pimg class=”alignright” title=”Vitamins” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2010/vitamins.jpg” alt=”vitamins” width=”320″ height=”240″ /It feels good to get back in the saddle on a Monday morning. I love the contests and the reader response to all the Primal challenges, but with our regularly scheduled Dear Mark sessions, I#8217;m actually responding to real queries from you guys. You reach out to me, and I reach back. In the process, you maybe learn something and I#8217;m forced to think about new intricacies of old subjects (or switch stances altogether, if new evidence demands it). Overall, everyone refines their thinking. And that#8217;s always a good thing./p
pWith that said, let#8217;s get down to the questions. I field one concerning a recent spate of troubling vitamin studies and give my take on the matter. I give a little advice on generating new mitochondria (cause there#8217;s nothing more annoying than old, out-of-date, behind-the-times mitochondria incessantly talking about the good old days and […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

pimg class=”alignright” title=”Duck Confit” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2010/duck_confit.jpg” alt=”duck confit” width=”320″ height=”213″ /Duck confit came about centuries ago because of a practical need to preserve meat for long periods of time without refrigeration. While modern society has mostly lost the need to preserve meat for months, it has not lost its taste for duck confit; in fact, the dish has been elevated from practical peasant food to high-end, gourmet fare./p
pCooking duck legs in fat makes the meat incredibly succulent but not oily. There is no chance it will dry out and become tough and you are pretty much guaranteed amazing flavor. It’s also really easy to do, especially if you have a slow cooker./p
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pSo then why not confit the entire bird, you ask? While the flavor and texture of the tough dark leg meat (and even the wings and gizzard) improves with long cooking time, duck breasts are much tastier after […]

Original post by Worker Bee

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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=”../../contact/” 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″ /I think most of us have experienced a significant occasion that, due to its life changing effects, becomes a milestone in our lives, be it graduation day, the first day of a new job , the day you first met your mate to be, your wedding day, the birth of your child, the death of a loved one, etc. One such […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

pimg class=”alignright” title=”Body Image” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2010/bodyimage.jpg” alt=”bodyimage” width=”259″ height=”258″ /Even with the close of the Primal Challenge and its final week of reader content, I still have all those great successes on my mind. Whether in photos, videos, or description, it’s incredible to see people enjoying health and feeling great in their own skin. This got me thinking about body image. It’s a loaded subject in our society. Occasionally, it’s a loaded subject even on MDA’s comment boards or forum. As much as we’d like to edit out the less complimentary, even judgmental threads of discussion, to tuck away the uncomfortable conversations, I’m not sure that’s entirely right. This blog encompasses everything about pursuing vitality and living healthily in this world. That includes the sometimes thorny topic of body image #8211; both as personal experience and cultural backdrop./p
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pLike anything in our world, no issue is immune from controversy, tension, or […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

pimg class=”alignright” title=”Tug of War” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2010/tugofwar.jpg” alt=”tugofwar” width=”320″ height=”212″ /Gym class was not a great time for me./p
pTo understand exactly how painful grade school PE was back in my day, you must experience #8220;Go, You Chicken Fat, Go.#8221; Back in early 1960s, PE was all about preparing for and passing the Presidential Fitness Test, which was JFK#8217;s youth fitness standards. a title=”Go You Chicken Fat Go” href=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=af2j59zzX3Q” target=”_blank”#8220;Go, You Chicken Fat, Go#8221;/a was a ridiculous song written expressly for the Presidential challenge and sung by a guy named Robert Preston. Every single day during PE class, we did calisthenics as it blasted over the PA system on repeat. We#8217;d do pushups, jumping jacks, squat thrusts, chinups, all while listening to this masterpiece #8211; I think I#8217;m finally realizing why I hated strength training and gravitated toward long distance endurance events for the bulk of my youth! We occasionally got […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

pimg class=”alignright” title=”30 Day Challenge” src=”http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg158/MDA2008/MDA2009/primal_30day_challenge-1.gif” alt=”primal 30day challenge 1″ width=”320″ height=”240″ /Well, it#8217;s been 30 days, and the a title=”The 2011 Primal Blueprint 30-Day Challenge Begins Now” href=”http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-2011-primal-blueprint-30-day-challenge-begins-now/” target=”_self”Primal Blueprint Challenge/a is now over. I don#8217;t know about you, but I#8217;m completely exhausted./p
pThis happens every single time we do a challenge. I figure, since we#8217;ll be running contests and awarding prizes and using lots of reader-created content, that I#8217;ll have a month #8220;off#8221; to relax. Maybe get some stand-up paddling in, maybe take two weekly hikes instead of my usual one, maybe finally work on banishing excess stress from my life#8230; but no. The contest rolls around and I find myself immersed in it. My actual workload is lighter and what work I have is easier, but I can#8217;t tear myself away from the contest. I#8217;m up late reading comments, thinking up new contests, tracking people#8217;s progress, working on […]

Original post by Mark Sisson

pI’d like to thank the 13 groups who participated in the a title=”The 2011 Grokfeast Challenge” href=”http://www.marksdailyapple.com/have-a-picnic-win-a-cow-the-2011-grokfeast-challenge/” target=”_self”Grokfeast Challenge/a this year. Your level of creativity, commitment, and enthusiasm serves as a hallmark for Primal living at its best. It’s been an immense pleasure reading and publishing your experiences on Mark’s Daily Apple./p
pAs good as they all were, only one group can win the cow. One more shout out to a title=”US Wellness” href=”http://www.grasslandbeef.com/StoreFront.bok” target=”_blank”US Wellness/a, who is donating all the grass-fed beef. If you ever want to take your beef eating to the next level, hit up their a title=”US Wellness Newsletter” href=”http://blog.grasslandbeef.com/newsletter-sign-up” target=”_self”newsletter/a and join the grass-fed revolution./p
pOK, now on to business. Below are the three finalists. I’ve posted the finalists’ videos, but please click through to the individual posts before voting. Check out the recipes and read their stories. Then vote on the […]

Original post by Mark Sisson