Starting the Paleo Journey

I love to eat!

Seriously, I love food. I love talking about it, writing about it, thinking about it, cooking it, and eating it. It's one of my bigger passions in life (I have several passions, but those are more appropriate in other blogs).

But love must have some challenge to make it more enjoyable, right? So here's my challenge...

I have food allergies.

Lots of them!

Trust me, it's an extensive list. Cow dairy, legumes, grapes, melons, peanuts (which, yes, I know, are legumes, though most people don't realize that), and lobster are just a few in the long list. And loving food while being allergic to some of it can be quite a challenge.

When I discovered some of my allergies, I started looking for ways to adapt my diet so I can get the nutrition I need and not "cheat" with my allergens (none of which cause an anaphylactic shock reaction except, oddly enough, hemp).

At one time, it was thought I was allergic to wheat, so I tried a gluten free diet. I CRAVED wheat the whole time I was following the diet (or not following, since I was "being bad" on far too regular of a basis). I did manage to get some of the swelling in my legs under control and lose a little weight, but that was it.

When I had another allergy test (by the way, don't get me started on the back-pricking allergy test!) and discovered I wasn't allergic to wheat, it went back in my diet with a vengeance! And any weight I had lost found me again.

Fast-forward a couple of years, and my chiropractor suggested the Paleo diet. Actually, so did his office assistant. Her exact words were, "Try it for a month. That's just 30 days. See what happens." So I picked up Robb Wolf's book, The Paleo Diet Solution, and started reading.

The book suggested focusing on the following foods:

• Healthy, grass-fed meats
• Healthy fats like avocado (yum!), walnut oil, and coconut oil (which I love!)
• Vegetables (I was the one weirdo in my family that always loved these)
• Some fruit
• Some nuts and seeds

Mr. Wolf recommended removing these foods from you diet:

• Dairy
• Legumes
• Grains
• Processed sugar

Wait a minute!! What?!!

I realized I was allergic to two of the four things listed that I should avoid. I also realized, after looking over my old food logs, that most of my processed sugar intake comes from baked goods. So I was halfway following the diet already! I thought, cutting out grains would cut out most, if not all, of my processed sugar intake.

I should try this! I thought.

So I gave it the 30 day try. Dropping grain from my diet took care of the wheat/grain craving I had suffered from in my GF days. And the health benefits were awesome!

•  I lost about 13 lbs in a month!
• My swelling went way down.
• My energy level went way up!
• I could get up and down from the floor again (after breaking a knee in 2010, this was a big accomplishment for me).
• I started sleeping better.
• My mood improved (something that makes my husband very happy).
• My blood pressure went down, and my blood sugar evened out.

Once my 30 days was up, I moved to an 80/20 version of Paleo eating. I’ve seen some sources say you should follow an 80/20 and others say 85/15. I seem to bounce between 70/30 and 90/10 (depending on the day and occasion, because I still cannot seem to shake my obsession with buttercream icing!).

Have you tried this diet? Or read about it? What do you think? Leave me a comment, because I would love to hear your ideas.