I am often asked if the diet I’m on is for weight loss. This misconception comes from the common colloquial use of the word, “Diet” which people would define as a temporary eating regimen whose goal is to lose weight. However, the original (and first) definition of the word Diet is:

The kinds of food that a person, animal, or community habitually eats.

Only in the past 70 years has the second definition come into use:

A special course of food to which one restricts oneself, either to lose weight or for medical reasons.

Sherry and I adopted a Paleo lifestyle (notice I rarely say “Paleo Diet”) after completing our first Whole30. We did so for many reasons; chief among them was to get healthy and to lose weight. We had high expectations but little faith, yet we put our faith into the science of it and followed the rules. We were rewarded with results beyond our expectations, and a year later, combined we have lost over 175 lbs (I have lost 110 lbs while Sherry has lost 65 lbs). That’s the weight of an entire grown man!

One major thing we decided when we adopted the Paleo lifestyle was that it was a change we were making for the rest of our lives. It was not a temporary eating plan. We changed our relationship with food and said goodbye to those foods that were harming us and keeping us from being our best selves. Since starting Paleo, we’ve found ourselves being more concerned with the quality of the foods we’re eating. We tend to buy more organic foods, and buy meats that are drug-free and ethically treated. The Paleo lifestyle is more than just a way of eating, and we find ourselves learning more and more about healthier ways to live.

I am not advocating anyone go all-in on the lifestyle, but I am advocating the diet portion of the lifestyle. The science is solid, and the results I’ve seen, that Sherry has seen, and many of our friends and family are experiencing have shown me that with a mere change in diet, we can improve our health and lose weight. Our bodies want to be thin. Our bodies want to run efficiently. Eating good, natural, whole foods allows our bodies to run lean and mean. Give it the right fuel and you will get a healthy, lean, and thinner body.