How paleo/primal is your diet?

[babycakes1970]

100%? 80%?.

I am thinking that due to a rather large household and budget constraints combined with a full time job that maybe going 100% paleo/primal is not really feasable financially speaking. I am going to do it as much as possible, like 80%.So if I eat 21 meals in a week then at least 15 of them will be primal/paleo. Most of my snacks will be as well. For drinks I drink water and tea with raw honey. I pretty much all but gave up soda pop quite some time ago.

[spezzy]

Well, paleo and primal both have different allowances, AND it depends on who you talks to or which version of paleo you're referring to.

I eat full 100% paleo 98% of the time (cheat meal every few weeks?). And I've been experimenting and can keep food costs at like $50 a week doing that (I usually end up closer to $75-100, but only because I don't NEED to keep it at $50) Obviously it'd be cheaper to eat pasta all day long, but I've made it work

[babycakes1970]

Hey Spezzy. I am still in the learning/figuring things out stage. If it were just me I could do just fine with under $50 a week. Our current household size is seven including our young adult son,daughter in law and grandbaby. It will be down to four again when they get their own apartment. It should get easier for me then. We are helping them out by until they can get on their feet and our son has a great job now (compared to the one he had before anyway).

We always have to have food in the house even if it is cheap food. I try to make sure that we have healthy options as much as I am able to. I bought some natural chicken drumsticks from Sunflower Market and after my hubby cooked them he told me not to ever buy them from anywhere else! He was that happy with them.The price was good and they were big drumsticks too.

[Waldo]

Pretty close to 0%.

Every now and then we'll have a meat and veggies dinner that doesn't contain butter in the cooking process, but really rare. Closest regularly eaten dish is grilled think pork chops with sweet potato. But I put brown sugar in the sweet potato.

[empeg9000]

I eat paleo 85-90% of the time. I am going to go full on for 30 days soon as a personal challenge.

[scarletleavy]

I'm at about 95% most of the time. I have cheat meals occasionally, mainly because I'm forced to go out for business dinners and can't really be so picky. I'm much better at home. I far prefer Paleo food to other foods so it's pretty easy for me.

[Knightwatch]

I drink milk, eat sandwiches, enjoy a toasted pita now and again with my peanut butter, which I also put in my shakes. I enjoy a pint or four of beer, and will occasionally indulge in a muffin or donut or cookie.

Also, I like oatmeal. And whiskey. And pizza.

Other than that, though, I'm pretty much 100%.

[demonslayer]

I drink milk, eat sandwiches, enjoy a toasted pita now and again with my peanut butter, which I also put in my shakes. I enjoy a pint or four of beer, and will occasionally indulge in a muffin or donut or cookie.

Also, I like oatmeal. And whiskey. And pizza.

Other than that, though, I'm pretty much 100%.

That sounds like me! Roffl. Nothing against paleo -- Steve suggests it as something that he finds easier than obsessively counting calories and macros. I disagree, however -- counting calories and macros is way, WAY easier to me than angsting over whether or not a meal has black beans in it. That said, I am trying to move away from the "Eat ALL the carbs!" diet I used to have before . My husband flat out refuses to do paleo, but he's generally open towards paleo-style meals as long as we don't call them that -- such as the paleo spaghetti that was on the blog a few days ago. Paleo spaghetti? Hell to the no. Squash with meat sauce on it? Hell to the yeah!

[babycakes1970]

I am planning to make that spagetti squash next week . I will get a pack of pasta just as a back up in case I really mess up the squash.

[LeoDiablo2]

Attempting to do at least 80% Paleo and have been doing that for the past couple of days with one cheat meal. Pretty soon, I will be developing a personal goal striving to do mostly Paleo-related when the March 5th challenge comes on the board. :-0

[CapN_Tommy_Sunshine]

I am usually 80 - 90% paleo, although I cannot afford to eat grass fed beef in the quantities that I usually eat on a daily basis. That may drop my percentage a bit. I don't stress too much if I am hanging out with friends and the food options aren't ideal (unless it has gluten in it, as that will cause me a bit of discomfort!).

[oystergirl]

LOL. I eat archevore/primal and do it most days of the week sticking 100% to my program. On saturday I cheat and eat whatever I want but I keep gluten out cause i have sensitivities...

Here is the thing that I have found especially with the archevore program. Whole foods are generally cheaper than processed foods. I mean, you can buy some pasta and it's cheap, but you never eat pasta alone. You can buy eggs cheap and you can eat them alone and they are satisfying. Just a thought that you want to get a few paleo staples in the house and add more as you get more comfortable with the program, etc.

[Top Boss Ultra]

Pretty close to 0%.

Every now and then we'll have a meat and veggies dinner that doesn't contain butter in the cooking process, but really rare. Closest regularly eaten dish is grilled think pork chops with sweet potato. But I put brown sugar in the sweet potato.

Butter is primal.

[Corbab]

I'm eating paleo 100% of the time, but I don't have the cash for grass-fed, free range everything, so that might knock my ratio down a bit.

I feel like I'm spending a lot on food, but I used to eat out a lot more, so when I measure it against that, it's pretty damn cheap. Breakfast for me is 3 eggs and a couple sausages, which costs all of $2.50. Lunch and dinner are frozen veggies (super cheap, $2.50 for two people) and chicken, beef, or fish (not prohibitively expensive.) The most expensive things are the coconut oil and almond butter, which I eat a good deal of, but even then it's only $5-10 dollars a week.

[bigm141414]

I drink milk, eat sandwiches, enjoy a toasted pita now and again with my peanut butter, which I also put in my shakes. I enjoy a pint or four of beer, and will occasionally indulge in a muffin or donut or cookie.

Also, I like oatmeal. And whiskey. And pizza.

Other than that, though, I'm pretty much 100%.

This is why you are my own personal hero KW. I want to grow up to be just like you

[spezzy]

Hey Spezzy. I am still in the learning/figuring things out stage. If it were just me I could do just fine with under $50 a week. Our current household size is seven including our young adult son,daughter in law and grandbaby. It will be down to four again when they get their own apartment. It should get easier for me then. We are helping them out by until they can get on their feet and our son has a great job now (compared to the one he had before anyway).

We always have to have food in the house even if it is cheap food. I try to make sure that we have healthy options as much as I am able to. I bought some natural chicken drumsticks from Sunflower Market and after my hubby cooked them he told me not to ever buy them from anywhere else! He was that happy with them.The price was good and they were big drumsticks too.

Oh, I wasn't saying anything bad! I was just saying I've been able to reduce it to $50 a week trying really hard. I completely understand how much easier it is for me since I'm on my own with it.

That sounds like me! Roffl. Nothing against paleo -- Steve suggests it as something that he finds easier than obsessively counting calories and macros. I disagree, however -- counting calories and macros is way, WAY easier to me than angsting over whether or not a meal has black beans in it. That said, I am trying to move away from the "Eat ALL the carbs!" diet I used to have before . My husband flat out refuses to do paleo, but he's generally open towards paleo-style meals as long as we don't call them that -- such as the paleo spaghetti that was on the blog a few days ago. Paleo spaghetti? Hell to the no. Squash with meat sauce on it? Hell to the yeah!

It's all what works for each individual. I can't count calories or I become obsessive and I find it easier just to not eat things. There is no stress with it - but again, I live alone, and cook for myself.

[shutterpillar]

I drink milk, eat sandwiches, enjoy a toasted pita now and again with my peanut butter, which I also put in my shakes. I enjoy a pint or four of beer, and will occasionally indulge in a muffin or donut or cookie.

Also, I like oatmeal. And whiskey. And pizza.

Other than that, though, I'm pretty much 100%.

Bwahahahaha! Word. this is me. Though I have been trying VERY very hard to cut out as many grains/gluten as I can because I am now convinced that it is causing my acne. I eat mostly fresh/frozen meat fruit and veggies most of the week, but tend to slack off a little on the weekends.

I looooove me some peanut butter though. Apples dipped in peanut butter is my favorite thing in the whole wide world.

[catspaw]

I'm pretty strict paleo.

I eat whole9 paleo plus occasional dark chocolate and occasional protein shakes. This is just what works for me.

[Waldo]

Butter is primal.

Hmmm. 5% then.....

[CalvinHobbes]

I looooove me some peanut butter though. Apples dipped in peanut butter is my favorite thing in the whole wide world.

I LOVE apples + almond butter--most amazing thing ever.

[Hardy]

I'm still experimenting. I just tripped on this new life thing in mid-January, and I would guess I'm about 70-75% primal.

The cost thing isn't an issue, but I'm currently stuck working in a small town until early summer, and I'm having trouble finding stuff that's pastured, grass-fed, etc.. Grains are gone, except for two cookies I have in my lunch Mon-Fri. The only liquids I ingest are water and red wine, with the very odd diet pepsi. I just can't seem to shake those.

I've only really snapped a couple times (DQ milkshake a couple weeks ago, and popcorn at the movies the other day). It's surprisingly easy to stick to. I just wish I could expand on the veggies that I like. I've never been huge on them, and the only ones I really eat are broccoli, cauliflour, and carrots.. I'm just gonna have to step up, and cook some of the creations I've seen on here, MDA, and Toads site. Maybe I'll make that one of my goals for the next 6 week challenge!!

[Zorch]

Probably 90-95% when eating at home - Most of the 10% typically comes post-workout, though I still often prefer greek yogurt + berries in that situation. My #1 source of non-paleo/primal foods overall is at work-related functions, or when travelling.

[babycakes1970]

It's okay Spezzy. I know you weren't saying anything bad. There is evidence that my family is coming around. They are at the mercy of my culinary experiments on the weekends. This weekend was a treat. I made flour less almond butter cookies with turbinado sugar. They disappeared fast. Next weekend is spagetti squash and for dessert we will probably have applesauce cookies made with a natural gluten free spice cake mix that Sunflower market sells. I'll proboby experiment with some flour less pecan butter cookies too. I am on a baking streak now!

[Woodsrider]

I don't know how to calculate it in a percentage. Going full paleo/primal would be hard for us. So for compromise, we have cut down on a lot of things considered bad.

Drink mostly water, cut down on coffee.

Cut out almost all bread.

Make a conscious effort to not eat grains.

Take 2 or 3 scoops of vegetables and just a small portion of potatoes instead of the other way around.

Eat more eggs and meats.

If we have pasta, smaller portions with larger sides of veggies.

Snack on fruits and vegetables.

No take-out unless we absolutely have to.

I used to get headaches on a weekly basis... I've only had one this year since I started working out and eating better.

[notanartmajor]

Full on 0%.