pimg class=”alignright” title=”Raw Oysters Garnished with Savory Lemon Granita ” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2010/oystergranita2.jpg” alt=”oystergranita2″ width=”320″ height=”245″ /The holiday season is filled with such heavy fare that by the time New Year’s Eve rolls around it’s natural to be craving something a little lighter. It’s also natural to feel less enthusiastic about heading into the kitchen to cook yet another feast. A a title=”Types of Shellfish” href=”http://www.marksdailyapple.com/types-of-shellfish/”seafood/a extravaganza solves both dilemmas, especially if your main course is a platter of raw oysters./p
pSlurping a dozen raw oysters down is the culinary equivalent of taking a traditional New Year’s Day polar bear plunge. The crisp, clean, invigorating flavor of oysters makes one feel strong and alert and happy to be alive. They require little to no preparation, yet can be the centerpiece of even the most extravagant celebrations. If you’re going the casual route, that’s fine too. Raw oysters are appropriate whether you’re ringing in […]

Original post by Worker Bee

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Every Christmas Eve is Cheesecake Eve, and so it fell upon me to once again face off against these wretched cakes.br /
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I did not choose this. But as one of the last of my kind (Level 10nbsp;a href=”http://www.leangains.com/search/label/Cheesecake%20Mastery” target=”_blank”Cheesecake Mastery/a*), it’s my duty to walk the earth and do battle with these cakesnbsp;for the greater good of mankind.br /
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blockquote class=”tr_bq”i…Ability to consume vast quantities of cheesecake./i/blockquoteblockquote class=”tr_bq”i…Higher echelons of Mastery can only be attained by besting the cake after a robust dinner, for a true Master enjoys a challenge and welcomes every opportunity to practice his skill./i/blockquoteblockquote class=”tr_bq”iFor good or for ill, cheesecake mastery is the supreme expression of hedonic power and might. The art of gluttony perfected./i/blockquotebr /
inbsp;-nbsp;/iBook of Cake, 1248 B.C, author unknown.br /
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For all you young whippersnappers who wish to walk the way of the cheesecake master, I have stories to tell, […]

Original post by Martin Berkhan

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pIt’s Friday, everyone! And that means another a title=”Success Stories” href=”../../category/success-stories/?submit=view” target=”_self”Primal Blueprint Real Life Story/a from a Mark#8217;s Daily Apple reader. If you have your own success story and would like to share it with me and the Mark’s Daily Apple community please contact me a title=”Contact Me!” href=”http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-book/share-success-story/” target=”_self”here/a. I’ll continue to publish these each Friday as long as they keep coming in. Thank you for reading!/p
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pimg class=”alignright” title=”Primal Blueprint Real Life Story” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2009/real_life_stories_stories-1-2.jpg” alt=”real life stories stories 1 2″ width=”320″ height=”240″ //p
pemThis Primal Blueprint Real Life Story was submitted a few months ago during the annual 30-Day Challenge./em/p
pI have been following a Primal Blueprint diet for the last 9 months and the results for me have been amazing! I want to share my success story with you./p
pOne year ago I was 34 years old, 5#8217;7#8243;, 177 lbs and wearing a size 16 jeans. I was […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

pimg class=”alignright” title=”Fireworks” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2010/fireworks.jpg” alt=”fireworks” width=”319″ height=”211″ /Some weeks ago after the a title=”The Power of Ritual” href=”http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-power-of-ritual/”Power of Ritual/a post, I had to laugh when SophieE and desert tomte shared their idea for creating our own Primal holiday. Needless to say, the musing has got the better of me. (I’ve been dipping into the egg nog one too many times, you’re wondering.) Sure, the MDA community is scattered around the globe, and our holiday schedules are likely filled. No matter. Today, I’m letting all reason and purpose fly by the wayside. Sisson’s gone nuts, you might say. Maybe so. It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve heard that. I respond to the charge with those immortal, wise words, “Why ask why?” So, I’m taking SophieE and desert tomte at their word today and devoting today’s post to a virtual Primal bash #8211; with everything befitting a Primal fete as […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

pimg class=”alignright” title=”Lipid Test” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2010/lipidtest.jpg” alt=”lipidtest” width=”320″ height=”212″ /After last week#8217;s post on a title=”How to Interpret Cholesterol Test Results” href=”http://www.marksdailyapple.com/how-to-interpret-cholesterol-test-results/”interpreting traditional lipid tests/a, I promised a follow-up post on interpreting the advanced VAP and NMR Lipoprofile tests that provide measurements of particle size and all the various sub-fractions of HDL and LDL particles. I even hinted that it might be worth bypassing the traditional test entirely and going straight to the advanced stuff if you were going to get your a title=”The Definitive Guide to Cholesterol” href=”http://www.marksdailyapple.com/cholesterol/#axzz1hnwRy3iZ”cholesterol/a measured anyway, because of the greater accuracy and more detailed picture of your lipids the VAP and NMR tests provide./p
pspan id=”more-25701″/span/p
pWell, I#8217;m going to have to reevaluate my stance on the matter and rethink that original suggestion. Recent evidence shows and commentary from researchers a title=”Advanced Lipoprotein Testing and Subfractionation Are Not (Yet) Ready for Routine Clinical Use” href=”http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/119/17/2396.full#_jmp0_” target=”_blank”concludes/a that the […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

pimg class=”alignright” title=”Now Not Later” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2010/nownotlater.jpg” alt=”nownotlater” width=”320″ height=”212″ /Dear youngsters,/p
pYou#8217;re going through some difficult times, no doubt. I#8217;ve been in your shoes before. I#8217;ve been a kid dealing with basically all the same stuff you have to contend with. I#8217;ve been there./p
pYour a title=”Hormones and Heart Disease” href=”http://www.marksdailyapple.com/hormones-and-heart-disease/#axzz1hieaUsfR”hormones/a are probably (depending on age, gender, and exposure to attractive members of opposite/same sex) either raging, simmering, fomenting, budding, and/or swelling./p
pYour legs and arms may be growing at disproportionate rates, leaving you feeling like a stranger in your own body./p
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pThat cute new guy whom you planned on eventually marrying has a funny last name, which just won#8217;t work with the names of the kids you#8217;ve chosen./p
pYou just discovered the Beatles, and you totally want to tell everyone about it, but they#8217;re all into top 40 stuff. You just can#8217;t relate./p
pYour opinions on everything, who your best friends are, your relationship […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

pimg class=”alignright” title=”Salt” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2010/salt.jpg” alt=”salt” width=”320″ height=”212″ /The salt debate rages on outside these halls, but I#8217;ve never really opened MDA#8217;s doors to the tempest (beyond a short dalliance several years ago). Today, though, I am. We#8217;ve likely all consumed a fair bit of sodium chloride over the past holiday weekend, and I imagine a few of us are wondering whether that#8217;s a problem or not. Ever timely, reader John has written in with his salt story and a simple question: how much salt is suitable for humans?/p
pHere#8217;s his question:/p
blockquotepI went Primal last year, and I#8217;m down about 25 to 30 pounds and blood pressure is lowered. I have definitely followed your advice on low salt. For example, if I buy tomato sauce or paste, I get the #8220;No Salt#8221;, and I buy the low salt cashews, preferably with sea salt. What do you think about this new research that […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

pimg class=”alignright” title=”Herb Roasted Leg of Lamb” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2010/lamb2.jpg” alt=”lamb2″ width=”320″ height=”212″ /Leg of a title=”Smart Fuel: Lamb” href=”http://www.marksdailyapple.com/lamb/”lamb/a is a cut of meat especially suited for holiday celebrations. Lamb is comforting and festive, rich and hearty and fills the house with a lingering, savory aroma that will have people hovering around the oven waiting for dinner. Lamb is a nice break from more commonly served meats like beef and pork and it’s agreeable to countless combinations of herbs and spices./p
pAromatic herbs are a traditional way to adorn leg of lamb and you really can’t go wrong, no matter what herbs you choose. In this recipe, parsley and rosemary are combined with olive oil, garlic and salt to make a simple but amazing herb paste. Within a few minutes of putting the lamb in to cook, the scent of fresh herbs will be wafting out of the oven, becoming more […]

Original post by Worker Bee

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Earlier today, someone asked me about my biggest failures on my road to success, and I answered that they all came from stubbornly clinging to old ideas, and refusing to let go of them in spite of negative consequencesspan style=”font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;”.nbsp;/spanHere’s a part of my response:br /
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blockquote class=”tr_bq”This kind of irrational behavior is termed the “sunk cost fallacy”. You keep investing time and resources into something – be it a diet, a training routine, a project, or a relationship – in spite of clear indications that a change of action is needed, and you do it simply because you’ve already committed a good deal of energy into it./blockquoteblockquote class=”tr_bq”You’re dead set on following through, no matter what. Call it the downside of persistence. Or call it for what it is, namely being a damn fool./blockquotebr /
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Thenbsp;a href=”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunk_cost#Loss_aversion_and_the_sunk_cost_fallacy” target=”_blank”sunk cost fallacy/anbsp;is a well-known concept […]

Original post by Martin Berkhan

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pIt’s Friday, everyone! And that means another a title=”Success Stories” href=”../../category/success-stories/?submit=view” target=”_self”Primal Blueprint Real Life Story/a from a Mark#8217;s Daily Apple reader. If you have your own success story and would like to share it with me and the Mark’s Daily Apple community please contact me a title=”Contact Me!” href=”http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-book/share-success-story/” target=”_self”here/a. I’ll continue to publish these each Friday as long as they keep coming in. Thank you for reading!/p
/div
pimg class=”alignright” title=”Primal Blueprint Real Life Story” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2009/real_life_stories_stories-1-2.jpg” alt=”real life stories stories 1 2″ width=”320″ height=”240″ //p
pemThis Primal Blueprint Real Life Story was submitted a few months ago during the annual 30-Day Challenge./em/p
pThere are two thoughts I clearly remember having in my lifetime:/p
ul
liI am overweight, but I no longer care about how I look and I am fine with being this way for the rest of my life./li
liMy husband is likely to die of a heart attack sometime soon and there […]

Original post by Mark Sisson