Getting Started

I first learned about Paleo lifestyle from a emergency room physician I once knew. He was a health and fitness enthusiast. But I never gave the diet much thought. After all I followed a pretty healthy diet most of the time. I had my French favorites: French bread, French cheese, and French wine. Not gonna lie, a major part of my diet. I included roasted vegetables and grilled meats the rest of the time. But I never could lose, but rather continued to gain.

My first step was to research the Paleo Plan. I read what I could on the internet. Since I loved to cook and pretty much visual, I preferred reading blogs and studying recipes. Armed with a list, I went shopping. I worried that I would not be able to find Paleo friendly products needed for cooking and baking. In my Colorado home it would be no problem, but in my small town in Louisiana, I wasn't sure. I was pleasantly surprised to find almond and coconut milk, coconut oil, almond and coconut flour. It was enough to get acquainted with my new style of cooking and eating.

Everything else was rather simple. I began with simple things like roasted vegetables and chicken. Experimented with the crockpot, which has proven to be invaluable. I discovered I wasn't really changing the the kinds of dishes I ate before, only how I prepared them. Substituting cauliflower for white potatoes and rice, spaghetti squash for noodles hasn't really been that difficult of a transition for me.

I thought I would miss my baguettes and brie, but when I stopped having the gastric issues that were getting substantially worse, I knew I was on the right track.As the weight melted away, I never gave them another thought.

Other than times when I wasn't in absolute control over ingredients, I have stayed pretty much on course. I now consider myself a true disciple of the Paleo lifestyle.

K.

How I started on this journey

In mid October of last year, the one just past, I decided to experiment with taking all gluten, dairy, and sugar out of my diet. I had been experiencing perimenopausal weight gain(my heaviest ever at 132 pounds) in addition some minor aches in my hands and knees. After the first couple of weeks, I no longer felt the gastric bloating which had become my norm. And I lost 3 pounds. A couple more weeks past, and the pain in joints was significantly less. I had lost 3 more pounds. By mid November and the beginning of hunting season, I had none of the usual shortness of breath climbing into my deer stand. My hunting attire which had been tight the previous season was not quite loose fitting.

By Christmas I had lost a total of 13 pounds, dropped two sizes, and had more energy than I'd had in a long time. And I never stepped a foot into the gym. I was finally making progress. I began reading more about the Paleo Lifestyle and decided to give it a go. I pretty much followed the diet, now was time to add the other two components. And that is where this part of the journey will begin.

I want to post for me to hold myself accountable a record of my dietary intake along an exercise and sleep log. This will be to evaluate the whole Paleo packaged deal. We will see where this journey takes me.

Like everything else, it's a process

k.