What It's Really Like To Do The Paleo Diet

A Student Edge contributor shares what it was like to experiment with the controversial Paleo diet.

The idea behind the Paleo (or Palaeolithic) diet is to eat the types of foods that humans would have consumed before the development of agriculture.

According to the Paleo Diet Evolved website, heavily processed foods, as well as natural produce that humans have trouble properly digesting and absorbing nutrients from, should be avoided.

I tried the Paleo diet as a part of an eight-week Boot Camp program. The exercise was my main interest in joining the program, but the Paleo diet - or ‘lifestyle’ as it was called - was the suggested nutritional program. Wanting to get the best results, I committed to both.

As with any diet, there are difficulties. The first couple of days on the diet were hard, as I felt sluggish whilst my body adjusted. Having free time definitely made things easier, as I was able to prepare the recommended food and snacks. However, the search for a quick meal that met the requirements took up a lot of time (especially for recipes that wouldn’t break the bank). As with many students, living with family means you mostly eat what they do. I volunteered to make dinner every night, which at least allowed me to follow the diet properly... avoiding the chocolate biscuits sitting idle in the fridge was a struggle though.

I stuck with the Paleo diet for six weeks. It isn’t the hardest diet to stick to, as you have a variety of foods and substitutes: spiral strands of zucchini instead of pasta, coconut milk instead of milk, almond meal instead of flour, to name just a few. There are definitely some great Paleo-approved recipes online, some of which I still cook, despite not following the diet. Chicken and chickpea stew and zucchini noodle soup remain favourites today.

As with any diet, there are negatives. I would spend so much time finding recipes, getting Paleo-approved ingredients and cooking that I felt it was more effort than it was worth. You have to be very organised to manage any diet full-time, but I would suggest planning recipes for the whole week, rather than on the day. Not being allowed grains (like bread) and dairy products felt very limiting. Unlike other substitutes, I never enjoyed Paleo-approved bread, as it was always very crumbly and tasted like coconut. As all these minuses converged, I started to miss easy, cheap and often indulgent foods. (Chocolate anyone?).

Coming off the diet was a lot harder than I thought it would be. Given I had managed to go six weeks without bread and dairy, I felt extremely sick whenever I had any. The slightest bit of either would make me feel bloated and uncomfortable. It took at least a week to slowly re-introduce those things into my diet, and almost a year later, I still feel sick after eating takeaway and deep-fried foods.

Making extreme changes to your diet, even if only for six weeks, has long-lasting effects. The few kilograms I lost whilst on both programs came back immediately; however, I would attribute that initial loss more to the exercise than to the diet itself. After trying a variety of health crazes, I am a lot happier exercising and eating a balanced diet (with the occasional treat) than following a fad. There is no quick way to get fit; rather, it’s a life-long commitment.

Sarah Bellis is one of Student Edge’s student contributors. Learn more about the contributors program.