work to hold me over (octopus sashimi of all things, woohoo fishy paleo!)... my lesson and pro tip to all you Paleo dieters out there is....

DON'T FORGET YOUR DANG LUNCH!

:-D