Friday, December 30, 2016

Paleo and exercise

Here I go with my all-or-nothing ways! I purged my pantry of non-paleo foods and began a new way of eating day before yesterday. Eek! If any of you know of any terrible drawbacks to this eating lifestyle, speak now. I've read a couple of short books with recipes, so I'm not an expert.

I wasn't crazy about this first book. The recipes were very complicated and required so many things I don't have around the house. I know I will have to acquire more herbs and spices and "unusual" ingredients as I go along, but I need a plan that doesn't depend on me buying them all at once!
 This book was much more user friendly. She actually gives you lists of foods that are okay to eat, and you can make copies and take them along to the store. Her recipes are also simpler, though still challenging for someone like me who really doesn't enjoy cooking. But, I may learn to! To start out I'm just eating the "plain" foods on her lists; not worrying about recipes. I did try her Egg Cup recipe this morning and it was good. The main emphasis is on leafy green vegetables, moderate amounts of meat, smaller amounts of fruit and some nuts and seeds. No calorie counting. I LOVE that you can have BACON!
 I've used this book many times over the years. I actually only use a few pages in the back which show the "maintenance" exercises. These are to counteract the aches and pains of muscles and joints from aging. It's really just a few yoga moves. I may move on to a yoga workout as I get more fit.
 My step-daughter gave me a bunch of videos by this lady MANY years ago. This is the only one I kept. It's 30 minutes long and is equivalent to a brisk 2-mile walk. You also use hand weights, so your upper body gets a workout as well. I think I'll alternate between the exercises in the book above and the cardio workout in the video for now. This 30 minute workout was challenging for me! Today was the first day I've exercised in ages, and I'm really out of shape!
And THAT is why I'm doing this. I'm getting tired of looking in the mirror and seeing myself getting flabbier and more tired. Now that I'm working only a few days a month I REALLY need to get out of my chair and move, and I need to eat better.

My dad and his brothers all had diabetes as they got older, so cutting out sugar seems like a no-brainer. The paleo diet also cuts out grains and dairy. I know I've always had a low-grade allergy to dairy, with the phlegm that produces. And with all the gluten intolerance we hear about, I suppose cutting out grain might not be so bad, though this is the one area I'm not so convinced about. The diet proponents talk about it being the "caveman diet". So, we're going back to the hunter-gatherer way of eating. Hmmm... Seems like we've been growing grains since the time of Cain and Abel, so why is it so bad? Anyway, this way of eating is far superior to my usual diet of coffee, cookies, chocolate and comfort foods. I had a headache for the first two days of the diet, but woke up headache free this morning. That's caused by withdrawal from sugar and carbs. I hope I can stick with this or at least some version of healthy eating. I want to be as strong and healthy as I can in my "golden years"! Wish me luck!!

And now for some Bible time! God bless you all and much shalom!


7 comments:

  1. Except for the lack of grains, it looks like a healthy diet to me. I steer clear of fad diets till I am sure they won't do more harm than good. Vitamin B comes from the grains as I remember from high school Health class. Prevents pellegra and helps nerves. I could do without the sugar, cookies, candy, etc, except I got literally pounds of the stuff for Christmas. When people don't know what to give, they give candy. I can't walk the whole mile or it does something to my knee. I do take short walks by parking as far from stores as possible. Good luck on your efforts to be healthier. And have a healthy, happy new year!

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  2. Forgot to add that I think yogurt is one of the best foods, and I have had yogurt for breakfast every day for at least 10 years - maybe 15. Think of all those Letts or some people who live well into the 100s. One of their main foods is yogurt. I often wonder about people who live in the frozen north, like the eskimos. How do they get green vegetables or veggies at all?

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  3. Oh very well done you- especially on the Bible time as well! We weren't made to be so sedentary, I know this in my head! Well done- keep it up!

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  4. Hallo, Lisa: You WILL to be as strong and healthy as in your "golden years"! You are blessed and lucky!! May 2017 bring to you best energy and good health and happiness with all the creative things you do! Greetings from the Bavarian Forest!

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  5. Happy and Healthy New Year for you, Lisa. Be sure to keep us apprised of how it goes and maybe more of us will try that diet. Although I don't think I could give up bread.

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  6. I know that when I do a sort of "paleo" diet I feel the best. Grains are hard for me to digest. Recently I've been learning about how we older people tend to have low stomach acid, and I'm taking HCL capsules to supplement, and I think that might help all my digestion. Maybe I will do better with grains in the future.

    Dairy is also hard for many people to digest, and I am one of those. But the butterfat is not a problem - only the protein. Which I am glad about!

    Good luck, Lisa! And have fun with your food.

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  7. Just stopping by your blog from AFA. Happy new year! And regarding grains...the grains of today's modern times are not the same grains of ancient times. Today's wheat has been hybridized and selectively bread and modified to increase yeild and resist disease to the extent that they are a completely different plant. The first wheat to be cultivated in ancient times had much more protein than today's wheat. Modern bread has a glycemic index comparable to table sugar.

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