The Paleo Diet by Loren Cordain was a disappointing read for me. I am always quite interested in new approaches to diet and exercise and that is why I got so interested in this book. However, the end result is that I didn't really learn much more than I could have from the web for free.
Too Much Information
The author spends far too much time trying to convince us that cavemen at a certain way. He even wants us to beleive that their way of eating can be called “health secrets.” I was willing to believe that cavemen ate a certain way from the outset. That's why I bought the book — I was interested in how to eat like a caveman. He lost me when he started talking about low carb diets.
Low Carb Rehashed
The author wants you to buy into the fact that the Paleo Diet is not just another low carb diet. Let's see, they want me to eat nothing but lean meat, fruit and vegetables. That sounds low carb to me. In fact, it is a different type of low carb, but it is definitely another low carb diet.
30 pages to describe stuff we all already know is just ridiculous. You are telling me to eat a certain way, so get to it and list some food I can eat and some food I cannot eat. That gets the point across much faster.
Crazy Claims
The book really took a turn for the worse when I saw the title to Part Two–Losing Weight and Preventing and Healing Diseases. Sorry, but there are alot of reasons why eating just lean meat, fruit and vegetables will make you healthier. It isn't magic, so why present it that way?
No Doubts
Now, before I get a ton of comments saying “The Paleo Diet works” I want you to remember that alot of diets work. I have tried so many different thnigs that I am convinced my metabolism is messed up. I am working with a way to fix that (more on that at some point in the next 30 days), but the fact is that these diets all work for a short period of time. I don't see the Paleo Diet as a sustainable way of life. It is far too impractical for most people. It will require (in my opinion) far too much supplementation to make it work. The bottom-line: I didn't like any of this book and wish I had never purchased it.
