30 Day Paleo Challenge: Starting January 1

Hi everyone. There will be typos in this I'm sure because it's late and I'm trying to post as much as I can before church and being busy tomorrow sorry/not sorry :). This post will hopefully help you get started on your 30 day journey. First let me say that I recommend you do it for 30 days without cheating AT ALL and after that if you enjoy it you can incorporate your cheat must have items here and there. If you can do it for 30 days you can do it for life so don't cheat yourself by cheating. You want to know how your body responds so you can say that it really worked or didn't work or that you hate it or love it. The trick is finding what works for you without feeling like you are missing out on something or going overboard. Also make sure you get some physical activity in 3-5 days a week. I say cardio at least 30 minutes or more combined with some kind of strength training. That can be home workouts Zumba jogging walking whatever. DO SOMETHING! I have weave and a full time job and I still workout lol. Seriously though it is diet AND exercise. One or the other without the combination doesn't give you the best results. You will feel better if you move and do something. With that said here are my tips based on my experiences. Please feel free to venture out and find what you feel is helpful for you.


HELPFUL WEBSITES:

www.tinaturbin.com (She makes AMAZING paleo and gluten free foods and she is super sweet and awesome. You can also follow her on instagram. Her name there is paeloglutenfreerecipes)

nomnompaleo.com (She is also awesome. Some non paleo items in there but still helpful overall and very creative. She is also going to be posting recipes I think daily to help people who are starting this January 1. I just looked at her blog today and yep still delicious. The first few things I made and tried were from her website (egg muffins and spaghetti squash)

google.com (Seriously, if you are not sure if it's paleo... google it. If you have items in your pantry and not sure what to make, google it. If you have an idea of some foods you want to combine...google it...if... okay you get the point right :)) 
 

HELPFUL BOOKS:

I haven't bought any as yet but I have heard good things about these two books (Amazon). 

The Paleo Diet by Loren Cordein, Ph.D.
and
Everyday Paleo


HELPFUL APPS:

Instagram (I have gotten inspired just from typing #paleo and seeing what people posted that they were currently eating. You can always get inspired from a picture and some people are nice enough to share their recipes)

Myfitnesspal (I used this when I was calorie counting but when I started paleo I used it not so much to keep track of my calorie intake but the amount of sodium and protein I was consuming. with paleo you are generally lower in sodium since you are only technically allowed to use sea salt and you are not using a lot of processed foods that have a lot of sodium in them to keep them preserved. Not mandatory but its nice to see how what you are consuming is affecting your weight and energy etc.)

GET A FOOD PROCESSOR:
(not required) You can find a cheap one on Amazon and make yummy desserts and other dishes.

IF YOU HAVE A JUICER, JUICE:
(not required) I just got one and am in love. I try and juice at least once a day. Been doing that for a week and will be doing a 3 day cleanse to challenge myself for the new year.

STILL CONFUSED?:

It's okay. Just do your best and don't try and spend a bunch of money unless you feel like you need to. I shop at Fresh and Easy, Ralphs, and Food 4 Less. I get most of my veggies and fruit from food for less because its cheaper and I'll go to other places for specialty items. Do your best to get grass fed stuff but if you can't just focus on getting that for the red meats and focus on leaner cuts of meat like chicken or focus on the seafood. Always read the labels. If you get bacon get uncured bacon only. If there is a bunch of crap that you don't know. When you go shopping you will skip a lot of aisles. Get used to it. Have fun and check out different people's websites you find. There are a lot of creative people out there on the web. Also if you are interested in workouts my fitness/ paleo inspiration Christina is a certified trainer for Crossfit I can send you her information privately. I can't afford Crossfit but I get plenty of workouts in on my own :).

SCARED YOU CAN'T DO IT?:
Make a list of all the foods you love that you think you can't have. Check and see if they are paleo, if not think of something that you wouldn't substituting with. For example. Anyone that knows me knows that I am in LOOOOVE with french fries. But that's not paleo so when I crave fries I eat plantain chips or taro chips. Dip em en guacamole, salsa, eat it with tuna. Delicious. I love mac and cheese, no substitute for that but if I had a craving for that which was rare in my 30 days I just focused on the results I had so far and told myself it wasn't worth the setback. Are you in love with desserts? Well good news you can eat all the fruit you want in place of all those bad desserts you love. You can also eat some dark chocolate here and there. Or you can try almond butter with apple slices. Smoothies are great too. Try different options before you convince yourself that you need to cheat. You can also message people on here that are doing the challenge and keep each other accountable. If there is food you love and your wondering what you can replace it with ask me and we can think of something to replace it or something for you to do to forget it :).

Okay that's it for now. Goodnight/ good morning!