The romantic in us would like to think that the heart is a tender organ, but in reality, it just ain’t so. The heart is one big muscle that works constantly, and as a result it tends to be pretty tough. This doesn’t mean, however, that it’s an organ meat to be avoided. Heart is high in protein and nutrients: thiamin, folate, selenium, phosphorus, zinc, CoQ10 and several B vitamins, not to mention compounds that may promote the production of collagen. It’s also an organ that can be coaxed into tenderness through different cooking methods, ultimately becoming a richly flavored cut that meat lovers will adore.

Braising is a good cooking method for a heart since simmering any tough cut of meat in liquid for a long period of time is tenderizing. But if you don’t have hours to braise or if turning on your oven in the heat of summer […]

Original post by Worker Bee

Maybe it’s summer’s more casual influence, but these Friday posts have established a certain trend lately, don’t you think? Forest bathing, enriched environment… On Tuesday I just couldn’t help myself with the Primal leisure post. It’s the good life – Grok style. (Yes, summer has definitely gotten to me.) Nonetheless, there’s still plenty of hard science behind these laid-back suggestions. Primal R&R improves your physical as well as mental well-being. To celebrate these last weeks of summer, I thought I’d run with the “good life” theme by highlighting other pastimes that science shows are productive as well as pleasurable. Consider the series a focus on the more “refined” side of health cultivation. After all, it takes more than the most primitive measures to fully actualize our well-being. On the docket today: music as therapy.

I’d venture to say that most of us have experience with music as restorative. After a long […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

<p>The basis of Tabata Training is 4 minutes of intense interval training/circuit training. What you are doing is taking an exercise we'll use sprints as an example here.</p>
<p>Sprint as hard as you can for <strong>20 seconds</strong></p>
<p>Walk for <strong>10 seconds</strong></p>
<p>Repeat 7 more times for a total of <strong>8 sets</strong>.</p>
<p>So what you have is a total of <strong>4 minutes of workout time</strong>.</p>
<p>Tabata Training can be done with a number of different exercises the idea is to use an exercise that gets the whole body involved or at least the major muscle groups.Tabata Training can be done with Barbells, Dumbells, Kettlebells or just Bodyweight exercises. I'll give you some other exercises and routines to try in a minute but first let me give you some background and how Tabatas work.</p>
<p>Tabata Training was developed by Izumi Tabata (imagine that) at the National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Tokyo, Japan. They did a study […]

Original post by WP-AutoBlog Import

Some highlights from my twitter between January and April, with additional commentary. I tend to tweet about recent scientific findings and other stuff I find interesting.
Do raspberries stunt muscle growth?
Tweet: “I’m a sucker for raspberries and sometimes eat them by the pound as a treat with cinnamon or cacao. Raspberry ketones may have some interesting effects: “Anti-obese action of raspberry ketone”. But this study makes me think twice, since it appears raspberry ketones have anti-androgenic effects. Nothing conclusive in live human subjects though.”
Comment: “Anti-androgenic effects” means that raspberry ketones (RK) block androgenic receptors, which should have negative implications for muscle growth. Since I eat a lot of raspberries, I decided to look into this.
In the discussion of the full text version of the study it was extrapolated, from rodent and cell culture studies, that the anti-androgenic effects of RK translates to an intake of ~10 mg/kg body weight, or 800 […]

Original post by noreply@blogger.com (Martin Berkhan)

What does it take to achieve fitness perfection (if there is such a thing)? Or posed in a more personal way, what would you have to do to reach your ultimate genetic potential? Consider that for a moment. What comes to mind? Enormous time commitment. Steely resolve. Pain. Suffering. Sacrifice. Blood, sweat and tears. Yes, if you want to be a pro athlete, make the Olympic team, keep up with Lance or Phelps, or even just make a 1400 pound powerlifting total (bench, squat, dead), you’ll probably have to give your life over to the pursuit of your goal. You’d give up free time lost to the gym and the track. There would be missed opportunities at spending quality time with friends and family. Not to mention the injuries, the physical wear-and-tear and the toll of applying constant stress to a compromised immune system.
Here’s the thing, though. For most people, […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

If you’re still playing with the idea of coming out to PrimalCon next year this is the time to register. In the four weeks since I opened registration more than half of the available slots have been filled and I expect more sign-ups to come in before the special pricing expires on July 31.
Also in the last four weeks my team and I have begun to further solidify the PrimalCon 2011 agenda. Needless to say we’re going bigger and better this time around. I’ll be leaking updates between now and April 2011, but think Survivor-style team challenges, after-dinner dance parties, personal massages, group ocean plunges, lavish Primal feasts, educational seminars, and a good dose of rest and relaxation all at a beautiful beachside resort in sunny Southern California. There will be plenty for beginners, Primal veterans and all skill levels alike. Come to kick start or re-energize your Primal lifestyle, […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

When we think of Grok, we often imagine him in full-fledged hunting action – spear in hand, muscles in action, eyes on the latest prize prey. (Hence, the logo.) But such dramatic displays of power and prowess were fairly limited engagements. Grok, of course, had no full-time job. The lives of hunter-gatherers entailed much more than our label for them suggests. Experts who have studied modern hunter-gatherer societies estimate that most members of these communities spend about 3-5 hours a day “working,” which included all the basics of their food preparation. So, what else did Grok and his contemporaries do with their time? Could it be that hunter-gatherers weren’t poor slugs incessantly roaming and writhing in near starvation? Could it be that most of the time they actually had ample leisure time – to play, create, decorate, imagine and invent? Yes. Now ain’t that a kick in the head?

From a […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

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Original post by Brad Pilon

A couple weeks ago, I received an interesting request from a reader:
Hi Mark – first, I know you’ve got a gob of emails beckoning you….I just hope that you can get back to me at some point I love reading your blog, so much so that I’ve decided I would like to pursue a career as a nutrition consultant – in natural health of course. I’m so glad there is such an option! Perhaps some of my friends and family would pay a bit more attention if I study & earn a certificate instead of my continual praises of your site and how it’s changed my life. To you and your Bees, my gratitude!
Now, the reason I am messaging you:

I’m soon to be planning my wedding! Excitement in itself, of course. While trying to plan a menu chock full of primal food (and not have the guests […]

Original post by Mark Sisson