Benefits

When I started with eating paleo/primal my main goal for doing so was weight loss. After all, isn't that why most of us change our eating habits? Most of us do something different to lose that weight that creeps on you like a cat on your bed at night. Silent, but heavy and unwilling to get off you. I knew I had to change what I was doing because I was never heavier and more miserable in my life. So I stumbled upon paleo/primal and found myself reaping the other benefits I wasn't aware of.
These are the benefits I have experienced so far.

1. Energy
2. Better sleep
3. Clear headedness
4. Clear skin
5. Satiety
6. Very little hunger
7. Loss of puffiness/bloating

These were definitely a welcome surprise that I wasn't expecting so soon. With my narrow-minded focus I only saw losing weight as why I wanted to change, but honestly, all of the rest became just as important to me.
About a year ago and a half ago I started experiencing pain in my upper back and what felt like heaviness in my chest as if someone was sitting on me. My brain quickly went to heart attack. I was panicky and took myself to the ER. I was diagnosed with panic attacks and anxiety. Uh, fun. I felt lucky that I didn't have a heart attack, but I knew that I wasn't too far away from experiencing one if I stayed fat. It was only a matter of time.
So with all of these benefits I began thinking. I sure as hell want to be thinner and live longer, but is living longer any good if your quality of life isn't great? I read something that said, "Add life to your years, not just years to your life."  That made total sense to me. What good is it to live til your 80s and 90s if you have chronic degenerative diseases, and no energy to do anything? Julia Child and her husband lived to be in their 90s. Now they were by no means paleo/primal, but they did literally suck the marrow out of life. And animal bones. They weren't afraid to eat saturated animal fats, butter, cream, cheese and meat. They had the good fortune to live in a country that appreciated good,whole foods and not the crap that our own country shills out. They ate well and  got some exercise and took joy in life and friends and family. Putting it simply, they LIVED. And paleo/primal or not that is the key of doing anything worthwhile, LIVING WELL. I want to live well. Since eating paleo/primal I have been living better. Weight loss is now my side effect to living well. It has made all the difference.

Down 24.5 lbs!

I lost 6.5 more lbs! Or 2.95 kilos! YES!!! That makes my total lost to date: 24.5 lbs or 11.14 kilos.
This is after 7 weeks of eating paleo/primal. An average of 3.5 lbs(1.59kilos) a week. I much prefer pounds. :-)

What I found absolutely amazing about all of this is that I am HARDLY EVER HUNGRY. For realz yo. That is something I never experienced on any other diet or way of eating. I don't even look at it as a diet anymore, but simply more of a lifestyle way of eating. I honestly don't like how I feel if I eat breads, grains, and sugars. They were killing me in more ways than one. I have not felt one ounce of deprivation and can easily pass up sugary snacks and everything else that comes my way. Color me happy!

This weight loss comes after a couple of weeks where I wasn't seeing the scale budge despite sticking to the diet.( I think it was stress) I just started a new job and I was wondering how everything would work out with preparing food for work, stress of a high volume call center, feeling self-concious about eating all this nommy food in front of unbelievers, and simply wondering if I could stick to it. Surprisingly, I had no troubles. I made some great food and stuck to it.

Here's a sample of my weekly menu:

Monday
Breakfast
Coffee with 5 tblspns of pure cream
water w/ vitamins (magnesium, D, Multi, Cod Liver Oil)

Lunch
Ground Beef(mince) casserole( sour cream, cheese, zucchini, tomatoes) (Le Yummy!)
Water
Dinner
Ground Beef casserole again-it was that good.
iced tea( green tea w/ mango flavoring)

Tuesday
Breakfast
Coffee w/5 tblspns cream
Water w/Vitamins
2 pieces of bacon

Lunch
Egg salad with bacon and avocado wrapped in lettuce leaves.
iced tea

Dinner
Steak fried in bacon fat
Broccoli
Iced Tea

Wednesday
Breakfast
Coffee w 5 tblspns cream
Water w/ vitamins

Lunch
Egg salad with bacon and avocado in lettuce leaves
Water
Dinner
Chicken in cream sauce
Zucchini
Whipped cream with blueberries and vanilla(ZOMG!)

Thursday
Breakfast
3 pieces of bacon
2 eggs
water w/ vitamins

Lunch
Chicken and steak pieces with sour cream
Sugar Free lemonade( I know it's not paleo/primal, but it hit the spot)

Snack
Cheese stick
coffee with a bit of whole milk( long day of training)
Dinner
a few bites of chicken. (wasn't very hungry)
water

Friday
Breakfast
Coffee with 5 tblspns of cream
Water w/ vitamins

Lunch
Chicken with sour cream
Water

Dinner
T-Bone steak with a mushroom cream sauce( To die for)
Broccoli
S.F. Lemonade

I know a nutritionist trained in the food pyramid would throw a hissy fit and start head rolling if they saw this menu. But you know what they can't argue? The way I feel. How can extra energy, better sleep, clearer skin, weight loss, and a clearer head be a bad thing?? These are the best benefits! I wasn't getting ANY of that on a conventional diet. None. It's all been a big, fat lie. I know better now.