Mark Sisson Strikes again!!!

10 Real-Life Reasons Why the Primal Blueprint Works for Me

There’s been a lot more talk in the mainstream recently about “caveman” diets and barefoot training. Primal/Paleo/Evo seems to be gaining in popularity and may be nearing the critical mass needed to garner mainstream appreciation. John Durant appeared on Stephen Colbert last week, Art De Vany was featured in Der Spiegel, Born to Run is a NYT Bestseller and my book recently made the top ten Health and Fitness titles on Amazon. Even so, we Primal types still get those occasional looks of derision or incomprehension when we show up at the gym with our Fives on and a bag of homemade jerky hanging off our belt to do a quick 15 minute HIIT session. I think there’s a sense among outsiders that the Grok fairy tale trumps the science within the Primal crowd – that the notion of living like a caveman is a cute ideal but irrelevant in a 21st century high-tech context. Of course, it’s not true; science always leads the way here at MDA and on most Primal/Paleo/Evo sites. But even with the science completely supporting the idea that we ought to emulate our hunter-gatherer ancestors in many aspects of life, I still hear things like, “I trust my doctor too much to give up the statins and start eating fats.” Or “I’m lazy, undisciplined, and I love good food too much to be able to change this late in my life.” Hey, me too! So for those of you who are looking for more detailed rationale why living Primal is best for everyone (including your doubting spouse and your parents), here are my 10 Real-Life Reasons Why the Primal Blueprint Works for Me.

1. I’m lazy.

Ironically, I spent 25 years of my life pursuing high level fitness and peak health through hard work, discipline, sacrifice and misery. That didn’t work out for me. I’m over it. Now I just want the best results with the least amount of pain, suffering, and sacrifice. I jokingly tell my ex-triathlete buddies, “I’d rather look fit than be fit.” Of course, the irony is that when you actually do what it takes to look fit (eat right, cut the Chronic Cardio, sprint a bit now and then and lift intensely two or three times a week ) you become VERY fit. And healthy. And happy. And more productive. The best part of Primal Blueprint living is that you can get appreciably better results with significantly less time, less effort and less sacrifice. Instead of the old 20-30 hours a week I used to put in training, I now train less than three hours total a week. I try to play the rest of the time.

2. I love good food.

Some people mistakenly think the Primal Blueprint requires giving up eating good food. Nothing could be further from the truth. When I was a college endurance athlete, my buddies nicknamed me “Arnold,” after Arnold Ziffle, the pig on Green Acres. I could eat more than just about anyone in school (including the football linemen). I ate everything and enjoyed it all. But I became a slave to the carbs and to the hunger that they generated every three hours of my life. Later, when I retired and researched the damage I was doing eating grains, sugars, hydrogenated oils and all the other stuff I consumed to fuel my massive cardio efforts, I feared I might have to suffer a lifetime dearth of gustatory delights if I wanted to keep my boyish figure. Never happened. Primal eating reprograms the genes in a way that takes the edge off hunger, while assuring more-than-adequate energy and stable blood glucose levels. Now, I eat as much as I want, whenever I want from a list of fabulously tasty foods. I just avoid eating most things from that other list. Hunger doesn’t drive my life the way it used to. When I sit in a restaurant with a rare 20-ounce rib eye steak, a bowl of butter-sautéed mushrooms and a glass of fine Cabernet in front of me, I never feel sorry for myself that I didn’t order pasta or that I won’t be having the bread or potatoes or rice. And for dessert, if I’m still hungry, I’d really rather have another lamb chop or a bowl of berries than a slice of cardboard cake or mucous-inducing ice cream. Worst case, I can have a small taste of the latter and be satisfied.

3. I like to play.

I spent a fair amount of my life training for grueling endurance contests (marathons, Ironman triathlons, 24-hour relay running events). Only just recently did it occur to me that I NEVER really had fun while I was competing or while I was training. Admittedly, I could sometimes get into “the zone,” but that’s really only a temporary zone of less pain. I did appreciate the valiance of my efforts and certainly felt pride in my accomplishments, but from the time the gun went off until I crossed the finish line, I never once could truthfully say, “Isn’t this fun?” In contrast, today I plan most of my (minimal) training around being able to participate in fun activities later. And while I don’t necessarily see play as “workout time,” it is most assuredly contributing to my fitness. Primal Blueprint training gives me the functional strength and endurance to jump into an aggressive Ultimate Frisbee game, stand-up paddle and surf for two hours, take a 90-minute trail hike with sprints thrown in, play a round of golf, or snowboard for five days in a row. I stay fit so I can play at stuff I find FUN.

4. I like to sleep.

I used to feel guilty if I slept too much. As if I were missing out on something that might be taking place while the lights were still on somewhere. Now I get at least eight hours every night and embrace the idea that I am NOT wasting time, but am recharging the batteries and will probably live longer as a result. I think most people would prefer to get adequate sleep, but feel like it’s a sign of weakness that they “need” eight or nine hours. It’s not. Sleep is integral to health.

5. I don’t like being sick.

No one does. At the peak of my endurance career, I got colds and flus five to seven times a year. I also had severe seasonal grass pollen allergies. The nature of Chronic Cardio training (all that cortisol) and the obligate high carbohydrate diet (all that sugar) kept my immune system so trashed that anything that was going around was going to take me down with it. And stuff is always going around. The Primal Blueprint works because everything about it is contemplated to support or boost the immune system and not trash it. My allergies have long since disappeared. I rarely get any kind of cold or flu now and, if I do, it’s with no real down time and over quickly. Many people argue that this benefit alone is worth the switch to Primal.

6. I’m vain (I want to look good naked).

The Primal Blueprint exercise laws are designed to sculpt a lean, muscled and balanced look without being overly “huge” or disproportional the way bodybuilders can get. It works perfectly for both men and women. I often say here that 80% of your body composition is determined by how you eat. The remaining 20% is a combination of genetics and exercise. If you dial the eating in properly, it doesn’t take very much exercise to optimize muscle size and strength, and to cut the last few percentage points in body fat. Notice I said optimize and not maximize. Think Calvin Klein underwear and SI Swimsuit models as opposed to swollen Muscle&Fitness or WWF cover models.

7. I like to be tan (vain part 2).

Sorry, I never understood the porcelain skin thing. I notice the dramatic effect a lack of sun has on my disposition as much as I notice it on my skin if I skip a few weeks (winter sucks – except for snowboarding). Getting adequate sunlight daily is an integral part of the PB as it has been for humans for millions of years. Vitamin D is critical to maintaining good health. As I say in my book, I honestly believe we’ve seen an increase in overall cancer incidence as a result of (ironically) heeding the advice of doctors to stay out of the sun. I think everyone would rather be outside for a while every day if they knew it was not only NOT harmful, but beneficial. A slight tan just looks good, and it’s indicative of a healthy Vitamin D status. Getting sun also improves mood and productivity as numerous studies continue to show.

8. I’m not organized.

If you saw my desk you’d probably cringe. Stuff all over it everywhere. Same goes with my training style these days, and I love it. I almost never train with anyone, because I like being able to head out the door on a whim and go sprint or hike or bang off a few hundred pushups. I hate having a set training schedule or the idea of having to meet someone at such and such a time to work out together. Don’t get me wrong, I do train with friends once in a while, but the Primal Blueprint training outline fits my fractal, sporadic, random, intermittent, flakey and spontaneous nature. If I don’t feel like training today, the PB says “take the day off – you’ll be stronger and more focused tomorrow.” Not to be outdone, the Primal Blueprint eating style is also unorganized. Not set meal times, no regimentation, no calorie-counting or portion control. Eat when you want and as much – or not – as you want. Of course, none of this is to say you HAVE to be disorganized to benefit from the PB. If you’re organized, it works that much better. But for those who eschew schedules, the PB is perfect.

9. I want to stay uninjured.

Downtime from injury sucks. As I said earlier, I want to get more play time now as I get older. I recognize that my body doesn’t recover from workouts as easily as it used to. I also notice that I have to pay attention to potential soreness a bit more. PB fitness provides a set of guidelines and workout styles that foster balanced, functional strength. It actually focuses on injury prevention and avoidance, while building muscle and burning fat.

10. I like certainty.

I’m a skeptic at heart (OK, I’m actually a cynic). I hate investing my precious time, money, energy or emotion in anything I don’t feel confident will yield dividends. It has to be based in science, rational thought and real results. Conversely, I hate thinking that some of my choices in exercise, diet and health may have been wrong (as they were so egregiously when I followed Conventional Wisdom). I need to have confidence that my choices are good ones. The research backing the PB is the most solid there is. Evolutionary biology and modern genetic – and epigenetic – science are proving that we have remarkable influence over how our genes express themselves throughout our lives. Stuff we do and things we eat turn genes on or off. It’s that simple. Intervals and Tabata work have been proven over and over to be more effective at increasing speed and stamina than Chronic Cardio. The dietary science of low-carb is nearly irrefutable now, as more and more researchers and docs begin to understand the true nature of insulin and they rethink the cholesterol hypothesis. Look, there is no right or wrong here. You can eat Twinkies and smoke cigarettes for the rest of your life and you still might reach 90 or 100. But I have never in my life been more certain of anything than I am that the Primal Blueprint way of eating, exercising and living is the optimal way to have the most energy, the most fun, look the best and live the longest. And I know I can do this for the rest of my life.

So I thought I would hit a short blurb about supplements. I am not talking about the kind that you use to get a "pump" but the ones that actually help improve performance and reduce body fat. Some if this may apply some may not if you are not sure ask your nutrition coach about it.

Glutamine- Key supplement in restoring muscle glycogen; Glut-amine is converted in the liver to glucose, which is then shuttled to the cells and stored in the muscles as glycogen without replenishing liver glycogen. This a great alternative if you are multiday WODing and have trouble stomaching food immediately after a WOD. You can get it in stand alone capsule form or some post workout drinks like Cytomax (really high in sugar =/ ) have it in the ingredients.

L-Carnitine- L-Carnitine helps to transport fatty acids from the cytosol to the mitochondria, which promotes the breakdown of lipids to use fat as a fuel source promoting weight loss and use of fat as energy

Primrose- Can help to reverse insulin resistance, insulin resistance is a key factor that inhibits weight loss. It is best used in conjunction with Alpha lipoic acid. 200mg a day

Vitamin D- Okinawa is a great place to get your Vitamin D from the sun everyday!! Unless of course you work inside during daylight hours or its winter and the sun rarely shows itself. If thats the case then you may have some Vitamin D deficiency and the big D is crucial in the proper function of the thyroid and hormonal production. It has also been cited in many studies to induce the death of cancer cells and has a role in preventing and even reversing the onset of coronary heart disease.

Vitamin C- Ok we have mentioned this one before... Taking some Vitamin C before bed can help to reduce cortisol levels. High cortisol levels are an inhibitor to weight loss. Quality sleep and some Vitamin C will speed weight loss right along!!

Fish Oil- Its true that if you are eating a good clean macronutrient diet that there might not be a need for fish oil. but what exactly is the definition of a clean macronutrient diet? Lean meats; that are free range and naturally fed. (not just grass fed beef but all your sources of meat should be naturally raised.) Right here the majority of us can say we are not as clean as we can be, but why does it matter? It all comes down to the what happens to the meats when they are not naturally raises and fed. First off grain fed beef is much fattier, by about 15-20% than naturally raised, normally this would not be a bad thing except that the grain makes the fat in the meat extremely high in Omega 6 to Omega 3 ratio (the average western diet is about a 15-20:1) .... Enter Fish oil, this will help you get back to the good, the EPA and DHA in Fish Oil is your best source outside of naturally raised meats. Quality Fish Oils (Carlson is a great brand) that actually use fish oil and not soybean oil (bad source of omega 3's mostly short chain) can help to get us back to that 2:1 omega 6 to omega 3 which is optimal for both weight loss and performance.

Alpha Lipoic Acid- Lipoic acid has been shown in cell culture experiments to increase cellular uptake of glucose by recruiting the glucose transporter GLUT4 to the cell membrane, suggesting its use in reversing type 2 diabetes. This is a good thing regardless .. better insulin sensitivity is a all around home run and this combined with the primrose can help to quickly reverse the damage we have done to ourselves with high grain diets over the majority of our lives. 200mg a day is the recommended dosage.

OK so that is the majority of the supplements which we have been reading about recently if you have questions about other supplements please feel free to post it to comments and we will try to do as much research as we can to give you the most informed answers possible. Please realize none of stuff works without getting your eating on track though so the hope of eating a happy meal and supplementing with some primrose and ALA will not help you. Hope this helps!!

What do your food labels really mean? 'Free-range,' 'natural,' 'non-toxic,' and other myths

Mitch Lipka
Jan 28th 2010 at 9:00AM

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Filed under: Food, Health, Consumer Ally

It's easy to get sucked into buying a product based on what its label says -- after all, that's what the label's designed to do. And some of those label claims are regulated by the U.S. or monitored by the industry, and they actually mean something.

Others, though, have almost no meaning -- they're simply a marketplace come-on, and empty claims like "Made with Natural Goodness," "Kid Approved" and "Doctor Recommended" have become as common as those with legal definitions. Today, even regulated terms like "Healthy" and "Contains Antioxidants" have become muddied.
Consumers are exposed to numerous misleading labels every day, says Bruce Silverglade, director of legal affairs at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, whose recent report on labeling demonstrates the need for changes in U.S. food labeling policies. Some rules are quite odd, like the fact that two agencies regulate what's in soup or pizza, depending on whether they contain meat.

One labeling trend Silverglade hates is the claim that a product can strengthen your immune system. "All of these claims imply that eating the product will help ward off diseases -- and all of them are false," he says. "Eating vegetables and drinking cranberry juice are healthy, but they are no more likely to ward off disease than any other healthy food."

Another badly abused phrase: "made with whole grains." You see that more often, too, since the U.S. recommended consuming whole grains. "People have been encouraged to eat grains rich in whole wheat, and some companies have given lip service to that public health advice by adding small doses of whole grains to their product," Silverglade says. He cites Thomas's Hearty Grains English muffins, which contain just a token amount of whole wheat flour. Enriched wheat flour is the first ingredient. "That certainly sounds healthy," Silverglade says. "But that's actually just ordinary wheat flour." Midway down the ingredient list -- below water -- is whole wheat flour.

The CSPI is also concerned about fruit claims for products that contain virtually no fruit. Toddler snack Gerber Graduates Juice Treats Fruit Medley lists a collection of fruits on the package -- but actually has less than 2% raspberry juice, and none of the others. The main ingredients: corn syrup and sugar. Betty Crocker Strawberry Fruit Gushers -- "Made with real fruit" -- is not made with strawberries, and contains just a small amount of pear concentrate: the "real fruit" in question.

The Food and Drug Administration, which polices labeling, hasn't aggressively pursued such issues, which SIlverglade says lets corporate lawyers figure out misleading phrases guaranteed to keep their clients out of legal trouble.

The real standards come from the FDA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the fake ones come from anywhere and everywhere. Few consumers could reasonably memorize and sort through the real and the meaningless. That's why we present a Consumer Ally primer on label claims true and false. (If you don't see a term below that you've noticed, please email it in.)

Organic. Any multi-ingredient product bearing the USDA Organic seal must contain at least 95% organic ingredients. But the federal certification process is voluntary -- and not every product that claims to be organic undergoes such scrutiny.

Made with organic ingredients. At least 70% of the ingredients must be organic. The product cannot carry the USDA Organic seal.

Non- or -free. Must have less than the following per serving: fat (0.5 gram), sugar (0.5 gram), cholesterol (2mg), or sodium (5mg).

Low-. Generally, the product must have less than the following per serving: fat (3 grams), cholesterol (20 mg), or sodium (140 mg).

Reduced. Generally, the product must have at least 25% less of the given component than is typically found in that type of food.

Light. If at least half of the product's calories come from fat, fat must be reduced by at least 50% per serving. If less than half of the calories are from fat, fat must be reduced at least 50%, or calories reduced at least 33%, per serving.

Reduced, Added, Extra, Plus, Fortified, Enriched. These claims can be made relative to a similar representative product.

High, Rich In, Excellent Source Of. All designate products with at least 20% of the recommended daily amount per serving.

Good Source, Contains, Provides. The product must have more than 10% but less than 20% of the recommended daily amount per serving.

More, Fortified, Enriched, Added, Extra, Plus. For vitamins, minerals, protein, and fiber with at least 10% of the recommended amount per serving.

Lean. Generally, less than 10 grams of fat.

Extra lean. Less than 5 grams of fat.

Certified Humane. A label for products made by non-profit organizations dedicated to humane treatment of animals. To use the label, animals must have been given no growth hormones or antibiotics, or lived in cages, crates, or stalls; and must have had "access to sufficient, clean, and nutritious feed and water."

Naturally raised. A recent USDA standard for animals raised withhout growth hormones or anitbiotics.

Natural. A term regulated only for meats and poultry -- containing no artificial flavors, colors, or chemical preservatives -- and otherwise meaningless.

Some label terms, although truthful, have little or no real meaning, no standards for definition -- and a high potential to confuse consumers:

• Contains antioxidants
• Doctor-recommended
• Free-range (can mean anything from an animal that roams freely to one that is let out of its cage from time to time)
• Green
• Immunity formula
• Kid-approved
• Made with whole grains
• May lower cholesterol
• Natural (for non-meat or -poultry products)
• Natural goodness
• No trans fat
• Non-toxic
• Parent-tested
• Strengthens your immune system

Chiaki came up with an awesome idea for a meal
Paleo Soft Tacos!!!!
heres what they look like and yep they tasted just as good as they look!!






























enough for two:
6 egg whites
1 pound of Lean ground beef (we used bison beef)
1/2 head of lettuce
1 tomato (diced)
1 avocado
cilantro
1/2 onion
Olive oil or coconut oil

heat about 1/4 cup of oil in a skillet
in a separate skillet cook and season your ground beef
cook one egg white @ a time in the heated oil (pour it in like you would a pancake)
dice the onions and mix half with the ground beef
mash the avocado and mix the rest of the onion and your desired amount of cilantro
to make some guacamole
when everything is cooked put the meat in the egg shell and garnish with tomatoes, lettuce and guacamole
Enjoy!!!

All hail the Sweet Potato!!

Ok so the sweet potato is definately a starchy carb and like all whole foods the nutritional values can tell us alot more than just its identification. If you look @ your paleo dietary guidelines it says avoid starchy carbs, yet it seems every site I hold in high regard in reference to paleolithic eating says "sweet potato good!!!" So what gives? alright here is what I can tell you, yes it is a starchy carb, but it is also a root and roots are typically held in favor when you are talking about our ancestral diet. They are also not toxic if eaten raw like its ugly cousin the potato, in fact in the polynesian islands it was ground into a paste and eaten for thousands of years. Still not convinced? Well here are a few more facts for you.. because it is so high in antioxidants properties it is listed among the top 16 paleo foods when rated for overall nutrients. It is extremely high in vitamin A as betacarotene, vitamin C, manganese, copper potassium, iron and the list goes on. When you hear people talk about Okinawans being the longest lived people on the planet and attribute it to their diet they are talking about the traditional Okinawan diet, the staples of this diet were, fish, pork and of course SWEET POTATO'S!!! Rice was not a staple of the okinawan diet until they were invaded by the Japanese and forced to grow rice as payment of taxes. Granted we still need to take into consideration that Starchy means carbs and that we should eat them somewhat sparingly but @ 15 net carbs per 100 grams, and a glycemic load of 7 we can definitely say the pro's outweigh the con's.

Apple-Stuffed Roasted Chicken With Sweet Potato Chips

After all the animal fat talk this week, I figured a recipe was in order. But how could I make a dish that revolved around animal fat? Animal fats usually are just cooking aids, rather than stars of the show – it wasn’t like I could just plop a few ounces of rendered lard on a plate and serve that up – so I had to somehow emphasize them. To accomplish this, I used three different animal fats in the making of the dish. Bacon lard coated the oven-roasted chicken, the apples cooked in goose fat, and the sweet potato chips were fried in freshly-rendered beef tallow.

Here’s what you’ll need:

A chicken (I used a four-pounder)
Apples (I used gala)
Sweet potatoes
Goose fat
Bacon lard
Tallow
Sea salt
Pepper
Cardamom
A lemon

First, preheat your oven to 425 degrees and place your three fats on the counter to soften. Rinse your chicken and save the organs. After patting it dry, coat your chicken, inside and out, with sea salt and black pepper. Make sure the salt is really being absorbed into the skin. Set it aside until this takes place.

Next, chop up your apples into cubes. I used 3 medium sized gala apples, very crisp and sweet. They were organic, so I left the peels on. Sprinkle a good amount of fresh lemon juice (about half a lemon’s worth) onto your apples and toss.

Stuff your chicken with the apples. If you can’t fit them all, don’t worry. You’ll be removing the original bunch about halfway through the roasting, at which point you can re-stuff the chicken with the leftover apples.

Coat the chicken liberally with the softened bacon lard. I used three nice big globs. You’ll probably have to use your hands and get a little greasy if you really want a good coating… and you want a good coating. Once it’s all coated (don’t forget the bottom), put the chicken breast up in a roasting pan and pop it into the oven.

While the chicken roasts and the delicious scent of heated bacon fat fills the kitchen, you should prep the sweet potatoes. Peel them and then, with the sharpest knife available, slice them as thin as you can. Achieving a crispy sweet potato can be really difficult, and a thickness of more than a few millimeters pretty much makes it impossible (without resorting to a starchy coating, which you don’t want). Lay your potato slices out on a paper towel, sprinkle salt on both sides, and cover them with another paper towel. The salt will draw out moisture and the towels will soak it up. Remember, moisture is the enemy of crispness.

After thirty minutes in the oven, reduce the heat to 375 degrees. The skin should be nicely browning by now. If you have more apples you’d like to cook, now’s the time to make the switch. Use a spoon to scoop out the warm apples and reserve them in a bowl. Stuff the chicken with the new apples. Put the bird back in the oven.

After forty minutes, your chicken should be done. Make sure it is by stabbing the thickest part of the thigh; if the juices run clear, it’s done. If they run red, it still has a bit more to go. My four-pounder was done after forty, but oven temperatures and bird weights will vary, so do the stab test. If your chicken’s done, remove the apples and add them to the original bunch, sprinkling some cardamom over all of them.

Now it’s time to heat the tallow. Get a heavy pan (cast iron is probably best) and use enough tallow to make about a half-inch of liquid fat. Heat it over medium-high heat for a few minutes, then do a test run. Add a single sweet potato slice (they should be ready by now) and monitor it closely. If it starts to brown and crisp up after just a few minutes, you have a good heat level. Go ahead and add the rest. Don’t overcrowd the pan, because that will drop the temperature. Use tongs to occasionally flip the slices, making sure not to allow burning. The key is having incredibly thinly sliced potato slices so that the frying is brief and instantaneous. Let them cool/drain on a paper towel.

At the same time, heat a couple tablespoons of goose fat in another heavy pan over medium-high heat. Add your apples. They’re pretty much cooked already (from their time in the chicken), so you’re mainly looking to get a nice crust on them. When you’re satisfied with the texture and the level of char, remove them from the heat.

Next, combine all three on the same piece of circular ceramic and dig in!

We would love to hear about some of the results two weeks in... If your group leader wants to keep it top secret then don't compromise your relationship with them but if you have some great results to report that would help others that are struggling then please post some of your data to comments!!!

Ok so I'm about to just link this page so it automatically goes to Mark Sissons site... Again he comes through with some great points @ the perfect time. Each and every one of us needs to honestly evaluate our diets. If we are not be honest about our diet, who is really the one losing here. So many people think that paleolithic eating means we can eat as much as we want as long as we stay within the paleo boundaries. Mark is quick to point out that @ some point calories in calories out still holds validity. Yes we tend not to calorie count because Paleo eating SHOULD be calorically restrictive by nature, but lets remember those cave dudes were much more active than us, they often intermittently fasted (unintentionally) when the hunt failed and they did not have excess food stores because they were nomadic.

17 Reasons You’re Not Losing Weight

Effective, healthy weight loss isn’t only due to the simplistic calories in, calories out paradigm. Nor is it solely reliant on diet and exercise. It’s everything – it’s all the various signals our body receives from the environment that affect how our genes express themselves and thrive. How we approach the subject matters, too. Our mood, our methods, our temperament. Our conscious decisions and our willpower. It’s setting good habits and expunging bad ones. Most of all, it comes down to keeping our genes happy by providing an environment that approximates evolutionary precedent.

1. You think you’re eating healthy, but aren’t.

Does your diet consist of a massive amount of “products”? Low-carb or not, you want to eat real food. Flagons of diet soda, plates of pure fiber in the shape of noodles, and loaves of 1g net carb “bread” do not a Primal diet make. You’re just feeding an addiction and consuming empty calories – sound familiar? Disregard the labels and look inside for what you know to be true: this crap isn’t food, and you shouldn’t be eating it. It’s about way more than just low-carb.

2. You’re under too much stress.

The stress response system is subconscious; it responds to stimuli and nothing else. Emotional stress, physical stress, financial stress, relationship stress – I hesitate to even make these distinctions, because the body does not differentiate between sources of stress. They all cause the body to produce cortisol, the fight-or-flight hormone that catabolizes muscle, worsens insulin resistance, and promotes the storage of fat. For 200,000 years, stress meant a life or death situation. It was intense and infrequent, and the cortisol release was arresting and extreme enough to improve the chances of survival. Today, our body responds to a stack of paperwork the same way. Traffic jams are like rival war bands. A nagging boss is like a rampaging mastodon, only on a daily basis. Take a step back from your life and take stock of your stress levels – they may be holding you back.

3. You need to watch your carb intake.

Carbs are key, as always, especially when you’ve got weight to lose. Veer closer to the bottom of the curve, taking care to avoid all processed food (hidden sugars). You might also try skipping fruit.

4. You’re adding muscle.

I always tell people not to get hung up on the scales so much. Those things are useful – don’t get me wrong – but they never tell the whole story, like whether or not you’re adding lean mass. The PB will spur fat loss, but it also promotes muscle gain and better bone density. If you’re feeling good but failing to see any improvements register on the scale’s measurements, it’s most likely extra muscle and stronger bone from resistance training. You wouldn’t know that just from the bathroom scale. If you absolutely need objective records of your progress, get a body fat percentage test (although these might not even tell the whole story) or try measuring your waist.

5. You’re not active enough.

Are you Moving Frequently at a Slow Pace for three to five hours every week? Remember: the near-daily low-level (between 55-75% max heart rate) movement should be the bedrock of your fitness regimen. It’s easy to do (because every bit of movement counts) and it doesn’t dip into your glycogen reserves (making it a pure fat burner, not a sugar burner). If you’re on the low end of the spectrum, crank it up toward five weekly hours and beyond.

6. You’re lapsing into Chronic Cardio.

Of course, you can go too far with the low-level movement – you can begin to lapse into Chronic Cardio. When you stay above 75% of your maximum heart rate for extended periods of time, you’re burning glycogen. Your body in turn craves even more sugar to replenish the lost stores, so you polish off a heap of carbs, preferably simple and fast-acting. You can continue down this route if you wish – I did, for a couple decades – but you’ll gain weight, lose muscle, release more cortisol, and compromise any progress you might have made.

7. You still haven’t tried IF.

Results vary, but if you’ve seemingly tried everything else, intermittent fasting can be a great tool to break through a weight loss plateau. Make sure you’ve fully transitioned onto a Primal eating plan and start small. Skip breakfast and eat a late lunch. If that feels okay, skip breakfast and lunch the next time. Just take it slow and pay attention to your hunger. Eventually, try exercising in a fasted state to maximize the metabolic advantage. If all goes well, your hunger won’t necessarily disappear, but it’ll change. A successful IF tames hunger, makes it less insistent and demanding.

8. You’re eating too much.

Low-carb isn’t magic. It reins in wild hunger and tames insulin, but calories do still matter – especially once you approach your ideal weight. In fact, those last few pounds often don’t respond to the same stuff that worked so well to get you to this point. Eating nut butter by the spoonful and hunks of cheese without regard for caloric content may have gotten you this far, but you’ve got to tighten things up if things aren’t working. And that’s the real test, isn’t it? There is a metabolic advantage to eating according to the PB, but if the weight isn’t coming off, something’s up – and calories may need to come down.

9. You haven’t overcome bad habits or developed good ones.

Be brutally honest with yourself. Do you engage in bad habits? If so, identify them. Make tentative, loose plans to disengage from their clutches, and tell people close to you. Make it public, so you can’t back out without losing face. You’ve also got to develop good ones. Follow roughly similar guidelines as when kicking a bad habit – identification, planning, publication – and you’ll be on your way.

10. You haven’t purged and Primalized your pantry.

Out of sight, out of mind; out of reach, out of mouth. Keep the crappy junk food out of your pantry, if not out of your house altogether. Go down the list and toss the stuff that doesn’t apply. As for the rest of your kitchen, check out the fridge interiors and grocery lists of some other Primal folks for inspiration.

11. You’ve reached a healthy homeostasis.

It may be that your body has reached its “ideal” weight – its effective, genetic set point. Reaching this level is generally painless and effortless, but it won’t necessarily correspond to your desired level of leanness. Women, especially, tend to achieve healthy homeostasis at higher body fat levels. Breaking through plateaus can be hard enough, but plateaus ordained by the body itself can be nearly impossible. It’s probably going to take some serious tinkering with carbs, calories, activity levels, sleep, and stress. If everything else is on point and accounted for, you may be looking at healthy homeostasis. Then, the question becomes: do you want to mess with a good thing?

12. You’re low on willpower.

Willpower is like a muscle. It must be used or it will atrophy. You’ve also got to provide fuel for your will – little victories to start out. Go for a walk if you can’t muster the will for the gym. Take note that willpower, or lack thereof, might actually be an indicator of your body’s needs. If you truly can’t muster up the will for the gym, it may be that your body needs to recover. When that’s the case, overtraining is a bigger danger than lack of will.

13. You’re full of excuses.

If you find yourself having mini self-contained internal arguments throughout the day (and you lose), or (even worse) lying to yourself about what you’re eating and doing, you’re probably also full of excuses. Read this, maybe twice, then follow up with this.

14. You haven’t actually gone Primal!

We get a good number of new readers on a regular basis, and not all of them take instantly to the Primal concepts. And yet they come back. They read the archives, the comments. Something draws them near, while at the same time keeping them at arm’s length. Why is that? What’s stopping them? If that describes you, what are you waiting for? Take the plunge. Go Primal for 30 days and see how you like it. I assure you; the many enthusiastic community members are here because it works.

15. You’re not getting enough sleep.

Chronic levels of sleep deprivation cause the release of cortisol, our old fat-storing friend. The biggest spike in (fat-burning, anabolic) growth hormone plasma levels occurs in deep sleep. And a recent sleep study showed that truncated sleep patterns are linked to weight gain. Get seven to eight hours of sleep a night.

16. You haven’t given it enough time.

The Primal Blueprint is a fat loss hack, undoubtedly, but it isn’t always a shortcut. Some people get instant results from dropping carbs, grains, sugar, and vegetable oils, while others have to take a month to get acclimated and only then does the weight begin to slide off. Either way, though, this is a lifestyle. You’re in it for the long run. Approach it with the right mindset and you won’t get discouraged.

17. You’re eating too much dairy.

Some people just react poorly to dairy. We see this time and time again listed in the forums; dairy just seems to cause major stalls in fat loss for a good number of folks. There are a couple speculative reasons for this. One, folks coming from a strict paleo background may not be acclimated to the more relaxed Primal stance on dairy. Reintroducing any food into the diet after a period of restriction can have unintended consequences on body composition. Two, dairy is insulinogenic, which is why it’s a popular post-workout refueling tool for athletes. Does a non-strength training PBer need to drink a few glasses of milk every day? Probably (definitely) not.

Bonus Reason: Sprinting is not part of your fitness routine.

I’ve found that many assume that they’re getting everything they need from their workouts from plenty of low level aerobic activity and a couple of strength training sessions each week. Sprinting is often overlooked, but it’s one of the Primal Blueprint Laws for a reason. Nothing shreds you up faster than sprinting. I’d ease into sprints if you’ve never done them or are extremely out of shape or overweight. That is, I recommend you have some measure of fitness aptitude before you jump into a routine. But once you’re ready do 6-8 all out sprints (with short breaks between) once a week to break a weight loss plateau when all other attempts have failed.

Am I missing any other reasons? If you’ve successfully surmounted a stall in your fat loss, what was the ultimate explanation? Let everyone know in the comment board!

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