If you are planning to lose weight, you may be wondering if there is a certain diet that will help you be the most successful with your goals. Both the Body for Life Diet and the Paleo Diet can help you lose weight if you stick to their rules and guidelines. Once you know more about the pros and cons of both diets, you may be able to determine if one is better than the other for your weight loss goals.
Paleo Diet
The primary principle of the Paleo Diet is a return to the way human ancestors used to eat before the agricultural revolution and the invention of technology. The creator of the Paleo Diet, Loren Cordain, suggests that eating the way that early humans did may reduce your risk of certain health conditions, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and obesity. On the Paleo Diet, you would only eat foods that were available to early humans. The pros of the Paleo Diet include a large consumption of fruits and vegetables and an increase in protein intake, which can curb hunger and help you take in fewer calories throughout the day.
Body for Life Diet
The Body for Life Diet was created by Bill Phillips, and incorporates healthy eating and exercise habits into your daily life. The goal of the Body for Life Diet is to lose fat and gain muscle by eating five to six smaller meals per day and by doing aerobic exercise three times per week. You also do strength training exercises three times per week. Phillips notes that you may also need to consume supplement drinks if you find the diet difficult to follow. The pros of the diet include nutritious eating and incorporating plenty of exercise to help you burn calories and shed pounds.
Foods
A primary difference between the Paleo Diet and the Body for Life Diet is the type of food you are and not allowed to eat. On the Paleo Diet, you are restricted to eating only foods that early humans were believed to have eaten. Your diet will focus on lean meats, poultry, fish, nuts, fruits, vegetables, mushrooms and eggs. You will not be permitted to eat grains, legumes, sugar, salt, dairy foods, coffee, alcohol or processed foods, and you will need to restrict oil, potatoes, dried fruit and honey. On the Body for Life Diet, your portion sizes are more important than your caloric intake. Your diet will include a wide variety of nutritious foods, but you also get a cheat day when you are allowed to eat whatever you want. In this way, the Body for Life Diet is far less restrictive than the Paleo Diet.
Considerations
Before you begin any diet, consult your doctor about your weight loss goals and how to reach your goals in a healthy way. The Paleo Diet may not be for you if you to tend to eat many carbohydrates. The Paleo Diet may also be more difficult to follow because you are required to avoid many other types of foods. You may also become deficient in calcium since you are not permitted to have dairy foods. A calcium supplement may help you maintain a normal level of this mineral, however. The Body for Life Diet requires that you change your lifestyle habits to eat more nutritious foods and exercise on a regular basis. If you stick to the changes, you may lose one to two pounds per week.
References
- Everydiet: Body for Life
- Everydiet: Paleo Diet
- The Paleo Diet; Loren Cordain
- Body-For-Life: 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strength; Bill Phillips and Michael D'Orso
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