Who doesn’t love a good success story? I know I do. It’s a large part of what keeps me and this blog going day in, day out. And anecdotes matter. They add further credence to the Primal Blueprint, they have the power to inspire and they give us all a little insight into how others are living their own Primal lives. If, after reading these success stories, you’re jonesing for more, check out the success stories pages on Mark’s Daily Apple or the success stories category. And if you have your own story and pics to share shoot me a line here. Happy Friday, everyone!
Mark,
I used to be a frustrated 178 pound, 5′7″ tall female. I’d had some success with programs like Weight Watchers and Alli in the past, but they were always short-lived. After awhile on those programs, I got hungry and I got tired of depriving myself of […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

So yesterday I learned that Canadian Ryan Reynolds is People magazine’s Sexiest Man in the World.
Admittedly, I don’t think I made the short list this year, but I’m glad to see another Canadian representing so well
So what can we learn from Mr. Reynolds?
Firstly – Great hair can only get you so far. Ryan wasn’t a house hold name UNTIL he added some muscle for Blade3. In fact, before he gained some muscle, you probably thought his name was Van Wilder.
Second – Talent can only get you so far. Ryan has had some great movies…’The Nines” and “Chaos Theory” come to mind as really good Ryan Reynolds movies you’ve never heard of….So most people haven’t seen his best works, but they HAVE seen him shirtless.
Third- Beards are awesome (He sometimes rocks one)
Lastly- Getting in shape is NOT a life long process.
Yep, I said ‘not’.
You see, when I was […]

Original post by Brad Pilon

When I introduced a forum thread asking folks to share their top three challenges in going Primal, one issue got major traction: the S.O. factor (significant other, for those of you not into the whole online brevity thing). It’s a familiar story. One partner takes on a new health commitment. Life changes for that person. He/she goes through struggles, triumphs, growth – an entire physical and psychological process that potentially leaves a relationship chasm in its wake. Then there are the logistics, a menacing obstacle course of loaded questions and irksome details. Do you still eat together? Who cooks (not to mention shops)? Do we have enough pots and pans to make two different meals each night? How do we handle the kids’ food? Finally, what does it mean for the arrangement when one person’s food expenditure overshadows the other’s?

I’m not talking, of course, about couples who follow individual but […]

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

Quick. What’s a suitable, Primal source of post-workout carbohydrates? If the title of this post and the picture to the right didn’t give you a hint then ask your nearest Primal enthusiast and they’ll tell you without batting an eye, “yams and sweet potatoes”. If, for whatever reason, you need some extra carbs “yams and sweet potatoes” is the answer. Everyone knows this, but is it true?
That’s what I’ll be exploring in today’s post. But first, what are yams and how do they differ from sweet potatoes?

In the United States, most tubers sold as yams are actually members of the sweet potato family. Your Garnets, your Jewels, the “yams” with the rich orange flesh and reddish-brown exterior, are, botanically, sweet potatoes. In fact, it’s quite likely that the vast majority of my readers – even the active ones including more carbohydrate in their diets – have never tasted a true […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

These days many of us go to work in the dark and leave greeted by the same. Those lucky enough to have windows next to their desks or work stations might think, “Hey, at least I get some sun exposure during the day.” But how does sun exposure through glass compare with direct sunlight? One reader brought up the topic this week.
Dear Mark,
I work in an office and have a big picture window in front of my desk. Don’t get me wrong – I love the light and all, but my friend told me you don’t get any real sunlight benefits (vitamin D, etc.) through glass. Is that right? I’m guessing a tan is out as well. What’s the story on what gets through and what doesn’t? Love the site by the way.

Thanks to reader Rob for this week’s question. Sorry to rain on anyone’s parade here, but the friend […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

You’re working hard.
Watching your Diet, hitting the gym…hopefully you’re following Eat Stop Eat.
And, lucky you, you’re losing body fat.
But..have you ever wondered…where exactly does it go when you ‘lose it’?
Firstly, it’s not actually ‘lost’ as much as it’s used as an energy source to fuel your metabolism.  After all, your body fat is really an ‘energy reserve’ to be tapped into when energy from food sources is low. (So the saying ‘burning fat’ is actually correct!)
During this process your fat is used to synthesize high energy molecules (like ATP) the very molecules that fuel your metabolic rate, and during this process is your body fat is broken down into carbon dioxide and water.
The water is lost in sweat, urine, feces and exhaled air, while the carbon dioxide is exhaled.
So…now you know
BP

//

Original post by Brad Pilon

After winning “Who is your favorite health/fitness blogger?” at Health Habits I was approached and asked whether I wanted to join the Hive Health Media network. After reading the terms, and looking at some of the other blogs in the network, I thought I wouldn’t have anything to lose by at least giving it a trial run for a few months.
This will serve to give my site and my articles some extra exposure. In return, I’ll keep an eye out for share-worthy material on the other blogs in the network and promote it (via Twitter, FB, etc.) if I find something good. That’s it. Nothing else changes.
A Few Good Reads
I’ve come across quite a few good reads this last week that I thought I’d share.
1. “Why Making Dinner is a Good Idea.” Jonah Lehrer writes one of my favorite blogs. This article is about evolution, dopamine and the curse of […]

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

Upfront disclaimer: stress is my big issue. I have most everything about my life pretty well dialed in, but I just don’t handle stress the way I probably should (or the way I tell other people they should).
Most people have the vague notion that meditation is good, usually in a psychological, somehow “not physical” manner. It reduces stress. It’s relaxing. Well, these emotional mindstates have physical or neurological corollaries. You aren’t “just stressed,” as if stress is some concept floating there independent of physiology. Chemicals and hormones induce these states, and meditation can affect their secretion and production.

There’s also compelling evidence for the negating effect of meditation on certain marks of aging. This study found that, when compared to controls, trained Buddhist meditators had enhanced cortical thickness. Older meditation experts displayed the most dramatic differences, suggesting that “meditation might offset age-related cortical thinning.” A new study digs even deeper. Subjects […]

Original post by Mark Sisson