What Is The Paleo Diet And Why Should You Give It A Try? I stumbled upon this diet when doing one of the many different “challenges” that I have done in the past, and decided that I wanted to continue on with this lifestyle. Honestly, it’s not that different from the way we had been eating, at times I am a little more “strict” than others, but all in all, this is the way my husband and I choose to do things. I’ve found this great magazine, with some AWESOME articles, and cook-books. I don’t want you to just listen to me ramble on and on about the benefits, so I’ve brought in an expert as a guest speaker! Read below. Also, click on my links for cookbooks, and meal plans! This is a great way to kick-start a journey, if you are ready and able to give it a go!
ENJOY!
https://mz164.isrefer.com/go/paleo-dessert-recipe/karadavenport17/ — Easy Dessert cookbook
https://mz164.isrefer.com/go/epc/karadavenport17/ — Essential Paleo Cookbook
https://mz164.isrefer.com/go/pmhomepage/karadavenport17/ — Paleo Homepage
Please see article below!
What Is Paleo And Why Should You Give It A Try?
This is a guest post by Louise Hendon, co-founder of Paleo Flourish Magazine, and author of The Essential Paleo Cookbook. In this article, she shares the basics of what a Paleo diet is and some of the benefits a Paleo diet could offer you.
You might be eating a Paleo diet without even knowing it.
I’m not kidding. Many of the most popular diets of the past 5-10 years have simply been variations of a Paleo diet. Sometimes they change a few things, but the basics are usually the same. For example, the recent Bone Broth diet and JJ’s Virgin diet are both very similar to Paleo when you look beneath the surface.
And even the Paleo diet itself is know by many names (caveman diet, Primal, Banting, etc.).
If you’re not already familiar, I’ll show you in this article exactly what a Paleo diet is. More importantly, though, I’ll show you WHY and HOW a Paleo diet works and why so many other diets use it as a starting point.
First of all…
What the Heck is a Paleo Diet?
One of the most common responses I get when I tell someone I eat a Paleo diet is: “Oh, do you eat…raw meat?”
Let me start by clarifying that…No, Paleo does not generally include raw meat.
Most people on a Paleo diet choose to eat a combination of meats (mostly cooked), fish and other seafood, vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds.
And while that might sound like a boring smattering of foods, you can combine these foods groups to make a huge selection of seriously delicious meals.
You can find a more detailed list of foods on the Paleo diet here.
Why these foods and not others?
You’re probably wondering what’s so special about the foods I mentioned?
There are two big reasons to eat those foods…
- First, they’re high in nutrients (like vitamins and minerals).
- Secondly, they cause very little inflammation and contain few toxins (for example, they’re less likely to contain compounds that could cause you digestive issues).
Generally, they’re the foods that have been eaten by humans for an extremely long time.
Notice that certain foods are not on the list because they don’t fit in with those 2 reasons. Wheat (or whole grains), for instance, is not on that list. Contrary to popular opinion, wheat does not contain many vitamins and minerals when compared to the other foods on that list. And that’s why you’ll usually see bread fortified with vitamins and minerals to make them more nutritious!
Plus wheat contains gluten, a protein whose consumption long term can cause small tears in your intestines thereby allowing all sorts of bacteria, food particles, and other stuff that shouldn’t be allowed through the intestine walls.
This is a very brief and simplified description of what gluten does to you – if you’re interested in finding out more about the impact of gluten on your health, check out these books here (1, 2).
And of course, our bodies are all slightly different so your most optimal diet might look slightly different to that of the person next to you, but the general concepts still apply.
In the end, Paleo is a diet that looks first to the past to see what has worked for humans for millions of years. But mostly, we use modern science to determine what actual effects these foods have on our bodies today.
It’s not just about food!
Paleo is generally referred to as a diet, and most people therefore think, it’s just about what you put into your mouth. However, for many people, Paleo is more of a lifestyle you adopt.
And within the Paleo lifestyle, sleep, play, de-stressing, and exercise are all highly emphasized.
Why should you give Paleo a try?
Most of what Paleo tries to do is return your body (and also your mind) to a simpler state where it doesn’t have to do battle with the copious amounts of junk you’re ingesting.
What that ends up meaning is that your body is given a chance to recover after years of abuse. Some benefits people might find on a Paleo diet include:
- losing weight
- regaining energy
- healing chronic health issues
- having improved moods
- sleeping better
Most people start Paleo because they want to lose weight, and many do find that it helps them do just that. While there might be some deeper scientific reason for why Paleo helps people lose weight, the simplest reason is that it helps you naturally not overeat without leaving you hungry or nutrient-deficient. This then makes it possible for you to stick to Paleo long term thereby helping you not only to lose weight but also to keep it off.
Most people who stick to Paleo long term do so not purely for the weight loss factor (although of course, that helps), but because it also just makes them feel so much better. I’ve gotten emails from people in their 60s and 70s telling me they now feel like they’re in their 30s again. With that sort of positive incentive, it’s hard for most people to go back to the lifestyle they had before.
A few caveats about Paleo
Like any diet or lifestyle, there are no guarantees.
Some of our bodies are more broken than others! Personally, while it took only a few weeks for my heartburn to disappear, it took almost 5 years of eating a Paleo diet for my autoimmune condition to subside. Now, I’m completely off both heartburn and autoimmune medications!
Someone told me when I was first starting a Paleo diet that it was silly for me to expect that I would suddenly be healed of all my health and weight issues after just a few weeks of Paleo when I had spent a lifestyle eating junk, being stressed, and not exercising or sleeping enough. That statement made a lot of sense to me and helped me to remain patient, so I hope it offers you the same.
That doesn’t mean some people don’t see fast weight loss and fast health results, but that may not always be the case.
How do you start a Paleo diet?
I’ve hopefully gotten you excited about Paleo!
If you’re looking to give it a try, then it’s easy to get started.
Many people go all in – meaning they give up processed foods, wheat and other grains, legumes, processed sugars, dairy and really embrace the lifestyle. Honestly, those are the people that tend to see the best results quickly.
If you’re a bit timid, then I suggest getting your feet wet by just going Paleo for breakfast initially. Have a green smoothie, an avocado with an egg, a few slices of bacon with some fried asparagus, or maybe a Paleo coffee. I find having a Paleo breakfast really helps to keep me alert and energized in the mornings and fills me up so that I’m not hungry until lunch.
Then, once you have breakfast down, switch your dinner to Paleo and then your lunch and snacks.
Another easy option is to join our free 7-day Paleo challenge (there’s a quick start guide, menu, and daily videos to guide you through the process).
Those are some of the basics of a Paleo diet. I hope you give it a try and enjoy your journey to better health.
the box will stand 20, 24, or 30″ tall. You jump on said box, and step off. The process continues until you 
YEP! That’s my shin. I took this beautiful picture, AFTER the workout was complete. Pardon the white legs!
Mom wants to eat 