The MyPlate Challenge?!

If you've ever done a paleo or Whole30 challenge, you might find this interesting, and sad: the MyPlate Challenge.

Interesting because the lessons learned seem to be similar to when we completed our 45 day paleo challenge:

• Planning makes success easy!
• Cooking skills improve!

Sad because this person is trying to follow a plan they perceive to be healthy by ensuring each meal has all the "food groups" represented; grains for breakfast, lunch and dinner - ouch.

I Survived CrossFit!

I thought it might kill me, and it didn't.  We might even be friends some day.

I was really nervous for my first CrossFit workout last week.  I didn't know if I would understand the foreign language of abbreviations or survive the physical intensity that I expected.  Both turned out ok.  I learned some new acronyms and although totally spent afterwards, did not die.

A huge thank you to George at CrossFit Chicago for showing us the CrossFit ropes.  I am not giving up my regular gym membership just yet, but expect we will be showing up for CrossFit from time to time.

My Dirty Little Secret: I'm scared of CrossFit

Yes, CrossFit is scary to me.

I think it has something to do with the extensive use of acronyms, overall unique terminology and affinity for socks.  As well as the fear that I just won’t measure up.  I’m no couch potato, but I’m no high performance athlete either.  When I think of CrossFit, I think of a bunch of athletes – doing handstands.

Oddly, we were first introduced to paleo through someone involved in CrossFit.  We've been living a paleo lifestyle for about 13 months now, but have never crossed over into the world of CrossFit.  I've been intrigued by it, but scared of it at the same time.

I consider my current workouts to be pretty decent.  We lift heavy things, do some sprints and functional types of movements.  We do a pretty good job of keeping it interesting and improving our strength.  But it is just Ryan and I.  I don’t have to worry about how I compare to anyone I am working out with, because I don't try to compare myself to a 6’4” muscular guy. 

The CrossFit style group workout intimidates me.  What if I’m not good enough?  What if I realize that I am not fit at all and can’t do anything?  What if I'm the worst?  I guess we will find out the answers to these questions after my first CrossFit workout tomorrow morning!  Wish me luck! 

Paleo Mother's Day Brunch

Although no mothers were actually present for breakfast, we could not help but prepare ourselves a good brunch in honor of mother's day. 

• Bacon!
• Fried eggs
• Paleo waffles made with coconut flour
• Blueberry cinnamon sauce

Really, I love brunching on any given sunday - holiday or not!

Why We're Giving Up Coffee for 100 Days

It's May Day, while some people might be out celebrating International Worker's Day or decorating a Maypole - we are celebrating our 50th day off the coffee, and caffeine in general.  Both being coffee lovers* we can picture the look of utter shock on the face of other coffee lovers who may be reading this.  We know, it sounds crazy.  Going paleo doesn't mean you have to give up coffee, and/or caffeine.  Why give up something that could still be considered paleo?  It's not like it's bad for you; coffee is a natural antioxidant, black tea has been associated with decreased instances of some diseases, and according to Ryan, ancient ninja masters drink tea!  (For the record we also gave up black and green tea, but still drink herbal tea on occasion). 

Well, after reading the Whole9's Coffee Manifesto, we figured why not give it a try.  We decided to give it all up for 100 days.  Ryan also mentioned the desire to not be addicted to any substance.  Both of us agreed that giving up caffeine was easy and we drink coffee because we like the taste more than anything - and probably the habit or ritual of it.  Having a cup of coffee means the day can now commence.  Although prior to giving it up, we both had noticed that going even a day without the 1 or 2 cups usually meant an afternoon headache - so it was definitely time to kick the habit.

What we've observed over the first 50 days coffee/caffeine free:

• Headaches only happened the first 2-3 days.  The duration for caffeine withdrawl is typically 48 hours, but can last for up to a week.  Although incidence of withdrawl symptoms in caffeine consumers is only 50%, so if you quit - maybe you'll be in the lucky half of the population. 
• Ryan craved coffee for the first 2 weeks, I only craved it for a few days.  The weekends seem the most difficult.  We both enjoy making a good breakfast while sipping coffee on a Saturday/Sunday morning (typically post workout, even though it might be better to drink coffee before a workout and rehydrate post-workout).  Herbal tea has really been a perfect replacement for these times and suppresses any coffee cravings I might have. 
• After the first month, I only had cravings when walking past a coffee shop and catching a whiff of freshly ground beans.  Not fair they can spit out those smells. 

Occasionally, I'll see someone walking with a coffee cup and I'll get a little envious, which makes me consider drinking decaf as a special treat from time-to-time once our 100 day trial is over.  Unless, over the next 50 days, I decide the benefits of living sans caffeine are too great. 

Benefits we've experience:

• It's easier to fall asleep and get a good night's sleep
• Whiter teeth
• No more dependence (afternoon headaches) on caffeine
• Fat loss!  I'm not sure if this is related to eliminating coffee, but I have noticed that some stubborn belly fat that wouldn't go away during our 45-day challenge is finally disappearing.  Ryan has a theory that it is related, since coffee consumption leads to increased cortisol levels, which can lead to more belly fat. 
• Less general crankiness
• Save money - $2-$4 per day adds up fast
• It's easier to stay hydrated now.  In the past, I would occasionally experience muscle cramps due to dehydration.  These occur very infrequently now, and I can usually pinpoint why they happen - either drinking alcohol, or not drinking enough water.  Before, they would often occur even though I'd been drinking a lot of water, and I wouldn't know why.  Probably the coffee.
• More counter space - storing our coffee maker and bean grinder, we have more room for other things.

So, we have 50 more days to go and depending on how this list of benefits grows - coffee may be out for good.

* Our love of coffee has run deep.  We both drink it black, truly appreciating the flavor of coffee, not just using it as a sugar/cream/caffeine vehicle.  We owned 2 coffee makers prior to this trial (now down to 1), 1 french press, 1 bean grinder, and more coffee mugs than cups (we also own 2 tea kettles - for rare days we might not have any beans).  Ryan has even been able to identify our favorite Chicago coffee, Intelligensia, in a blind taste test. 

The Best Paleo Dessert Ever - Two Ways!

You do not have to give up dessert in the name of paleo.  Sometimes you just want a little treat, and that's ok (at least I tell myself that).  I think we have found the ultimate guilt-free paleo dessert. 

Of course, we always have the option of making some delicious paleo banana ice cream, but even though it's just bananas - it is a sugar bomb and reserved for rare occasions.  There's also the option of these amazing double chocolate peppermint brownie bites, but again they do have a teensy bit of maple syrup.  Recently we've been indulging in these two desserts, and I consider them 100% ok for everyday.

Here they are, one hot and one cold - both using the same ingredients!

Blueberry Compote over Coconut Cream (2 servings)

Blueberry Compote over Coconut Cream

• Heat about a cup of frozen wild blueberries in a small saucepan over medium heat
• As the berries begin to warm up they will breakdown and get saucy, I usually only keep them on the heat long enough to warm through - but if you want it really saucy, keep it on longer
• Add cinnamon and nutmeg to berries to taste (I like a lot!)
• Place 2-3 tablespoons coconut cream concentrate* in a small dessert dish and top with the blueberry compote
• Eat slowly and savor!

* For the coconut cream concentrate, I use either Tropical Traditions Coconut Cream Concentrate or Artisana Coconut Butter.  Both are dee-lish, I lean toward Artisana because I think its creamier. 


Coconut Cream & Blueberry Bark

Warm coconut cream just until it has a creamy consistency.  I place the jar in a container of hot water to do this, if you have a warm kitchen - that may not even be necessary

Spread the coconut cream out on a piece of parchment paper, to about 1/4-1/2 inch thick

Sprinkle with frozen blueberries and wait about 8-10 minutes

The frozen blueberries harden the coconut cream, break apart into bite size pieces and enjoy!

 

Coconut Cream & Blueberry Bark

Returning to Restaurants

After 45-days of preparing all of our meals at home we were excited to take a couple nights off and go out to eat.  We fully intend to continue to eat paleo, but will do our best when eating out.  With that said, returning to restaurants was sadly a disappointing experience.  Thursday we went to Old Town Social, and last night we went to El Barco Mariscos, two of our Chicago favorites.  Thoughts about each experience.

Old Town Social

• What used to say "grass-fed burger" now says "Wisconsin beef burger."  So instead of sticking with just a burger, we opted for salads with steak instead.
• They ran out of Duck Wings (like buffalo wings, but with duck = more fat, more flavor, more paleo!)  so we took a chance on the Caldo Verde.  The soup of the day, which included a mixture of greens, potatoes, and garnished with sardines.  Sardines were a first for both of us.
• Stacey realized she does NOT like sardines.  I can tolerate them, but am also not a fan.
• The steak salad was delicious, but left us still feeling a little hungry.  We're used to eating huge meat-filled plates a home.
• Our check was about a quarter of what we spend on a week's worth of food.  Yikes!  We forgot how expensive it was to eat out.  

El Barco Mariscos

• Before we even left for El Barco, we had a lengthy discussion about whether it was okay for me to bring a bag of plantain chips with us to the restaurant.  I have a weakness for chips and salsa, which come complimentary.  I conceded and didn't bring the plantain chips.
• We did it!  We left the tortilla chips on the table untouched!  I'm so proud.  Although, I did have a couple spoonfuls of salsa while waiting for our food to quell my urges.
• Food is served family style at El Barco.  Normally we order the plate for two which is a huge platter of meat, seafood, and veggies.
• We decided to order three big, family style appetizers instead to avoid the breaded fish/meat on the traditional plate.
• We ordered and enjoyed a plate called Mariscos Al Chingadazo (shrimp, squid, chicken, mussels, and octopus, and whatever is in chingadazo seasoning/sauce), a plate of grilled squid (included potatoes), and a big bowl of ceviche (avocado, fish, shrimp, octopus, salsa, and lime).
• Despite mostly paleo ingredients we began to feel a bit congested after eating.  We're assuming the food was not "clean," and that they used some sort of oil we haven't used during our challenge.
• Overall a decent dining experience, but again our bill was about a quarter of what we spend at the grocery store for a week's worth of food.

Thoughts and Revelations:

• We have become better cooks that we thought enjoying our home-cooked meals as much if not more than the restaurants'.
• Holy crap, eating out is expensive!
• Holy crap, eating out is ridiculously expensive when you keep ordering your new favorite adult-paleo-beverage Tequila on the Rocks!
• If we eat out we're going to have to assume that even though the main ingredients are paleo, the food might not be clean.  

Our 45-Day Paleo Challenge Results

Ryan's Results
After 45-days of eating 100% paleo I feel terrible.  Ha!  Gotcha, I feel like a broken record, but when I eat paleo I feel great.  Period.  As expected I am full of energy, and I have lost a little body fat.  I am now beginning to see my ab muscles without having to flex, something I wasn't even able to do when I was working out twice a day playing college basketball.  If I am surprised by anything I would have to say it's an increased cognitive energy.  I seem to have a better recall on memories.  Not that I feel "smarter," but that now I can remember things I already knew more quickly.

Also, my knee problems are beginning to temper.  I was diagnosed with Osgood-Schlatter Syndrome at an early age and have been dealing with the condition ever since.  Something I always felt was untreatable is now beginning to feel a little better, even though I continue to perform exercises that were unheard-of a few years ago (squats, box jumps, etc.).  I attribute this partly to wearing Vibram Fivefingers shoes when working out and also to balancing out my omega-3/6 ratios.  The paleo diet is supposed to reduce low-level inflammation, but I never thought it would begin to cure my Osgood-Schlatters.  Now after long runs, my calfs are sore, not my knees.  I don't consider myself "cured," but I think I'm getting close to feeling like it.

Going forward, I will continue to eat paleo, but will allow myself to eat out on occasion.  Eating out is near impossible to stay paleo, but I am going to make a concerted effort to do as well as I can.  Who knows, after several months of eating 95-100% paleo maybe I will begin to say that I'm smarter and will self-diagnose my Osgood-Schlatters as cured.  Time will tell.  I plan to share one way or the other.  Thanks for reading.

PS.  For those keeping score, I don't think I lost or gained any weight.  I didn't measure myself before we started because weight is a terrible barometer of health and fitness.  I had lost weight over December/January due to inactivity following surgery, and was expecting to gain a little during the challenge as I got back into weight-lifting, but I think that I stayed the about the same, losing some fat and gaining some muscle.  I'm just now beginning to lift heavy weights again, so it'll be interesting to see what happens here on out.

Stacey's Results

After 45 days of following our paleo challenge rules, I am one happy camper – for so many reasons.  The primary goal of the challenge was to just do it – I did not identify any specific goals.  But, I did measure myself at the beginning just to have a benchmark for comparison.

Quantitative results:

• Lost 1.5 inches from waist, 2 inches from hips, 1 inch from thigh and 1 inch from arm measurements
• Lost 6 pounds (I didn’t think this would be possible since we really ramped up strength training and I definitely gained some muscle)

Qualitative results:

• I feel awesome; happy, rested and satisfied.  I find things that normally might have pushed me close to the edge or set my mood to change – have a much smaller impact on my emotions.  Overall I feel more even keeled.
• I sleep so well!  (thank you blackout curtains)
• My level of fitness is much improved; I can run, row, stair step and lift much more than I could pre-challenge.

Obviously, we plan to continue on this path.  For the first time, I am intrigued by experimenting with the foods I eat and trying (or eliminating) things to see how that makes me feel.  Next up, eliminate coffee (and all caffeine) for 100 days – currently on day 11 and feeling great!

The last day of our paleo challenge!...and some chicago paleo restaurant options

It’s hard to believe it is already DAY 45, the last day of our paleo challenge!  This day finds me full of mixed emotions. 

On the one hand, I’m super excited we made it a full 45 days on our paleo rules, existing well within the limitations we set out.  For example, we had very little fruit and virtually no honey or other natural sweeteners – much less than the prescribed rules allowed.

On the other hand, I am scared!  I have been a meal planning machine for the past 45 days, and with the end of the challenge approaching, our last meal plan ended today.  Yesterday the thought of not having a planned paleo lunch pushed me over the edge and I planned out our meals for another week.  I’ve determined that I need to keep planning, the difference is that now the plan includes some scheduled restaurant stops.  These are restaurants that will provide some paleo options, if not paleo – at least ‘primal’ – for us that means potentially adding in some dairy.

We need to make sure to not let the restaurant meals over take the planned, home cooked meals.  We already have 2 nights of dining out scheduled for this week, partially due to just being able to!  But, these are very good paleo option restaurants.  If you ever find yourself in Chicago and in need of a paleo option, these should work:

• El Barco Mariscos – specializing in serving an abundance of grilled seafood and meats served family style, also serve a great ceviche! (will be staying away from the sugar-filled margaritas this trip – maybe just go for some straight tequila!)
• Old Town Social – specializing in charcuterie, they also have amazing specials (often involving delicious roasted meats).  At the very least, they serve a grass-fed beef burger topped with bacon and an egg – take it bunless and you’re good to go.

Complete 45-day Paleo Challenge, check.  Continue paleo lifestyle, working on it!

#45 - Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls (the second time)

Some Dips Just Need Paleo Chips!

Ryan is on a quest to perfect his guacamole recipe (never mind that I think I already have the perfect guacamole recipe).  This has set me off on a journey to find a really solid chip alternative.  I am a fan of using veggies for dipping; baby carrots, zucchini sticks and cucumber rounds can all serve their purpose.  But sometimes you just want a real chip - with some non-vegetable crisp and crunch.

Fortunately, I have seen a lot of recipes out there for different types of paleo chips.  Over the weekend I used this grain free almond cracker recipe as the basis for some Walnut & Flax Seed Chips, which paired very nicely with Ryan's most recent (and very tasty!) guac experiment.

Walnut & Flax Seed Chips

• 1 cup walnut flour/meal
• 1 egg white
• 1/4 cup golden flax seeds
• Seasoning (I used a bit of salt and paprika - in hindsight would have added more seasonings - maybe some cumin)

Preheat oven to 325.
Mix all ingredients together to form a dough, roll into a ball.  Place a layer of parchment paper (or silpat) on a cookie sheet, place dough ball in middle of sheet, put another layer of parchment (or silpat) on top of dough.  Using a rolling pin, roll out dough between parchment sheets until VERY thin.  When you think it's really thin, keep rolling it out.  The thinner you can get it the more chip-like and less cracker-like it will be - and it will bake faster!  Once rolled thin, unpeel top layer of parchment.  Using a sharp knife score rolled out dough into chip size squares.
Bake for about 10 minutes, then check on chips.  If they are browning, they are done and can be removed.  I found that my chips in the middle of the sheet were a little bit thicker and had to go a few minutes longer than those at the edge.  When all done, let cool and enjoy with some dip!

Next up - some sort of roasted veggie chip...

Make Your Own Coconut Milk

Oh coconut milk, how I love you.  I never realized how much I enjoy all things coconut until we started our paleo challenge.  Now I crave coconut chips, or the occasional spoonful of coconut cream that has separated from the coconut water in the can of coconut milk.  Then there is the coconut creme concentrate from Tropical Traditions that I just discovered - that with some blueberries, heaven.

I have heard how easy it is to make your own coconut milk.  So, given my new and undying love of coconut, it was time to try my hand at coconut milk making.  By making our own we will also save money and avoid the added preservatives - guar gum, anyone? - found in canned coconut milk

All you need to make coconut milk:

• coconut chips or shredded coconut
• water
• blender
• big bowl
• colander
• cheesecloth

I think you could probably mess around a bit with the proportions, but I used the following ones with success, so they might be a good starting point:

1. Combine a little under a cup of coconut (chips or shreds) with 1 cup of hot water in a blender, blend for 3 minutes or so
2. Pour into cheesecloth lined colander placed over bowl
3. Squeeze all milk out of cheesecloth and return coconut to blender
4. Add another 1/2 cup hot water to blender and blend for 1-2 minutes more
5. Repeat steps 2 & 3 - and now you have coconut milk!

St. Patty's Day - Paleo Style

Sláinte!

Yes, it's St. Patty's Day in Chicago.  Yes, it's 5 days early.  Yes, it's an all day event.  And yes, we've packed a paleo survival kit to help get us through the day.

Due to the large number of participants, the city typically throws its party the Saturday preceding the actual holiday.  This lends itself to day drinking and incomprehensible irresponsibility...or crazy good times.  A few highlights (awesome, stupid, or otherwise):

• The river is dyed bright green.  It's fun to watch the dying boat snake down the river, but the river is already sort of green.  Ew.
• The mythical St. Patty's day parade.  We've attempted to catch this parade several times, only to be distracted by Irish pubs along the way.  We've heard that it actually happens, but have no visual proof.
• The actual St. Patty's day parade(s).  The "real" St. Patty's day parade occurs on the South Side, several weeks before March 17th.  This parade was so "real" it's been banned for 2 years now.  I now consider the thousands who take to the streets on their way to one of the thousands of green parties to be the real parade.
• One of the best people watching days ever.  I see you drunk guy.  We all know it's not coffee under that Starbucks coffee lid.  Several people will either be wearing their liquid-coat, or are visiting from warmer climates and simply don't realize that despite it being March, it's still freezing here.  Some of these people are fun to gawk at, others just make me feel sorry for them.  
• Green beer.  Not exclusive to Chi-town, and also pretty stupid.
• Irish Music!  Always a delight.  Seemingly every bar & pub has some sort of live Irish music, and several will include a Riverdance troupe.  Such fun music!
• Irish beer, Irish whiskey, corned-beef & cabbage, potatoes...not exactly paleo...

So we've already worked out, and are packing a St. Patty's Day survival kit.  To stay true to our challenge rules, we're going to stick to wine and acceptable liquors, and will get our drinking done early in the day.  We're going to eat lunch before meeting up with friends, and since we'll be around a lot of non-paleo food/drink we're bringing along some snacks to whip out in case we begin to have any cravings.  Here's what we've got:

• Summer Snack Chips (chips made of Summer Sausage from Paulina Meat Market)
• Coconut flakes
• Larabars

When you are treading in paleo-unfriendly waters, what do you pack in your survival kit?