Paleo Diet?

neandermagnon

Are you allowed to use a stove, microwave, or any other cooking technology that did not exist during the caveman days?

Cavemen were half our sizes too with much more body hair.

Their teeth were sharper and they were more efficient at breaking down raw food that we have difficulty with now.

Unless 'evolution' never existed and earth is 5000 years old,

our bodies have evolved and adapted to the current food products and diet out there.

Actually "cavemen" as you say were more robust, and taller. Our heads for example are 10% smaller, hence the wisdom tooth problem today. Oh, and believe it or not our brain is also smaller.

Yeah, our brain is smaller because our mentaility of eating food today as changed. Back then, food intake was 75% fat intake. Today, its 75% carb intake.

And you wonder why everyone is getting diabetes and cancer.

I've lost over 100lbs eating on the Ketogenic lifestyle. Its stricter/more primal than Paleo.

:noway: does anyone here even palaeoanthropology

neanderthals had bigger brains than Homo sapiens. We're not directly descended from neanderthals, although many modern humans have some neanderthal DNA from interbreeding.

Homo sapiens had smaller brains than neanderthals LONG LONG before anyone ate a modern diet. Homo sapiens has never evolved brains quite as big as the neanderthal brain (on average, but there is an overlap between both species in terms of variation). However, we did develop a higher level of technology, and this is thought to be due to some difference in brain wiring, rather than simply evolving a bigger brain. The size of the Homo sapiens brain is currently the same as it was 60,000 years ago which was in the upper palaeolithic era, so modern diets have not caused any decrease in brain size, because no such decrease even exists. In fact I think even middle palaoelithic HOmo sapiens had similar sized brains to modern humans.

"caveman" is not a scientific term, so it's impossible to say if "caveman" had bigger brains than modern humans, but as most people use "caveman" and "neanderthal" interchangably, then yes, neanderthals had bigger brains than modern humans.

Neanderthals got cancer too: http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0064539

pattyproulx

These threads are like a train wreck. I always know it's going to end poorly, but I always feel I have to come look.

I've been eating Primal-ish for almost 4 years now. I love it and at home, I find it's easy to follow. When you're out, I find it's a little tougher. To me the biggest advantage is curbing my hunger. When I eat carb-heavy, I find I'm always hungry. Yes, at the end of the day calories in/out matter, but I find staying within my limits with real food is much easier, and it's been observed, that your body may output more energy on low-carb (only one study that I'm aware of, so take that with a grain of salt).

There is a Primal/Paleo group I'd recommend going to if you're really interested in speaking to people who've done it.

There are a few who feel almost religious about eating Paleo (the difference it makes can be pretty drastic) and those who don't adhere to it get annoyed by hearing about it and try to turn it into a joke. (ie. good luck finding wooly mammoth meat). Others get defensive when people tell them the whole grains they base their diet on really aren't all that good for you.

In the end, to me, eating a diet focused on vegetables makes sense. I don't think anyone's claiming this is exactly how our ancestors ate, but it's much closer to it than drinking diet cokes, sugar-laden cereal, and pasta.

This isn't a crash diet you do for a month or two. If you want to be successful with it, you have to significnatly curb your habits.

neandermagnon

These threads are like a train wreck. I always know it's going to end poorly, but I always feel I have to come look.

I've been eating Primal-ish for almost 4 years now. I love it and at home, I find it's easy to follow. When you're out, I find it's a little tougher. To me the biggest advantage is curbing my hunger. When I eat carb-heavy, I find I'm always hungry.

There is a Primal/Paleo group I'd recommend going to if you're really interested in speaking to people who've done it.

There are a few who feel almost religious about eating Paleo (the difference it makes can be pretty drastic) and those who don't adhere to it get annoyed by hearing about it and try to turn it into a joke. (ie. good luck finding wooly mammoth meat). Others get defensive when people tell them the whole grains they base their diet on really aren't all that good for you.

In the end, to me, eating a diet focused on vegetables makes sense. I don't think anyone's claiming this is exactly how our ancestors ate, but it's much closer to it than drinking diet cokes, sugar-laden cereal, and pasta.

This isn't a crash diet you do for a month or two. If you want to be successful with it, you have to significnatly curb your habits.

Why do you abuse the word "paleo" then if you admit it's not really like how palaeolithic people ate? That's my main issue with the diet. There's enough myths about human evolution to dispel from creationists, without having to battle against internet "gurus" telling people to "eat like cavemen" when it's based on nothing but myths and misinformation about human evolution and palaoelithic people? Really, it's tiresome. Give the diet another name.

I also have an issue with the unnecessarily restrictive nature of the diet, but if people like eating that way and find it sustainable in the long term and aren't feeling guilty for eating "non-approved" foods on occasion then I don't really have a problem. Each to their own.

Escape_Artist

Paleo I think is more of a lifestyle than a diet.

Keep in mind weight loss is calories in vs calories out. Wether you eat grains or not, follow the paleo way or eat soup and cabbage all day, at the end of the day if you are at a deficit the weight will drop.

IMO (and I do say IMO) there is no need to eliminate a food group unless for a medical reason.

People that lost weight on paleo lost it because they are eating at a deficit. Nothing more nothing less.

Just my 2 cents.

FredDoyle

Meat, nuts and berries? I'm in.

No ice cream? Oh, nevermind. I'm out.

What about insects, annelids, roots, tubers, and carrion?

neandermagnon

Meat, nuts and berries? I'm in.

No ice cream? Oh, nevermind. I'm out.

What about insects, annelids, roots, tubers, and carrion?

That would be a much more authentic palaoelithic diet. And don't forget edible fungus.

ascrit

These threads are like a train wreck. I always know it's going to end poorly, but I always feel I have to come look.

I've been eating Primal-ish for almost 4 years now. I love it and at home, I find it's easy to follow. When you're out, I find it's a little tougher. To me the biggest advantage is curbing my hunger. When I eat carb-heavy, I find I'm always hungry. Yes, at the end of the day calories in/out matter, but I find staying within my limits with real food is much easier, and it's been observed, that your body may output more energy on low-carb (only one study that I'm aware of, so take that with a grain of salt).

There is a Primal/Paleo group I'd recommend going to if you're really interested in speaking to people who've done it.

There are a few who feel almost religious about eating Paleo (the difference it makes can be pretty drastic) and those who don't adhere to it get annoyed by hearing about it and try to turn it into a joke. (ie. good luck finding wooly mammoth meat). Others get defensive when people tell them the whole grains they base their diet on really aren't all that good for you.

In the end, to me, eating a diet focused on vegetables makes sense. I don't think anyone's claiming this is exactly how our ancestors ate, but it's much closer to it than drinking diet cokes, sugar-laden cereal, and pasta.

This isn't a crash diet you do for a month or two. If you want to be successful with it, you have to significnatly curb your habits.

This!

Greytfish

These threads are like a train wreck. I always know it's going to end poorly, but I always feel I have to come look.

I've been eating Primal-ish for almost 4 years now. I love it and at home, I find it's easy to follow. When you're out, I find it's a little tougher. To me the biggest advantage is curbing my hunger. When I eat carb-heavy, I find I'm always hungry. Yes, at the end of the day calories in/out matter, but I find staying within my limits with real food is much easier, and it's been observed, that your body may output more energy on low-carb (only one study that I'm aware of, so take that with a grain of salt).

There is a Primal/Paleo group I'd recommend going to if you're really interested in speaking to people who've done it.

There are a few who feel almost religious about eating Paleo (the difference it makes can be pretty drastic) and those who don't adhere to it get annoyed by hearing about it and try to turn it into a joke. (ie. good luck finding wooly mammoth meat). Others get defensive when people tell them the whole grains they base their diet on really aren't all that good for you.

In the end, to me, eating a diet focused on vegetables makes sense. I don't think anyone's claiming this is exactly how our ancestors ate, but it's much closer to it than drinking diet cokes, sugar-laden cereal, and pasta.

This isn't a crash diet you do for a month or two. If you want to be successful with it, you have to significnatly curb your habits.

:drinker:

PaleoPath4Lyfe

I have been following the paleo/primal way of eating for over a year now and I will never go back. I was severely obese when I started and I have since lost 100 pounds. At first it was daunting giving up things like sugar and grains but now I don't miss that stuff at all. If i'm craving bread or cookies then I will make it, I just tweak the recipe to make it paleo. Even if I hadn't lost weight on paleo I would never go back to anything else because paleo isn't about weight loss for me, its about cutting out processed chemical laden foods and eating naturally. I would definitely recommend you give it a try.

Rethink the definition of a chemical... everything is made of them...

OP, it's a good way to figure out if you have any intolerances to food, but it works on the same premise as any diet, calorie deficit produces weightloss. If you can adhere to it, good for you, but it's not necessary to do a highly restrictive diet to find success and if you already have an unhealthy relationship with food it can sometimes worsen it. There's no magic behind it and there's plenty of people you'll find on this site doing "paleo" and "primal" and doing them half assedly, like paleo-fying existing food... the reason for eating that way isn't to cram the SAD into a pimal/paleo mold.

My suggestion, meet your macro nutrition goals, specifically protein and fat minimums, and enjoy some treats in moderation while staying within your calorie goal.

There someone goes from the "eat everything in moderation" bandwagon trying to tell someone that they need to eat treats and such....................Not everyone wants to eat that crap that was made in a factory.

Why do you care how someone else is eating?

subsonicbassist

Sounds like people can't even come to a consensus on what "Paleo" is, and even created a "primal" diet so they could try and feel superior while still eating foods they didn't want to cut out... eat whatever fuels your body for the task at hand, be wary of how you feel and get a few servings of fruit and veggies in a day.

a_stronger_me13

I have been following the paleo/primal way of eating for over a year now and I will never go back. I was severely obese when I started and I have since lost 100 pounds. At first it was daunting giving up things like sugar and grains but now I don't miss that stuff at all. If i'm craving bread or cookies then I will make it, I just tweak the recipe to make it paleo. Even if I hadn't lost weight on paleo I would never go back to anything else because paleo isn't about weight loss for me, its about cutting out processed chemical laden foods and eating naturally. I would definitely recommend you give it a try.

Rethink the definition of a chemical... everything is made of them...

OP, it's a good way to figure out if you have any intolerances to food, but it works on the same premise as any diet, calorie deficit produces weightloss. If you can adhere to it, good for you, but it's not necessary to do a highly restrictive diet to find success and if you already have an unhealthy relationship with food it can sometimes worsen it. There's no magic behind it and there's plenty of people you'll find on this site doing "paleo" and "primal" and doing them half assedly, like paleo-fying existing food... the reason for eating that way isn't to cram the SAD into a pimal/paleo mold.

My suggestion, meet your macro nutrition goals, specifically protein and fat minimums, and enjoy some treats in moderation while staying within your calorie goal.

There someone goes from the "eat everything in moderation" bandwagon trying to tell someone that they need to eat treats and such....................Not everyone wants to eat that crap that was made in a factory.

Why do you care how someone else is eating?

I don't care. But I've had experience following primal/paleo eating and, personally, it only worsened my eating disorders.

I never told her not to do it. Please try comprehending what you read.

Greytfish

It's a good idea if you're coming from a background of disordered eating to disclose that before giving advice, so others can take the whole experience into account in weighing the advice.

a_stronger_me13

"...if you already have an unhealthy relationship with food it can sometimes worsen it."

I think I did clarify that well enough.

ETA: Nowhere did I tell her to NOT do it. I said that it is unnecessary and not some magical way to lose weight. Calorie deficit yields weight loss, plain and simple. I also said that it's a good way to figure out if you have a food intolerance. Heaven forbid I voice my opinion and personal experience with the diet in question.

neandermagnon

I have been following the paleo/primal way of eating for over a year now and I will never go back. I was severely obese when I started and I have since lost 100 pounds. At first it was daunting giving up things like sugar and grains but now I don't miss that stuff at all. If i'm craving bread or cookies then I will make it, I just tweak the recipe to make it paleo. Even if I hadn't lost weight on paleo I would never go back to anything else because paleo isn't about weight loss for me, its about cutting out processed chemical laden foods and eating naturally. I would definitely recommend you give it a try.

Rethink the definition of a chemical... everything is made of them...

OP, it's a good way to figure out if you have any intolerances to food, but it works on the same premise as any diet, calorie deficit produces weightloss. If you can adhere to it, good for you, but it's not necessary to do a highly restrictive diet to find success and if you already have an unhealthy relationship with food it can sometimes worsen it. There's no magic behind it and there's plenty of people you'll find on this site doing "paleo" and "primal" and doing them half assedly, like paleo-fying existing food... the reason for eating that way isn't to cram the SAD into a pimal/paleo mold.

My suggestion, meet your macro nutrition goals, specifically protein and fat minimums, and enjoy some treats in moderation while staying within your calorie goal.

There someone goes from the "eat everything in moderation" bandwagon trying to tell someone that they need to eat treats and such....................Not everyone wants to eat that crap that was made in a factory.

Why do you care how someone else is eating?

doing things in moderation isn't a bandwagon. It's a concept that's been around for millenia. I believe some ancient greek philosophers taught that concept.

great if you never want to eat factory made foods. Most people want to eat them, and as it's possible for them to be healthy and lose fat while eating them in moderation, and a lot of people will find it a lot easier to stick to this in the long term than avoiding so many foods, there's nothing wrong with telling people they can do that.

ascrit

great if you never want to eat factory made foods. Most people want to eat them, and as it's possible for them to be healthy and lose fat while eating them in moderation, and a lot of people will find it a lot easier to stick to this in the long term than avoiding so many foods, there's nothing wrong with telling people they can do that.

FWIW, I think that if more people were aware of what really goes on in those factories their desire would go down. I don't know if there are any disadvantages to eating clean.

J72FIT

Sounds like people can't even come to a consensus on what "Paleo" is, and even created a "primal" diet so they could try and feel superior while still eating foods they didn't want to cut out... eat whatever fuels your body for the task at hand, be wary of how you feel and get a few servings of fruit and veggies in a day.

Yep^^

J72FIT

I don't care. But I've had experience following primal/paleo eating and, personally, it only worsened my eating disorders.

I had a similar experience. Was paleo/primal for over 3 years... lost and gained fat on it. Developed orthorexia as a result.

neandermagnon

Sounds like people can't even come to a consensus on what "Paleo" is, and even created a "primal" diet so they could try and feel superior while still eating foods they didn't want to cut out... eat whatever fuels your body for the task at hand, be wary of how you feel and get a few servings of fruit and veggies in a day.

Yep^^

palaeoanthropologists have a pretty good consensus about what palaeolithic people ate in various stages of human evolution, and there are plenty of peer reviewed journal articles on the subject.... trouble is it bears no resemblance to the diet of internet "paleo" "gurus" and it involves delicious treats such as hippo and honey with bee larvae still in it, which modern people tend to turn their nose up at

J72FIT

Sounds like people can't even come to a consensus on what "Paleo" is, and even created a "primal" diet so they could try and feel superior while still eating foods they didn't want to cut out... eat whatever fuels your body for the task at hand, be wary of how you feel and get a few servings of fruit and veggies in a day.

Yep^^

palaeoanthropologists have a pretty good consensus about what palaeolithic people ate in various stages of human evolution, and there are plenty of peer reviewed journal articles on the subject.... trouble is it bears no resemblance to the diet of internet "paleo" "gurus" and it involves delicious treats such as hippo and honey with bee larvae still in it, which modern people tend to turn their nose up at

Not to mention that if twinkles existed back then and paleo man stumbled across them... guess what... he or she would have eaten every single one of them.