After discussing diet and exercise with some friends, I came to a simple conclusion; we don't know what it means to diet. When you think of the word "diet," what do you think of? Probably something like, "A diet is what I go on after Christmas or when I want to get back into those favorite jeans of mine. It's what I do to lose weight." But what if we're all wrong?
Diet, as defined by Dictionary.com goes like this:
Three out of those five possible definitions describe a diet as the food somebody eats. Simply put, a diet is the food we eat on a regular basis. Therein lies the problem of the diets I have tried in the past. They weren't meant for the long term. I don't want to confuse anyone by saying weight-loss plans like Weight Watchers or Atkins are bad, but they're not practical for long term diets. Does anyone really have the stamina to stop their lives every time they eat food to research it and then make notes about it, and then tally up totals and reflect on it at the end of the day for the rest of their lives?1.
food and drink considered in terms of its qualities,composition, and its effects on health: Milk is a wholesomearticle of diet.2.
a particular selection of food, esp. as designed or prescribedto improve a person's physical condition or to prevent ortreat a disease: a diet low in sugar.3.
such a selection or a limitation on the amount a person eatsfor reducing weight: No pie for me, I'm on a diet.4.
the foods eaten, as by a particular person or group: Thenative diet consists of fish and fruit.5.
food or feed habitually eaten or provided: The rabbits werefed a diet of carrots and lettuce.
I know I don't. And this fact sent me on a search to find what I was missing with my eternal diet.
The words Paleo and Mediterranean kept popping up in my search, until I finally had to stop and look at them. These diets are like two brothers from a different mother distant relatives. They want simple things. Here is an outline from the diet section at About.com:
What to eat on a Paleolithic Diet
by Laura Dolson
These are the foods that are recommended to approximate a Paleolithic Diet. Note that authors disagree on a few details. I have mainly used the books of Cordain (The Paleo Diet) and Audette (NeanderThin) in compiling the list, but other sources are available as well. One thing that authors agree on is that there is no way that we can exactly replicate the food of the Paleolithic period, so substitutions must be made in some cases. This accounts for many of the differing choices of the authors.
Meats and Eggs
Meats (including seafood) and eggs are perhaps the most important components of the Paleolithic Diet. Ideally, the animals from which the eggs and meat come from are fed a natural (to the animal) organic diet. That is, chickens have access to greens, insects, etc, as well as grain. Cattle eat grass and other pasture greenery. Fish should come from the wild, or at least be fed what wild fish eat.
In any case, meats should be free of breading of any kind.
Loren Cordain (The Paleo Diet) believes we should seek out low-fat meat sources, while others disagree. His reasoning is that today's meats are much higher in saturated fat so we should seek out low fat meats and then supplement with fats from other sources.
Vegetables
Vegetables are encouraged, although some versions of the diet except green beans and peas as they are legumes. Some versions simply say that if it can't be eaten raw, don't eat it (though this doesn't mean that it must be eaten raw, only that it should be able to be eaten raw). Potatoes and other starchy tubers (e.g. cassava) are not allowed.
Fruits
Fruits are generally allowed. Audette (NeanderThin) advises that people who need to lose weight should limit consumption of high sugar fruits. He allows juices in limited quantities. Cordain suggests avoiding juices altogether and limiting dried fruits.
Nuts and Seeds
Nuts and seeds are generally allowed, though Cordain suggests that those who want to lose weight limit them to four ounces per day. Note that peanuts are legumes and NOT allowed. Audette doesn't allow cashews since they can't be eaten raw. Unsweetened almond milk and coconut milk are often used as substitutes for dairy.
Oils
Though authors vary on recommended oils, basically the consensus seems to be that the oils from allowed plants are fine. Olive oil, nut oils, and flax seed oil are universally endorsed. Cordain recommends canola oil, but not coconut oil. Fish oil supplements are often recommended.
Beverages
CordainAudette. With Audette, it's water and tea, and limited quantities of juice - specifically no coffee and no alcohol. Cordain anything other than water should only be drunk in moderation, with the following recommendations.
- Diet soda (very controversial in the Paleo community from what I can tell)
- Coffee
- Tea
Also, although in one place Cordain says alcohol "should be limited to an occasional glass of wine, beer, or spirits", in another place in the book he defines moderation as:
Note that the diet condemns the use of refined sugars, salts, grains, starchy food, legumes (nuts and beans), fatty meats, and dairy. The last one is the only part I'll be breaking on a regular basis. Dairy is something I consider to be important to a diet, and I plan to consume it daily, but in moderation of course. As far as the other foods that are condemned, I don't plan to intentionally add them to my foods, but of course they are going to find their way in from time to time.
- Wine - 2 4 oz glasses
- Beer - 1 12 oz serving
- Spirits - 4 oz (which is more than is recommended by anyone else, Paleo or not)
This diet is solid, and almost a no-brainer. I've felt better over the last few days as I've slowly adjusted into this food plan. It's also exciting because I'll get to start eating and trying a lot of foods that I had previously kept myself away from because I couldn't find them in the chip or cereal isles at the grocery store!
For more info on the Paleo diet, try some of these helpful sites:
Paleoplan.com
Thepaleodiet.com
Paleodiet.com
Marksdailyapple.com - Definitive Guide to Primal Eating
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