Backstory: the Paleo movement is building its profile here in Finland as well. We have a new torchbearer in the form of Helsinki Paleo website, as well as a podcast run by the masterminds Jaakko Savolahti and Olli Sovijärvi. Comparisons to The Paleo Solution podcast by Robb Wolf are inevitable, and I’m quite sure it has been a significant force inspiring these two swashbucklers to start their own project :)
January kicked in with a lot of Paleo lifestyle challenges by Jaakko and Juha, and this article functions as my entry to the contest titled as “Päivän paleoruokavalio.” We Finns love long, complex words (try pronouncing epäjärjestelmällisyydellänsäkäänköhän) but in short it means “Today’s Paleo Diet.”
So here goes; what went into my belly and when in the course of a cold Finnish Saturday on January 28th.
The day starts at 11 am with a 4-egg omelet, as well as dates wrapped in bacon and roasted in 150 degrees for 8 minutes. I also had some halloum cheese as I’m not trying to be 100% dairy-free. Normally I fast about 16 hours between dinner and the first meal of the day, but today I broke my fast after mere 14 hours.
Since the “breakfast” came so late there’s really no need for lunch. Instead, I have a bowl of chicken coconut soup with some tubers and cashew nuts around 4:45 pm. These are leftovers from Friday’s dinner. Normally my snacks include e.g. boiled eggs, or apples covered in roasted pecans with a dash of coconut cream. However, this particular time I was fairly hungry after a push press and CrossFit Football workout.
In general my biggest meals are the combined breakfast/lunch and dinner. This time was no exception. My girlfriend baked a hefty cut of salmon, sprinkled with parmesan cheese. A green salad with cuts of seaweed and farmer’s potatoes on the side, fruits for dessert. And what would life be without a few vices? Red wine, coffee, and dark chocolate are mine.
Yes, eating like this might take a bit more effort compared to munching on sandwiches, but the benefits to your health, wellbeing, overall energy levels, and performance far outweigh them. I have always been fairly resilient and able to eat pretty much anything without much problems (except for the weight gain). However, since eliminating grains and legumes from her diet, my girlfriend has had a reduction in migraine attacks from 2-4 / week to 2-4 / month. Another friend’s ulcerative colitis went into remission under the same protocol. Anecdotal? Yes, but also logical if you dig a bit deeper into the causes of autoimmune disease.
Oh, and let me know if you want some recipes :)
Note: For some reason beyond my comprehension commenting is disabled in this post and I don’t know how to fix it. My apologies!