Intro to Paleo

The Paleo lifestyle is a favorite of mine because of its simplicity. At the end of every night countless people will be asked this question "What's for dinner?" I can't even think of how many times I've been asked this question, along with variations such as "What's for lunch?" and "What's for breakfast?". I mean these questions come back to haunt people day in and day out. Making a cohesive meal is a challenge for many people who don't have much time, those who don't like to cook, and those who just can't think of anything to cook.

Going Paleo makes these questions a bit easier to answer because your options are somewhat scaled down to certain food groups with meat and vegetables being the main 2. I can't even begin to truly express in words how much stress is now off my shoulders when trying to think of something to cook for dinner. I simply choose a protein, usually steak, and a vegetable or two, usually broccoli and carrots, or a salad. Done. The steak takes about 8 minutes (depending on the cut and thickness of course) and while it's cooking I'm preparing the side which will be done at the same time. How simple and easy is that, I know Rachel Ray has her 30 minute meals, but this one was a meal in under 10 minutes! I love Rachel Ray btw!

So I've mentioned that Paleo basically is meat and vegetables, but you can also eat certain fruits that are lower in carbs, healthy fats such as coconut oil and avocado oil, eggs, seafood, and nuts. Now what you are avoiding is basically processed foods and foods high in carbs such as grains, legumes, unhealthy fats, and most dairy products. Now there are some alternative things that are available like coconut and almond flour that are considered Paleo and will allow you to still eat breads, biscuits, pancakes, things of that nature. It's worth looking into if you feel like you can't live without carb loaded foods. This opens up the possibilities even more. I actually love almond flour!

Below are some things that you can eat to give an example.

Meat/Poultry/Fish: Ground Beef, Steak, Turkey, Chicken, Bison, Quail, Veal, Salmon, Catfish ,Lamb, Pork, Crab, Lobster, Shrimp, Rainbow Trout, Cod, etc. There are soo many different cuts of meat and thousands of different kind of fish. Your options for protein are very abundant.

Vegetables: Asparagus, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Kale, Spinach, Mushrooms, Lettuce, Eggplant, Spaghetti Squash, Avocado (technically a fruit though but who likes technicalities lol), Brussels Sprouts, Artichoke Hearts, Peppers, Cabbage, Zucchini, Onions, etc. You can still eat the starchy vegetables like potatoes and yams, but if you're trying to bring sexy back, those starchy vegetables are not a good idea.

I'll later post this list of Paleo meal ideas I have that might help in embracing the lifestyle. It provides a range of options so that you don't feel like your meal is missing something that is not in agreement with the Paleo lifestyle.

Thanks for reading my post. As always, if there's something you'd like me to post about just let me know. Comments are welcomed! Enjoy the weekend peeps!