Right now, I’d say my body is “good enough.” I’m not where I want to be, and it’s been worse, and I have enough fat allocated and missing in the right places to know my body still barely makes the cut off for “above average” in a technical sense — but I know I could look a lot better, so naturally, I want to.
I had agreed to go see a movie I had absolutely no interest in with my roommate because I was bored and it was Friday night, and in typical broke basic bitch fashion we went to the grocery store beforehand for snacks instead of paying the absurd prices for concession stand food. I don’t know exactly why or how, but while I was at the grocery store shopping for movie snacks I was confronted with how unhealthy my habits are. I realized how pathetic it was that I didn’t know what to bring as a snack because I didn’t have time to heat up pizza rolls and I didn’t see the pre sliced prosciutto I liked. I remembered a day at work where I almost ate 1000 calories in snacks, and it kind of hit me that if I couldn’t make real change in my diet and exercise habits that I would have an “average” build before I knew it and a few years down the line probably be medically overweight.
I don’t know exactly what came over me, but I realized at that moment that if I was ever going to be back in a body that I was proud of, I needed to change my lifestyle. And I needed to start paying more attention into what I put into my body — not just how much of it I put into my body. So I got carrots and hummus.
I’ve done calorie restriction before with pretty decent results, but the problem with calorie restriction — or my problem with it anyway, is that it isn’t a real lifestyle change. It’s just something I do to try to lose weight. Sure, it requires a hell of a lot of willpower sometimes, but telling yourself you can only eat so much of something terrible isn’t the same as cutting your favorite foods out of your diet almost entirely.
So this past weekend, for the first time in my life I grocery shopped like a real adult. I got eggs and veggies and fruit and salmon and meat with easy, paleo recipes in mind.
I knew that if this was really going to be any different than the other times I told myself I was going to get my health together, it had to be drastic. And that’s why I’m attempting the paleo diet.
I’m by no means an expert, and literally just decided to do this last Friday, so if you’re looking for an in depth resource on what a paleo diet entails, I highly recommend looking elsewhere. But what it means for me is that I’ve given up basically every aspect of food I love besides meat and eggs. No cheese, no bread, no potatoes. My favorite things to eat are pasta, pizza and sandwiches, so as you can imagine my willpower is being pushed to the limit.
I’ve already had a few slip ups by having a Reese’s cup (refined sugar is off the table as well) and accidentally eating some coleslaw after ordering it as a side in a restaurant, forgetting the mayo base, but these past few days have been an amazing exercise in self control. I resisted the donuts my boss brought into the office as well as the big beautiful bread rolls at the restaurant I went to on Sunday.
I’m not delusional, and I know that I will eat bread and cheese again, but I’m hoping that by cutting myself off from these vices of mine for an extended period of time I’ll gain new clarity and a lasting command of my health. I know I’ll eat spaghetti and steak and cheeses again but I’m hoping to make them a treat as opposed to a staple of my diet.
The truth is, it’s probably never going to be easier to get in shape than it is right now. The more I grow professionally, the less time I’ll have to work out and teach myself to cook healthy, high nutrition meals. And if I ever get married and have kids before establishing better habits for myself, I’ll probably never get rid of the baby weight. Before you know it I’ll resent my husband and kid for making me a lard bin, and my husband will resent me for becoming a lard bin. Next thing you know I’m weeping in Neiman Marcus because I’m a 37 year old divorcee trying to raise two perfect children on my own, and can’t fit any of the beautiful luxury lingerie I wanted to treat myself with. All because I couldn’t put down the damn pizza rolls.
Kidding, but you get my point. I’m the youngest I’ll ever be, and this is an optimal time for taking charge of my health.
I’m going to start sharing more about my health journey on my blog and Instagram because I know how overwhelming a task it seems to get in shape when all you have as examples are perfect fitness chicks that eat bird seeds and egg whites every day. I hope that by sharing my struggles and triumphs as I try to become more fit, I can be a realistic point of reference for anyone hoping to do the same.
dietfitnessgoalshealthmotivationnutritionpaleoself improvementweight loss
9 COMMENTS
Nicola @ Happy Healthy Motivated
6 years ago
I just want to give you a boost of encouragement here and let you know that I think you’re doing 100% the right thing! I’ve been suffering with IBS for over 1 year and since switching to eating (mostly) paleo for the past month, I’ve felt amazing and lost weight. Good luck!
The Pretty Patriot
6 years ago
AUTHORThank you, I really appreciate the encouragement! Good luck on your journey as well!
Joolz
6 years ago
If you want to see what real home cooked food is like, do what i do, order HelloFresh or something similar like ApronSomething . $59.00 for 6 meals, or more for more. Veg, mixed, and other menus. Try it for a week or 3, you’ll get PERFECTLY proportioned servings, and high quality food, great variety, and no ingredients to repackage because they send you just enough for the meals to make. Not having to trudge to the crowded grocery store and not having to put tons of food back in fridge is hours of time back in your month to do other things.
It saved my health, i was eating the same 15 things over and over for years. It might cost more than groceries, but saves the trip, and the waste which i found always occurs as food spoils because you bought too cost-effective a thing of romaine, but it was too big and oxidized before you could eat it all. Get HF or something like it. What happens is ton of ppl in their 20s eat poorly, and enter 30s with a decade of low health. That’s why so many late 30s are helathier than our early 30s version of ourselves because it takes a couple of years to realize, then admit, and then hardest of all, change lifestyle habits around.
Vera @ Flavor Diary
6 years ago
I tried all the diet that exist. Literally. After my daughter was born I gained 30kg. So I had to get rid of the baby weight, considering that I have also an untreatable autoimmune disease. I tackled the problems, but it was not easy finding the right balance. I say Paleo is good start, I did it for a while, but pure fat, protein based diets are not good for my health. So I have to balance it adding rice, and whole meal grains to it. Good luck to you. If you take a piece of advice: Don’t think about Paleo as a diet. You need a lifestyle change, and you will not miss out on anything. Find the right and healthy replacements for your favorite food. And once in a while a cheat meal is just fine. We’re human after all.
Erica
6 years ago
I’ve wanted to try Paelo for so long, but as a college student, I don’t have time to meal prep and strategically plan my meals. Hopefully sometime soon I can try it out though!
Erica
whattheclique.com
The Pretty Patriot
6 years ago
AUTHORYeah I can only imagine how hard that would be in college. I honestly don’t feel like I have a lot more time now than I did in college though so it might not get any better tbh 😂
Stephanie | Adventures in Aussieland
6 years ago
This year is my year to up my fitness game as well! Excited to follow your journey and see your progress!
The Pretty Patriot
6 years ago
AUTHORAlways love to hear that other people are making positive changes – it’s so motivating! And thank you!
Jenny
6 years ago
I’ve been trying to eat a more paleo diet myself. It’s tough sometimes but its worth it.