Paleo- 1 Year On
Back in September 2013, I stumbled onto the Paleo diet. I can't recall how but I do recall making the commute into central to visit the Waterstone's on Oxford Street to purchase The Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf. From here, I conducted a range of research into Paleo/ processed free diets (Whole 30, Mark Sisson et al.). I committed to a Whole30 challenge later on in Autumn 2013 and since then I have actively dedicated myself to a Paleo/ processed free diet. Granted I have not always been faithful to it. Through the times where I have eaten processed and sugar based food, I learnt a lot about my body - its system and process. Through this I do understand and believe a Paleo-styled diet is good for me and that my status is: in progress. The biggest changes I have witnessed is my skin. I have been suffering from acne since the age of 11. I tried a variety of over the counter and prescribed drugs to combat it. As I was scared about the side effects of these drugs, from the age of 16 to 18 I was on the hunt for more natural ways to combat my acne problem. While products bought from places like The Body Shop helped, it still was not providing the solution I wanted. It was not until the age of 22/23 that I started to research into the affects food and drinks have on skin/ acne. From then, I started to eat more blueberries and green leafy vegetables. However, I still was eating the fad low-calorie, low- fat, light, sugar free processed foods in order to get my sweet fixes. At this time, I also was more serious with my fitness. In my final summer at uni (at the age of 20), I spend 2 months in America. I did not realise how much sugar was in foods I thought were okay at the time i.e dressings, wholemeal grains, sauces etc., and as a result of this I gained a very noticeable amount of weight and my skin was so bad. Back at uni I was on a mission to loose the lbs through diet and exercise. I was successful in loosing the additionally lbs but wanted to loose more as I did not look toned or fit. When I graduated the following summer, I continued to remain active. My activity mainly consisted of cardio. I jogged a lot. It was not until the following year, when I had a decent job, that I could afford to sign to a local gym. Upon doing so, the Twin and I started to go together and I introduced heavy weights into my regime. He also introduced me to protein shakes- bad decision for me. The Big One advised me against it as she saw it was not getting the results I wanted. I soon dropped the shakes- I am thankful for that. Fast forward another year (aged 24) and I started Insanity to get rid of the final 10lbs I had been aiming to get rid of. Looking back, if I had stuck to my then diet plan, I may not have realised how much hormonal food is. I realised something was a miss as my skin was not still prone to breakouts but I don't know whether I would have delved into food, nutrition and lifestyle decisions to degree I have and still do if I had not abandoned my diet for the one in the accompanying nutrition plan by Team Beachbody. When the 90 days had lapsed I had not lost the 10lbs I wanted too but I was slimmer. My appearance in clothes is what I wanted to see. I had places I wanted to improve on but I could fit into my size 8 clothes comfortably. However, I was in no way ready to show extra parts of skin. I have never been a bikini wearer so being comfortable whilst wearing one was never an aim of mine. I did have dreams of rocking crops and maxis in a certain way which meant a certain amount of midriff on display but even hitting the 9.4st marker I still did not feel I was there. At this time my drive to get to that point was removed. My reason for starting Insanity in January 2013 was because of I was off to Jamaica in May for a wedding. I did not want to be layering up because I felt uncomfortable in skin so decided to make some changes. By March I had reached the 9.4st marker. (I did not realise how light I was until I went to my friend's birthday party and got wasted in such a short amount of time on not much.) My driver left around April when The Big One realised that we were going on a family holiday not a girls-gone-wild type breakaway (my previous trips that were kind of like this meant weird skin exposure), and as the bulk of the family in attendance thought we were too slim (they are larger in physique, not ones for any activity and enjoy their fast and processed food on a daily basis) the drive to loose my final 4lbs (I thought the 4lbs was holding me back) was gone. This is not to imply that I stopped exercising and dieting. I did but I just was not as over the top by it. So the wedding comes and goes (I won't get into more of this as this post is already on the long side) and I (surprise, surprise) gained weight. All inclusive food and alcoholic and non-alcoholic resort in Jamaica, where food is heavily inspired by American staples... weight gain was bound to happen and it did. Back home in the UK, I was an unemployed post-grad student who was driving to shift the extra lbs. I realised my approach pre-hols was too extreme so tried other ways. One way was through Tosca Reno's Eat Clean. I learnt about portion control, moderation and treats. Not new concepts but new approaches. It was going okay but I still was having problems. Firstly eating that frequently. When I was on Insanity, strength training and extra cardio, eating 5-6 meals was fine. I was hungry but post-hols I did not have the appetite for that much. I looked forward to the meals as I was making yummy food but I did not need that much. Due to this, I went online again and conducted more research (general internet searches and Tumblr) and through this I came across the Paleo diet. My first attempt at Paleo was hard as I had no brown rice, quinoa or pulses. I ate a lot of protein, veggies and nuts as I was not getting as full. I also came to realise the importance of mindset, sleep and stress have on the body. Due to this, I took up yoga more regularly. The importance of water was not new to me as I have never been keen on fizzy sugary drinks (I like sparking water)- I just don't like them so have always stuck to water as my main source of liquid along with herbal teas. Since then I have tried to make Paleo my foundation, and on the whole I feel like I have achieved this. Now that I have experienced a full year in Paleo- the different seasons, occasions, festivities that fall every year, I feel that I am more aware of the factors that shape me and my decisions. I still have a way to go to getting to the place I would like to be but I am more positive living in the present whilst looking forward to the future.
