Anyone doing the Paleo thing?

Cpirit07002
Cpirit07002 Posts: 21
in Food and Nutrition
I have been thinking about going "Paleo"... only things that are natural that can be found in the ground or in the wild, no processed foods, nothing manmade, etc. I have a significant amount of weight to lose...about 80-90lbs total. Has anyone had success with weightloss on the Paleo diet? Anyone with personal experience have pros or cons about it? Should I try to do low carb Paleo (I am pre-diabetic with a very extensive family history of uncontrolled diabetes)? Anyone have any good recipes or books I should look into? Groups I can join?

I am tired of "dieting" and I was initially going to use a diet plan to lose my weight and then switch to Paleo during maintenance as my lifestyle change, but for me, the obsessing about what i'm eating and if it is allowed or not just isn't working. So DONE with diets that come and go and ready to make a real, permanent change where I can eat all fruits and vegetables and none are "off-limits". Hoping there is someone out there that can help guide me along. I have researched extensively and have downloaded some books to read, but still need the help of someone with experience.

Replies

  • moodyfeesh14
    moodyfeesh14 Posts: 811 Member
    I have PCOS and a large amount of weight to lose 150lbs+ so my physician recommended that I do the paleo thing to start off I am slowly incorporating it by doing 3 days paleo and 4 days normal and every two weeks increasing the days so my body can adjust to it. My doctor recommended plenty of water because excessive amounts of protein can cause kidney damage and if you need any recipes try omgthatpaleo.com I found a great quiche recipe there and It was delicious. Not going to lie though my grocery bill did go up
  • theskyisbluewoohoo
    theskyisbluewoohoo Posts: 16
    Obviously it works, but don't overthink it. You can do paleo, but you need to wtach your calories no matter what. People think that going paleo means they don't have to count their calories, but that's completely false. I know that from my own personal experience. You can choose to go low-carb, do whatever you want to do, but it's hard to stick to. Since you have a pretty big amount of weight to lose I would suggest that you carb cycle if that helps, maybe try intermittent fasting (leangains.com) which is a great way to burn fat. NO you will not go into starvation mode, but instead you give your body enough time to burn the fat. You should look into it. As long as you're staying away from processed sugars and trans fat, then you should be fine. There's no magic food to lose weight. Research how many calories you need in the day, start exercising and let the pounds fly off.
  • MercuryBlue
    MercuryBlue Posts: 886 Member
    You say that you're tired of "dieting"; however, Paleo is a diet. It's restrictive and not really a true reflection of what paleolithic peoples have eaten. I'm sure people have success with it, because eating nuts and vegetables and fruits and all that is good for you, anyway. If you understand that going in and think that's what's going to be the best choice for you, I can't judge. I just think that, if you're looking for something less restrictive, there are other options.
  • abetterluke
    abetterluke Posts: 625 Member
    I tried it for about a week. I found it to be effective at first at least. I was never really hungry. I only lasted a week however before I damn near went crazy and gorged on junk food. Since then I've basically gone from doing paleo to just a more natural foods approach.
  • cookie12535007
    cookie12535007 Posts: 3 Member
    There is a website called Mark's Daily Apple about going Primal. There are stories of people who have had success with it. I suggest you check out the website (http://www.marksdailyapple.com/#axzz2Y09YhxmS).

    I plan on starting on this diet in September. I would start earlier but I am in a research study where my diet and exercise cannot change too much ( I pretty much eat whatever I want right now with no exercise). Also, the study involves eating high resistance starch...not really good if you are trying to lower carb intake!

    There are also a lot of recipes on MDA. I have tried a few so far and find myself more full with less cravings even though the caloric amount is the same or lower!

    Good luck!
  • tekwriter
    tekwriter Posts: 923 Member
    There is a paleo group here that you can find great information on. I was not able to stay with the plan however it was my own fault. I was not hungry while I was on. After the first three days it was great. However when i was off i gained and when I went back on I lost nothing. I am working on trying to reduce my carbs, but do love the principles of the diet.
  • Cpirit07002
    Cpirit07002 Posts: 21
    Yeah, i'm definitely expecting my grocery bill to increase significantly. Worth it to me though to have my health. Thanks for the information. Maybe a transition plan is something I should look into.
  • MonaMel01
    MonaMel01 Posts: 18
    I've been doing it for over a year and I like it. It's been the only thing that has helped me lose weight, even with having a very active lifestyle. It also helps with smart decisions at the grocery store and when eating at restaurants.

    I'm not a big 'dieter' and have never done a real diet (atkins, sugar busters, etc.), paleo is more of a lifestyle change than a diet.

    There is a lot of information out there about it and what you can eat and how to do paleo. It's not hard, but like anything, it's not for everyone. You have to cook and prepare a lot more food, but I like knowing what I'm eating and cutting out all processed foods.
  • _noob_
    _noob_ Posts: 3,306 Member
    I personally find restricting dairy, legumes, and wheat (among other paleo/not paleo) things to be uncessarily restrictive for anyone without a diagnosed problem.

    Otherwise the diet is about eating whole foods, which is what should be the majority and focus of your diet. So in that regard it's not "bad", but it's uncessarily intense for the general public IMO.

    Just eat as many whole foods as you can and maintain a healthy caloric deficit. It doesn't have to be overly complicated.
  • Cpirit07002
    Cpirit07002 Posts: 21
    Yeah, i'm planning on still counting calories and using MFP to log everything.
    I will look into the carb cycle thing. I am mostly doing this to cut out processed foods that have all that nasty chemical crap in them.
    Obviously it works, but don't overthink it. You can do paleo, but you need to wtach your calories no matter what. People think that going paleo means they don't have to count their calories, but that's completely false. I know that from my own personal experience. You can choose to go low-carb, do whatever you want to do, but it's hard to stick to. Since you have a pretty big amount of weight to lose I would suggest that you carb cycle if that helps, maybe try intermittent fasting (leangains.com) which is a great way to burn fat. NO you will not go into starvation mode, but instead you give your body enough time to burn the fat. You should look into it. As long as you're staying away from processed sugars and trans fat, then you should be fine. There's no magic food to lose weight. Research how many calories you need in the day, start exercising and let the pounds fly off.
  • megsi474
    megsi474 Posts: 370 Member
    I tried it. Some aspects I liked but I had serious fatigue to the point of it affecting my daily life for the first two weeks. After that, it wasn't too hard- I like meat and fats and the like- but it just wasn't sustainable for me in the long run to be that low carb and to cut out all dairy. I know people who really have embraced it and done well with it, it just wasn't for me.
  • abetterluke
    abetterluke Posts: 625 Member
    Yeah, i'm definitely expecting my grocery bill to increase significantly. Worth it to me though to have my health. Thanks for the information. Maybe a transition plan is something I should look into.

    It definitely can be expensive...and boring. My ultimate reason for not continuing it was partially the restrictive nature of it and partially because of the cost. The biggest thing however was just the sustainability. It doesn't really lend itself to being a life long change.

    If you can do it and stick to it however...more power to you.
  • dorianaldyn
    dorianaldyn Posts: 611 Member
    The more I learn about food, the more I'm convinced that a 100% plant-based diet is the right choice for me. Honestly, I think paleo is too restrictive for the average person - I don't know anyone "in real life" that has been able to stick with it for any length of time (though there seems to be plenty on here that love and swear by it). Also, when you think of the whole premise of the diet, it doesn't make much sense to apply it to modern humans, IMO. Our life expectancy these days should be much, much longer and therefore, my goal is to maximize my long term health. I want to eat in a manner that will keep me healthy for many, many years to come. Early humans didn't live long enough to suffer some of the diseases of old age (of which diet is a contributing factor to many). The one thing I really like about the paleo trend is the avoidance of processed foods - that's a great thing! That's something everyone should do (that, and eat more vegetables). Good luck with whatever you decide.
  • Cpirit07002
    Cpirit07002 Posts: 21
    I personally find restricting dairy, legumes, and wheat (among other paleo/not paleo) things to be uncessarily restrictive for anyone without a diagnosed problem.

    Otherwise the diet is about eating whole foods, which is what should be the majority and focus of your diet. So in that regard it's not "bad", but it's uncessarily intense for the general public IMO.

    Just eat as many whole foods as you can and maintain a healthy caloric deficit. It doesn't have to be overly complicated.

    I already don't eat a lot of dairy... really only cheese right now which I would be fine to give up. I also don't eat many legumes so I don't have a problem with that either. I'm concerned about the wheat, but I do have a gluten sensitivity that would probably benefit of my giving up wheat. lol These reasons are part of why i'm willing to look into this type of change.
  • Cpirit07002
    Cpirit07002 Posts: 21
    I should also maybe mention that I am currently going through behavior modification because of my emotional eating problems and am working on getting over an "addiction" to food so something "restrictive" but with whole food items would be a viable option for me. :)

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