AARRRGGGHHH!!! so frustrating.

kecarlto

Ok, so I'm venting a little here and in the spirit of a true vent I had to throw in a good AARRRGGGHHH!!!!

I am so tired of people asking me "can you eat this?" while chowing down on a tasty or not-so-tasty morsel. Of course I can eat that. I can eat whatever I want to eat just like anyone else can.

"But you're doing that crazy diet. You can eat this on that diet?"
Paleo is not so crazy unless eating healthy is crazy which I suppose in western society it probably is a crazy notion. And, no, that ginormous pile of sugar, flour and salt is not healthy so I choose not to eat it. Sure, I could eat it and feel like a carb zombie for the next couple days, but I have CHOSEN not to do so.

I have been doing my best to follow a paleo lifestyle, with success, since April (roughly) and everyone of my close friends and coworkers ( I work in an office with 8 employees and word gets around) knows that I have chosen to do so. MOST of them are supportive. They no longer bring in sweets and things to share - they bring fruit. I'm hoping that they've seen my success and a little of my lifestyle is rubbing off on them.
BUT I do not need another lecture on how not eating grain is going to seriously screw me up, the many health benefits of consuming dairy (at least 3 servings daily! ) and the detriments of not doing so or even the great need for something sugary in the morning to stabilize blood sugar after fasting all night (right...everyone needs a good sugar rush in the morning). I hear people complain all the time about "those crazy paleo people pushing their lifestyle on everyone else" but I have found in the last few months that it's really all of those "regular people" trying to push me back into the SAD way of living and I'm tired of it. I politely answer a genuine question when it's asked but lately they have just become absurd (can you eat blueberries on that diet? - please, like you could stop me from eating freshly picked blueberries)...

...so I have started answering said absurd questions with equally insane answers (um, no, I can't eat blueberries because if they aren't picked during a full moon when high-tide corresponds with the witching-hour, they cause gastric pustules that give off a sulfuric odor when ingested within 12 hours of having eaten any type of green vegetable.
I have also started taking a bottle of "paleo" liquor (water in a fancy bottle) to parties and get-togethers so that i don't have to answer questions about drinking or fend off the alcohol pushers. Yes, I'm all too happy to share my paleo liquor with anyone who asks as long as they provide their own chaser/mixer and they donate a dollar - bottling your own water is tricky business not to mention extremely time consuming and I think I should be compensated accordingly. :happy:

Ok, I'm done. And I must say, I feel much better.

blackbelt7

I just got back from church so don't tell anyone I picked you some blueberries under the full moon. NAKED!!!!
I mostly, only get grief when I try to preach Paleo to the other want to be healthy, but want a pill to do it people. But people cant ignore your results.
My Herbalist said that grain free for me works since I have leaky gut syndrome. Which must of us have. so toss that word of for them to chew on.
Like they say the Proof is in the pudding!!! And you are doing a great job. Keep it up. This is for you. not for anyone else.
Tell them you are eating for your life!!!! I am.

GalaxyDuck

The only time I tell people about the way that I eat is when they inquire about my diet, otherwise I try not to ever mention the fact that I don't eat grains, dairy, legumes or seed oils. It has worked very well for me, I just politely decline the constant cycle of sweets and baked goods that go around the office. When I have people over for dinner parties, I never mention the fact that the meal is paleo and honestly, nobody has noticed because of all the delicious foods.

When people do ask you or start nagging you about what foods you can eat, perhaps say something like "is it a real food that you could hunt, gather, or pick from nature and eat?" Usually when people ask me about my diet I just say I only eat real, natural foods, nothing from a box. It usually doesn't go any farther than that.

I totally understand this rant, when I first started I made the mistake of telling a few people in the office and dealt with similar nagging & lectures. I just brushed it off because I know I am feeling a lot better eating this way than they are feeling eating their way. It's been so long now though that most people have forgotten all about it. So just don't make it a big deal, and in time they'll move on. Or see how successful you are and you might even have some converts!

Zeromilediet

Great rant :-) Love the reference to "choosing" to eat healthy ... so many people say they could never eat this way, never live without their bagel, tofu or yogurt when it IS a choice. Like you I don't push my choices on others (except my toddler granddaughter--she eats what Nana puts in front of her), so agree ... back off on the dopey questions about what's 'allowed'! I eat this way because I choose feeling healthy over instant gratification of Whoopie pies.

impyimpyaj

That's a big part of the reason that whenever I've changed my diet, including when I first started trying to lose weight last January, I just didn't tell people who didn't need to know. I told my husband, because I wanted him to stop bringing home donuts for me on Saturdays, and I told my mom because I tell my mom everything. I don't tell other people. If I'm offered food that I don't want, I simply say, "No thank you," or "I'm not hungry," or something else like that. No explanation necessary. It's nobody's business. There are a few people that I would probably discuss it with if they asked, because they're health-conscious people and I know they'd be interested and not judgmental. But my food choices are my own, nobody else's. I'm not trying to "convert" anyone, I'm trying to find the right balance of what makes me feel best. So I don't need to talk about it.

CRody44

When people ask, I usually tell them a low carb diet, and they usually accept that without further comment. If they want details, I tell them without reference to Paleo or Primal.

twinmom01

great rant...

I remind people all the time i can eat anything I simply CHOOSE not to...

What I get a lot lately is now that I am basically down almost two clothing sizes and feel more comfortable wearing clothing that is more clingy to my body people really see the difference and ask me what i am doing - usually I simply say "increased my activity and watch what i eat" - I have had a few people badger me about WHAT I eat and I usually simply say I cut down on processed foods and foods higher in sugars and carbs. When I explain that for me cutting out breads and pastas and such worked well for me I usually get a head shake and a "I could never do that"

The kickboxing class I go to I have become quite chummy with the instructor - she is big believer in Clean Eating and constantly gives a nice little lecture at the end of every class about cming out and exercising is only a small part fo the equation - a few times she has use me as an example and a few weeks ago asked me to talk about my way of eating and how it helped me...on Tuesday someone came up to me and said "Oh you are the one on the Meat diet" - I did correct her...

freerange

I just want to throw something. I really need to stay off the public forums, there are so many morons on there it makes me crazy. ARRRRGGGGHHHHHH