For the past two years I have enlisted myself as a guinea pig to try out different diets. I tried out the DASH, Gluten Free, Vegetarian, and Vegan diet for a week apiece. Last year, my challenge was to make every meal a MyPlate meal. I am kicking off my challenge a little early this year because Spring break is the last week of March for me (and there is a lounge chair by a pool with my name on it).
This year, I'm going to go back in time. Forget the idea of eating things my grandma would recognize. I'm only going to eat things that Wilma Flintstone would recognize. This type of eating is more commonly known as the Paleo Diet. Paleo is short for the Paleolithic Era, which happens to be the only era you can eat foods from.
Wilma Flintstone (l) soaks in some rays with her best friend, Betty Rubble. This will be me in 4 weeks.
This type of diet was first introduced in 1985 as the Caveman Diet by Dr. Boyd Eaton. Fast forward about 20 years, the diet has been promoted (heavily) by Crossfit enthusiasts and nutrition social media outlets, given a more hip name, and is once again gaining popularity. Dr. Loren Courdain developed the use of the term "Paleo" and worked with Dr. Boyd Eaton to create what we currently know as eating Paleo.
There are numerous claims in regards to following the Paleo Diet. Some claims I have found include being able to control autoimmune diseases, increase athletic performance, and (my favorite) lose weight without diet or exercise. (Because we all know that cave people didn't have to be active to find food or to avoid being eaten by saber tooth tigers.)
Enough with the background, lets get into the meat of this diet- literally. What did our paleolithic ancestors eat to help them be the epitomes of health that they allegedly were? For starters, there was a lot of protein available. These foods include grass-fed meats, fish, seafood, eggs, nuts, and seeds. They didn't just hunt though, they also gathered food. Fruits and most vegetables are also permitted on this plan. Last, but not least, they needed something to make sure that their meat didn't stick to their roasting sticks. This means that healthful oils, like olive, flaxseed, coconut and avocado, are allowed as well.
Next are the foods that they didn't eat, so we shouldn't either. These items include grains (especially wheat/ gluten containing ones), legumes (bye, bye beans and peanuts), dairy, refined sugar, potatoes, processed foods, salt, and refined vegetable oils.
I thought potatoes were a vegetable.
The last set of rules to follow pertain to beverages, since our ancestors had to drink something to avoid dehydration. Herbal tea and water are allowed, in fact lots of water. Caffeinated beverages, such as coffee and tea, are also allowed in moderation. Yeast is older than cave people, therefore things must have fermented back in the day. As a result, certain alcoholic beverages are also permitted. There is still the usual one drink max for women, two for men on any given day. The caveat is that it can't have gluten, this means that beer is out.
Now that the basic rules are listed, its time to add more restrictions. For the first week I am going to mostly be following the diet suggested for autoimmune diseases by the book Practical Paleo by Diane Sanfilippo. I was recently diagnosed with Raynaud's Syndrome, which is associated with a few autoimmune diseases. Thankfully, I have been cleared of the diseases connected to it so I am able to blame yet another thing on Wisconsin winters.
There is a disclaimer in the book that what they are suggesting is not intended to be a replacement for professional medical diagnosis or treatment for a medical condition. This being said, in accordance with the recommendations in the book I will also be avoiding eggs, nuts, and seeds- mostly. I am not going to cut them out completely due to there are a few recipes in this book that require these ingredients. I also need something to snack on, and generally speaking, nuts and seeds are easy to transport.
My goals with the Paleo Diet include:
- Increased energy, especially in regards to workouts
- Better manage my sensitivity to cold
- Bikini- ready shape (I'll be honest, Spring break is at the end of this and a warm, sunny destination is involved.)
Sharpen those knives and let's get broiling!
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