The Paleo Diet {A few thoughts}

I mentioned a few months ago that Henry and I were trying the Paleo diet, also known as the Paleolithic diet or the Caveman diet. We did it because Henry's friend suggested he give it a try. He went on and on about how good he feels, about how he was able to trim up, how easy it is to do. Yada yada.

In the simplest terms, the Paleo diet focuses on eating the most optimal, non-processed foods while eliminating all grains, and legumes. Processed foods include anything with wheat (bread, crackers, pasta, etc.), dairy, including butter (some forms of the diets let you have whole milk), and any processed meats like bacon, sausage or deli meat.  It also advises eating optimal veggies - so nothing really starchy like white potatoes, peas, or corn. Beans and legumes (peanuts) aren't allowed either.  

As you can see, there's a limited number of items you can eat.... they consist of unprocessed meat, veggies, fruits and nuts.

When Henry presented the eating plan I had several reservations. I knew I could cut out all the food groups, but I wasn't sure why I needed to cut out all grains (rice, lentils, barley, oats, quinoa) and beans. I've tried over the last year to cut down our meat consumption and raise our bean consumption. Obviously this does not work with the Paleo diet.

I agreed to do it because I knew Henry really wanted to try and doing it alone is difficult, especially if someone else does your grocery shopping and dinner cooking. We agreed to do it for 30 days and see how we felt.   Henry felt great and lost 35 pounds. Not kidding. I felt awful, but have the flattest stomach I've had for a long time - all without exercising.

Here's the interesting thing - when you first start the diet, NOT eating sugar is hard, really hard. The more you do it, the less you want the breads and sugars... the more you crave fresh food. You get into a groove of what you can and can't eat and there's less thinking involved.

After the first 30 days, I decided I was going to be less strict. The first week was a free-for-all... I couldn't keep my hands off all the forbidden foods. The food was good, but it made me feel gross... really, really gross, especially wheat. I now typically eat a Paleo diet with some cheats thrown in. I decided if I truly want something (typically a dessert or beans, I'm going to eat it within reason). I don't crave wheat or dairy at all. Oh, and to clarify, we never cut out processed meat. I mean, really, who can live without bacon?

*for those worrying about it, our kids are NOT on the Paleo diet.