Tomorrow you will start Day 1 of the Primal 21 Day Challenge. Decide today what you will eat tomorrow for meals and/or snacks, determine different ways to increase movement, and decide how you will relax before bed. Then tomorrow, DO those things!
Meal/Snack Ideas:
Breakfast- omelet cooked in coconut/extra virgin olive oil with veggies; eggs with sauteed kale and bacon that is uncured and without nitrates/nitrites; sunny-side-up eggs atop a green salad.
Lunch- spinach salad with boiled eggs, tomatoes, olives and an extra virgin olive oil dressing with sea salt and freshly squeezed lemon juice; (if you made a roast, pulled pork or other meat for a Sunday dinner the day before) put leftover meat atop a green salad along with avocados; pan cooked chicken thighs with oven baked vegetables in extra virgin olive oil, sea salt and pepper along with a baked sweet potato.
Dinner- baked cabbage with sausage and onions; vegetable soup with a side of meat; Crock Pot Lemon Pepper Chicken with baked asparagus.
Snacks- celery or sliced apples with almond butter; avocado with sea salt; boiled eggs; Sweet Potato Chips; macadamia nuts.
Increased Movement Ideas:
Take a walk in the morning with your dog; take 30-60 min breaks from work to walk around, get a drink, etc; walk to the store; take your kids to the park; take a family stroll after dinner.
(Ensure this is happening at least 3x/day!)
Relaxation Ideas:
Dim/turn off lights as the sun goes down; light candles; read a book; put dimmers or download them to your computer (i.e. f.lux); turn off your TV/phone/tablet/computer at least a couple hours before bed; read to your children; spend time with family/friends.
Lastly, document!
-where you shopped for primal foods
-how you increased your daily movement during 3 different times in the day
-relaxation techniques tried
-energy level {POOR, AVERAGE, GREAT}
-satisfaction level with meals
-hunger level between meals
-struggles
-benefits
Let's Talk:
The purpose of this challenge is to change your body from a sugar burning body to a fat burning body!
In Mark Sisson's 'Primal Blueprint 21 Day Total Body Transformation' book he states in his key concepts that, "Even if some - or most - of your diet has been in the form of "complex" carbs, this excessive and unnecessary intake of carbs has reprogrammed your genes from an early age to make you more dependent on a regular supply of dietary carbohydrate. You are a "sugar burner" if you are trapped in this carbohydrate dependency. If you're like most people, this high intake of carbs over time has elevated your insulin levels throughout the day, and resulted in excess calories (from all foods, not just carbs) to be stored as body fat. Over the years, chronically high levels of glucose and insulin in your blood have altered your fat cells so that you can't easily burn this plentiful source of stored energy. If your body is accustomed to burning carbs as fuel instead of stored fat, your brain will crave your usual fuel source - carbs - more often. This leads to a vicious cycle of insidious weight gain over a lifetime, even if you exercise frequently."
Once, a Nurse Practitioner that I worked with told me {after I had said it was unhealthy to eat grains}, "Briana, you NEED carbs". Our society thinks that we "NEED" carbs in order to function and they have even set a dietary requirement for carbohydrates. This is not necessary. I then explained to this woman that we can get carbs elsewhere, such as vegetables or meat. We have a fabulous body that can use protein and fat to pull out glucose to use when needed for our brains to function just right. This process is called gluconeogenesis, which is the synthesis of glucose from non-carbohyrates. So, no, we do not need to bombard our body with EXTRA glucose from grains, legumes, sugars, etc to burn for energy and to stay alert. Our body does this on its own using primal/healthy/simple foods.
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