I thought eating was the hard part!

As you can see, I haven't been on here in a week. It's stayed on my mind, life has just gotten in the way! I'm about to finish week 2 of my Paleo Diet!! It's been surprisingly easy; the hard part is making time to write about it!

I'm really liking it, the cravings are getting a little bad here and there... I have to just remind myself that this is something I want to follow for years to come, so one or two non-paleo things during the week isn't bad. I've been aiming for 90-95% of my meals to be Paleo. This means out of the 35 "meals" per week that I eat, I can allow myself 2 or 3 meals of decadence. For me that may mean a potato with my steak or chicken...or dessert...or both!

Shane and I had a cheat lunch this past weekend. We went to Uncle Julio's to celebrate my finishing my Master Trainer Level 3 exam...I'm pretty confident that I passed it. We went all out, kind of. The meal started with ceviche royale with fish, scallops, and shrimp. Then we moved onto 4 pork tamales and combo fajitas with flour tortillas, beans, and rice.

After the yummy meal, we were basking in our glutton and like clockwork, hit a wall about 20 minutes later. Man does gluten and dairy slow us down!!

Today I decided to have part of a candy bar that I was craving. I knew that if I just ate a piece of it, I would be satisfied. Otherwise, my mind would have kept me thinking about it all night. Well, I don't know which would have been the better choice because I am now dealing with a bit of a headache. Oh well.

Hopefully I can manage my time better and aim for blogging a bit every other day. Thanks for joining me on this food journey!

Paleo Day 6 and 7

One week down!

I don't know that I've noticed a huge difference in my weight just yet and I also didn't do any "before" measurements. Well, actually I did. I had started with my waist...and that's where it stopped. Not the same waist size I had pre-Zoe. I'm at a lower weight, but everything has shifted, I guess. No biggie. I wear the same size, if not smaller in some things, and feel great.

The biggest things I have noticed this past week: I've been sleeping better, my energy has been up overall, and my skin is glowing. Bye bye gluten and dairy! Shane's energy seems to be up, too. It's also been fun experimenting with new recipes and meals. As I type this, I'm enjoying a yummy fisherman's cioppino from Whole Foods. I've never had it before and it is so delish!

Yesterday started off with an egg white scramble with mushrooms, onions, and spinach. Lunch was uncured apple chicken sausage with a berry spinach salad and half a mango. Shane's included a bit of leftover egg scramble. Last night, we dined on cod with a homemade pineapple mango salsa. This morning was a similar scramble and a banana. Tonight may include some steak and grilled veggies.

Trying new recipes and ideas has been fun and has reminded me how much I do like to cook. Fresh food is so much easier to work with and I feel like I can be more creative with it. Before I loved carbs first thing in the morning and often at night. Surprised? Nope. The more carbs we eat, the more our body craves them. Practical Paleolithic talks about how our bodies will eat protein and veggies until we're full, but will continue to eat carbs until we decide we're done. Sugar overload!!

I still will get the sugar bug at night, normally after dinner, but have found a yummy coconut milk "ice cream". I can have a tiny scoop of it and am satisfied. So yummy! Sadly, I still haven't made it to Crossfit, but seriously plan to this next week...

It's pretty cool to hear from different friends of mine that are following Paleo as well. I know there is always someone that I can talk to about it and get ideas from. I want this to be something that Shane and I stick to. Clean, healthy food works. Period.

Paleo Day 4 and 5

Day four wasn't realllllly a Paleo day for me. Breakfast started out great (some turkey sausage and fruit), but I knew that I planned on having my "cheat" meal later. I like what Adam Farrah talks about in Practical Paleolithic; listen to your body and try to practice Paleo 90-95% of the time. This gives me the sense that I have a little freedom. Other times when I've tried to 100% eat clean, I've felt like such a hypocrite if I want a french fry or jelly bean. So, I had my Greek food last night and enjoyed every last bite of potato. Yummmmm!!

I got up this morning (day 5) and with the time change, decided to get my day started. I packed up my baby girl and headed to Market Street for more of their yummy Old Bay seasoned shrimp. I loaded up the cart with organic fruits and veggies, including some rainbow chard I'm excited about, and headed for the checkout. Apparently noticing my plethora of organic goodies, the college-age checker asked me, "so do you really notice a difference with this organic stuff?" In my head, I was screaming, "heck yes I do, how could I not??". Instead, I said, "oh yeah, the flavor is so much better". Even though I could have stood there for at least another 10 minutes going on about all the reasons to "go organic", I knew maybe that reason alone would encourage her to try it out. The whole time, Zoe stayed content teething on cold slice of organic Braeburn apple.

On the menu for today: egg scramble with hamburger and avocado, snack of an apple, lunch of spinach salad with strawberries and tomatoes topped with cold left-over broiled chicken, and dinner will be fish and mixed veggies.

One of the biggest reasons I decided to take on this challenge for 40 days...and hopefully a lifetime...was to be a strong role model for my baby girl. I want to show her how to take care of your body and how to be a strong, independent girl and woman. Everyday I wake up, I remind myself of that.

Paleo Day 3

Well, they always say that the third day is the hardest for cleanses and diets. I did great during the day, but the sugar fairy must do something to me around 6pm. I have yet to crave starchy carbs...but sugary things...eek!

I had 2 jellybeans and a bite of the leftover spice cake. That's it, nothing more. However, jellybeans are just PURE sugar. Bad.

We've been having yummy breakfasts of eggs or turkey sausage (or both) mixed with veggies and a side of fruit. Lunch has been a lot of salads; yesterdays included a "hamburger" salad. Dinners have been pretty easy, just a lean meat and more veggies. I made some Swiss chard sauteed with onions, garlic, and some smoked paprika (picture shown). The smoked paprika gave them a "barbecue chip" flavor, which was very yummy. I paired that with some of Whole Foods organic pastured chicken quarters baked with some coconut oil to crisp up the skin. So yummy!!!

I'll continue trekking on. It's not so bad right now. I just hope the nighttime sugar craving subside soon. Time for breakfast!!

-Tricia

Paleo Day 1...and 2

Good morning!

Yesterday officially started my paleo adventure. Breakfast consisted of eggs with pico de gallo and turkey sausage. Lunch was a yummy spinach and kale salad with strawberries and shrimp, then dinner was steak and grilled zucchini. I snacked on raw fruit and veggies the rest of the time. It was surprisingly easy. I had expected to crave the jellybeans in the bowl on display in our living room, or the rest of the spice cake sitting on the counter. Both left-over from my sugar binge the weekend prior.

I shared a picture of breakfast this morning: turkey sausage with onions, spinach, and mushrooms. Sooooo yummy!

My goal for this coming week is to get my booty to the beginner CrossFit classes at Omega Performance Training in Plano. They have a Monday and a Wednesday night class. The trick will be timing it so that Zoe is in bed.

My husband, Shane, is joining me on this journey and I'm so thankful for that. His support will make the hard times so much easier. Plus, I don't think I'd last if he was parading around eating bread, rice, pasta, etc.

I'm getting a little hungry, so it's time for an apple and Zoe's nap! See you tomorrow!

-Tricia

40 days...I think I can, I think I can!

Hello all!

Since Zoe's birth, I've taken a huge hiatus, but am back!!! Since I last blogged, I've joined on to become the lead yoga instructor and coordinator at Omega Performance Training in Plano, TX. Along with amazing classes, they also have a Crossfit gym in the back.

I've been inspired to try it and also try the Paleo diet that is growing in popularity. The two often go hand in hand, eat and workout like a caveman! With Lent right around the corner, I figured this is as good a time as any. So, starting on Wednesday, I will be a "Crossfitter" and attempting to get lean with the Paleo diet.

I'm pretty excited since I've seen such amazing transformations in others with both regimens. My goal is to blog about my journey everyday, I know it will keep me accountable. Right now, I'm going to go enjoy a taco or two for lunch...it will be my last for at least 40 days!

-Tricia