Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm cheating. I won't be giving up dairy (though I have switched to organic skim and fat free mozzarella). I'll continue to incorporate red potatoes into my diet (controversial, I know, but I find it hypocritical that potatoes are excluded by some, given the whole philosophy behind the diet). Ezekiel bread over less healthy alternatives. Olive oil and butter will be cooking staples. Maybe even some rice occasionally just for the sake variety. Five michelob ultras left in the fridge. I'm really gunna miss beer. My new drink of choice when socially drinking will be bourbon on ice (oh no! It's made from corn). And when my sweet tooth hits, I will indulge in a piece of dark chocolate.
I'm not fat by any means. 6'1 and 187 pounds as of this morning. Never had any issues with gluten (at least that I'm aware of). Just trying to make some lifestyle changed now that will pay dividends when I'm 40 and beyond. I like the basic principles behind the diet. There's a lot of merit in giving up processed food/empty calories that make up so much of the typical American diet. I'm an avid hunter, so securing lean meat is the easiest part, and when you harvest four deer a year, it obviously becomes a dietary staple. Throw in an occasional wild pig and all I lack is something with feathers. But chicken is easy to find at the grocery store and one of the cheapest of all the meats (even raised organically).
Anyone else follow or plan on following a modified paleo diet?
Last edited by Philosophizer; 05-28-2014 at 02:44 PM..
Many paleo dieters now eat dairy, including some of the most well people promoting it, but they usually advocate for RAW milk, i.e. not pasteurized, from organic or "organic-like" pasture raised cows.
Well, considering that the Incans ate potatoes at least as far back as 500 BC (with evidence of pre-Columbian farmers growing them for 7000 years), I kinda figure they fit perfectly with a modified Paleo.
Same goes for dairy, people have been herding dairy animals for over 7000 years. And lacto-fermentation of that milk was a food staple and the primary method for preserving the milk.
Bread is a major problem... if you use conventional wheat. Modern wheat has almost nothing in common with traditional wheat that they made bread with in the dawn of civilization. You'd need to make your bread with Einkorn or Emmer to be truly comparative. But saying that, Paleo man wasn't really making bread since it takes a huge effort to get enough grain to grind... likely he just nibbled the seeds as he found them or mashed them with stuff.
I think the key point to modified Paleo is that the food is whole, unrefined, organic, and relatively un-messed-with. Something you could reasonably expect someone a few milennia ago to have access to and to have eaten with the processing techniques available then. Raw milk & cheese, live yogurt, unleavened or dense yeast bread, whole veg, pasture fed meat... that sort of thing.
ETA: oh yeah, and beer has been around for nearly 7000 years, too.... so keep it. Wine's been around even longer. And mead's been around for nearly 4000 years, too!
Well, considering that the Incans ate potatoes at least as far back as 500 BC (with evidence of pre-Columbian farmers growing them for 7000 years), I kinda figure they fit perfectly with a modified Paleo.
Same goes for dairy, people have been herding dairy animals for over 7000 years. And lacto-fermentation of that milk was a food staple and the primary method for preserving the milk.
Bread is a major problem... if you use conventional wheat. Modern wheat has almost nothing in common with traditional wheat that they made bread with in the dawn of civilization. You'd need to make your bread with Einkorn or Emmer to be truly comparative. But saying that, Paleo man wasn't really making bread since it takes a huge effort to get enough grain to grind... likely he just nibbled the seeds as he found them or mashed them with stuff.
I think the key point to modified Paleo is that the food is whole, unrefined, organic, and relatively un-messed-with. Something you could reasonably expect someone a few milennia ago to have access to and to have eaten with the processing techniques available then. Raw milk & cheese, live yogurt, unleavened or dense yeast bread, whole veg, pasture fed meat... that sort of thing.
ETA: oh yeah, and beer has been around for nearly 7000 years, too.... so keep it. Wine's been around even longer. And mead's been around for nearly 4000 years, too!
I totally agree with these sentiments and would never shun high quality raw milk and non-gmo potatoes from my diet!
Technically though, the initial books that popularized the "paleo diet" steered people away from any food that appeared AFTER the advent of agriculture about 10,000 years ago. This included raising livestock for milk. Some people still follow this stricter version of the paleo diet but many others don't. Beans are another issue since some people include them and other people don't. Same with some "non-gluten" "grains" like quinoa (actually a seed). Yes, I'm aware there is some controversy over whether or not quinoa contains gluten since it has gluten-like proteins and there is potential for cross contamination with wheat in the processing.
For me, the paleo diet is just a loose set of helpful principles, not something to try to adhere strictly to any particular version of.
I think that going with skim/reduced fat dairy products is problematic. The fat in milk minimizes insulin spiking. Personally, I would opt for smaller amounts of whole milk products instead.
I think that going with skim/reduced fat dairy products is problematic. The fat in milk minimizes insulin spiking. Personally, I would opt for smaller amounts of whole milk products instead.
I totally agree with these sentiments and would never shun high quality raw milk and non-gmo potatoes from my diet!
Technically though, the initial books that popularized the "paleo diet" steered people away from any food that appeared AFTER the advent of agriculture about 10,000 years ago. This included raising livestock for milk. Some people still follow this stricter version of the paleo diet but many others don't. Beans are another issue since some people include them and other people don't. Same with some "non-gluten" "grains" like quinoa (actually a seed). Yes, I'm aware there is some controversy over whether or not quinoa contains gluten since it has gluten-like proteins and there is potential for cross contamination with wheat in the processing.
For me, the paleo diet is just a loose set of helpful principles, not something to try to adhere strictly to any particular version of.
True, I guess I'm more Neolithic than Paleaolithic .
Still in those early days of agriculture, a good portion of the diet was still hunted and gathered, and pretty sure everything from the farm was eaten pretty much how it grew with just some basic seasoning, salting/drying and fermenting.
I think a lot of people are eating Paleo with dairy, as long as it's raw if you can get it, but otherwise aiming for pasture raised and messed with as little as possible, which means whole and not reduced fat. I love me some non-homogenized milk with cream on top, yum!
Nothing is skim or fat free on Paleo! Love yourself some fats - your body will love you back.
Eat clean, and feel fantastic for the rest of your life - it has really made a significant improvement in my life and my health.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.