Curiosity got the best of us. After much discussion with our well-versed Paleo/Whole30 friends, Jessie and
Brian, we decided to give it a go for
one week. No grains (rice, pasta, bread, quinoa), no peanuts, no beans, no added sugar.
One week. Approved items consisted of grass-fed beef, free-range chicken, pasture-raised eggs, grass-fed butter, lots of veggies, some fruit, almonds/cashews, coconut milk, Larabars (in moderation, yay!), you get the idea. Protein, fiber, and (good) fat heavy diet.
I am no where near qualified to explain why this way of eating has become to popular or discussed. There are a million articles you can read
(listed below). Brian
blogged about his experience and it's a great summary. I found
this article very interesting and informative. You can also read more information
here. Also, definitely check out
this video which really explains what's going on in your body.
My very, very, very basic summary would go something like this.
- Grains are composed of carbohydrates, and those carbs are turned into glucose (a type of sugar) in our system to be used for energy and various other tasks to help our body function –any glucose that isn’t used as energy is stored as fat.
- Our bodies are designed to operate on a lower amount of carbohydrates than what we’re used to eating, so less carbs isn’t an issue. When there is an absence of carbs (which is how we’re USED to operating), our body will take stored fat and burn THAT for energy in a process called ketogenesis.
Here's what one week of a Paleo/Whole30/Whole9 diet might look like. We were not super strict so take this for what it is. This isn't the Bible. Obviously.
Day 1 // eggs, bacon, black coffee, protein shake, salad, applesauce,
larabar, spaghetti squash with meat sauce
Day 2 // coconut pancakes, coffee with coconut milk, smoothie (coconut milk, almond butter, protein powder, blueberries, strawberries), almonds,
larabar, beef taco bowl
Day 3 // mocha espresso smoothie with coconut milk and protein powder, salad, larabar, coconut pancakes, chicken with sweet potato and broccoli, dark chocolate
Day 4 // mocha espresso smoothie with coconut milk and protein powder,
Fadi's chicken kabobs and cauliflower, larabar, chicken & salad, applesauce, dark chocolate
