Mark Sisson's Blog, page 362

October 2, 2012

Dear Mark: Ornish Strikes Again, Vitamin D from Light Boxes, and Kimchi and Cancer

kimchi

Ah, it’s good to be back in the saddle again. The challenge was a lot of fun – don’t get me wrong – but ultimately both you guys and I come here for the dispensation of musings and information and writings and discussion on health, fitness, and any other number of lifestyle topics. So, let’s get to it, shall we?

Today, we’re doing a roundup of three Dear Mark questions and answers. First, I address the latest insinuation from Dean Ornish that we’re all killing ourselves despite our weight loss, our fitness gains, our prescription reductions, our improved outlooks on life, and our elevated levels of general happiness and satisfaction. Next, I discuss whether or not those light therapy boxes designed to combat seasonal disaffective disorder and reset circadian rhythms will also help us generate vitamin D. And finally, I explore the research linking the intake of pickled vegetables like kimchi to gastric cancer. Let’s go:

Eating for Health, Not Weight

Could you please comment on the article at the link above?

Also, did you have a chance to research overmineralization theory of aging?

Thanks

Don

Sure.

This isn’t the first time I’ve mentioned Ornish. Way back in 2007, I wrote about a study comparing the Ornish diet, the Atkins diet, the Zone diet, and the LEARN diet. I won’t get too deep into his criticisms of low-carb, high-fat (or should I say “high-protein”) diets, because they’re based on the very same studies that have been thoroughly ravaged across this and other blogs for the past few years. Like my piece on the connection between red meat and type 2 diabetes here, and Denise Minger’s piece on the connection between low-carb diets and heart disease in Swedish women here.

Instead, my main focus will be on Ornish’s claim that his diet is optimal, that his magic diet program can reverse atherosclerosis and result in weight loss that obliterates the cheeseburger-and-buttered-bacon-fueled opposition. He makes this claim a lot, and you hear about it all the time from other sources. What’s he talking about? Where is this coming from? Why, he must have an impressive personal archive of statistics from diet study after diet study in which patients were placed on the Ornish plan and didn’t just thrive, but became supernatural beacons of health. Right?

Not really. It all comes from a single study done on 35 people published back in 1998. Twenty people were randomly selected to receive the Ornish diet – a low-fat, vegetarian diet rich in fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains, and soybean products. They were also placed on a lifestyle modification program which had them exercise regularly, go to stress management training, stop smoking, and do psychosocial support group meetings. That was the experimental group. The other fifteen – the control group – were not counseled in this manner, instead being told to merely “keep listening to their physicians.” How did this all play out?

The experimental group was exercising five hours a week; the control group was exercising two and a half hours a week.

The experimental group was spending 87 minutes per week performing stress management techniques like meditation; the control group was spending less than five minutes a week doing it.

The experimental group lost almost 24 pounds after a year and managed to keep 12 of them off after five years. The control group lost little to no weight.

Sure enough, by the end of the study, the experimental group had reduced atherosclerosis. After five years, the experimental group had experienced 0.89 cardiac events per patient, while the control group had experienced 2.25 events per patient. Things definitely improved.

So, what was it? Was it the diet alone that improved the experimental group’s health, as Ornish loves to emphasize? Or could it be that the weight loss, the meditation, the stress reduction, the exercise, and the lack of smoking also played a role in improving their heart health?

We already know that weight loss improves health, and a recent study even suggests that the type of diet isn’t very important for improving the function of blood vessels so long as you’re losing belly fat on it. We know that meditation and stress reduction can lower hypertension and reduce mortality from heart disease (and it can even increase telomerase, which Ornish again says his diet is responsible for). We know that regular exercise fights heart disease. And everyone knows that smoking tobacco is a terrible choice (PDF) for patients with heart disease (and anyone else, really).

So why does Ornish feel the need to reduce the benefits of his program to the composition of the diet while deemphasizing and often failing to mention the other aspects of the lifestyle modification program he recommends?

Because if he didn’t, he’d have to acknowledge that other diets can work alongside “lifestyle modification,” even – or especially – diets that include ample amounts of animal fat and protein.

To sum up, Ornish’s program – the diet that leads to weight loss, the exercise, the stress reduction, and the cessation of smoking – clearly seems to work for improving heart health. But he hasn’t proven that the specifics of his vegetarian low-fat diet are the main reason, nor has he shown that a high-fat, low-carb diet would somehow negate the proven benefits of the non-diet lifestyle modifications.

And sorry, haven’t had time to look into the overmineralization theory yet. Thanks for the reminder, though!

Mark,

Thank you for your website, I am starting out with the program and I have a question about sunlight and “wake lights,” specifically the Philips GoLITE Blu.

I work in theatre, a profession that is known for fast food and no sunlight, and I was recently diagnosed with narcolepsy. I have been using the GoLITE Blu to help try and regulate my sleep cycles and I was curious if you knew to what extent it helps with vitamin D production, particularly for days (or weeks) where I don’t get a lot of sun.

Thanks,

John

Hey John.

I like the wake lights. They’re great for normalizing your circadian rhythms and getting you more in tune with the ebb and pulse of the day. And while actual natural light is probably best and perhaps irreplaceable, the GoLITE Blu is a fantastic option for when you just can’t get outside to let your eyes perceive the real stuff. However, the wake light unfortunately does not help with vitamin D production. For vitamin D, you absolutely need to expose your skin to UVB rays, the kind generated by the sun.

There is a lamp that generates enough UVB to stimulate vitamin D production, designed by Dr. Holick, author of The Vitamin D Solution. If anything will work, that should. At $425, it’s a little steep, but if you want to generate vitamin D the natural way without sun, that’ll do it.

Let me know how it goes.

Hi Mark!

I love your blog and your book. I learn something new every time I drop by on MDA! Keep up the good work!

Since you promote fermented foods a lot on MDA, I wanted to ask you: is there such a thing as too much fermented food?

When my South Korean friend immigrated to my city, she introduced me to spicy cabbage kimchi. Since I share your love of all things fermented, I liked it from the start, although it was a bit spicy at first. Recently I discovered that it is incredibly delicious when fried in butter as a side dish or as a topping for a good chunk of meat. The butter mellows the spices and rounds out the tangy flavor.

My friend cautioned me, however, to exercise restraint. Apparently it is common knowledge in Korea that while a bit of kimchi every day keeps the doctor away, it is addictive, and too much kimchi increases one’s risk of colorectal cancer. I totally agree that kimchi can be addictive (especially with butter!), but I wonder about the cancer part. Kimchi refers to all fermented vegetables, not just the spicy cabbage westerners are familiar with, so it is not only about the spices. Some kinds of kimchi are traditionally prepared pretty mild, and most kinds of kimchi are prepared with or without spices according to the family tradition. For exemple, in my friend’s family, cabbage, green onion and bitter gourd are prepared spicy, while daikon, pumpkin and cucumber kimchi are prepared mild.

Do you think there is such a thing as too much fermented foods? Should I cut back if I find myself eating something fermented at almost every meal? Are the abundant spices of the Korean cuisine to blame rather than the kimchi? Or do you think this is all Korean Conventional Wisdom, full of good intentions but full of flaws?

Thank you for your insight!

Nathalie

Thanks for the compliments!

It’s true that kimchi has been linked in several observational studies to cancer, but not colorectal cancer. It’s actually stomach, or gastric, cancer that’s primarily associated with kimchi intake. To get an idea of what they’re talking about, take a look at one of the latest of these studies, a 2009 meta-analysis entitled “Fresh and pickled vegetable consumption and gastric cancer in Japanese and Korean populations: A meta-analysis of observational studies.”

I think there are a few possible explanations for this:

Note that the highest levels of pickled vegetable intake are associated with stomach cancer, meaning that people who are eating the most kimchi are probably eating less fresh vegetation, simply because they run out of “room” in their diets for the fresh stuff. Furthermore, intake of non-fermented vegetables like cabbage and other cruciferous vegetables, garlic, onion, and allium vegetables in general are often inversely associated with stomach cancer, and if you’re eating a bunch of fermented cabbage, you’re probably not going to include a significant amount of non-fermented cabbage and other vegetables, too.
Kimchi, even homemade stuff, has been shown to form significant amounts of nitrosamines when subjected to “simulated human stomach conditions.” Dietary nitrosamines have been linked to several cancers, including gastric, but I’m not sure how realistic those simulated stomach conditions actually are.
Atrophic gastritis, a type of chronic inflammation of the stomach mucosa, can increase the risk of developing stomach cancer; atrophic gastritis is often caused by a helicobacter pylori infection. The presence of large amounts of salt in the stomach (like from a meal of pickled vegetables) has been linked to an increase in the virulence of h. pylori. Since h. pylori infection is far more common in Korea, perhaps a high intake of salty pickled vegetables makes the already-present h. pylori more virulent, which leads to more atrophic gastritis and, eventually, gastric cancer.

But that’s not the entire picture:

Although the study’s authors suggest that antioxidant reduction from prolonged fermentation may be responsible for the connection, the fermentation process actually increases the antioxidant activity of kimchi. Fermented cabbage in particular seems to have higher levels of anti-carcinogenic compounds called isothiocyanates and lower levels of nitrates.
Then there’s the fact that certain probiotic strains isolated from kimchi actually reduce the ability of h. pylori to cause gastritis.
Plus, kimchi – let alone “pickled vegetables” – can refer to many different vegetables with different nutritional properties. Are you eating typical cabbage kimchi? Radish kimchi? This study suggests that radish kimchi increases the risk of gastric cancer, while cabbage kimchi reduces it. We should be wary of reducing as broad a category as “pickled and fermented vegetables” to one all-encompassing phrase, because we’re bound to mess up some details.

Confusing, huh? If any lesson can be gleaned from this, it’s to treat fermented vegetables, including kimchi, as a condiment. Also, you’ll want to make sure that your fermented vegetable intake does not replace your fresh vegetable intake. Fresh veggies should provide bulk and volume to your meals, while fermented vegetables should act as adornments and meal enhancers. Treat fermented and fresh vegetables like you treat cured meats and fresh meats; as delicious as bacon is, you don’t want it to comprise the majority of your meat intake.

To answer your questions:

There’s probably such a thing as too much fermented food, but I don’t have a hard number for you. It’s “too much” when it begins to crowd out fresh vegetable intake.
Eating something fermented at every meal should be fine so long as it’s – once again – not the only way you’re eating vegetables.
Spices are almost uniformly healthy, especially since these are homemade ferments without added MSG and other junk masquerading as “spices.”
It’s always worth investigating traditional advice about health and nutrition, in my opinion, because there’s often some wisdom lurking there.

Oh, and avoid radish kimchi at all costs or risk certain death!

Just kidding. Thanks for reading, folks.

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Published on October 02, 2012 08:00

October 1, 2012

Finish Line: The 2012 Challenge

primal 21day challenge Wow. When I first decided to revamp the annual Primal Challenge into the 21-day model, I knew we’d be looking at an intense, filled-to-the-brim three weeks. I had no idea. Every year I relish the Challenge, and this year was no exception. Congratulations to everyone out there who participated – whether it was your first foray into the Primal Blueprint or whether you’re a longtime adherent who tackled a new lifestyle dimension. A big thanks also to all who offered support, perspective, and feedback to fellow readers along the way. The Challenge never fails to highlight the truly awesome Primal community that inspires this blog. For me, it’s the ultimate reflection – and maybe celebration – of what living Primally is all about. It’s a testament, I think, to the power of a few key principles for healthier living – as well as the incredible inventiveness and individuality that folks bring to the Primal model.

The Challenge officially ended yesterday. Now that it’s all said and done, I want to hear your perceptions of it. It’s a good time to take stock of your experience while it’s still fresh. What exactly are you bringing away from the Challenge? More energy? A renewed optimism about your health? A new waist measurement? A more impressive mile time or VO2 max? A heftier deadlift max? Better sleep? Better confidence? I hope you’ll share your successes – and your stumbling blocks along the way. What worked for you? What didn’t? Did you follow the Action Items? What was most instrumental in the successes you experienced? No matter how dramatic or mixed the results, there’s so much to be gained from revisiting the overall venture. Reflection is an essential part of the process.

Let’s do a quick review of the highlights…

Primal Worthy Contests and Commentary

The competitive side of me loves the energy behind a good contest, and I’m glad so many of you share the enthusiasm. A big thanks to the companies who offered their products for the competitions this year. For the MDA community, it’s a great way to support the larger Primal and paleo business community, and I know readers love the chance to snag some truly extraordinary prizes that can help them live healthier. What’s more than the prizes themselves, however, is the incredible insight readers have shared in many of these contests. Whether it’s , designing a poster, or suggesting Primal Woman book themes, your feedback has been invaluable and amazingly impressive. Thank you to everybody for sharing your time, talent, and perspectives. And stay tuned for the fruits of your contributions.

Phenomenal Reader Content

I can’t salute this enough. I know everybody looks forward to the Friday Success Stories, and so many of you have been following the 2012 Success Stories in the Making chronicles. The Challenge always takes the readers’ presence on MDA to a whole new level. Every year I relish the chance to see what readers design when I turn the reins over to their creativity. I’m amazed, frankly. I’m inspired. I think, “I wish I would’ve thought of that!” Now that I know, I’m going to waste no time getting some of that action – whether it’s a fantastic recipe or an exciting new workout. I love the images of everything from celebratory Grokfeasts to Primal family living. Readers, you rock! What’s better is you show how flexible and relevant the PB can be for absolutely everyone’s lifestyle. You make the PB your own, and thank you all for sharing your takes on Primal living with the rest of us.

In case you missed any of the action, here are links to your submissions:

You can view the winners and sponsors of this year’s contests here.

Primal Blueprint Key Concepts and Action Items

Then there’s the practical, commonsensical, back to basics focus of the Challenge. This year I incorporated the new, streamlined summary of Primal living – made simple – as I outlined it in The Primal Blueprint 21-Day Total Body Transformation book. I invite you to revisit the posts on the 8 Key Concepts and 5 Action Items whenever you want a refresher or a bit of extra motivation. The posts now represent the blog version of a Primal primer for those beginning the journey or reviewing the fundamentals for healthier living.

There’s another angle to everyone’s experience that I want to throw out there. For all the talk about what each of us is taking away from the Challenge, there’s the flip side. It’s a less expected but nonetheless revealing question of what you brought to the 2012 Challenge. For first timers, what motivated you to give it a shot? What hope and history accompanied you on the 21-day journey? Are you new to MDA, or have you been observing from the periphery for a while? What shift made you finally take the plunge?

For those of you who have done the Challenge before or have been Primal for a while but who took on the Challenge for more in depth work, how were you different coming to the Challenge this year – your life, your motivation, your interest? Believe it or not, I do the Challenge myself every year. In the midst of being engrossed in the content and contests of the Challenge, I use the focus of these weeks to tackle some new area of life. Sure, I’ve had the basics down for years, but I never fail to uncover some new wrinkle that refreshes or deepens my own Primal experience. Life is somehow different every year. I find I’m different, too, as my work, family, and general life continue to shift and unfold.

Anyone who’s re-read a long favorite book only to find themselves getting something totally new out of it knows what I mean. Yes, the Primal principles themselves are pretty constant – rooted in age-old patterns of course. Nonetheless, through the course of life and change, we ourselves are constantly changing – bringing something different to our health undertakings. Repeating the Challenge – whether during the official MDA month or on your own during the year (maybe with the help of the 21-Day Total Body Transformation to boot?) can let you see the Primal Blueprint through a new lens. The light of a year’s life experiences can shift our emotional engagement and show us new depths or angles that seemed less relevant before. That’s part of what makes the PB a rewarding lifelong journey. It’s not a regimen that gets stale over time. It’s a model that you can continually revisit and adapt as your life and interests change.

The logical extension of all this is to reflect on what vision (not just results) you’re bringing now to life post-Challenge. What’s the next Primal chapter for you? What are your priorities? What do you want to tackle, hone, or simply enjoy moving forward? What resources, activities, choices, or experiments will serve you now in this next chapter? Finally, what are you looking for from MDA that could help you chart your course these next few months? The Challenge might be over, but I’m still here ready to support you in your ongoing Primal journey.

Thank you again, everyone, for another amazing, energizing Primal Challenge! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. And stay tuned. I’ve got plenty of new resources, posts, and news to come in the next several weeks, and we’ll be getting back to the regular schedule starting with a “Dear Mark” post tomorrow. Have a great week, everybody.

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Published on October 01, 2012 08:00

September 30, 2012

Weekend Link Love

Research of the Week

Rats fed a diet high in omega-6 fats – linoleic acid, to be exact – showed elevated levels of endogenous endocannabinoids, prompting overeating and the development of obesity. Corn oil-induced munchies? (PDF)

It appears that early hominids weren’t just desperate scavengers picking at bones and fighting over marrow after all.

Interesting Blog Posts

Ever wonder about inexpensive alternatives to minimalist shoes like Vibrams? J. Stanton did, and wrote all about it.

Chris Highcock explores the latest study suggesting that moderate exercise is better for fat loss than excessive exercise.

Media, Schmedia

Hey, that workout looks a little familiar, doesn’t it?

Should you go Paleo? (Yes.)

“Lessons of 107 Birthdays: Don’t Exercise, Avoid Medicine and Never Look Back.” Oh, and having centenarian genes might help, too.

Everything Else

I recently contributed one of my own “Little Life Experiments” to this great free e-book project. Check out what I discovered, as well as what fourteen other experts learned by running their own experiments. You might just learn something that will change your life.

They say a cataclysmic bacon shortage is just around the corner. I say this is a good opportunity to find yourself a pastured pork provider that doesn’t rely on corn and soy for feed.

Bravado aside, I can’t help but be a little concerned.

Finally, someone’s come up with a good use for soy.

Recipe Corner

With crab season fast approaching, it’s nice to have a recipe on hand beyond “steam, add butter.” Crab and squash bisque fits the bill, I think.
You say potato gratin, I say tomato fennel gratin.

Time Capsule

One year ago (September 31 – October 6)

Primal Blueprint Fitness: Primal Workouts in a Modern City – The winning entry from last year’s workout challenge.
Tuna Tataki with Gazpacho – The winning entry from last year’s recipe challenge. Go ahead – I dare you to try to not like Nacho.

Comment of the Week

“Steam is hot…. It’s steam.” Truer words have never been uttered.

-Knowledge is being dropped here, folks.

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Published on September 30, 2012 08:00

September 29, 2012

Contest Poll: The 2012 Grokfeast Challenge

I’d like to thank the 14 groups who participated in the Grokfeast Challenge 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.

As good as they all were (seriously, again, great job, everyone), only one group can win the cow. One more shout out to US Wellness, who is donating all the grass-fed beef. If you ever want to take your beef eating to the next level, hit up their newsletter and join the grass-fed revolution.

OK, now on to business. Below are the four finalists. I’ve posted the finalists’ videos and picture, but please click through to the individual posts before voting. Check out the recipes and read their stories. Then vote on the Grokfeasters who you believe best captured the spirit of going Primal. You have until Monday at 4:00 PM PDT to vote.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.
Grokfeast in Iowa

Grokfeast in Illinois

Grokfeast2012 21

Grokfeast in Western Australia

Grokfeast in Colorado

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Published on September 29, 2012 15:30

Grokfeast in Ohio

On September 11th I asked Mark’s Daily apple readers to host a Grokfeast (a picnic/party celebrating the Primal lifestyle) and to send me the results. The following is one of 14 amazing submissions, the best of which will win an entire cow courtesy of US Wellness.

We are a young family of hunter-gatherers living in south-eastern Ohio. In preparation for our Grokfeast, we undertook our usual Saturday morning outing to the farmer’s markets, natural food store, and the local butcher. On our way to the feast, we stopped by the orchard that has been in my mom’s family for almost a century to get our “daily apples”.

We had the feast at my parent’s farmhouse out in the woods and were joined by fellow Primal friends from our apartment complex. All of the dishes turned out well and everyone, from the elders to the toddlers, brought a primal appetite for the occasion. The Poblano and Jalapeño poppers were a big hit!

As twilight fell, we took a walk to visit my dad’s grass-fed cows. After a bit of trekking, we caught up with them and by the last bit of twilight we tossed them tufts of green grass and ventured to get close enough to give them a pet. It may not have been conducive to iphone-photography but it was a thoroughly primal experience.

The Feast

Roast Grass-fed Beef
Roast Pastured Pork
Roasted Chicken
Sausage/Bacon/Cheese Poblano and Jalapeño Poppers
Mashed Sweet Potatoes
Fresh Salad Greens
Homemade Salad Dressing (Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Red Wine Vinegar, salt, garlic powder, italian spices, minced garlic)
Primal Marsala Sauce
Nor-cal Margaritas
Fresh Bone Broth
Pumpkin Bread (almond flour)
Apple Crisp (almond flour)
Fresh Apples

Sausage/Bacon/Cheese Poblano and Jalapeño Poppers

Ingredients:

Jalapeno Peppers w/seeds removed
Poblano Peppers w/seeds removed
Bacon
Sausage
Cheese
Butter

Instructions:

Cut up the peppers and roast in the oven with butter. Cook the bacon and sausage. Stuff the bacon, sausage, and cheese into the roasted peppers. Broil for a minute or so. Grok on!

The Tribe

JonMarc, Teresa, Dominic, Butch, Christina, Dominic, Marcus, Marilyn, Richard

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Published on September 29, 2012 14:30

Grokfeast in Indiana

Let’s just admit it. The kids are good foragers. They hunt and gather things that the rest of us don’t see. Like seasoned professionals, they rummage their surroundings for anything interesting. Unfortunately, these items are often dangerous and never elusive. Also unfortunate is the fact that they often end up in their mouths. (Why is it difficult to get my kids to eat kale, but not dirt?)

cherish cat food

Taking a cue from our children, we were inspired to take their enthusiasm for foraging and turn it into an educational experience on two fronts – in our bellies and in our trash cans.

The plan:

Clean the trash from our diets
Clean the trash from our neighborhood
Teach the kids the difference between trash and food
Get dirty
Eat well
Have fun

For our bellies, the foraged menu consisted of mostly whole, naturally occurring foods with minimal preparation required.

The Feast

The menu (pictures to follow):

Grassfed steaks (2 sirloins, 2 T-bones) marinated with spices and olive oil
Grilled fresh pineapple glazed with a honey-based sauce
Primal pancakes (small children have a hard time chewing steak)
Fruit salad with apples, bananas, grapes, pineapple, and raspberries topped with an optional primal-style decadent fruit dip
Vegetable salad with tomatoes, leeks, green peppers, celery, radishes, mushrooms, and spinach topped with an optional oil-based dressing (most of the vegetables were obtained from the local Community Supported Agriculture farm)
Fried okra coated in coconut flour and paprika

grokfoodcollage

Is your mouth watering yet?

All of the food was tasty, but the pleasantest surprise for us were the paleo pancakes, which were adored by kids and adults alike.

Paleo Pancakes

Ingredients:

3 eggs
1/4 cup honey
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1.5 cups blanched almond flour
1/2 teaspoon celtic sea salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup fresh raspberries
coconut oil for pan

Instructions:

Mix eggs, honey, and vanilla well in a large bowl.
Add almond flour, salt, and baking soda and mix again to form a batter. Add raspberries after stirring.
Let the batter sit for 10-20 minutes to thicken up.
Warm small amount of coconut oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
Ladle pancake batter onto skillet (keeping them silver dollar-sized makes them easiest to flip).
When pancakes begin to form bubbles, flip over to cook the other side until lightly browned.

We did not serve these with syrup because there was no need. Everyone liked them just how they were.

As part of our “trash” theme, we decided to clean the garbage from our neighborhood as well. Our fun group activity consisted of picking up trash. Don’t think that’s any fun? You must either not have kids or have forgotten how much kids like this kind of thing. The kids saw it as a treasure hunt. Our goal, as adults, was to keep them from eating the garbage. That’s not always easy with little ones.

When it was all said and done, we had four plastic bags full of garbage that we foraged from our yard and other nearby areas.

grok trash collection

Hunting and gathering trash.

We think Grok would be proud!

The Tribe

Matthew Sattley, Ann Sattley, Josiah Sattley, Samuel Sattley, Daniel Kiteck, Karen Kiteck, Nathanael Kiteck, Cherish Kiteck

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Published on September 29, 2012 13:30

Grokfeast in Florida

When my buddy Dani and I read about Grokfeast 2012 on Mark’s Daily Apple we thought: Primal food? Friends? Running around and playing like the 10 year olds we are? Sign us up!

So we rallied the troops. We are all at different points on the path towards health and wellness, but all are committed to eating clean, being fit and following the Primal Blueprint to the best of our abilities.

As our picnic spot, we chose the beautiful St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park. I’m a volunteer there, so I’m a little partial. We decided to set up camp near the spillway where the manatees congregate in the winter, as it has a covered pavilion. Our typical summer weather pattern of rain, rain, and more rain has been well, typical and we wanted to be prepared. There is talk in some circles of Ark building.

You can’t beat the view. You may notice a bit of an odd geographic feature for South Florida in these pics. Hills! Yeah, we don’t normally have those down here. But thanks to the Army Corp of Engineers digging out this huge canal many years ago, we do. Which gives us one of the only places for miles around to do hill work and sled. Yes, sled. But we’ll get to that.

Untitled3 1

Before we feasted we decided to go on a hike.

A leisurely hike quickly devolved into hill races among the ladies.

Wonder Woman ain’t got nothing on us!

Untitled4 1

After some sprints up and down the hill we hiked further along to check out a new bridge connecting the two halves of the 32 square mile State Park.

Having worked up a bit of a hunger we were ready to head back and get to feasting!

We climbed the hill a couple of more times on the way back, being careful to sidestep the Gopher Tortoise holes. I decided to add a little more weight to my workout in the way of Dani’s pre-schooler. Improvisation can often times be key to a good workout.

Untitled7

Food! Cauliflower rice, Swiss Steak, Snow Peas, Chicken Legs, and so much more…but everyone’s favorite was of course… the Banana Bread. It was in a word… awesome. Two loaves disappeared in minutes.

Untitled9

As you can see in the pics we had a few Little Groks in our clan. Most in attendance are parents. It is vitally important to all of us that we not only make sure our kids eat right, but that they see us, as their parent’s setting a good example as well. Far too many parents have a “do as I say, not as I do” mentality when it comes to food and exercise. All three couples are dedicated to bucking that trend. My son Holden has seen me lose over 75 lbs in the past year and a half. Little Brianna will have been too young to remember when her mom lost over 90 lbs when she was a toddler, but the lessons we gleaned from the experiences and will pass on to them both will last a lifetime.

Holden enjoys getting his Grok on! He’s at least 80/20 Primal right now, since we were able to wean him off of the horrid school lunches. The forums on Mark’s Daily Apple and other Primal/Paleo blogs have been invaluable in helping to get and keep the whole family Primal without feeling like we are missing out on anything! You know, other than illness, lethargy and general malaise.

We shared recipe ideas, planned future outings and generally had a great time catching up. After the Little Groks finished eating they stole a Rubbermaid container lid and a cooler lid and went sledding. The locals keep a strip mowed for better sledding. What can we say? You do what you can when you don’t get any snow. Ever.

Once the big Groks had had their fill, we tossed a ball around for a while. There wasn’t any catching. Just throwing. This would be due to the fact that were using a 10 lb medicine ball. You can always tell when someone starts doing CrossFit-style workouts. Yeah, that would be us.

Before the weather got too questionable, we switched it up to a lighter ball and headed to the field behind the hill. We split into teams, boys vs girls (the husbands tried to convince us to go shirts vs skins, the wives being the skins). We played a few innings of really bad, but really fun kickball.

After all that, it was naptime.

No, not for the pre-schooler silly.

We had a blast. We ate, we played, and we enjoyed each others company. Recipes were swapped and workouts shared. It was an excellent opportunity to encourage each other on our journey to health and wellness. We thank Mark’s Daily Apple for inspiring us to put together the picnic as we are sure this is just the first of many more to come.

As promised, here is the recipe for the Banana Bread Dani made:

The Feast

This is a complete list of the food we had:

Chicken Drumsticks
Prosciutto Wrapped Dates
Turkey/Pepper/Spinach Roll-ups
Red Cole Slaw
Coconut Chicken
Faux Tabouli (cauliflower rice)
Lemon Bacon Snow Peas
Primal Banana Bread
Swiss Steak
Fruit Salad

Banana Bread

Untitled8 Ingredients:

3 medium bananas (you want them brown and spotty)
1.5 cups roasted unsalted cashews
1 cup almond meal/flour
2 tablespoons walnut oil
2 eggs, whisked
1 tablespoon raw honey
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup of chopped walnuts (I love chopped nuts in banana bread.)
pinch of salt

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Place your cashews into food processor. Pulse until you get a fine cashew meal.

Add your walnut oil while your food processor is still on until you get a cashew butter.

Then peel your bananas, roughly break them up, and add to your food processor with your cashews. Turn your food processor on and let combine for a minute or so until you have a soupy paste.

In a large bowl, whisk your eggs, then; add your cashew/banana mixture along with almond meal/flour, baking soda and powder, honey, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt. Mix to combine until you get a batter.

Grease a bread pan with some coconut oil.

Pour batter into your greased loaf pan. Place in oven and bake for 25-30 minutes* or until bread is cooked through and the top of your loaf has a bit of a “crisp” to it.

*This time is for one bread pan, I used two disposable bread tins and only had to cook the loaves for 22mins and 30 seconds (strange I know, but it is what it is.) That way I had one loaf for the Primal gathering and one loaf for the Primal household.

Let bread cool for about 10 minutes. Enjoy!

I got this recipe from PaleOMG.com, I added the walnuts and divided the loaves.

The Tribe

Patti Fuchs, Dave Fuchs, Holden Fuchs, Danielle Swindell, Christopher Swindell, Brianna Swindell, Dave Chestnut, Lindsay Chestnut , Thomas Lee, and Trisha Dolan.

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Published on September 29, 2012 12:30

Grokfeast in Iowa

Our Grokfeast celebration was a delightful celebration of all of the finer things in life! The preparation was simple. We wanted the preparation to be pretty simple because we also wanted to spend time together playing in the sunshine with our new-found friend Grok. We spent a little over an hour getting our roast beast dish ready to cook in the morning (see recipe above) and we also cut up vegetables for a delicious green salad and a fruit dish. We then spent much of our day outside with Grok in the various Primal activities that he enjoys. We joined him and Grandma (who is 92) doing T’ai Chi. We all enjoyed doing the slow movements and just being together in the warm sunshine. We tried to video the activity but realized that the person who was holding the camera had forgotten to push the button. Grandma was willing and able to do another take. icon smile

We enjoyed watching Grok and the Burger’s daughter race and watched as Dad Burger finally lifted a stump after two years of trying (he was inspired by Grok’s large muscles icon smile ). We sprinted, we lifted heavy things, and we even danced out in the sunshine.

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Our time with Grok has taught us:

To not eat poison (McDonald’s)
To eat plants and animals (just not dogs)
To have FUN!!! To play more and just enjoy each other’s company. To kick off our shoes and dance!
To get adequate sleep
To enjoy the sunshine
To sprint (even if you can’t keep up with one such as Grok)
To lift heavy things (such as stumps)
To avoid stupid mistakes (like trying to make a fire using gasoline)

We also have taught him some things:

To cook good Primal meals (inside of a kitchen)
To use his brain using words and sounds
To move frequently at a slow pace (T’ai Chi)

The actual Primal feast we decided to have at our Iowa farm. We gave thanks for our food and everyone dished up a plate of goodness. The vegetables and the beef cooked in red wine were a perfect compliment to one another. We didn’t know just how tasty our primal feast really was until we started finding little black bugs in our food that seemed to be enjoying our meal as much as we were. Although, they added extra protein, no one but Grok seemed to appreciate them. We had music and dancing that began before the actual meal and finished long after it was done. We even had a friend who wrote a song about Grok’s favorite things. Needless to say, we all slept VERY well. All in all, this day turned out to be one of the best days that our family has had in a long time. Our lives have been changed by Grok and his introducing us to a Primal lifestyle.

FamilyatFeast

The Feast

FeastFood

Burgers’ Primal Feast Menu

Garden Fresh Veggie Salad with Lemon-Vinegar Dressing
Organic Fruit Bowl
Dream Come True Water icon smile

Primal Roast

Primal Roast

RoastBeast

*The following ingredients are farm fresh, organic, grass fed, and make a tasty combination*

Ingredients:

1 onion
3 Bell Peppers (multi colored)
3-5 Tomatoes (multi colored)
5 cloves Garlic
5 lb Roast (or any chunk of animal)
1 -2 C. Red Wine (or more depending on how much you and your friends are sipping while you prepare this meal)
Celtic Sea Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions:

In a 9×13 pan, place the meat. Cut, chop, slice the onion, peppers, tomatoes, garlic, etc, and scatter on top. Feel free to add any other produce that you might have on hand or in your garden. Sprinkle the salt and pepper on top. Pour over the red wine. Cover with lid. Put in the oven early in the morning at 150-250 degrees. You can safely forget about it for the rest of the day. Go play!

The Tribe

Caveman Grok – Christie Bigelow

Reporter – Abby Swanson

Cindy Burger – Noelle Gibbons

Dad Burger – Jake McLaughlin

Kalvyn Burger – Kalvyn Gibbons

Daughter Burger – Rachel Swanson

Friend – Faith Swanson

Grandma Burger – Ivy Juon

Neighbor – Lydia Barrett

“Favorite Things” Friend – Kristie Swanson

FamilyPhoto

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Published on September 29, 2012 10:30

Grokfeast in Tennessee

Well, Mark’s Daily Apple, I am writing to tell the tale of an intimate double Grokfeast that took place this past weekend. Unfortunately, due to last minute cancellations, ours was a fest of only 7, thereby disqualifying us from the contest. However, this is a Grokfeast that should not go unnoticed, if for no other reason than our completely original game of “Flesh Eating Bear”.

Seven of us departed Chattanooga, TN on the very last day of summer, Friday, 9/21, to backpack into a place known as Paradise. This is a pristine watershed of the North Chickamauga Creek that offers crazy beautiful waterfalls, trails, and swimming holes. Once into the heart of Paradise, we began exploring.

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As aforementioned, we came across great overhanging cliffs, and water that, though frigid, was extremely inviting.

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As the sun was hanging low we began searching for firewood, built up a fire and began preparing for a rigorous game of “Flesh Eating Bear.” In this game, a chunk of meat is hung and dangled (piñata style) while the player bites at the meat. The rules state that hands must be behind the back. The winner is the one who scores the biggest slab of meat! Oh my.

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After this exhausting sport, we pretty much hung out around the fire eating brats until everyone fell asleep.

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When we awoke, Grokfeast II commenced. Copious quantities of bacon and eggs were consumed. I opted for a couple of MDA inspired bell pepper egg bowls. After stuffing our faces the real exploration of Paradise began. There was tremendous tomfoolery for the rest of the day involving 45-foot cliff jumps, waterfall climbing, and general cold water enjoyment. Twas a Grokfeast to remember!

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Published on September 29, 2012 10:00

Grokfeast in Maryland

On September 11th I asked Mark’s Daily apple readers to host a Grokfeast (a picnic/party celebrating the Primal lifestyle) and to send me the results. The following is one of 15 amazing submissions, the best of which will win an entire cow courtesy of US Wellness.

We eat dinner with my parents and siblings every Tuesday night. So as soon as I saw the contest I thought perfect; my family has been listening to me drone on about Primal and Mark’s Daily Apple for 8-9 months, so it’s a perfect opportunity to show them what it’s all about.

In summary of the day the most noticeable thing was, either everyone was really hungry or they must have liked the food because there were basically no leftovers. The steak was, of course, a huge hit. It’s a recipe we have been making for years at tailgates and picnics. We got mixed verbal reviews on the pancakes. However, they were both completely gone, so I’m guessing someone liked them. I made both with blueberries and strawberries and one I also added pecans. The quote of the day came from my father who said something along the lines of “this food is pretty good, I might have to give this Primal thing a try.” I have been trying to convince him to give it a month and see how he likes it, maybe I will mention it again…

After some serious dish cleaning, food digestion, and diaper changing we headed out to our workout “cave”. Now everyone in the family knows of this cave’s existence, but only Kevin and I use it with any frequency. So I figured this would be a good opportunity to re-introduce everybody to the workout/play possibilities a short walk from the house. (It’s on the 2nd floor of our barn/work garage). Kevin and I skipped our typical Tuesday session and instead just did a few Bench/Deadlift reps and then spent the rest of the time playing with the kids, climbing the rock wall, and just fooling around in general. Everyone else did various similar activities; Dad even had to show me that he could deadlift as much I could. I will have to work on remedying that.

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So overall I would rate the evening a success. Everyone thanked us for making the food multiple times. It was nice to show everyone how we have been eating instead of just explaining it to them. The kids always have fun in the barn, but we don’t usually let them come out when we are lifting since it’s a little dangerous. So they enjoyed that as a special treat. Thanks for the inspiration to have a different twist on our weekly family dinner.

The Feast

Flank Steak

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Instructions:

1 Flank Steak (1-2 lbs) + 1 Sweet onion sliced and peeled

Marinate both together overnight in Ziploc or container with the following:

¼ cup Extra Virgin first cold press olive oil
3 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp minced fresh garlic
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp Oregano
½ tsp basil
½ tsp Old Bay Seasoning (by Mcormick)

Directions:

Cook on grill on high heat 4-6 minutes per side depending on preference of doneness. Sautee onions in pan; slice steak and enjoy!

Remaining Menu:

Tomato and Mozzarella Salad with Basil and Balsamic Vinegar/Olive Oil
Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Kerry Gold butter
Spinach Salad with Bacon, Red Onions, and Hard Boiled Eggs
Broccoli with Lemon and Herb
Two Berry Pancakes (from Primal Blueprint Quick & Easy Meals)

Grok On!

The Tribe

Kenny Lethbridge (Me) – Head Grok and your humble narrator

Jodi Lethbridge – Groks wife

Samantha Lethbridge – Grok in training (2 and a half)

Addison Lethbridge – Newest Grok – 2 months

Heather Burroughs – Sister

Kevin Burroughs – Brother in law

Noah Burroughs – Samantha’s partner in crime

Mandy Lethbridge – Sister

Daniel Davis – Future Brother in law

Keith Lethbridge – Papa Grok

Lissa Lethbridge – Mama Grok

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