Healthy Living

>On Saturday, I had the pleasure of photographing a nutrition seminar featuring the one and only Robb Wolf. A year ago I joined the CrossFit community to work on improving my fitness level.  Who knew I was on a life changing journey that would transform my body and health.

The eight hour seminar was a discussion and education on the paleolithic way of eating.  Paleo nutrition is based on the “hunter and gather” mentality that our ancestors lived.  So no foods that are processed and come in convenient “100 calorie” packs or meals that need to be microwaved for 5 minutes.  We are talking about grass fed meats, (plus fish) with lots of vegetables, some fruit, and nuts.  The major hurdle for many people is that when eating Paleo is that you avoid gluten.  Gluten, found in grains, dramatically spikes one’s insulin and causes inflammation, both of these effects have direct links to numerous ailments that plague us, most notably diabetes, autoimmune issues and infertility.  Don’t worry, I’m not going to go into the science here on my blog, but if you want to read an endless amount of scientific research head to Robb Wolf’s site and he can lead the way.

Keep in mind that this doesn’t mean I’ll never have a pizza or piece of bread again.  I plan to and have had a pizza since I have started this health quest, but after you eat this way, your body does NOT appreciate the gluten, so you have to make sure it’s worth the pain after 🙂  Bottom line is that I work so hard at the gym and if having a pizza is going to negatively affect my performance and my internal health, then it’s not worth it the majority of the time.  It’s also important to note that this isn’t a crash diet that you do for a couple of months and then go back to your old way of eating.  This is a lifestyle change and I plan of making it apart of my life for the long haul.

So what do I eat?  There are a lot of great resources out there.  Check out  Everyday Paleo and Marks Daily Apple. Here is an ingredient picture of one of my favorite meals.  Chicken with Prosciutto and Pesto.  How bad can this be?

Ok, so enough nutrition talk, here are some images from the seminar.