primal diet

Today draws the 21 Day TOTAL BODY TRANSFORMATION!!! to a close. Reflections?

Most clearly, I noticed two things.

1. My energy levels were much, much better. Except for a day here and there, I didn’t have the post-lunch energy lull, where you feel as if you just want to crawl under your desk and take a massive nap.

2. My allergies have been so much better. I still have that persistent feeling of needing to itch the back of the roof of my mouth with my tongue, but the head-fog and pressure behind my eyes has all but receded. I only took Allegra 1 day out of the 21, after taking it almost daily for the past 12 months. Amazing. I wish I knew exactly what caused that. Am I sensitive to gluten? Dairy? Carbs?? As noted in previous posts, if I drink more than 2 drinks in a sitting, my allergies tend to act up. I start sneezing and will wake up in the night with a drippy nose. Weird.

Over the past week, I have been cheating more than I did the first week – some Nestle dark chocolate chips here (lots o’ sugar), a low carb beer there, a bite of a breaded pork tenderloin there (but just a bite). I did feel better – cleaner, almost – when I was more strict with myself. My stomach was flatter too, which felt awesome.

So, how to proceed? I plan on following the 80/20 rule. At least 80% of the time, I will eat primally. I will indulge in pizza or a microbrew here or there and not feel guilty about it. It’s all about balance and moderation.

I like how my life has changed over the past few weeks. I spend more time cooking, so we are eating food that tastes better than restaurant food, and food that is way healthier for us. I know what I am putting into my body. I’m experimenting with different cooking techniques and kitchen equipment. Tim and I have eaten way more meals at the kitchen table, talking, instead of in front of the TV watching dumb mind-numbing television. I don’t even mind washing up afterwards. It’s kind of a relaxing ritual. Plus, it keeps my on my feet instead of my arse.

I enjoy spending 20 minutes on a Sunday morning looking through recipes and picking out tasty, healthy meals for the week. It’s so nice having everything planned out for the week, so we don’t end up getting Taco John’s because we don’t have anything in the house.

So, thank you, Mark Sisson, for making so much information available on the internet and introducing me to to his concept. I look forward to what the next few months will bring. Hopefully I will be in swimsuit shape by June for our trip to Ocracoke Island!

I will try to remember to take measurements tomorrow morning. I have a feeling that I didn’t loose anything from last week (due to the aforementioned cheating), but that’s alright. My health is definitely better, and that’s what’s really important.

Um, yeah, so I’m a little behind. Weekends are like that. Busy.

So, where did I leave off? Oh yeah – Saturday. We went to the Farmer’s Market, ate primally I’m sure for breakfast and lunch, saw “Haywire,” ate HyVee Chinese (chicken kabob instead of egg roll and Mandarin Chicken with no rice). I’m trying to remember… All the days are blending together. Let me just hit the highlights.

Tim got the Power Tower put together. I am supposed to be able to (eventually) do 5 complete, real pull-ups. At this point, I can do 0. None. Zip. All I can do at this point is hop off a chair and lower myself down until my arms fail. I have spindly, weak arms. BUT. BUT!! I am up to 10 bent knee pushups! That’s 4 more than I could do 2 weeks ago. Progress, sweet progress.

What else? Oh, I made my first primal shake. I was kind of craving ice cream, but instead I put all the following into the blender: ice cubes, frozen blueberries, dark cocoa powder, a frozen banana, a date, shredded coconut, pecans and coconut milk. I tried to blend it all up in our 14-year-old, seldom-used blender, but nothing was happening, so I had to transfer the contents to the food processor, where everything blended up pretty nicely. But, boy oh boy, was it messy – dark as night, delicious shake residue all over the food processor, the counter, the blender, my fingers, the bar, the stool, the phones, the bartender – everywhere. I thought it was damn delicious though. Tim thought the darkness was off-putting. Check out the pic in my Instagram feed (see the link on the right).

What else? It was cloudy and depressing today. I feel happier now that I have done a little exercise, but I was feeling pretty down in the dumps earlier. I was hating my blue and tan cubicle and my stupid, uncomfortable office chair that makes my back hurt like a mother every Monday morning. Argh. I am so looking forward to sunshine and longer days. I’m itching to get outside, so I can do some sprint workouts.

Today I was supposed to do my first “intermittent fast, ” which is where you try not to eat until you experience strong sensations of hunger. I didn’t really do that. Since I’m on a schedule at work, I kind of have to eat when I have my lunch break. I should have tried it for supper, but, well, I didn’t.

I’m also supposed to get some “cave time” – time to disengage from digital stimulation. Mark recommends going hiking for an hour or meditating on a park bench. It’s 28 degrees and drizzly outside, so that doesn’t work for me today. We need to move to California.

Tomorrow I am supposed to do a 20-60 aerobic workout, but we have to go grocery shopping tomorrow night, so I’m going to try to go at 5AM. I feel way happier during the day if I work out in the morning, but it’s so difficult and unpleasant. Wish me luck.

So, 2 weeks down, one more to go. So far it’s been a positive experience. My allergies have improved. I’m down to 144, and I’ve lost another inch all around. My stomach seems to be happier. I’ve had some mood swings, but I have those anyway. I’m excited to see how I feel next Monday, after the 21-day challenge is over.

Take care, and have a pleasant evening!

Tag: primal diet

Primal Day 21 – The Finale

Primal Days 13 – 15