What do you eat?
March 7, 2012 | Posted by eryn under Paleo |
Whenever you’re on a special diet, you’re bound to be asked, “What do you eat?” I get that question a lot when I tell people we’re gluten-free and I definitely get it now that we’re Paleo. Certain foods — particularly grains, meats and dairy — are so ingrained in our society that I think it’s difficult for people to imagine being without them.
While we do eat meat, the elimination of grains and dairy has been difficult for us. I won’t say that it hasn’t been. I do think that the fact that we’ve been a gluten-free household for five years made the transition to Paleo easier. We used to have gluten-free breads, pastas, crackers, etc., but we’re a little more accustomed to gluten-free substitutes than most households (using lettuce as wraps for sandwiches or spaghetti squash instead of spaghetti, for instance).
And for myself, I think it has helped that I’m not 100% Paleo 24/7. I “cheat” by eating the samples whenever I go shopping at Costco, for instance. That’s a luxury I enjoy since I don’t have to worry about being gluten-free for health reasons in the same capacity as, say, my husband, who has celiac disease.
The occasional gluten-full snack aside, though, it really hasn’t been as difficult living without grains and dairy as I thought it might be. For one thing, I feel a lot better. For another, I’ve learned to enjoy different tastes. I satisfy my sweet tooth by eating fruits and I’m eating more spicy foods rather than loading food down with butter and cheese. There’s actually more variety in the flavors of the foods I’m eating. And finally, because we’re not eating as much processed food, it has made my shopping a little easier. I don’t have to worry as much about coupons and I don’t have to look at as many food labels (when you have someone with celiac disease in the household, looking at labels is critical — and time-consuming).
So, what do we eat? Plenty. Fruits, vegetables, beef, pork, poultry, lamb, fish, nuts and seeds, plus a little dark chocolate here and there. It’s good food. I feel good about eating it, buying it and serving it to our son.
What do you eat?
I used to get the same reactions when I told people I was vegetarian. Now vegetarianism seems to be synonymous with eating processed foods more than eating fresh foods. If I could get over the meat thing, I could definitely see the appeal of the Paleo diet. Particularly for someone who has celiac!
Yep, I used to get the same question when I was a vegetarian, too (and I did eat a ton of processed food, too, unfortunately).