Michelle’s life changing experience with CrossFit & the Paleo Diet

“Last July I switched from my previous gym to CrossFit Auckland and immediately noticed how quickly my fitness changed. I still wasn’t losing weight though so knew it must be down to my diet and lifestyle. After seeing photos from a friends wedding in January I knew I really had to change my lifestyle if I wanted to see results. Fate stepped in and I saw the CrossFit Auckland Paleo challenge advertised at the Box and signed up on the spot. I had no idea what the Paleo Diet really involved but knew it was what I needed. I gave myself the goal of losing 20kgs by the time I left for Europe which was in seven months time (the challenge started on the 1^st of February).”

Read more at Julianne's Paleo & Zone Nutrition

MDA Success Story: John Mack

"I had always thought about losing weight but never gave it a fair try. I thought about it everyday. The hardest part for me was trying to find clothes. I would have to order them online or go to big and tall stores."

Read more: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/down-100-pounds-in-9-months/#ixzz2eAm5p9US

Primal Diet Guide to Shopping, Eating & Dinning

Mark Sisson at Mark's Daily Apple has a great post on how to "Shop, Cook, and Dine Primally":

"You know what not to eat, and the Primal Blueprint Shopping List shows you what you should be eating, but what’s next? How do you apply your newfound knowledge? How and where should you shop? Once you’re well-stocked, how do you begin to cook Primally? What equipment do you use and where do you get the proper recipes? And when you’re eating out, how do you make good choices? What do you tell the waiters? How do you navigate the nutritional minefield that is the modern restaurant menu? If it seems overwhelming, it’s really not."

Learn more here.

Success Stories: How Sarah became The Paleo Mom

Sarah before. Image: The Paleo MomI continued to gain weight after that.  I was now a postdoctoral fellow in a very high-profile research lab in Toronto, Ontario, doing ground-breaking medical research and working 80-100 hour weeks.  I stopped weighing myself after 260 pounds and always assumed that I gained 10-15 more pounds after that based on the fact that I went up an entire clothing size (or was it two?).  However, when I look at this picture, taken the summer of 2004, I think I may have been underestimating how heavy I was at my biggest. Until now, I’ve always said that I was 265-270 pounds at my biggest.  But now, I think I was pushing 300 pounds.  I was wearing plus-size 26 clothes.  I was miserable.  I dyed my hair crazy colors to compensate for low self-esteem.

Read Sarah's story at The Paleo Mom

THE WEIGHT OF THE NATION, PART 2 - CHOICES

The second section of the four part series of THE WEIGHT OF THE NATION focuses upon choices that individuals can and do make that affect their weight control and ultimately their health. According to the National Institutes of Health $800Million is currently budgeted annually for research on the causes, consequences, prevention, and treatment of obesity in the U.S. best current research evidence shows that small changes in lifestyle can produce small weight loss that yields positive results for current and long term health. The National Weight Control Registry identified the following characteristics of persons who maintain a weight loss:

• 78% eat breakfast every day
• 75% weigh themselves at least once a week
• 62% watch less than 10 hours of TV per week
• 90% participate in physical activity daily

The obesity epidemic is overwhelming our resources as a nation- but we can each do our part to fix it. For more information visit Part Two, Choices.

Success Stories: How Tara became Primal Girl

Tara before. Image: Primal GirlI saw dozens of doctors – German ones, Canadian ones, American and Dutch. Some told me I was suffering from allergies. Others made me keep a food journal and count calories. Some gave me acne medication. I was poked, prodded and bled. The one conclusion that all of the doctors shared was that I was overreacting, hysterical and wasting their time. According to them, I was just fat and lazy – and probably a hypochondriac.

I was miserable. 

Read Tara's story at Primal Girl

Tara after. Image: Primal Girl

THE WEIGHT OF THE NATION, Part One: Consequences of Obesity

By Suzanne

According to Donald Lloyd-Jones MD, Chair of Preventive Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, ideal cardiovascular health is characterized by meeting each of the following criteria:

• Optimal levels of total cholesterol
• Normal blood pressure
• Not having diabetes
• Having a lean BMI
• Not smoking
• Participating in recommended levels of physical activity
• Pursuing a healthy diet

How do you measure up?  Surprisingly, less than 1% of the United States population currently meet these criteria. A key reason: overweight and obesity affect 69% of the U.S. population. The initial one hour segment of the WEIGHT OF THE NATION focuses upon the health consequences of overweight and obesity. Together, they are creating a tsunami of chronic disease costing an additional $150 Billion in health care costs.  

See PART I here.

Related Post

THE WEIGHT OF THE NATION

Success Story: “30 days of caveman”

After reading multiple sources on the science and justification for this diet, I decided to try it for 30 days.  I had my physician order some blood work for later comparison, cleaned out my cabinets, and got to it.

The results forever changed how I would think of food.  What I had originally thought was a diet of moderation and general health was in fact quite the opposite.

According to my pre-diet blood profile, I was quickly approaching necessary medical intervention.  My total cholesterol and LDL levels were far too high.  HDL levels were quite low as well.

After 30 days of eating only approved foods, every blood value I had tested had improved.  The test ran values on 15 various markers and every single test came back healthier.

Fitness & Function

THE WEIGHT OF THE NATION

By Suzanne

My first entry covers America’s number one public health problem - the obesity epidemic. It is an honor to contribute to PaleoTerran and I welcome your comments.

I was fortunate to be invited and attend a local community screening of  THE WEIGHT OF THE NATION.  This four-part presentation showcases the multi-factorial causes of the obesity epidemic in the United States and features prevention efforts that can be implemented by individuals, families, and communities at large as they combat this major public health threat.   

The film includes a discussion of human DNA and how it remains little changed from that of our hunter-gatherer ancestors.  As a species, humans are adapted for low calorie intake, increase energy expenditure, and the challenge of finding food.  Agriculture changed human social structure and created greater food security. The early 20th century witnessed an increase in food research and government subsidies resulting in increasing crop yields and surpluses.  A food economy developed with goal of maintaining a surplus.  The same technological advances that brought food surpluses created an environment favoring the development of the obesity epidemic.

The resulting impact on health and cost to our society is tremendous.  The CDC reports that 68.8% of the current population in the U.S. is either obese or overweight; obesity is essentially becoming the new norm. This new norm causes a proliferation of chronic diseases, such as diabetes, that decrease American’s life expectancies. Over $150 Billion is spent annually on the health consequences associated with obesity in the U.S.  Furthermore, the financial consequences of the obesity epidemic impact businesses by increasing health care costs, decreasing employee productivity, and increasing absenteeism.  Ultimately, in one-way or another, everyone in society is affected.

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) reviewed past success that improved national health including tobacco cessation, air quality, and water pollution and decided that action is necessary to address obesity.

You may ask: “What can I do to protect myself, my family, and my community?"  With 68.8% of our population affected, we all may know a family member, a friend, or a loved one who is either obese or over-weight.

Help spread the facts about the obesity epidemic, its impact, and how everyone can participate as change agents to promote the health of society.

Although not specifically promoting Paleo, the presentation does validate the benefits of Paleolithic nutrition. As we continue to become educated consumers, we can share the message with our families and communities. The presentation and multiple resources are freely available on the HBO web site found here.

Throughout September, I will critique each of the four sections and showcase the steps we can all take to benefit our families, friends, and communities. Paleolithic nutrition can play a role in reducing the weight of the nation.

THE WEIGHT OF THE NATION is a presentation by HBO and the Institute of Medicine (IOM), in association with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and in partnership with the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation and Kaiser Permanente.

Anthropologist Herman Pontzer on Paleolithic energetics

In a recent post, I commented on the multi-institutional research study, published in the July 25 of Plos ONE, that challenges conventional wisdom on the role of an active lifestyle in preventing obesity. Anthropologist and the lead author Herman Pontzer discuss the study in The New York Times article Debunking the Hunter-Gatherer Workout:

The World Health Organization, in discussing the root causes of obesity, has cited a “decrease in physical activity due to the increasingly sedentary nature of many forms of work, changing modes of transportation and increasing urbanization.”

This is a nice theory. But is it true? To find out, my colleagues and I recently measured daily energy expenditure among the Hadza people of Tanzania, one of the few remaining populations of traditional hunter-gatherers. Would the Hadza, whose basic way of life is so similar to that of our distant ancestors, expend more energy than we do?

The short answer: no. The study, while adding some subtle complexity to the role of physical activity, strongly points to the nutritionaly deficient Western diet as the primary cause of the obesity epidemic:

All of this means that if we want to end obesity, we need to focus on our diet and reduce the number of calories we eat, particularly the sugars our primate brains have evolved to love. We’re getting fat because we eat too much, not because we’re sedentary. 

I would add: we eat too much of the wrong things. It is much harder to overeat when the diet consists of lean meats, fish, vegetables, fruits, nuts and berries, and contains, minimal, if any, grains, refined sugars, or dairy. While physical activity is important to great health, its major role is improving cardiovascular, neurological, and musculoskeletal health rather than reducing weight.

Physical activity is very important for maintaining physical and mental health, but we aren’t going to Jazzercise our way out of the obesity epidemic. 

Related Posts

• Do hunter-gatherers really burn more calories per day?

Video: Mark Sisson on the Primal Diet

Paleo Food Truck - Indianapolis, Indiana

Shelby Malterr does a nice job on the Paleo rationale.
Via Indy Style TV: Paleo Food Truck