How is your diet? A work in progress? Mine too!

I have always thought of myself as a healthy eater. Well, except for college. ;)

I have since told myself the lack of soda and junk food in the house with only a handful of stops at the drive through made me healthy. But it was really just a starting point.

My husband has always said getting fit is 70% what you eat and 30% exercise. And because my diet wasn't the best and I was a very active person, I did not listen to him. But don't feel bad for him, he is used to it. 

My diet was pretty much whatever I thought was healthy. But did this mean more vegetable and less chocolate? Absolutely not. I ate meat, grains, dairy, carbs and then sweets to "reward myself" for a rough day. I really just assumed that staying active would keep me healthy and fit. But I was wrong (no need to tell my husband I said that).

Flash forward to finding Buti Yoga and starting my journey of eating grain free and dairy free (basically paleo). Because my husband has a gluten allergy, we really don't have a lot of breads and such in our home, Which made cutting grains somewhat easy (although I did dream of bread floating in the sky one night).

Then came cutting out dairy. I have pretty much had a glass of milk at every meal my entire life. I loved it. And cheese, oh man. A meal was not finished until I added cheese. So when it came to cutting dairy I was a bit terrified. But somehow, I prevailed! I was able to switch cheese with some other topping that added to the flavor of the meal. And thankfully, no one was hurt in my transition. 

In the first two weeks of my new paleo lifestyle, my body changed immensely. I leaned up so quickly I couldn't believe it. I have always rocked "thunder thighs" and they quickly became sculpted and stronger. I have always had a flat stomach but now I am seeing definition and actual abdominal muscles! Freaking craziness I tell you!

I kept up being paleo for a few months (with one cheat meal a week) but today I am not as strict. I try to avoid grains and dairy if possible, but sometimes life and my crazy schedule gets in the way. 

And now my focus is shifting again. Paleo is inspiring me to eat even cleaner than before, but it is a very high fat diet. Which I don't mind as it works for my body, but I need to be conscious of my veggie intake. Because it sucks. So ten points for me for getting creative in the kitchen and trying new recipes to include more vegetables. 

I love that my grocery cart is now filled with more fresh produce than boxed foods. I love that my meals are becoming "one bowl wonders" to throw in as many veggies as possible. And I love that I love it!! One of my favorite discoveries was the veggie spiral fun. I can come home late from teaching and spiral a zucchini into the skillet with leftover chicken and veggies to  make a quick, healthy meal. And it makes me feel fancy. ;)

So cheers to throwing more veggies into the mix and continuing to eat more consciously and healthy. And with any luck, my kids will actually eat something green too. 

Eat better! You're totally worth it!

Michelle