Paleo Diet 101

So what exactly is the Paleo diet and why might it be beneficial to you?

The Paleo diet is based around the principle that the human genome, having evolved around a hunter-gatherer framework, has not had the time to adapt to modern food consumption. As such, we see the rise of obesity and many diseases of civilization such as cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disorders, and others. There is strong evidence that many of these problems are related to poor dietary quality, food choices, and of course lack of exercise.

The Paleo diet revolves around the consumption of quality meat sources such as wild game, grass-fed meat, free range fowl, and wild caught fish; seasonal fruits and vegetables; and healthy fats from food such as avocados, nuts, seeds, olive oil, and coconut oil.

Grains, dairy, legumes, sugar (duh), vegetable oils (canola and so on), and processed foods in general are a no go, for reasons that will be expanded upon in future posts.

"But wait!" you cry, "I love my bread, pasta, and cheese! Candy is fantastic and I still think margarine is better for you than butter! Why should I bother to make this change when I'll be missing out on all my goodies?"

Well, switching over to Paleo will likely have a long list of dramatic benefits to you, including but not limited to:
- looking better naked (fat loss and preserving lean muscle mass, double bonus!)
- more energy
- feeling great
- helping many medical conditions (diabetes being a big one)
- improving cardiovascular risk factors such as blood pressure, cholesterol, etc.
- helping to clear up acne (grains and dairy are often acne triggers for people)
- forcing you to learn some modicum of cooking
- and much, much more!

Don't believe me? I'll be providing reasoning and evidence in the near future.

On to my experience with Paleo so far. I'm probably coming up on a month now, or I might have just passed it. In general I feel excellent and many workouts have been fantastic. When I get to the gym I tear things up, especially as I really start to get into the workout. Bodyweight has been pretty stable and strength is increasing. I'm still consuming dairy, but this is purely a caloric thing. My goal is still to add lean mass and I'm finding it DIFFICULT to consume enough food otherwise (because I'm full!). I've leaned out a bit in spite of the fact that I'm putting in a pretty hard effort to gain weight, which I think is testament to the effectiveness of this kind of eating. I'm consuming a ton of yams, fruit, high calorie Paleo-friendly shakes, drinking olive oil (yuck), loads of milk, and I've still lost body fat. I have no doubt as to the efficacy of the Paleo diet for fat loss if followed in a manner consistent with that goal. If I dropped the dairy and replaced some of the fruit with even more vegetables I would probably feel even better than I currently do.

This is definitely something worth trying: a logical and scientifically backed way of eating that will improve your health and fitness dramatically. No calorie counting, no worrying excessively about portions, no being hungry while trying to lose weight. Give it 30 days, what've you got to lose? What might you gain from it?

Robb Wolf has a lot of fantastic resources over at his website. In particular are the Quick Start Guide and Shopping List to get the basics taken care of. If you're really serious about improving your health, losing fat, and feeling awesome, just bite the bullet and grab his book. It's ripe with all the "what?" and "how?" and "why?" answers you could ever want and even has some excellent recipes in the back.

Ba da bing: eat like your ancestors. Good quality meat sources, vegetables, fruits, healthy fats are a very big "yay" here. Say "nay" to grains, legumes, dairy, processed food, and vegetable oils. Feel awesome, drop body fat, perform better.

As always, feel free to comment with questions, comments, or concerns. If you have experience with a Paleo diet, feel free to post that as well!

- Jonathan