Why do I even bother? page 3

[namelesswonder]

Heh. This post came out of them asking ME. So they WANTED to know. Or so they thought.

I guess, along with what I said, is DON'T BELIEVE THEM. They don't want to know. Also be aware of how you are presenting your information. If you asked someone how they'd lost weight and they said, "SUPER PROCESS SOY PROTEIN POWDER SHAKES!!!" you would not be very enthused. They probably feel the same way (probably disappointed that it's not simpler, as well as it being "weird").

[Jimmy 1622]

My father in law who probable weighs 350 lbs, asked me if I ate my eggs raw since I am eating like a caveman, then he laughed. Some people just don't get it, and don't want to know, they are still hung up on the calorie thing for losing weight. I am just starting my journey so i hope once I have proof that what I am doing works, they will get serious about wanting the truth. Yea right, I know they won't.

[valmason01]

Its like telling them their culture sucks and is the cause of all their ails. They don't wanna hear that.

Exactly. What if someone told you PB was the cause of all your ails or was killing you slowly. It's not easy to hear. If they ask, tell them, when they argue just let it be. You have planted the seed and it has the possibility of sprouting.

[Mr. Koozie]

I do everything possible to avoid the discussion. If prodded I only give short basic responses such as “I gave up processed food and I work out”. Just the thought of giving up processed food (oh the horror!) is enough to keep 99% of people from asking another question. My experience is people get VERY offended when it comes to nutrition and health discussions that do not conform to CW.

I have told my close friends a little bit of what I’m doing but have never uttered the words Primal or Paleo to them. My wife is the only person on the planet that knows what I’m up to. Aside from the good people on this forum of course.

[JoanieL]

Well, you probably bother because you care, and caring isn't a bad thing at all.

I know two people to whom I can talk about the food supply. Most others just know I don't eat corn chips. One is someone who has an old friend who put her MS into remission following what he calls "the caveman diet," and the other is a cook who, while not opposed to grains and legumes, doesn't hesitate to pay $5/dozen for eggs from the farmers' market, and just loves to talk food. I don't really approach it as a way of life, just as an old hippie who is disgusted at the garbage being sold as food.

People are interested (sometimes) if you approach from "there's pus in the milk suppy because," "soy gives you man boobs because," and "girls menstruate two years earlier than they did 50 years ago," because that doesn't really put them on one side and you on the other. Those are things that are a concern to almost everyone.

[fresa]

Hearing I don't eat wheat is what really kills people's interest. My mother has celiac's, and has for years, waayyyy before gluten-free was "cool" (for CW-eaters). I have fond memories of her driving my brother and I the 2 hours to the nearest Whole Foods and desperately wandering around looking for any food that didn't have "wheat, barley, or rye" listed. I'm pretty sure that was when I learned what an ingredients list was. She's a pro at gluten-free now though, thank goodness. Anyway, that's what I always use as my excuse when friends or family make fun of me for not getting a bun on my burger. They know my mom has it so they pass it off as some weird genetic thing. Then I get the "Oh my God I hope that doesn't happen to me I would die!" routine. The thing about Primal is it's not actually that hard if you try it. I don't even miss bread or other wheat-y things on a daily basis. But doing anything different scares people, because if it looks remotely hard or at some point requires some sort of will power then it is simply not worth it, I guess. Never mind that I've lost a visible 35 pounds and my acne is gone.

When anyone asks specifically what I'm doing I just say "eating healthier". Hey, it's true! And honestly that is usually enough of an answer for people. They expect a magic cure, so when instead it's just an obvious one that takes more than 10 days of waiting they think, "oh yeah right OK I guess that makes sense" and move on.

[Owly]

I avoid using paleo, primal, caveman, ancestral, or similar to describe my diet (the only one I sometimes use is hunter-gatherer, but even then only with caution). Any of those terms is almost certain to put people off immediately.

I start from the positives. Getting carbohydrates from nutrient-dense sources rather than comparatively nutritionless foods--almost anyone will agree with you that a sweet potato is healthier than bread. Eating good quality proteins from local, ethically-raised animals. Including good fats--people are starting to understand that dietary cholesterol isn't the devil, and they're even coming around on saturated fat. Then I mention avoiding processed foods, which is something almost anyone will agree is a good thing, and not eating too much dairy.

When I start from the positives of the diet and emphasize eating healthful foods rather than what is not allowed, then people actually get pretty excited and say it sounds like what I eat must be delicious. Sometimes they think it sounds like a lot of work, which in truth it can be, but it's not like that's anything new for me as a celiac who's had to cook from scratch for a long time, and I point out that making a steak with broccoli and a sweet potato is just as quick as heating a frozen pizza.

It probably helps that I'm a celiac and so don't eat most grains anyhow. Many people understand the problems with corn, at least in my social circle, so they get why I don't eat that as well. Since I eat white rice and fruit, there's no issues with people freaking out over the carb thing, especially when I note that there's more fibre in my vegetables than one would get from eating bread.

I think it's probably hard to sell people on this when you go on about what's not allowed, and you start carrying on about cavemen or obscure research studies or whatever. People are also more likely to be put off by the whole "bread bad bacon good!" approach or a hardline LCHF approach. But starting from the idea of eating the most healthy foods you can? That's an easy position to explain, and even if people don't want to try it out for themselves, they can understand what you're doing and won't pick on you for it except for maybe teasing you a bit about being a health nut.

[Bosnic]

If people ask about it I'll tell them. I won't bring it up on my own.

Even if someone is talking about how they recently went vegan, or how they've began eating more whole grains, I just say "nice!", and move on.

[Bosnic]

And when I'm forced to talk about my diet, as previously mentioned I never say "paleo", or "primal". I usually just say I eat natural foods: meat, fish, vegetables, fruit, nuts and seeds.

[Drumroll]

Well, you probably bother because you care, and caring isn't a bad thing at all.

I know two people to whom I can talk about the food supply. Most others just know I don't eat corn chips. One is someone who has an old friend who put her MS into remission following what he calls "the caveman diet," and the other is a cook who, while not opposed to grains and legumes, doesn't hesitate to pay $5/dozen for eggs from the farmers' market, and just loves to talk food. I don't really approach it as a way of life, just as an old hippie who is disgusted at the garbage being sold as food.

People are interested (sometimes) if you approach from "there's pus in the milk suppy because," "soy gives you man boobs because," and "girls menstruate two years earlier than they did 50 years ago," because that doesn't really put them on one side and you on the other. Those are things that are a concern to almost everyone.

Hah. My sister is married to a vegan and now eats vegan at least five days out of the week. So... Any talk about soy being evil is about the worst thing I could do at that.

Same goes for grains being evil. I wanted to point out that I think I eat more vegetables than her vegan spouse, but I held off on that one at least.

But hey... It is what it is. Next time they ask I'll just tell them voodoo was involved.