[ChefSalad]

Really we don't. I don't necessarily think that the paleo diet is any more right than any other decent diet; I just happen to like it. It feels right when I talk about it and think about it and feels good when I eat it. The closer I stick to the paleo diet the easier time I have losing weight and gaining muscle and strength.

When I'm on more traditional carb-centric diets (standard American, veg*n (tried all three)) I feel moody, tired and irritable, I gain weight (or at least don't lose it) and I don't gain muscle or strength very easily in my lifting. So I'd say for me, paleo is right. For you, paleo may be completely wrong and cause you hella problems.

Of course, I'm not going to excuse crappy diets, but I will admit that there are many other useful, healthy diets out there. The standard American diet is certainly not on my list of healthy and neither are fad diets like Atkins. Veg*n diets could be on my list of decent healthy diets but only if they take into account things like human protein requirements. One gram of protein per pound of lean body weight is a good protein guideline for most people. You can go up to double if you exercise more than like six hours per week, and lower it to as far as half if don't exercise at all. Unfortunately, most people who eat vegan diets (lacto-ovo vegetarians tend to be fine since dairy and eggs contain a lot of protein) tend to eat far too little protein, and tend to look it. There's a reason the vegan stereotype is a short skinny chick with sub-A cups who looks anorexic and has crappy blown out pores; it's because of deficiencies in their poorly planned vegan diets. That's not to say that all vegans are eating poorly, but enough are to create a stereotype.

I think that in the end, the best diet for us is the diet that gives us the bodies we want and the mind we want. If a diet doesn't feel right or otherwise doesn't work for you, then don't do it. If you hate the idea of animals dying for your meals, then be a veg*n (but plan it well). If grains, dairy and beans don't float your boat but you don't mind meat, stick with something that does like paleo. If neither sounds right then find something else that sounds better. Look at and listen to your body and your mind; that's how you figure out what diet is right for you.