My thoughts on 'paleo'

stagingfirstplace

The Paleoithic Diet:

I decided to write about my thoughts on the paleoithic diet today because i've found there is a large split in the MFP (and general) fitness community on this subject. There are the followers and the haters, the followers would do ANYTHING to prove that the paleo diet is optimal and the ONLY way to live. The haters on the other hand would do anything to prove that it's B.S.

Although my diet is generally based on paleo - i dont believe i am officially a 'follower', as i wouldn't do anything to prove that this is the most optimal and only way to eat, as that is not what i believe.

I have agreements with the paleo diet and enjoy eating a diet based on pastured meats and wild fish, healthy fats, fresh and dried fruits, root vegetables and leaves. But what i wanted to give my opinions on is a few subjects i will tackle now:

Grains and why i don't eat them:
I choose not to eat grains not because i demonise them or they are evil. I believe that grains would have to have been put on earth for a reason, we CAN eat them and even paleoithic people would have cooked and eaten them if they had the chance (some would have every so often), as a last resort. The reason i don't eat grains is because although they are edible and they have nutrients is that they are not an optimal food in comparison to other items i could get nutrients from. Grains include anti-nutrients which inhibits absorption of nutrients in the grain and whatever food you eat with it. Therefore i would eat a sweet potato or a massive bowl of veggies which don't include anti-nutrients AND include lots more nutrients as a more optimal and beneficial choice. The ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids also isn't optimal for health or fat loss. I feel the same way about any legumes that cannot be eaten raw. If you are in real need of some grains for any reason i would actually recommend white rice, because rice is free of gluten and white rice is free of the antinutrients and omega-6 found in the bran, so you will still absorb any nutrients that would have been inhibited in the food you are eating it with. For example, i ate white rice last night because my family had chinese for dinner on my mums birthday, also had delicious steamed prawns and veggies, MMM PRAWNS! But back to the subject .....

Dairy:
I choose not to eat dairy mostly because of how dairy is processed and altered these days. With pasteurization and homogenisation you dont really know what food product you're getting anymore. I also don't believe you necessarily need this amount of calcium in your diet and it can throw off your calcium/megnesium ratio which can cause more problems than its worth if overconsumed. I also believe dairy is made to fatten baby cows up - and i'm trying to do the opposite arent i? I would recommend to anyone wanting to consume dairy to choose the least altered varieties. For example pastured unhomogenised or raw milk(obviously making sure its a reliable farmer), pastured butter or ghee, pastured kefir etc. Also, a cow fed it's natural feed (grass) is always going to be healthier and grass fed (pastured) dairy and meat also provides CLA which has many beneficial properties for your health and body composition.

Hydrogenated Oils:
Of all of the 'non-paleo' food groups this is the one that i speak matter-of-factly about. The intense heat treatment of vegetable oils completely changes the product to a foreign object. Our bodies are not meant to be consuming something so processed and potent. It's almost similar to GMO-products and should be steared away from.

Nuts:
I eat nuts, but i choose carefully and moderate due to the contents of anti-nutrients and omega-6's also. You will get the most bang for your buck from the following nuts: Macadamias which are low in anti-nutrients and omega-6's while being high in nutrients. Brazil nuts have both anti-nutrients and omega-6's but are extremely high in selenium, in order to get a good amount of that nutrient you only need 2-4 brazil nuts per day!

I urge you to make your nutrition decisions based on what can benefit your health the most. Forget about 'good' or 'bad' foods. When making a choice regarding your nutritional health, think 'which option will benefit me the most?'. Or just choose both !

Thanks for reading guys!

Lyadeia

It's nice to read something about paleo from someone who is neither a hater or a follower. The diet itself isn't "bad" so I don't agree with the haters, but I also can't stand the followers who whine at me for eating grains or dairy (mainly because their arguments are nonsensical to begin with which is exactly what the haters actually hate).

I'm in the camp of...I don't follow a diet, I just eat what I want making sure to get all my nutrients and macros while keeping at a calorie goal that fits my current overall goal. :flowerforyou:

stagingfirstplace

It's nice to read something about paleo from someone who is neither a hater or a follower. The diet itself isn't "bad" so I don't agree with the haters, but I also can't stand the followers who whine at me for eating grains or dairy (mainly because their arguments are nonsensical to begin with which is exactly what the haters actually hate).

I'm in the camp of...I don't follow a diet, I just eat what I want making sure to get all my nutrients and macros while keeping at a calorie goal that fits my current overall goal. :flowerforyou:

i totally agree with you
whats important is to make choices that benefit our OWN bodies and do our OWN research to find ways we can do things that will be best for ourselves :flowerforyou: