Here’s one thing I’ve been curious about, and it relates to a previous post on calories. I was looking through some of the meal plans in Art Devany’s book, “The New Evolution Diet”. Here is one day’s meal plan from page 70 in the book:
Breakfast – slices of avocado, lean turkey breast, one-quarter of an apple, and grapes.
Lunch – Tuna mixed with olives, leeks and celery, drizzled with olive oil.
Dinner - Grilled flank steak with tomatoes and peppers, broccoli.
Now, let’s get a rough total. Assume 6 ounces for the meat servings to be generous.
- 6 oz lean turkey = 144 calories
- 1/2 avocado = 160 calories
- 1/4 apple = 25 calories
- 3 ounces of grapes = 60 calories
Breakfast total = 389 calories
- 6 oz tuna = 200 calories
- 1 cup celery = 16 calories
- 1 cup leeks = 54 calories
- 1 tsp olive oil = 40 calories
Lunch total: 310 calories
- 6 oz flank steak = 360 calories
- 1 tomato = 42 calories
- 1 green pepper = 33 calories
- 1 cup broccoli = 31 calories
Dinner total: 466 calories
Daily total: 1,165 calories
Yes, there you have it - just over 1,000 calories per day! This is a rough estimate, but even if you increase the lean meat portions, you’re not going to get much of a boost in calories. Now the obvious question, how could you not lose weight with such a low calorie intake??
I would also point out that this day’s meal plan is not all that different from what other Paleo writers propose.
Anyways, what I’m curious about is how someone like Art Devany can maintain his physique and activity level on such few calories over time. I honestly think he eats in the way he describes in his book (I don’t think he’s secretly eating mounds of rice).
So something is off here. Does Paleo somehow allow a person to thrive off a lower calorie intake?