How this Fast Diet Lifestyle works: Eat these meals tomorrow, for a calorie total of less than 600. On another day this week, eat the meals from a different post, another day of eating 600 calories or less. Eat sensibly the other days of the week. That’s it. Simple way to lose weight and be healthier.

Since 2002, there has been buzz about the Paleolithic or Caveman Diet**. This was first proposed by academics in the field of nutrition and physiology. While researching what foods our ancient [prior to 10,000 years ago] hunter-gatherer ancestors would have eaten, they wondered if we would be better off eating that way today. Their conclusion is that if we ate like the ancestors, we could skip obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension. Reay Tannahill, in her Food in History [Crown Publishers, 1989] discusses hunting, fishing, and gathering opportunities of that time, when most people died before age 40. What’s on the Paleo menu? Meat, of course, and vegetables. What is not on the plate? Processed foods, grains, sugar, dairy, salt. [In the early days of this diet, beer, wine, and modern fruits were taboo, but today they are permitted.] This is an antidote to the S.A.D. that has caused so many health problems in the world. The FAST diet has much in common with the Paleo diet: low glycemic load, emphasis on protein, lack of processed food. Many of the menus that I have shown you are similar to Paleo Diet meals. To compare the similarities, here’s a chart:

Is this food allowed on this diet…	PALEO	On Fast Days
Fatty Animal protein: beef, lamb, pork	Yes: grass-fed	Yes
Lean Animal protein: chicken, turkey	Yes	Yes, preferred
Eggs	Yes	Yes
Beer, wine, cocktails	Wine, maybe	On Slow Days
Grains, starches: rice, wheat products, pasta, cereal	No	in moderation
Nuts + seeds	Yes	in moderation
Beans, legumes: peas, kidney beans, lentils, chickpeas	No	Yes
Seafood protein, especially with Omega-3 fats	Yes	Yes
Apples, melons, pears, all other fruits	Yes	Yes
Berries	Yes	Yes
Leafy green vegetables: spinach, chard, kale, lettuce	Yes	Yes
Dairy: Cheese, milk, yogurt	No	Some
Vegetable oils: olive, canola	Yes	in moderation
Animal fat: butter	No	in moderation
Root vegetables: beets, sweet potatoes, carrots	No white potatoes	Yes
Other vegetables: onions, tomatoes, peppers	Yes	Yes
Fat	40% of diet	No
Protein	30% of diet	Yes. lots
Higher fiber	No	Yes
Daily Carb intake	30% of diet	Keep it low
Whole grains	No grains	Yes
Simple carbs: cookies, pastries, cake, bread, processed foods	No	Not on Fast Day
16:8 intermittant fasting recommended	Yes	Yes
Number of days per week to follow the regimen	7 of 7	2 of 7
Do calories matter?	No	Only 600 on Fast Days

Bison ScrOmelette: 147 calories 8g fat 0.4 g fiber 14.5 g protein 4 g carbs [2 g Complex] 48.5 mg calcium  NB: Food values shown are for the ScrOmelette and fruit only, and do not include the optional beverages.  GF  Bison meat is a fine source of protein and is more healthy than beef. You should try it.

1 ½ two-oz eggs HINT: If you are serving one person, crack three 2-oz eggs into a small bowl or glass measuring cup. Whip up those eggs and pour half of their volume into a jar with a lid and put it in the ‘fridge for next week.   0.6 oz ground, cooked bison  ½ Tbsp [0.1 oz] sliced scallion ½ Tbsp spaghetti sauce 1 oz melon   Optional: blackish coffee [53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories] or lemon in hot water   Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories]

Briefly warm the bison and scallion in a saute pan spritzed with non-stick spray. Whisk the eggs with the spaghetti sauce and pour over the meat/scallion in the pan. Cook in your desired way: scramble or omelette. Plate with the melon and listen to Bing Crosby sing ‘Home on the Range.’

Chicken Stir-fry: 268 calories 7 g fat 6.5 g fiber 28 g protein 21 g carbs 113 mg Calcium  PB GF  From the official FastDiet.com  website! You just know it has to be a keeper.

4 oz raw chicken breast 1.5 Tbsp lemon juice 2 tsp soy sauce 1 tsp olive oil 1 tsp fresh ginger, minced 1 clove garlic, crushed 1.5 cups cabbage, sliced 1 cup carrots, julienned ½ cup snow peas OR 2 oz asparagus OR 2 oz bell peppers OR 1 oz broccoli 

Cut chicken into strips and marinate in lemon juice and soy sauce while you prepare the vegetables. Stir-fry the vegetables in oil and 2 Tbsp water for 3 minutes. Add garlic and ginger. Count to 30 and add the chicken and marinade. Stirfry 1-2 minutes more to cook the chicken through.

Ingredients for next week: Breakfast, single portion for Monday ………………………. single portion for Thursday:

1 two-oz egg	1.5 two-oz eggs + apple
Ham Florentine mixture: spinach, Bechamel sauce, ham, onion	cooked spinach
applesauce	black olive + basil
	goat cheese/chevre
Optional smoothie	optional smoothie
optional hot beverage	optional hot beverage

Dinner, single portion for Monday: …………………….. single portion for Thursday:

Tuna steak + olive oil	1/2 cup Florentine Filling — prepared for Monday’s breakfast
red bell pepper	2 galettes/crepes
zucchini
cherry tomatoes + lemon juice
Sparkling water	Sparkling water

***cultural sidebar: Fred Flintstone, a candidate for any sort of diet, was certainly not following the Paleolithic Diet.