I received a question about why I chose Primal over Paleo, and my thoughts on my life style change.  And I just wanted to share my reply here, because I feel that this expresses what I am thinking really well.  Plus I would love further discussion so let me know what you guys think.

"So when I started my 30 days, I went completely strict Primal, which meant Meat, Fruit, Veggies, Nuts, and Berries.  No dairy, no nightshades (potatoes and such) no substitutes, and no cheat days.  This allows your body to know what it feels like on a diet only consisting of things good for it.  And then you can add in natural whole foods not strictly primal to see how you react.  You may be lactose intolerant and not even know it for example.  I have added dairy back in and I seem fine.  My fiancee may be lactose intolerant, which means he can have greek yogurt and high-quality cheese, but not the glasses of milk he used to have.  Paleo is similar to Primal, but the reasons I choose Primal over Paleo are as follows:

I think saturated fats are fine, paleo does not.  i believe that my body is perfectly able to handle eggs, butter, coconut oil, etc.  Any excess fat your body eliminates when not exposed to too-high amounts of sugar, which is actually what leads to fat storage.

I do not like the idea of substitute sugar.  your body as a whole does not recognize fake sugar, but the chemicals in your brain does.  Which means that your body does not process fake sugar correctly leading to issues (like diarrhea), but you still feel the addictive pull of sugar and crave all sorts of cookies, brownies, soda, what have you.  I feel artificial sugar just interferes with retraining your body to want what is good for it.

I also liked that Primal blueprint is a way of life, not just a diet.  It includes living life, exercising, moving ahead.  It feels holistic, instead of restrictive.  It is a positive reinforcement to go out and live life as full as you can, not to concentrate on what you can't have, because soon you won't even want that (except ice cream :)  )

I have not posted here about Tabata, because that is not yet something I have added to my own workouts, but I have heard some great stuff about it, and will be experimenting with it in the future.  If you want to give it a try, I see absolutely no reason not to.

My best advice when following this diet is to just start off completely strict.  it makes saying no so much easier, because it is unjustifiable.  Tell yourself that in the future if you still want "such and such" you can have it as a treat once in a while after your thirty days.  And then follow through if you really do still want it.  Just take one bite or sip and then sit back and analyze it.  Does it still taste good?  Is it making you happy?  I tried to put sugar back in my coffee and realized i no longer liked the taste!  I was shocked.  It tasted chemically and bitter, and it was raw sugar, the good stuff.  I also tried a bite of brownie, and it just didn't do it for me anymore.  It seemed dry and weird.  I liked the chocolate chip, but the rest of it not so much.  So now if I want a sweet treat I have a little bit of a 70 percent dark chocolate bar with sea salt.  So tasty!  I have only had it once so far, and I also realized I had too much.  I can't have a full serving (four squares) anymore.  Next time I'll only have a half a serving, which will be plenty!

Also, if I happened to convince you about Primal (and I wasn't actually trying I think paleo is still a really great direction to go into) I think you could probably tweak any recipes in the book, if you so desire.  Otherwise I would just say to go for it, and see how YOU feel.  it doesn't matter how I feel.  This is all about how your body responds, and if you like your lifestyle change."



Anyone else have good advice?  For newbies or experienced people, I think it should hold true.