Come on the Paleo Train

Happy Election Day! No matter who wins it is so wonderful that we have the opportunity to vote. I am teaching a bomb lesson on the Electoral College.

Back to the main topic which is eating.

John and I went to Green Bay this weekend to visit my parents and go to the Packer game. It was AWESOME. We had such a great time. Luckily, for us my mom prepared Thanksgiving dinner since we won't be up there until Christmas. My heart was happy. Family, drinks and good food.
I will admit I did break the gluten free law since my favorite Thanksgiving food is stuffing. My mom makes her own amazing, melt in your mouth stuffing. But boy did I pay for it. Lesson learned, when you don't eat gluten then have a pile of gluten soaked in butter your stomach will hurt. But I wouldn't have changed it for anything.

Recently, I have been on a podcast kick. I have two amazing podcasts that I listen to while I workout. One is based out of the Twin Cities called Health and Wellness and the other is called Balanced Bites. Both do a fantastic job of breaking down nutrition in a real food format. No gimmicks. I am able to think about more than just calories in and calories out...because it is more than that. They talk about blood sugar levels, how protein affects your metabolism and the last one I listened to....HOW ADDICTING SUGAR IS. This is so hard for me because it isn't just the chocolate sugar, it is the sugar that your body makes from eating carbohydrates.
Needless to say, these podcasts are helping me stay the course.

Naturally, because they preach real food and lower sugar they usually promote a Paleo diet which is mainly gluten and dairy free. Since my gluten free excursions have been so successful I am making the way to being dairy free.

Now...before you get your Wisconsin Dairy Lovin' State panties in a wad just listen. I will still put cheese on things because frankly it is very easy to get grass fed unprocessed Wisconsin cheese. And I will admit, there are times when I just want some good old fashioned Colby.

If you are thinking about joining the Paleo train, take the first steps to cutting out processed carbohydrates (anything but fruits and veggies) and dairy. Choose one meal a day such as breakfast. Instead of toast with your eggs choose a vegetable. You still get the carbs that your body needs to function but at a much smaller dose and in a natural form. Gradually you can work your way up to two or three meals being totally Paleo. Paleo Perfectionism is not the goal.

Here are some of the Paleo snacks I am digging:

To prepare for a week of Paleo I went to my favorite place...the grocery store. Here are my awesome finds. (note: Doritos = a special treat for my husband) 

Starting from the upper left: Cat food, blue corn chips, black beans, kale, sprouts, sour cream, peppers, celery, deli meat, chicken breast, apples, peaches, oranges, tomatoes, salsa, spinach, zucchini, squash, cauliflower and Gluten Free english muffins. 

Produce, Produce, Produce.