Paleo Recap

Yesterday, or today, or something like that ends my 1 month paleo diet "trial."  I put trial in quotation marks because I didn't stick to the diet (no grains, no legumes, no dairy) 100% strictly, but I'd say I hit it about 75-80% of the time.

First of all, I don't think that I can fairly evaluate any of the claims made about the diet because, as I said, I wasn't 100% compliant, and it seems like that's a must.  But here are what I'd consider my take-away points from the experiment:

• I never had any GI problems after eating a paleo meal
• I feel like I've gotten over the idea that I absolutely "have to" eat some sort of starchy carb with every meal.  For some people who run mega miles or who don't eat animal products, eating more starchy carbs is necessary, but for me- especially now that we are in winter hibernation mode- it would be better to replace them with non-starchy vegetables. 
• I've expanded my vegetable horizons (a bit)
• I realized that I can put a meat and vegetable meal together as quickly as any other kind
• There are a lot of great paleo foods out there, and there's no reason to feel restricted or like you can't enjoy a good meal within those parameters
• It is really hard to break the psychological "need" to have bread, cookies, etc. when they are served to a group.  However, most people don't actually care what you eat.  If you don't want something- for whatever reason- a simple "No thanks" will suffice.

In general, I really like the way I feel when I stick to the diet, and- like with healthy veganism- I think when you focus on what you can have, there are a wealth of healthy options out there.  However, the diet is not really supported by our social structure*.  So I've decided my goal is to make all of the food that I prepare myself be paleo compliant (again meaning lean meat, vegetables, fruits, nuts, and healthy fats), and then try to make good choices when I'm eating out and in social situations.  I think this is a fair compromise that will hopefully get my ratio of paleo to non to about 90% to 10%, respectively.  

And with that I'm headed out for my last treadmill run for awhile.  We will be on the road today and tomorrow, and the weather changes from snowy to nasty icy cold rain as we drive down south.  Any thoughts/prayers/good vibes you want to send our way while we travel are much appreciated.

If I don't post again before then, Merry Christmas to everyone! 

*But you can say that about any healthy way of eating.  For example, there are absolutely 100% no healthy snacks to be purchased in my building, but there are a lot of unhealthy ones (by any standard).   

All good things must come to an end

Goodbye, long weekend.  I'll see you again in three weeks when we do the great southward migration for the holidays.

The paleo thing has been going really well.  As of two weeks in I'll give the pros, cons, and "neutrals."

Pros:

• I have never had an episode of unhappy stomach after a paleo meal.
• Although I really haven't reduced my carb intake that much, I have a bit, and I find it easier to sit still and feel less antsy on rest days.
• Eating out is actually fairly easy.  To answer Linda's question about what I had at McDonald's- a grilled chicken southwest salad and some fries.  Healthy?  Not really.  But we rarely go to McDonald's.  If all you can order is a sandwich, pull off the bun and eat the innards (or ask for bunless/breadless- it seems that a lot of restaurants are pretty cool with this because so many people have celiac disease). 

Cons:

• Easy at home and fairly easy in restaurants but takes a lot of thought in social situations. 

Neutral:

• I don't feel like I've had any change in athletic performance or body composition.

I've only dumped the diet wholesale twice in the last two weeks- once for our group dinner and once for our fancy dinner out last Friday.  As of right now I'd say I'd like to stay paleo as much as possible after the experiment is through.  One thing I've done better in the last two weeks but still want to focus on is increasing my vegetable intake.  

And with that, I'm about to fall asleep on the keyboard.  I hope it wasn't a sign of how truly boring this post was.  I need to rest up for my first FIRST interval workout tomorrow: 8x400m at faster than I want to think about pace.

One more day until Thanksgiving!

Work has been super busy this week getting ready to submit abstracts for an important conference.  They aren't due until next Friday, but our bosses will be gone next week so there's been a flurry of activity each day.  Normally my job is pretty relaxed, and it's exhausting to think hard and apply yourself all day!

Anyway, I'm feeling more relaxed about everything going into today, and I'm looking forward to the long weekend.  It was cold yesterday and is going to be even colder tomorrow.  Yesterday was the first day I cut my run short (I did 7mi instead of a MLR of 9.5 that I had planned) because my hands were soooooo cold.  I dressed for 23, which is what The Weather Channel said it was, but they didn't mention the insane wind blowing off the lake that made it feel like it was in the single digits.  Had I brought along some hot hands I would have been okay, but after an hour my hands were blocks of ice.  Not the kind of "feel the burn" I'm going for.

For all the people who were running in 90+ degree weather this summer-
at least you don't have to dress like this now.  And this was a bit under-dressed.

I glow!

 Right now the forecast for the Berbee Derby- which is always cold- is 29- feels like 18- which is not too bad.  It's never fun to have to stand around and wait for it to get started, but at least there won't be big ice patches on the course like the first year I ran it.  I'm also planning to pick up my packet today so I can just sit in the car and read until I have to get out and run around to warm up.  Unless the weather is truly horrible I'm planning to run it.  10 races in 2010- woot!

Sticking to my diet has been pretty good.  Monday we had pre-Thanksgiving with our young couples group from church, and I decided to go with the flow and eat what was there.  It was tasty, of course, but it actually helped solidify my desire to stick to my plan.  It helped me see that I really do feel better after a meal sans grains and dairy than when eat them.

 But it's always fun to share a meal (and a horrible first episode of Skating with the Stars) with friends.

 Happy Thanksgiving eve!  

Day 4/30: Better

This has nothing to do with the post,
but I thought it was kind of cute.  My other
option was a picture of a bulldog with an icepack on its head.

I'm happy to report that Wednesday's maladies seem to have been data driven.  Like I said, I started working on a project using a data set that has- in the past- caused me great distress.  I was really really worried because I was supposed to recreate an analysis based on reading a paper and without having access to the original coding or data used.  As of Wednesday afternoon, it was not working.  However, I was able to come in fresh on Thursday morning, go step by step through everything, and had a great celebration to get up and go to the bathroom and get a drink of water at about 10:30am when I got results within about 0.1 of what was shown in the paper. What a relief.  Needless to say, everything felt better and more relaxed for the rest of the day.

Do you have a ritual or way to "celebrate" mini accomplishments when you are working on a big project?

It's Friday and I'm headed to the gym.  This should be a pretty chilled out weekend.  I need to do some grocery shopping and cooking for us and (later) cooking for our church's international Thanksgiving Dinner.

Day 3/30 - Ambivalent

Just to be clear, the whole "who needs bread?" thing from two days ago was mostly a joke on me scarfing down mayonnaise like it was going out of style.  I don't actually think that- for most people- there's anything wrong with eating bread, rice, dairy, etc.  that I'm experimenting with cutting out of my diet.  I don't think that anyone thought that I was trying to say that, but I wanted to make it clear :).

Yesterday was the first day I felt "different" although everything could be explained by things unrelated to diet.  My run was slow, but not any slower than other slow runs I've had before.  I felt "off" in the afternoon at work, but I was starting a new project that involves a data set that always strikes fear and procrastination in my heart.  I thought I was going to die of an acute hot chocolate deficiency after dinner, but who hasn't had a chocolate craving? and the feeling went away once I was distracted. This morning's run was slow on the easy parts, but I hit my normal tempo pace for the 4.5mi of tempo in the middle.  

On the plus side, and really at least 75% of the reason I'm doing this, I haven't had any stomach upset/issues since I've started.  We had a pizza lunch at work yesterday, and even though they had my favorite kind it actually wasn't that hard to turn it down.  As much as I like the taste, it is one food I know makes me feel not so great after I eat it, and I was much happier (especially in the hours after lunch) visiting with everyone but eating my own food.  And no one really noticed or cared.

 

Day 2/30: Who needs bread?

When you have mayo.

Normally I'm not a big mayo person, but last night Daniel made spicy cajun fish with remoulade sauce (basically mayo with onion, chives, dill pickle and capers) last night, and it was amazing.  I could have had a glass of the remoulade to drink (mmmm... like savory eggnog)


Nothing too exciting to report on the experiment so far.  I haven't had any of the "complaints" I was complaining about prior to the experiment, but I also haven't had any of the "transition phase" headache or lethargy I've heard can happen.

I did strength training yesterday morning so we'll see how my run goes today.  I've got 8 chilly miles planned.

Day 1/30: So far so good.

Despite the fact that these arrived yesterday, day 1 was a success.

We haven't opened them yet, but the plan is to put some aside for the end of my experiment.  That way I'm not concerned of developing a Girl Scout cookie deficiency over the next year*.

Because this is my first day, I'm including pictures of all my meals.  After today I'm just going to do dinners (sometimes) and possibly my lunch each week.

Breakfast was a variation on what I'd normally eat for breakfast- oatmeal with frozen fruit, almond butter, and protein powder- with the oatmeal replaced by a sweet potato.  Sounds a little strange, but when it's mixed together, it's really not unlike oatmeal.

Lunch was made in a huge batch for the entire week. 1 lb ground beef + 1 bag of stir fry vegetables + 1 acorn squash + 1 bottle Trader Joe's Thai Red Curry sauce = a lot of food.  I like to have a hot lunch- especially this time of year- and I don't mind eating the same thing day after day.  I get variety by changing things up from week to week.

I had an apple and 2 hardboiled eggs for my afternoon snack (you know what those look like).

Dinner was a spinach salad (not pictured, you also know what spinach looks like) with ham and pineapple and roasted butternut squash.

We had friends over last night and served hot chocolate (made with milk) but I avoided temptation by having some dark chocolate chips for desert.

My workout was 8mi with 3x(800,600,400,400).  The first 800 and 600 were slow but most of the rest of the intervals were run in the 7:35-7:45 min/mile range.

Not feeling any different so far, good or bad.

*Like women who get the once-a-year IV treatment for osteoporosis, I need my once-a-year Girl Scout cookie infusion to keep a minimum level of caramel and coconut in my blood stream.  Maybe I'll take Jess's suggestion from yesterday and go on an all-Girl Scout cookie diet next month.  They have a lot of flavors...

And now for something completely different

The hours are long but the weeks are short.  That sums up my life right now.  Although I'm happy with my work/life/rest balance, I feel a little... bored.  I haven't blogged most days because I haven't felt like I had anything new to say.  It kind of stinks because I actually enjoy writing and blogging, but I need something new to say.  Also, I don't feel like I have a theme or any special characteristic that makes my blog stand apart.  I'm not not super fast or fashionable or a gourmet cook or really funny, and I don't have a job that interests anyone other than me.  I'm not trying to whine, but that's just kind of how it is.

So I was thinking as I was walking home from work last Thursday, "What is there about me or what could I do to make my life more interesting and give me something to blog about?"  And then I realized I did have something somewhat interesting going on.  I hadn't shared anything about it on the blog because it's kind of weird, but what are blogs for if not *over* sharing crazy personal information?

Scroll down to the ***  if you want to see my announcement but have no desire to read anything that says "digestive issues".

This is going to be a long post so I'll start at the beginning.  In the beginning I was an allergy kid- pollen, dust, probably pet dander- all the "nerd" allergies.  I never had any problems with food except that I would get a raging headache sometimes from something in Pizza Hut pizza.  In 9th grade, sitting in English class (the period after lunch) with a horrible stomach ache, I discovered I probably shouldn't drink milk anymore (although I do eat ice cream and cheese from time to time with mixed results).  I also developed eczema on my hands sometime in college, and as an adult I still have random digestive issues and occasionally get this sunburn-like hives thing after eating (whining and oversharing- you lucky reader, you!).  The moral of this story is that people with weird autoimmune things tend to have a bunch of them, and it's a problem I really haven't grown out of.

*** Okay you are safe now.      

I'm about 3 years behind all trends (I was too embarrassed to post that I got my free sample case of Pom two months ago! - it was tasty- thanks, Pom people) so it makes sense that I'd get interested in the paleo diet now rather than back in 2007 when it was all the rage in the body building/ cross fit community.

That is a bean with a gun.
There is actually a movie called Killer Bean Forever.

Google "paleo diet" if you want.  There are a lot of gurus and practitioners who have different ideas of exactly constitutes a paleolithic diet, and there's a healthy dose of weirdness about how it will straighten your spine and make you less nearsighted.  But if you boil away all the crazy, you're left with the idea that some people with digestive and autoimmune weirdness have really good luck with removing "neolithic" foods- mainly grains, legumes, and dairy- from their diet.  Plus, there are a couple of high level triathletes who- after the burn in period- claim to have seen great improvements in their training.

I've been curious about the whole thing for awhile but afraid because it would mean a huge change in the way I cooked and ate.  Plus it's not like I have celiac disease or some kind of serious condition where I have to avoid wheat or another kind of food.  On the other hand, what would it hurt to try?  In my reading about the subject, I've found that people definitely have an adjustment period when they start the diet, but there's not much out there about what that's like for endurance athletes.  

So starting today and for the next month (most of what I've read says you should give it an entire month before you decide if it is working for you or not) I'm going to try to go grain, legume and dairy free.  Although that removes a lot of carbs from my diet, I'm definitely not trying to go low carb and will be taking advantage of all the squash, sweet potatoes and apples (plus other fruit) that are plentiful this season.

This is still not a food blog, but I plan to focus more on food pictures than I did before.  I'm going to talk about how it affects my training and if I see changes in my body and how I have to modify recipes and navigate restaurant menus.  The experiment will be over before the holidays so I can decide I think it's bunk and go on a pancake bender or if I think it's great and have some strategies in place so I don't drive my family crazy with dietary restrictions and requests).

Stay tuned for tomorrow's summary of Day 1.