Last week’s post covering upper recommendations garnered so much interest – and additional questions – that I thought we’d give it another go around. While last week’s list took on basics like protein and fat as well as worthy indulgences like chocolate and – drum roll, please –BACON (break for rampant applause), this week I’ll take on a mix of specific foods and activity. Thanks for everyone’s great comments and questions last week, and be sure to weigh in on this week’s round.

Coffee
Why not start off today with the typical morning ritual? Our society, many say, is fueled by coffee, and a number of us might think we’d barely be standing some days without it. For coffee lovers, a good cup of joe is a work of art. From a health standpoint, it’s not a bad deal at all. Ample antioxidants, potent anti-inflammatory powerhouse, protective factors against conditions like diabetes, […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

For the past 6 years, I have devoted a large part of my personal training business to clients suffering with mild to moderate depression.
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Referred by a growing network of mental health professionals, people who have been suffering with depression (and to a lesser extent – anxiety) have had tremendous success reducing their symptoms of depression using a very simple yet labor intensive exercise prescription.
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At first, it was very difficult to get mental health professionals to consider that exercise might help where drugs & talk therapy were failing.
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But slowly, as scientific research began to catch up with common sense, exercise therapy for depression became a slightly more acceptable treatment modality.
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Flash forward to 2010…and we see the director of the Anxiety Research and Treatment Program at Southern Methodist University telling his peers that “exercise has been shown to have tremendous benefits for mental health, and that the more […]

Original post by healthhabits

Last week, we determined a common thread of seasonality running through historical fructose consumption. Warm weather with plenty of sunshine generally meant fruit was available. Those living in the tropics (as we humans did for most of our history) thus had year-round access to sweet fruit, while cold climate Grok had seasonal, intermittent access. Plus, there are many symptoms shared between folks with vitamin D deficiency and fructose-induced metabolic syndrome. Eating fruit seasonally (if you’re into that sort of thing) in the modern world, then, probably involves getting some sunlight with your berries.
What about other clearly seasonal foods – can they be consumed freely and wantonly?

Consider birds. The bird is especially sensitive to environmental and seasonal fluctuations, as anyone who’s ever been woken up by hungry birds chirping at the morning light can attest. You’re all familiar with the “flying south for the winter” phenomenon, and you’ve probably seen the […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

In a recent episode of South Park, Eric Cartman is faced with his worst nightmare….the public banning of all KFC restaurants in the State of Colorado.
And according to the Colonel, Cartman can thank British celeb-chef Jamie Oliver for this assault on the Mecca of Chicken Fat.

It’s an all out war between the Colonel and Jamie Oliver.
But now, the Colonel has Eric Cartman on his side….and things don’t look good for Jamie Oliver and his Food-Revolution Alliance.
And they only get worse for Oliver as Cartman joins forces with the Colonel and becomes a Scarface-esque KFC dealer….supplying Coloradoans with their daily fix of popcorn chicken, biscuits & gravy.

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By the end of the show,

Chef Oliver has been defeated,
his bylaws overturned
and KFC restaurants have been re-branded as Medicinal Fried Chickens
due to the discovery that fried chicken is a cure for cancer.

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And everyone lives happily ever after…except that they’re all grossly overweight and suffering from […]

Original post by healthhabits

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Original post by healthhabits

According to a new study, just a single bad night’s sleep will make you hungry and cause you to overeat.
personal trainer toronto
The Study

12 men were placed in one of two groups
Group #1 was allowed to get 8 hours of sleep (midnight to 8:00 am) while
Group #2 was limited to 4 hours of sack time (2:00 am to 6:00 am)

The following day, researchers measured:

Food consumption (participants were allowed to eat as much as they wanted of the following foods – jam on buttered toast for breakfast, buffet for lunch, and a free menu for dinner)
Physical activity
Feelings of hunger
Perceived pleasantness of food
Desire to eat some foods (cravings)
Sleepiness

The Results
The 4-hour group…

Consumed between 560-617 more calories than the 8-hour group
Was hungrier than the 8-hour group.
Had higher levels of ghrelin
Had lower levels of leptin

And that’s after just one night of sleep deprivation.
What’s going to happen after one month..or one year?
Conclusion
Turn off the […]

Original post by healthhabits

For most people, the word “salad” brings to mind a simple bowl of lettuce drizzled in dressing. As we suspected, however, you all are not most people. The dozens of salad recipes pouring in for the Primal Blueprint Cookbook Contest have proven you’re a bold bunch when it comes to salad-making and your creative combinations have been inspiring and mouth-watering.
This open-minded approach to salad is exactly what we loved about Michelle DeLorenzo’s Lemon-Lime Seafood Salad.  She made seafood the star, bedded it on a layer of dark greens and avocado and got rid of dressing entirely in favor of a zesty salsa.

Michelle admits this is her favorite salad not only because it’s a flavorful protein boost, but also because she loves making people at work jealous with her salad creations. “It encourages them to make salads for lunch themselves,” she explains, “instead of hitting the truly frightening cafeteria.”
The seafood in […]

Original post by Worker Bee

Over the last few weeks I’ve had the pleasure to announce three PrimalCon 2010 speakers: Maya White (How to Sit, Stand and Walk Like Grok), Brad Kearns (How to Apply the Primal Blueprint Principles to Endurance Training) and Nicoletta Florio (Green Living and Health). In addition to all the other festivities at this year’s PrimalCon (Primal barbecue dinners, guided sprint and workout beach sessions, mass ocean plunge, local farm tour, ultimate Frisbee, morning hikes, personal massages, organic wine and chocolate sensible indulgence evening, etc.) we’re lucky to have one additional PrimalCon breakout session speaker. PrimalCon attendees will get to participate in a Barefoot Running Clinic lead by Barefoot Ted himself. Read Barefoot Ted’s guest post below and then sign up for PrimalCon 2010 before it’s too late!

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The friendly and flowing savage, who is he? Is he waiting for civilization, or is he past it, and mastering it? ~Walt Whitman
All this […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

I will be speaking at CrossFit Chaos (Prescott, AZ)) at 12:30 PM on Saturday, April 3. If you’re in the area come out and say hello!
CrossFit Chaos (map)
3260 Tower Rd
Prescott, AZ 86305
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Original post by Mark Sisson