This month I decided to attempt to do a Clean30—eating STRICT Paleo for 30 days. I had 2 vacations within these 30 days, so I ended up going as Paleo as I could most of the time. But for your reading pleasure, I took one week very strict Paleo.
For those who don’t know, Paleo essentially means cutting out all grain, dairy, and sugars. Sounds pretty insane right? (Rebecca does an awesome job talking about her journey with going Paleo here.)
It really, really isn’t.
Below I have included 2 example menus of my first few days. From that, I think you can see how easy it is to have fun with Paleo. Yes, it seems overwhelming. Yes, you’re going to sound like a douche when you order a cider or a nicer red wine instead of the local beer you want. But it is incredibly worth it.
I won’t lie, the first few days were really, really hard. They were filled with intense hunger and all of the headaches. What alarmed me was I do not even consider myself a sweets person, but the sugar withdrawls were epic. For me personally they only lasted 3 days, but I have heard from others that it can last longer. I think it depends on how clean you were eating prior. But they don’t last forever, and once you get through it there are so many positives!
My favorite things about Paleo? The sleep. I sleep like a literal rock. I haven’t been tossing and turning, I haven’t been waking up every 2 hours, I just sleep. It’s incredible. Also, I wake up like THAT. I don’t need to snooze. In fact, when I was strict Paleo, most days I was waking up before my alarm and laying in my bed for that 10-20 minutes just being. It has been so lovely.
But, again, this doesn’t come with it’s downsides.
My least favorite thing about Paleo? The dreams. I’ve done some research and apparently vivid dreaming is pretty common. I had a dream the other night that I had a boyfriend (I can remember EXACTLY what he looked like, so I will be paying attention IRL to see if this was some kind of prophecy), we were on vacation, I was stressed because I couldn’t find food. I can remember exactly what I was wearing. This is new for me! It’s super strange. I don’t love vivid dreams, but I am taking note.
Here are my biggest tips for Paleo:
1. If you are serious about trying it, take a buddy with you for the journey. It helps tremendously from planning meals to complaining about hunger and black coffee.
2. Don’t be afraid to eat. You have to remove yourself from those typical dietary constraints. If you’re hungry, eat. If you’re craving cheese, that means you need more fatty meats. If you’re craving sugar, have some dark chocolate. Do not be afraid to put more food in your body than normal, it’s the right kind of food.
3. Don’t give into temptation. Paleo has LOTS of ways to make it through fun times without breaking. On my second day I made a crazy decision to go to trivia at my favorite pizza place with my parents, where I had to stare at my favorite beers and pizzas for 3 hours. But I stayed strong! I had a Gluten Free beer that wasn’t horrible (Omission brewery, look into it y’all) and some naked, baked wings. There are worse ways to spend an evening.
4. Don’t give up!! The first week WILL be hard. You’re learning to eat a new way. Don’t cheat during this week. Official Paleo allows you to have 1 cheat day or 3 cheat meals a week (80/20 lifestyle), but don’t do this until you really detox and really adjust to the new way of eating.
I hope these tips help. And I hope you’re as intrigued as I was! If anything, it’s a challenge. And you KNOW you can do it if you try. I know you can, too. My month was up on Tuesday, and I’ve committed to a Paleo diet for much longer. Will I incorporate some cheese sometimes? Maybe. Will I eat my mom’s homemade spaghetti and meatballs if she makes it on Sunday dinners? Of course. The trick is to eat as clean as you can, as often as you can. And if it takes 30 days of Paleo to get you there, all the better.
Below are 2 day’s worth of meals. I hope this shows you how much you can really eat on Paleo! Okay, so I complain a little too.
Day 1:
Breakfast: Smoothie with a banana, orange, and some coconut water.
Lunch: 2 Italian Sausage links cooked with a little oil, garlic, peppers, and onions (dinner left overs!)
Dinner: I had a little treat and went to this Paleo restaurant. I got a burger (sans bun and cheese) with bacon, avocado, tomatoes, lettuce, onion, all in a lettuce wrap. Was I salivating for tater tots? Sure, but my side of fruit was pretty sweet and delicious.
Day 2:
Breakfast: 2 eggs, black coffee. BLACK COFFEE. It grows on you, I swear.
Lunch: Salad packed with greens, onions, bacon, eggs, chicken, avocado, herb vin (like, this is not even a diet)
Snacks: apple, grapes, blueberries, roasted / salted almonds
Dinner: Fajitas. Have you ever ordered fajitas without tortillas, cheese, or sour cream? You’ll get some looks of horror, and you’ll feel REALLY sad, but it will all be worth it.
[Lead image via v.schlichting/Shutterstock]
