Cold days and paleo plans
You guys, it is COLD. Finally! I lucked out and snagged these pictures RIGHT before it started to downpour (again), and I have a feeling that the weather is going to be really temperamental for the next few days. Last night, the torrential rain came in 3-5 minute intervals. Today, I think it’s rained five times since I’ve gotten up, with broken clouds in between. But I love it. As you know, I’ve been really hot through pregnancy so the cool weather is welcome!
If you’ve been around long enough, you know that a few months ago (okay, like… six) Mr. Owl and I embarked on The Whole 30. If you don’t know what that is (most people don’t), I posted about it several times: here, here, here, and here. But we haven’t really kept up on eating that way– Mr. Owl wasn’t fond of it because he lost weight, and I’ve been lazy — and last night, I finally decided I really need to go back to the Paleo way of eating.
For one, I’ve been SO gassy and heartburn-y lately — and I know to some extent that’s just pregnancy, but seriously it’s bad — and cleaning up what I eat will definitely help with that. For two, I want to be providing this baby with the best possible nutrition I can, and eliminating the foods I know cause problems with me — dairy, sugar, and beans especially — will also provide him with good nutrition. For three, I know that eliminating the five problem foods will assist with getting him to nurse when he’s born: my mom experienced a huge issue breast feeding one of my brothers and it was only later she discovered he was dairy intolerant. And if I’m already eating a clean diet by the time he arrives, it’ll be much easier to figure out why he’s having issues if he does have issues with things I eat.
Plus, I really  miss the energy and the overall good feeling of not eating the five problematic food groups. I slept better, woke up easier, did more, and felt freer to eat with the knowledge that I was nourishing my body.
Now, I will not be eating all-out strictly paleo. My food will occasionally include white potatoes (which are restricted as they’re starchy, don’t have any nutritious value, and are actually poisonous when raw), honey (strict paleo eaters don’t use any type of sweetener), and grains (because so far as I could tell, they didn’t affect me.) I will also occasionally juice things (not recommended because who seriously eats the same amount of fruit in one sitting as you do when you juice it?) But from today on, I am completely nixing the dairy, cane sugar (includes brown sugar and all other forms of sweeteners aside from honey), and legumes because those three food groups give me indigestion, bad stomach cramps, headaches, tiredness, crankiness, and… other things we won’t go into.
To get ready for this food change, I’ve started to go through all of my cool cookbooks (the ones with recipes from Spain, Italy, France, China, Morocco, Ireland, India, and who knows where else, plus the Well Fed paleo cookbook) and I’m creating a comprehensive list of recipes that don’t need to be modified, or can be easily modified with paleo substitutes (such as almond flour for regular, or coconut/almond milk to replace milk and yogurt, etc) from each cookbook (and there are over 10 of them), and I am categorizing them by meal (breakfast, lunch, dinner main dishes, side dishes, soups, snacks, desserts, sauces/dips/toppings). Once I’m done going through all of this, I hope to create weekly menus from now until the baby’s born, and after that I’ll write up grocery lists for each weekly menu.
It’s a massive job, but so far it is REALLY fun. I haven’t utilized my cookbooks as much as I should (some of them, I have never cooked out of), and it’s awesome to go through each one and realize that just because I’m nixing certain popular food groups doesn’t mean I won’t get to eat a wide and mouth-wateringly delicious array of food.
And when I’m done recipe-gathering, categorizing, menu-making, and list-writing, I will be able to easily stick to a clean paleo way of eating that I know will nourish myself and the baby, and I won’t have to do anything other than buy the ingredients and make the food. No more desperately flipping through cookbooks and getting discouraged that I can’t find anything to make or don’t have the ingredients for something! 
I am really excited for this. I’ll be sharing my favorite week-to-week recipes, either by posting them here or linking to them online, and I’ll also be posting helpful tips and my own recipes. Looking through all of these books has already given me a plethora of ideas for dishes entirely out of my own head!
It’s a lot of fun. 
If you are curious about paleo and The Whole 30, feel free to email me! Or, you can wander around Whole9Life.com. Here are a few really helpful and informative pages: What is the Whole 30Â | Resource page | An intro to Whole 9
And yes, eating this way is completely and totally safe during pregnancy. Why? Because it eliminates problem foods, and it is not a weight loss program. It is a healthy way to eat… forever, through anything, at any time. It doesn’t involve calorie counting, weighing in, crazy weird menus, point counting, nonfat eating, or anything. All it requires is… eat food. Real, healthy, wholesome, nutritious food.
Geometry Graphic Batwing Cardigan c/o Oasap | Lace Dress (similar) and Flats (similar), Target | Pearl Collar Necklace (similar), antique | Belt, thrifted
Have any of you ever tried a paleo diet, or heard of the Whole 30? What did you think?
I hope you are all having a beautiful Monday!
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17 Comments
jacquelinefrey
awk, this is so weird! i also completed a whole 30 right before getting caught by surprise by pregnancy (I’m 25 weeks along now) and have slipped off the bandwagon. i’ve been telling my husband for months how much i should really get back on a paleo eating plan, but while i already nix dairy, gluten and legumes full time i have the darndest time giving up sugar. especially this time of year! i look forward to your recipe posts! Xx
Eccentric Owl
Oh my goodness, that is so funny! Are you having a boy, too? Because that would be just weird. 🙂
Sugar is SO hard to give up! Especially with holidays coming up, and baby showers and the general “it’s fall, let’s have cookies” feeling.
Marla Rogers
That necklace is actually perfect. Also I’ve been thinking about doing the paleo diet too, I’m excited to see all of your updates :]
Eccentric Owl
Isn’t it pretty? I’m always afraid to wear it because it’s so old that the pearls occasionally fall off.
Oh, you should! I’ll try to provide helpful links with my updates, but it’s really not as hard as you might think, once you get past the initial cravings for the foods you’ve given up! And the results are so wonderful.
Marla Rogers
Do you know how old it is? I’m always hesitant to wear antique things because I feel so guilty potentially ruining them haha. But honestly it’s so worth it, at least in this case…it’s totally gorgeous.
I just started eating gluten free about a month ago and I’m still getting the hang of it…I think I’ll try paleo before the new year but it is seriously so hard to get adjusted to new regimes. Looking forward to inspiration from you though :]
Eccentric Owl
I’m guessing between 30-50 years old; there aren’t any markings, but it has the make of something from around the 60’s or so.
It definitely is! Falling into old habits is way too easy, and training your mind to think a new way is the hardest! I think all of this planning will help tremendously!
Salazar
Isn’t cold weather the best? It’s cooling down here in Vietnam too, and I’ve loving every minute of it.
I really can’t get into the whole paleo thing. I know it’s good for you, but I love bread and cake and cookies too much. Good luck with your plan though!
P/S: That picture of your hair down your back gave me a minor heart attack as I scrolled down, because I just made the mistake of rewatching The Ring 😛
Eccentric Owl
Yes, it definitely is! I used to be a summer girl, but I’ve morphed into absolutely loving the cold now! I think getting heat stroke in New Mexico is what did that…
Haha! Oh man, me too. It’s always really hard at first when I’m hanging out and people are eating stuff I can’t have, but surprisingly I get used to it (and this is coming from the biggest chips-and-chocolate addict you can think of.) I’ll still have pie or dessert at parties if it seems worth it, and I’m sure on holidays I won’t be sticking with it, but day to day I think it’ll be easy to give up certain things just because I have no social life and nobody offering me stuff I can’t take.
Ahahaha! Sorry. 😀
lanette pieterse
We’re on day 16 of the whole 30 and planning our meals have been, in my opinion, the reason it’s been successful so far. I’m also planning to keep it more paleo after day 30. The concept of eat good, whole, healthy food just make sense to me. I want to live healthy and never count calories on diets!! I’ve grown up with a mom always on the next fad diet so I’m determined to just stay healthy and in shape to avoid obsessing every few months. I look forward to nabbing some of the recipes you’ll share in the future! Moroccan you say….
Eccentric Owl
Doesn’t it? I really loved doing the Whole 30, and I have yet to find anything in their reasoning that doesn’t make sense!
My mom and aunt have both tried multiple diets over the years, too, and I definitely never want to be that way! And if you eat whole, healthy foods the majority of the time, there’s no reason to worry if you have a piece of cake at a birthday party, you know? Since the rest of your day-to-day food is wholesome. 🙂
Yes! I haven’t gone through my Moroccan cookbook yet, but there will be food from lots of countries! And it’s great how most of the recipes don’t have to be changed to be paleo, since most of the flavors come from spices!
Marlen
Yaaay i’m so excited you’re going to be sharing recipes! I try to be vegetarian at home (but who can resist a burger when they go out?) and have been having a bit of a hard time with recipes. I try to keep them really plain to save money, but after a while one gets SO sick of garbanzo beans haha. I can’t wait to see what you come up with! And I never thought of how what you eat will be in the breast milk too- that’s really interesting (esp. with your brother being lactose intolerant). Also, looove that sweater.
xo marlen
Messages on a Napkin
Naomi@TheOccasionalIndulgence
Great outfit! I feel this is something I could pull off!
The Occasional Indulgence
Sarah With A Bow
Good luck on your next food endeavor. One thing I’m struggling with here in Korea is how much sugar is in EVERYthing. I thought it was bad in the States, but finding anything, even things you consider savory like pickles, without sugar is much harder than I bargained for.
In other news, I really like this outfit. A lot. And I’m jealous of the weather that’s cooling down for you because it’s still 70ish and a bit muggy on this side of the globe!
Becca Lee
Good luck! I haven’t tried either (I’m a slave to sugar! Haha!), but I’ve known people who have done both and loved it. Looking forward to seeing your recipes!
-Becca
Ladyface Blog
lisa
Amazing sweater- love this look of neutrals!
Hannah Osborn
I love this outfit! I actually have an identical outfit hanging in my closet right now to be worn when it warms up a little later this week. You know what they say about great minds! 😉
XO Hannah
christen
I love that you are still adorably stylish while pregnant! and I am impressed with anyone’s ability to cut out dairy products from their diet. The thought of never eating cheese dip again makes me want to pass out! 🙂
christen
fashionplatecheapskate.blogspot.com