The Paleo diet basically takes us back to our roots (paleo = paleolithic). As it eliminates processed and modern-day foods which have become so troublesome for many, it is a great way to reset your body and lose some weight. It is particularly renowned to be beneficial for those who have been diagnosed with an ‘autoimmune’ disease as it cuts out the foods that can reduce your energy and life force, and basically hinder your healing. It is especially beneficial for protein and mixed type metabolic types (see metabolic typing HERE)
This is a simple view of Paleo. It does not need to be complex. You basically need to ask yourself whether a particular food was around a few hundred years ago! There are further tweaks if you would like to lose weight as explained below. There is no need for calorie counting or weighing, as our own satiety will become our portion control!
UNLIMITED FOODS TO EAT:
- All meat & poultry (preferably organic, grass-fed and free range or pastured)
- All Fish (include oily fish)
- Plenty of vegetables (except where restricted below)
- All Nuts (excluding peanuts)
- All natural, unrefined fats (organic butter, coconut oil, olive oil, hemp oil, avocado oil, etc)
- Eggs
RESTRICTED (2-3 portions a day):
- Peanuts & Peanut butter
- Fruit
- Natural Sweeteners: Honey, Maple Syrup, Xylitol
- Whole milk (preferably raw, unpasteurised), double cream
- Starchy veg (squash, sweet potatoes, garden peas)
OCCASIONAL (1-2 weekly):
- Organic Red Wine (preferably low/no added sulphur)
- Corn
- Quinoa
- Legumes (including poppadom, houmous, falafel, etc)
- Small portion of mature cheese
DO NOT EAT:
- Grains
- Artificial Sweeteners
- Refined Vegetable Oils (such as rapeseed, etc)
- Sugar
- White Potatoes
- Beer & Spirits
- Processed foods
- Highly processed meats especially with preservatives
- All dairy not mentioned
FOR WEIGHT LOSS:
- Reduce Restricted foods to 1-2 servings per day
- Reduce starchy vegetables to ‘Occasional’
- Focus on the unlimited foods
I would recommend that the Paleo diet (weight loss option) as detailed above is followed for a maximum of 3 months. The general Paleo can then be followed until the desired effect is achieved, or up to 6 months. Then, if you wish to follow the diet in the longer term, I would practice the 80/20 approach, which is 80% on the diet and 20% off. This is because by following Paleo you would otherwise be omitting entire food groups and this is not advisable for long term, unless there are medical reasons. You can do this by following the diet during weekdays and having some portions of grains and other natural forbidden foods at the weekends, or just having the occasional treat.
If you would like more information, and to see whether eating Paleo will benefit you, ask me at your session!