30 Days of Paleo...or as close as I can get to it...and I love bacon.

Yep.  It's another 30 Day Experiment for me.

Yesterday a friend of mine brought me a piece (only one, the tease..) of local bacon.  I don't usually say this but...O....M....G.  I t   w a s   g o o d.

If you know me at all, you know health is a big issue for me.  Losing 140 pounds didn't happen by remaining ignorant of my body, and the stuff I put into it!

For the past 4 years I have been faithfully (well, mostly) following a low-carb diet.  At first, this meant cutting out breads, pasta, and sugars.  I allowed sweeteners (think Splenda, Maltitol - bad choices) and ate commercially available "sugar-free" diet foods, along with traditional "low-carb" fare.  And eventually I started moving towards whole foods, but not completely.  I love bacon.

And I got obsessed, a little.  I have, in the past year, gotten to the point where if I go over a certain amount of "net carbs" (I limited myself to 20 net a day, which is pretty low) I start getting depressed, simply because I feel like I have failed.  So, needless to say, I have been eating some junk lately, and put a few pounds back on.  And I know it's not entirely about the weight, but it's a big part of it.

So I have decided to start thinking more about what I'm putting into my tummy, and less about how much I am putting into it.  Now, that's not to say that I am going to not care at all about how much, but I am going to try to be more lenient in that area, while increasing the strictness in another.  I love bacon.

So, I'm going Paleo.  Or as close as I can get.

This means eating:

- whole, local foods
- minimally processed foods
- organically or traditionally grown foods
- I love bacon.
- cutting out or reducing a lot of foods that might seem natural, but should be taken in moderation

That last one is going to be tough - a lot of the experts recommend cutting out coffee (whaaaatttt?) and most dairy products (again, whaaaaaatttt?) unless they are raw (which has it's own legal issues).  I think cutting out coffee isn't going to happen.  But I think I can handle the dairy, because the only dairy I ever really use is cheese and cream, so for those, I will definitely be going organic, and raw if I can.

It's going to be tough - eating better will seem more expensive, but in the long run it will be better, because hopefully I will be buying less junk.   I live in an area where buying local is pretty easy, but buying organic (for the stuff that I can't get locally) means driving at least 30 minutes, or ordering online.

I am going to try to phase out the stuff in the house that is not organic, or locally grown, simply because I can't force my family to do this with me, though I hope that they will willingly join in, and since I do most of the cooking, it will happen naturally, and everyone will be better because of it.  Yesterday a friend of mine brought me a piece (only one, the tease..) of local bacon.  I don't usually say this but...O....M....G.  I t   w a s   g o o d.

So, I'm asking you to help hold me accountable, friends who read this.  I will be posting as many meals as I can, even if it's only a picture, via this blog or Facebook, or Twitter.   I love bacon.

Speaking of...here's today's Paleo oriented breakfast...eggs, peppers, and turkey sausage*, with some Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper*.  (*=not organic/local/paleo - see what I mean?)  Are you surprised there is no bacon?

Paleo(ish) egg scramble.

And my last tidbit of the day, for all of you folks who like to eat "Whole Grain" foods - you realize that most foods billed as "Whole Grain"are still refined foods?  A true "whole grain" is one you go pick yourself, and eat.  On the spot.

I love bacon.