Eating Primal

linsben
linsben Posts: 108 Member
edited September 23 in Health and Weight Loss
Hello all!

I have recently decided to fallow in the footsteps of my father and adopt a primal lifestyle.( Similar to a Paleolithic, caveman or hunter-gatherer diet). Its basically really simple. I only eat foods that the human race has evolved on over the past 2.5 million years. This limits a lot of our popular and delicious options we have today that are mainly based around grains, wheat, corn, pasta, sugar and numerous other processed options. The idea is that these foods that make up a large portion of our western diets are dangerous and contribute to many of our diseases. These foods have really only been a part of the human diet since agriculture was introduced around 10,000 years ago and from an evolutionary perspective its hard to determine what effects they will have thousands of years from now. To me eating primal makes perfect sense because when you eliminate all the junk what you have left is a natural diet full of meats, fruits and vegetables.

This diet is different from others in that its not necessary to count calories( I still do though). What's important is that your eating more fat and protein then you are carbohydrates. This puts a lot of people off because its certainly not main stream. Our food pyramid suggests eating whole grains and a fair bit of crabs everyday. But when you consider this stuff has not always been an option and that this is based on only recent human history and science and not taking the millions of years before that this advice just dosnt seem sound.

I was wondering if there were others here eating like myself. I've recently discovered an enormous community of primal eaters at Mark's daily apple. Its a web site created by the author of the Primal blueprint and he has some of the most honest and educational posts about this stuff. I love reading comments from other people who have this lifestyle and one thing that was clear is that the people like myself and others who eat primal hear A LOT from others who think they know better. I wonder how anyone thinks eating only meat fruits and veggies is any thing other then healthy.

- Oh and its great for weight loss! My dad lost 20 pounds! and i hope to do the same:)

If your a Primal eater or interested in it we should be friends!

Replies

  • murf19
    murf19 Posts: 453 Member
    Hi There,

    Yes I do my best to limit all man made foods but I still will have a small amout. Have you read Primal Blue Print by Mark Sisson? Its a great book and goes over everything from diet to exercise. I try and get my carbs from friuts and veggies.
  • Meganne1982
    Meganne1982 Posts: 451
    My mom has been trying to eat more like this and she's loving it! I don't know if I'm ready for it though!
  • nursevee
    nursevee Posts: 344 Member
    Good Luck. I tried this and decided it definately wasn't for me... I was left feeling pretty rotten. Different people have different results and one of my best girlfriends swears by it.

    LOL. I laughed at the bit that says:

    " Our food pyramid suggests eating whole grains and a fair bit of crabs everyday."

    I know you meant carbs but it still made me giggle.
  • BR1986FB
    BR1986FB Posts: 1,515 Member
    Have the Primal Blueprint and just received the Primal Cookbook. Plan on looking at the cookbook this weekend.

    Will be ordering 1/4 of a cow and 1/2 a hog in the coming months from local farmers. Grassfed/pastured meat is so much tastier.

    The only thing that I won't give up is my P90X/Insanity workouts. Mark suggests the "walk slowly, do periodic sprints and lift heavy things" approach. Sorry but I just have to have more activity.
  • linsben
    linsben Posts: 108 Member
    Yes I just ordered the book! and im really excited to read it. right now im just going off the web site but i think theres tons of information on there to get someone like me started. I'm finding it really easy so far! I'm not craving things like bread and cheese and pasta. I'm more of a sweets person and i think if i allow myself anything (mark says you can sometimes) it'll be chocolate. But dark chocolate, the good stuff!

    lmao dont they say that ? No crabs then? haha yes i meant carbs.
  • DeepSeaDoc_Wife
    DeepSeaDoc_Wife Posts: 112 Member
    I wouldn't say I eat primal but I eat what the earth has to offer. So I eat whole grains that has grown from the ground, fruits and veggies, beans, nuts, animal meat (fish, poultry, lean pork). I do not eat beef for some reason, I substitute ground turkey instead. Basically I eat clean and I have lost 42 pounds so far with exercise.
    What I'm saying is no refined foods like white bread, pastas ( when I do eat pasta it's whole wheat), refined sugars- I use nectar, honey that doesn't have additives. I haven't done any research on Paleo or Primal diet but I truly think cavemen even gathered grains, corn, and even sweet tasting things like honey from a hive when there weren't a lot of animals around.
  • MightyBee73
    MightyBee73 Posts: 3
    I followed the Paleo diet without dairy, sugar,very limited fruit ect. I didn't count calories either and i didn't lose any weight at all. I was even exercising every day. If you are doing it to lose weight, it's still important to watch your portions and count calories. You can also count protein blocks. I think it's modeled after the Zone.

    Good luck!
  • Thorneapple
    Thorneapple Posts: 154
    This sounds similar to what people call Clean Eating --- eating foods basically as they would appear in nature. Fresh fruits and veggies, whole grains, lean meats. No processed foods, processed sugar or white flour.

    I try to eat clean at least 75% of the time.
  • murf19
    murf19 Posts: 453 Member
    Have the Primal Blueprint and just received the Primal Cookbook. Plan on looking at the cookbook this weekend.

    Will be ordering 1/4 of a cow and 1/2 a hog in the coming months from local farmers. Grassfed/pastured meat is so much tastier.

    The only thing that I won't give up is my P90X/Insanity workouts. Mark suggests the "walk slowly, do periodic sprints and lift heavy things" approach. Sorry but I just have to have more activity.

    I still do P90X, infact i'm on my 3rd round right now. I spoke with Mark last week regarding the diet because I was trying to fit the P90x diet into primal diet. Mark suggested I do it the other way. It seams to be working. I'll do Marks workouts on and off when i'm not doing P90X
  • Barneystinson
    Barneystinson Posts: 1,357 Member
    Actually primal encourages the liberal consumption of fat - from full fat dairy, coconut products, organ meats, etc. It flies in the face of most of the "clean" eating philosophies.

    It's a low-moderate carbohydrate lifestyle. Grain/gluten free. No legumes. Etc.
  • CobraBubbles
    CobraBubbles Posts: 60
    I eat in accordance with a Primal/Paleo lifestyle and I have never felt better.
  • Jessibear2854
    Jessibear2854 Posts: 82 Member
    Actually primal encourages the liberal consumption of fat - from full fat dairy, coconut products, organ meats, etc. It flies in the face of most of the "clean" eating philosophies.

    It's a low-moderate carbohydrate lifestyle. Grain/gluten free. No legumes. Etc.

    I'm really interested in primal eating, but can't get past the fat. I bought full-fat cottage cheese at the store instead of my usual low-fat, and haven't been able to eat it (though I have no problem feeding it to my DS)! Plus, grass-fed, free-range meat is so super-expensive for my budget, and I freakin' love beans.
  • alissaloved
    alissaloved Posts: 16
    I have tried many different eating patterns (Green smoothie revolution, potatoes not prozac, high protein, primal'ish) and each time I have switched to a new one I have seen good results. This has lead me to believe that I loose weight when I am passionate about what I am eating and my health, as it is these two factors that have been consistent throughout the many attempts I have made to be mindful of my body. I can only speak for myself but I think that whatever works for you is great, even if you have to change your mind a few time, try a few different adaptations.

    It is really interesting reading how others eat though and I love learning about new ideologies around food and fitness. Cool!
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