If you’ve read any of my blog posts, you’ll notice that I like to try new things, specifically workouts or eating habits. I had heard a lot about the Paleo fad, and wanted to give it a shot.
A few of my friends had tried it out, and I distinctly remember one who complained of constant headaches and hunger, but all the rest tolerated it or gave up on it completely. I figured; hey, why not.
I started doing some digging on what is/isn’t “allowed” on Paleo. It was pretty cut and dry – clean eating, and no grains, dairy, legumes, or regular potatoes. I didn’t think it would be too challenging of a transition, considering I ate 95% clean most of the time, so I jumped in and planned some meals.
I could see why some people would hate this. If you’re going from eating anything you want to cutting out some pretty yummy (yet still healthy) things like yogurt, cheese, or peanut butter…yeah, that’s going to suck. If you’re going to jump right in to an extreme eating plan like Paleo, I would recommend easing in, or getting your mind in a really really happy place before you do.
I really thought that Paleo would be easy for me to stick to, but man was I wrong. I was suddenly craving all things carbs, which quickly escalated into all things sugar (cookies, mostly). I gave in a lot, especially to the cookies. For some reason, I just couldn’t stick with it.
I tried “getting back on track” and focusing every few days. I held my own, but not for long. I was fortunate enough to borrow a HUGE book about Paleo that had a ton of great recipes in it, so at least I was eating on plan for the most part. It was those in-between times that got me!
I believe one reason why I continued to fall off-plan was because I got SO MUCH NEGATIVE FEEDBACK from people around me about my attempt. “I don’t get why you’d try something based off of people who lived to be 40,” “Can you eat that? Did they HAVE that in the paleolithic era?” “Cavemen would have eaten cookies had they been around.” Yeah, thanks guys. It made me feel a little stupid for trying it out. I never said it was a change I was making for life…just something I wanted to see if I could do. I didn’t feel supported, and felt embarrassed over food orders when I went out to eat. It was just easier to blend in and eat the ice cream than look silly drinking water.
I ultimately didn’t want to try after all of it. Naturally the solution here is to just go back to my clean lifestyle that I am comfortable with, and continue on my path as I used to…but I don’t really like that solution.
A lot of me wants to say yeah, I did it! and feel good about the food choices I made, but the small voice in my head that is always hungry has been taking over. So, I write this post, ultimately, as a contract to myself to stay focused and not stray from my path.
I’ve taken the necessary steps to get back on track: planning meals, working out, and writing this post, and I’m feeling a lot better. I can’t wait to be able to say I did it! In another post!