I Can Eat More Then Bunny Food

The first thing people think when I tell them I am 'paleo' is that I can't eat anything except vegetables. "Wow I could never give up all that" they exclaim and then go on to list some carb/sugar/fat filled food that they couldn't live without. Although I try and explain that there are many things you can eat, they just dismiss my attempts. Living without bread is just to much for people to wrap their mind around. 

I wanted a strict regimen of 'good' food that I could eat, because if I learned anything from my freshman year in college it's that eating healthy is HARD. I thought that if I had a list of things that I knew were good I could stick to it better. So I started my research of diet plans and studies to find the one for me, and trust me there are thousands to choose from. The China study, Jenny Criag, the Nutrisystem diet, even the bikini-body diet...but for some reason Paleo caught my eye. 

I started the paleo diet (although I hate calling it a diet, I prefer to thing of it as a lifestyle) because I had heard so many mixed things about it. There were so many articles about its benefits (and yes lots of yummy looking recipes on Pinterest) and as someone interested in health and fitness, I thought there would be no better way then to try it out. 

I knew that it would be tough to take on this entirely new meal plan, so I recruited my parents. A quick briefing on my parents: My mom is a fitness super woman. She is a nurse...and a massage therapist...and a group-fit instructor. Then there is my dad, a cycling fiend who at one point did 26 triathlons in one year. (They met in a gym where they were both instructors, you get the picture.) So pretty much immediately they were on board with trying the Paleo diet. 

In the beginning it was hard. There is only so much the Paleo-for-dummies book (which yes we read cover to cover) can prepare you for. But after a few weeks of settling into a routine, we found our sweet spot. Well not really sweet, because we weren't eating sugar, but you know what I mean. 

I knew it would be hard to continue paleo when I came back to college in the fall. So after a summer of trying new foods and recipes, I packed up my little Mini Cooper and headed back. And here I am. The main reason for starting this blog, is in a sense, to hold myself accountable. 

I understand what it feels like to want to change, and if I can help people make that transition a little easier then I have made a difference. I am going through all of this too, and I want people to understand the health benefits that go with living paleo. Especially to all those other college students out there with unhealthy options surrounding them on campus. Lets do this together. 

So raise your paleo-spinach-smoothie filled glasses for this interesting, zucchini filled, health-promoting journey. 

-CC