Monday, August 3, 2009

Primal Challenge Day 1

Age: 26
Height: 5 feet 7 inches
Weight: 136.4 lbs
Waist at narrowest point: 27 in
Waist at navel: 30.5 in
Hips: 36 in

Breakfast:
none


Lunch:
Large salad - butter lettuce, radicchio, carrot, celery, squid, bacon, balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil
cherries
roasted unsalted almonds
primal lemonade - water, lemon juice, stevia


Snack:
Homemade beef jerky (this batch didn't turn out very well or I'd give you the recipe)


Dinner:
Beer marinated flap steak
Cucumber salad with parsley, mint, extra virgin olive oil and rice vinegar
Sliced tomato with salt, pepper and extra virgin olive oil


Dessert:
87% dark chocolate
peppermint/lemongrass/ginger tea

Exercise:
bodyweight workout that I modified from Son of Grok that I did for 7 minutes - 5 pushups, wall sit for 10 seconds, 20 jumping jacks, 5 stand ups, rest 30 seconds
walked about 1.5 miles

So, you may have noticed that sneaky little word in my big lunch salad...squid?! Well I was at Whole Foods yesterday and as usual I walked by the seafood counter on my way to the butcher case. I usually give it a desultory glance and move on. Yesterday, I noticed a pretty little pile of meat and tentacles at a shockingly low price and I felt a kind of madness steal over me. Before I knew what was happening I found myself telling the fish guy to give me half a pound of squid. I've never bought or cooked squid before in my life. I ended up broiling it, but I think I must have cooked it too long because it got a little rubbery. It was fine tossed in my salad though since I drowned it out with bacon and balsamic vinegar. :)

The steak recipe I used for dinner is reallllllly good. The marinade does include beer though, so if wheat=death for you it might not be your cup of tea.

Overall, I think day 1 has been a success. :)

9 comments:

Yummy said...

I am going to love your blogging this challenge!! Your meals look amazing. Yum!

-S

Lauren said...

Care to share your steak recipe, Elizabeth?

Good luck with the primal challenge! I'll be attempting to eat more primal as well.

Anonymous said...

I've never heard of flap steak! (I'm not good with cuts of meat) also have never eaten squid, but your salads look unusually appetising!

Elizabeth said...

YG - Thanks! :D

Lauren - The phrase "beer marinated flap steak" should be a link to the recipe, but in case it's not showing up the recipe is here: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pan-Grilled-Beer-Marinated-Hanger-Steak-236873

Nancy - I had never heard of flap steak before 2 days ago. :) I usually use skirt steak for this recipe (recipe calls for hanger steak, but I can't get that at the grocery store). I got flap steak this time because I went to a butcher shop and talked to the butcher about it.

Marc said...

Elizabeth,

Good stuff. Congrats on a good first day.

My only advice, ditch the fruit for the next 4 weeks.

Marc

Mindy said...

Hi!! Way to go one day one!! I love that you are taking pics! Helps make grocery shopping a heck of a lot easier for me if I wannt try a recipe or candy bar!! =). I am glad your diagnosis brought you a sense of relief and answered some of your concerns. That is how I felt as well. Personally it hasn't been an easy ride. I hope things are much smoother for you. You are well on your way to living a healthy and fit life and you are inspiring so many people to do the same!! We all are here to support you and if you have any questions about hypo-t, holla at me!!!

Quick question... I think you touched on this in a previous post, but what is the main difference between paleo and primal??? I am doing paleo/zone right now and am LOVIN it!!

Question to Marc...why did you advise Elizabeth to ditch fruit?? I took out a significant amount of fruit as well over the past month and I've been feelin great. I mainly took it out to decrease my overall sugar intake and I think my body wasn't doing well with the fructose. Anywho, I was just wondering if there is any other specific reason(s) why you suggested it? I completely agree with you and feel great now that I'm eating more veggies than fruits!! I use to eat a TON of fruits, a TON! and thought I could never stop, but I have, and I feel so much better!!!

Best,
Mindy

Marc said...

Mindy,

Since Elizabeth is trying to drop a little weight, she just really doesn't need the fruit right now. It's good to give your body a break from the fructose. We like sweet things....so even fruit we tend to eat too much off, so for the 30 days, I think it wil help fend of cravings and get her to the weight loss goal she's looking for.
hope that explains it a bit.

Marc

Mindy said...

Hi Marc,

Thank you so much for answering my question! Makes perfect sense!!!

Best,
Mindy

Elizabeth said...

Marc - I will ditch the fruit if I feel like it's slowing me down, but for now I'm limiting it to 1 serving a day. All my favorite fruits are in season right now and I've been waiting for months for them, so I'm enjoying them while I can! I did have a brief period this summer where I was eating a lot of fruit and it made me feel really rotten, so I have no wish to revisit that.

Mindy - Thanks so much! So, for the difference between paleo and primal. First off, there's paleo as shorthand for a generalized "paleolithic diet" and there's paleo meaning Loren Cordain's plan "The Paleo Diet." Generalized paleo means basically that you restrict your foods to meat/fish, eggs, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. Nothing else and no fancy processing. Avoid grains/dairy/legumes/sugar like the devil. You don't count protein/fat/carbs.

Cordain's paleo plan is similar but emphasizes protein and is restrictive in how much and what kind of fat you're supposed to eat, which generalized paleo does not. He also emphasizes produce, which generalized paleo does not.

Primal, on the other hand, is like paleo plus sensible "cheats." Like salt, dark chocolate, a little dairy, a little alcohol, the 80/20 rule, etc. All of those things would be excluded on a strict paleo diet. I also think primal really emphasizes the whole lifestyle, not just the diet.