Paleo Diet Summarised

– It’s an attempt to eat like we did as cave-men, as hunter-gatherers.
– Do not eat gluten  (gluten is a mix of 2 proteins that give bread it’s sticky property)
– No grains, no sugar, no processed foods, no dairy
– Try to get protein into your breakfast, lunch, dinner and other meals during the day
– It is very hard to over-eat when you eat only natural foods.
– It’s a bit of a controversial diet, as it vilifies grains and promotes saturated fats in meat.
– It’s also quite a low carb diet. Personally, I would still eat some carbs after training, and probably first thing in the morning too.

Oats aren’t strictly paleo, but try some ‘steel cut oats’ and soak them overnight to reduce the phytic acid:

 

DO eat – Vegetables, tart fruits, nuts, wild meats, eggs, coconut oil, olive oil
DO NOT eat – refined and processed foods (generally high in sugar, or white/refined carbs like white bread etc.), sugar and sweets, sweet fruit and juices like oranges and pineapples, grains like bread and corn, oils like sunflower oils, dairy

Paleo Shopping List

Look for –
“grass fed”
“hormone free”
“organic”
“free range”
“wild”

Avoid –
Vegetable oils
Sugar
Table salt (avoid salt except sea salt and Himalayan mountain salt)
Sweeteners

 

 

Do Buy:
Beef, pork, lamb, chicken, duck, turkey, eggs, fresh & wild caught fish
Yams, sweet potatoes, nuts, seeds, berries, apple, asparagus, broccoli, carrots, cabbages, cauliflower, onions, all green leafy vegetables
Coconut oil, olive oil, sustainable palm oil
Green tea

 

Example Paleo Meal Plan

Day 1
Breakfast  -Scrambled eggs/omelette, spinach, kale, cooked in coconut oil
Lunch – Chicken salad with olive oil, lots of green leafy veg
Dinner – Grilled trout with sweet potato and asparagus
Snacks – nuts, seeds, beef jerky

Day 2
Breakfast – Poached eggs in spring soup or a protein drink blended with chia seeds, blue berries and spinach
Lunch – Salmon and steamed brocoli
Dinner – Bowl of chilli, salad, olive oil
Snacks – Nuts, seeds, nut butter, eggs, berries

Tips:
– Try and grow some of your own vegetables if you can.
– Add some protein to every meal to keep your from snacking on rubbish.
– I would recommend this diet, except I would consider adding some more carbs, especially post-workout.
– If you go very low carb and start using ketones instead of glucose for brain fuel, then you’re in a whole new world of controversy and debate which I can’t be bothered going into at the moment! (Potential problems include – less thyroid hormone production, increased stress hormone production, lower muscle glycogen for training and recovery)
– Cutting out food-groups such as grains and dairy is criticised as it makes it more difficult to get calcium, fibre and essential vitamins in your diet.  So either leave a small amount of grains and calcium in your diet, or do your research and make sure your diet covers as the essential basics.  A smoothie with chia seeds, spinach, a banana, hemp protein, hemp oil, blueberries and wheatgrass (and a bit of garlic for the enthusiasts) should cover most basics. Modify your smoothie to cover whatever your basic diet doesn’t cover. Don’t put too many things in it though, people add a million different fruits and veggies and end up getting ill.

Vegetables with calcium include:
Asparagus
Broccoli
Avocados
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Celery
Onions

Finally, watch out for weird Paleo side-effects:

Disclaimer: Diet at your own risk

 

– I’ve spelt “summarrized” and “summarised” differently to get traffic from my US and UK chums. Apparently you should use “spelled” not “spelt” in America. This is just getting confusing…

 

Article written by Drew Griffiths