Here at Empower we enjoyed the Vegan Challenge Week so much that we decided to have another nutrition challenge for fun. We hope you’ll join us as we take nutrition back to our Paleolithic roots. Here’s a quick guide on the why, what, and how for the week:
All the lean meats, fish, and seafood you can eat
All the fruits (except dried fruits) and vegetables (except potatoes and corn) you can eat
No cereals
No legumes (including peanuts and soy products)
No processed foods
No sugary soft drinks or fruit juices
*Always try to eat your meat, fish, poultry, and seafood as fresh as possible. Fresh is almost always best, followed by frozen; stay away from canned, tinned, processed, smoked, or salted animal foods. When it comes to beef, pork, and chicken, free-ranging, grass-fed, or pasture-produced meats are always best.
*Steer away from processed meats like bologna, bacon, hot dogs, lunch meat, salami, and sausage. These are synthetic mixtures of meat and fat; they are artificially combined with no consideration for the actual fatty acid profile of the wild animals our Stone Age ancestors ate.
*Oils that may be used in cooking ñ olive, coconut, avocado and butter. Flaxseed oil and walnut oil can be used in low heat cooking, salad dressings and to drizzle on already cooked vegetables.
*Consume the following foods in moderation: eggs, nuts, seeds, sweet potatoes, dairy products. The best dairy products to consume are yogurt, kefir, and buttermilk.
Here are some great reference websites: Mark’s Daily Apple and Paleo Diet.com.
Paul Piracci, BS CSCS
Paul brings a background of athletics and education to the Empower team. He believes that wellness should be viewed as a blended lifestyle that balances nutrition, a healthy mind, and fitness which incorporates fun recreational activities. For more information about Empower Personal Training please call (919) 401-8024.
