Paleo Party

Welcome!
Last week, I wrapped up my HFLC diet, and I just wanted to quickly share some stats and rankings about it:
HFLC
Convenience: 7/10 (if you're not too picky. I found some really good options in the dining commons, but I had to check beforehand, or dig really deeply for them)
Weight-loss potential: -2.5 pounds. This was more than with any of the past diets, but I did feel that slight sensation of not being full at any given time
Points for consideration/notes:

• Really good if you don't mind a slight feeling of constant hunger throughout the day

• Really good if you don't like desserts much

• Really good if you really like meat, cheese, and aren't a fan of carbs

Overall, I think that this diet is pretty easy to follow, as long as you adhere really closely to your nutritional guidelines (base calorie level, etc) for at least the first couple of days. There is also a transition period, in which you don't feel fully satiated after your meals, but you get used to it after a while. For me, was easier to follow than the HCLF diet, but harder to follow than being vegan, just because while I was vegan, I could still consume both vegetable fats and carbohydrates.
Overall ranking: 8/10, for convenience, no deprivation, hunger levels that aren't too extreme.

Now, without further ado....

The Paleo diet

Source: Jack Chadwick

The idea for the diet (and scientific backbone) was thought up by New York gastroenterologist Walter Voegtlin, in 1975, and was furthered by Doctor Loren Cordain, in his 2002 book "The Paleolithic Diet".  Both scientists talked about a "genetic approach" to staying lean, in shape, and healthy, by eating only foods which our Paleolithic ancestors had around. 

It's built on the premise that humans were healthier in the Paleolithic period than now: before the rise of modern agricultural practices, dairy development, and on-demand cropping. In other words, the diet limits you to eating only what our stone-age ancestors would eat: 

• Grass-fed meat 
• Eggs
• Fresh fruit and vegetables
• Fish 
• Seeds, nuts, healthy oils 

And it bans:

• Cereal grains
• Legumes
• Dairy
• Refined sugars
• Potatoes (sweet potatoes are okay)
• Candy/junk/processed food 

Basically, this:

Source: hippoquotes.com

I think this diet will be slightly harder to follow than HFLC, mainly because of the banning of dairy. I know I've said it before, but I love dairy. And this diet doesn't even let me have soy products (like tofutti vegan cheese, Daiya vegan shreds, or Silk soy yogurt), which is how I coped with not being able to eat dairy when I went vegan. I'm skeptical about this diet... And also, I think it'll be very hard to manage when eating in the dining commons, just because everything is refined, or has sugar, or some sort of dairy. However, I'm also excited for this challenge! I'm looking forward to see what I can make of it. Any thoughts, comments or advice would be greatly appreciated! 

Thank you for joining me on my quest for an appropriate diet! See you next week.