The Beginning

This blog is about my journey to lose weight, reduce pain in my joints and muscles and find out if something in my diet is causing these problems, or at least contributing to them.

I have been a vegetarian or vegan for the past 20 years. I have a true allergy to dairy and I believe an intolerance to wheat/gluten. I've been eating wheat-free for about 3 years, with "cheating" now and then, knowing some of the consequences. I plan to stay vegan.

My plan for diet in the next two months (beginning July 1, 2013), is to do a modified "paleo" diet. Certain groups have advocated a paleo-like "Autoimmune Protocol Diet" (AIP) to cleanse the system and heal a "leaky gut." I have no idea if this is my problem, but trying a change in diet doesn't cost me anything except a test of my own will-power. (I write this as a Lays potato chip commercial is playing in the background!)

So, what the heck am I going to do?

A "Paleo" diet is one that consists of little to no processed food. These folks eat things like grass-fed beef, wild fish, etc. No grains (wheat, rice, etc.), no legumes (beans, peanuts, soy). No sugar, no alcohol. Sometimes, no dairy, except for clarified butter and ghee. (There are many versions of Paleo. I'm following the "It's Starts with Food" book by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig.)

In addition, the AIP diet says no nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant, paprika, peppers, bell peppers), no nuts/seeds, no dairy. Some of these things are added back in slowly after a month or two to see if there is a negative reaction. The AIP folks believe a "leaky gut" lets stuff into the blood stream and caused inflammation and therefore, pain...and other stuff.

How will this vegan get her protein? (I KNEW you were going to ask me that!)
Well, I'm not so sure. I will need to decide what modifications I will make to both of these diets, hoping I'm not adding in exactly what's giving me problems. I am used to getting plenty of protein from nuts/seeds, legumes and some grains. I may try organic non-GMO tofu and plain soy tempeh to start and see how I do. I may also keep white rice in my diet, at least once a week.

You, the reader, can look forward to recipes I find or create along with photographs of the meals I make, along with a running commentary about how the project is going, my problems and successes, what might be feeling better and if I am losing weight. I will include exercise and strengthening movements to this plan. I also have an incredible massage therapist (Ed Lark) who supports this achy body on a monthly basis. I've started on a journey with a new chiropractor just last week. He's Paleo (not vegan), so this will be interesting! He seems to be a good listener and we'll see if he does his homework around some of my issues.

So, here's to Day 1 of my Vegan Paleo Autoimmune Protocol Project, henceforth to be known as the VPAPP!