Let’s talk about sticking with Paleo during all the 4th of July festivities.
The good news is, cookouts are your best friend. Burgers, chicken and steak on the grill, plus a side of salad, vegetables or fresh fruit and you’re good to go. Not sure what your friends will be serving? Bring your own side dish – something you KNOW you can eat. Skip the beer in favor of mineral water with a slice of lime. And bring some snack back-up in case you get stuck… fruit, nuts, jerky.
Not sure what to say when someone pushes you on your food choices? “Oh, come on… you can have ONE beer!” or “What, you don’t eat bread now?” can be tough to handle in social situations. These three little words will be your best friend in the next 30 days.
No, thank you.
That’s all you have to say. Just keep repeating it, politely, with a smile, over and over, until the person takes the hint. No, thank you. Or, I just don’t want any. Or, I’m good, thanks. Any variation of the phrase should do. If you feel the need to say something else and you think the person is receptive, you can try explaining what you’re doing, and why. Or you can tell them that you’re allergic. Or you can tell them that your (very expensive) nutrition coach would kick your a** if she found out you snuck a beer. Whatever works. Just don’t let people pressure you into second-guessing your choices. You’re tougher than that.
Post thoughts, questions and your best holiday weekend strategy recommendation to comments.
Melissa Byers is the awesome part of awesomeness. Thank you for making this blog a requirement, God Bless You, and have a great Holiday!
Here's what I'm bringing to a cookout I've been invited to:
Broccoli Salad:
I bag of Broccoli Slaw (pre-shredded broccoli with a little carrot and red cabbage mixed in)
1/2 European Cucumber, diced
1/2 red onion, diced
1/2 pint of cherry tomatoes, halved
2 stalks of celery, diced
Splash of Balsamic Vinegar and EVOO
I let is sit in the the fridge for a hour or so before serving.
It's great and really crunchy.
Just an idea for those new to paleo.
Jenn
gonna marinate some shrimp with lemon zest, garlic, cilantro, and rosemary. Check out this recipe. I never get sick of this
http://healthhabits.wordpress.com/2009/05/22/grilled-wild-shrimp-and-veg/
Thanks for the Lara bar suggestion. I tried the apple pie bar and it's great.
You answered my question in the first "paleo post"…. the hard part IS peer pressure! Especially during celebrations.
Thank you for the nutrition coach suggestion, that' s a good one ;;)
So I found the larabars, but my search for local jerky was a miserable failure. Even at the 'healthy' stores they all had sugar on them. I guess I'm gonna hafta cough up a chunk of cash and order some online. Any suggestions?
Chelsea, make it yourself!! Its rediculously easy! I have a quick and easy run through for grass fed jerky in my 'notes' section on my face book page, http://www.facebook.com/cheffit/
Seriously, soooooo easy, i make a new batch about once a week in my oven at home, getting so popular with my clients I am buying a dehydrator (less than $200) to make gads-o-jerky and to take advantage of the summer bounty and dry my own fruits and make my own veggie chips.
You can make jerky in your oven?!
I usually bring peel and eat shrimp, seasoned with some pepper and stuff. Delicious finger food, looks gross, but gets the job done.
and when people ask me if why im not eating "x" i tell them that im pregnant and cant be eating crap food.
works every time
p.s.: im a guy
and also, im going back to school for summer classes either today or tomorrow, and plan to start my 30 days from there.
My experience with peer pressure is a little different because I don't drink. Not at all. So when someone says "do you want a [insert thing here]?" I usually just smile and say maybe later. Here is the thing, they never come back to it, because I am convinced that they are too busy thinking about themselves to worry about my habits. The paleo stuff is easier to get around because I make everything BYOS (Bring your own stuff) then I provide the grill and the cutlery and paper plates. It turns into a free for all.
Byers, three days in and going strong and feeling great in the process. Here is something that I have found interesting, most people don't know what is/is not Gluten free. So don't rely on asking the person if they know. I had someone recommend a salad dressing made with soy sauce.
Last thing. Keep the comments coming this is great stuff.
Ok Byers, Leslie and I are in… We just got back from food inc., and it kicked us in the ass to get motivated. Anyways, it will be especially great with the Rip Cert in 2 weeks and I get to say "no thank you" when its time for beer, so don't tell me isnt going to be hard, lol.
I didn't think I'd have to worry about this weekend because I'm Canadian so my party has been over for a few days, however the boyfriend just said he wanted to take me out to dinner tomorrow. I've done the "eating weird" at a restaurant thing before though so I'm confident I can get meat and veg without all the additives.
Also, I just discovered something that will help me get through the mountains of veggies yet to come:
Curry Sauce
1 small onion, diced
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch fresh ginger root, minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
3 tsp curry powder
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 can coconut milk
juice of 1 lime
Fry the onion, garlic, and ginger root in olive oil on medium heat until the onion is translucent. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook until just boiling. Simmer a few minutes.
I just dumped this over some salmon and veggies (frozen mix, includes sugar snap peas but is high on my f-off scale). Yummers!
Just a question and would welcome any answers…approximately how many servings/ounces a day of 'nuts' are generally recommended? I found myself wanting to eat A LOT of them today but don't want to go overboard…
Thanks!
Melissa,
Whenever I go on strict Paleo, I get splitting headaches.
The headaches, I believe, are directly related to the number of carbs I take. The more carbs I take, the less of a headache I get. The headaches range from mild to near crippling depending on how many carbs I cut out.
The headaches start 2-3 days after I go on pure Paleo. The headaches go away about two hours after I consume a significant amount of carbs.
I'm told that the headaches are caused because my brain consumes carbs. There is supposed to be another energy source, but my brain, apparently, never gets to convert to this other energy source because I have to do a massive carb cheat meal at least once a week to prevent severe headaches (severe enough to make sleeping difficult).
So, for me, going strict Paleo is hard because of the huge headaches it causes.
Your thoughts?
Day one and feeling good…had a great WOD…did a food shop…felt grossed out by almost everthing in the store…it was amazing to see how much JUNK is out there..you don't notice until you're only looking for the clean. Although I did end up in front of the milk cooler by habit…grabbed my eggs and rolled.
Michael, I dealt with that exact phenomenon today. It started with a mild headache and then raged after a particularly fatty/low carb meal. I ate about 3 cups of grapes and the headache subsided to a dull ache. I don't know what that is all about.
So this morning I ate eggs with red and green peppers and onions, with a side of an apple with a drizzle of cashew butter. Seriously, deprivation, what? Haha.
Just have to get through the combination 4th of July barbecue/birthday cake without drama, and one dinner with my friend who doesn't know I'm not vegan anymore, hmmmm…..
Day 2 and doing great. No non-paleo cravings as long as I'm not starving.
Question: Can anyone please recommend 1 or 2 salad dressings that fix into this 30 day plan?
Hi Melissa!
Today is my 2nd day of strict paleo!!! This may sound insane, but I feel better already! I have been struggling with severe and painful bloating even after removing dairy and/or gluten, but I never removed both at the same time and never stuck to it 100%. But yesterday I felt great, except in the evening I was really really tired and I am pretty sure it was b/c I didn't eat enough fat throughout the day. Thankfully this isn't too difficult for me because all I had to remove from my previous eating plan was the lil bit of lactose-free milk I put in my coffee, oats, and stevia (stevia was the hardest LOL). I am trying to zone-paleo but not stressin too much on measuring b/c it drives me nuts. I feel GREAT, my mind feels clear, and I hope everyone else is feeling great as well!! We can do this!! We just gotta support each other! Thank you for your post!! You really inspired me to stop making excuses and just DOING IT!
Quick question… Egg yolk has lecithin in it and I have heard it could be extracted from soy.. have you ever heard anything about this/do you have any thoughts?
Thanks again and Happy 4th!!!
-Mindy
Loving this so far. No bloating and feel like a ball of energy (3 days wow). Did 3 wods in 13 hours ( a fundraiser at our box) and had a pr twice!
I think the best part is the not "counting" every last thing I eat. Man I had counting things I always loose track. No sugar, no dairy, not a grain to be found.
Sweet without the sugar
Hope everyone has a great paleo 4th of July (I'm Canadian so thankfully won't have the temptations)
Day 2 and feeling great! I was a little rough getting started this morning…but an apple with my eggers fixed me up! My stomach is flatter…my energy is steady…I might be eating a bit too much fruit..but no cravings..big WOD today…..curious to see how I feel midway…Happy 4th to all the Yanks! Except the one's in NY pinstripes! Go Jays!
Amy – I'm excited to try your curry sauce, thanks for sharing!!
I'm doing good so far. My hardest part so far was a planned goodbye lunch for a co-worker. I finally asked about sugar in their balsamic vinegarette dressing. Sure enough, there's sugar, so did the oil and vinegar only, no pre-made dressings. I didn't do the bratwurst meal either because I have no idea what's done to prepare the meat/sausage. My grilled salmon salad wasn't quite as exciting.
I'm finding that coffee without cream is okay, but condiments are tricky. I've a mustard that has no sugar and made from all natural ingredients, but I can't trust mustards when I go out to eat. Shoot, I can't trust anything served at restaurants. The lesson? Not a lot of going out to eat this month! Yeah, I really didn't worry too much about these little "cheats" before.
Jimi – for salad dressing just use good olive oil and some different vinegars. I like to shake different herbs on the salad (Italian Seasoning is my favorite)and then pour the oil & vinegar.
Anyway, I'm eating pretty darn clean now. I'm really curious about dropping the nightshades and the dairy. I'm hoping my knee pain goes away. Fingers are crossed!
2 days in and feeling good. yesterday it felt like i needed to eat every 2-3 hours to keep from being hungry (probably from not eating enough the day before), but today feels much better. not so many cravings / thoughts about foods i can't eat.
one question i have is about cashews (because i quite love them), but have seen in a couple of places that they aren't allowed? mutterings about their toxic shell requiring processing and/or their higher carb content? any opinions on cashews being excluded from a paleo diet?
Hey Lily,
I've heard the same about cashews/cashew butter. I'm no paleo-expert at all, I'm just sharing what I've been told by some CF coaches… so here goes..cashews apparently aren't "allowed" on paleo b/c they aren't technically a nut. I think tho that this is one of those foods that you make your own personal judgement and choice about. this is just my two cents! I'm sure Melissa will have a better answer! =)
I'm a little late to the party, so July 5th is my start day. Just a quick question though. Should I scrap all the weighing and measuring I have been doing with Zoning (since March), or just work the paleo approach into what I am already doing?
Thanks
JP
Today is my day 1. Just got back from Good Harvest Market. My head hurts only because I hate going to organic-y stores. They make me feel like everything I buy/eat from the globo grocery store is going to give me cancer.
They didn't really have very much meat – not even the Applegate sausages which was my reason for going. Just some expensive chicken and hot dogs. Bought a few things-a couple of Larabars (yummy), Stevia Clear liquid stevia, coconut milk in a can and unsweetened coconut milk from the "dairy" section.
The morning coffee w/o cream & Splenda went ok. I'm going to really try and go black w/o coming up with a new substitute. I know that'll make me feel better.
Other than that- day 1 is day 1 and going ok.
Five days in and I feel great. This is going easier than I thought. Just pay attention to food labels of things if you have to eat something preserved.
Someone up there asked about salad dressing. My favorite is pretty plain Jane but I love it: avocado oil and lemon juice, or olive oil and lemon juice.
Someone else up there asked about the headaches and two things come to mind:
1. The amount of carbohydrate you eat, particularly if you eat nutritionally barren carb, has a similar effect to drinking too much booze. So you are effectively detoxing from a nasty hangover. The "fix" of eating the carbs, is just giving the body what it has gotten to used to. When I kicked the grain carbs I had the worst headaches ever. But they went away, fast a twice a week for at least 16 hours, drink plenty of water.
2. You might be a highly trained government agent. Pick up a chef knife and throw it at the wall. If it sticks in and wiggles back and forth cinematically let me know where you live so I can stay the hell away from you.
I managed the 4th and am so excited about it! I brought sides that were paleo friendly and had burgers off the grill.
Amy, thanks for the recipe for the sauce!
@V. Can you elaborate on your headache experiences and cure? I understand that eating carbs misses the point entirely. But living with headaches that make it difficult to sleep and work is a no go.
How long did your headaches last? You are advocating fasting for 16 hours a day, twice a week? For how many weeks? What does the fasting do? Do you have references (web sites, books, articles) that support this approach to solving the headache problem?
Here is what Art De Vany has to say about headaches: "Headaches. If you get headaches on EF, this is a warning shot across your bow. You are probably at least a bit insulin resistant and may be tipping into the metabolic cascade toward the metabolic syndrome. It ends with diabetes 2 as visceral fat builds under your stomach muscles in your gut. It accelerates the rate at which you age.
The headaches are caused by your blood sugar dropping. The brain is crying for glucose because your high insulin has caused the glucose to be taken up by other tissues. Be careful during these headache episodes because you may lack judgment and feel more irritated. A bit of low sugar dark chocolate will help. Don’t drive a car when you feel this way.
The other cause of the headaches is that carb you did not notice. It shoots your blood sugar up and then the insulin drops it like a rock. It is the Chinese meal syndrome. You get hungry half an hour after a Chinese meal because all the corn starch in the sauce (and sugar in many non-authentic Chinese meals) produces a blood sugar rise followed by a crash induced by the high insulin response. Many people who eat too much simple carbs are exhausted by the end of the day from multiple blood sugar rises and crashes through the day. It produces a high level of stress, which will add to your insulin resistance, making these episodes worse over time."
Michael,
The fasting stuff can be found on Robb Wolff's website (robbwolff.com) he has some interesting articles floating around about the effects of Intermittent Fasting. I do my fasting typically when I sleep. Go to bed at regular time and eat my last meal at 5pm. Then I don't have breakfast until about 10am when I get out of work. It seems more manageable when you are asleep for a huge chunk of the time.
Here is what happened to me with the headaches. I quit drinking about 5 years ago, and I was a big hop head beer drinker. The Carb Load of beer is pretty fantastic and I was really heavy and ate like shit anyway.
So I quit drinking and changed my diet a little bit, trying to cut out some of the pasta-y things. When I did that I got these horrific three day headaches and a friend of mine recommended that I start eating Starburst candies. My Brain was craving the sugar and it was telling me. Now I have found that there are much much much healthier ways to stymie that craving. Fruit mostly.
My experience with Paleo eating isn't that you should destroy carbs from your diet but that you should be super selective with the ones you choose to ingest.
My headaches lasted me about three weeks. Sometimes they were real bad and sometimes they were just nagging and persistent. But once they went away, the never came back. I have had two headaches in three years and both of them involved mild heat stroke.
But Michael, don't rule out the super-agent thing either.
@V I think I've got it: Do pure Paleo and eat fruit when the headaches come.
I'll see how it works.
Q&A time.
@TLC: Nuts are a fantastic fat source. How many you eat is, of course, individual. In this instance, as (I assume) you are struggling with replacing the calories you are losing from grains and dairy and experiencing some hunger pains (literally) from your new diet… just eat. If you're hungry, fat satiates. So, being conscious of what you are eating (always), if you're hungry, have a handful of almonds with your meal or as a snack and see how that does for your mental and physical cravings. If you're not satisfied, have more. Just eat.
@Michael (and Sloe, and V): My non-expert, non-science-y opinion is exactly what V said – you are literally detoxing from processed carbs and sugars. It's happened to me on a few occasions – I've written about it here. It can take a while to get through, but you have to stick with it until it passes. Eat some fruit and see if that helps, yes, but try to be cautious and only eat as much as you need. (Meaning, don't eat an entire bag of dried cranberries at a time, if just 1/4 of a cup of strawberries would do.) Be extra conscious of your carb choices as well. Dried fruit and sweet potatoes pack a substantial punch, and may not be moving you that far off the path of insulin resistance. Cherries, berries and vegetables (even carrots) are a better choice. Please keep us posted as to how you are feeling. I suspect you'll be feeling *tremendously* better in about a week. STICK WITH IT.
@Jimi: If I have enough delicious stuff in my salad, I find I don't need dressing at all. We made a gorgeous salad the other night with baby spinach, broiled salmon, diced pear, almond slivers and avocado. No dressing necessary. If you prefer, however, V's got it right – drizzle some olive oil, squeeze some lemon and/or lime or (depending on the salad) use some sesame oil for flavor.
@Jake: Stevia is not okay with this 30 day thing. Just making sure you're not selling yourself short.
Find some of that Applegate sausage, though. It's delicious.
Thanks to everyone for helping each other out, responding to questions and supplying your own thoughts. This is why I wanted to do this. We can all learn from each other, and everyone's contributions makes this a better place to be.
A comment about the "No, Thank you". I was at a work function where lunch boxes were provided. If you didn't get there first, of course you wouldn't have first pick. When I got there, all that was left were pasta salads (!!!). I kept asking if anyone had anything that wasn't pasta or a sandwich. Finally one woman owned up that she had a steak salad lunch. I asked her if she would switch…. FINALLY I told her I was diabetic and couldn't eat pasta. She relented and then told me her mom was diabetic as well, and couldn't eat pasta. Problem Solved….
A Total Lie, but for some reason, sometimes people won't believe you if you say you have Celiac's disease (my usual story: works most of the time), just because the rest of the world has no willpower.
Another comment: I figured out alcohol exacerbates my already severe seasonal allergies. Another great reason not to drink!
Thanks for keeping a great blog! I'm off to buy some natural beef jerky made around here (smoked without sugar in the marinade!)
Melissa, Just wondering the reason for no Stevia? It's not a big deal to me (other than I paid $22 for a vial and can't use it), but I'm interested in the reasoning for my knowledge.
Angie
Oops, I forgot Jake = Angie.
Stevia is a sugar substitute. Since this is a no sugar 30 days, Stevia is a no-go. I also wrote a post a week or two back about how Robb Wolf taught me that sugar substitutes can have just as significant (and negative) an impact on insulin sensitivity and fat loss as real sugar.
Sorry. But you'll thank me for it.
Melissa
Has anyone else tried grass-fed beef products and found them…chewier? I can't imagine it's directly related to eating grass, because all the venison/moose meat I've ever eaten has been quite tender. But those were all killed in the fall…and I've heard that meat is seasonal just like fruits and veggies?