Paleo Diet Week 2 Plus a Hike

Well I haven't been able to get to Steemit to report my progress as much as I'd like, but it's not because I've been lazy...ok maybe a little procrastination, but I've been cooking a lot still. I'm still at Chris Kresser's version of the Paleo Diet. So far, I have been quite proud of myself and do not feel like I've messed up too bad, yet. I did start having really bad sweet tooth attacks and caved. I decided to go with 88% cacao chocolate because it was the darkest I could find. Unfortunately it is sugar and has some soy in it. I've never taken so long to eat a candy bar in my life. It's been like 5 days and still going. Also, it's the first time I've really enjoyed dark chocolate. Probably because this one isn't completely terrible as cocoa is very nutritious and the limited sugar was much more appreciated. Besides that though I've only had sugar in some bacon and of course whatever is in the fruits and berries that I have been having limited amounts of.

Edit* I went to a wild edibles workshop/dinner last night and decided to not worry about the paleo diet. I consumed more sugar and some alcohol. I figured the experience of eating plants I was unfamiliar with and interacting with experts was worth it.

I was able to go on a camping trip eating paleo. The trip made me really want my own dehydrator so that I could make some trail mixes and my own jerky. Like a dumb dumb newb face, I failed to take pictures of my food so I'll show you a few pictures of the hike instead, and tell you about the food.

Paw Paw Flower

We went to Ouachita National Forest in Arkansas. This was only a two day trip so it wasn't super crazy. I ate kale chips, beets, walnuts, almonds, broccoli, carrots, boiled eggs and radishes on the first hike. I could not find my sardines or I would have eaten them too. The hike was beautiful and I was on the look out for anything entertaining or edible. There turned out to be a lot of clear quarts crystals, and many different species. It was strange to go on a hike without peanuts or a protein bar but I managed.

Auricularia - Wood Ear, Jelly Ear

I found some edible mushrooms on the hike, and I am in search of a recipe for them. It will be my first time trying wood ear and I've heard it is a very common dish in Asia. I'll be sure to share my experience and report on if I die or not.

A frog

On the day we walked, the trail was pretty damp and was warming up. There were quite a few frogs and the one above seemed to be sun bathing. He didn't move when I was putting my phone up close. I wondered if it was hoping I couldn't see it.

Morchella a. - Morel

This was the first Morel I have witnessed in the wild. It didn't seem to be in too good of shape and I could not find any in the near by area. I was still excited though!
I nearly forgot this is supposed to be about a Paleo diet. I chose pictures of edibles because eating wild is about as Paleo as you can go. I am in a process of finding spots and familiarizing myself with various species, steadily building more knowledge.

I have developed more of a rhythm with the cooking. It's been helping me to start envisioning the near term future and exercising that type of thought. I'll cook enough for dinner and lunch the next day. Usually, I have a smoothie or cook some veggies and eggs in the morning. I also cooked a stew in the begginning of the week and froze some. I have realized the value of a freezer even more than before. A freezer allows you to get ahead by making easy to heat up meals and storage so you don't have to go to the store so much. Seems obvious but when you are used to eating out all the time simple things are forgotten or not thought about.

Egg Plant and Pork Loin Roast

I cooked and ate egg plant for the first time and it was delicious. The recipe in Chris Kresser's book is quite good and easy to make. I did not like the cod as much but i believe that I messed up the recipe. I did not understand the sauce creation at all.

Cod, Cabbage, Bok Choy, and Oyster Mushrooms

It is nice to get ahead because I was able to eat left over egg plant a couple days later. It did not taste as good as when it was fresh made. Some of the enjoyable texture became too mushy for me. The flavor was still nice and I cooked well sourced sugarless pork sausage with it this time.

I've still been more focused on the sourcing of the meats than buying organic vegetables. Going all organic seems too expensive for me at this time so I am just doing the best that I can. I care more about the animals lives than the poison on the ground it would seem. However, I have a garden started, and I hope it will help with cost of fresh delicious veggies.

Now a check on how I feel. Emotionally, I have felt very good throughout most of the diet change process. There have been irritable times but I have found such satisfaction in cooking most all of my food and meals that it feels worth it. I have been surprised by that satisfaction. My gut still feels like it has some healing to do. I don't know if I am fully absorbing the nutrients that I am putting in yet. I have also wondered about my cholesterol levels through this process. It would be nice, for some peace of mind, to know since I have been eating so many eggs and other high cholesterol things. I did not experience as many headaches this second week but it might be because I had minimal sugar intake where the first week I had none. I still fart but it does seem to be tamed a bit. No stinky egg farts like last time. I am waiting for my gut to seem healthier before I make any judgement on how this diet is affecting them.

Thank you for reading my post. I am still forming my public writing voice, and I feel extra appreciative of your time.