Can a change in what you eat really change your body?...and I'm not talking about weight here!
My on-again, off-again relationship with the Paleo Lifestyle has taught me a lot. I have learned that life without dairy, grains, legumes, and sugar IS possible. It's not only possible, but it's pretty easy. I don't have to worry about counting calories or fat grams. I don't have to worry about what foods I should eat together and what foods I need to eat by themselves. I don't have to worry about the hundreds of other "rules" of dieting that we have accepted over the years. I just eat real food. I eat meat. I eat vegetables. I eat fruit. Simple!
Now, for some personal info. I am in my early 40's. I am in the early stages of menopause. I've been through the peri-menopause and already hit menopause. Yes, I said early 40's. The real downside to it is hot flashes. You really cannot explain them to someone that hasn't experienced them. The best way I can describe it to you is imagine someone lit a blowtorch inside your body and all of the heat was trying to escape through your skin from the inside out. It comes without warning and leaves you drenched in sweat. There is no quick relief and the effects make you angry. I told my husband one day to leave me alone because I was having a hot flash. He thought it was funny and decided to hug me. Wrong thing to do! There is an inexplicable anger at anything and anyone while your body is melting on the inside!
The next thing you need to know is that I have had problems with me feet since I was a young child. I have had to wear braces on my legs and feet, had fractures in weird places on my feet, and multiple surgeries on my feet. I have had bone removed and the Achilles tendon lengthened on both feet/legs. Each of those surgeries took over a year to heal completely. I have recently started having extreme pain in my foot again so I went back to the doctor. He told me that there is a lot of scar tissue in the tendons and there are several treatments. Option 1 is injecting my own blood into the area so it creates scar tissue. This will have to be done three separate times and each time I will be in a cast for 6 weeks. There is no guarantee this will work. Option 2 is completely cut the tendons! That does not sound like fun to me!
Why do you need to know this, you ask? So you can understand my experience with Paleo. You see, after a couple of weeks of eating this way I noticed that my hot flashes were gone. Not decreased. GONE! I also noticed that the constant pain in my foot was not there. Interesting. The next thing I know, the holidays are here and I feel like I "deserve" to eat what everyone else is eating. In a way, I guess I did deserve it. I deserved the consequences! I was off Paleo for about 6 weeks. During that 6 weeks the hot flashes returned with a vengeance and the pain in my foot returned.
Now, I am back to the Paleo lifestyle. The hot flashes are gone again and my foot pain is decreasing daily. My energy is returning and I feel good. I don't know how Paleo will affect you. Maybe it won't but I know that it is better for my body. I hope to lose weight but if I don't, it's ok. My body is healthier. I can feel it.
If you decide to try it, let me know how it works for you. I would be interested in knowing if your aches and pains lessen or go away completely.
