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| A tiny serving of apple crisp to start my morning off today. |
I told myself (and you, I think) that I was going to get back on that primal horse and whip my nae-nae back into shape before the hip surgery.
Well, that hasn't happened. Probably because I don't have an actual date for the hip surgery.
I work better on deadline. Heh.
Which isn't really true.
Here's what's really going on in my head these days.
Back when I did my first Whole 30 and lost a bunch of weight, I also felt better. The result of eliminating grains, sugar, dairy and legumes wasn't just a lower number on the scale. It was reduced inflammation and more energy and a general feeling of well-being.
Because I now know that my hip pain is not related to food, but is instead a cartilage deficiency, I'm more than slightly less inclined to eliminate all those things that taste good.
Pass the cheese, please.
I still want to lose weight. I still actually need to lose weight. The less extra lard the surgeon has to cut through to replace that hip joint, the better for both of us.
So I'm going to approach this project as if I were quitting smoking. I'm setting a date, winding down, gearing up, working on my head before I settle in to work on my body.
Here's the thing: Not walking, facing surgery, being in pain all the freaking time – it wears you down emotionally. It saps your energy. It makes you just not care all that much. Grabbing something easy trumps making something from scratch every damned time.
Eating primally takes a lot more work than grabbing a sandwich. I know at least one of you who agrees with me. I can think of other ways I'd like to spend my time than standing at the kitchen counter prepping food.
Like … resting.
But I stood at the kitchen counter most of the morning yesterday, processing a half-bushel of apples, AND I LIVED. (A paleo apple coffee cake, two gallons of non-paleo apple pie filling, four quarts of sugar-free, cinnamon-spiced applesauce, and a pan of apple crisp – not paleo.)
So I'll build on that small success and plan the plans to get back to more cooking, less snacking.
My husband's birthday is tomorrow, and I'm surprising him with his favorite decadent, delicious, cheesy, creamy onion soup. I'm also making a blackberry cobbler (instead of cake) – another surprise. His gift of several books came in the mail already, so the only way to mark the occasion is with food, amirite?
I'm shooting for November 1 to get back to paleo for good. Maybe not a strict Whole 30, which eliminates paleo-fied concoctions, but definitely ditching grains, sugar, dairy and legumes.
In the meantime, apple crisp makes a lovely breakfast. Maybe not the breakfast of champions in the title, but at least the breakfast of what happens to be handy that doesn't need to be cooked.
2 comments:
The on-or-off things are hard to me, because after all that restriction, I really go OFF when I go off.
I think your approach sounds sensible. And, depending on how much sugar you put in it, apple crisp doesn't seem that unhealthy. Better than a lot of other choices you could make.
Oh yeah, I agree with you. I know you're talking about me :-)
These days I'd describe my eating more as "low carb" than "paleo." I know, from direct experience, that I have problems with grains and sugar, including fruit. But legumes don't bother me, and I can eat a small amount of dairy, so I see no reason to exclude them. N=1, regardless of what label I assign it. Allowing legumes in my diet expands the meal possibilities enormously, as does the occasional dairy. For instance, Breakfast 2 is often cottage cheese and cucumbers, which is delicious and takes no prep time. Beans take the place of the satisfying and inexpensive pasta in other meals, and again takes no prep time. So that's allowing me to live a more normal life.
When I've done the Whole30 before, it was absolutely maddening and tortuous. It's not THAT different from my regular eating, but not being able to eat a single restaurant meal, not being able to buy anything pre-made - funk dat. Women struggled for centuries to get out of the kitchen, I'm not willing to go back ;-)
Good luck with whatever diet path you choose!
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