Gateway Foods: The Slippery Slope of “Just a Bite”
The holidays are coming and with them the food. Maybe with Halloween come and gone, the season is already upon you in your social/work/family circles. Beyond the actual meals themselves, there are the umpteen parties, open houses, potlucks, lunches, brunches, happy hours, coffee hours, bake sales, soup suppers, and bazaars – as well as the continual conveyer belt of office/shop/home display of every sweet and savory (mostly sweet) treat known to humankind. As fun as it all is, the holidays can be a seasonal equivalent of the Bermuda Triangle – a festively decorated abyss where good intentions get swallowed along with the latest Martha Stewart recipe.
We Primal types bring both common sense and the reasonable 80/20 Principle to the holiday season (as any other occasion). We partake moderately and selectively. We use ingenuity and well cultivated Primal taste to create (or adapt) our own choice holiday delicacies. In short, we have no problem enjoying the party. We’re just rarely the ones with the proverbial lampshade on our heads at the end of the buffet table, so to speak. We can enjoy our favorite dishes without chucking every goal and standard we have for our health. Nonetheless, even those of us with the most stalwart wills and number of years under our Primal belts wisely steer clear of a few foods out of sheer sensibility.
Most of us have at least one. I’m talking about those foods you know in your heart of hearts (and maybe hard experience) can send you down a slippery slope. Maybe it’s the taste, the plain sugar rush, or the emotional association. Whatever the source of temptation, it’s a Pandora’s Box better left undisturbed.
I’ve been Primal so long that I don’t get conventional cravings much. Even when I indulge and have a few bites of really good pie or bread once in a while, I’m no worse for the wear. When I’m done with the piece, I’m done. That was delicious. Case closed. Some foods, however, are more problematic. For me, it’s Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia ice cream. (Yes, there it is.) Ice cream was a relic of my extreme training days, and there’s just something about Cherry Garcia. A little too easily turns into a lot. I find it’s just better to stay away.
Is your mind wandering to any particular foods now? It seems the holidays are a common time for their appearance – or maybe omnipresence. They’re the foods that once tasted, beckon you to keep coming back. (You can just hear that apple strudel calling you….) More than just good, more than just run of the mill tempting, they’re downright precipitous.
True gateway foods can wreak havoc with more than just your intended portion size, however. Suddenly, other things start looking good that you’ve had no taste for in a long time. This particular surrender to temptation can become a catalyst for a broader descent like a gateway drug leading you to something bigger and badder. You’re one brownie away from inhaling half the dessert buffet. (Or half those leftover Halloween candies taking up space in the cupboard still?)
Histrionics aside, these are foods I suggest leaving out of the 80/20 picture because they’re just too complicated to be worth it. As much sentimental value as they might have or as good as they might be, if they can’t be a moderate end in themselves, it’s just better to bench ‘em.
All this said, it’s illuminating to see how much power we often assign to food. It’s an inanimate object. It’s one among a bazillion choices we have for things to eat. Yet, we can feel certain foods have a hold on us. We consider them a nemesis, their presence on this earth a continual threat to our well-being like some kind of personal kryptonite. It’s a power relationship, of course, entirely constructed in our heads. By all means, avoid a specific food if it imposes more complication than it’s worth. If it’s a presence in itself even when you don’t eat it, that one likely calls for some deeper examination.
With the holidays coming, I always suggest folks think about how they’re going to enjoy it Primally – especially if this is your first holiday season since going Primal. Think about each event and how you’ll handle it – what you’ll eat and what you won’t. Being honest about any gateway – or otherwise thorny – food items is a big part of this. It’s usually easier to control our environments at less social times of the year. What will it mean to stay Primal within a fully conscious 80/20 framework this holiday season – in the midst, for example, of a big family Thanksgiving dinner and the other upcoming celebrations? Sometimes the best strategy is knowing where, when and how you’ll graciously say “no thanks.”
Now I’ll turn it over to you. Do you have a “gateway” food that you steer clear of for the greater good of your Primal self? Share you tips and stories, and thanks for reading today.
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Posted By: Mark Sisson
So well put Mark… Also I hear you on the Ben and Jerry’s thing.
Good ice cream is the only craving I still get. The good news is I can have a nice “bowl” two or three times a year and be done and get right back on the waggon as soon as I lick my spoon.
Cheers
Ice cream is dangerous stuff. You can make your own *somewhat* primal ice-cream if you substitute a bit of stevia or xylitol for sugar. Alyson and I made some coconut ice cream a few weeks ago and it was amazing.
When it’s made with real whipping cream, it’s tough to eat more than a few bites…
Hi I feel so great without grains legumes sugar and I don’t crave them since I have eliminated them for 1yr this month . So not one bite for me thanks. I have also lost 13 lbs so why cheat. And I am not even hungry. So much is legal during the holidays anyway like cranberry sweet potato butter meat veggies. So with all this what is the point of falling off the wagon when it is easy for me to stay on it?
I’ve been basically “primal”, as far as I can tell from the loose definitions here, since Barry Sears “The Zone” originally came out [10 years ago?]. After that I remember the Eades book and others, so the “primal solution” etc. is nothing new to me personally.
My solution to the “ice cream problem” [my weakness is Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Fudge Brownie or similar], has always been to eat a whole can of tuna, preferably with olive oil, or sardines, before consuming the ice cream. Seems to work just fine. Regards, onebornfree
These foods you direct your post to are “gateway” but I prefer “trigger foods” since it is like pulling the trigger to a gun. For me it’s donuts. I can’t eat just one. Stick a donut gun to my head and I’m dead meat.
I’m the same way. Before going primal I would eat a donut for breakfeast every day on the way to work. I’ve had to change the route to work just to avoid the thought of those tasty sugar bombs.
I prefer ‘trigger foods’ too because of the cascade of crumbling boundaries that is set off by pulling it.
I have my fair share of foods that once I take a bite or 2 of it… well… may not turn out so good but I’ve never been a huge fan of donuts or bagels. Not sure what it is especially since I worked at a bagel and coffee shop for 3 years pre primal!
As an assistant manager for a year, I could enjoy all the food I wanted without any risk of being in “trouble” by doing so.
Bagels all around me but I never indulged. I just never ate them or donuts.
But, those dark chocolate chips (60% cacao) that my dear mother buys at Costco… watch out!! She places them in a candy dish and so they are sitting out on the counter… ah… headed to Chicago in just a few hours!
Chocolate, yesss! Wayy too addicting, and way too easy to keep putting handful after handful of delicious chips into my mouth!! I find that eating chocolate opens up the floodgates for other cravings too, so I steer clear. I have to mix it with other things (like almond butter) for it to not become an issue. I prefer 70% cocoa though
Jeff: I use the word “trigger” too. Scroll down to see my comment.
Susan
I’m like a chips and salsa fiend. Literally cannot stop eating them until they get taken away from in front of me. I can’t really go to Mexican restaurants w/ big groups anymore b/c that means longer wait for entre = way too much chips and salsa
Chips for me, too. Tortilla chips though, not potato. I’m in trouble at the restaurants, too. It’s the corn, I guess, cause I use to consume entire bags of Fritos.
I made that mistake last week, had a margherita with salt which caused a big chips and salsa cascade. Felt like crud for days.
Here’s a solution, as Mexican restaurants tend to have it: Ask for Jicama sticks. Dip those in Salsa or Guac.
I seriously think it’s the incomplete protein. I’ve never overeaten corn+peas (complete protein, also: bland). I really just want the guacamole or the salsa, but yeah, if there are no refried beans I will eat corn chips until I have acid reflux. And that is crazy. I think it’s those amino acids… feel hungry yet never satisfied.
I noticed B&J’s ice cream in a teeny tiny container the other day which is a good thing because my only portion size happens to be the whole container. As for the other stuff, I hold out for homemade which limits the opportunities right there.
Man, Cherry Garcia was like crack. I used to finish off a pint at a time a few times a week back in the college days.
A pint is child’s play…I have spoons
that hold a pint…we’re talking a gallon in one sitting…
I used to do a gallon of Blue Bell Moolinium Crunch. A gallon a day or more. At one sitting. It got so bad I would throw-up (not my choice, but my bodys reaction) after eating so much at one time.
Now I do a pint of B&J Peanut Brittle, one of the few flavors that do not have wheat in it. I usually share with my dog, so I need one that doesn’t have chocolate.
Ditto here. Cherry Garcia pint-at-a-time was one of my mainstays in college. All the more dangerous because the damage wasn’t showing in my early 20′s. Another hit was the Haagen Daaz Coffee flavor.
My gateway item is Coca Cola.
I still crave coke with certain meals, especially when being lazy and eating out once a month. I used to gulp down a 8 pack of coke cans in a day sometimes.
Now if it wouldn’t stain my teeth like mad, and knowing the HFCS kills my pancreas, I’d still make an excuse once in awhile to have a coke, but I know it would lead to a binge…and more coke the following day so I steer clear of it.
My grassfed beef supplier is also a baker and makes THE best breads I’ve ever tasted, being the bread hater that I am that means a lot. I do at times try a piece of his new breads, even though he knows I’m a carnivorous primal being.
I just don’t want to be that freak that has an ‘eating disorder’ in their opinion, like many of the vegans *cough*.
The only thing I use Coca Cola for(someone’s leftover)is to clean the toilet at the office where I am the cleaning lady.
Maybe that visual will keep you away from the stuff.
But that toilet cleaner tastes so good! Seriously, I could probably give up all the others, but the occasional Coke is hard to pass up.
Have you tried Fritz-Kola? I don’t know if you can get it in the US, but it’s an organic cola with a sugar-free variety (and lots of caffeine). It’s my cheat item when I’m craving coke every now and then, and it doesn’t seem to be nearly as bad as the normal stuff.
You can use coke to clean a toilet? Tell me more!
You can use cola to clean a lot of things – it’s mostly acid.
As a teenager, I worked at McDonald’s. We used coke and ice cubes to clean the bottom of the coffee pots. Gets them sparkling clean.
to that coke and ice cubes thing, soda water works just as well as coke so im guessing its just the bubbles that helps clean.
Sugar is on my cheat list.
Too much lately and I don’t like it! Amazing how easy it is to fall on the bad side. Carbs are addicting!
I’m all cracked up on sugar right now, and it has to stop. It’s a tough one.
Argh… same here, not primal at ALL right now. Wife and I tried to do the 21 day challenge, but decided to put it off until January.
I’m thinking of going back to semi-Primal, though, because I feel like crap, am gaining weight fast, and my stomach frequently hurts.
Gateways for me? Key lime pie.. can’t resist it. Baklava – greek dessert made with phyllo dough. Hot dogs – on a bun. Probably many others.
Don’t put it off! Just challenge to transition to primal gradually and be 100% by January.
The 21 day challenge came at a time when I had slipped so far from primal it was ridiculous. Even though I knew I wouldn’t go the whole hog in 21 days, I posted it on my wall at work and on the fridge and took baby steps that I could manage at this time. Starting with getting more sleep and cutting down on the coffee!
i was seriously addicted for years! but the christmas divinity still gets me every year. i eat it til i am sick and then not again til next year.
Sugar here too. All of a sudden it hit me when the weather started getting colder. I indulged it for a week or two foolishly thinking it was just a passing thing – now many weeks later it is still an issue that I am having trouble shaking off.
Me, too. I had 2.5 months primal, then started a little bread, then slid back into the sugar. It’s been 3 weeks and I’m struggling to start back on my primal journey.
Candy corn. Its a helluva drug. Ive been dodging brightly colored bullets of it all Halloween and I thought I was clear until coworkers brought in THREE BAGS of it after halloween. I almost cried.
Candy corn!!! Me too! I will literally make myself sick on the stuff, yet I keep going back. The street name for that stuff should be tri-colored heroin. A co-worker brought me a 2 lb bag, so I sent it with my husband to his workplace last week so I couldn’t get to it.
Yup. I OD on candy corn once a year. polish off the bag so I can be done with it. I feel so sick and disgusting afterward that it’s easy to go cold turkey til the next year. Same thing with good fruit-flavored pectin jelly beans – don’t waste my time with those 99 cent bags or ‘gourmet’ popcorn and butter flavors. Yuck – OD and done for the next 12 months.
Oh, I hear ya, there! The only candy I allowed myself this Halloween was a single candy corn. (I’m pretty much a 99/1 kinda guy, though.) There was a whole bowl at the party rental place, and eating just one was like a test for myself: I’m going to taste this, and that’s all.
Me three. Just ate about 20 of them at Mom’s house a little bit ago. Just keep going back and back (and back) to the bowl. Tri colored heroin it is! Ugh.
Amen and amen. Candy corn is tri-colored crack to me.
Candy corn is what pushed me from “pre-diabetic” to a BS level even the doctor raised his eyebrow at. It was this time of year, bowls of it in the office, and FAT FREE! I’ve learned a lot since then.
I thought I was a nut for liking candy corn, since I usually go for chocolate candy, and no one else I know admits to liking it..but it seems I am not alone! Fortunately, I am not exposed to it and I dont buy it. Phew….
Ice cream seems to be a common theme. Mine is Coldstone – I like just Sweet Cream with Butterfinger. And I’ve gotta have the “Gotta Have It.” I used to justify it, because I could walk there – it all balanced out, right?
Hahaha back when I was a distance runner, before I went paleo, I “justified” eating tons of deserts with the amount of exercise I got. Kinda sneaky isn’t it?
Who doesn’t?
Ha, when I was running marathons I would eat an entire pie after my long runs! Serious gutbomb.
I hear you!!! Cold Stone is TOTALLY my kryptonite! I also can’t have any kind of ice cream in the house otherwise I’ll have just that for dinner! Luckily, there isn’t a Cold Stone too easily accessible along my route from my Crossfit gym or work.
P.S. I DO treat myself to it once in a while after completing a half or a full marathon.
Coldstone, I could never have just one bite. Any other candy or sweet doesn’t stand a chance, but this almost magical mixture of cheesecake flavoured ice cream and Reese Peanut Butter Cups. A “Gotta Have It” at least.
I like the Sweet Cream with berries. One thing about ice cream though is when the weather gets cold I loose my desire for it, because I have to wrap myself up in a blanket when I eat it in winter. I also like eggnog flavor.
Good Argentine dulce de leche! Pure delicious sugar. A tub and a spoon, and I´m done
me toooo!!!!
I just take one day per week to eat as much crap as I want (ice cream and chocolate-covered peanut butter crispy bars). Eating crap until I feel a little sick helps me eat healthy for the next six days. What do you think, are there negative health implications to doing this?
Tuesdays.
I’m fine as long as I am aware that it can be hard to come back. And to and to ignore the cravings for the next day or so.
Oh, and I have also discovered I don’t really enjoy it when I eat it. This makes me want the junk less and less, causing the feasting to become more moderate.
I still avoid wheat foods though as the consequences for those can last a couple of days.
+1
I started out taking a day off per week to eat whatever I wanted, and found that after about 2-3 weeks I no longer wanted to.
The more sensible 80/20 approach, rather than a structured day a week (or however often) “cheat day,” is more sustainable and pleasant for me.
Once a week is pretty frequent, IMO. Depending on how sensitive you are to the bad foods you are eating, it may take you a few days to recover from the binge, which means you are really only benefiting (feeling completely healthy & body is functioning at its prime) for a few days a week.
Are you talking Tim Ferriss style? I just can’t imagine doing this all day long every week. Is it really fun?
I followed Ferris’s 4 hour body plan prior to becoming primal. The cheat day ended up turning into a cheat weekend. Bad news. For me, at any rate.
yeah, i first learned about this strategy in 4-hour body. it was absolutely fun in the beginning and really helped me transition to a healthier way of eating. but like others have said, my cravings are becoming less and less as my body starts to realize the value of healthy food.
I read about dozens of people following this same path. So, in the end, we must all thank Tim Ferriss for the knowledge he puts out there. I’m a big fan of the guy at least.
yes…eating like crap until you are sick once a week has plenty of negative health implications. And your genes will never reprogram if you confuse them like that once a week. Have a treat once and a while, but the cheat day is yet another CW excuse.
Ooh, I actually find that a cheat day makes it a thousand times harder for me to control my eating on the next days. Once the barrier has been broken in such a big way, I’m done for. They always turn into a cheat week!
My thoughts exactly. If I have a cheat day on Saturday, Sunday and Monday are pretty much a wash too.
I have a hard time recovering from a binge like that. I try to stick to a one cheat meal a week instead of a whole day. I still try to stay as primal friendly as possible and at least keep my indulgence gluten free. So I might get a baked potato with my steak instead of salad and flourless chocolate cake for dessert. The less non-PB I eat the less I crave non-PB foods.
I’m new to the whole Primal thing, and have a hard time sticking to it completely. (especially with a boyfriend in the house that is not following it at all). So, for now, I have one day a week where I can eat whatever. This week is girl’s night out at a local brewery’s restaurant. I’m finding that some things make me feel awful now (ex: macaroni and cheese – my all time favorite comfort food). And I’ve lost my taste for some things. So, for this week’s meal, I’ll have a few beers (after all, we’re eating at a brewery), a sensible dinner, and share dessert with a friend. So I’m cheating, but it’s not awful. Then, when I wake up Saturday morning, I’ll have my bacon and eggs for breakfast and be back on track.
This is where Tim Ferris diet makes sense. Although I’m not a big indulger and can take or leave most sweet things, sometimes if I am hormonal I can eat a whole 6 pack of cheese and onion square crisps!
Cherry Garcia should be a controlled substance. Guilty. Aso, french bread and baked potatoes, dripping with butter.
I take one meal a week off the blueprint, but on vacation I just give up. And I don’t know either, how damaging this might be.
That used to be my approach, too. Until I read that I was not giving my body enough time to convert from burning sugar to fat/protein & was keeping myself in craving mode. I charted my craving curve – peeked every Wednesday. I usually managed to stay strong until Friday night or Saturday. I stayed off sugar/gluten for about 6 weeks & now can indulge every so often & can let it go easily/no cravings afterwards. I do spike my morning cuppa with whipped cream every day. That does take the edge off!
Haha! Exactly what I do (though less frequently). If I eat a little, I will continue to eat a little more, and a little more, and… However, if I very occasionally gorge myself until the mere thought of sugary crap, makes me feel…. well, like crap, then I am good for a long while!
I’m a T2 diabetic and test my bg when I “cheat”. IME, it takes 2-3 days to get back to normal after a cheat day. That basically means that cheating once a week has me “off” half of the time.
So for me, it’s a monthly cheat instead of weekly. I usually pick a holiday, or if I’ll be eating elsewhere a particular day, I choose that day.
IMO, cheating is very important – a lot easier than thinking you can never have X again. Postponing is easier than forbidding.
Oh man, good apple pie does it for me every time!
Warm apple pie with ice cream! The best. Agreed completely.
Yes, several I’ve discovered and I’m pretty sure it’s all to do with the insulin response and the dopamine pleasure pathways.
If I allow myself a creme brulee there’s a good chance I’ll be prowling for more sugar within the hour.
Alcohol – as much as I adored a good red, half a glass fine, but almost impossible to stop at a half and before you know it 2 – 3 glasses later, and it meddles with my sleep and my appetite … so gave up completely in June, much easier.
I do have to stay very low carb for mental wellbeing, well below 100 g daily which in turn probably makes me more sensitive to carbohydrate intake.
Had huge problems the day after a several ‘haribo’ moments on an epic day of cycling which culminated in the ascent of the Tourmalet with the temperatures in the early 30s.
However, the cure I find is a good IF.
Same here. A piece of occasional cheesecake has me eying other super-dense, hyper-caloric sweets soon thereafter, but no matter the damage, a solid 20-24 fast the next day seems to reset my primal cravings back to the damn-those-sardines-in-water-look-amazing setting.
I just did this today. Cheesecake led to tiffin, led to tartlet. Then I got fries on the way home. . .I always have this delusion sugar’s going to help me focus my mind better on what I’m working on. Actually, it’s a distraction and scatters my mind. Does anyone else trick themselves that way, or is it just a weird thing I do?
My gateway was birthday/wedding style cake from a bakery (actually, the frosting.) I had a large piece at my great-nieces birthday party several months ago and today — not so gateway? I get a bit nauseous instead. Now, about those wedding mints…
Also guys — try making your own ice cream! Ice cream base is just a rich custard — use half and half or full cream and egg yolks and some great tahitian vanilla extract and some stevia (maybe a bit of honey) for sweetening. Voila! You can even add some dark chocolate bits and dark pie cherries. Decadent.
Diane, do you have a recipe for the homemade ice cream? It does sound decadent. Thanks!
When the snow comes down (not often here) the Hot Buttered Rum comes out. The recipe I have calls for ice cream melted with butter and brown sugar add that to hot water and rum, mmmmm. That will be hard this year!
Can you fake that with some full-fat coconut milk, vanilla extract and some coconut sugar (it works like brown sugar for me)? I live in a place that rarely gets cold weather too, and I LOVE eating/drinking things that weather keeps me from enjoying for most of the year.
PIZZA – I used to eat whole large pizzas to myself and love them. I can’t just have a few bites or even a slice. Keep them away from me!
That’s mine, too, and I was going to type it in all caps as well.
I can’t eat just one piece, and if I do indulge, I want it again the next day and the next day and the next day…
Yep!! Pizza is the only thing that I really miss from the old days. I can correction, could finish a whole pie by myself. Just thinking about that now, makes my joints hurt and stomach feel like there’s a rock in there.
Yeah, I hear you on the pizza! A good burger can do me in, too.
But, those two aren’t really gateway foods. For me, anything with peanut butter and chocolate makes me question my Paleo morals. Keep those Reeses away from me!
I would have to say GOOD pizza is my downfall, I’ll eat at least half a pizza with my hub… but we’ve been going to the place I crave it from less often (and all they have is thin crust!) so when we do go have it, it’s more a of treat and I eat some wings before the pizza comes out to help me eat less of it
Oh my gosh, I just relapsed the past two nights with pizza…and have been feeling horrible since! I love it so much I would cuddle it and take it to bed if I could. I need to eat some cold turkey instead.
There it is… PIZZA!
My favorite?
Donato’s.
No other pizza joint is comparable. It’s no longer here in GR and I’ve never seen it elsewhere. Not sure why… everyone else I talked to said they loved it. If it was here I would still eat it… so damn amazing. The rest is literally shit compared to Donato’s!
I LOVE Donatos pizza. Unfortunately since I have Celiac disease I can’t eat it any longer.
Ever since I’ve started making the eggplant/almond crust pizza from food lover’s primal palate, I haven’t missed grainy pizza one bit—the eggplant crust is *FAR* superior. Made one last night!
Nah, my pizza stuffed zucchini recipe very effectively kills all pizza craving around here. Why? Because it’s better than any pizza we’ve ever had. My big thing is tacos. I love, love, love them and a taco salad sans the crunchy shell just doesn’t get it for me. We have one major cheat day a week and use it for Mexican food, though more often than not we indulge in chips and salsa and margaritas and then follow that with a big ass salad we’ve taught the restaurant to make for us.
I made one on Monday as well…wasn’t sure how it would be leftover but…I ate it right out of the fridge off the foil it was wrapped in…reminded me of college days, cold pizza for breakfast…AWESOME! I LOVE that eggplant crust!
look up a meatza recipe
Mark, you said you’ve been Primal for so long you don’t have issues with eating just a bite anymore? How long is a long time? I’ve been Primal for 6 years and I know there are foods I simply can’t touch. Now, I’d say I’ve been Primal long enough to have the discipline to stay away but there are many foods that if I were to eat a bit I’d be in trouble. Some of us are more susceptible to addictive behaviors. We’re the ones that need to avoid a bite at all costs. But it’s easy once you’ve learned what works for you.
My gateway is nuts.
They may be primal, but they have a weird effect on me. Even after eating a huge amount, I still feel hungry and want more.
I enjoy bacon, sausage, and eggs just as much, with the crucial difference that I feel satisfied after eating them.
So I’ve learned to avoid any food I can’t stop eating, and that an easy way to defeat cravings is to eat something satisfying.
I second the nuts. pepitas, almonds, and especially cashews! I think I could eat a pound of cashews in a sitting. Or more.
I hear you, Dave. That sweet-salty-fatty combination can take over your brain!
Shelled Pistacchios- no way can I eat one handful.
Yes! Pistachios! It’s tough to grab a handful and eat just that handful. If I’m only going to eat a handful then I’ll have to be inside the Hancock building in Chicago… I’ll have to take a handful at the bottom, take the elevator upstairs to the restaurant area and have someone shut down the elevator so I have to walk down 100 flights of stairs to get more.
Otherwise… I’ll chow for a while! I buy the ones that still have shells… its too easy to de shell them!
Nuts are my gateway too! I always find myself justifying eating more and more. I think it’s because it takes a feel hours for them to have the “satisfied” feeling for me.
+4 on the nuts issue! The weight gain starts when I give myself permission to eat them as snacks!
I have to jump on the band wagon here. I thought I was good with nuts…until last night. I was going to have just a few, ended up finishing the container.
On the other hand, I had an excellent chocolate mousse last week. By the time I finished it, I was well satisfied. I think it was the high fat level.
My wife brought home a huge thing of sugar coated almonds. Talk about heart issues.
Tasty though.
Chocolate covered almonds are like crack to me. Used to be peanut-butter M&Ms before I went primal, but now they sound disgusting.
yes… there are these cinnamon sugar almonds that make me go crazy… one of the few things I “just can’t stop eating!”
this is interesting – I have been noticing how ‘unsatisfied’ I feel after eating nuts, in spite of being high-protein and high-fat – they just don’t do it for me
For the first six months or so, I would get an ice cream every couple of weeks. For some reason, I’d get an ice cream craving. But I don’t get those any more. Every now and then I’ll split a piece of pie with my girlfriend. Every now and then I’ll eat one donut. But I never get follow-on cravings.
I used to be “the guy who would eat anything,” but i have gotten used to saying, “no thanks” these days and nobody it surprised or offended anymore.
That said, I still find it hard to visit my parents during the holidays. My mother is very supportive even though she thinks I am crazy. My Dad, on the other hand, thinks the primal blue print is great, but his wife does all the cooking and she is a carb-aholic….
I agree on the pizza!!!
). but I still cheated with a piece of cheese cake! (oh well, I’ve done worse)
Anything “desserty” is my biggest downfall…
Once a month I have to go to a board meeting & dinner is provided. I knew it wouldn’t be good for me to eat it, so I brought my own last month (good thing! lots of potatoes & beans
I think desserts will always be my nemesis. I will strive for stronger will-power, and try to limit my exposure even more…
Cheesecake is my favorite non-primal food. Once in a while, I indulge in Cheesecake Factory low carb cheesecake. It has lots of eggs and is very satisfying, and I can go quite a while without having it again.
Really good pizza. I once beat a guy at a pizza eating contest. Gotta stay away.
Tortilla chips. They can take me out quicker than anything, totally a comfort food so I avoid them like the plague. I just remind myself that “nothing tastes as good as being HEALTHY feels!”
And, oh man…Ben and Jerry’s Cherry Garcia definitely follows with a close second. Geez…with as many comments that includes this one makes you wonder what kind of drugs they are putting in there…channeling Jerry for sure!
Tortilla chips!! Me too. One of my favorite pre-primal snacks was chips and salsa. I’ve indulged a couple of times since changing the way I eat, and each time was ridiculous…suddenly more than half the bag would be gone in one sitting. I definitely have waaaayyy more of a salty tooth than a sweet tooth.
I don’t really have any urges to indulge in bready treats, however I know I’m going to make Santa some cookies this year. I will no doubt eat more than I should, so the batch will be REALLY small to avoid any possible binge. Perhaps I’ll make the reindeer bacon wrapped carrots to keep me away from the sweets!
Do tell about the bacon wrapped carrots.
Ahh, so yummy, and simple. Peel a medium carrot, wrap some raw bacon around it (depending on the sizes of carrot/pork you may need 2 slices per carrot). Stick ‘em in the oven on a rack until the bacon gets crispy, or to your desired doneness. My hubby dislikes crunchy carrots so I keep them in until they’re soft, bacon gets nice and crispy
Still thinking about this
and realized that I am no longer tempted by foods that make me feel bad.
Getting to the bottom of your stomach aches and other ills probably plays a big role in self control. If you already feel bad or you don’t know what makes you feel bad, it’s going to be a lot harder to stay away from bad foods.
This is so true, Peggy. If you’re used to eating junk food, you can bounce back from a binge. But when you lose your tolerance for it, cheating leads to lessons you don’t forget.
Even when I walk by Cinnabon, an old weakness, I’m not tempted. In my mind it is as though the dough had been mixed with ground glass and cocaine. Because I know that is how it feels after I eat it.
Much more dangerous to me are foods that cause no side effects, but aren’t very nutritious, because I’m tempted to eat them instead of more nourishing things.
That’s a great mental picture! My brother got me addicted to Cinnabons years ago (thanks for nothing). Haven’t had one in years, but still sometimes get those cravings. You’re right though; the suffering is just not worth it. Painful & addicting.
Yes, the bad feeling after (physical, mental and perhaps emotional) is what is keeping me on the straight and narrow too. And I think for a lot of us fuels what from the outside looks like huge will power. I actually think it’s just self preservation power!
The ‘haribo’ moments (to get me up the final mountain of the day on my bike) left me with blood sugar all over the place the following day and hints of the old depression and mania … I couldn’t fast it out as I was on a cycling tour so it took several days to sort through.
Having regained mental health sufficiently to now be able to see my life more objectively, and finding a happy way of being, isn’t worth risking the progress for those momentary seconds of ‘pleasure’ as that trigger food passes through your mouth, and then hits the blood stream.
Timothy, this is true! It’s the foods that doesn’t cause any side effects that we sneakily think we can get away with.
Interesting the way that Cinnabons feel like ground glass and cocaine to you now. I feel similarly about bread, especially wheat. Sugar I still crave, but bread is now SO unappealing I think of it more as sawdust than real food. I ate some bran muffin a few months back and had to spit it out. Sawdust.
Well said and I could not agree more! When I do binge today I am way more aware of what I just did. I can feel it because I have such a better relationship with food. I let it go and move on but the feeling and understanding of what I just did is HUGE in preventing me from doing it over and over again like the olden days.
Mark, I thing that would be a great phychological profiling question: What is your favorite Ben & Jerry’s ice cream flavor? You seem like a Cherry Garcia. But seriously, once you really cut grains and sugars, it’s hard to eat ice cream unless its real because so much of it is laden with xantham gum and corn syrup, and it just doesn’t taste that good. I feel, apart from my health and energy level improving using many of your primal principles, my sense of taste is much more keen. Do you have people saying this to you?
My sense of taste has become quite sensitive too…Also my sense of smell since going primal has hightened as well….anyone else experienced this?
I taste bad oils more easily. Can’t stand canola oil in things anymore and can usually tell when it’s present. yuck. I stick to my coconut oil, butter and occasional olive oil ; ). And bacon fat! Those taste good.
Candy corn, also known as the devil’s corn in my family, and those damned mellocreme pumpkins. I just can’t have them anywhere around me. Even typing these words is having a bad effect. I must go find some bacon!
I ate myself sick on those silly little pumpkins before Halloween- now they sound disgusting. But my real downfall is an ice cold 20 oz Mountain Dew, preferably purchased from my local 7eleven at midnight…..
If you ever decide to stop this whole primal thing, and get a job at Ben and Jerry’s; they give employess 2 or 3 pints a day.
Chips and dip — any kind of combination of salty crunchy fried chips with just about any kind of dairy-laden creamy dip. Very easy for me to polish off at least a half family sized bag of potato chips with a full big container of french onion dip. That always turns into “I need something sweet to counterbalance”. Then it’s all downhill from there.
Now that I found out I’m dairy intolerant, I can have a few chips off of my hubby’s plate when I’m out, and I can be fine.
OMG yes! I used to absolutely destroy a whole bag of ruffles with a giant tub of french onion dip. It made me feel sick then, I can’t imagine what it would do to me now.
RUFFLES and french onion or ranch dip. Definitely my favorite! I feel your pain
The salty sweet thing is my gateway… Chips with chocolate together, ie: handful of chips and a brownie, shoving it into my pie hole! Ugh! Tastes so good, although I do feel terrible afterwards. It’s been months since I’ve done it, and after reading this post, probably will stay away for good!
I love the salty/sweet combo, too! Fortunately these days I feel satisfied with some salted almonds and sweet, dried cranberries instead of Wendy’s frosty and french fries!
I totally agree with this… Last week I had this really brilliant idea to stuff dates with pecans, wrap them in bacon and them dipping then in a bourbon, cream cheese, and cream dip. It was heavenly… Not to far from the Primal way… until I literally ate 40 of them. It was over 600 carbs in less than 24 hours. I had had no sugar for about 5 months beforehand. I made myself sick. I have been fighting craving ever since. I think it would be wise for me to just say no.
Cut up some leeks, mix them up in some sea salt, pepper, and a little bit of coconut oil and then fry them in the oven for 20-25 minutes.
DELICIOUS, crunchy, salty, and fantastic.
WHen Im tempted this has replaced my desire for potato chips…and believe me I was obsessed with potato chips.
Drew thanks for the leeks tip. Question:
Do you fry the leeks in coconut oil before you bake them and at what temperature do you bake the leeks? Would love to bring these to the holiday dinners.
Oh, do tell more! This may really satisfy that chip/onion dip thing!
Peanut butter is a rough one for me. About 2 weeks ago I finished off a 16oz container in less than 24 hours.
Also… too much sugar without enough physical activity to downplay the effects will just make me crave more and more sugar.
Now though, I get stomach aches if I eat candy so I am able to resist without effort 90% of the time.
LOVE pumpkin pie though and it’s coming…very soon…
+1 peanut butter!
Haven’t had it in months but just recently got a craving, used to be one of my favorites. Nervous that I might go for the Skippy in the cabinet, I picked up a jar from a local health food store (thought I could justify the purchase by buying a peanut butter/flax seed blend to balance out the omega 3:6 ratio. I know, I know… anti-nutrients, aflatoxins, etc) Needless to say, its half gone. Considering just dumping the rest..
Try making your own pecan/cashew butter. Equal amounts, put into your food processor for 10 minutes. Creamy, heavenly, and primal. I’m the same way with PB, and this satisfies my craving. Next batch, think I’m gonna add in some cinnamen.
YUM!
Ice cream substitute:
1. Take some full fat, unsweetened yogurt.
2. Add stevia drops to taste. Leave plain or add some vanilla.
3. Put in the freezer until it starts to get really thick.
4. Eat. Slightly frozen and sweet.
I tried this last week – it was terrible! I can eat almost anything, but I’m sorry, it tastes NOTHING like ice cream or frozen yogurt, not even close!
I do frozen bananas buzzed up in the blender with a little milk and a sprinkling of dark chocolate chips over it…best thing I’ve found when I NEEEEEED ice cream.
That sounds fabulous! My husband is just starting to go primal and ice cream is his pitfall, so I will make sure he tries this! Me too! Thanks!
This is the best ice cream substitute I’ve found so far. Next batch, think I’m going to try adding some frozen strawberries. I usually do it in the food processor with only the bananas – gives it a thicker texture. Mmmmm, must make this soon!
Sounds like my “healthier banana split”
Split banana, add scoops of full fat Greek yogurt, top with shredded coconut, nuts, occasionally a few chopped dates or a drizzle of honey. Not completely primal but a heck of a lot better for you than the full sugar alternative.
I’ve been doing something similar: Plain Greek Yogurt, Protein Powder (mine is whey-based), Cocoa Powder, Stevia Drops, Vanilla…..mix it up until blended well, refrigerate, and it comes out almost like a mousse! …and the protein punch, between the yogurt and the powder is big!
we put kefir on frozen blueberries and raspberries, your body loves the kefir and it replaces the ice cream craving OR a smoothie with 1 c. kefir, 1/2 banana, 1/2 c. frozen raspberries = yum!