Tips To Help You Succeed In Living The Paleo Lifestyle Long Term.
The Paleo diet seemed to coincide with Crossfit becoming a household fitness craze. This is due to the fact that many people that did Crossfit also practiced the diet as some of the top Crossfitters in the world adopted the diet and attributed their success to it. Paleo has been called the caveman diet as people are only allowed to eat things that were around during the Paleolithic era. This eliminates processed foods and sugars which has a myriad of benefits including increased energy and a lack of need to nap. Since then there have been countless elite athletes admitting to eating Paleo with a few tweaks as endurance athletes might need carbs that come in the form of pasta or rice. Living a Paleo lifestyle can be difficult if you do not have a plan of how you are going to stick with the diet. The following are tips that will allow a person to adopt this diet long term instead of for a month or two then burning out on the idea.
Slowly Implement The Diet Meal By Meal
The large mistake that many people make is that of starting Paleo in a strict form immediately. This can work but it puts a majority of people into a caloric deficit that is unhealthy. This happens because people usually consume calories via carbs and it can be difficult to eat the same amount of carbs without bread, rice, or potatoes. Start with the meal of your choice to eat Paleo and experiment with various meals to see how your body reacts. Work your way up to eating Paleo for nearly all of your meals including snacks whether you opt for fruit or gourmet beef jerky.
Constantly Try New Recipes Until You Have a Few Diet Favorites
The trick to sticking with the caveman diet is that of finding those dishes that you can look forward to during the week. A person will become a master of cooking meat as this will be a larger part of their diet than in the past. Fresh fruit smoothies with freshly squeezed juice can be the perfect way to start a day or aid in recovery after a tough workout. There is no limit on the amount of food that you can eat just what types of foods can be consumed. This allows a person to get creative in the kitchen as well whether they make pulled chicken to put on a salad or they decide to add it to a zucchini pasta.
Cheat Days Are Imperative
There will be those that swear that cheat days put a person’s blood sugar off and are counterproductive to living the Paleo lifestyle. Cheat days allow a person to stick with the diet 6 days a week and to indulge in their favorite foods that don’t conform to the diet. Cheat days also let people stay on the diet for longer periods as they are scheduled rather than cheating then throwing out months of work of eating paleo. It is also very difficult to eat in accordance with the diet when going out to eat. Knowing this can allow a person to use their cheat day for the week so they can enjoy whatever they would like when eating out.
Replace Your Naps With Workouts
Naps are a staple of many people with busy schedules on the weekend or even during the week. Many Paleo diet advocates note that one of the best attributes of the diet is the lack of a crash after a meal. The most common crash comes after a heavy lunch as many offices throughout the country become far less productive due to staff being sleepy after eating. Lack of processed sugars could be a reason for this but using this nap time productively can enhance the results of the diet. Jump on a stationary bike for a half hour that otherwise, you would spend sleeping on the couch with your favorite filler show on Netflix.
Most Importantly, Listen To Your Body
The first few weeks while your body adjusts to the diet you might not feel the best and might be a bit lethargic as your body detoxes. You will notice a huge difference in your energy levels as well as your need to constantly eat. Many people practice intermittent fasting with the Paleo diet as their need for food throughout the day decreases. Athletes do a great job of listening to their bodies so if you feel like your performance in a certain area is lacking due to the diet then customize the diet. Keep a journal of how you feel on a daily basis to see which foods really allow you to feel your best as well as keep track of amount s of eating. You might find that when you eat more than you feel better as you might not be getting all of the calories you need to perform at an optimum level.
Sticking with the Paleo diet long term will become much easier after a few months. Plan out your strategy to stick with the diet to ensure that it will not become just another diet that you didn’t feel like following anymore.
