Daniel and I have had several outings and events with family and friends over the past week or two and I decided to not be ‘strictly Paleo’ about some of them … needless to say, I’m in recovery mode now. If you eat Paleo, you know what I mean. If you don’t, why the heck not?! Seriously, I understand that to each their own and that we’re all different but I want to talk about one of the BIG differences between eating Paleo and other diets and that is: Immediate gratification.
Why Eat Paleo
Eating Paleo involves omitting foods that disrupt your digestive system. Obviously it’s more than that but for the purposes of today’s post I want to start here: No grains, dairy, beans, soy, corn … Why? There are lots of technical reasons but the BIG idea is that those things mess with your digestion and are overall much harder on your body (sometimes even long-term.)
I’ll use myself as a real-world example here … When I’m eating fruits, veggies, healthy fats and meat, I literally and absolutely have no problem with how my body responds to what I’m eating. That means no:
- Food guilt
- Constipation
- Lethargy
- Weight-gain
Benefits of Eating Paleo
I attribute these benefits to really listening to my body. If I eat something that’s processed or has unhealthy ingredients, my body tells me it’s not cool. I can know in less than 30 minutes of eating if something isn’t the best for my body. It’s kinda crazy. I’ve entered into this relationship with my body (that sounds really zen but it’s true) where I can tell if something’s wrong very quickly. I have a heightened sensitivity to what’s good and what’s bad for me to consume.
Drop the Calories. Ditch the Points.
I remember when I used to count calories or keep track of Weigh Watchers points. I would go over my calories and points and it would make me feel guilty and slow my progress in weight loss. But the major problem with that wasn’t either of those things. The major problem was that I didn’t actually see/feel how those decisions were negatively effecting my body and health. It wasn’t immediate. It would take days or weeks to realize that I was gaining weight or feel the other impacts of those unhealthy choices. That would lead me to make prolonged poor choices.
Not so with Paleo.
When I choose to eat something on the unhealthy side of the spectrum, it isn’t just adding more calories or points to my day, or food guilt with no other tangible side effects. Because I’m more in -tune with my body, those unhealthy decisions now have a very tangible impact on how I feel and how I function. My body is saying,
- Hey you’re hurting me! What is this stuff?
- Could we go back to the unprocessed, real food please?
- I’m not sure how to process this junk you just fed me!!
… or something along those lines.
We only get one body. It’s our responsibility to treat it well and give it the fuel it needs to thrive. Your body doesn’t speak in calories or points.
Let’s make the change to treat our bodies with respect and ditch the junk.
P.S. I just found out that I will be featured in an upcoming book (!!!) … The Calorie Myth ! How cool is that? The author, Jonathon Bailor is heading up a non-profit health education system, SlimIsSimple.org, that’s on a mission to keep nutrition simple. No calorie counting. Just simple, real food. (Basically it’s Paleo without the label.) Learn more via this handy video featuring 10 Tips to Live Better. Very cool!
~ Kate