Paleo Diet?

I could personally never do it, it's way too restrictive for me. You don't have to go cave man to eat healthy...just make better choices in your day to day. As someone else stated, it's really a lifestyle, not a diet that you start and then go off of down the road....and like I said, way to restrictive for me. There's nothing wrong with dairy in moderation...in fact, it's a great source of protein and calcium; both essential, so you'd have to pick those nutrients up elsewhere. The list goes on and on...I'm not a hater and I've known people who have gotten into this and it's almost cultish IMHO, but they love it; just wouldn't work at all for me.

I would do some pretty serious research on this before you dive in. If you just want to lose weight and get better nutrition, Paleo is overkill in my estimation. Just eat at a deficit and make better decisions...put down that coke and have some water...put down that cookie and have an orange...get more veggies and whole grains over highly processed grains, etc, etc, etc. I'm not doing anything remotely close to Paleo and I've lost 12 Lbs in 3 months...that would average out to about 48 Lbs in a year. I only mention it to stress the point that you don't have to do anything like Paleo to lose weight...you lose weight by eating at a deficit, period.

First off, Paleo is not a diet, it's a lifestyle. The best thing to do is join the Paleo/Primal group for advice because the haters will be out full-force shortly. Then get rid of all the bread and boxed crap in your pantry, and stock up on real, whole foods like meats and vegetables. Pick up a couple books like It Starts With Food by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig, The Paleo Solution by RObb Wolf, and The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson. You will learn what foods are acceptable or not and why, and how to move your body to maximum benefit. Good luck!

I have a vegan friend that has the same type of conviction as you. I think it's needed in order to commit to those types of diets.

One thing I've noted was that Paleo era humans didn't really live that long. Probably due to meds/disease and the like, but can't help but wonder if their diet played into it a bit. Also Forks over Knives has some things to talk about re: meat proteins and cancer that might be of concern as well.

If you want to keep dairy in your diet, look to Paleo's more relaxed little brother, Primal.
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/primal-blueprint-101/

I am a Lacto-Paleo and have been for at least three years. I lost 138lbs with this diet and was monitored by my doctor monthly for the first year ( in which I lost over 100bs). The reason for seeing the doctor was because I was a Type 2 diabetic and my meds needed to be adjusted down each month. I will say that once I really was into the diet I had normal labs for the first time in my life. I have taken a lot negative comments from people over the years for my way of eating but my theory is you got to do whatever works for you. I will say I made new changes each month to keep from losing my mind. BTW the month I gave up diet coke I had the best loss of weight the entire time except maybe my first month. Anyways feel free to add me and inbox any questions and I will be happy to help. Also it is a myth that people on paleo do not eat carbs so don't believe everything people tell you. Also there is much more variety of foods then you might think but you will have to get used to cooking more. Good luck.

Bump

One thing I've noted was that Paleo era humans didn't really live that long. Probably due to meds/disease and the like, but can't help but wonder if their diet played into it a bit. Also Forks over Knives has some things to talk about re: meat proteins and cancer that might be of concern as well.

Here we go again with the same old fallacies. There has been extensive research on hunter/gatherer tribes, past and present, and those peoples still eating their original diet, modern degenerative diseases such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, autoimmune disorders, etc etc etc are/were non existent. People died young for other reasons such as injuries, being eaten by another animal, natural disasters etc. Don't confuse longevity with quality of life. Not the same. The only problem with eating meat is eating GRAIN fed meat. Animals were meant to graze on perennial plants, not be confined in small areas and fed grain. But, whatever.

OP: I'm not sure that you've fully investigated this lifestyle. To really know it you should do a lot of research, and if you decide to try it, be 100% for at least one month. The health improvements for most people are nothing short of miraculous. And if you really want to have the opinions from paleo/primal people try asking in the paleo/primal forum. It's beyond frustrating to get disrespected and ridiculed by people who haven tried it and haven't done any research beyond just looking at the government issued food pyramid.

this was in regards to lacto- primal being primal

I am just posting what I've read and researched. Since the internet has no creds, it's good to present all sides. The fact is that if you look at Cornell's research on this, as well as the Cleveland Clinic and the P rating of those clinical studies I would imagine it would be somewhat prematures to be accurately considered a fallacy at this point if JAMA won't call it that yet, especially after a 15 year testing trial phase.

Again, just putting some food for thought out there that it animal and dairy proteins can be an issue (and I still eat meat, just in moderation so maybe I'm a little bit of a hypocrite if anything). She asked for cons and it's good to get those cons from both people that are doing the diet, but also people that decided not to do that diet and why they didn't.

I started eating primal for a few reasons. 1) I relied far too much on rice and pasta as side dishes. By restricting my food choices, I'm actually starting to eat a much wider variety of food. 2) I suspected that I might have problems with something in my diet, since I felt sick almost every morning and had other digestive problems. Gluten seemed like it might be a possiblity, so I decided to cut down on that. 3) Pasta, rice, and bread are super calorie dense, but I didn't feel full as long as I do the way I'm eating now. I chose primal because I also love dairy, and I don't seem to have any problems with that as long as I'm moderate with it.

Benefits I have noticed: Full longer, more energy, my acne has entirely disappeared (which has NEVER happened before), don't feel bloated after meals, improved digestion. However, you won't lose weight *just* from eating this way. You still have to calorie count and exercise (some people treat it as a "magic bullet").

A good way to 'wean' yourself onto the eating style is to take items out one by one. For example, I removed the gluten and grains first, because that was the biggest change for me. But I didn't worry about the sugar or anything else yet. Next I'll focus more on getting my sugar intake down. If you don't want to start by taking out a whole food group, maybe try taking out one specific food at a time, like removing bread first, then pasta, then rice, etc.

I know you mentioned not having a lot of time and money. I made some concessions about the "organic" thing, which I don't think is as important as just eating healthy fruits and veggies and lean meats (I buy a lot of cheap frozen veggies in bulk and then portion them out into freezer bags) and it has actually turned out to be a bit cheaper. Just pay attention to what you're buying, look for lean meat on sale, buy veggies frozen if you can't afford fresh. As for the time thing, there are plenty of paleo/primal foods that can be made quickly, or in the crockpot, or which you can make ahead on the weekends and eat during the week.

Also, if you're worried about missing certain foods, some people eat this way in a 90/10 style, or an 80/20 style, so you can occasionally fit in something with grains or refined sugars, etc. It just depends on how strict you want to be with it.

It's my understanding you don't have subs for dairy in the paleo diet.

Also it's not a lifestyle, it's a diet.