Paleo Diet: The Conclusion

So I am no longer on the Paleo Diet.  I was on for a total of twelve days, and I gained two pounds during that time.  I am definitely not a fan of this diet.  I was always hungry on it.  I ate a lot on the Paleo Diet, but my mind was constantly screaming at me to eat.  Nothing was filling, and I always felt like I needed to eat something. 

I would eat two eggs or three eggs for breakfast with a banana or a piece of fruit.  For a mid-morning snack I’d have a handful of sunflower seeds.  Lunch would be a large salad with dried fruit, nuts, and a can of tuna.  Afternoon snack would be another handful of sunflower seeds or fruit.  Dinner would be a large serving of meat, with more fruits and vegetables.  After dinner snack would be a piece of fruit or vegetable. 

I would vary my diet too.  I’d have more dried fruit or more vegetables.  Sometimes lunch would be leftovers.  So, I ate a lot, and was physically full, but no amount of food made me feel full.  It was really weird. I would eat so much that I would go from feeling hungry to feeling sick.  Then I would stop eating for a little bit, but even when I was feeling sick, I would still feel hungry. 

I don’t know how to properly explain how it felt to be simultaneously feeling like I was starving, and feeling like if I eat another bite of something, I will pop because there is no more room in my stomach.  Towards the end of this experiment, I was starting to get used to the constant hunger.  I was eating at regular intervals and set portions.  I did that because I couldn’t trust my stomach anymore.

My wife has done well on the Paleo Diet.  She’s lost about 4 pounds since we went on it.  Now that I’m off of the diet, I am back to my normal eating habits.  I feel like myself again.  I’ll still eat like I’m on at the Paleo Diet, so that my wife doesn’t have to cook a side dish of something that isn’t part of the diet.  But she knows I’m not following it while I’m at work or when she travels.

My closing thought on the Paleo Diet is that I think this will be a passing fad with a small following.  I’m thinking this will go the route of fad diets in the past.  Someone will find a way to mass market the Paleo Diet in a convenient package, and there will be a small revival.  But eventually, someone will think of something else, and the Paleo Diet will be on the shelf next to bottles of Slim Fast, packages of Jenny Craig food, and Nutri-System meal plans. 

-S. Dartmoore 

My Thoughts on the NFL Draft (part 2)

So, the Buffalo Bills drafted Stephon Gilmore (Cornerback) from South Carolina.  I’m happy with the pick.  I had believed that the Bills would go defensive back in the first round, so I feel a little happy that I didn’t buy into the Tackle/Wide Receiver hype that has been circulating around the web.  (I was thinking Barron or Kirkpatrick, but hey, no worries.) 

I am not concerned about Stephon’s stoic expression on draft day.  I have only seen photos, but I can see a person who is happy to be drafted, and happy to be a Bill.  Let’s see how he does on the field, and we’ll go from there. 

I am excited for the rest of the draft tonight and tomorrow.  I do like trying to guess what position the Bills will draft, as I am not good at player evaluation.  Here is my modified Draft guess for the Bills’ remaining 9 picks

Round 2: Wide Receiver

Round 3: Linebacker

Round 4: Offensive Tackle

Round 4: Defensive Back

Round 5: Quarterback

Round 5: Wide Receiver

Round 6: Guard/Center

Round 7: Offensive Tackle

Round 7: Defensive Back/Special Team Specialist

Go Bills!

-S. Dartmore

My Thoughts on the NFL Draft

So the NFL Draft starts tomorrow night.  I am definitely excited about it.  I like reading about the prospects and draft projections.  I like hearing what the analysts say about a prospect’s football future.  I know I’ll try to listen to part of the draft on the radio.  I don’t have cable, and I’m trying to convince my wife to let me get rabbit ears for the TV so I can at least watch some of the primetime. 

Anyway, so I’ve really only taken an interest in the draft the last two years.  I am a Buffalo Bills fan, and I really only started watching the draft since the Bills drafted Spiller.  I was following that draft as a passing fancy.  I really didn’t look into the drafted prospects until after the fact.  Last year, I really didn’t get a chance to follow the draft, as I was a new father, and I was starting a new job.  This year, however, I am in a stable job, and my son is not up every 2 hours wanting food.  So, my attention turns back to the NFL. 

I was asked why I like the draft so much.  I suppose it’s because this is the one part of the football process where everyone can feel like they had a part in it.  I mean, anyone with internet access can chime in, and become the ultimate “Draft Expert”.  Fan based sites are over-flowing with Mock Drafts.  I even saw one Mock Draft that went through all 7 rounds! 

The part that I find the most intriguing about the Draft process is that after a draft pick is made, it takes about three years to determine if a draft was a bust, success, or a steal.  Three years!  You can almost complete a college degree in that time frame.  That means that after three years of playing, there will be three more drafts, and three more predictions on new people.  Three years is almost an eternity to some NFL people. 

For example, three years ago, (the 2008-2009 season) The Pittsburgh Steelers just beat the Arizona Cardinals for the Super Bowl.  Santonio Holmes was the Super Bowl MVP.  Peyton Manning (Indianapolis Colts) was the NFL MVP.  Brett Favre was a New York Jet.  The Oakland Raiders had the highest NFL Payroll at $152.4 Million, and Kansas City was the lowest at $83.6 Million.  Big Ben Roethlisberger made the most money that year.  He was paid $27.7 Million. 

When we go to the 2011-12 year, the New York Giants beat the New England Patriots.  Eli Manning was the the Super Bowl MVP.  Aaron Rodgers (Green Bay Packers) was the NFL MVP.  Peyton Manning is now a Denver Bronco.  Brett Favre is retired. 

A new Collective Bargaining Agreement is now in place, so these payroll numbers are a little skewed.  The Minnesota Vikings had the highest Payroll at $123.5 Million, and the Jacksonville Jaguars had the lowest payroll at $92.7 Million.  Peyton Manning was the highest paid player coming in at $23 Million. 

But anyway, I digress.  I know I’m ready for some football, and the Draft is just around the corner. 

-          - S. Dartmoore

“I think the best way to think is to think of something to think about, then think on it.” -me

Anyway, here's some more of my thoughts on the Paleo Diet.  I probably should've started at the beginning, instead of at the middle, so allow me to back track for a little bit.

I was introduced to the Paleo Diet by my wife last week.  At first, I thought I would have some time to do some research and learn what the Paleo Diet entailed.  You know, google "Paleo Diet" or look it up on Wikipedia, or at least figure out how to spell the word Paleo.  (Yes, I now realize that it's spell Phonetically, but I didn't know that at the time.)  I was wrong.  Little did I realize that I had until the end of the question of "Do you want to go on the Paleo Diet?"  to make up my mind.  (By the way, the correct answer was "yes" but apparently I'm a little slow on the upswing.)

After a slighted heated discussion where I was reluctant to go on the Paleo Diet, and she was all for it, eventually we compromised.  We would start the Paleo Diet.  I was allowed one snide remark about it, though.  I chose, "Alas... poor grains, I knew you well."  As this is my blog, here are the 2nd and 3rd place comments.  "I think this diet is more restrictive than Kosher." and "Bacon, here I come!"

So, today is Day 5 of the Paleo Diet.  I'm still hungry most of the time, but I've gotten used to the noises that are coming out of stomach.  The noises are kind of like the annoying younger sibling that never goes away. I did weight myself on Day 3 and Day 4.  There was no noticeable change.  I plan on weighing myself again in a few days and see how things shape up.

My wife and I agree that we both have a sweet-tooth.  Last night was kind of rough, because we both wanted dessert.  The day before, we had a baked banana dish that was good, but we were out of bananas at this point.    Undaunted, my wife looked up Paleo Diet freindly desserts, and she found a complete blog on them.  She is excited about the Paleo Diet brownies, and she plans on making them next week.

I am more of a cold dessert person, so she found a Paleo Diet friendly Ice Cream recipe.  However, for reasons I am about to explain, I am less than thrilled.

For the record, I have a fairly strong stomach.  I am able to eat a lot of different foods with minimal impact upon my well-being (minus the "getting fat" part).  Most of my gross outs come from mental images that get planted in my mind by other people.  My wife is very good at them, by the way.  One of the mental images that I hate is the thought of eating raw eggs.  I absolutely, positively cannot stand the thought of eating raw eggs.  It's because of this gross-out that I stopped eating raw cookie dough, and I cannot watch some parts of Rocky.  So, you can imagine my discontent and displeasure when I found out that the Paleo Diet Ice Cream was coconut milk, eggs, and vanilla extract.

Bless my wife's heart for trying to find an Ice Cream recipe, but I think Ice Cream on a Paleo Diet is not meant to be.

Anyway, here I am, five days later on this diet.  I am hungry, going through detox, and I weigh exactly the same as I did five days ago.  My wife has lost about 1-2 pounds already, and she is all for this diet.  To call me reluctant would be an understatement.

- S. Dartmoore

P.S.  On the bright side, I did have a cupcake today.  It was a white cupcake with some white vanilla frosting.  This was my one "cheat" that I'm allowed every now and then.  It. was. good.