If you want a diet more suited to self reliant living, try a primal or palaeolithic diet-- the caveman diet. When you think about it, a self reliant individual can easily adapt to this diet (to some degree), because self reliant folks are already "there" . . .

Cavemen didn't have a local supermarket filled with goodies to be thrown into a basket. Furthermore, there was no processed, artificial chemical laden, junk food available. Cavemen and cavewomen were hunters and gatherers who ate what they found or captured. Later with domestication and farming, it got easier, but it was still relatively fresh and natural, basic foods for the most part.

These ancient people got their exercise while getting their next meal-- think about it. Fast forward 20,000 years to modern day and you have people leading sedentary lives of over eating and consuming vast amounts of processed foods devoid of nutrition.

Self reliant folks have a way to eat healthier, by gardening and harvesting both domestic animals and wild game in a way similar to early man. The primal or palaeolithic diet is structured as follows . . .

Here are some of the foods:

• Wild fish and game
• Grass fed meat
• All aspects of the animal (organs)
• Eggs
• Tree nuts
• Edible plants
• Vegetables
• Roots
• Mushrooms
• Fruits
• Berries

Drinks are simple:

• Water, water and more water

Condiments:

• Oils should be natural like olive oil, not hyperprocessed
• Sea salt over processed salts
• Raw honey over processed sweeteners

A few more points: Under this regimen, food is eaten when hungry only-- and should be consumed raw if possible-- avoid over-cooking (keeping the nutrients in). When you think about it, this approach leads to a diet where there are no wasted calories and the food is nutrient dense.

Now, do I think you can or should go 100% primal diet? No. However, if you consider the concept for a moment, being more active and eating less processed foods like our distant ancestors, it makes quite a bit of sense and in many ways works well with a more self reliant lifestyle . . .

If you are interested in learning more, this guy has a site that describes (promotes) the primal diet, exercise, and lifestyle in more detail: Mark's Daily Apple. 

Thank you for visiting the Self Reliance Workshop and come back soon for more . . . follow me on Twitter at SelfRelianceWS, DvrcdDadFrglDad, and Surfcasting2Day.

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Related Posts:
Wilderness Survival Skills: An Introduction to Survival Fishing Methods  
Wild Game Recipes: My Recipes Reviewed 

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DDFD believes that self reliance and self sufficiency are the roads to individual freedom.  He is dedicated to living a quality life through frugality, personal growth and productivity, and defensive entrepreneurship.  He also enjoys cooking from scratch and fishing.