Dreadlockmama's Primal Journey

Hi there.

Welcome to my journey.

I am a former long time vegetarian (22 years, six months) going 100% primal for the next 90 days.

I am a sugar and carb addict and have struggled with my weight going up and down most of my life. Name the diet & I've been on it! I've also been an over-exerciser (I tend to do things to the extreme!)

I have chronic back pain that I am convinced is the result of diet related inflammation. I would also like to lose about thirty pounds, STOP "dieting" forever, increase my energy and enjoy life :)

Today I cleaned out my kitchen...tomorrow I grocery shop!

Since my partner and my two teenage sons who live with me are carnivores, I was able to forage for food and eat primally today:

Breakfast - 3 scrambled eggs with scallions, green peppers, tomato and basil (the tomato & basil were from my urban garden)

Lunch - 2 turkey patties, home made vegetable soup, green tea

Dinner - 2 beef patties, steamed cauliflower with butter, green tea

I did some yoga this morning and took a walk in the neighborhood this evening.

So far...so good!

Here's to the Primal Life!

Dreadlockmama

Welcome aboard DLM! I have a friend that's been a veggie for at least as long as you, she tried primal but couldn't stick with it partly because her husband and teenage sons are not just vegetarians but anti meat. It was very hard for her. It will be much easier for you because I'm sure your family will be happy to eat meat with you. One tip I can give you if you are a sugar addict is to make sure you eat enough fat. My husband tells me it really helped with his cravings. I make him fat bars that satisfies his urge for a treat. I melt coconut oil and coconut butter, equal amounts (maybe 1/3 cup) add in 1 or 2 Tb almond butter some walnuts and coconut (toasted if you like) anything else you like (flaxseeds are good or a little dried fruit) pour it in a parchment lined pan and refrigerate until hard. It has the texture of a candy bar, but it's not sweet.

Good Morning!

Hey, UF....Thanks for the support and the tip.

My partner is excited that I will now be willing & able to eat his (people fight at the table for the last piece) roast chicken :)

My kids are amused. I have been a vegetarian ALL their lives! LOL

Today's breakfast:

A large bowl of stir fried onions & cauliflower, 3 scrambled eggs and a cup of herbal tea.

Have a great day everyone!

DLM

Well, first things first....

Today I did a little yoga in the morning...

My meals today:

B: 3 scrambled eggs with onion and cauliflower, herbal tea

L: 2 broiled chicken breasts

Snack: 2 hard boiled eggs, a handful of grape tomatoes and a cucumber

D: baked fish

Now for the day's challenge: PRIMAL SHOPPING!!!

I decided about halfway through that I should have brought along either my partner (who was at work) or one of my teenage sons...I needed two carts! However, I prevailed and got everything out of the store and into my car without incident (not always an easy feat in Philadelphia!)

When I got home my sons carried everything in & helped me unpack it all....and then I made the fish :)

So...I am now primally stocked and ready to go.

One thing I observed today was that when I got hungry, I wasn't DESPERATELY hungry...I was just...hungry.

Another observation is that when it was time to eat I looked forward to my meal, but I wasn't FANTASIZING about it (you fellow foodies and carb addicts know what I mean!)

Physically....I felt pretty good all day...a very slight achy, detox feeling...but nothing major. I definitely had a clear head and didn't feel tired...no afternoon slump.

I didn't get my walk in today :( but I DID do my heavy lifting...at the grocery store! LOL!

Looking forward to a primal day tomorrow.

DLM

Another good primal day :)

B: 3 scrambled eggs with mushrooms

L: Salmon, grape tomatoes and cucumber

D: Baked chicken

I did yoga this morning...missed my walk AGAIN :(

I am realizing that I probably need to get a walk in first thing in the morning, just in case my day gets away from me (like it did today).

Continue to experience very mild "carb flu"...not debilitating.

One of my biggest concerns was that I would have digestive issues after so many years of being a vegetarian (22 1/2 years)....BUT....so far I haven't had any problems. Very encouraging!

Looking forward to another good day tomorrow.

DLM

Felt great today.

"Carb flu" is diminishing...almost gone.

B: 3 eggs scrambled with mushrooms

L: Baked chicken, green salad with olive oil and lemon dressing

D: Baked chicken, broccoli salad with olive oil and lemon dressing

Did yoga this morning...

Loving my primal life!

DLM

I've been away from my computer, but staying on track with my new primal living...

I have decided that the BEST thing about living primally is not having to weigh, measure, chart, track or count ANYTHING!!!

I've been on diets for decades of my life and I was beyond tired of the endless weighing, counting, tracking...etc...etc...etc...

This way of eating is a JOY.

My biggest challenge right now: I need to fit exercise into my life again.

Exercise has been closely aligned with "dieting" all my life. I would start some insane diet along with over exercising...this would be my religion for as long as it lasted...then I'd crash...binge, stop exercising...and regain the weight. A frustrating cycle, to say the least.

I need to integrate exercise back into my life and love it...do it because it feels good and is good for me...and have FUN! I understand that this is the primal way, but I'm having a hard time finding MY way.

I enjoy walking and swimming...but city walks (I live in Philadelphia) are a far cry from hiking on a wooded trail or walking on a beautiful beach...and going to the gym to swim...well...I love the swimming, but fighting traffic to get there and the sheer amount of time involved before and after is prohibitive.

I'm absolutely convinced that I need to get myself moving again...and I will...but I just needed to kevetch for a minute, I guess!

Other than that, I've been enjoying this new way of eating and finding that it wasn't nearly as difficult to make the change (after over 20 years of being a vegetarian) as I thought it would be...

Hope to be a "success story" one day!

dlm

Hello!

11 days primal :)

I am missing fruit...yes, I know it's primal, but I really want to see some serious (and hopefully rapid) weight loss, so I am not eating fruit right now. Sigh.

OK. Exercise. I just gotta do it. That's it.

dlm

[B]5 weeks primal and BACK PAIN IS REDUCED BY 50%!!!!!![/B]

No kidding! I am very excited about this. It gives me hope that I might be pain free by January 1st (90 days primal).

I have experienced [B]NO DIGESTIVE TROUBLE[/B] even though I haven't eaten meat in over 20 years.

I have had some random carb cravings, but nothing too awful...yet! I sometimes crave a sweet taste or something waaaaaaaaaaaaay off limits, but my desire for healing and weight loss has been been bigger than the cravings...so far!

I am, as a friend of mine says, "cautiously optimistic."

I lost three pounds the first three days...and the scale hasn't moved since :( I'm trying not to feel discouraged and trust that my body is adjusting to new fuel (as Mark says) and that the weight will eventually begin to peel off.

[I]Today's food:

B: 2 (cold) baked chicken thighs. (I have discovered I really like cold chicken!)

L: Mushrooms and 3 eggs scrambled in chicken fat.

D: Turkey chili...using the Bison chili recipe from PBP Cookbook...plus extra veggies (celery, green pepper) and cumin.
[/I]
Tomorrow I will begin to integrate a more consistent (daily...?!) execrcise plan.

dlm