Another Paleo Semester Completed!

My fourth semester of eating Paleo/Primal at college is almost over, and I attribute a lot of my successes to this lifestyle. It has helped me stay healthy, manage stress better, sleep more, and remain focused on tasks without having sugar spikes and crashes. This post is going to be a bit of a wrap-up of the last few months, but I also want to give a huge thank you to all of my readers and the Paleo/Primal community for being so awesome!

Here are some things I've learned/realized this semester:

1. Many non-Paleo/Primal people are going to think you're insane or just plain weird for avoiding grains, legumes, sugar, processed food, [dairy], etc., and will probably make obnoxious comments to you. However, people can also be super understanding and accommodating.

Most new people I meet think I'm out of my mind when I turn down desserts, pizza, or rice with my Indian food. I've heard comments like, "Wow, I could never do that! That must be so hard/boring!" and "No bread?? How can you not eat bread??" and "Oh, come on, just have a bite!" I don't make comments about other people's food choices, so why should they question mine? However, my friends are absolutely fantastic-- if we go out to eat, they'll make sure I can eat something on the menu, and my roommates will make sure not to use non-Paleo ingredients if we're cooking in our room. My GA (like an RA, but a grad student) has also been great-- when he realized I don't eat grains, gluten, or anything processed, he started bringing fruit to floor events so I can eat something too! So for every obnoxious person, there's an equally wonderful and supportive person!

2. The Paleo/Primal community is awesome... and members actually exist in real life!

As I mentioned a few months ago, I had the amazing opportunity of attending a Paleo nutrition seminar with Diane from Balanced Bites (where I met Kristin from FastPaleo and Stacy from Paleo Parents as well!). It was my first time meeting people who also follow this lifestyle, and it was such an incredible experience to bond with others that share my interest in evolutionary nutrition. Paleo/Primal people do, in fact, exist outside of the internet, and I look forward to meeting many more of you!

3. It has been a Paleo/Primal/evolutionary nutrition-literature-filled semester!

In the last few months, many books and cookbooks have been released that are relevant to this lifestyle. Here's a list, and I highly recommend checking them all out!

-Wheat Belly by Dr. William Davis (Wheat Belly Blog)

-Paleo Comfort Foods by Julie and Charles Mayfield (Paleo Comfort Foods Blog)

-Make It Paleo by Bill Staley and Hayley Mason (The Food Lovers Primal Palate)

-21 Day Total Body Transformation by Mark Sisson (Mark's Daily Apple)

-The Paleo Answer by Loren Cordain (The Paleo Diet)

4. Being Paleo/Primal boosts the immune system and helps you stay healthy (when everyone else around you is sick).

Thanks to this lifestyle, I have an immune system of steel. When it seemed like everyone around me was sick, I remained healthy! Yes, it's cold and flu season, but eating and sleeping well will keep sickness away due to a strengthened immune system. Staying healthy has also allowed me to be more productive in my studies-- my work never suffered from feeling sick, and I never had to miss class or rehearsal due to sickness either. Eat well, sleep well, stay well!

5. Paleo has helped me stay focused.

Because my blood sugar stays relatively stable due to evolutionary nutrition, I never get "food comas" or become ravenously hungry just a few hours after eating due to sugar spikes/crashes. Thus my studies were never interrupted due to a need for a post-lunch nap or snacking throughout the day/night-- I was able to stay focused on work or studying without making those mid-afternoon junk food runs or the midnight trips to Wawa.

6. Paleo has helped me manage stress.

Penn was recently named the #4 Most Stressful College, but there has never been a point during this semester (or any semester since going Paleo, for that matter) when I felt completely stressed out or overwhelmed. There were certainly plenty of times when I thought the amount of work was going to make me go insane, but I found myself pretty calm about everything. This lifestyle has helped me manage stress better, since my mind and body are working together thanks to proper nutrition and sleep. Those ginormous term papers and scary finals really don't stress me out anymore, whereas my first semester of college (which was pre-Paleo) had me stressing out about every little assignment or exam.

7. Churrascarias = Paleo/Primal heaven.

I had my first experience at a churrascaria this past Friday, when I went to the Fogo de Chao here in Philly. A churrascaria is a Brazilian steakhouse in which so many different types of meat are brought to your table and cut up right there-- you control the amount of meat you eat during your meal due to a nifty little red and green card that signifies when you want the meat to start or stop coming. Fogo de Chao also had the greatest salad bar I've ever seen (and this is apparently quite common of churrascarias)... so coupled with the unlimited meat, it's Paleo/Primal heaven.

I've had such a great semester at Penn, and I look forward to sharing my Paleo/Primal experiences while studying abroad at the University of Edinburgh next semester!

Quote of the Day:

"It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver." -Gandhi

My Psych Class and Bogus Science

I once again apologize for not updating much these last few months. This semester has been a lot more hectic than I had anticipated, but it'll be over in two weeks! I'll hopefully update much more frequently over my holiday break.

I'm currently taking Intro to Psychology to fulfill one of my gen-ed requirements, and the class has been okay up until now-- some of the topics I found really interesting (evolutionary psych!), and others I just kind of suffered through (I'm not a science person, so the neuropsychology stuff wasn't exactly my cup of tea). But in all of the topics covered thus far, the information was scientifically proven-- we know, for example, which parts of the brain control which processes. So even though if I didn't understand everything perfectly, there was at least scientifically proven research to back up this information, and I can accept that it's all true.

So why am I talking about my psych class? For the past two lectures, my professor has been talking about food. The second he announced the topic, I said to myself, "Uh oh, get ready for a ton of Conventional Wisdom crap." And I was, unfortunately, correct. He lectured about the calories in/calories out theory (which is false-- watch this link from Fat Head and pick up Good Calories, Bad Calories and/or Why We Get Fat), that fat is unhealthy (also false-- click here, here, here, and watch this clip from Fat Head), that the BMI system is a good indicator of a person's health (also false-- click, and remember that BMI doesn't take into account muscle), and that the obesity crisis wouldn't exist if everyone ate the equivalent of three apples less per week (um...... WHAT!?!??!?!?). Needless to way, it was a very frustrating few days in psych. Where was any of the science behind this!?!? How can someone actually spread that information without having the facts?

What really baffled me was that my professor also acknowledged that people have no training health and nutrition, yet lectured about this topic and made no sense at all. Well, yeah, of course people don't have training-- the movie Food Matters said that only 6% of doctors have nutritional training, so why would anyone else be informed when they can just get information from the equally uninformed (i.e. the other 94%)? It's so sad that people are clueless about health and nutrition; instead, they rely on Conventional Wisdom, uninformed doctors, and Dr. Oz, and don't have the science to back up their choices. (It also doesn't help that the government is spewing crap to us too-- tomato paste on pizza can now count as a serving of vegetables!) I really don't blame my professor for lecturing Conventional Wisdom BS-- it's probably what was fed to him and no one ever pointed out the flawed science. (I raised my hand to comment on the things he was saying, but the class is in a huge lecture hall and he never saw me. Ugh!!)

The information about evolutionary nutrition is out there and makes sense! Humans aren't adapted to eat grains, legumes, chemical-heavy food products, or low-fat anything. We didn't evolve to count calories or carbs or have other people tell us that we need to be a certain weight for our height in order to be considered healthy. And we certainly didn't evolve to take meds for things that can be cured by simply eating the way our ancestors did. Read any of the literature available-- Loren Cordain, Robb Wolf, Mark Sisson, Nora Gedgaudas, Weston Price, Gary Taubes, and a host of brilliant Paleo/Primal/ancestral bloggers (Chris Kresser, Jack Kruse, Stephan Guyanet, Denise Minger, and Chris Masterjohn, just to name a few) all can back up claims about this lifestyle with real science. Although all of their views may differ slightly, the basics are still there: eat the food that we were evolved to eat, and check out the science to prove it.

Here's Mark Sisson's new food pyramid, as one example of what real food is:

But would people knowing the science really change anything? Sadly, I doubt it-- people know junk food is bad for them, yet still eat it anyway. However, it would still be a huge step in the right direction if A) doctors were trained in evolutionary nutrition, B) the government got rid of the ridiculous food plate and actually learned evolutionary nutrition as well, and C) some type of Paleo/Primal/ancestral literature became required reading in schools/health classes. While people would probably still make poor dietary choices, at least they'd know which foods are actually good (read: NOT LOW FAT) so they can make educated decisions if/when they decide to embark on a journey to better health.

Quote of the Day:

"Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it." -The Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama

College Paleo

I apologize for not having updated in quite a few weeks-- between midterms, rehearsals, papers, and just general college stuff, things have been pretty crazy around here! But now that the worst is over (I think), I'll hopefully be able to update more frequently.

Speaking of college, though, I'd like to dedicate this post to my fellow college Paleo enthusiasts, because it seems like we're a growing number! When I first started this lifestyle in February 2010, I didn't know anyone else who ate this way-- I was the girl with the weird diet who wouldn't go out for Wawa milkshakes and would eat Indian food without rice and naan. Since most college events revolve around crappy food, living Paleo/Primal can be extremely isolating-- declining gets you away from the temptation, but going and not eating makes everyone question you and make you feel like you're totally crazy. I'm not going to deny the fact that I felt very alone that first year-- my friends were all really great about my decision to eat clean, but it was still hard if they were all going out for fro-yo or ordering in Insomnia Cookies. I thought that I must be the only college student who ate like this-- because who else in their right mind would give up pizza, mac & cheese, hoagies, and cupcakes?

When I discovered the whole Paleo movement this past January and started networking with other enthusiasts, I noticed that I was younger than everyone else. Although this didn't bother me because the Paleo/Primal community doesn't discriminate based on age (or anything else), it still would've been nice to find people around my age who could relate to being Paleo in college. Over the summer, however, especially with the birth of the International Paleo Movement Group on Facebook and the numerous threads on Paleo Hacks, I started noticing more and more younger people entering the Paleosphere. In fact, the blog Primal University was created back in August geared just towards college Paleos! So I'm not crazy: we are a growing number!

Yes, being Paleo in college can be isolating and frustrating. However, there are so many reasons to adopt this lifestyle as a college student-- the main one being for the stronger immune system. Like I've mentioned in previous posts, I don't get sick (knock on wood), and haven't since I went Paleo. My friends, however, are always sick, and I know that poor nutrition (and thus a weakened immune system) is the primary cause. Your body is like a machine-- fuel it properly and it'll run smoothly and won't break down. With so much going on in school, being sick can be devastating-- making things up from missing classes, rehearsals, practices, or meetings is a hell of a lot harder than eating well! Paleo also taught me about the importance of sleep-- while I think nutrition plays the largest part in being healthy, sleep is absolutely necessary, and I think I get more sleep than 99% of college students. (I usually get at least 8 hours of sleep a night, even on totally packed days... I don't know how some people only run on 4 or 5!)

Another great advantage is that it saves you money. Yes, you might spend more on higher-quality food, but you'll save a lot by not going out for pizza, ice cream, sandwiches, milkshakes, fro-yo, and $6 Venti Iced Peppermint White Chocolate Mochas (or any of the other crazy-named drinks) at Starbucks. Further, I eat out a lot less now because I just don't trust the ingredients at most restaurants-- I never know if there's hidden gluten/soy/vegetable oil/sugar in the food, so it's easier (and better for my health) to just decline most "Let's go out for food!" invites. Not only will that keep my body happy, but it'll keep my wallet happy too.

I also find that I'm a lot less stressed out about things, and I know that a lot of people in the Paleo community can attest to stress levels dropping since going Paleo as well. Semesters are really busy-- every time you finish one thing, there are five more things to finish too! My first semester of college was the only time I wasn't Paleo, and I remember being stressed out about the littlest assignments; now, I tend to handle things pretty well and very rarely freak out about school or extracurriculars. It's actually pretty amazing how much more time you have to be productive when you're not stressed out about things 24/7! I was completely clueless about cortisol pre-Paleo, but now I realize just how much nutrition is connected to absolutely everything else in your body-- and good nutrition certainly helped decrease my cortisol levels!

Everyone has the right to be healthy and happy, so taking control of your life through eating Paleo/Primal/real food is something that can be done at any age. I strongly encourage everyone to give this lifestyle a try, but I'd really love to see more Paleo students! Less sickness, money saved, and less stress? Sounds pretty great!

Since this is a college-themed post, I'd also like to tell you that I'll be studying abroad in Scotland at the University of Edinburgh next semester, so look out for posts starting in January about my food experiences in the UK!

Quote of the Day:

"With realization of one's own potential and self-confidence in one's ability, one can build a better world." -The Dalai Lama

College, a.k.a. Candyland, a.k.a. Gluten and Sugar Fest

College should be renamed "gluten and sugar fest" or, perhaps, Candyland. Almost every event I go to has pizza, cookies, soda, cupcakes, chips, sandwiches, pretzels, ice cream... the list goes on. It's no surprise, then, that there's the "freshman fifteen" or just general weight-gain when some people go off to college due to the copious amount of craptastic food. Why eat healthy when you can just live on the free pizza at club meetings or the free pastries and soda at major campus events?

This is Candyland. It probably has the same sugar content as the food at some campus events:

Sigh.

It doesn't bother me that it's everywhere-- after more than a year and a half of Paleo/Primal, I got over the sugar cravings a long time ago. It does bother me, however, when there are no Paleo options at a huge food event on campus (or elsewhere, for that matter). Yesterday, my school's president hosted a Junior Welcome Back Picnic-- I went to the one for sophomores last year, and I had a ton of Paleo options (vegetable kabobs, berries, high-qualities cheeses [nom, brie!], chicken, burgers...), so I went this year. I had one option: the mini burgers (sans bun). And since the place was completely packed, there wasn't really the option of getting more than two of the tiny patties. Pssh-- those wouldn't keep anyone full!

So I was a little frustrated and ended up at the dining hall afterward anyway. Fine. But you know what bothers me more than lack of options? People that question the way I eat. When I ordered those mini burgers without the bun, the guy in front of me gave me this look and was like, "No bun? Seriously?" to which I responded, "Yeah. Gluten is evil." Then I walked away.

Since becoming Paleo, I've gotten a lot of comments from people about my decision not to eat like crap. I went to an event last year and didn't have a piece of cake, and a bunch of people were absolutely horrified, saying things like, "What do you mean, you don't eat cake!? How could you not eat cake!? That's crazy!" Or every time my friends and I go out for Indian (my favorite cuisine), people always comment on the fact that I don't eat rice, naan, or any of the desserts. Why!? I don't say things like, "Oh my god, you're eating cake/rice/cookies/pizza! How could you possibly eat cake/rice/cookies/pizza? That's crazy!" (However, I do think to myself that they are crazy for eating that crap-- I just keep my thoughts to myself, because food is definitely an individual choice and no one should tell you how to eat. That being said, if someone asks my opinion on said crappy foods, I will most certainly speak up!) So why is healthy eating questioned? Why do people feel the need to comment?

That's why it was so nice attending a Paleo seminar with Diane from Balanced Bites last weekend at CrossFit Center City (Philly). Not only did I learn an absolute ton of information about nutrition, but it my first time meeting Paleo people-- and it was even cooler meeting some big-name bloggers like Stacy from Paleo Parents and Kristin from Fast Paleo. (Paleo enthusiasts actually exist outside of the internet!!!! Ahhhh!!!! So exciting!!!!!) Having lunch there without any sugar or gluten in sight was amazing-- everyone was eating real food, and no one was questioning my food choices.

One of the things I love the most about the Paleo community is that we share a lot of the same experiences-- we all know how it feels when people question our decisions to avoid grains ("But how can you possibly be healthy without whole grains!? They're so good for you!!"), to eat fat ("You're going to get heart disease and become obese!"), to pass on sugary crap ("Oh, just one bite won't kill you!"), to not believe in anything the USDA says ("But you have to follow the food pyramid!"), to not eat grain-fed cows and chickens ("But vegetarian-fed animals are so healthy!")... We've all heard it before, and we know just how annoying it is when we get bombarded with questions about our lifestyle from people who only know what Dr. Oz and their doctors tell them. So to spend the day last weekend with members of the Paleo community who all understand my frustrations with people who feel the need to question how I eat? Priceless.

I'm an anomaly on campus. I don't support the Candyland-style approach to college eating, but I will never make a comment to those who do. It's not my place, and it shouldn't be their place to question my approach to eating either.

Quote of the Day:

"I call wheat one of Satan's excrements, throwing off fructose and linoleic acid in there too..." -Robb Wolf, Episode 95