Primal eating refers generally to the diet eaten by Paleolithic people up to about 10,000 years ago when agriculture was first introduced. Primal eating weight loss is the resultant natural body fat loss that occurs when you feed your body its intended diet. The terms primal diet and paleo diet are used interchangeably.

How to Start

There are varying interpretations of how to implement the diet but most agree on no grain based carbohydrates. Eat primarily meat, fish, fowl, eggs, fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and tubers. Primal eating is consuming the naturally occurring foods that were available through hunting and gathering during the Paleolithic period. Some primal eaters will consume dairy products even though domestication of animals did not occur until the Neolithic period.

Why It Works

The theory behind the primal diet is that 2 million years of evolution optimized our bodies to thrive on the foods available during that time. In the last 10,000 years or so, drastic changes have been introduced into the food stream that our bodies have not adapted to. The introduction of grains via the agricultural revolution has wreaked havoc on our health.

Even though 10,000 years may sound like a long time, it is only ½ a percent of the 2 million years modern man has evolved. To think about it another way, if a 100 yard long football field represents the entire 2 million year evolutionary period, the last ½ yard equals 10,000 years.

Plants are Aggressive as Animals

All plants and animals evolve with the primary objective of survival. Evolution promotes survival of the fittest. Grains are the seeds for new grain plants. Wheat, corn, oats, rye, barley and the others do not want their seeds to be digested by animals. This would put their specie at risk for extinction.

Since the grains can’t get up and run away when a predator comes eating, they developed anti nutrients like leptins, phytates and gluten which attack the gut of invading mammals. Humans and most other mammals are just not designed to digest grains. Grains attack the gut lining with their defense systems which opens the floodgate to a host of other health problems. A myriad of modern diseases stem from problems in the gut; Celiac Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Crone's Disease, Leaky Gut Syndrome and on and on. Hippocrates, the father of medicine, said over 2000 years ago, all disease begins in the gut. He indeed knew what he was talking about.

It's Easy to Understand but Harder to Implement

Starting a primal diet is simple in theory but like any change in eating, more difficult in practice.

The first step is elimination or at least drastically cutting back on your consumption of grain. This is easier said than done as cheap, grain based carbohydrates are ubiquitous in the modern food chain. Bread, pasta, crackers, chips, tortillas, cookies, baked goods, pretzels and on and on. You are likely consuming a grain based product with every meal.

And it is likely making you sick while expanding your waistline.

The second step is to replace the crappy carbohydrates from step 1 with good, healthy, fresh carbs from fruits and vegetables. In addition, replace your fuel needs with good sources of fat. Good fats are from animal meat, eggs, fish, fowl, nut & seeds and oils like coconut oil and olive oil.

You want to transform your body from a carbohydrate or sugar burning machine to a fat burning, efficient body. This is when you will feel and see the benefits of the primal diet. Body fat is reduced, energy is increased and nagging problems like gas, bloating and aching joints may disappear totally.

A primal eating weight loss plan makes a lot of sense.

My opinion is to not spend a lot of time analyzing it and trying to back it up with high profile recommendations. The fact is that the science of nutrition is barely a science at all. There is a lot of bad advice out there and frankly, it is why obesity and diabetes continues to skyrocket. The “experts” don't know what they are talking about. If they did, the obesity epidemic would be waning.

Don’t study the primal eating weight loss strategies to death. Just try it for 30 to 60 days and see what you think. Your body will respond fairly quickly and you can see if it is a good eating plan for you.