10 Steps to Going Primal - Step One

The idea of such a radical change in how we think about our diet and nutrition is a bit overwhelming, at least for us it is.  I found a post on Mark's Daily Apple that walks through 10 baby steps to help you go primal.  I thought I would share these each day and explain how I've used the concept to help us make the transition.

Step 1 - Remake a meal
Here he talks about a meal category, so breakfast for example.  Matt and I both eat a lot of carbs for breakfast, so this is a tough meal to start with, but you can also start with an easy meal.  Maybe try dinner and instead of having brown rice with chicken, add extra vegetables to fill your plate.  Either way, the idea is to change a meal at a time.  Maybe you're able to change a meal each day, maybe you need a few weeks to adjust. 
I am already going down the path of too much too soon.  So I am going to take a step back as well, and focus on remaking my meals.  Breakfast to me is easy because there are a lot of breakfast type foods that I didn't eat because I thought they were bad.  I'm excited to eat eggs, bacon, sausage etc.  I still need to get some veggies in to my breakfast, but one day at a time right!?  That sounds like a perfect goal for tomorrow, remake my remade breakfast by ensuring there is protein, healthy fat AND vegetables (as I get enough fruit thats for sure).
Here is a recipe for making your own protein bars that might help remake that pre/post workout snack!  I am going to make these this weekend!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup slivered almonds

1/2 cup pecans

1/4 cup almond or sesame seed meal

1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1/4 cup almond butter

1/4 cup coconut oil (check your local health food store)

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp of raw honey

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 cup dried cranberries or blueberries

Method:

1.On a cookie sheet, toast nuts and shredded coconut until golden brown (you may need to shake the tray once or twice to make sure they cook evenly).

2.Once toasted, pour mixture into a food processor and pulse until nuts are chopped and the mixture becomes coarsely ground.

3.In a mixing bowl, melt coconut oil and almond butter (about 20 seconds). Remove from microwave and stir until smooth.

4.Add vanilla extract, honey and sea salt. Mix thoroughly.

5.Fold in nut mixture and almond (or sesame seed) meal until mixed thoroughly.

6.Fold in blueberries/cranberries.

7.Press mixture into an 8 by 4 loaf pan.

8.Refrigerate for 20 minutes or until firm.

9.Cut “loaf” width wise. Should make 6 good-sized bars.

10.Enjoy! (or, if you don’t plan to eat immediately, you can store the bars in the refrigerator, covered loosely with a paper towel and plastic wrap.