Easy Paleo

So what is Paleo? Here is a semi-quick crash course on the matter. Paleolithic time lasted for about 2.5 million years, and ended 10,000 years ago with the introduction of agriculture. During the paleolithic time, humans enjoyed a variety of foods, consisting mostly of vegetables, fruits, nuts, and meat. Depending on their location and availability, some humans enjoyed more of one type of food than others. Genetically, we have adapted to eat all variations of paleo foods, whether cooked or raw. This is the basis of the paleo diet. 

The PROBLEM

Carbohydrates. Whether you get them from veggies, fruits, nuts, grains, or legumes, they are all the same and eventually convert to sugar. But, not all carbs are created equal. Carbohydrate's from all grain products, legumes (peanuts too), dairy, starchy tubers, and some fruit have a high impact on your body's insulin response. Basically, when you eat food that raises your blood sugar too fast, your body reacts by stressing and causing the release of several hormones. The most important one to remember here is insulin. This hormone is chiefly responsible for nutrient transport into the cells of your body, and is especially sensitive to sugar, since sugar in high amounts is toxic your body. 


So why are you fat? Seems crazy to think that eating less fat and taking in more low calorie/high carb food would make you gain weight, right? Well, the problem here is once again sugar.  When insulin levels are chronically high from your "healthy" diet, this causes any carbohydrate eaten to be quickly converted into sugar, and even more quickly to be sent to your fat cells and stored. At the same time insulin is telling those same fat cells to "store fat" that is already banked, making it impossible to use your stored body fat as energy. After your insulin spikes and then drops between meals, your body will crave more sugars, this cycle will be repeated several times throughout the day. In your body's attempt to reach homeostasis, it requires that any "extra" energy added recently to be burned first. Couple this with a sedentary lifestyle and viola! You are now chubby! Congratulations.


Along with a higher body fat percentage, consuming high insulin response causing foods will treat you to a slew of problems such as fatigue, intestinal bloating (due to the disruptive nature of allergenic grain products), rheumatoid arthritis (also due to allergenic grains that promote auto inflammatory diseases), increased triglycerides, increased blood pressure, insulin resistance (type1, and type2 diabetes), heart disease, depression, and eventually death. I'll talk about food allergies and side effects, such as insulin resistance, in my next post.

The SOLUTION

There is no easier way to put it. To loose the weight, and keep it off, you must change the way you eat. This "diet" is not a diet at all. It is a call to change your lifestyle and make sensible food choices everyday. The saying "you are what you eat" has never been truer as it is today. 


To make the transition to paleo as easy as possible, remove all grain based products, like bread and pasta and all GLUTEN . Get rid of sodas, juices, and any processed foods. Actually, you should try to remove all products with a monster sized ingredients list on the nutrition label. Remember, we are going for single ingredient based foods here. Quality over quantity is our priority! 


Robb Wolff says the following when going shopping. www.robbwolf.com


Protein- 
Ideally these options are grass fed or wild caught. If you cannot find those should you eat a bagel? No! conventional options are fine. Beans and rice do NOT count. 
           Land: Pork, beef, lamb.
           Sea: Trout, salmon, shrimp, crab. you know.... fishy type stuff!
           Air: Chicken, turkey, duck, ostrich. I know, ostrich is flightless don't get cheeky. 
Round things out with some good quality bacon, omega-3 enriched eggs and some items like chickenapplesausage to help you with breakfast on busy days. 


Veggies

Ideally these are local and organic, but again, this should not be a deal breaker. Our local mega-food
chain actually has the best produce outside of the farmers market, and at an amazing price. Shop with
the season, which typically means what is on sale. Mix up the colors.

Fruit

Limit fruit to 1 serving per day if fat loss is your goal. A serving is not a whole watermelon. If you want
to screw things up and not make progress, eat all the fruit you want, it’s your nickel, ride the ride as
you like. In order of preference: Berries, melons, citrus, apples, pears. Bananas, papayas and mangoes
are great for athletes post workout but dodgy for folks who want to lose weight.

Fats

Olive oil (extra virgin) coconut, avocado (oil and whole), macadamia (whole and oil), almonds, walnuts.
If fat loss is a goal limit nuts to 1-2 oz. per day.


Odds & Ends
Marinara sauce, herbs, spices-curry powder, garlic, ginger, cilantro, garam massala, chili powder, black
pepper, lemon zest, allspice, cinnamon, cumin, oregano, and basil. Get at least 20 herbs and spices to
keep your cooking lively. Stock up on espresso, teas and mineral water as these are your beverages of
choice.

check out the rest of Robb's post here, he specifically talks about  how you should consume all the tasty food you just bought!

for you guys who do better with lists here is one from Paleoblocks

The Good

Below are items that are great to eat when on the Paleo and/or Zone diet listed in order of best to good.(Cited: THE PALEO DIET by Dr. Loren Cordain) 

Take a look below and imagine ALL of the possible combinations! You'll NEVER BE BORED!
Fats
Avocado
Nuts
Oils
"Flours"
Nut Flours - to be used sparingly follow directions on package
Meats (trimmed of visible fat)
Lean Beef
Flank Steak
Top Sirloin Steak
Extra Lean Hamburger (no more than 7% fat)
London Broil
Chuck Steak
Lean Veal
Any other lean cut

Lean Pork:
Pork Loin
Pork Chops
Any other lean cut

Lean Poultry: (white meat / skin removed)
Chicken Breast
Turkey Breast
Game Hen Breasts

Eggs:
Chicken (go for the Omega  3 enriched)
Duck
Goose

Other Meats:
Rabbit
Goat

Organ Meats:
Beef, Lamb, Pork, and Chicken Livers
Beef, Pork, and Lamb Tongues
Beef, Lamb, and Pork Marrow
Beef, Lamb, and pork "sweet breads"

Game Meats:
Alligator
Bear
Bison
Caribou
Elk
Emu
Goose
Kangaroo
Muscovy Duck
New Zealand Cervena Deer
Ostrich
Pheasant
Quail
Rattlesnake
Reindeer
Squab
Turtle
Venison
Wild Boar
Wild Turkey

Fish
Bass
Bluefish
Cod
Drum
Eel
Flatfish
Grouper
Haddock
Halibut
Herring
Mackerel
Monkfish
Mullet
Northern Pike
Orange Roughy
Perch
Red Snapper
Rockfish
Salmon
Scrod
Shark
Striped Bass
Sunfish
Tilapia
Trout
Tuna
Turbot
Walleye

Shellfish:
Abalone
Calms
Crab
Crayfish
Lobster
Mussels
Oysters
Scallops
Shrimp 


Nuts/Seeds
Walnuts
Macadamia Nuts
Pecans
Pine Nuts
Cashews
Pistachios
Hazel Nuts
Pumpkin Seeds
Brazil Nuts
Sunflower Seeds
Almonds

Oils
Flax seed Oil

Mustard Seed Oil
Walnut Oil
Olive Oil
Avocado Oil

Fruits
Apple
Apricot
Avocado
Banana
Blackberries
Blueberries
Boysenberries
Cantaloupe
Carambola
Cassava Melon
Cherimoya
Cherries
Cranberries
Figs
Gooseberries
Grapefruit
Grapes
Guava
Honeydew Melon
Kiwi
Lemon
Lime
Lychee
Mango
Nectarine
Orange
Papaya
Passion Fruit
Peaches
Pears
Persimmon
Pineapple
Plums
Pomegranate
Raspberries
Rhubarb
Star Fruit
Strawberries
Tangerine
Watermelon
All other Fruits!

Spices- almost all are good! Here are some common spices that are great to use.
Allspice
Anise

Basil
Bay Leaf

Capers
Caraway
Cardamom
Cayenne
Chickory
Chili Powder
Chipotle
Chives
Cilantro
Cinnamon (use this a lot!)
Clove
Corriandor
Cumin
Curry
Dill
Fennel
Garlic
Ginger
Jasmin
Jalapeno
Lavendar
Lemon Basil
Lemongrass
Mace
Nutmeg
Oregano
Paprika
Parsley
Pepper
Peppermint
Rosemary
Saffron
Sage
Sea Salt
Sesame Seed
Spearmint
Star Anise
Tarragon
Thyme
Tumeric
Vanilla (not artificial)
Wasabi
Watercress
Wintergreen
Yellow Mustard



Veggies
Artichoke
Asparagus
Beet Greens

Bell Peppers
Broccoli
Brussels Sprouts
Cabbage
Carrots
Cauliflower
Celery
Collards
Cucumber
Dandelion
Eggplant
Endive
Green Onions
Kale
Kohlrabi
Lettuce
Mushrooms
Mustard Greens
Onions
Parsley
Parsnip
Peppers (all Kinds)
Pumpkin
Purslane
Radish
Rutabaga
Seaweed
Spinach
Squash
Swiss Chard
Tomatillos
Tomato
Turnip Greens
Turnips
Watercress

All meals should include protein and a source healthy fat. Mix it up with some veggies, and try to keep it varied. If fat loss is your goal, try to lower your fruit and nut consumption until you reach a healthy and desired weight. If you're wondering what you are going to eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, there are thousands of recipes to keep you happy, healthy, and full.  There are also tons of recipes that imitate the foods you are used to eating like pizza, cake, etc. Just google "paleo recipes" or be specific about what you want to eat. Just make sure to type "paleo" at the end of your search. When you're out shopping "READ"!!! your labels. Don't let yourself get fooled by all the flair that companies use to sell you half-assed food! So now that you guys know the truth, keep it simple and keep it paleo.

For a more in-depth look into the paleo diet BUY!!! Robb's book now! Check it out HERE.

Also check out Paleoblocks. They have tons of valuable information to make paleo work for you.

This is just the basics of the paleo diet. By no means was this ever designed to be a say-all-to-end-all type of post. Please check out all the links that I've provided. There's tons more on nutrition and supplementation that I did not cover, such as the importance of eating Omega-3's. This post was intended to give you the basics on how to start eating paleo. Now get out there and start living and eating the way you are supposed to! 


Please don't be selfish! Show this to as many people as you can! Involve your family and your friends, and start saving those you care about.