Since starting this blog I have been asked by a few friends what is the Paleo diet? Now looking back I probably should have made this my first blog post. However, I was just too excited to begin sharing recipes and I did not think about this right at the beginning. A quick google search will give you a great explanation of what a Paleo diet is, so I will not get too deep into it. Although, I am happy to share with you all what my version of Paleo looks like for me.
In a nutshell a Paleo diet consists of eating whole, natural, unprocessed foods. Paleo refers to the Paleo ethic era when ancient hunter-gatherer societies ate these types of food. Lean meats, seafood, veggies, fruit, nuts, seeds, and healthy oils are the main building blocks to a Paleo diet. Most people who follow a paleo diet avoid dairy, grains, beans, and legumes, along with most added sugars, unhealthy oils and processed additives.
To give a bit of background for myself I grew up in South Louisiana, in the United States and we are known for our delicious cuisine. Our food is well seasoned with lots of meat and rice dishes. We love to deep fry foods and use a lot of unhealthy oils in most dishes. I grew up on rice and gravy, gumbo, jambalaya, crawfish étouffée, fried fish, and crawfish boils. My mouth waters just thinking about it all. Although, I do not eat still eat these dishes in their traditional form, I do still love to recreate these dishes in my own healthier Paleo way. I always aim for my food to be flavorful and well seasoned, just the way I grew up. I love getting creative with what I have on hand and seeing what I can come up with. I also love that I can take simple ingredients and make delicious Paleo desserts.
In 2017 I had a sneaking suspicion that something was up with my thyroid (blog post on my health journey coming soon). This suspicion and later my Hashimotos diagnosis peaked my interest at researching diets that helped with thyroid health, lowering inflammation, weight loss, lowering blood pressure, etc. This is when I began to dabble with taking gluten and unrefined sugar out of my diet. Slowly over the following years I tried many different variations of healthy eating and then finally going 100% gluten free in 2019. Once I went gluten free I started to get more feedback from my body on what it liked and did not like. Being in tune with your body and listening to that feedback is how you find out what works best for your own body. After all these years of experimentation with my diet, I know now that my body functions best on a primarily Paleo diet. My digestion, bloat, and inflammation are significantly better eating this way. I eat strict Paleo 90% of the time. I still do occasionally eat rice, corn, gluten free bread, and cheese in limited quantities. My body definitely lets me know if I have overdone it. My diet is and will always be consistently changing as my body and health adapts.
I am in no way a medical professional, I am just someone wanting to share what has worked for me. We are all uniquely different and therefore will all have uniquely different diets. You have to find what works best for you. What I love about the Paleo diet is that it offers an easy template to follow and does not require pre-packaged meals or strange diet cycles. It is just eating in its most simple form…veggies, fruit, meat, and healthy fats. The key to having a good relationship with food and your ever evolving diet is to always seek progress, not perfection. I hope this has been helpful. I would love to hear from you in the comments below!