The Difference Between Keto, Paleo, and Whole30 Diets

Since beginning my personal Whole30 journey, I’ve received TONS of questions asking for the difference between Keto, Paleo, and Whole30 diets. First and foremost, I’m not saying any singular nutrition plan is better than the other, rather just giving y’all the basics on how to distinguish them without weeding through the internet.

Personally, I live a Paleo lifestyle. It’s not strictly Paleo 24/7 but I choose to eat real foods and cook for myself more often than not because of food intolerance and honestly I love to cook! It hasn’t always been this way for me and in fact, I grew up eating toaster strudels for breakfast, fast food about 5X a week, and a big bowl of sugary cereal before bed.

I know right? Sometimes I don’t even know who I am!

Only when I started to study Nutrition in college, did I really begin paying attention to what was in my food, how it was made, and where it was sourced. It took me about 2 years to figure out my body responded best to a Paleo diet (which I didn’t know it was Paleo until it became more mainstream) and I’ve been “on it” for just about 3 years now.

There are articles that tell you what foods are “good” or “bad” for you that include special diets. Which is all fine and dandy but in the end, your body will tell you exactly what it needs. *cough* intuitive eating *coughs*

If you’re curious about the difference between Keto, Paleo, and Whole30 diets then keep on reading and check my easy to read info graph at the end of this post!

Basics of the Keto Diet

It’s a High Fat, Low Carb, Moderate Protein*, diet plan. It’s typically introduced to people who have or know someone who suffers with Epilepsy.

If you’re someone who loves a good scholarly article, read more about how the Keto Diet relates to Epilepsy and other Neurological disorders, here!

Basics of the Paleo Diet

Unlike the Keto diet, Paleo diets don’t necessarily focus on certain macronutrients (high fat, etc.) but rather the kinds of foods you eat.

Mimicking the “Paleolithic Era”, eating foods our ancestors foraged and hunted for meaning no pre-packed and re-heated toaster strudels in sight. With that, certain foods are NOT permitted such as grains, gluten, diary, and beans/legumes.

Another scientific article for my friends out there wanting to dive deeper into #PaleoLife, here!

Basics of the Whole30 Diet

Finally, the phenomenon that IS Whole30! This one most closely resembles the Paleo Diet but on steroids. There are absolutely no sugars (natural or refined) that are allowed to be consumed for 30 days. What I found was that just about every thing has some form of sugar in it… Salad Dressings, Bacon, Chocolate?! JK, I knew chocolate was on the banned list but I didn’t want to believe it.

Bottom line, if you stay in the produce and butcher section of your local grocery store (Whole Foods) than you’re golden!

Check out all the rules and success stories of Whole30 patrons, here!

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