Good-bye grains, dairy, and legumes!

Luckily, I've never been a huge fan of the legume family, so I shouldn't be missing out on entirely too much as I embark upon my newest adventure: Paleo diet.

In my last post, I briefly mentioned my latest read: The Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf. After reading 101 pages in the bookstore cafe, I enjoyed it so much that not only did I buy it right then...I also paid full price! I can't tell you the last time I bought a book at full price, let alone purchased one without first doing some comparison shopping online!!

Anyway, the book goes into great levels of detail about the original human diet and how our bodies are simply not designed to eat the crap we drown ourselves in daily. I was challenged to read three chapters before giving up on it...and I did just that. Next thing you know, I couldn't put the book down.

So here's the deal. I'm going to try it. For thirty days. Could this be short-lived on my part? Very possibly - but after reading the science behind what I'm doing to my body, I can't bare to eat another piece of bread or knowingly ingest gluten. I haven't completely read the book, but I'm sold so far. I read ahead to help me with my grocery shopping this morning. Surprisingly enough, my shopping list didn't change too drastically. The short of it is: No grains, no dairy, no legumes.

The dairy thing will be the hardest for me. I absolutely LOVE cheese. And ice cream. ::sigh:: BUT, I've done quite a bit of research and not only are there internet-based businesses that sell alternatives...but I can make much of those delicious dairy-free delights on my own! Well - 'delicious' may be debatable...I'll get back to you on that one.

I shared the book with my mom and sister, both of whom have decided to jump on the bandwagon. I'm really excited about this. And I know it will be tough - seemingly impossible at times...but if I continue to research it, learn what happens when I eat different foods, etc....then I'm sure I'll be left with only the option to eat well and take care of myself.

I'm off to a good start today. For lunch, I had "chicken fajita salad". I wish I had taken a picture, but I was waaaay too hungry after flag football practice to stop for one. Aside from the fact that I had to substitute spinach for red lettuce...the meal was sauteed chicken with peppers and onions, a little cumin powder, oregano...all on a bed of spinach, tomatos, and onions. Yummy Yummy Yummy.

For dinner, I made a delicious vegetable medley. I pretty much just threw some onions, mushrooms, asparagus and zucchini into a pan and sauteed it up with a little garlic, ground pepper and olive oil. Delish!

To go along with the veggies...(half of which, I saved for tomorrow's leftovers)...I made one of my favorites: broiled citrus salmon. It's pretty much a staple in my home...kind of an expensive one...but totally worth it.

To make it, I take a small salmon portion, lightly cover it in olive oil, and then create a light layer of minced garlic over the entire fish. For the minced garlic - it's nothing fancy. Once a month, I get a ton of garlic from the farmer's market (I actually buy it peeled, which makes life ten times easier), and take it home and go crazy mincing!!! It's probably more like 'pureed' garlic than minced...but whatever. After that, I add fresh ground pepper and top it all off with the juice of half a lime. Yummy.

After broiling the salmon for about fifteen minutes...I remove it from the oven and add the last half of the lime juice to the top! Ooohhh yummy!! I did take the time to snap a picture of this one...because it just looked (and tasted) so delicious!

For an after dinner dessert, I washed a few strawberries and indulged! I suppose there are some things I'll have to really get used to with this whole Paleo diet...but, I have day one under my belt, and I'm feeling great about it. I plan on taking a few "before" pictures tomorrow to get a better idea of how this affects my body, skin, etc. If nothing else, I want to keep this up for thirty days!! I know that I can do it - I just have to be strong and stick to it!! Luckily for me, it looks like I'm developing quite the support system along teh way! =) We'll see where it goes...

I may even try to make carrot cake tomorrow...using "almond flour" and coconut milk! Sounds amazing, doesn't it?! IF I make it...there WILL be pictures! Wish me luck!