Paleo Diet Guidelines for Beginners

Last updated: May 11, 2018 at 12:38 pm
 

Lately, some diets are more common than others.

Keto, paleo, and dash are one of the most popular diets these days.

We’ve already written about keto and dash, so now let’s focus on the paleo diet.

Here you can read a comprehensive paleo diet guidelines.

So, what is a paleo diet?

Paleo diet is often called a caveman diet.

So, maybe now you have a clue what’s the basis of this diet.

Paleo diet is actually returning to the diet people used to have many years ago…

Thousands and thousands of years ago to be clear.

If the caveman could eat like that, so can you.

The most important thing about this diet is to eat exactly the same food our ancestors ate in their caves: food as raw as possible, minimally processed (meat, eggs, natural oils, season fruit and vegetables, seeds).

On the other hand, this diet strictly forbids wheat, corn, brown rice, soy, peanuts, beans, peas, sweets, and sodas.

The paleo diet is high in fats, proteins are in the second place, and carbs come last.

The keto diet doesn’t allow any carbs whereas the paleo allows some, but of course don’t exaggerate.

Also, you don’t need to count calories.

If you are not a fan of counting calories or taking care of how much food you intake then this is the right diet for you.

The paleo is a kind of diet that doesn’t require counting any calories and it allows you to eat everything until you are full.

Also, it is one of the best diets for diabetics.

Paleo diet benefits:

• It can help you lose weight
• You can build muscles and be in the best shape ever
• You can prevent the development of many chronic diseases (diabetes, cancer, heart and autoimmune diseases). (1)

How does paleo diet help you lose weight?

Paleo diet helps you lose weight by increasing the intake of food our ancestors used to eat when they lived in communities where they had to hunt for food every day.

After the agricultural revolution, the fundamentals of your diet changed and raw, unprocessed food was replaced by food high in carbs, a lot of cereals, and sugars that processed food contains.

In the past 200 years, the industrial revolution made an even more significant change to your diet and additives that expand food’s expiry date and other additives are without a question harmful to you.

All of these changes significantly affect your health and they are the cause of modern-day diseases including obesity, diabetes, heart diseases, and cancer.

The basic rule of the Paleo diet is eating the same way people used to eat ten thousand years ago, before agriculture and much before industrialization.

The causes of obesity and overweight are carbs, sugars and many other products obtained by processing cereals.

The paleo diet says to avoid these ingredients and to intake raw food such as fruit and vegetables as much as possible.

Also, you should increase the intake of meat (not fried, but grilled or boiled) and eggs (hard boiled).

This way you boost up your metabolism and by doing that you shred extra pounds.

Paleo Diet Foods List

Foods to eat on a paleo diet

Paleo diet rules suggest eating everything you can hunt or collect -meat, fish, nuts, everything green, season fruit and vegetables, and seeds.

So, you should eat:

• Meat – chicken, turkey, lamb, beef
• Fish – salmon, trout
• Eggs – hard-boiled
• Fresh vegetables
• Fresh fruits
• Vegetable oils – Olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil
• Nuts – a handful of nuts per day
• Sweet potato – don’t exaggerate

Foods to avoid according to the paleo diet

Here’s the kicker:

Forget about wheat, pasta, cereals, and sweets!

So, you should avoid:

• Legumes – beans, peas.
• Processed meat – salami, hot dogs, cold meat
• Bread, pasta
• Dairy products
• Processed foods – ketchup, mayonnaise, french fries, fast food, unhealthy foods.
• Potatoes
• Chocolate
• Sweets
• Sodas
• Vinegar
• All types of flour 

1-day paleo diet meal plan example

According to the paleo diet foods list, we made you a menu plan for a one day:

Breakfast: An omelette with spinach and mushrooms.

Snack: A handful of berries.

Lunch: Grilled trout and a big green salad with lemon and olive oil dressing.

Snack: A raw carrot and apple.

Dinner: Grilled chicken, boiled broccoli, tomato salad.

Dessert: Grilled walnuts and apple.

Tips for eating out on a paleo diet

Well, in some places you can find paleo-friendly restaurants.

In Califonia, for example, there are a few such restaurants.

But in most cases, you will eat in regular restaurants so here are a few tips how to follow the  paleo diet guidelines while you are eating out:

• Order grass fed beef
• Replace French fries with fresh vegetables
• Drink mineral water instead of sodas
• Don’t eat bread
• Go to a sushi restaurant from time to time (avoid rice)
• Mexican food is paleo friendly (avoid tortillas)
• Avoid Italian food
• Order seafood
• Eat fruit salads for dessert

Paleo diet snacks

If you are one of those people who love eating something between meals, then these are the snacks for you recommended by the paleo diet:

• Roasted fruits
• A handful of nuts
• Olives
• Hard-boiled eggs
• Piece of fruit
• Fruit salad

How much weight can you lose on paleo?

That depends on your lifestyle.

If you follow the paleo diet guidelines strictly and increase your physical activities you can expect to lose 1-2 pounds per week.

So, if you follow the paleo diet you can lose up to 10 pounds per month and you can reduce the risk of developing many diseases.

Paleo diet pros

• An increased intake of proteins, accelerating your metabolism and losing weight
• An increased intake of fruit and vegetables
• No need for counting calories and starving
• It has a positive effect on your body (prevents diabetes and heart diseases)

Paleo diet cons

• This diet can’t be adjusted for vegetarians
• It doesn’t allow intaking coffee, sugar, and sweets
• It is not desirable to eat dairy products, so you will have to intake calcium additionally through supplements
• Paleo diet requires persistence and obeying the rules

So, what’s the bottom line?

If you really follow the rules of the paleo diet this can be an effective way of losing weight.

The Internet is full of paleo diet recipes so just google it and find the best menu for you.

However, following all the recommended things of this diet won’t be easy, especially in the beginning when you need to give up many tasty ingredients.

This is the reason why some may feel symptoms such as tiredness, headaches, and food cravings.

These problems disappear after a few weeks and from then on the paleo diet is very easy since it’s a diet that doesn’t support starving.

The paleo diet is healthier than many others, so don’t forget to maintain a balanced diet, intake all groups of ingredients moderately and exercise regularly.

READ MORE: LOSE UP TO 15 POUNDS IN TWO WEEKS WITH DI.ET!