quick guide on paleo

Nowadays paleo isn’t as popular as it was a couple of years back, at least not as popular as IF and keto these days. But it’s still quite prevalent especially in crossfit circles, so I thought I’d make a quick guide on it too so you can get a quick idea on what it’s all about.

The paleo diet’s also known as cavemen diet, hunter-gatherer diet or stone age diet. Its basic premise is basically trying to eat the way people did over 10,000 years ago when farming still wasn’t a thing. Paleo believes like eating like our ancestors did is a much healthier way to eat, but fact is there is very little evidence to that exists that far back to prove the claim.

Now while the reasoning behind paleo is questionable, the diet itself isn’t exactly a bad idea at all.

The diet includes mainly foods like fish, lean meats, fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds. In modern day terms it’s basically a 100% “clean” diet, in other words 100% whole foods and lean protein.

How does it help with weight loss?

Eating 100% whole foods and lean protein means you’re likely eating lot less calories than you would have if you included more processed foods in your diet. You also get to eat a higher volume of food which means hunger is a lot easier to be dealt with.

Though the problem with that is (as we’ve all probably experienced at least once in our lives) it’s quite difficult to maintain long term. Eating 100% “clean” for a few days or even a week is one thing. Doing it for months and months on end, missing out on parties, celebrations, gatherings does take a toll and make keeping up with it quite difficult.

Which is why while I’m not a fan of 100% paleo, I think 70-80% paleo can be a realistic diet for sustainable weight loss. 70-80% whole foods and lean protein along with 20-30% of any foods you want. Remember a successful diet is really about finding the balance between your wants and your needs in your diet. Going too extreme on either side isn’t the best idea.

What I do like about paleo is it kinda hits all the markers for health. Leaning towards whole foods and lean proteins in your diet means you’re basically maximizing the nutrients you get from your food, which is a huge contribution to your overall health. Not all diets naturally lean you towards health, but paleo does.

So is there some secret about how our ancestors ate vs weight loss?

Not really.

Can paleo work for weight loss?

Yes it can.

“Will it work for me?”

Try it and find out. If 100% is too much for you, try 80%. Use the paleo diet as a template. Try it out, then adjust in places where you find don’t suit you and keep going.

It’s not some magic method for weight loss or health, it’s just a method.

I’d say my day to day diet quite closely resembles a 70-80% paleo diet, although I never really viewed my diet that way. I quite enjoy it cos it gives me the best of both worlds, health, calorie control, and fun foods!

Hope this helps!~

—Po