Mr. and I have been chugging along in our Paleo world. We both need to get back to the Box...and it will be happening this week.
In the meantime, we've had lots of questions and conversations with friends and acquaintances about our Paleo lifestyle. There has been a common theme. So here is our list on why you can't be Paleo followed by are call on BS!
I don't cook.
Mr. and I are sorry that you don't cook. That doesn't mean that you can't cook. Chances are you have some understanding on how to cook somewhat. Our take is, that you choose not to cook. Anyone can learn to cook. It takes trial and error. All recipes come with directions. Cooking is as easy as following directions. Plus with the internet and Youtube videos, you are even able to see demonstrations and look up terms you may not be familiar with. You can cook but you will have to learn!
I don't like vegetables.
We don't even understand this really. It's hard for us to comprehend how a grown adult person doesn't like any vegetables. There are definitely things we prefer over others but our diet is based on primarily vegetables. We've learned to cook them in different ways. We've even been exposed to a lot of vegetables that we never would have tried without our Paleo lifestyle. Take time to try vegetables as an adult and learn to cook them in a way that helps you like them.
My first attempt at Kale was not good. I didn't understand what all the fuss was about it and why people loved kale. The next time I had kale it was prepared differently and I loved it. Now I eat it prepared all sorts of ways. Vegetables are so very important to your overall health and nutrition. You've got to find a way to get them in your system.
I can't give up dairy.
This was my biggest excuse for a loooong time. I couldn't imagine a salad without cheese on it or not having a glass of milk. I've seen so many health benefits from giving up dairy that it became less of an obstacle after letting go of it for my first 30 day trial. I've learned that a human doesn't need any cow milk nutritionally after their first two years of life. Giving up dairy has been a tough challenge. We still occasionally use grass fed butter. I also have had a hard time this summer with my favorite local ice cream stand. Those ice cream cheats have come with facial breakouts and feeling yucky.
I can't give up carbs.
Yes you can and no you shouldn't. Veggies and fruits both have carbs in them so don't give those up. All the refined, processed food...please give those up! I learned from Coach Sam at our gym that by eating carbs we are keeping our body from being able to absorb all the nutrients from the food that gives us our vitamins and minerals. Basically, by eating grains and sugar we are starving our body from the vitamins and nutrients that it needs to fuel us! This is why I don't like to cheat on Paleo. Just that one cheat can set me back for 2 weeks.
I can't give up sweets.
It's been interesting to see how my pallet has changed through my Paleo Journey. I do love sweets. But now I find enjoyment from naturally sweet things like apples, strawberries, blueberries, and currently watermelon. My first 30 days were tough. I really wanted cookies, cake, ice cream. As my body detoxed from the sugar crave I didn't have the same draw to the sweets. You can give up sweets...it's just really difficult those for 30 or so days but once you get past the initial cravings your body adjusts.
It's too expensive.
I have noticed an uptick in my grocery bill since beginning Paleo. I understand why people think it's expensive. In the meantime I've noticed a counter balance to the expense. We save money in other ways that has allowed us to adjust our grocery budget. We rarely eat out anymore. We never run to the store or fast food for a fountain drink. Because everything is planned out we don't waste food because of expiration. We also have no regular prescriptions saving co pays. We haven't been sick enough to see a physician over the past year saving $$ on co pays. So yes my grocery bill is about $150 per week. That's for a family of 4 for 3 meals a day or $6 per person per day. Less for a whole day than I would spend at a restaurant!
It takes too much time.
While I agree that meal planning, prep, cooking and cleaning takes time I think it's important to note if you think ahead and plan you can reduce your amount of time in the kitchen. That's one of the huge reasons I use and promote Emeals as a Paleo friendly alternative. For our family it's been great because I don't have to scour cookbooks and the internet to find Paleo recipes to prepare. 7 meals with ingredients and directions are sent to my inbox along with a grocery list. After looking over the meal plan for the week I assign days of the week based on our schedule to the meal plan. We are an active family with sporting events, meetings, and work during evening ours and so it's important that I am able to have time to prep and prepare dinner. Sometimes that means assigning crock pot meals on busy nights and other times it means that after I prepare our meal we take it with us in the car. Eating Paleo is a priority for our family and so I make sure to take the time to allow us that privilege.
I travel too much.
We travel too. I ate Paleo while on a 15 day cruise this past winter. Mr. ate Paleo while at a business training away from home for a week. I eat Paleo at work meetings and functions. Our family eats Paleo while at the ball park all day for baseball tournaments. All of the scenarios are different but they all boil down to two things: Be Prepared and Communication. Let people know that you eat paleo. When we inform people we eat Paleo they usually ask for an explanation and we keep it simple. Vegetables and Fruits, Meat, Nuts and Seeds if cooked in Olive Oil only is our quick response. On our cruise I explained that I was Gluten Free and Dairy Free and that helped for the most part. For work meetings involving food I ask what the menu is before hand and plan accordingly. We also cook stuff we can pack along and take with us. Next week I will be at a work conference. I plan to pack fresh fruit, avocados, and nuts for snacks.
It's too hard to cook different meals.
I agree that it is a lot of work to cook two different meals. Usually the response is that the person would cook one way for themselves and another for their family. I would strongly suggest only cooking one meal. Your family can eat what you eat and its what is best for them anyway. When the boys started eating table food I told Mr. that I never intended to be a short order cook. We have a standing house rule that you eat what is on your plate or you get no dessert or night snack. Don't cook two meals, it is not necessary!
My kids won't eat it.
I disagree. My kids don't like everything that we fix. At first they might totally reject it. We except that but then apply the no snacks or dessert rule. Usually the will try it. Neither of our boys liked bok choy the first time we served it. Fast forward to today and if I pick it up at the grocery store they are thrilled. It took several attempts but eventually I think they realized it wasn't so bad anyway. I think that if a child is hungry enough they will eat what they are served but many children use food as a power struggle. We don't play that game with food at our house and since the boys know the rules they make their own decision if they will eat or not.
When G & E were younger and I thought they would need a snack later, I would keep their dinner plate and put it in the fridge. When they would beg for a snack because they were sooo hungry (insert whine) I would pull out there plate from the meal and serve it to them again. If they are really hungry....they will eat it. And all of this was before we even started the Paleo Journey.
In the meantime, we've had lots of questions and conversations with friends and acquaintances about our Paleo lifestyle. There has been a common theme. So here is our list on why you can't be Paleo followed by are call on BS!
I don't cook.
Mr. and I are sorry that you don't cook. That doesn't mean that you can't cook. Chances are you have some understanding on how to cook somewhat. Our take is, that you choose not to cook. Anyone can learn to cook. It takes trial and error. All recipes come with directions. Cooking is as easy as following directions. Plus with the internet and Youtube videos, you are even able to see demonstrations and look up terms you may not be familiar with. You can cook but you will have to learn!
I don't like vegetables.
We don't even understand this really. It's hard for us to comprehend how a grown adult person doesn't like any vegetables. There are definitely things we prefer over others but our diet is based on primarily vegetables. We've learned to cook them in different ways. We've even been exposed to a lot of vegetables that we never would have tried without our Paleo lifestyle. Take time to try vegetables as an adult and learn to cook them in a way that helps you like them.
My first attempt at Kale was not good. I didn't understand what all the fuss was about it and why people loved kale. The next time I had kale it was prepared differently and I loved it. Now I eat it prepared all sorts of ways. Vegetables are so very important to your overall health and nutrition. You've got to find a way to get them in your system.
I can't give up dairy.
This was my biggest excuse for a loooong time. I couldn't imagine a salad without cheese on it or not having a glass of milk. I've seen so many health benefits from giving up dairy that it became less of an obstacle after letting go of it for my first 30 day trial. I've learned that a human doesn't need any cow milk nutritionally after their first two years of life. Giving up dairy has been a tough challenge. We still occasionally use grass fed butter. I also have had a hard time this summer with my favorite local ice cream stand. Those ice cream cheats have come with facial breakouts and feeling yucky.
I can't give up carbs.
Yes you can and no you shouldn't. Veggies and fruits both have carbs in them so don't give those up. All the refined, processed food...please give those up! I learned from Coach Sam at our gym that by eating carbs we are keeping our body from being able to absorb all the nutrients from the food that gives us our vitamins and minerals. Basically, by eating grains and sugar we are starving our body from the vitamins and nutrients that it needs to fuel us! This is why I don't like to cheat on Paleo. Just that one cheat can set me back for 2 weeks.
I can't give up sweets.
It's been interesting to see how my pallet has changed through my Paleo Journey. I do love sweets. But now I find enjoyment from naturally sweet things like apples, strawberries, blueberries, and currently watermelon. My first 30 days were tough. I really wanted cookies, cake, ice cream. As my body detoxed from the sugar crave I didn't have the same draw to the sweets. You can give up sweets...it's just really difficult those for 30 or so days but once you get past the initial cravings your body adjusts.
It's too expensive.
I have noticed an uptick in my grocery bill since beginning Paleo. I understand why people think it's expensive. In the meantime I've noticed a counter balance to the expense. We save money in other ways that has allowed us to adjust our grocery budget. We rarely eat out anymore. We never run to the store or fast food for a fountain drink. Because everything is planned out we don't waste food because of expiration. We also have no regular prescriptions saving co pays. We haven't been sick enough to see a physician over the past year saving $$ on co pays. So yes my grocery bill is about $150 per week. That's for a family of 4 for 3 meals a day or $6 per person per day. Less for a whole day than I would spend at a restaurant!
It takes too much time.
While I agree that meal planning, prep, cooking and cleaning takes time I think it's important to note if you think ahead and plan you can reduce your amount of time in the kitchen. That's one of the huge reasons I use and promote Emeals as a Paleo friendly alternative. For our family it's been great because I don't have to scour cookbooks and the internet to find Paleo recipes to prepare. 7 meals with ingredients and directions are sent to my inbox along with a grocery list. After looking over the meal plan for the week I assign days of the week based on our schedule to the meal plan. We are an active family with sporting events, meetings, and work during evening ours and so it's important that I am able to have time to prep and prepare dinner. Sometimes that means assigning crock pot meals on busy nights and other times it means that after I prepare our meal we take it with us in the car. Eating Paleo is a priority for our family and so I make sure to take the time to allow us that privilege.
I travel too much.
We travel too. I ate Paleo while on a 15 day cruise this past winter. Mr. ate Paleo while at a business training away from home for a week. I eat Paleo at work meetings and functions. Our family eats Paleo while at the ball park all day for baseball tournaments. All of the scenarios are different but they all boil down to two things: Be Prepared and Communication. Let people know that you eat paleo. When we inform people we eat Paleo they usually ask for an explanation and we keep it simple. Vegetables and Fruits, Meat, Nuts and Seeds if cooked in Olive Oil only is our quick response. On our cruise I explained that I was Gluten Free and Dairy Free and that helped for the most part. For work meetings involving food I ask what the menu is before hand and plan accordingly. We also cook stuff we can pack along and take with us. Next week I will be at a work conference. I plan to pack fresh fruit, avocados, and nuts for snacks.
It's too hard to cook different meals.
I agree that it is a lot of work to cook two different meals. Usually the response is that the person would cook one way for themselves and another for their family. I would strongly suggest only cooking one meal. Your family can eat what you eat and its what is best for them anyway. When the boys started eating table food I told Mr. that I never intended to be a short order cook. We have a standing house rule that you eat what is on your plate or you get no dessert or night snack. Don't cook two meals, it is not necessary!
My kids won't eat it.
I disagree. My kids don't like everything that we fix. At first they might totally reject it. We except that but then apply the no snacks or dessert rule. Usually the will try it. Neither of our boys liked bok choy the first time we served it. Fast forward to today and if I pick it up at the grocery store they are thrilled. It took several attempts but eventually I think they realized it wasn't so bad anyway. I think that if a child is hungry enough they will eat what they are served but many children use food as a power struggle. We don't play that game with food at our house and since the boys know the rules they make their own decision if they will eat or not.
When G & E were younger and I thought they would need a snack later, I would keep their dinner plate and put it in the fridge. When they would beg for a snack because they were sooo hungry (insert whine) I would pull out there plate from the meal and serve it to them again. If they are really hungry....they will eat it. And all of this was before we even started the Paleo Journey.
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