WE ARE THE SHT ;)

in this post and podcast we discuss what transitional changes to expect as you embark on your real food journey and make changes to your diet.

we also discuss the short-term and long-term beneficial changes to look for.

we also discuss how to know if you’re doing ok! many of us are very hard on ourselves and question whether we are doing ok or not. IT’S NORMAL. we give you some guidelines to understand where you are on your journey, and what things you can do to optimize your nutrition.

coming back after you've fallen off with real food

in this post we'll give you our best advice for getting back on track after falling off, whether it was one event or an extended period of time.

what does falling off mean?

• too much "approved" stuff made with the right ingredients. this can be a slippery slope for many of us!
• too many carbs in the evening. even if from the right sources, if we're not measuring out our carbs and overdoing starches and fruits and sugars, we could feel suboptimal.
• going off plan eating things that are NOT approved.

when we say "fallen off" this implies that you are off right now and want to get back on! so whether it's been 1 meal, 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, or longer, if you're off you're off! and you need to get back on. we want to help.

you're not alone.

• everyone does it. no one is ever perfect. it's usually relative to where we are our your journey. earlier in our journey, we tend to go off worse and more often than later.
• going off contributes to your learning, wisdom, and evolution. we must have ebbs and flows, ups and downs, ins and outs. this is where all the learning and resilience happens. every time we go off and come back, we are strengthening our capacity to come back, and more than likely, we stay "on it" longer and longer.
• contrast clarifies. we all need contrast between what we want to be doing and how we want to feel, contrasted with what we are doing and how we feel in our suboptimal moment(s). contrast clarifies what we want and where we want to be. when you are suboptimal, you get clear on what you don't want, and what you want instead. this is powerful.

remember our values.

some of our values are very relevant to falling off and coming back. for a refresher on our values, watch or listen to this post / podcast.

• freedom. freedom from neurosis. freedom from being too strict. freedom from being hard on ourselves, especially when we fall off.
• we accept everyone. especially those who feel lost, confused, and cast out. especially when we fall off!
• simplicity & elegance. part of simplicity and elegance is allowing for these ups an downs without judgment, understanding it's part of the process.
• we always put ourselves and our personal health first. we make ourselves a priority. a better us is better for anything and everything we want to contribute to in our lives. we cannot sacrifice our health to make others happy.
• constant learning and experimentation. part of learning and experimenting is allowing ourselves to fall off and learn from our suboptimal moments. which over time leads to a personalized way of doing things, within the general guidelines of the SHT, which leads to honed intuition.

• it's about the journey and enjoying the process. there is never a final destination, there will never be a time when we are "there" or "done." there will never be a time when we are perfect and don't need to work on this.
• patience, love and kindness to ourselves and everyone else as we all figure all this out.
• we are all about making this work in a modern lifestyle. part of making this work in a modern lifestyle includes understanding that our modern lifestyle may make it difficult to implement new habits. it's all good.
• there is only feedback. there is no such thing as failure. we strive for optimal and learn from imperfection. we either get what we are looking for, or we get feedback that helps us change course in order to get what we are looking for. every time we come back we are strengthening our capacity to come back! we continue to get better at it, and we stay there longer!
• better is better. even if it's just a little bit better.

here's what to do. 1) acknowledge it. accept it. and learn from it.

sit down and think for a moment - when did this first happen? what was the situation that led to the cascade of events that got you here? where was it? when did it happen? is this something that may happen in the future that you can somewhat predict and plan for?

honesty with ourselves is one of the keys to progress. we must stop rationalizing, get real and be honest about where we are, how we feel, where we fell off, and what we need to do to get better.

• download our coming back forms.

2) do a little emotional damage control.

it's difficult when we are in the funk, in the fog, feeling off, to have positive conversations. but this is exactly what we must do. this is where the deep work comes. it's easy to be positive and happy when everything is going our way and we're feeling great. we need to carry that with us into the darker moments.

• I cannot unlearn what I've learned.
• I'm only one meal away from being right back on it.
• real food combined with nurturing natural space in between meals works wonders.
• I'm only a couple of days away from feeling like myself again.
• I am building a cumulative strength, capacity, wisdom, and evolution as I learn from this process.
• every time I catch myself in this funk and make the decision to come back, I'm strengthening my capacity to come back.
• every decision I make can be a vote for the version of my self I want to be.
• download our coming back forms which include each one of these statements as an 8.5 x 11 document that you can print and hang up in your home and workplace.

3) think about what you want and visualize it.

anytime we want to do anything we have to see it first. it's the way we work. to be successful with getting back on it, we have to see ourselves doing it, and feeling how good it feels to be back on it. this plants the seed to do the right thing at the right time. just like visualizing a perfect squat helps facilitate doing a perfect squat when we actually do it, visualizing yourself doing the right thing, and imagining how it feels, facilitates it. once we see it and feel it enough, we've planted the seed for it, and it is inevitable that we will do move in the direction of doing what we continue to see on a regular basis.

• map out an ideal day using our "perfect day" template. include your "hot spots." describe how you feel as you go through each moment of the day.
• use the week, month, and quarterly calendar to map out hot spots and plan for upcoming events. mark them in the calendar and make some notes about what you can do to prepare OR allow yourself the flexibility to indulge.
• download our coming back forms which includes our "my perfect day" and "weekly and monthly hotspot calendar."

4) address your personal areas of concern.

• set your home and workplace up for success. make sure you have nothing laying out! we are wired to eat!
• workplace temptations? plan to avoid the break room or the snack room!
• family and friends? have a difficult conversation with the people you spend time with! let them know, it's nothing personal, but you are trying to do what feels right and what is good for you. you can still show up to events and get-togethers without eating junk! or maybe you just need to avoid those things altogether?
• being alone? try embracing the space! many people are caught up in relationships and partnerships that don't allow them to enjoy time on their own. try to find some rituals associated with your time alone. cooking while listening to your favorite music and having a glass of wine can be therapeutic.
• cooking vs convenience? fall in love with cooking again! when you cook for yourself, you're nourishing yourself. it's worth taking the time to prepare your own food because this is what nourishes you!

5) other considerations.

• habit takes repetition. going off and coming strengthens your capacity to come back in the future. every meal you get right strengthens your habit of getting it right!
• consider habit stacking. stack eating real food with a habit you already do. make eating real food prerequisite to your other habit.
• meditate. consider apps such as 10% Happier, Sam Harris' Waking Up, or our favorite our meditation playlist here (watch in order). regular meditation will help you "catch" urges and be more present with your choices.
• be sure to exercise. fitness combined with real food is extremely synergistic and makes you feel good about yourself.
• practice love and kindness to yourself.
• reaching out to a friend, a group of friends, the SHT community, me, us, or any of the tribe members.

remember to download our coming back forms. they are from the heart and we know they can help.

if you have any feedback or points we can use to make this better, please contact us.

in this post, we'll give you our best advice for getting back on track after falling off, whether it was one event or an extended period of time.

whether it's too much "approved" stuff made with the right ingredients, too many carbs in the evening, or going off plan completely. visit https://paulctijerina.com/coming-back-real-food/ for details and downloadable handouts.

implementing real food

in this episode, we discuss how to implement real food including topics such as:

• balance and how to incorporate nutrient balance over the long-term.
• structuring daily eating for maximum energy, fat loss, and digestive strength.
• nurturing our concept of self-sufficiency, metabolic flexibility, and fat burning.

scroll down for recommended reading and resources associated with this episode.

• subscribe to our podcast on Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Overcast | Google Play
• download implementing real food documents.

is there anything we need to consider before STARTING with real food?

understand, what we are doing, the basic protocols we learn together are the foundations that we will use for a lifetime.

• real food is nutrient density at its best. there's no point in obsessing over supplements when you don't have the basics of real food down.
• real food replenishes years of toxicity and nutrient deficiencies. if you skip eating real food because you think vegan is "cleaner," or if you fast without setting up the right machinery, you miss the opportunity to replenish nutrients that your body so badly needs.
• we want to slowly build up the bodies resilience to do the things we want to do later such as low-carb, cleanse, and strategic fasting.
• real food is detoxifying in and of itself. real food is void of the toxins, has all the right things to nourish our bodies, and all the nutrients to facilitate the detox pathways. there's no need to go vegan to clean things up. eating real food is already cleaning things up.
• there is plenty of time to experiment with low-carb, cleans, and fasting. and that's exactly what we facilitate.

when starting out, it's all about:

• eating 100% real food.
• eating the right things made with the right ingredients (turning to the correct alternatives).
• eating the right things at the right time of day.

when it comes to balance:

• we want a broad spectrum of nutrients over the long-term. it doesn't have to happen every day, it just needs to happen most days.
• when constructing your meals, try to use the visual we offer in our definition of real food podcast and post.
• when constructing most meals, consider having an equal amount of plant matter to meat (visually).

when it comes to structuring your daily eating:

1. no dominant carbohydrates for your first meal = no safe starches, fruits, or sugars.
2. no snacking in between your main meals.
3. have a little bit of carbohydrates from safe starches and fruits in the evening.

most of our people do well on 2 or 3 meals per day.

in this episode, we discuss how to implement real food including topics such as:

✔︎ balance and how to incorporate nutrient balance over the long-term.

✔︎ structuring daily eating for maximum energy, fat loss, and digestive strength.

✔︎ nurturing our concept of self-sufficiency, metabolic flexibility, and fat burning.

visit https://paulctijerina.com/implementing-real-food/ for all our resources.

our definition of real food

in this episode, we discuss our definition of real food including how we determine our guidelines, the human digestive system, the role of cooking in our evolution, and so much more. scroll down for recommended reading and resources associated with this episode.

• subscribe to our podcast on Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Overcast | Google Play
• download our definition of real food, six food groups

resources: what are we supposed to eat?

• check out this post by Denise Minger "What is the optimal diet for humans?"
• Expensive Tissue Hypothesis.

on cooking:

Catching Fire: How Cooking Made us Human

on digestion:

• Gut Health by Chris Kresser (free eBook)
• Digestive Health with REAL Food: A Practical Guide to an Anti-Inflammatory, Nutrient Dense Diet for IBS & Other Digestive Issues by Aglaée Jacob, MS, RD
• Digestive Wellness: Strengthen the Immune System and Prevent Disease Through Healthy Digestion (4th Edition) by Elizabeth Lipsky, PhD, CCN, CNS, CHN, LDN, CFM

real food basics recommended reading:

• Weston A. Price foundation.
• Ancestral Appetites: Food in Prehistory by Kristen J. Gremillion
• The New Primal Blueprint: Reprogram Your Genes for Effortless Weight Loss, Vibrant Health and Boundless Energy
• The Paleo Solution: The Original Human Diet
• Perfect Health Diet: Regain Health and Lose Weight by Eating the Way You Were Meant to Eat

supportive resources for products:

• SHT by Paul C. Tijerina "things we like"
• SHT by Paul C. Tijerina blog

in this episode, we discuss our definition of real food including how we determine our guidelines, the human digestive system, the role of cooking in our evolution, and so much more.  visit our podcast blog post for more resources at https://paulctijerina.com/our-definition-of-real-food/.

foods to avoid mini episode

in this episode, we further discuss our foods to avoid, briefly touching on ancestral wisdom, modern science, and our experiential knowledge.

DOWNLOAD OUR FOODS TO AVOID HERE.

scroll down for notes and links :)

our focus when eating real food:

• give the body nutrients that it needs for structure, form, and function.
• nurture our concept of self-sufficiency, metabolic flexibility, and fat burning.
• minimize toxic exposure.

what do we want personally?

• optimal body composition.
• to feel amazing.
• optimal performance.
• optimal health markers.

we are cellular beings, and we are made up of trillions of cells which need:

• nutrients for structure, form, and function.
• to be able to detoxify.
• create energy from different sources.

therefore our foods to avoid:

• aren't sources of nutrients, and/or
• don't contribute to self-sufficiency, and/or
• have a toxic burden that inhibit nutrient assimilation, or cause other long-term problems.

and from a personal standpoint:

• don't give us optimal body composition.
• don't' make us feel good.
• don't give us good health markers over the long-term.

DOWNLOAD OUR FOODS TO AVOID HERE.

resources: artificial sweeteners:

• Artificial Sweeteners are Toxic to Gut Bacteria.
• How Artificial Sweeteners Wreak Havoc on Your Gut.
• On the Question of Sweeteners.

grains and seeds:

• Origins and evolution of the Western diet: health implications for the 21st century
• Why Grains are Unhealthy.
• 9 Steps to Perfect Health - #1 : Don't Eat Toxins.

toxic fats:

• one of my favorite books on fats of all time, Know Your Fats : The Complete Primer for Understanding the Nutrition of Fats, Oils and Cholesterol.
• The Definitive Guide to Fats.

full-fat dairy:

• The Definitive Guide to Dairy.
• Dairy - food of the gods or neolithic agent of disease?
• Still Think Low-Fat Dairy is the Healthy Choice? Think Again!

Genetically Modified Organisms:

• Institute for Responsible Technology. a great resource on GMO's.
• The Non-GMO Project. everything you need to know, broken down into easy-to-understand concepts.

in this episode, we further discuss our foods to avoid, briefly touching on ancestral wisdom, modern science, and our experiential knowledge.

be sure to visit our full post at https://paulctijerina.com/foods-to-avoid-mini-episode/ for all the details :)

foods to avoid

in this episode, we discuss our foods to avoid. . .

DOWNLOAD OUR FOODS TO AVOID HERE.

scroll down for notes and links :)

our focus when eating real food:

• give the body nutrients that it needs for structure, form, and function.
• nurture our concept of self-sufficiency, metabolic flexibility, and fat burning.
• minimize toxic exposure.

what do we want personally?

• optimal body composition.
• to feel amazing.
• optimal performance.
• optimal health markers.

we are cellular beings, and we are made up of trillions of cells which need:

• nutrients for structure, form, and function.
• to be able to detoxify.
• create energy from different sources.

therefore our foods to avoid:

• aren't sources of nutrients, and/or
• don't contribute to self-sufficiency, and/or
• have a toxic burden that inhibit nutrient assimilation, or cause other long-term problems.

and from a personal standpoint:

• don't give us optimal body composition.
• don't' make us feel good.
• don't give us good health markers over the long-term.

DOWNLOAD OUR FOODS TO AVOID HERE.

resources: artificial sweeteners:

• Artificial Sweeteners are Toxic to Gut Bacteria.
• How Artificial Sweeteners Wreak Havoc on Your Gut.
• On the Question of Sweeteners.

grains and seeds:

• Origins and evolution of the Western diet: health implications for the 21st century
• Why Grains are Unhealthy.
• 9 Steps to Perfect Health - #1 : Don't Eat Toxins.

toxic fats:

• one of my favorite books on fats of all time, Know Your Fats : The Complete Primer for Understanding the Nutrition of Fats, Oils and Cholesterol.
• The Definitive Guide to Fats.

full-fat dairy:

• The Definitive Guide to Dairy.
• Dairy - food of the gods or neolithic agent of disease?
• Still Think Low-Fat Dairy is the Healthy Choice? Think Again!

Genetically Modified Organisms:

• Institute for Responsible Technology. a great resource on GMO's.
• The Non-GMO Project. everything you need to know, broken down into easy-to-understand concepts.