Meatloaf and a grunt.

For some reason I've been craving comfort food lately. Maybe it's the amount of stress I'm dealing with right now, or maybe it's because my body is craving warm days with gentle breezes and getting snow, wind gust that blow down fences (literally a few weeks ago our fence fell over during an especially blustery day) and below freezing temperatures instead. No matter what it is my beautiful family is reaping the benefits of some good o' comfort food. . . paleo style!

At the top of my yum list is paleo meatloaf. I got my super delicious recipe from Sarah Fragoso over at http://everydaypaleo.com/. I've been pairing it with super creamy mashed cauliflower and some tasty greens like kale chips or a salad.

A second favorite is Shepherd's pie. This recipe is endlessly adaptable, tonight we made it with green beans, carrots and broccoli. Mark Sisson over at http://www.marksdailyapple.com/ has a plethora of exceptionally tasty meals. This dish, also made with mashed cauliflower is a stand alone meal. There are so many veggies and so much meat a side dish just seems like overkill.

I know that the paleo diet means eating like our paleolithic ancestors and I'm guessing that neither meatloaf nor Shepherd's pie were common dinner items 50,000 years ago. But, since I do not have either the ability (in the form of hunting and endurance style running) nor the species (hello mammoths, tiny horses, endless fields of buffalo and all manner of other ancient and extinct animals our ancestors munched on) I make do with my local grocery store.

I use my technologically advanced shopping cart, re-usable grocery bags, debit card and car trunk as hunting and foraging tools instead of stone knives, spears and my body (to carry said mammoth). The reason for this is simple. I'm living in 2011. I can use these tools. I enjoy using these tools. And I refuse to believe that my lifestyle is "impossible" and "ridiculous" because it is based off what my greatX100 grandma ate and now that we live. . .well now, its not healthy anymore.

Following this lifestyle does not mean that I have to hunt for my food and grunt like an idiot (FYI doubters, paleolithic Indians had brains the same size as modern humans, but they were healthier, taller and more muscular. There's a nova all about it). It means that I eat healthy, whole foods that make me feel good. And I can do all of this while having tasty delicious meals that are better than those found in any restaurant.

And I never, ever say. . . boy your diet sounds terrible, bad for you and bad for the environment (ummm, still trying to figure out why paleo is bad for the environment) to people that eat SAD. They own their bodies, they can do with them what they will. If asked I will talk about my diet and how amazing it is. So if your reading this and you condescend all over my diet. . .just stop. It's not very nice! Stop being a hater, do some research not endorsed by the corn breeders of America and educate yourself. Then we can talk.

And a side of Saber-toothed tiger as well!

Soooo. . . .what exactly is paleo?
Paleo literally means:

Ancient; prehistoric; old
or
Early; primitive


When I say I'm on the paleo diet I often feel like that is a misleading statement. The word diet infers something short lived, a quick fix solution or as dictionary.com says;


A regulated selection of foods, as for medical reasons or cosmetic weight loss.


But really a diet should simply mean the typical food a person eats. If you think about the paleo diet in these terms the paleo diet means the typical diet a person east that is ancient, prehistoric or old. Basically, the diet of our ancestors,the Paleolithic Indians. Paleolithic Indians didn't have any sort of agriculture to rely on. This means no bread, fried rice or pancakes. What food they did have they hunted for. . .or gathered. They ate plenty of meat, small berries, veggies and some seeds and nuts. They did not eat Twinkies or even whole wheat pasta.


I imagine you're picturing a girl in a pair of jeans chasing down a Holstein with a spear? Maybe a woman standing in the ocean wearing her two piece spearing a fish?
The truth is that for over fifty thousand years humans lived on meat, eggs, nuts, berries, veggies, fruits and seeds. These are what we, as humans, are naturally adapted to eat. When we deviate from what are supposed to eat we suffer; from auto immune diseases, tummy troubles and a whole cabinet full of other sicknesses, including cancer. So, what exactly can a paleo lifestyle person eat?

• Meat


• Vegetables


• Fruit


• Nuts


• Seeds

What can we not eat?

• Sugar (or sugar substitutes)


• Grains (yes all grains, including ancient ones)


• Legumes (including soybeans and peanuts)


• Dairy


• Processed foods are out (for the most part)

Now this is extremely abbreviated of course. The truth of the matter is that I'm no expert. In fact, don't quote me on any of this. For the whole ten yards there are several websites that have a much better grasp on the issue.

The best places for info are:

http://robbwolf.com/

http://thepaleodiet.com/

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/

All I know is that it's easy, healthy and something that is a way of life. We don't even think about how hard it is or the things we can't eat because we don't eat the Standard American Diet (SAD). Since starting the paleo lifestyle we have expanded what we do eat. Our fruit and veggies consumption and range is huge and includes tasty things like papaya, kale chips, coconut anything (we made homemade strawberry banana sugar free coconut ice cream for dessert tonight) and roasted butternut squash.

We do eat small amounts of dairy in the form of grass-fed butter, half and half (for my coffee), alcohol and dark chocolate! When we go out to dinner I eat cheese sometimes and as a rule of thumb we don't really eat potatoes (every few weeks). We aren't strict, but if I deviate far from the paleo path my body tells me how unhappy it is. I get stomach cramps and bloating. My son gets a raging headache and lethargy. My daughter gets massive mood swings and cramps. Sam feels terrible for up to a week with bloating and lethargy and we all get really, really grumpy.

Happy eating!!

I'll have another slice of mammoth please

There is a scenario that I often think about and it goes something like this:





Random person on sunny street corner-

"Holy Guacamole! Did you see that super trim and buff woman that just passed us?"

Random persons friend-

"Are you kidding! Who could miss that?"


Now I know that at this time in my life I do not elicit such praise from random (preferably good looking and well built men) people on the street. I look at my body as a work in progress. Sometimes my shape changes daily. I can feel new muscles and bones emerging from their hibernation under my *ahem* chub. My face looks different, I actually have knees instead of dimples and while my body is still in the overweight category I'm happy that I can see my changes, realize that they are taking place and relish in them.


This change is due mostly to my diet. So I have steadily been working out since summer 2010, and working out hard. Crossfit is no small potatoes folks. It is hard and challenging and amazing! My muscles got big and strong, my endurance skyrocketed and my body went from being mostly fat so quite a bit muscle. But, I didn't see the weight drop like I wanted to (think going from Rosie O'Donnell to Jennifer Lopez). So when my gym CFSF at http://crossfitsantafe.com/ started a two month paleo challenge at the beginning of December 2010, I joined in. . . right before the tasty delicious holiday season started.


I dragged my heels on this challenge. I said any diet like that couldn't be good for you. I rolled my eyes, I said no way and then. . .I gave into it and decided to start the day the challenge started. And to be perfectly honest, the first few weeks weren't pretty. I had no idea how to shop paleo at first so our grocery bill was through the roof expensive. I was dizzy, crabby and tired for two weeks while my body detoxified itself. I cried in my car at streetlights, yelled at my family, was constantly ravenous and my workouts really suffered.


The light at the end of the tunnel? After two weeks I felt better, much better. I had lost almost 10 pounds in two weeks and my workouts were getting faster, my weights higher. And my weight loss has continued at a slow and steady pace. No, I haven't been losing weight biggest loser style. And when I had to quit going to crossfit because, well, because I'm broke I decided that there was no way I'm going to quit paleo. It's a lifestyle for me now. I slipped into it like a great pair of jeans. Hard to break in, but once broken in they feel amazing, are super comfortable and make you look like a million bucks!


So I may not be that perfect body, but I have found what works. . .and works well without the ups and downs of dieting!


Curious about what Paleo is? Stay tuned my friends. . .I didn't want to bore you to death with my long windedness (hope that's a word).