57/365 The Paleo Diet

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

In honor of my friend Sean, whose birthday is today, I shall write about the Paleo Diet. He suggested it to me as a topic for my blog.

The Paleo Diet is fairly simple. If you were living in the Paleolithic Era, what would you eat? You would eat a lot of lean meat, tons of fruits, tons of vegetables, seafood, nuts, and seeds. That's all! No dairy products, no starchy vegetables, legumes, cereal grains, sweets, or salt-containing foods. This website gives you a much more detailed list of those foods.

Why on earth would you subject yourself to this? The idea is that this diet is high in protein without excessive fat and high in fiber (from the fruits and vegetables). Protein takes a longer time to digest keeping you satisfied. It also provides the same amount of energy as carbohydrates. Fiber will keep you satisfied too and is of course good for flushing out your system. Fruits and veggies will provide vitamins whether you do the Paleo Diet or not. Your carbohydrates will also come from the fruits and vegetables too. Nuts, seeds, and seafood provide the omega 3 fatty acids. This diet will help you lose weight while providing you with enough energy and nutrients.

My verdict: Give it a try. As you can see, it's a big commitment personally and financially. I believe that the idea behind the diet is good since our ancestors were clearly healthy enough to pass their genes to us. It also will deter you from the often fattening grain (processed) products out there. They also discourage the use of refined sugar, honey, and salt which is good since we can get carried away and are then unable to taste what is naturally in our food.

Still, I think that there is value in grains like oatmeal and brown rice as long as you know how to eat them. I also happen to like legumes, black beans for me thanks, and appreciate the fact that they have 0 cholesterol.

I would love to give the Paleo Diet a go when I have more money and more discipline. For now though, I will adopt some beliefs of the Paleo Diet. In fact, I will choose a day next week (after I go to the grocery store) to do the Paleo Diet. I'll be sure to let ya'll know how it goes and how I feel.

In health,

Lauren