After 8 weeks on the paleo diet I have been feeling great, and in some respects even better than I did before. Although healthy previous to starting the diet, I can say without a doubt that everything seems to be running a lot smother. Energy, Focus, Digestion have all been big benefits. The largest change I have noticed by far is in my eye sight. I only required a slight prescription for distance prior to starting the diet but I do not think I even need that any more. It must be all the Kale I have been eating. That stuff is a miracle food!
From wiki … and it’s all absolutely true!
Kale is very high in beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, lutein, zeaxanthin, and reasonably rich in calcium. Kale, as with broccoli and other brassicas, contains sulforaphane (particularly when chopped or minced), a chemical with potent anti-cancer properties.[1] Boiling decreases the level of sulforaphane; however, steaming, microwaving, or stir frying do not result in significant loss.[2] Along with other brassica vegetables, kale is also a source of indole-3-carbinol, a chemical which boosts DNA repair in cells and appears to block the growth of cancer cells.[3][4] Kale is also a good source of carotenoids.[5]
Kale is my new favorite food! Although a little tough to eat every day, I have been trying to eat it 2 to 4 times per week, along with lots of grass feed animals and many many other veggies. If you look at the nutrient list in kale, you’ve got treatment or prevention for most vision problems, including macular degeneration, glaucoma, and cataract. You can also support osteoporosis with the calcium and vitamin K in there, as well as, you have a very strong cancer prevention food and hormone balancer with the I-3-C and Sulforaphane!
I have also been eating quite a bit of diakon root and black radish. I have been using them in soups and stir-fries. These root veggies, although perhaps not part of a true paleolithic diet program are amazing for the liver and digesting all of that meat I have been eating.
Yesterday I spent 3 hours making sausage. I started with 5 pounds of organic pork and 5 pounds of organic turkey meat. I used a kitchenaid meat grinder and sausage maker … this thing is amazing. The sausages were also incredible. If you like sausages, it sure is nice to see what goes into them. I produced about 50 sausages for about 1/3 of the cost of purchasing them at whole foods and these were organic!
My sausage experience was a dry run for what I really want to do ….. try to incorporate more grass feed organ meats into my diet. Consuming organ meats is a bit of a dangerous game as if you choose organs from a sick animal you will end up with some of their toxins in your body. It is important, therefore, that when making my next round of sausages, I pick organs, such as heart and liver, that are from grass feed animals not exposed to loads of antibiotics and hormones. These toxins end up in our body.
On the exercise front I have been doing quite well, overall exercising about 3 to 4 times per week. I have certainly leaned out quite a lot over the last few months and look forward to the next month. I cannot see me going backwards anytime soon …. except for maybe a piece of cheese here and there! Yum!