Before you can commit to something like the 30 day paleo challenge, you must first make sure you have enough of the right kinds of food available in your home. You can get a paleo meal in most restaurants, but for the most part you will be preparing your meals at home.
So here is a guide to help create your paleo shopping list. There are lots of shopping lists on the web that cater to paleo folks, but there are also a few simple things to remember that will make your paleo shopping a bit easier. Here's my list:
* Shop along the perimeter of the store. Most of the good stuff is in the produce and meat departments around the edges - the aisles in the middle are a maze of pre-packaged items you are better off avoiding.
* Try to avoid items that have more than 3 ingredients listed on the label. In fact, most of the really good stuff will have only ONE. Fresh meats and vegetables, for example. Those extra ingredients are usually something you don't want - like salt, sugar or soy.
* When choosing foods in the store, ask yourself whether your ancestors living 10,000 years ago would recognize your choices. Most meats, veggies, fruit and nuts would look like something they would have eaten. If it comes in a box and is rainbow-colored, put it back on the shelf.
* Pick a few staples that you know you like - your favorite lean meats, vegetables and fruits - but don't be afraid to try something new. I got my family to try different types of squash when they did the challenge last time - and they liked them. Another hugely popular discovery - almond butter!
Once you've gotten the hang of paleo eating, shopping for the right foods turns out to be pretty simple and natural. For those of you who don't know where to start, here's a list of paleo foods to get you going. One good strategy starting out is to sit down and make a list of meals for the upcoming week before heading to the store. Just include a serving of meat, a vegetable or two, and a source of healthy fat like avocado or olive oil with each meal and you'll be good to go.
A typical day's menu for me might include the following:
Breakfast - a big glass of water, followed by eggs scrambled in olive oil with whatever vegetables I have available - usually spinach, broccoli or peppers (or all three!)
Lunch - if I'm at work, I may just have a bit of leftover meat, some nuts, and a piece of fruit. If I'm at home, I sometimes have a huge mixed green salad with some tuna and avocado.
Dinner - a good portion of meat, several vegetables, and maybe a bit of fruit. I like to change my meat choices from day to day - beef, chicken, pork and fish in a random rotation. Veggies are usually broccoli, carrots, a salad - whatever sounds good at the time. I may eat a piece of fruit, but mostly I have my fruit earlier in the day.
I may snack on a few nuts during the day, but that's about it for a typical day. Just be sure you eat a good variety of meats and vegetables, and eat enough to feel comfortably full - don't starve yourself. With paleo eating, you should be able to eat plenty without worrying about weight gain since you're avoiding calorically dense but less nutritive snacks and packaged foods.
I'll post a few more meal examples soon, prior to the 30 day challenge. Be sure to ask questions if you're unsure about anything.
Good luck and happy foraging!
Win, things like this--the typical day's diet, shopping ideas--are very much appreciated.
ReplyDeleteHere's a typical day:
workout first thing
breakfast within 10-20 minutes of workout: egg beaters, a few big spoonfuls of yogurt (plain, not flavored at all). Sometimes instead of the eggs, it's lean turkey bacon.
Lunch, usually at the office:
a chicken breast and carrot bits. To mix it up, two cans of tuna, w/ light mayoinnaise, and carrot bits.
Late afternoon it's a salad w/ tomatoes.
Oh, and always an apple or pear in the morning, grapes or berries later.
And I nosh on cashews at the office.
Any thoughts?
Your food choices sound pretty good. Even though yogurt and cashews are not strictly paleo, they're certainly not the worst thing you could eat. If you're going to eat dairy at all, the fermented stuff is considered to be better - and yogurt cultures have beneficial effects.
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking you could do with a little more healthy fat in your diet - some avocado, a little olive oil, and some whole eggs would give you additional essential fats and give you a few extra calories to help spare the protein you're eating for useful things like muscle building/maintenance. Are you hungry or tired during the day? Some extra fat could help.
Thanks for the ideas, Win. I'll do the olive oil, maybe on my salads or in my grilling.
ReplyDeleteI just was at the grocery store, in need of more nuts. I saw that Planters has a "NUT-rition" can (only 7 g carbs). So I bought a couple cans. I was on a popcorn kick lately, but even the 94% fat free, "good" kind still has like 28 g of carbs. So noshing on a handful of nuts might be the better late-night, before-bed snack.
Yeah, I eat a handful of nuts before bed most nights myself. But I like a little leftover meat from the fridge as a snack too. Popcorn is not currently on my menu. I don't worry much about carbs per se - I just eat paleo foods and let the carbs take care of themselves. If most of your energy requirements are met by meat and vegetables, the total carbs will be relatively low.
ReplyDeleteI'll keep this in mind: "If it comes in a box and is rainbow-colored, put it back on the shelf."
ReplyDeleteOr really any color you wouldn't find in nature.
ReplyDelete