I first heard about the Paleo diet from watching a news special a few years ago evaluating many different current diet fads. HcG, Atkins, South Beach were just a few discussed. Then, they discussed the Paleo Diet, noting that of all the fad diets, it seemed to be deemed the healthiest for your body while still helping you achieve weight loss. Meat, vegetables, & fruit--- ONLY?? That sounded like torture to me!! So I just carried on my marry little way of eating what I presumed to be light & healthy.
Sometime later, I got pregnant with Knox, my third and final baby. It's funny how the more pregnancies I have, the worse my diet gets. It always starts out good- veggies, oatmeal, chicken, etc. But by the time I got to the 3rd trimester with him, I was living on bacon, cupcakes, sugar cookies, bacon, and steak. Oh, and bacon. I DESPISE being pregnant, so maybe it was comfort eating? Maybe I was cashing in on the fact that it was to be my last pregnancy. In the back of my head I sort of knew I was going to try something more extreme to loose the baby weight once I had him, so I justified it by packing in the sweets & meat. I decided Paleo was to be my torment of choice. I had mentally given myself a time line of starting it after my 6 week post partum check up. 6 weeks post partum and I was soft, flabby, and feeling not so hot, so I started the following week. I was 11 pounds over my pre-baby weight. This may not sound like much, but when you are 5'ft 4" and small framed with narrow hips, 11 lbs is a few sizes! Now 9 mos later, I am still nursing and have reached my pre-baby weight and continue to lose about 1 lb per month. I know some people are back to pre-baby weight in a few weeks, but for me, this is the quickest I've ever gotten back there.
Caveman---Paleo---Paleolithic. It's all the same. Our early ancestors, Paleolithic cavemen, if you will, ate what was available to them. Sometimes a meal was a whole chicken. Sometimes they had some green beans, sometimes they had an apple if there was a tree near by.They were hunter gatherers.
There was no grain. There was nothing processed. No sugar, no diary (unless you were lucky enough to own a goat). So think about it---> Many people 'think' they are eating 'healthy'. I see all these Pins stating "100 Days of Clean Eating" and then you open them and they include foods like whole wheat pasta, whole grain bread, brown rice, greek yogurt, etc. While all of these things are better for you than a Big Mac or a slice of pizza, they are still processed. They are not foods that you can walk out and pluck up from God's green earth and consume. Even milk has to be pasteurized.
So my list of Paleo foods consists of:
- Meats
- Eggs
- Fish
- Veggies (all except white potatoes)
- Fruit
- Nuts*
- Unprocessed oils such as olive & coconut
- Honey & natural sweeteners such as 100% all natural maple syrup
I do not eat:
- Grain- wheat, rice, quinoa, etc.
- Dairy- yogurt, cheese, milk
That's it. I don't count my calories at all. If I'm hungry I eat something on that list. One reason I chose this diet to follow is that I am planning to breastfeed Knox for at least a year. Breastfeeding mommas cannot constrict their calories and still produce quality milk. As of now, Knox is almost 9 mos and still nursing great!
*I'm not legalistic about my nuts. True story- the peanut is NOT a nut, it's a legume. But I allow myself peanut butter in moderation. Well, moderation goes out the window sometimes, but I allow it anyway. The same is true for butter.
*** Another confession: We have a family cheat day. It is usually Sunday. On Sunday, I eat anything I want. I wouldn't say I consume mass quantities of food, I just allow myself those sugar cookies, or pancakes, or pizza, that I wouldn't allow myself during the week. I have still managed to slowly loose weight with this plan.
For more info/research:
Robb Wolf
EveryDay Paleo
