HAPPY FRIDAY!
This week went by so fast, don’t you think? I started Paleo Cleanse, on Monday. I weighed myself and I was 130 pounds. Its definitely the biggest I’ve been! Even after giving birth I weighed less. And it’s was less about the number on the scale, I just knew I had to change the way I was eating. I love cards! That’s something I can definitely live off. Bagel are probably my favorite food. haha. I decided to do this 30 day cleanse to eat healthier, feel better, and have more energy.
I’m on day number five. The first couple of days were hard. I pretty much ate a lot of veggies, meat, eggs, nuts, dark chocolate, one cup of coffee, and some dried fruit. Today I weighed myself in the morning and I have lost 4 pounds already! That is definatly motivation to keep on going. Below I’ve attached the guidelines of this cleanse. If you also start doing it let me know, we can do it together (:
There are three categories to make it as easy as possible.
Eat liberally:
You can enjoy as much of these foods as you like. No counting calories or calculating ratios of protein, fat or carbohydrate. This isn’t a “cleanse” or a fast. If a food is one this list, you’re free to eat it.
Eat in moderation:
You can eat these foods, but don’t go hog wild with them. I’ve indicated how often or how much of them I think is safe, but in general you want to limit consumption of these foods compared to those in the “eat liberally” category.
Avoid completely:
Yep, completely. This is where the rubber hits the road. The success (or failure) of the program hinges on your ability to steer clear of these foods during the 30-day Reset.
Eat liberally:
– Meat and poultry. Emphasize beef and lamb, but also pork, chicken, turkey, duck and wild game like venison, ostrich, etc. Organic and free-range is always preferable, but is especially so during this program. Organ meats (especially liver). Liver is the most nutrient-dense food on the planet. If you don’t like the taste of liver, one good trick is to put one chicken liver in each cube of an ice cube tray and freeze them. Then, when you’re making any meat dish, dice up one chicken liver and add it to the meat.
– Bone broth soups. It’s essential to balance your intake of muscle meats and organ meats with homemade bone broths. Bone broths are rich in glycine, and amino acid found in collagen, which is a protein important in maintaining a healthy gut lining.
– Fish. Especially fatty fish like salmon, mackerel and herring. Wild is preferable. You need to eat three 6 oz. servings of fatty fish per week to balance your omega-6 to omega-3 ratio.
Eggs. Preferably free-range and organic.
– Starchy tubers. Yams, sweet potatoes, yucca/manioc, taro, lotus root, etc.
– Non-starchy vegetables. Cooked and raw.
– Fermented vegetables and fruits. Sauerkraut, kim chi, beet kvaas, coconut kefir, etc. These are excellent for gut health.
– Traditional fats. Coconut oil, palm oil, lard, duck fat, beef tallow and olive oil.
– Olives, avocados and coconuts (including coconut milk).
– Sea salt and spices. Avoid sugar or artificial flavorings.
Eat in moderation:
– Processed meat. Sausage, bacon and jerky. Make sure they are gluten, sugar and soy free and organic/free-range meat is preferable.
– Whole fruit. Approximately 1-3 servings per day, depending on your blood sugar balance. Favor low sugar fruits like berries and peaches over tropical fruits, apples & pears.
– Nuts and seeds. A maximum of a handful per day, preferably soaked overnight and dehydrated or roasted at low temperature (150 degrees) to improve digestibility. Favor nuts lower in omega-6, like hazelnuts and macadamias, and minimize nuts high in omega-6, like brazil nuts and almonds.
– Green beans, sugar peas and snap peas. Though technically legumes, they are usually well tolerated. – – Coffee and black tea. Black, or with coconut milk. Only if you don’t suffer from fatigue, insomnia or hypoglycemia, and only before 12:00 PM. Limit to one cup (not one triple expresso – one cup).
– Dark chocolate. 70% or higher in small amounts (i.e. about the size of a silver dollar per serving) is permitted.
– Vinegar. Apple cider vinegar is especially well tolerated.
– Restaurant food. The main problem with eating out is that restaurants cook with industrial seed oils, which wreak havoc on the body and cause serious inflammation. You don’t need to become a cave dweller, but it’s best to limit eating out as much as possible during this initial period.
Avoid completely:
– Dairy. Including butter, cheese, yogurt, milk, cream & any dairy product that comes from a cow, goat or sheep.
– Grains. Including bread, rice, cereal, oats, or any gluten-free pseudo grains like sorghum, teff, quinoa, amaranth, buckwheat, etc.
– Legumes. Including beans of all kinds (soy, black, kidney, pinto, etc.), peas, lentils and peanuts.
– Concentrated sweeteners, real or artificial. Including sugar, high fructose corn syrup, maple syrup, honey, agave, brown rice syrup, Splenda, Equal, Nutrasweet, xylitol, stevia, etc.
Processed or refined foods. As a general rule, if it comes in a bag or a box, don’t eat it. This also includes highly processed “health foods” like protein powder, energy bars, dairy-free creamers, etc.
– Industrial seed oils. Soybean, corn, safflower, sunflower, cottonseed, canola, etc. Read labels – seed oils are in almost all processed, packaged and refined foods (which you should be mostly avoiding anyway). Sodas and diet sodas. All forms.
– Alcohol. In any form. (Don’t freak out. It’s just 30 days.)
– Processed sauces and seasonings. Soy sauce, tamari, and other processed seasonings and sauces (which often have sugar, soy, gluten, or all of the above).
I soak almonds over night, in a mason jar, with filtered water and sea salt. And close the lid. In the morning, I just peel off the skin and eat the almonds. They are so good and easy for digestion.
Today, I made banana pancakes. Easy to make and it’s only 3 ingredients (plus I added dark chocolate). Bananas, eggs, and baking powder. Mix it all together and put it on the pan with olive oil.
Lunch: salmon, avocado, sweet potato, and brussels sprouts.
Mini watermelon. It’s a great snack. I cut it in half and eat it with a spoon (you can also add lemon).
Chicken salad: chicken, salad leaves, avocado, soaked almonds, and apple vinegar dressing ( consists of: lemon juice, apple vinegar, sea salt and pepper).
