Paleo-vegan lunch.
Lately I’ve been eating a bit lighter to compensate for some overindulgence over the holidays. January is typically no-sugar month around here (fresh fruit allowed) but the meal pictured above goes a bit further: no animal products, no grains, no legumes. I wouldn’t recommend paleo-vegan as a diet (not enough protein, hard to get enough calcium, B12, and calories) but if you want a filling, inexpensive, nutrient-dense meal with a light environmental footprint, you could do worse. The salad above includes the following:
- organic greens
- olive-oil roasted yam cubes
- cherry tomatoes
- mini-bell peppers
- raw sauerkraut
- avocado
- tangerine
- roasted sunflower seeds
- roasted almonds
- seasoned with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and paprika
It’s easy to get too much protein on a paleo diet (eggs for breakfast, chicken lunch, steak for dinner, etc.). Too much protein is acidifying and can potentially leach calcium from bones. Animal protein is generally expensive too. There’s no reason to eat more than you need.
The ingredients to make the salad above cost less than $2.00. With the exception of the roasted yam cubes that were leftovers from another meal, assembly (including “clean as you go”) took less than 10 minutes.
The salad lunch is a good way to go even if you throw some blue cheese or sardines in there. Fast, cheap, nutritious, delicious, and no post-meal sleepiness.
Please be respectful of other people’s dietary requirements and choices in the comments. This post may be worth a re-read.
Good health to you!
Peter Cuce (@petekachu)
I love your blog and I have nothing against the idea of paleo vegan. I think there are probably good reasons to minimize protein from time to time, but I believe that the calcium-leaching effect of protein has been debunked or at the very least is highly controversial. Please take a look at this, one of many such links from reputable sources. http://www.marksdailyapple.com/does-dietary-acidbase-balance-matter/#axzz3wK6ySGoF.
J.D. Moyer
Thanks for the link Peter — I’ve read that post from Sisson before. The study I linked to is small and far from definitive but it does point to some risks. People with adequate dietary calcium and reasonable protein intake have nothing to worry about, especially if they engage in load-bearing exercise that stress the bones (like jumping) and get enough vitamin D and K2.
Colpo discusses the same study I linked to, and comes to a similar conclusion to Sisson, but notes that ketogenic diets in particular may threaten bone health:
http://anthonycolpo.com/do-high-protein-intakes-weaken-bones/