Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Primal Fitness, Primal Commuter

Are you ready for the news? I've lost over 100 pounds! That's right. You read correctly. But, I've never been 100 pounds over-weight. So, then, how could I have lost over 100 pounds? It's simple - I lost it during a period of 15 years. Or, as my wife puts it, "With all the weight you've gained and lost over the years, you've lost a whole person!" She's right. And, it got me thinking...

I'm sick and tired of dieting! I'm tired of losing weight...only to gain it back in the winter, or the following year, or in two years. But, always, it comes back. And, each time it comes back, and the older I get, the harder and the longer it takes to lose it again....and again.....and again.

I'm like Sysphus, slowly, painfully pushing that boulder up the mountain, only to lose it at the summit, losing it and all my progress, letting it roll back down to the valley, where I must resume pushing it back up the mountain, covering ground I've conquered countless times before.

STOP! That's it. I'm finished dieting. It's over. From this point on, I'm doing what many experts agree is the only way to lose weight and keep it off - stop dieting. That's because putting yourself in the mindset that "I'm on a diet" implies that someday, hopefully soon, I'll be OFF the diet. Eating one way today, but differently next week or next month. Ah, but there's the rub. Once you stop dieting, the eternal recurrence of the weight gain/loss cycle resets and rages on.

The solution is to change your mind and your lifestyle, permanently. Establish new eating habits and fitness routines that you will use for the rest of your life, not the rest of this month.

What's that? Easier said than done? Agreed. But you can stack the deck in your favor with knowledge and with an all encompassing framework and approach to health and wellness that makes it easier, almost second nature, to apply. The unifying viewpoint that pulls it all together is Primal Fitness.

Primal Fitness is a philosophy based on Anthropology, Biology, Genetics, History, Kinesiology, and Anatomy that at its very core states that our bodies, genetically speaking, are identical to our pre-historic, pre-agricultural ancestors. Biologically speaking, we are all cavemen! So, we need to work and feed our bodies like cavemen. Therefore, the more consistently we consume macro-nutrients (Protein, Fat, and Carbohydrates) with the pre-agricultural period and the more we exercise our bodies in ways a Paleolithic man would have, the healthier and happier we'll be - in body and mind. We'll feel better, look leaner, think more clearly, sleep deeper, and be, overall, healthier.


One of the keys to Primal Fitness is to use your own body - your muscle structure and energy stores - to transport yourself from one location to another. Our biological ancestors did not have planes, trains, or automobiles to travel. Instead, they used their legs. And, so, I too use my legs to do my version of hunting and gathering (going to work): I commute on my bicycle. This keeps my body in motion, my mind alert, my senses out in the elements, my heart and lungs in great shape. Like my ancient, genetically identical ancestors, I am working my body on a daily basis in order to gain my sustenance.

 More to come in future posts.

1 comment:

  1. Good article. "The solution is to change your mind and your lifestyle, permanently. Establish new eating habits and fitness routines that you will use for the rest of your life, not the rest of this month." Those two statements are powerful. It can take years for one to finally understand what works for them. But realizing its a life long routine of healthy living feels liberating.

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