The Primal Freak-out? page

[the_walrus0]

Hi everyone! I have been primal for about 2 days and I'm having what I'm calling 'the primal freak-out'.

I'm genuinely enjoying the new lifestyle. I'm following it as best I can, but I'm starting to feel like I don't know what to eat! I'm having plenty of meat, I think, and lots of fats. I'm thinking I might have a dairy intolerance so I am going to cut out any dairy that isn't fermented, and I'm going to replace butter with ghee. So far so good, but I really hope I can salvage my greek yogurt. It's truly delicious. I feel I'd miss it more than sugar! (There's no sugar in it, btw, haha.)

Beyond that my food bill for these first two weeks primal is double what I normally spend. I know I have to prioritize but I'm a college student, in Alaska, with little time on my hands. Organic, grass-fed, pasture raised...these terms not only equal health but equal EXPENSIVE. I am currently trying to find a part-time job so I can do more school and hopefully sleep more and play more, with some exercise in there. That should help my overall health, but it will mean less money. I am going to try to make sure I have enough money to stay completely primal, but I'd just like to ask everyone if you've had a 'primal freak-out' regarding any aspect of going primal at first, and how did you work through it?

And it could be any kind of 'primal freak-out'. Were you having trouble sleeping enough? Were your stress levels through the roof? Were you eating too much of one food group? Did you have trouble budgeting?

I like hearing people's transitions and advice on finding what's best for them(even if it won't necessarily be best for me).

[Louisa655]

Hi everyone! I have been primal for about 2 days and I'm having what I'm calling 'the primal freak-out'.

I'm genuinely enjoying the new lifestyle. I'm following it as best I can, but I'm starting to feel like I don't know what to eat! I'm having plenty of meat, I think, and lots of fats. I'm thinking I might have a dairy intolerance so I am going to cut out any dairy that isn't fermented, and I'm going to replace butter with ghee. So far so good, but I really hope I can salvage my greek yogurt. It's truly delicious. I feel I'd miss it more than sugar! (There's no sugar in it, btw, haha.)

Beyond that my food bill for these first two weeks primal is double what I normally spend. I know I have to prioritize but I'm a college student, in Alaska, with little time on my hands. Organic, grass-fed, pasture raised...these terms not only equal health but equal EXPENSIVE. I am currently trying to find a part-time job so I can do more school and hopefully sleep more and play more, with some exercise in there. That should help my overall health, but it will mean less money. I am going to try to make sure I have enough money to stay completely primal, but I'd just like to ask everyone if you've had a 'primal freak-out' regarding any aspect of going primal at first, and how did you work through it?

And it could be any kind of 'primal freak-out'. Were you having trouble sleeping enough? Were your stress levels through the roof? Were you eating too much of one food group? Did you have trouble budgeting?

I like hearing people's transitions and advice on finding what's best for them(even if it won't necessarily be best for me).

Yes, I totally hear you. I think I experienced that 'freak out' in the beginning. I cleaned out all my cupboards, and then it got close to lunch time, and I thought, "Oh my God --- what am I going to eat??????!!!!! Anyway, once you clean out the junk, and do a good basic shopping, you will be on your way. And the nice thing is that I only eat two meals a day now, so there's less time in the kitchen and less hunger and less worry over 'what to eat'. I have my 'go to' staples and I tend to eat a lot of the same foods week in and week out. I have never used a paleo diet book or recipe yet --- I just cook a nice piece of meat, add some veg and supplement with olives, eggs, avocado, bit of berries etc. Food is not the centre of my universe --- it nourishes my body but I'm not married to 'my next meal'. It works if you just try to relax and enjoy the journey. Cheers,
lu

[Zeera]

I definitely had a freak out over my food budget at first, being a college student myself. Luckily I happened to go primal in the summer, and I was able to take advantage of a huge surplus of veggies from my parents' garden, so at first it was pretty much just meat that I had to buy. After the free veggies ran out though, it definitely became tougher to buy food on the same budget I had operated on pre-primal. I decided to cut back in other areas of my budget so I could afford the best food. That means for me no cable or satellite television and no smart phones or data plans. I also take advantage of more free activities now, like going for a hike with friends versus going out to dinner.

[CiKi90]

Sounds like a win-win to me

[AntonioCal]

I have the same problem as a college student. Although I do work a lot and make decent money I spend a lot on food. But it really is just a matter of prioritizing. For me, being healthy and feeling better is absolutely worth the extra money I spend on groceries. Although I'm also taking advantage of the fact that I'm saving a ton of money on alcohol/going out on the weekends. After a few weeks into PB, assuming you cut out your alcohol consumption (and I'm just assuming you drink being in college), you'll notice a bit of extra cash there. Just try to remember that its all going to be worth it.

[MissJecka]

Find yourself a Costco, BJ's or Sam's Club and buy in bulk. My local Costco has a huge selection of organic/grass-fed/etc. meats that, when bought in bulk and frozen, are much more affordable than getting it in grocery stories or from a farmstand. It may not be ideal, but it's better than factory-farm stuff! The same goes for tubers, fish (I get bulk frozen shrimp a lot!), produce, nuts, canned goods (tuna, chicken, salmon), broth and stock, poultry, herbs and spices... pretty much everything!

[the_walrus0]

Find yourself a Costco, BJ's or Sam's Club and buy in bulk. My local Costco has a huge selection of organic/grass-fed/etc. meats that, when bought in bulk and frozen, are much more affordable than getting it in grocery stories or from a farmstand. It may not be ideal, but it's better than factory-farm stuff! The same goes for tubers, fish (I get bulk frozen shrimp a lot!), produce, nuts, canned goods (tuna, chicken, salmon), broth and stock, poultry, herbs and spices... pretty much everything!

I'm a lost puppy in Costco.

The only things I can find are nuts, coffee and organic frozen berries. And I couldn't seem to find organic nuts.

I also tend to have panic attacks. I mean, I went at 10 am on a Friday, hoping it would be less insane and there were tons of people with their families just hauling ass around the store and I'm standing there trying to scrutinize the meat packaging! Beyond that I couldn't find ANY organic frozen veggies, which is what I wanted. I have a hard time affording organic vegetables. I ended leaving with a bag of organic coffee, made here in Alaska, and a bag of organic frozen berries.

I checked out the meat but didn't see any sign of anything labeled grass-fed or organic. I ended up at the wholefoods store. Yeah, I payed a butt-ton for my organic grass-fed pasture raised 4lb london broil, but I felt way better about that purchase than I would have about the questionable meat at the Costco. Also, I used it to make my first roast and it's divine! Also, it's fed me now for 3 days and I think it's going to last two more so, lunches and dinners for five days for $40 doesn't seem too terrible considering it's high-quality beef.

I plan to eat chicken the rest of the week, which is considerably cheaper and my local grocery store has a section in the meat department where it's only organic chicken, so I feel alright about buying that.

I'm really having fun getting to know meat. Before now I never bought raw meat. I just bought frozen pre-cooked crap, usually breaded. Gross.

[MissJecka]

I'm a lost puppy in Costco.

The only things I can find are nuts, coffee and organic frozen berries. And I couldn't seem to find organic nuts.

I also tend to have panic attacks. I mean, I went at 10 am on a Friday, hoping it would be less insane and there were tons of people with their families just hauling ass around the store and I'm standing there trying to scrutinize the meat packaging! Beyond that I couldn't find ANY organic frozen veggies, which is what I wanted. I have a hard time affording organic vegetables. I ended leaving with a bag of organic coffee, made here in Alaska, and a bag of organic frozen berries.

I checked out the meat but didn't see any sign of anything labeled grass-fed or organic. I ended up at the wholefoods store. Yeah, I payed a butt-ton for my organic grass-fed pasture raised 4lb london broil, but I felt way better about that purchase than I would have about the questionable meat at the Costco. Also, I used it to make my first roast and it's divine! Also, it's fed me now for 3 days and I think it's going to last two more so, lunches and dinners for five days for $40 doesn't seem too terrible considering it's high-quality beef.

I plan to eat chicken the rest of the week, which is considerably cheaper and my local grocery store has a section in the meat department where it's only organic chicken, so I feel alright about buying that.

I'm really having fun getting to know meat. Before now I never bought raw meat. I just bought frozen pre-cooked crap, usually breaded. Gross.

That's odd. I buy all of my poultry from Costco and it's fairly easy to find. There are also lots of uncured sausages and bacon that I get from Costco as well. Hmm. Whatever works for you, I guess!

[the_walrus0]

I think I'm just a wuss in large crowds.

[jamewoedwa]

me too,There are also lots of uncured sausages and bacon that I get from Costco as well ,thank you