Update on half hearted paleo...

I am not a very faithful paleo girl, but dinners have been paleo pretty regularly around here, and often the two other meals are too (at least for me)...

and i'm down to the lowest weight i've been since having baby #7! So excited about that - i'm sure it has to do with a little more frequent workouts lately, too, but it's nice to see *results* when you are wanting to lose weight. I don't have a ton to lose (twelve pounds would be fine), but I remember what it felt like getting down there again after baby #6 and fitting into the clothes i bought and feeling more like me, less weighed down and self conscious...

I am also feeling more clear headed this time around. I think going 100% right at the beginning was maybe a little much for my system (although it's how it works with both dh and i - we'd rather jump right in than go halfsies at first - we're wholehearted :)...) - It's worked great for dh, but my not quite as committed version is working too... We are feeling healthy and happy, and full, and eating foods we like...

Not bad!

Workouts

OH, i do have pictures of food :)

but first, workouts:

Sunday - dumbbell complex - 20 minutes of 5 deadlifts, 5 cleans, and 5 thrusters every minute (i did seven and then nursed the baby before heading out to choir... )

Monday - "Fran" but modified (www.crossfit.com) - 21 thrusters with 15 lb dumbbells, 21 rows, 15 db thrusters, 15 rows, 9 db thrusters, 9 rows. Quick and effective!

As for food, we are getting to a good place.

We are still subbing in chocolate flavoured protein powder as i can stand that in warm water (hot chocolate!) - and it makes a great meal replacement...

But dinners are getting easier as i just let go of a lot of baked side dishes, and just enjoy meat and veggies...

The other night T made chicken breasts on the bone with roasted root veggies:

Chicken - he sprinkled seasoning salt on the breast portions, then baked them.

Root veggies - sliced in thick rounds, rubbed with canola oil, sprinkled with seasoning salt, baked in the oven

Mustard sauce - 1/4 c. grainy mustard with a teaspoon of honey, and a half cup of heavy cream,heated through - Season with salt and pepper.

Delicious! The meat was juicy and delicious, and the sauce was excellent...

"Am I good at workouting?" asks Lulu as we walk down the stairs to meet Daddy, beaming in front of a white board.

"I love workouting with you and Haven. Cause Haven an' me hold hands an' kiss in between our situps. We're best friends" he says matter of factly about his big sister.

We were down to only five children tonight - our littlest and our biggest girls were just wiped out today, and went to bed early.

Our workout was a little late, too, as i prepped for the school week, pulling books on the ancient Americas, photocopied worksheets, maps, coloring pages, wrote out my plan for the week, and organized everyone's day for tomorrow...

But finally we are down there and this is the workout:

"Race to One Hundred!"

Pick any exercise you like. You will do one hundred of that exercise. If you can do all one hundred in a big long stretch, bully for you! You will be done soon! If not, every time you take a break, you have to pay for your break before you restart the count, by doing ten burpees.

Burpees aren't my favourite.

I chose squats (body weight) and i got to 50 before my quads were burning (they've been the stars in our workouts lately so there's always a little stiffness the last few days) - and i did two sets of 50, with my ten burpees in the middle...

T is still working out, although the children have all run upstairs for a banana before bed, and i am not hearing any noise at all. We're all pretty tired i guess. Hopefully a good sleep will set us all right for a fun week!

Paleo is still going okay. I'm not as good as T at avoiding carby snacks. Especially when there are treats in the house for coffee, but the majority of what i eat is caveman, and during the week there is less temptation.

Tonight's dinner was delicious -

Travis' Awesome Indian lemon chicken

Chicken breasts on the bone

separate skin from the meat.

finely chopped jalapeno, ginger, and garlic

salt, pepper, curry powder, turmeric

a little olive oil

Mix all but the chicken together. Push the mixture under the skin of the chickens.

Salt and pepper the top.

Bake at 350. Squirt lemon juice over them two or three times during the cooking.

These were delicious, yellow, lemony and a hit with everyone at the table. Wy said it was his new favourite chicken dish...

T made basmati for the children to go along, but we cavepeople ate meat and savoured every bite...

Finding faithfulness, one day at a time...

I'm finding this second try at paleo is a little easier.

For one, i'm finding the balance between all those mental notes i had when we were eating Zone (portion control/ balancing carbs/protein etc)...

I'm not doing any strict measuring, but i am trying to be reasonable in portion control - for awhile just knowing that i didn't get any carby side dishes made me panic and take too much of everything else. Turns out, i don't need a whole lot of extras...

Also, i don't necessarily have to have protein at every meal. I still out of habit think "what's the protein?" - but i'm realizing that it's okay to just have an apple for a snack, or a few almonds or whatever.

Even with one cheat day a week, I am finding that sweet spot of paleo and if i weigh myself, i'm guessing i'm on my way back down. We are also working out pretty faithfully now that T has instituted a post dinner workout with all the children. I haven't been a fan of family workouts (that's a lot of little people popping up and down!) - but T loves it and so do they, so i find a corner to do my pushups in and try to discourage the tiny ones from climbing on me ("Daddy loves that!" hee hee!)...

The cooking is coming a little easier, too - actually, eating this way is very easy on the family cook - pop something in the crockpot or oven in the morning, and don't think about it much except to make a sauce (or a marinade) and get some veggies ready closer to dinner time...

I am still pretty good at baking for littles and not eating any - it helps that there are a lot of littles, but i am also doing things like only making two dozen cookies at a time - with seven children those go pretty quick, are appreciated by the littles, but there aren't a ton left over for me to "clean up"...

I think i can do this!

Tentative Paleo solutions...

Well, here i am again. I know this blog hasn't been regularly updated, which is kind of indicative of my commitment to the paleo diet :)

While i do think the foods list help to make me feel better, healthier, less bloated - i have problems with the whole "caveman" concept - It says in the Bible that Cain (Adam's son) brought grain to offer to God (and it wasn't good enough, so maybe there is the backup for paleo right there in the Bible!) - so i guess they had grain from the beginning...

Anyway, T is still really loving this way of eating - he's lost 25 lbs since the summer and is pretty ripped... And i want to help him and make him happy...

so finally i had some time to write out seven paleo breakfasts, lunches and dinners - and an accompanying grocery list. That way, when i go grocery shopping, i will have everything i need to make paleo foods all week long...

T's come up with some delicious paleo meals, too - and we are loving the cookies we found a recipe for on Paleo Mama's blog - they are so rich and delicious - they aren't really like cookies at all, something better and dark and full of texture and mmmmm mouth feel...

Anyway, I thought i'd post my list here, and if anyone has substitutions, other ideas, variations - i'd love to hear them!

Paleo Breakfasts:

scrambled eggs and salsa

hard boiled eggs and fruit

fried ham and eggs/fruit

protein shake (this isn't really paleo, but T does it. It means i get hot chocolate for breakfast!)

breakfast fruit salad and eggs or meat

breakfast veggie salad and eggs or meat (recipes to follow)

eggs benny sans muffin...

Paleo lunches:

*tuna, apple, and celery salad (with raisins) (dressing : sunflower oil and red wine vinegar) - T also added macadamia nuts and jalapenos and cilantro

*leftover beef and guacamole (this idea was from Son of Grok's website, and i didn't know how good it would be as leftovers - but it is DELICIOUS!) I used the guacamole recipe i usually use, from the Moosewood cookbook

*chicken soup

*bacon brocolli soup (thicken with potato?)

*leftover meat and fruit

*chili

*..... this was tuna melts until T pointed out, no cheese... so i only have six ideas... help!

Paleo dinners:

*beef and guacamole grande:)

*chimichurri pork and mashed cauliflower (T added coconut oil, saffron, and salt - it was delicious)

*dry rubbed roast beef and spaghetti squash

*baked chicken quarters and rutabaga

*jerk pork and roasted parsnips with lime mayo

*bacon broccoli soup

*chicken soup with veggies and salad

Paleo extras:

*almond chocolate balls (from Serene Allison's book, Rejuvenate Your Life)

*homemade halvah balls (from the same book)

*nuts

*fruit

*paleo cookies (mmmm)

The problem is, T isn't partial to soups or salads. And my children are huge dairy fans. And i like using baking to fill them up (bread, muffins, dutch babies, pancakes, waffles, biscuits, etc...). I've always thought a good mom knows how to make cookies!

So that's my problem i guess...

I'm cooking for eight or nine people, three times a day, and trying to keep it as paleo as possible. Usually, if i can't keep us all paleo, the children will have something carby, and i will eat leftovers or protein shake... We'll see if a little organization can help me do it this time!