After becoming a clean eating Kombucha chugging Paleo geek for a good year or so I feel that I am qualified to dissect the principals behind the diet, and let you know which parts I think should be stolen and implemented into your already fabulous life.
Hold onto your grass fed bones caveman... cause we are about to dive guts first into a pit of Paleo!
What the fudge is Paleo?
Paleo comes from the word 'Paleolithic', which, put simply, is the period in history when caveman used basic tools to forage and hunt for food. In our modern world a 'Paleo Diet' is more of a "nothing from a packet" or real food diet. You know... the stuff that goes rotten when you leave it on the shelf for a week. Paleo people fill their plates with lots of meat, seafood, eggs, vegetables, fruits, healthy oils, nuts and seeds.. And they avoid sugar, alcohol, grains/wheat, legumes and dairy... (Yes, you should re-read that last sentence..In super low mo.. Sugar.. Alcohol... Grains... Dairy- Let me guess..90% of your diet right?).. No wonder people drop the kilos fast when they start eating Paleo..
Ok enough with the formal who harr.. lets get to the bacon part of this post.. (AKA: the good part)
5 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD HIGH 5 PALEO!
1. High five to eating real food: Think about this...You wouldn't feed a million dollar race horse a packet of kettle chips and a coke...(everyone knows race horses prefer Pepsi...) so why would you do it to yourself? We as humans are designed to consume and digest what Mother Nature put on this earth, not the rubber stuff Mr Taco Bell, The Kernel or old mate Ronald shove in a deep fryer.
2. High five to focusing on how you feel: Although Paleo draws most people in through its promise of weight loss, it is actually a diet that focuses on getting to know the incredible machine that is your body. Most, if not all skin problems, allergies, intolerances bloating and stomach problems (and possibly even inflammatory and auto immune conditions) are caused by a combination of sugar, wheat, dairy and alcohol- knock those bad boys out of your life and you've got yourself a one way ticket to feel good street! (That's a real place by the way.. Google map it)
3. High five to gut heath: Foods that promote good digestive health, (kombucha, sauerkraut, kefir, apple cider vinegar, ginger and fermented foods) are encouraged to help solve digestive problems, rather then just putting a band-aid over the symptoms as antacids may do. Solving digestive issues is key to long term fat loss and health.
4. High five to healthy fats & oils: Paleo people don't fear fats, and with good reason. Fats are an essential part of our diets and contribute to brain function and cell rejuvenation and are a great slow release energy source. The "low-fat" sham has been well and truly debunked and the Paleo diet has embraced this, as it is high in healthy fats such as avocado, coconut oil, butter, fish and nuts. (Woah woah there cowboy, before you go ordering a deep fried apple pie (for the healthy apples, obviously!) deep fried stuff is a BAD fat.. Trans fats are still avoided)
5. High five to eating organic produce and grass-fed meats: As Paul Chek in his delightful matching tracksuit once said, "the egg is only as healthy as the chicken; the chicken is only as healthy as the food it eats; the food it eats is only as healthy as the soil it came from." There are huge differences in the nutrient quality of grass fed organic meats, eggs and vegeta
bles (although veg is often debated) compared to their no-organic caged counterparts. This is valuable knowledge if you are looking for long term health.
5 REASONS WHY PALEO MAKES YOU WANT TO HIGH FIVE YOURSELF IN THE FACE!
1. Face slap to socialising & eating out: I'm gonna throw it out there..because ive experienced this first hand.. Socialising whilst being strict Paleo is almost impossible. Take a BBQ for example, what oil are they cooking that processed sausage in? Is there dressing on the salad? Is the chicken organic? I can't eat the bread, or crackers, what's in the dip? I'll pass on the alcohol.. I better not do that keg stand.. Oh I can't have a slice of birthday cake either. Yes I know you can bring your own cut up carrots and homemade dip and you could bring your own chicken and make a Paleo birthday cake too, but seriously...No one wants to hang out with you sipping bone broth while everyone else is having a crack at goon-a-fortune.
2. Face slap to food information overload: Too much too soon- although Paleo is amazing for your health, I find drastic approaches like this one are very very hard for people to stick to. Take it from me, I have clients who can't cut out wheat for a day let alone a lifetime. It is a lot of changes all at once, and for some people that in itself is very stressful. Im a big advocate of making small changes over time, rather then diving head first into massive lifestyle changes.
3. Face slap to being time consuming and expensive: To do Paleo properly, you really have to take the time to cook and prepare foods. You can't just grab a sandwich for lunch or a muesli bar for a snack, everything you consume has to be pre prepared and made from scratch- which is awesome, but you really do have to make the time to prepare foods... and if you have ever walked down the organic produce isle, you will know what I mean about expensive
4. Fat loss face slap: Most people do find that they drop the kilos fast when eating a strict paleo diet, however, this is not the case for everyone. To burn fat you need to be consuming less calories then your body needs- so even if you only ate the most healthiest of healthy diets- if you eat more than you need, you will still gain weight. The reason most people drop weight fast is because they are drastically reducing the amount of calories they would normally consume and they change the macronutrient ratios of what they are eating. Most paleo people will consume more protein & fats (thus keeping them fuller for longer- this they eat less) and less starchy carbs and processed sugar (whereby avoiding crashes and sugar cravings- therefore you are consuming less calories). So although most people will get results by doing this, it will not work for everyone... I would know, I ate like that for a year and still maintained my current weight.
5. Peanut butter covered face slap: Hi my name is Mel and I'm a Peanutbutteraholic. Peanuts are actually legumes which are a no no in the Paleo world due to their potential to upset your digestive system.. and yes I know I know, I could just have almond butter- But no, that's like asking a Cola addict to settle for Fanta.. And here comes my lame peanut fuelled justification- I find peanut butter isn't an issue for me (I've experimented with it), and hey, it's not like I consume ridiculous amounts..AND in my defense I only ever buy the legit, expensive organic 100% peanuts stuff... Ok, geez stop getting up in my grill about it.
Hokay..now that you've been slapped silly by positives and negatives and listen to me justify my peanut butter addiction, let's look at the specific parts of the Paleo frame work you should steal that will get you on the path to good health and weight loss without all the painful face slapping.
DO MORE OF THIS: Eating real food. Eat more real, less processed. More fruit less mars bars. More carrot sticks less crackers. Turn the packet over and look at the ingredients- what is in it? Do you know what that is? Can you find it in nature? I'm happy with a product if I know what the ingredients are and if their are very few ingredients in it. Eg: 100% Brown Rice Cakes.
EXPERIMENT WITH THIS: Wheat/Dairy/Legumes- I strongly suggest you go a month without each of the three simply to test if you react to it... Especially if you get bloated, have allergies or acne. I honestly thought I had IBS for a long time, turns out dairy was my Issue. Now I only have these item occasionally- usually special occasions like birthdays. No more bloating for me and my skin is so much better without dairy, seriously.. Give it a crack.
BE SMART WITH THIS: In order to avoid 'food snob' status, you want to be able to enjoy the occasional treat, wine at dinner or crunchy slice of bread, AND NOT FEEL GUILTY!
I have two rules here.
1. Party foods are only for parties.
2. A palm size is the quantity I'll eat.
If it is a birthday, breakfast with the girls or a special occasion I'll allow myself to have some wheat/dairy/sugar, however I am mindful of my portion size and I make damn sure it's good quality, I'm not wasting my taste buds on some "meh" supermarket cake- hit me up with some homemade double choc, squeels of delight, legit cake!
THINK ABOUT THIS: Fix your problems with food first- if you have a few minor issues have a look at what your putting on your fork.. Maybe that acne could be fixed by eliminating dairy, rather then smothering your face in toxic chemicals that are in your "Proactive" solution.
START BY SWAPPING THIS FOR THIS:
Dairy: Try unsweetened Almond Milk or unsweetened Coconut Milk, and if you can control yourself from inhaling the entire tub, get yourself some coconut yoghurt.
Sugar- Reach for fruits, add some honey or sweeten with stevia.
Oils- Toss the canola & vegetable oils, don't be a tight ass- go get yourself some coconut oil for frying and olive oil for baking or on salads.
In summary, the Paleo framework is spot on, the practicality of it in a modern world is well... spot off... and this is coming from me; someone who rarely drinks, has not had fast food for over 3 years and who spat out a McDonalds fry when it was shoved in her mouth... I know will power, and even I think Paleo is redonkulously hard to stick with.. Even the hardest of hard core Paleo people manage to justify drinking wine, coffee and dark chocolate occasionally.
However having said all that, I am a big advocate of experimenting with, and learning about food and what works for your body. So If you are an all or nothing kind of person get around this website for a 30 day paleo challenge, and check out Robb Wolf & Cris Kressers for more information, podcasts and blogs.
If you are a Melbournian and want to follow an amazing and inspiring paleo journey I would reccomend you check out Paleo In Melbournes Blog, Facebook & Instagram @paleoinmelbourne
Otherwise if I've face slapped you out of it, start with small changes each week.. Give no wheat a try for a month, I dare you too..
Good luck you delightful human, thank you for reading & please send me an email if you have any questions or would like to brag about how much weight you've lost and how much delicious bacon and butter you've consumed since going Paleo.
melvfness@live.com.au
Mel xx
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