Paleo diets are a good way to incorporate healthy, natural foods into daily life and promote steady and ongoing weight loss together with a regular exercise regime. Find out why taking up a Paleo diet will help you reap the benefits of weight loss and general overall health.
If you want to know more about weight loss, you can’t miss the following article that provides all useful tips you need:Weight Loss Plan And Program: Create Your Own One
What is a Paleo diet?
A Paleo diet, also referred to as the Caveman Diet, is based on the types of ingredients that early humans would have consumed. It’s promoting the notion of eating a ‘clean’ diet that is free of toxic foods that harm our body. In this day and age, food consumption rates have hit a major high and most of these foods contain trans fats, sugar and added preservatives that contribute towards diseases such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease and depression.
Paleo diets are based on well-sourced, healthy ingredients that avoid the unnecessary toxic foods that our bodies can’t process effectively or efficiently. Ingredients such as lean proteins that promote muscle strength, strong bones and a good immune system as well as satisfying the body for longer periods between meals are a big part of the Paleo diet.
Fruits and vegetables, that we know contain the nutrients, antioxidants and other health benefits that contribute to a healthy functioning body, make up a big portion of this type of diet. Healthy fats are also essential and are found in nuts, seeds, fish, lean meats, fruit such as avocados and healthy oils like olive and grapeseed oil. All these combine to form a healthy diet that promotes a happy and well-fueled body.
What exactly are the health benefits of a Paleo diet?
I mentioned earlier that trans fats and sugar, in particular, contribute to diseases that are becoming the biggest killers today. There are so many health benefits from partaking in a Paleo diet and here is a brief run-down of just a few.
Reverses Diabetes: Studies have found that a long-term Paleo diet can actually reverse the symptoms of Type 2 diabetes. Cutting out all processed foods that contain sugar may eliminate possible development of diabetes.
Lowers Chances of Cardiovascular Diseases: One of today’s biggest killers, cardiovascular disease sees big increases in heart attacks, strokes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and the symptoms that can stop people from being able to live their lives. Lowering our intake of processed foods containing trans fats lowers the risk of heart disease.
Promotes a Healthy Immune System: The best part of a Paleo diet is that it provides you with the most nutrient dense food options. Foods rich in vitamin A, D, C and zinc all go towards an efficient immune system, resulting in a lessened susceptibility to illness.
Is the Paleo diet effective for weight loss?
In a word: yes. As part of an overall healthy lifestyle that includes exercise, a Paleo diet provides great results for weight loss. It promotes optimum health in terms of the strength of muscles and bones which in turn will provide the energy the body needs to lose weight effectively and in an extremely healthy way.
A particular scientific study was carried out over the course of two years and compared the effects of a Paleo diet to a standard low-fat diet on obese menopausal women. The results found that the group on the Paleo diet lost 6.5kg after 6 months while the low-fat diet resulted in a 2.6kg weight loss. After a year, the Paleo dieters lost a total of 8.7kg and the low-fat diets lost 4.4kg altogether – almost half the amount. Of course, these results don’t have to be limited to obese menopausal women; they can be applied to many different people across the board.
Here is why the Paleo diet is beneficial for long-term weight loss:
More efficient workouts
A Paleo diet supplies energy-efficient nutrients and is heavily based on lean meats. This means more lean muscle development which is essential for successful workouts and therefore allows you to burn off fat a lot more effectively. Not only are you lowering your intake of bad fats with the diet, you are promoting the capacity of your body to obtain maximum results when you exercise.
Stabilised blood sugar
Since you are cutting out large amounts of refined sugars, your blood sugar levels won’t experience the onslaught of spikes and crashes that contribute to fatigue and moodiness. A more stabilised blood sugar level will promote healthier eating through less snacking and allow you to carry out exercise routines with needed energy.
Balanced energy throughout the day
The high-protein element of the Paleo diet gets your body feeling full on a more regular basis. This obviously lessens the need to eat snacks which can lead to weight gain.
Reduced bloat
Being on a Paleo diet means the avoidance of wheat and gluten. There is some evidence that says gluten is problematic for the digestive system and for weight gain with gluten sometimes being the cause of larger midsections and bellies. These can also result in the feeling of bloating and give the unnecessary appearance of being bigger than we are.
Less saturated and trans fat
As you are consuming less foods that contain trans and saturated fats that lead to weight gain, you will inevitably end up losing excess weight when you switch to a Paleo diet.
Are there any cautions to consider when adopting a Paleo diet?
There has been a lot of negative talk and misinformation about the transitioning process to a Paleo diet but you can suffer initial symptoms when changing the foods you eat. Your body can go through a detox phase where the toxins stored in your body will get released and to be replaced by nutrients.
Temporary digestive problems – you may experience stomach upsets such as diarrhea and constipation or bloating and gas to begin with. This is simply because your body is adapting to the introduction of a high amount of vegetables. This is totally normal and will likely only last a few days. Try to cook vegetables to begin with as it helps break down the fibers and is easier on your digestive system.
Feeling weak and dizzy – the sudden reduction in carbohydrates may cause you to feel weak and a bit dizzy. Try to counteract this by eating a bit more food throughout the day as this will help keep your energy levels up while your body is adapting to the change.
Rashes – although quite uncommon some people do complain of developing rashes because they are suddenly adding a lot of one product to their diet. Be aware and monitor any prolonged rashes that turn up as it could indicate an intolerance or allergy to something you haven’t really had high amounts of in the past.
Overall, while the symptoms mentioned can be normal, always discuss such matters with your doctor to be certain and consider discussing your intentions with them if you are planning to start a Paleo diet.
You have to take into account that no diet is a ‘size fits all’. In other words this won’t always work or agree with everyone so trial it first to see if it’ll be a good fit for you. This article also outlines in further detail some of the potential pros and cons of the Paleo diet.
Good Paleo Recipes For Beginners
If you’ve decided to give the Paleo diet a go and are not quite sure where to start, then here are 10 simple and delicious recipes that will ease you into it.
1. Sweet Potato, Broccoli and Chicken Bake
2. Honey and Garlic Salmon
3. Easy Lemon Chicken with Butternut Squash
4. Creamy Spinach and Sweet Potato Noodles with Cashew Sauce
5. Frittata with Spinach and Tomatoes
6. Paleo Burrito Bowls
7. Sweet Potato Sausage Breakfast Hash with Kale
8. Paleo Banana Bread
9. Chocolate Pistachio Mousse
10. Almond Pancakes
If you think the Paleo diet is something you will benefit from then it may be worth looking into. Of course, not all diets work for everyone but why not give it a try and see how it works for you?