Hey, Muscle & Fitness: I want to follow a pseudo paleo diet. I say pseudo because I want to include grains and potatoes. How can I combine the best of paleo with my dietary needs to maintain size and strength?
Welcome to the growing legion of athletes and weekend warriors who are embracing Paleolithic eating. While strict Paleo eating dictates that you should only be consuming foods available to hunter-gatherers like meat, roots, nuts and seeds, it’s possible to still get the most out of this diet while dabbling in a few forbidden foods. Here are a few tips that can help you get the best out of this diet.
Grains in the Whole
One of the tenets of the Paleo diet is on unprocessed foods. If you’re going to include grains, opt for options like quinoa, amaranth or brown rice and minimize your intake of more processed grains like whole wheat pasta, rolled oats or whole grain bread.
Upgrade Your Meats
Hardcore paleos say you should be loading your plate with higher quality meats like bison, grass-fed beef, free-range chicken and wild-caught salmon. Studies show that these types of meats are richer in nutrients (like heart-healthy omega-3’s).
Plant Power
Research suggests that modern hunter-gatherers get only about 35 per cent of their calories from meat, with the rest derived from foraged plants. That means you should round out your diet with plenty of plant-based foods. Tubers are an allowable food on the Paleo diet, so load up on potatoes. They’re all different in terms of nutrients, but most provide a necessary boost.
Shawn’s Old Diet
Breakfast
3 whole eggs 1 1/2 cups oatmeal
Snack
1 cup blueberry yogurt
Lunch
2 chicken sandwiches with: 6 oz. chicken breast 4 slices whole wheat bread 1 cup spinach
Pre-Workout Snack
1 cup water blended with: 1 scoop whey protein powder 1 banana
Post-Workout Snack
Protein shake with: 1 cup low-fat milk 1 scoop whey protein powder 1 cup strawberries
Dinner
Pasta with: 2 cups whole grain spaghetti 6 oz. ground beef 1 cup tomato sauce
Total
Calories
Protein (g)
Carbs (g)
Fat (g)
3,953
274
550
75
Shawn’s New Diet
Breakfast
3 whole free-range eggs 2 oz. Canadian bacon 1 orange
Snack
1 oz. beef jerky 1 oz. walnuts
Lunch
6 oz. wild Alaskan salmon 1 large sweet potato 2 cups steamed broccoli
Pre-Workout Snack
1 cup apple slices with 2 tablespoons almond butter
Post-Workout Snack
Protein shake with: 1 cup unsweetened almond milk 2 scoops whey protein powder 1 cup frozen mixed berries
Dinner
6 oz. grass-fed sirloin steak 1 cup cooked quinoa Large salad with: 2 cups baby spinach 1 sliced red bell pepper 1 sliced carrot 1 tbsp hemp seeds
