Sometimes when I think of dieting, I want to shoot myself. Well.. not really but some people see it as torture to know you can have great food, but not choose to eat it.
I had a hard time figuring out which diet is right for me. I tried the simple "low carb" diet, IIFYM (If it fits your macros), high protein diet, and I found that it was so hard to stay consistent.
This past weekend my friend and I were talking about the paleo diet-- one in which you cut out processed foods, and any other food that cavemen won't eat (LOL literally, cavemen). The concept behind this is that our natural bodies are not made to run on processed foods. Our bodies are built to survive, not.. indulge. Back in the cave days, early men and women ate what was accessible to them-- meat, vegetables, nuts, and fruits. These basics were enough to survive on.
I've been doing some reading, and finding that part of the reason why people are obese nowadays is due to processed foods that are high in carbohydrates, sodium, sugar, etc-- our bodies don't take and break down what we're eating very well, which is why processed foods can cause us to become obese or can lead to cancer.
All of this is based off of brief research I did on the paleo. I know that I myself have a hard time sticking to any type of food restriction, so I decided to personalize my diet plan.
If you're going to put together a plan for dieting, know what you can and cannot give up. Also make it so that it's doable and is something that won't make you hate your life:
- Know your limits
- Have a clear fitness goal in mind
- Do this with friends and keep track of each other
- Stay consistent-- but give yourself a cheat meal once a week
I chose the paleo diet because I'm not a huge fan of bread and carbs anyway (except for dessert-- so this is going to be kind of hard). It's easy for me to eat healthy and make salads because my workplace offers great salad options (kale, spinach-- none of that iceberg lettuce shit), and they also have unlimited amounts of protein choices. Sometimes I'd swing by the asian noodle/ pho counter and ask for a boxful of shrimp and chicken and it'll be chill. But if your workplace/ school does not offer healthy options, meal prep is a must.
Being able to control the source of where you get your food is very important-- so if you're on a specific diet, there will be a lot of meal preparation and cooking involved.
Since sticking with Paleo was a goal set with my boyfriend and my friend, we are able to keep each other accountable for what we're eating on a day-to-day basis. It's also refreshing-- we send each other pics of our food, and it's sort of like a knowledge sharing chat of different things we can eat.
And of course.. cut yourself some slack for one to two meals out of the week. It's hard to eat the same stuff over and over again without anticipating something delicious later on.
I chose the paleo diet because I'm not a huge fan of bread and carbs anyway (except for dessert-- so this is going to be kind of hard). It's easy for me to eat healthy and make salads because my workplace offers great salad options (kale, spinach-- none of that iceberg lettuce shit), and they also have unlimited amounts of protein choices. Sometimes I'd swing by the asian noodle/ pho counter and ask for a boxful of shrimp and chicken and it'll be chill. But if your workplace/ school does not offer healthy options, meal prep is a must.
Graciously tossed salad by the salad chefs at my work place. I was able to choose my own ingredients: Herbed chicken, boiled eggs, kale, edamame, almonds, and Zinfandel dressing. Oh and a sprinkle of parmesan (totally not paleo at all).
Being able to control the source of where you get your food is very important-- so if you're on a specific diet, there will be a lot of meal preparation and cooking involved.
Since sticking with Paleo was a goal set with my boyfriend and my friend, we are able to keep each other accountable for what we're eating on a day-to-day basis. It's also refreshing-- we send each other pics of our food, and it's sort of like a knowledge sharing chat of different things we can eat.
And of course.. cut yourself some slack for one to two meals out of the week. It's hard to eat the same stuff over and over again without anticipating something delicious later on.
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