[candynut]

I'm very new to Traditional Foods. I'm in the middle of reading Real Food by Nina Planck. I see where she's going and I kind of believe her, but I can't let go of a lifetime of low fat propaganda. (Right now I'm mostly trying to work through the full fat foods part. Once I break down that wall, I'll start overcoming the "weird" foods).

Is this really healthy? Do you maintain a healthy weight while eating Traditional Foods? Does anyone have any health success stories (I'm looking for factual numbers here - like cholesterol/health reports from the doctor, although I do appreciate general feelings of goodness too).

Hopefully I didn't offend. I really do want to believe, but like I said, a book or two won't be able to immediately destroy decades of other literature.

Thanks!

 

[NotTheOnlyOne]

I can tell you that I started researching this about 8 months ago. I have made a few changes in my life so far. I eat local grass fed beed and free range chickens now. I am drinking raw milk and eating raw cheese and butter. I cut out most grains and the ones I do eat (steel cut oats mostly) I soak. I have not yet started fermenting anything... but I am drinking kombucha, although I am buying it rather than making it myself. My first attempt turned out moldy so I gave up.

I DO feel much much better. I have more energy to work out. I am yelling at the kids less and less. I feel good about myself and about my life. Right after ds was born I was always groggy feeling and tired. (it wasnt just the sleep deprivation because I am not sleeping any more now!) But since I have changed my diet I dont feel that way anymore. I contribute it to the raw dairy, kombucha and eliminating sugar and grains. Really.... I have lost a few pounds so far, but I am still breastfeeding a LOT so I am really trying to NOT lose weight just yet.

 

[kallyn]

60-70% of my calories come from fat. Since adopting this, I've lost about 15lbs, my skin cleared, lifelong gas issues disappeared, chronic back ache disappeared, frequent headaches disappeared, and I no longer feel sick every time I eat. I have a heart condition/autonomic syndrome that is also completely cleared up when I eat this way. I eat mostly meats, eggs, veggies, fruits, and nuts and little or no grains/dairy.

 

[Dillpicklechip]

I posted a similar question a few months back when I was new to this forum, candynut. I just couldn't believe that eating lots of fat, especially animal fat, could be healthy. I bought into the low fat idea for many years, and it was hard for me to think outside this box too.

One thing I've found though as I've started to eat in more traditional ways, is that when you eat more fat, you feel so much more satisfied. The meals taste so much better, and you feel a lot fuller. So you end up eating less.

Low-fat eating is not satisfying, so you end up eating more and more and yet still feel hungry--and probably end up taking in more calories.

Furthermore a lot of higher-fat foods (such as meat and eggs) have a denser nutrient content, which makes you feel more satisfied still.

I'm just getting started on TF, and the main thing I'm doing is increasing animal products and not worrying at all any more about fat (I use butter and bacon grease quite generously in my cooking). And I'm cutting down on flour and especially on sugar. Honestly, although I don't own a scale my jeans are all getting baggy on me. I've lost 5, maybe even 10 pounds in the past few months by eating differently.

I used to always crave dessert after lunch and supper, but not any more, because now I feel satisfied after eating a high-fat meal. This is a real shocker for me, as I have always had a serious sweet tooth.

As a bonus, my meat-loving husband loves the way I cook now--"Bacon makes everything better" is his motto.

 

[newcastlemama]

I eat a lot like Kallyn. I am very into fat and meat. I lost weight, got off depression meds/supplements, feel more energetic and emotionally stable and still have low blood pressure. My hair grows fast too!

I suggest trying it and seeing how you feel. I highly recommend at least skimming over Nutrition and Physical Degeneration by Weston Price. Here it is online for free http://journeytoforever.org/farm_lib.../pricetoc.html
There are other good resources if you are worried about cholesterol and saturated fats. The Cholesterol Myth by Raskanov.
Here are some links:
http://www.thincs.org/
http://www.thegreatcholesterolcon.com/
http://www.westonaprice.org/

Jen

 

[candynut]

Thanks for the comments so far. A lot of what I'm reading makes a lot of sense to me. I've always been pro-low-fat, but anti-non-fat (non fat cheese for example - how is that even possible?). It's worrying how much food is tampered with these days.

I'm thinking if I just try it gradually - look for the better versions of what I already eat (meat, dairy, produce), and tone down on the things I shouldn't eat (sugar, refined grains) I can take it one step at a time.

 

[kallyn]

That sounds like an excellent way to go about things, Candynut.

 

[candynut]

One more question... and maybe I should start a new thread for this, but I'll try anyway....

What kind of a food budget does everyone have? (I know you can't put a price on staying healthy, but we do have our limits). What Traditional Foods are more cost effective?

 

[pnutS4us]

For me on NT, I feel so much better, and my famliy and I are really enjoying eating real foods. I cut out all 'white' products as well--no white rice, no white or even unbleached flours--i sub whole wheat pastry flour for recipes calling for white flour that don't need a yeast levening--such as muffins and the occasional batch of cookies

. We are not afraid to eat real butter, use olive oil in cooking, extra virgin on my salads--anywhoo--to make a long story short--I have lost 80 lbs in the past 12+ months eating this way. And I feel so much better! my skin is better, my hair is shiny. I have also given up soda, and I drink mostly water with lemon juice and herbal teas.

My blood pressure has also dropped (from 160/?? can't remember) to 109/72. My dr is also quite pleased with my weight loss--even though he teases me about being a 'food nazi' for cutting out white rice/flour/sugar and the like.

I for one, am very happy with this way of eating.

 

[kallyn]

Candynut, I buy for 2 adults in a fairly expensive area (yuppy suburb) and I spend $400-500/month. I could spend less if we could eat beans instead of meat for some meals, but my blood sugar just can't take it.

 

[Rachel J.]

I don't really know what we spend on food each month b/c we don't budget

But I know that the pastured bacon from the HFS, which costs about 2xs more than reg bacon but tastes about 10xs better, is still cheaper than the Hot Pocket breakfasts that were my previous weakness. And I usually get 2-3 delicious oz. of reusable bacon grease for cooking eggs or greens or adding to my morning buckwheat for fat and flavor. Actually I just scraped some out of the skillet with a spoon to eat straight up

Fermented foods can be really cheap and good for you and homemade bread is much better and cheaper than storebought. If you have space for a small deep freeze buying a side of grass-fed beef or pastured pork (or splitting it with one or two other families) is a great way to get affordable, healthy meat. I'm able to get raw milk for less than store bought. It just takes a while to find good, affordable resources. I'm also finding that because I'm spending more on some foods I'm more motivated to use them and not let them spoil.

 

[Panserbjorne]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kallyn Candynut, I buy for 2 adults in a fairly expensive area (yuppy suburb) and I spend $400-500/month. I could spend less if we could eat beans instead of meat for some meals, but my blood sugar just can't take it.

What does your weekly grocery shop look like? We are mostly paleo over here and feeding four I struggle to keep it under $200 a WEEK. I'm really good at this too...what are you doing? Can you share? I love budget stuff!

We also have a couple of food allergies over here, so no gluten, no grains, no dairy, no soy, no eggs. That pretty much follows the paleo model anyhow.

For us we do produce through a co-op and that greatly reduces prices. We pick our own when we can and we buy pastured stuff in bulk when available.

 

[cicely_m]

I just skimmed the responses, but in answer to the original question-- I have been eating very fatty (lots of nuts and meats), low-grain (mostly sprouted), etc for a coulple of years now, although i will occasionally go on "regular food" binges." As of my doctor's visit 2 weeks ago, my cholesterol and blood pressure and both in the "very low" range. Blood sugar is normal. My only problem is bone density, as I don't eat dairy.

 

[kallyn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by firefaery What does your weekly grocery shop look like? We are mostly paleo over here and feeding four I struggle to keep it under $200 a WEEK. I'm really good at this too...what are you doing? Can you share? I love budget stuff!

We're pretty omnivorous here, so I think I probably buy a lot more meat than you would, but I'll share what I do! I mostly shop at Whole Foods. It's far away from us, but it's right next to DH's work, so I stop there on the way home from dropping him off - if for some reason I don't do that, I go to the Acme that is about 3 min away from my house. I think they are mostly comparable in price, although Acme has better sales than Whole Foods does. I buy organic whenever it is feasible, and I try to get all of the meat from WF.

Here's what I might buy in a week (of course it all changes around all the time and I am an opportunistic critter, but I'm just imagining going through the store right now and what I would grab):

meat:
1.5lb boneless chicken breasts
2.5lb beef roast
2 turkey wings
4 spicy sausages
1/2 a chicken
1 package bacon

veg:
3 bunches of different greens
bag of mixed salad
bag of carrots (the big kind, not the babies)
head of celery
fennel bulb
1 bell pepper
2 cucumbers
1/2 head of cabbage
1 tomato
2 zucchini/yellow summer squash
1.5lb green beans
bag of pink lady apples
2 nectarines
2 pears
1 tub of whatever berries are on sale
bag of onions
2 bulbs of garlic
1 sweet potato
bag of avocados (occasionally)
bag of lemons (occasionally)
fresh herbs (occasionally)

The fresh stuff I buy every week. The rest of the stuff that follows, I only buy when I run out and I'm almost never out of all of these at the same time.

bulk bins:
raw nuts
tub of figs or dates
tub of unsweetened shredded coconut

aisles:
nut butter
ume plum vinegar
EVOO
coconut oil
raw ACV
tahini
mustard
herbs/spices
coconut milk
canned sardines
raw honey/agave
celtic gray sea salt

refridgerated section:
eggs (buy 1 dozen maybe once a month...we don't eat them, just use them as a binder in other things or to make mayonnaise)

frozen section:
berries
veg
loaf of sprouted bread

Sometimes I buy nasty stuff for DH at Acme, like pork roll, sugar-free koolaid, sugar-free ketchup, and dark hershey's kisses. And sometimes I can get my mom to get me a few huge 3-lb bags of raw almonds from Costco and then I am set for quite awhile on my nuts. Oh, and we also have a home seltzer making machine that is an occasional expense for refilling the cannister.

 

[kbchavez]

ooh ooh! Pastured bacon! I've been looking for this everywhere. What brand is it that your HFS carries, Rachel J.?

Bacon is one of the few meats my toddler will eat, so even though I buy the best quality I can (Beeler's or Wellshire Farm) I know I can do better. I would LOVE to find some pastured bacon.

 

[Taedareth]

We are a family of 3 (2 adults, 1 toddler) and our grocery budget is $250/month. We buy big chunks of beef at our local restaurant supply store (Cash 'n' Carry) and DH spends a couple hours slicing it into fillets and putting them in freezer bags. It is not pasture fed, but we don't have a ton of money to work with. We also eat lots of fresh veggies (and I'm growing a garden this year for the first time.) We used to eat stews with soaked/sprouted beans and lentils, but DH's naturopathic doctor has now put him on a very strict low-carb diet to keep his blood sugar stable, so anything starchy is out. We also buy cheese and sour cream (again, the conventional kind).

The expensive items we splurge on are pasture-fed milk (not raw, but I make kefir out of it), Sucanat, xylitol, and unrefined coconut oil. Also cacao nibs (fudge!)

Gotta run... but that pretty much covers it.

 

[famousmockngbrd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kallyn : eggs (buy 1 dozen maybe once a month...we don't eat them, just use them as a binder in other things or to make mayonnaise)

I know this makes me an a$$O, but I can't resist pointing out that you do in fact eat them.

 

[kallyn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by famousmockngbrd I know this makes me an a$$O, but I can't resist pointing out that you do in fact eat them.

Haha, lol. Yeah, bad choice of words as I was furiously typing! I meant to say we don't eat them plain.

 

[tempestjewel]

I'm struggling with budget too as we are a bit new to TF. I had TF tendencies before, so its not a huge leap, but buying pastured animal products is spendy.

Our biggest part of the grocery bill is organic produce. Fortunately we have a good produce market only 5 minutes from our house with reasonable prices, but we still spend the most money on fruits and vegetables.

My DH works at Costco so I'm always having him buy eggs. I was a bit mad though when his location stopped selling the organic Omega-3 eggs (18 were 3.75) but we still get the regular Omega-3 eggs (18 are $2.75).

DH and I are lactose intolerant and my DD and I are allergic to dairy, so we don't do any dairy products. I do buy coconut milk, which I can usually get for less then $1 a can for a decent brand at one of the many Asian supermarkets around here. DH is from Thailand so that suits him fine- he did not grow up with any dairy products anyways.

We do eat beans (soaked and sprouted before cooking) and rice (especially for my DH), or another grain (soaked) with most meals. We also eat tree nuts (DD is allergic to peanuts so I'm really careful about my source for these).

I cook everything from scratch, mostly because of DD's allergies (she's allergic to dairy, soy, wheat, corn, and peanuts). Right now groceries are running between $300 to $350 a month buying mostly organic produce and pasture raised meat. We are a family of four (but the youngest is 5-months and breast-fed).

 

[candynut]

Wow, thanks for all the good responses. I'm glad to know this isn't an all or nothing deal (of course that's the ultimate goal, but at least I can ease in however I can).