For those of you who have been doing NT for a while, what challenges have you encountered in trying to eat traditionally?? Being relatively new to NT I'll list some challenges for me:

1) Finding good quality meat. I buy "fresh" meat from the grocery store (antibiotic free/hormone free) but I would really like some farm meat.

2) NT requires some level of organization and I'm not the most organized person.

3) Eating the whole foods way definitely is NOT CHEAP!

On the flip side what are some of the successes/joys you have had on your NT journey?? For me:

1) I finally feel full after I eat (can you believe it).

2) My sugar cravings are leveling out ( I still have them but not as much).

3) My kids are eating better and taking CLO (of course a little bribery is involved:duck: ).

So please share your thoughts. TIA, Nikki:wink

:innocent Now I know you NT'ers are out there:wink

Challenges:
Eating out or at other people's houses
Eating at home on super busy days or when I'm running late
Hoping my MIL doesn't microwave the food I send when the boys spend the night at her house
Staying out of Cold Stone Creamery :)

Joys:
Losing all the after baby weight without trying
Losing the baby weight even from ds1!!!
Seeing my mom feel great after 15 yrs of chronic fatigue syndrome (she did 4 weeks of raw milk diet)
Hearing my dh brag to his friends about the healthy foods we eat and how he hasn't had a soda in a month (he must be listening!)
Being on a first name basis with my farmers-you don't get that at the big supermarkets
Favorite meal this week-pastured ground beef cooked all day in crock pot with tomatoes, zuchini and yellow squash served over spaghetti squash, YUM!
Eating things like butter, real salt, lard, beef, etc, and knowing that they really are good for me-even though most people disagree

Pinky, that spaghetti squash dish sounds good!!! Thanks for the reply. You are right, eating things like butter, co, meat seems counterintiutive to many (only because that is what people have been told) but when the food taste so good, and is good for you, I think your body doesn't crave the processed stuff as much.

Challenges:
Only feeling happy and safe when eating my own homecooked food.
Not being able to buy a treat outside -- if I feel like cookies, I'm making those cookies.
Watching other people feed their children and trying to keep from slapping the parents
Finding food to eat while traveling and taking less vacations because we are afraid of the food
Not being able to rest if I'm tired from work because I have to get ready the stuff for the next day, strain the water and milk kefirs, and pack lunches
Finding grassfed meats in the winter (I'm getting them from the farmer's market right now)
Having to host all the dinners when we want to get together with friends because we are afraid of their food
Spending too much money on food


Joys:

Rediscovering how good real food tastes and knowing that it is nourishing my family
Not having to count calories and fat and still have stable weight
Tasting homemade sauerkraut and kefir cheese
Having people rave at my baked goods and then discovering it is healthy
Feeling disgusted at the thought of krispy creme donuts
Being a role model for my friends and family and starting to affect their choices

I agree with all the challenges you all have listed above. Sometimes I feel like I have to live in a bubble. Eating that oreo cream pie my friend made for dessert when we came over for dinner I know took years off my life!! (I didn't want to be rude by refusing, but I sure felt yucky afterwards...I prayed over it a lot, that God would somehow protect me from that high fructose corn syrup and trans fats!)

On the other hand, that type of food doesn't even taste good to me anymore. My dh and I don't go out to eat much, not because we know it's bad for us, but because after we have had real food, resturant food doesn't even taste good anymore! We enjoy more sit down dinners together as a family. And though we have a higher grocery bill, we spend less on eating out.

The best part is that I get such satisfaction out of making real, traditional, healthy, life giving food for my family. I love being able to provide this for them. And I love watching a love for NT foods spill over into my friends and extended family as they learn that I made that birthday cake from scratch...and it wasn't that hard! ("You mean you didn't use a box???") 8-)

Learning to cook NT is a journey, but it sure is fun and fulfilling (most of the time...except when your banana bread still isn't cooked after 2 hours in the oven!) 8-)

I forgot to mention how much better my dh and I feel. More energy, clearer head, less colds, healthy baby!

challenges:

-planning ahead. alot of it takes planning ahead and advance prep, and i'm not so organized sometimes.
-giving up coffee (i'm still working on that one...)
-knowing how much better i feel, and wanting everyone i know to feel better too, it gets frustrating trying to change people's outlooks on nutrition
-eating at my inlaws' house...
-becoming somewhat obsessed by nutrition...i feel i think about food way too much

joys:
-i feel SO much better in every way
-losing weight
-we are lucky to have a great (cheap!) source of grassfed meat and have just recently found a source of raw dairy
-not worrying about my saturated fat intake...i LOVE being able to eat rich foods!
-my grocery bill is better since we've cut out alot of processed stuff

positive points: it gives a an air of mystery being able to make soda at home :lol

Challenge: Ignorance is bliss--not being able to grab a wrap a Trader Joes or any kind of convenience food without feeling like an utter failure.

Joy: Feeling empowered to do something to make your family healthier.

Cons:

1. The cost...our grocery bill has doubled and we still haven't even started taking CLO...so it will be even more, soon. But hey the bills are still getting paid...so since we can do it it's worth it.

2. The holidays coming up! I'm not 100% NT so I will just not be hard on myself and eat healthy between parties and after the holidays. But still...I wish I was hardcore enough to say no to sugar all together.

3. Having to make some concessions still due to finances and unavaliability.
I settle on organic cultured pasteurized butter, organic free range (but not necessarily truly pastured...still grain fed) chicken and eggs, and the only grass-fed beef I can get believe it or not is ground beef at TJ's...so I settle for organic kosher (likely grain fed) beef otherwise.

Pros:

1. Feeling good and knowing my family and I will enjoy good health as a result of TF and taking them in thankfulness (hopeful my dental woes will begin to mend).

2. Feeling empowered when it comes to real nutrition...I will ever again be pushed around by the mainstream and the "diet dictocrats".

3. Enjoying butter, cheese and cream!

4. Widening my palate...ya gotta admit alot of TF sound crazy...but we all know we start craving them once we've tried them: kombucha, fermented veggies, other grains besides wheat rice and oats and the way they taste properly prepared, liver pate, kefir, etc. The other night dh was out and I made what I craved for dinner: kasha prepared with chicken broth and egg, veggie zing salad (hfs bought fermented raw cabbage, beets, garlic, dill and lemon) and kombucha :). I also actually much prefer the flavor of maple syrup over sugar now..pretty big for me.

5. The pros really outweigh the cons. I could go on and on.

nicolyn- call Frank of 5-bar beef in eastern Orange County. (714)749-5717. He only sells ground beef:( , but it's locally raised, and I believe it tastes better than the grass-fed angus at TJ's (more fat?). It may not be that long a drive from where you are since it's inland. The TJ's near me in OC carries grassland beef... steaks and london broil mainly... grown in CA. You should call around to other TJ's nearer to you, or ask yours if it can get it.