You can try the whole30 challenge as a kick start and then continue on with Paleo.

My Gf is doing the whole30 now, she is a bad....let me stress this..BAD...sugar fiend...I'm sure there have been Victorian style horror stories written about the kind of evil she possesses when she goes without sugar........BUT...she's trying this because she's determined to stop feeling like sugar controls her every whim...and at least once a day she tells me it's hard...but then she also tells me a positive effect.

What you're attempting is hard...if it wasn't, everyone would be doing it.

Truth.

I was previously "healthy sad" and reasonably active and in good shape. I selected paleo because reading about it, it makes a lot more sense than CW type suggestions. Plus, I'm an observational statistics dork, and i couldn't help but notice the number of people at whole foods eating "healthy" organic boxed crap and looking quite unhealthy. (sharing this because unlike many I had no particular ill I was trying to cure and based on your description, you may well be the same.)

I started by swapping in paleo foods. It was less about elimination and more about including the right things. If you have only real foods at meals and limited and/or truly healthy snacks, there will be little room in your diet for the foods you're seeking to avoid. I also just stopped buying certain trigger foods because if they aren't there, you cannot eat them.

Other people probably do better with a different approach. Choose the one that works best with your personality. You can achieve your goals.

I would drop the stuff that is most likely the worst for you. I started with gluten and eventually dropped all grains. But even more important was dropping all "bad" oils which, I learned, have a big negative effect on me. I also supplemented with vitamin D and took steps to cure my gut. These things made enormous positive changes in my health that I'm still enjoying 15 months later.

But maybe to start with give yourself a break on the other things. Have dairy, or fruit, or the occasional sweets, or a beer, or whatever helps you cope. With a 1 year old in grad school you might not be up for a monster challenge. Try to use the diet as a way to improve your physical and mental health but not something else that you have to worry about / manage.

You did not give any reason for why you started paleo, if you suspect that you have celiac or some problem with gluten etc. Different people find different food sensitivities, mine are gluten and oils, but others are dairy, or nightshades, or shellfish, or whatever. If you aren't sure, try dropping all grains and sugars for 20 days and see how you feel.

I think it depends on your personality and level of self-control. If you do have the "problems with self-control" and are living a "high-stress existence", it may be more beneficial for you to make gradual changes. Say, cut out grains first, then once that has become a habit, cut out dairy, then ensure all of your fats such as cooking oils are Paleo, et cetera. Making a huge overhaul for not only yourself but your entire family can be extremely overwhelming and make it easier to give up as well as intensify the stress of your lifestyle. Gradual changes will reinforce Paleo as a lifestyle change and make it "doable" whilst still allowing you to see the benefits. As for your husband's snacks, are you in charge of the groceries or does he buy them himself? If you are in charge, simply make sure they're not in the house. If not, try to explain to him why you're making the decision to go Paleo and how it can help him and your family. If he is not willing, maybe talk about how it makes it difficult for you to maintain a Paleo lifestyle when he has his snacks ... Perhaps he could have them when you're not together (at work, out with friends).

Welcome to Paleo and welcome to Paleo Hacks. You'll find lots of useful, practical advice here that can help make the transition much less stressful.

Thanks for the advice!

I see what you are saying, Fern. I tend to be an all-or-nothing type, but I don't want to turn my family off because of all the earth-shaking changes. As far as the unhealthy snacks go... we both grocery shop (often together), so I could probably nix them pretty easily. I guess I feel a little "I can at least give him that" guilt.

...although when I think about it, there should be zero guilt with making healthy, family lifestyle changes. Right, you are. Eat my well-proportioned macros, husband!