A Return to Clean Eating

I recently started eating clean again after a long headlong swan dive into eating garbage. This started when I was hospitalized a year and a half ago. My white blood cell count (my immune system) was so low I couldn't eat anything fresh. I couldn't even have fresh flowers in my room. The technical name for this is neutropenic. 

As we all know, hospital food isn't great to begin with. Now that my diet was even more limited by my eating restrictions it was horrendous. I believe I ate eggs for a month straight - horrible, nasty, rubbery, hospital eggs. After I was released I still had months of chemo. This lovely chemo did a few things, killed my cancer (yay) and made meat taste like dog food, Alpo dog food to be exact. How do I know this? Hey, I was a kid and grew up with two German Shepherds, you figure it out (smile). I ate what I could. I craved cucumbers and tomatoes, man I could have eaten a whole field of them, but surprisingly enough, you can't live off of cucumbers and tomatoes. So, I ate a lot of crap. Anything I could stomach really. 

Once my chemo was finished and I was declared in remission (Feb 21 baby!), my ability to taste food slowly started to come back. Now when I say slowly, I mean at a painfully frustrating pace that would test Korean baby Jesus himself. I decided in September that I could try to eat clean again. It wasn't until September that I could stomach meat without thinking of Alpo (laugh).  

I was following the paleo diet before my cancer diagnosis and I'm back to that. I have to tell you I feel so much better. Not only do I just feel better with the clean diet but my blood sugar, which went insane with the chemo, has corrected itself. Needless to say I will eat as clean as I can from now on. 

Easter and Paleo

Happy Easter!

I hope everyone is having a great easter (or are going to have one depending on when you read this). For those of you that are new to the Paleo diet and who are celebrating their first easter I thought I would give you a list of options for today instead of eating a chocolate bunny.

Deviled eggs - Good yummy stuff. You do need some paleo mayo and if you are feeling up to you can make this awesome recipe for Paleo Mayo by Nom Nom Paleo. Her website is great food porn as well if you haven't checked it out yet!

Ham - OH yeah. You can eat ham just don't get a glazed ham. Boiled Ham and Cabbage has always been a big thing in my house. Yes, I'm Half-Korean but I'm also (mostly) Half-Poor French Catholic on my my father's side of the family. Easy as this take a half a ham a head of cabbage and five carrots and a large onion. Rough chop the onion and the carrot and split the cabbage in half. Throw all of it in a pot and boil away.

If you're not a big fan of boiled ham, grab the same ingredients and put them in a roasting pan. Tada! These recipes aren't the most complicated but they're tasty and fast. I'm working on posting more recipes but I want to get the some good photos to go with them. Stay tuned for that.

Chocolate - Oh yes paleo peeps you can have chocolate! It just needs to be extra dark! It may be strong to those who are used to milk chocolate but trust me, the taste is rich and decedent. We have become so accustomed to sugary milk chocolate that we are missing out on the real chocolate.

The main thing today? Just enjoy yourself! Don't get too crazy and if you can't be paleo don't fret. Life is not that serious and tomorrow is another day.

Chicken Makhani (Indian Butter Chicken for those that don't know the real name - smile)

So I used the Ghee this evening! I had lovely high rez photographs of the cooking and the food. However, someone (who shall remain nameless) dropped my SD card in water. This is the lone iPhone photo that remains. I promise next time I will keep my SD card safe!

I wanted to try the Ghee that was given to me by Pure Indian. I will say I did not buy it and that they gave it to me for free. I wanted to give it a real review and use it with an Indian dish. I made Chicken Makhani using the ghee to not only saute the veggies but the chicken.

For those not familiar with Ghee, it is butter with the milk solids and water removed by cooking it down. This ghee is even more special because it comes from grass fed cows. I have made this Makhani recipe many times (I will post it in a second post) and this ghee gave the dish a new level of flavor. The richness was unmistakable and it added flavor that had been missing from the dish.

Store bought Ghee has a tendency to be heavy and oily. I was worried that this would be the same but I am very happy to report that that is not the case. Pure Indian ghee is light and very smooth. It flavors are soft and earthy and very smooth. I tried the sauteed veggies before combining them into the gravy and they were so delicious I wanted to eat them by themselves. This bodes well for just using this ghee on top of roasted vegetables.

The undeniable fact that this ghee added depth and flavor to this dish? My Korean mother who does not like Indian food and has never eaten my Makhani before tried a bite and then I thought I was having a stroke because I saw her with a bowl of it and some rice. She has never eaten any Indian food before. Ever. The only difference this time was the Ghee.

For Pure Indian Original Ghee I give it five stars. It's a great addition to any cook's kitchen who is serious about flavor and health.

Next I will use some of their spiced Ghee for cooking. Stay tuned to see if they are as good as the original! (smile)

Cooking with fire (ok Ghee)

I love the paleo diet and I really love using Ghee. Ghee is like clarified butter. Clarified butter is unsalted butter that has been heated which makes the milk solids separate from the butter. Ghee is one step further and left on the heat until the solids sink and brown.

The great paleo queen over at NomNomPaleo has a great DIY recipe for ghee. Just click here. BTW if you haven't been reading NomNomPaleo...what is wrong with you? They also have a great iPad app (smile).

I do make my own Ghee but because I have MS I'm trying to find some products that I don't have to make myself. I am about to go on a cooking spree with Pure Indian Foods Ghee. A review will be posted here shorty (and maybe a give away). They have six herbed/spiced ghee's as well as original ghee. I will post my review on Thursday for everyone to see!

Must Buy MREs or Stop Watching This Show

What happens when you're sick and at home? You watch a lot of TV. I have been watching Doomsday Preppers. For those who are not familiar with the show it's about people who think the world is going to end in one way or another. Because the world is going to end, they are getting ready for it by prepping. This means having food, guns, ammo, animals, places to go, and they have some elaborate plans.

I thought it was funny at first. Some of these people are really out there, like the father that keeps his children umbilical cords preserved with herbs and tree bark so he can give them to them once they have passed their "right of passage" (slow blink). However, (looking around paranoid like) I find myself slowing thinking "Well, it wouldn't be a bad idea to have some food in the house just to be safe".

Now in my defense and before you start calling me nuts, I don't think the world is going to end but I do think that I should do something because I live in a hurricane zone. I'm not talking about setting up a fort but maybe having a few weeks of food in the event that we have a hurricane.

MAYBE I looked at how to preserve 50 lbs of rice (maybe) and maybe I also looked at freezed dried food and MREs...but I'd never do that. Maybe I also thought about how to keep my Paleo diet if it were the end of the world.

Maybe

(smile)

Paleo or OMG WHY AM I LOSING WEIGHT

Last post I let everyone know that I'm sick. Which means I haven't been doing much but resting. I'm not in bed constantly but in general I'm much less active then normal. I jump on the scale this morning to see how much weight I've gained. It's just a given that I would gain some because I haven't been doing much. Well, I was wrong.

In less then a week I have lost over three pounds. Now, this would be exciting if I had any idea how that was happening. I follow a pretty strict Paleo diet and I've lost weight but in a normal healthy way. over the last few months but this is a huge drop.

The only things I can think of are as follows - I wasn't getting enough calories before I got sick, now that I'm resting my calories and activity level are more appropriate so my body is losing weight. I find this one hard to believe because I eat Bacon (laughing).

I briefly thought about the fact that I may be losing muscle mass. I know this isn't the case because I just saw my doctor on Monday and she checked me out completely.

My only other thought is fat-loss fairies are coming to visit me as I sleep. These fairies sprinkle you with that stuff you see on TV or ephedrine and the fat melts off as you sleep. If you sleep very heavy they even perform weight loss surgery on you as you sleep. They're very busy fairies and most people never see them because their union only lets them work 10 days out of the year.

Yep, I think it's the fairies.  

A Book, a Website (ok a few), a blog (not mine), and a Challenge.

So, we all know about my Paleo diet and how much I love it. LOVE it. There is also this great book entitled It Starts With Food by Melissa and Dallas Hartwig that I have come to view as one of the best books out there to discuss Paleo and to learn about the Whole9 and Whole30 program. I could never do it adequate justice here so please pick up the book or visit their website Whole9life.

And nope they're not paying me to talk about their stuff. I'm sure they have no idea about my little millimeter of the internets. I just really wanted to give you guys a heads up on a great book and some great information.

In a previous post I was discussing going back on a leptin reset. I believe that I am going to do a Whole30 instead as an experiment. I haven't started yet and probably wont until next week but I will keep all of you posted!

For those that want to join in and need some recipes I really suggest you check out NomNomPaleo who is posting 30 days of recipes on her site! Honestly, a great food site in general for Paleo geeks. 

Go visit her, buy her iPad app, awesome t-shirts, and oh try out the recipes! The riced cauliflower and the mayo recipes are amazing.


See the images above? They're not mine, they're copy-written, and I don't own them. I didn't draw them or take the pictures so please don't give me any kudos! Go visit them (pushing you through the interweb).

A Butcher, a Baker, and a Paleo Girl

I love to bake and being Paleo has kinda put a damper on that. I really am not tempted to eat any of what I bake but I really would like to be able to bake more things that are Paleo friendly. This has lead me on a long journey of finding alternatives.

The two I have found are Almond Flour and Coconut Flour. They have their pros and cons and I haven't started using them 100% exclusively yet. It's also the holiday and when I bake I like to just bake. I've given most of it away and only ate small bits. This really made me notice a few things.

Paleo really does work for me as evidenced by the tummy problems and heart burn I had (smile). I don't like fad diets. So once-in-awhile I get it in my head that Paleo is a fad and I'm not doing anything positive. Then I eat a cookie (laughing).

I am debating the merits of doing another leptin reset. It worked very well for me before and maybe it will again. Hm....

One of the best things I attribute at least partially to my diet? The fact that I feel better and my MS hasn't been as 'bad' this year. When I say bad I mean muscle spasms and small things like that when combined add up to a big thing. It's been rather nice.

I'm going to have to find a way to make baking paleo so I can combine two things I enjoy. Maybe it's not possible but I'm going to try! 

It's the End of the World and I Feel Fine!

Wow two months huh? Sorry about that. The Mayan thing had me prepping for the end of the world and I had to make sure I had enough eggs stored. Speaking of...Have you people EVER seen Doomsday Preppers  Yeah, I didn't know you could oil up eggs and keep them for years EITHER. So, that's my tip for the day. 

Actually, I've just been crazy busy! I am happy to say I have a new job that doesn't eat my soul away (YAY), still loving paleo 100% (YAY), and am MS flare free (YAY)! I'm even feeling just good in general except some fatigue now and then. Big step up from lasts years "Bronchitis that lasts two months" fiasco.

I've been trying out some Paleo recipes and I'm going to post them here in the up-coming weeks. I've also just started to run again. My broken foot really kicked my bottom and I've just now been able to do 4 miles without pain. If you break your foot GO TO THE DOCTOR AND LISTEN TO HIM. If I wouldn't have I have no idea what I'd be like right now - probably unable to run again. 

A tip for my peeps (like that?) in the Orlando area - Freshfields Farm  is my new go-to place for produce and some of my meat! They don't have grass fed (yet) but they do have hormone free chicken, and I've had a hell of a time finding good chicken in the area so this works in the long run. Either way the produce is fresh and the meat is also fresh and cheap. Good things in my book! 

I love my new job! Doing the same thing I was before but again no soul sucking! Having a soul is a plus in my book and I want to keep mine around for awhile. 

Oh, and as a side note. I started a PhD program (big smile). Not doing much AT ALL. 

 

The Paleo Experiment

Hi everyone! Yes, it's me again and I've had a lot of stuff happening on my end of the world! New job, new things, new travels, and new problems (smile). I start my new job soon and I am very excited! I however am here to discuss Paleo!

As most know I started eating Paleo around May of this year. Two months ago I feel off the wagon. Well, to be honest I feel face first into a big huge bowl of pasta and sugar, happily making sugar angels in the powdered sugar with a stupid smile on my face.

I decided to go back to my Paleo ways two weeks back. I wasn't feeling as good, I was having weird heart burn, and I wanted more veggies in my life.

I have to say this, I am amazed how different I feel when I phase the grains and processed foods out. Some people respond to Paleo better then others and for some it's not a good diet choice, but I must say for me I think it's the perfect diet.

Le Cre what?

Le Creuset is a very well known name in cast iron. They are well know for it and have been manufacturing cast iron for decades. I was in the market for one of their enameled cast Iron dutch ovens and I was going to get one! I went to the local store and...after looking at and handling their product - I didn't see what warranted an over 300 dollar price tag.

Not ready to plop down that much money I walked away dejected. I started looking around at what people were saying about Le Creuset and other brands. Was Le Creuset really worth that price tag?

After reading many posts, comparisons, and opinions I realized two things: 1) People were very enamored with Le Creuset and had very good things to day about it. 2) Most of those same people said that there was lower cost versions that were just as good as Le Creuset.

These facts lead me to lodges cast iorn. I saw a side to side comparison of the two and honestly there was no difference in the quality of the food cooked in the pan or in the craftsmanship of the pan. This past week I bought a 6quart red enameled cast iron dutch oven from Lodges.

The first time I used it was this past Saturday. I made Coq Au Vin for my boyfriend and let me tell you, the pan is amazing. I had no problems with it at all and the food came out perfect.

I even made the meal all Paleo and my guy didn't even know (smile). For everyone trying to do Paleo and who like to cook, investing in a dutch oven is well worth it! The tastes brought out in the cooking were amazing.

I had a wonderful night with my honey and a great meal thanks to my new dutch oven! 

Paleo Diet for the Win!

For everyone who is not aware at this point - I have been actively doing the Paleo diet for about two months now. I have touted that I feel better, have more energy, and really enjoy it in general! For those who are wondering, no Paleo is not a re-naming of the Atkins diet. I recommend this website (and Mark's book) to get a better hold on Paleo if you're interested. Mark's site is Mark's Daily Apple which has a lot of resource information as well as Mark's blog.

As for people who don't believe Paleo works, here is a news report reporting on a study that compared the Mediterranean Diet to Paleo Click to see the news News Report. Here is a second report (same news station) that discusses Saturated Fat/Red Meat Saturated Fats!

It's also not hard to eat or find things to eat with out all the processed garbage. Go to farmers markets, find local farms and producers of things like eggs and meat, and get moving. I feel better then I have in a long time and I'm enjoying the diet a lot (smile).

I *did* make some oatmeal raisin cookies last night but I made them to be given away. I ate one but I don't think that's going to off me anytime soon lol.

Where to get Natural, Local, Clean Foods in the Orlando Area

This blog is going to be an informative one!

What I wanted to do here was post a list of farms, vendors, local butches, and other links to help people around the Orlando area get some good stuff!

I've decided to eat clean, natural, and local as much as possible. I'd like to encourage everyone else to do the same. So here is a list of some places I've found that I love!

Lake Meadow Naturals - This is a local farm and I get all of my eggs here! They're a little low on beef right now because their cow's aren't ready but they have a lot of Berkshire pork and goat at the moment! I haven't had any of their chicken because they only sell whole chickens so I can't speak to that. I can say that everything else tastes great!

The Butchers Pantry - Recently found these guys at the Winter Garden Harvest Festival. Great local butchers making some amazing things! Their Texas sausage was PHENOMENAL.

Big Wheel Provisions - Not only a food truck but SO MUCH MORE. Bought some bacon from them this weekend and I am in love!

Wild Ocean Market - Fresh fish farmed out of the ocean here in Florida! Their shrimp is great and I am so excited to have a great local seller of FRESH fish.

Winter Park Dairy - Raw cheese maker here in Central Florida. Great stuff if you love cheese!

Bear Wolf Ranch - All Chicken all the time! They sell whole chickens as well as cuts of chicken (Breast and Thigh).

Farmers Market

Audubon Park Community Market -  Most of the people up there (pointing up) are here every Monday night in Down Town Orlando off of Bumby. I suggest you check it out!

Winter Garden Farmers Market - Small, local, and so worth it. Near and dear to my heart (smile).

There are more places but I only want to talk about places I have personal dealings with! Once I try more I will post more!

Ghee!

Well peeps I have been buying ghee (clarified butter) to cook with since doing the paleo/leptin foodie thing. I am a bit lazy so buying was easier. I was told by this cool new app from Nom Nom Paleo that making ghee was easy! SO, I put my big girl pants on and decided to make some!

I get my butter! 2lbs of it to be exact! Go large or go home! (No, I don't eat the rice that's on the table or use the PAM spray. My Korean mother does though! I'm surprised there isn't a can of spam there...) 

2lbs of butter is a lot of butter (yeah the pictures suck but I'm using my iPhone sue me). So, I cut it up into slices like a bread loaf! 

And put it in the pan.

I also get my cheese cloth strainer and huge measuring cup! Thank you again Nom Nom Paleo app! If you look close you can see my new name and enough spices to kill a small village of people. 

Look we have bubbles!

Lots of foamy stuff happens (shocked look). You can't see it in this photo but once the little milk soilds get brown they start to float to the bottom. Then you know you're done! Soooo, I strained it! 

EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW. This is after i strained all of the nasty out of the butter.

















AND we have ghee!! IN a jar...next to a pink flowered rice cooker. TADA!

It took maybe an hour. I was thinking it would take less time but I didn't take into account I was melting 2lbs of butter. It really was easy if not time consuming. I also was scared that I would burn it so I may or may not have sat on a stool next to the stove for an hour texting people and posting on facebook. 

Time for me to go for a walk in this 1000 degree Florida weather! Will blog more if I live! 

(looking around cockeyed) or Thank you Nom Nom Paleo!

Two things here. First I'm going to whine and vent and second I'm going to give huge Kudos to Nom Nom Paleo (CLICK THIS LINK CHECK THIS OUT!).

What the hell is going on? I'm SO TIRED again. I slept for 14 hours the other day. Literally came home from work, cooked, ate, went to sleep, and my little Asian eyes didn't open again until I was trying to find my alarm. Which is my iPhone, which was missing somewhere on my bed in the blankets and pillows. I was a 'wee' bit angry. This does not feel like fatigue so I wonder what the hell this is! Grrrrrrr

Maybe it's because I've been cooking (laughing). Today I made Salisbury steak with garlic herb gravy, and cauliflower rice. So good and I am stuffed! I lost 25 lbs before I started my leptin reset and I've been holding steady at that. I wanted to slow my weight loss down and it has. I am really happy about that! I was losing way to much to fast at first.

Shallots, onions, spices from tea and spice in Winter Park, grass feed beef and pork, ghee, and cauliflower rice! YUM!

To bad I didn't take any photos of the rice (big smile).





 NOW To give KUDOS to a site and two people that deserve it! Nom Nom Paleo is an amazing website. Click here RIGHT NOW -------->  Nom Nom Paleo

What drew me in at first was the amazing photography. The second was that it was all Paleo (Hence the name of the site - pretty tricky huh?) and that there are a LOT of great recipes. Cauliflower rice people! (smile)

They recently (Friday) released an iPad app full of amazing recipes and all kinds of bells and whistles!

Well, I have a first gen iPad and this app was optimized for the new High Res screen in the new iPad. Unknown to them, the optimization effected the performance of the app on the first gen.  I found out after I purchased it (sad face) but this was not their fault and I was happy to purchase it! They promised a update would come to help fix the problem!

Well I commented on their blog. Something like "Drat, I have a first Gen and I already got it!". To my utter shock, they sent me an iTunes gift card to make up for the issue with the app!

I'm not shocked that they cared and would do it (They seem like lovely caring people that like to cut up sides of cow and eat pigs) but I guess in this day and age you don't expect someone to be considerate.

So a huge hats off to Nom Nom Paleo for being the best site for Paleo foodies, and for being amazing people that take others into consideration!

Oh, and  for being able to butcher a cow by hand! 

Half-Korean Cavegirl Who Didn't Sleep

So today I started the leptin reset. You can read about it at Dr. Kruse's website Leptin Reset. I had a huge breakfast of bacon and eggs. I really couldn't eat it all but I needed to get the protein in.

I've decided to do this because I've always had huge fluctuations in weight. For example in one day I can gain 10 lbs of water weight. I'm thinking that the reset can help me with that. If it doesn't then I'll go back to just paleo (smile). No, I'm not crazy but I need to find a way to get under the weight I seem to be stuck with. Between MS, insulin resistance, my new fun breathing problem, and other issues, I need to get to a healthy weight!

Yes even with running I struggle with weight. So something has to give, and if that means I have to eat 6 thousand eggs every morning so be it. lol

I also had a sleep study last night (hence the no sleep - pointing up). Yeah... that was a blast. The sleep tech was horrible. I'd had one previously and she was amazing. This was my follow up and I got to wear a very sexy mask this time (laugh). The woman tried to command me to go to bed and how to sleep i.e., don't move until 1:30am, shut the TV off etc. So.....how do you expect me to sleep normally? She annoyed me more then anything which kept me up longer then if she would have just shut the hell up and let me sleep.

Well, it's time to go to the farmers market! 

Food Porn and Sleep Studies

Food porn are well taken pictures of succulent and tasty looking food. Since I've been switching my diet around I have been visiting a lot of food sites. One of the sites with the best photographs is Nom Nom Paleo. She also has an amazing amount of paleo recipes and an iPad app which is coming soon! I cannot wait for that iPad app!

I have also been looking for local farms to get meat, poultry, and veggies from. There is a great website where you can search your area for local co-ops and farms called Local Harvest. I found a few farms around here and let me tell you the meat is AHmazing.

I also have been partaking in my local farmers market and my produce bill is really much lower.

I've also decided to do a leptin reset. Which pretty much means eat A LOT OF MEAT. This I can do! (BIG SMILE)

I've been eating pretty much paleo for about a month now and I have to say I do feel much better!

So, tonight I have a second sleep study! Yay for me! It seems even though I don't snore, don't keep my boyfriend awake, don't wake up coughing, etc etc that I have sleep apnea (sigh). That means tonight I get to go put all the shit on me again and see what happens if I use a machine.

My friend who has sleep apnea had me go to one of the equipment websites. Do you know they have machines in pink? WHY? (sigh) So, my evening should be fun and sleepless. (smile)

Food Glorious Food!

I am a huge believer that fad diets don't work. I also don't believe all of the hype that surrounds the touted MS diets i.e., stay away from gluten because it inflames you! This makes me picture very angry swollen organs and blood vessels stomping around inside my body, looking pissed off.


The main gist of this is to avoid grains because our ancestors (cavemen) did not eat grains. They were meat and veggies. I'm not sure how they explain Asians (pointing at my mom) and how they're not all inflamed (grrr angry artery) and suffering from celiacs disease, but I digress.



I personally have always eaten low carb. I actually don't even know if what I do is technically low carb or if I eat correctly compared to the majority of Americans. I think the problem with most of western culture is that we eat in excess. This could lead to a tirade about entitlement and how we feel that excess is the norm but that is for another blog post.

I've been reading about the Paleo diet recently and while I don't agree with a lot of it's claims and statements. I will say I've come away with a desire to change a few things about how I eat.

• I'm making the switch to totally grass fed meats, free range chicken, and wild caught fish.

Free Range Eggs ooooo ahhhh

This makes more sense to me. I've done this off and on but I've never fully committed to it. I've been eating this for the past month and in all honesty - it tastes better (I'll talk about cost in a bit). It's also a healthier way for the animals to be raised. 

• I'm staying away from Dairy. 

This is more of a me thing. I'm a bit lactose intolerant and I should have been doing this previously. I will eat some dairy for example in my coffee, and Greek yogurt is yummy and doesn't upset my tummy. However, I'm going to stay away from milk in general. 

• Limiting grains.

Again this is more of a me thing. I have blood sugar issues and the carbs are just not worth it. I could never not eat rice EVER AGAIN but that might be the only grain I do eat. This is also a me thing. I don't think grain is making my arteries angry but for me it will help my blood sugar.

• More veggies! 

I've never eaten enough veggies but I've been going to the local farmers market and I've rediscovered vegetables. The veggies you get at the store have no taste to me. I thought it meant that I was just not fond of vegetables. After eating more farmers market fare I've realized that that is not the case. It's also really upped my cooking. I love to cook and fresh makes everything taste so much better!

• Eat more fat!

I never eat margarine. I don't get it and I never will. I did however limit how much fat I was ingesting. I am now going to slowly add more fat to my diet. For example, yogurt is a great recovery food for runners but not the low fat kind. They don't know why exactly but the low or no fat yogurt does not help the body as much as the whole fat versions post run. I'm not going to slather everything in butter and lard but I am going to eat healthy fats. Nut fats, avocado, and ghee (clarified butter) are all on my list!

Now, I know everyone is thinking "That's awesome nut job but you're going to be broke!" and to them I say "pshaw". In all honesty the cost of meats are not that much higher then what you're paying for in the grocery store. One of the best quotes I've heard regarding this from a young kid. I'm sorry that I don't remember his name but he's young and is passionate about whole living (I will find his name). 

When asked this question his response was something to the effect of "Pay for it now or pay for it later with medical co-pays". I agree. 

This also goes back to the whole "eating to much" issue we seem to have. For example right now at Whole Foods ground beef is 4.99 a lb. and wild caught salmon is 9.99 a lb. The prices seem pretty comparable to me. The ground beef costs less right now then at my local Publix. You don't need 8 lbs of ground beef! So, now get some veggies and call it a day! 

So, in reality I am doing a Paleo diet. Lets see how it makes me feel and how my blood sugar reacts. Yeah this means you guys will have to listen to me talk about it (big smile).