So let me start this post by saying I love all of you dearly and that I am so proud of the changes you are making to eat healthier. Alright so here we go..... I have noticed a huge trend of recipes that tout a "paleo or Paleo Friendly" title. While they may be bit and pieces of a paleo based diet the end result is often something completely out of whack in terms of what your nutrition should look like. We really need to stop and take a look to see ..am I making the right choice with this?? First and foremost please understand that paleo friendly foods do not constitute quality foods!! Things like protein pancakes, almond flour muffins, chocolate pumpkin yummy treats (yes I made that one up) ARE NOT PALEO FOODS! I SAY AGAIN..ARE NOT PALEO FOODS!!! Paleo foods are whole foods, not some concoction thrown together to meet our need for comfort foods. If the recipe says 1 1/2 cups of almond flour... stop and think... holy crap how many almonds is that? I can tell you it's a lot more than you should probably be eating on a regular basis!! If the ingredients are some sort of protein powder.... run!!!! Whole foods people... whole foods.... do you even know what whey is made from? Milk isolate, Which means it brings all the dirty laundry with it that dairy products do... Milk promotes growth, which in itself is not a bad thing.. UNLESS YOU ARE TRYING TO LEAN OUT or even just reduce body fat. Milk also spikes insulin production in the body.....oh wait we are supposed to not be doing that so we can regain insulin sensitivity that we have beat down over the majority of our lives. If you are eating these foods regularly I would bet your blood glucose is high and your insulin resistance is pretty damn high. So what am I saying that all these paleo friendly recipes are bad? Nope, but they sure as hell aren't good.... Here is the way I see it .. these recipes are a healthier way to enjoy a cheat meal... thats all they are..... I am sure someone is thinking right now " but so and so posted this recipe and they are ripped and lean"... Yep and they were probably a lot stricter with their diet to get where they are and can afford the "occasional" cheat. I bet they have pretty decent insulin sensitivity and or they are genetically disposition-ed to metabolize these foods better. All that being said I would still love to see what their A1c levels looked like. If you are not where you want to be (body composition wise) all I am saying is that finding ways to substitute all your comfort foods may not be the right answer. One other thing I would like to address here before I close... Sweeteners no matter where they are coming from are not acceptable! Stevia and agave (have you seen the carb load on the back of the container) are both natural sweeteners which is great but while they carry a label that says they don't increase insulin production more and more studies are saying the opposite. I also love it when I see a recipe that says 6 packs of splenda.. I then try to picture a caveman pulling his Splenda packs out of his leaf string (ok that was just disturbing).... your body is a complex machine, but like any machine it can be fooled and insulin production can be sparked by both smell and taste... it can even be set off by something as simple as a picture (the notorious food porn). If you are going to cheat then cheat but don't try to hide behind a paleo friendly label. If you are going to cheat do it right, why put agave, throw some honey in there instead. Why ruin a perfectly good cafe latte with splenda put some pure cane sugar in there... and then call it what it is ...A CHEAT MEAL!! So here is my litmus test for you... if you look @ your food log and you can find 3 or more paleo friendly food consumptions in it within a 7 day period you might want to rethink what your goals are. Is it more important for you to have that paleo protein carrot cake or to fit into those pants you bought 2 sizes too small. It's your choice as always I have just had it with the paleo friendly propaganda that has people thinking they areeating right..... FFS just because simple green is "Eco Friendly" doesn't mean it won't kill a plant if you poor too much of it in the soil.....It doesn't belong in the Ecosystem and paleo pizza doesn't belong in your diet........... I can sum it up with this... have you ever heard some call CrossFit dangerous because of some silly video someone posted on YouTube... and you say "that's not CrossFit!! Well dammit "Thats not Paleo"!!
If you have to though here is one of the better recipes I have found (but you still shouldn't eat them every day) and no they are not paleo!!!
Primal Coconut Blueberry (Holy Crap that's a lot of fat) Muffins
½ cup coconut flour
½ tsp baking soda
1/3 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
few shakes of salt
4 eggs
1/3 cup coconut milk (not light)
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 medium bananas, mashed ( starchy carbs but better than natural sweeteners)
1 cup (or more) blueberries
flaked coconut for sprinkling, if desired
Mix coconut flour, baking soda, shredded coconut and salt in a large bowl, set aside. Beat eggs in a separate bowl and add mix in the coconut milk, vanilla extract, and mashed bananas. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, mix until well combines. Fold in blueberries. Divide into 12 muffins. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.
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