Planning Your Paleo Diet: Encouraged Foods
Paleo Diet Pyramid: Paleo Diet Foodlist
The basics of the Paleo Diet are pretty easy to follow: eat lots of lean protein, fresh fruits and vegetables, and avoid certain foods like grains and most legumes. Easy enough–but on a practical level, it’s important to get into specifics. Planning your meals, grocery needs, and overall dietary habits requires knowing which foods are beneficial and which are harmful within your chosen diet.
That’s why we’ve compiled this list of Paleo foods that you can–and should–include in your diet.
Meats and Proteins Allowed on the Paleo Diet
The Paleo Diet encourages consumption of lean meats and proteins, such as the following:
- Any and all fish, from cod and halibut to salmon and tuna
- Eggs, especially those with enriched omega 3 content; no more than 6 per week
- Shellfish, such as clams, crab, lobster mussels, oysters, scallops, and shrimp
- Lean beef: flank steak, top sirloin steak, extra-lean hamburger, and chuck steak
- Lean pork: pork loin, pork chops, and any other lean cut
- Lean poultry: chicken breast, turkey breast, and game hen breasts
- Rabbit, goat, and game meats, such as pheasant, venison, and wild boar
Fresh Fruit Allowed on the Paleo Diet
Any and all fruits are encouraged, but here are some examples:
All Fruits Are Good Fruits on the Paleo Diet
- Citrus fruits: apples, cherries, grapes, kiwis, lemons, oranges, and tangerines
- Berries: blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, and boysenberries
- Melons: watermelon, cantaloupe, honey dew melon, guava, and papaya
- Avocados, tomatoes, rhubarb, and all others
Vegetables Allowed on the Paleo Diet:
- Greens: beet greens, collards, lettuce, mustard greens, swiss chard, turnip greens, and spinach
- Cruciferous vegetables: broccoli, kohlrabi, kale, cabbage, cauliflower, rutabaga, turnips, and watercress
- Others such as bell peppers, eggplants, mushrooms, onions, parsley, radishes, turnips, tomatillos, and cucumber
Nuts and Seeds Allowed on the Paleo Diet:
- Almonds, cashews, chestnuts, pine nuts, pecans, macadamia nuts, walnuts, unsalted pistachios, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, and sunflower seeds
Foods Allowed in Moderation on the Paleo Diet:
- Oils: olive, avocado, flax seed, canola, and walnut oils (used sparingly if weight loss is a dietary goal)
- Beverages: coffee, tea, wine, beer, spirits (typically one or two glasses each)
- Sweets: dried fruits and mixed nuts
This is not an exhaustive list, but it should get you well on your way to a robust and healthy Paleo-based diet.
[photocredit: Fenrir Fitness; MyFruitPizza]
Related posts:
Love Paleo