April 9, 2013 3:55 pm

I’m A Machine

Last month, inspired by Melissa’s success, Daniel and I adopted a quasi-paleo diet. I say “quasi-paleo” because Daniel is a vegetarian and it’s very difficult to be fully Paleo while veg unless you want to eat eggs for every meal (no), and because I am a wuss and I don’t want to spend every waking moment counting carbs.

Food

I went from eating a big bowl of cereal with 1% milk every morning to eating two eggs with a bit of olive oil.

I went from eating a dry english muffin as the main part of my lunch to eating chicken cooked in olive oil and balsamic vinegar with a giant kale / sweet potato / roasted mini pumpkin seed salad on the side. Sometimes the salad is my main lunch item. Sometimes I bring spaghetti squash topped with spaghetti sauce instead.

I eliminated my morning snack of (sugary and/or fake-sugary) yogurt.

I went from eating crackers and cheese (or a Snack-Pak chocolate pudding, or a string cheese, or two mini Fruit Roll-Ups, or all of the above) as an afternoon snack to eating beef jerky or blueberries or some pistachios.

Daniel and I also made modifications to dinner, like having food-processor-shredded cauliflower as a base for yellow curry instead of white rice, and I like it better than the rice! I also tried making “pizzas” with mushrooms as the base instead of dough. (Just for me though, because Daniel hates mushrooms.)

I cut down on my evening chocolate fix, and did not go obscenely overboard in buying Cadbury Mini-Eggs this year. I think I only bought four bags, total? And I still have a half of one left in the cupboard.

I’m finding I have a tendency to be “afraid” of being hungry; small meals make me worried that I am going to be starving later and not have anything to eat. I am slowly training my body to understand that it’s okay to have a small meal because I can always eat more later if I need to.

C25K

In addition, I took up Couch to 5K. I run three times a week now, and I find myself looking forward to my runs. Me! The person who only runs if A) I am being chased by a bear, or B) I need to catch a bus.

I took a week off for a wibbly-feeling knees and only ran twice last week (repeating the last day of C25K Week 2) because of said knees. If my health insurance didn’t suck so terribly (catastrophic-only, super-high deductible, etc.) I might have thought about visiting a doctor for it, but both my knees feel great this week so – fingers crossed – no doctor for me.

I’ve also been going to free yoga at our public library 2x/month for the last few months, which has been fun. Then, I’m also looking into a weight loss clinic to see their available weight management plans that I can incorporate into my lifestyle. After that, I may also try out treatments like CoolScuplting like this CoolSculpting in Tempe, CA through experts like NAWI Wellness Center – bodysculpting in Naples, FL or Luxe Medical Spa in Elko, NV.

Changes

None! I haven’t seen any positive changes (weight loss, inches lost, mood, etc.) but I am hoping they will happen eventually. In the meantime, I just get to feel really virtuous about my kale salads.

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5 Comments

  • Amanda says:

    Good on you for making the change! It’s super hard to make lifestyle changes like that, and I know I definitely couldn’t do it myself given the cultural foods that I tend to eat.

  • Melissa says:

    Mushroom-based pizza sounds delicious! I might have to try that one day when my husband is gone. He also hates mushrooms. Maybe it’s a man thing?

    Awesome job with the running! I’ve always kind of liked running, but it’s already in the 80s here and it’s only April so I have no idea how successful I’d be if I took on running this summer. Heat+humidity+sweating is not my thing.

    Even though you haven’t seen any physical changes, at least you can take comfort in knowing you’re putting healthier things in your body than before. That has to count for something!

  • Melissa says:

    AWESOME! I hope this keeps going well for you!! :D

  • Amanda says:

    Oh wow that sounds hard to commit to. I’m also really afraid of being hungry, and I’m addicted to sugry and carby foods. :( I know I need a change, but whenever I think about it, is when I get afriad of not having enough food. A friend of mine has had luck with paleo lately, she lost something like 11 pounds since she started about a monthish ago. And I don’t like sweating, so I talk myself out of exercise too. Oy. I think I just need to grow up already. But Good for you for making these changes, and hopefully you’ll see your positive changes soon :D

  • Audrey says:

    My husband and I have done C25K before and now eat Keto (ultra-low carb). Paleo is more of a challenge in some ways, and I wish you all the luck in the world. I used to hate running, but C25K and running with a partner I like really changed that for me. I don’t think Paleo is as good for weight loss as Keto, but I’m sure over time it will help. Most weight loss is about what you’re eating more than what you’re actively doing.

    Keep up the good work. It’s a great example to set for your little one too. (: