By Shannon Flanagan – CPT
The Paleo diet has been the new diet we have all been talking about. The Paleo way is not actually a diet, but more of a lifestyle. Like all diets before Paleo, many questions are being raised as to its healthiness, sustainability and longevity. It’s time to get educated on the REAL FOOD concept which is the essence of a TRUE Paleo diet.
Thousands of years ago our staple diet would have been meat and fish, fruits and vegetables, nuts & seeds. Meat was from wild animals which fed on vegetation NOT grains, making this meat extremely nutrient dense, providing rich, long lasting calories. During those times there were no refrigerators so food was fresh and not stored, foods would have been eaten fresh with nothing going to waste.
• Seasonal fruits and vegetables
• Wild hunted meat, poultry, fish and seafood
• Seasonally gathered nuts and seeds
• Fats contained within the plant/animal
We need to learn how to listen to our body’s signals and determine the specific food requirements that would benefit everyone’s individual needs. Using meals that heal based on organic, seasonal fruits and veggies, wild meats and fish, saturated fats and additional products listed below for variety. I use the term Paleo as it is easily identifiable, however, it is just real nutrition.
We need to think of Paleo as real nutrition because the ideas outlined there have helped individuals recover from IBS, IBD, Food Intolerances, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia, Arthritis, Eczema and more.
Paleo as Real Nutrition (Paleo Diet Book)
Daily
• Clean water
• Fresh, seasonal, organic fruits and veggies
• Grass fed, organic meat
• Wild fish and seafood
• Organic Saturated and Monounsaturated fats
Occasionally
To be enjoyed if tolerated by the body.
• Whole unprocessed, organic pseudo grains (Quinoa & Buckwheat)
• Organic nut flours (chestnut & coconut)
• Activated nuts and seeds (soaked and dehydrated for easier digestion)
• Soaked and slow cooked legumes
• Organic Polyunsaturated fats
Avoid or limit
• Grains
• Dairy
• Soy
• Processed sugar
• Alcohol
Try to slowly take things out of your normal everyday life so that it doesn’t seem like a drastic shock to your body and you can then see what specific things negatively affect your body.
Week 1 – remove all gluten grains and reduce to one serving per day OR remove all grains
Week 2 – include fresh veggies and fruits at every meal
Week 3 – include animal/fish sourced proteins at each meal
Week 4 – swap to organic raw milk products or remove dairy completely
Week 5 – remove all processed fats
Week 6 – remove alcohol and reduce/remove caffeine