As this year comes to a close, I reflect on all the things that I’m thankful for. Besides my family, I am most thankful for my health. As I get older, I realize the importance and significance of treating my body well by nourishing it with enriched, whole, natural, foods. 2012 has been a year of whole food discovery. I’ve completely changed the foods I eat and whole-heartedly believe in the Paleo diet. If I hadn’t changed to eating Paleo, my health would be in jeopardy and I may be creating a path to diseases that might have surfaced later in my life.
I began the 2012 year with the fearful fact that I was going to need a colonoscopy, which can have many negative side effects and a lot of radiation, and I’m extremely young to even need a colonoscopy. I went to see a gastrointestinal doctor in January of 2012 because I had been having a bowel movement every 5-6 days, and the bowel movements I had been having were strained with blood. (So gross! I apologize if you weren’t ready for that one.)
This is EXTREMELY unhealthy, uncomfortable, and painful. In fact, humans should be going to the bathroom 1-3 times a DAY! I had an upset stomach after every meal, toxic gas, bloated abdomen, acidic stomach, discomfort, headaches, and more. I brushed it off as “that’s how I’m built”. It was embarrassing and pretty gross! I learned to deal with it, and treated the symptoms instead of treating the cause of the problem. My doctor told me to eat more fat and to take Benefiber, Metamucil pills and fiber powder, and acid relief pills. PILLS I thought??? I’m going to have to drink this nasty powder and pill everyday for the rest of my life?? This can’t be right.
I started doing my own research. I researched the causes of constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, heartburn, etc. Of course they said you needed more fruits and vegetables and fiber – but I had already been eating a TON of fruits of vegetables since I’ve always been a “healthy” eater. I had come across the Paleo diet. My boyfriend started eating Paleo, but I thought it was too “manly” for me and never considered myself meateater. I had seen the transformation he went through with Paelo, and he dropped almost 30lbs eating Paleo! I thought I should give it a try. My boyfriend bought grassfed meat from US Wellness Meats for us, and he grilled my first grassfed beef flank steak, and I fell in love…with grassfed meat!
I can honestly say that turning Paleo has changed the way I think about food forever. I thought I was a healthy eater until I realized that gluten, bread, soy, refined sugars, dairy were causing my constipation and irritation. Not to mention I kept my diet extremely low in fat because I’m a professional dancer and I thought if I ate fat it would make me fat! But I was so wrong. We need much, much, much, more fat in our diets than most of us realize. (I will expand on this topic later).
I continued my research on the Paleo diet and began eating only grassfed meats, wild caught fish, and organic vegetables and I cut gluten out completely. I also added in fats by having an avocado every day, putting grass-fed unsalted butter in my coffee (thanks to Dave Asprey), and I started cooking with Coconut Oil. Before turning Paleo, I had met with a nutritionist who literally told me I was mal-nourished. I thought, “like a homeless person”? I was shocked. He said I didn’t have any protein in my diet and my lack of fats was creating roadblocks in my intestines so the nutrients from my food was not being absorbed into my bloodstream and it was making me constipated.
It was a scary and helpless feeling discovering that my “healthy diet” that I’ve been consuming and so used to all these years was far from healthy. It was keeping me skinny, but not healthy. And I’ve now discovered that you can have both – a healthy lean body. My low-fat, sugar-free diet foods weren’t anything near healthy. They were refined, processed, genetically modified “food” that was created in a factory. Yes they were low calorie, but calories don’t mean anything. It’s all about how your body absorbs, uses, and stores the nutrients. I later discovered that the amount of calories you consume is not directly correlated with how much you weigh.
But I share with you my story so that you can know that it’s ok to reinvent yourself and start changing your eating habits as early as right now. It was discomforting to know that I couldn’t ever have a sandwich again, and it was depressing knowing that I couldn’t enjoy a bagel anymore, but in the meantime, I’ve discovered some of the most delicious foods that I never knew existed that are grown straight out of the earth and are unprocessed and contain no soy or wheat or gluten.
I’m thankful for my health. I’m thankful for my health. I’m thankful for my health.
Cheers to Paleo!
Here’s to a Happy, Healthy, Paleo New Year 🙂
