Mark Sisson's Blog, page 66

8 Ways to Deal with a Difficult Partner (Who Doesn’t Eat Like You Do)

One of the biggest challenges of going Primal (or Keto or anything that goes against the norm of the Standard American Diet) is dealing with people who have no clue why you’d ever do such a thing. Even though there have been tons of studies1 on the risks of eating processed foods, grains, and industrialized oils, there are just as many folks panicking when you pass on the rolls. It’s even harder when those folks are your spouse or significant other.

If you’ve ever heard your partner say…

“I’d die if I couldn’t have bread.”

“One cookie isn’t going to wreck your diet.”

“Your body needs sugar!”

“You’re having bacon again?!”

…then you know what I’m talking about. As a health coach, I see this more often than I don’t. One half of a couple decides they’re done feeling foggy and carrying around extra fat, while the other feels “fine” and finds no reason to change how they’re eating — even though they’re pre-diabetic and their blood pressure numbers are sky high.

Signs You’ve Got a Difficult Partner

As you take steps toward improving your health and growing as a person, you might find that, instead of support, you’re suddenly on the receiving end of someone who’s sabotaging you, acting irritated and jealous, or just not willing to grow with you.

Your partner may come home with armloads of chips and cookies and refuse to eat anything that resembles a vegetable. Or make you feel bad when you ask for your burger lettuce wrapped. Or look at you like you’ve got two heads when you grab the full-fat yogurt off the grocery store shelf. Sound familiar? These are all signs that you’re dealing with a difficult partner. Here are some other indicators:

They’re quick to blame you for their actions
They seem to try to sabotage you
They’re controlling
They avoid or resist conversations with you
They minimize your wins or your progress
They judge you based on their beliefs
They use guilt as a way to control the situation

Here’s the thing though. You can’t change other people. I don’t care how right you are, how much progress you’ve made in your own health journey, or how much time you spend cooking epic protein-forward meals. People only change when they want to change. That said, you don’t have to let someone else’s resistance derail your own goals.

How Difficult Partners Affect Your Health

Aside from it being downright frustrating to live with someone who refuses to take responsibility for their own health, it can increase your risk of certain health conditions.

One study from Montreal’s McGill University Health Centre evaluated the environmental factors, social habits, and eating and exercising patterns of couples and found that participants had a 26% higher chance of developing Type 2 Diabetes when their partner had the disease.2

The good news is, it works the other way too. In a trial funded by the National Institute of Health, researchers looked at the ripple effect of healthy behaviors in a household. Participants and their spouses were placed into two groups: an intensive lifestyle intervention (which included a specific diet and physical activity) and a care plan that included only education and support. Researchers weighed the couples at the beginning and end of the trial and found that approximately 25% of the spouses in the intensive intervention lost 5% more of their baseline weight compared to less than 10% of the spouses in the other group.3

All of which suggests that what you do can influence your partner. And vice versa.

9 Ways to Deal with a Difficult or Unsupportive Partner

These are the same tactics I teach my health coaching clients. They’re powerful ones you can use in your own life to avoid frustration, discouragement, and potential derailment, while helping inspire your partner to pursue their own holy grail of good health.

1. Don’t just set expectations, make agreements

A source of conflict in many relationships is the disconnect between expectations and agreements. You might tell your partner you’ve decided to follow a ketogenic diet or pursue a Primal lifestyle, but unless you get clear on your expectations and lay out an agreement, that line can get fuzzy.

For instance, if your significant other brings home fresh baked bread when you’re abstaining from grains, you may feel like he or she is trying to sabotage your efforts. But if an agreement hasn’t been laid out and agreed to, all you have is the expectation that your partner shouldn’t be doing that. Perhaps they don’t know how important it is to you to not have bread in the house. Or they think they’re being supportive by bringing home a treat. Getting clear on your expectations and agreements allows you to focus on your health goals without the pressure of assuming your partner knows what you want or need.

2. Have empathy toward your partner

It’s easy to be irritated by a partner who’s still dragging their butt out of bed, sucking down sodas to stay awake, or praising the virtues of Meatless Monday — especially when you’re feeling amazing doing the opposite. But it’s important to consider the emotions they’re going through during this time. There’s a good chance they’re jealous, fearful, or uncertain about your future together. After all, if your favorite couples’ activity used to be laying around, binging on junk food in front of the TV and now you’re hitting the hay earlier, jumping out of bed in the morning, and making time to cook up a nutrient-dense breakfast, they may not be sure how they fit into the picture.

And remember, there’s a big difference between empathy and sympathy. Sympathy is feeling bad or sorry for someone, where empathy is feeling those emotions with someone.

3. Communicate

When you’re feeling unsupported, it can be hard not to nag, shout, or give your partner the silent treatment. However, learning how to communicate effectively can help you get over this hurdle and any others that can (and likely will) come up.

Open up about what you’re going through, why you’re shifting your lifestyle, and why you’d really appreciate your support — without putting blame or shame on your significant other. Then, take a step back and hear what they have to say. Listening is as important a skill as talking when it comes to communication. Be aware of your body language too. Things like crossed arms or legs or tightly clasped hands give off a defensive or closed-off vibe.

4. Be a role model

Just by doing what you’re doing (purchasing unprocessed foods, cooking at home, getting out and exercising), you’re planting a seed in your partner’s mind about the importance of good health. Your positive actions have the ability to influence and motivate, without saying a word.

However, the biggest factor in whether or not they’ll be inspired lies in their own beliefs. According to a study, participants who felt like certain results were attainable to them were more apt to see a role model as inspiring. And participants who believed they couldn’t achieve more than they already had started to view themselves more negatively.4 In this case, a more gradual approach might be more beneficial if you want your partner to follow your lead.

5. Get your priorities in order

Another thing to keep in mind is that this is YOUR health journey. You’re the one who’s embarking on this change, not your significant other, your spouse, or even your kids. That’s why it’s crucial that you get clear on what message you’re putting out there. Sure, it would be great if everyone in your household ate the same thing (who likes to make two dinners anyway?) and no one ever brought cookies or Halloween candy or artificially colored and flavored juice drinks into your home, but that’s not necessarily realistic. It’s not necessary to your success either.

So, asking yourself: is your partner being difficult because they’re not supporting you? Or because they’re not eating and moving their body exactly how you’re doing it? Good questions to ponder. Someone can be supportive yet choose to not live a Primal lifestyle. And that’s okay.

6. Find common ground

Assuming that your SAD-loving partner would prefer to eat Twinkies and mac-n-cheese all day isn’t just unfair, it’s unproductive. Take a step back and figure out what foods you both enjoy eating (there’s got to be at least one, right?). Maybe you both like eggs or salmon or grilled asparagus. Or a great rare steak. By finding a favorite food in common, you can come up with meals that satisfy both of your eating preferences. Plus, the effort of wanting to find common ground with your partner can reduce the tension of a ‘my way or the highway scenario’.

7. Join a supportive community

If you’re not getting the support you need at home (or not enough support), there are tons of online groups you can engage with. Right now, the Mark’s Daily Apple Facebook group has more than 200,000 members. Keto Reset has 32,000 members. And Primal Blueprint has more than 20,000 members. If that’s not enough, reach out to a friend, a family member, or one of our expert health coaches.

Participating in a group gives you the opportunity to be with people who have a like-minded purpose. Not only will you be interacting with those who understand what you’re going through, it can help you feel less isolated, less anxious, and less stressed out.

8. Reflect on your own journey

You might be all-in when it comes to your keto or Primal lifestyle now, but think back to the beginning of your health journey. Transitioning away from a morning toast and OJ routine, or sandwich-and-chips-on-the-go isn’t always easy. And it’s not something to take lightly. So, if your significant other isn’t diving into Primal in one fell swoop, relax a little. They may need an approach that feels less scary — where they’re less likely to fail. Just remember that everyone’s journey is different. Even the people who live under the same roof as you.

What’s worked for you? Tell me if you’ve used any of these tactics or other strategies, when dealing with a difficult or unsupportive partner.

References https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5986467/https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1741-7015-12-12https://www.nature.com/articles/ijo2008150https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1997-04812-007

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Why You Need to Be Taking L-Theanine

People often ask me why I use supplements. After all, our hunter-gatherer ancestors didn’t take them. Our ancient ancestors didn’t take them, nor did our medieval ones or our pre-industrial ones. In fact, nutritional supplementation is one of the most modern inputs you can imagine and, in a perfect world while eating a perfect diet, it should be unnecessary.

But the world is not perfect. We don’t have the same foods available to us that our ancestors ate during the formative years of our evolution, and even if we did, modern farming practices altered mineral levels in the soil. Supplementation can restore some semblance of a “natural” food environment.

Overcoming the stressors of modernity, however, is harder, because it’s not a matter of avoiding the wrong foods and eating the right ones then smoothing out the rough patches with smart supplements. Modern stressors are mostly unavoidable. You have to deal with them. Endure them. And that’s where supplements can really help. Like L-theanine.

What is L-Theanine?

One of my favorite anti-stress supplements is L-theanine. It’s an amino acid found in green and white tea that is structurally similar to glutamine, GABA, and glutamate. It crosses the blood-brain barrier after oral dosing, appearing in the hippocampus and increasing alpha-waves in the brain in less than an hour. It’s clearly “doing stuff” up there. But what are the benefits?

L-Theanine Benefits

The majority of L-theanine’s benefits revolve around our response to stress and anxiety. L-theanine takes the edge of things. More specifically and in addition, L-theanine:

Reduces stress
Lowers anxiety
Improves performance
Smoothes out the effect of caffeine
Improves sleep
Restores immune function
Protects against alcoholic liver damage

L-Theanine as a Stress Reducer

When you meditate, your brain is pumping alpha waves. When you’re having a restful morning with . not much to do but hang around and quietly enjoy your time, you’re alpha wave-dominant. When you’re sitting on the beach listening to the waves lap the shore, a brain scan would reveal a ton of alpha wave activity. And when you take 50 mg of L-theanine, your alpha brainwaves kick in after about an hour.1

L-Theanine as an Anxiety Buster

L-theanine isn’t a benzodiazepine. It won’t brute force your brain into an overwhelming state of supreme chill. For L-theanine to reduce your anxiety, you must actually be anxious. Now, much anxiety is hidden, even to ourselves. We may not know that we’re anxious about something. We may not recognize it. So theanine can really help, as long as there’s something for it to help against.

The downside is that it’s subtler than taking a pharmaceutical anti-anxiety med; you don’t “feel it” as much as taking something like xanax. The upside is that it doesn’t make you drowsy and it’s non-addictive. In fact, most people tolerate theanine so well that researchers have been unable to identify a toxic dose. I’m not suggesting you take an entire bottle, of course. There may be a toxic dose, somewhere, somehow. But subjects have taken 400 mg of L-theanine every day for 8 weeks straight without apparent ill effect.

L-Theanine as a Performance Enhancer

L-theanine is most effective at improving the cognitive performance of people undergoing stress. In studies, this takes the form of artificially stressful environments—loud noises, oppressive rules, that sort of thing. In real life, stress is more unpredictable, and I’d argue that most of us are in stressful environments, even if we’re not consciously aware of it. If you’re lucky enough to live a totally stress-free life, L-theanine may not help your performance.

Here’s what I mean: In subjects doing mental tasks in a stressful environment, taking theanine improved performance, reduced blood pressure, and lowered subjective stress-anxiety levels.2

L-Theanine and Caffeine

If you get the jitters or anxiety from caffeine, have 100-200 mg of L-theanine with it. The combination has been shown to smooth out the effects of caffeine and reduce anxiety while retaining performance. That’s why you feel awake and alert after a cup of tea, but without the jittery feeling that coffee gives you.

L-Theanine: Sleep Enhancer

Much like its relationship with mental performance, the ability of L-theanine to enhance sleep depends on the psychological status of the individual.

If you suffer from anxiety or stress, L-theanine has been shown to improve sleep quality and efficiency and reduce sleep latency and usage of sleeping meds.3

If you’re a kid with ADHD, 400 mg of L-theanine can help with sleep quality.4

If you’re being treated for clinical depression, 250 mg of theanine per day should help reduce sleep disturbances at night.5

If you’re being treated for schizophrenia, 250 mg of daily L-theanine should improve sleep quality.6

But if you have good sleep and good mental health, L-theanine won’t be a big boost to your sleep quality—unless you have significant stress in your life (which most do).

L-Theanine for Immune System Restoration

Back about 20 years ago, I developed an anti-stress supplement meant to combat the overreach and overtraining so many endurance athletes experience. Like me. See, I would get dozens of colds each year. Even though I looked healthy and fit, my immune system was constantly playing catch up. All my running and training didn’t leave any resources for the rest of my physiology. Everything was devoted to recovery.

That supplement, originally called Proloftin but now called Adaptogenic Calm, included L-theanine in addition to four other key anti-stress ingredients. I developed it to fix my own issues, and sure enough, it worked (and as it turned out, many others had the same problem).

As we can see from recent research, it wasn’t just placebo. In one study, endurance athletes supplemented with a cysteine and L-theanine product starting ten days prior to training. They ran immune tests before and after training, and the group who got the cysteine and L-theanine supplement had lower C-reactive protein, lower neutrophil count, and higher lymphocyte levels, indicatives of a lower inflammatory and immune load.7

L-Theanine and Liver Health

We don’t have direct evidence of isolated L-theanine improving a person’s liver’s resistance to things like alcohol, but we do have two other lines of evidence.

First, the animal studies that show supplemental L-theanine protects the liver against alcohol-induced injury and increases liver glutathione content (the antioxidant we use to detoxify ethanol).89

Second, the many observational studies linking green tea consumption to improved liver health and  robustness, like the one where green tea consumption seemed to protect against fatty liver.10

L-Theanine: Dosage You Should Take

Oral doses as low as 50 mg have been shown to induce alpha brain waves in healthy humans and doses up to 600 mg per day have been safely tested. Generally, people can tolerate an awful lot of L-theanine without any problems. In fact, you’d have to eat hundreds of grams of pure L-theanine powder to even approach the LD50.

How I Use L-Theanine

The most common way I take L-theanine is by popping a few caps of Adaptogenic Calm, the anti-stress supplement I’ve been making and using for over a decade. You don’t have to take Adaptogenic Calm to get L-theanine, but I’m pretty happy with the synergistic effects of the ingredients.

On the rare occasion I feel acutely stressed out, I’ll take some L-theanine powder under my tongue and let it sit there. L-theanine is water-soluble, so in theory it should absorb sublingually. It certainly feels like it does—I get an almost immediate effect. The taste is subtly sweet. Not something you seek out, not something you avoid either.

You can also get it from green tea, but it will be difficult to hit the 100/200 mg mark found to be most effective in clinical trials through tea alone. Average theanine doses in a cup of green tea range between 25-60 mg. It’s doable, especially if you luck out with a theanine-rich source of tea—you just have to drink a good amount.

That’s it for my take on L-theanine. All in all, it’s a great compound to keep on hand and, perhaps, take on a regular basis. Very little downside, almost all upside.

Have you ever tried L-theanine? Notice anything? How do you use it yourself?

Thanks for reading, everyone.

References https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18296328/https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23107346/https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31623400/https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22214254/https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27396868/https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25896423/https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19352043/https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16141543/https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22019691/https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24065295/

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Making Distance Learning Work

Hi, everyone, Lindsay here. As a parent of school-aged kids, the upcoming school year is front and center in my mind. Like you, I’m trying to figure out how to make distance learning work for my family. Before starting today’s post, I want to acknowledge that everyone’s situation is different. Family structures, finances, support systems, living arrangements, access to technology, and employment all affect how we’ll approach this upcoming school year. Not to mention, our kids have unique needs, strengths, and challenges.

There is no one-size-fits-all solution. A lot of parents are facing tough dilemmas. Their school districts’ solutions simply aren’t workable for them for various reasons, sometimes reflecting larger societal issues. While I’m going to offer some simple, concrete steps and encouragement, I also don’t want to minimize the challenges that some people are facing.  I’d love for other parents/caregivers to join the discussion in the comments and let us know how you’re juggling everything.

The new school year is almost upon us, and I’m sure I’m not the only parent who feels like my head has been spinning for five months. After being thrown into distance learning in March, school districts are still scrambling to figure out what’s happening this fall. Teachers and parents are rightfully worried about how to balance seemingly un-balanceable interests: educating our kids, supporting working parents, making sure all kids have equal learning opportunities (always an issue), maintaining kids’ socioemotional wellbeing, and allowing schools to stay funded, all while protecting the health and safety of students, their families, teachers, and staff.

What a mess. It turns out that living through a global pandemic is hard and exhausting.

In the U.S. at least, many of our kids aren’t going back to school, not physically. Certainly, none of our kids is going back to anything like the school they knew before. Some of us are lucky enough to have options—distance or hybrid learning, co-ops, charters, or homeschooling. Others are going to have to go with whatever their district decides. This post is aimed primarily at parents/caregivers whose kids are distance or hybrid learning, but it also applies if you’re choosing a different route instead.

Instantly download your Guide to Gut Health

Start By Taking Stock

Get a notebook and pencil, call a family meeting, and:

1. Decide What You Want to Accomplish This Year

This isn’t about making a concrete plan so much as a general mission statement for your family. What will allow you to feel like this year was a success? What do you need to do to protect the mental health and happiness of the people in your household?

Since we’re all being thrust into something new anyway, it’s the perfect time to pause and consider what’s most important when it comes to your kids’ education. What, and how, would you really like your kids to learn? Given their druthers, what topics would they choose to pursue? Some families are choosing to homeschool this year, seizing the opportunity to try something completely different. On the other hand, if you have a high schooler on track to apply for academic scholarships, perhaps staying on that path is your top priority.

For some families, managing their kids’ social and emotional wellbeing is going to come before academics this year. Maybe you’ll do your best to go with the flow of whatever your district is offering, but let go of all expectations about grades, schedules, and getting dressed every day.

There are no right or wrong answers here, but it’s important that everyone is on the same page.

2. Identify Your Village

Even with social distancing, there are ways we can support one another. Make a list of all the people who can be there for you this year, and vice versa. Then, start to rally the troops.

Do you have grandparents or aunts and uncles who can take an hour or two per week to read or do homework over Skype? What skills and talents do your friends and family members have that they could share—things like organizing cooking, music, art, or science lessons? Do your friends have high school or college-age kids who can tutor or babysit (safely, of course)?

Some families are creating “learning pods” with a few other families. The kids band together and do schoolwork, while the parents share the load. Perhaps this is feasible for you. Otherwise, maybe you organize standing Minecraft playdates or a movie or book club so your kids can socialize, and you can get your own work done.

Don’t forget about yourself. Who will you talk to when you feel overwhelmed? How will you get breaks when you need them?

3. Budget Your Finances AND Your Time

Lay it all out there. Realistically, how much time can you spend monitoring your kids’ schoolwork? If you have a partner or co-parent, decide how you’ll partition your time. Figure out what you’ll need from your village. Be honest about how much both you and your kids will be able to accomplish.

If your kid is expected to be on the computer from 9 to 3, and that’s simply not going to happen, contact their teacher and ask for accommodations. Better yet, propose an alternative that is realistic for your family. If you’re working from home, explore whether you have flexibility with your hours. There might be a way to start earlier and take two-hour lunch breaks, for example. Make sure to ask if your employer is offering childcare subsidies, which can often go to a family member who helps watch your kids.

Figure out how much money you have available to spend on school this year. For us, rec sports are canceled, so those registration fees bought a not-too-expensive laptop for schoolwork. (By the way, laptops and Chromebooks are in high demand already. Get yours now.)

If you have more time than money, maybe you are the person who can coordinate the learning pod or organize used book swaps if the library is closed. If you have more money than time, you might sign your kids up for online classes and extracurricular activities, or hire a tutor to help with challenging subjects. Sites like Outschool and Coursera offer all sorts of classes your kids might enjoy.

Connect to Homeschoolers

Homeschoolers have the most experience making home learning work. Although homeschooling is different from distance learning, I bet you’ll feel much more confident after reading a few blogs or talking to your friends who homeschool.

Here are some things I’ve learned from homeschooling friends:

Daily schedules work great for some families, but they aren’t mandatory for success. Likewise, if you have room to set up a designated classroom area in your home, great. The couch works too. Whatever system works for your family is fine, and you should do it without guilt. Who cares if your kids sleep till 10 and are doing classwork at 7:30 p.m. under the kitchen table if that’s your rhythm (and they aren’t sleeping through all their Zooms)?
There are tons of free online resources available to help kids learn. We aren’t stuck with whatever the schools give us if our kids need more.
Even seasoned homeschoolers will tell you that it’s hard. The struggle is real, and it doesn’t mean you are failing.
Pretty much everything our kids do during the day—reading, watching videos, playing Lego, coloring, digging in the garden—counts as learning. Going for walks is PE. Don’t feel extra pressure to fill every minute of their school day with activities that look like “work.” All of us Primal parents probably know this, but it’s easy to forget when we’re so focused on schoolwork.
You can prioritize. Most homeschoolers, and even elementary school teachers, don’t teach every subject every day. They do math and language arts most days, though. Practice and repetition are important in these subjects. “Lessons” can include math games, doing mental math problems in the car, reading to your kids and having them read to you, watching read-along videos on YouTube, and so much more. (Talk to your kids’ teachers if their daily assignments aren’t manageable, too.)
Let your kids’ interests guide some of their choices. If they are reading the Percy Jackson novels, check out documentaries or podcasts on world mythologies, or virtually visit museums to see ancient Greek art. For your science lover, grab an inexpensive pocket microscope and encourage them to keep a science notebook documenting their discoveries. Teachers Pay Teachers offers enrichment activities for almost any subject, plus decorations and organizers for your home “classroom.”

If you don’t know any homeschool families, look on Reddit and Facebook. More than likely, you’ll find a local homeschooling group or one that focuses on your kids’ specific needs.

Give Yourself and Your Kids Plenty of Breaks

I mean this literally and figuratively. During the day, allow for plenty of downtimes. Let kids move between tasks and take mental breaks. Even in school, they really aren’t doing focused work for long periods, especially in the lower grades. There will be no getting away from screens this fall, but I’ll be encouraging my kids to walk away regularly.

You need breaks, too. Kids of any age can take 20 to 30 minutes of quiet time in their bedrooms in the afternoon so you can take a breather.

Also, give everyone plenty of grace, yourself included. We’re living through a pandemic. Everyone is coping with grief and pandemic fatigue right now, even if we aren’t labeling it as such. Some days won’t be great. There will be tears. Tasks will not get completed on time. Some nights, dinner will be cheese and (almond flour) crackers with baby carrots if we’re lucky. Laundry will sit in the basket unfolded. It’s ok.

Remember: This is Temporary, and We’re All Doing the Best We Can

I know the advice to do your best sounds so trite to anyone facing decisions that feel impossible. Still, what else can we do?

So many parents are stressing about their kids falling behind. Maybe I’m being naïve, but I’m not too worried about that. It’s not that my kids are exceptionally resilient or anything, but nothing about this year is going to be “normal.” Trying to hold ourselves to previous school years’ standards is unrealistic and unfair. 

Also, kids are resilient. When all this is over, and the dust starts to settle, it’s going to be a whole new educational landscape. Everyone is going to have to catch up in one way or another. We will figure it out.

If your kid is having a hard time with the social isolation, or because they have learning challenges that their schools are not accommodating at home, I’m not blithely telling you not to worry. It stinks that so many families are struggling, and that existing inequities are being magnified by distance learning. I’m saying that none of us needs the added pressure of trying to recreate a typical school year during exceptional times.

Look for Silver Linings

We’re understandably focused mostly on the challenges that come with distance learning, but it can also have its advantages. Many kids are actually thriving at home. For some who were struggling socially or academically, distance learning has been a welcome change. A lot of us parents are reexamining our priorities and finding that we are excited to teach our kids in different ways. There is, for some families, a distinct silver lining.

Gratitude can be an excellent coping tool during stressful times. Can you think of three things that you appreciate about distance learning? Ask your kids to weigh in. My kids would say: working at their own pace, sleeping in, pants are optional. Revisit your list every couple of months and see what you can add. You might find gratitude for new connections in your homeschool pod, or for being there to witness your child’s aha moment when she mastered cross-multiplication.

Hang in there, friends.

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What to Say When People Ask About Your Eating Habits

Ever make excuses for why you don’t partake in grains? Wondering the best way to pass on processed foods at a party? And how do you eat healthy when there are no healthy choices available? In this week’s edition of Ask a Health Coach, Erin is here to answer your questions about defending and maintaining a Primal lifestyle in a SAD world. Keep your questions coming in the comments section below or over in our Mark’s Daily Apple Facebook Group.

Maria asked:

“How do you deal with relatives who totally buy into the dietary guidelines? I think my siblings actually believe I’m harming myself and my kids with my ‘crazy’ diet. What do I say to make them see my side?”

Trust me, I know how frustrating this is. And honestly, I don’t typically engage with anyone who tries to shame me for my choices (just like I don’t shame anyone who hasn’t realized how detrimental a Standard American Diet can be).

That said, when it’s family, it’s hard not to engage. It’s also hard to not let it rile you up. Hearing someone say that canola is one of those healthy oils or “I can’t believe you don’t eat bread” or “this soy burger is so much better for you” can make a sane person scream. And no amount of citing nutritional studies 1 or forwarding Mark’s Daily Apple links will convince them otherwise.

Our food choices have become as controversial as talking about politics or religion. And most people have a hard time seeing that their diet and their health issues are connected. They just go about their day, slurping down their ginormous sugar-laden coffee drinks and processed convenience foods and then running to the doctor when a health issue arises (which it always does).

Unless they’re paying a lot of attention, people become so disengaged from their bodies that they don’t realize eating certain foods is causing them to feel like crap. They don’t realize that being bloated or having indigestion all the time is fixable.

It’s not your job to fix them. But it is your job to stand up for what you and your kids believe in. Eating high-quality protein, healthy fats, nuts and seeds, and fruits and veggies is how our ancestors ate — before chronic illnesses like diabetes and heart disease became staples in our healthcare system.

You know that eating this way works for you and your family. That’s why the best advice is to lead by example. As your siblings see you indulging in red meat and big ass salads and forgoing grains and processed desserts, they’ll also start to notice that your weight is staying stable (or you’re losing weight) and you’re avoiding the typical illnesses that plague Standard American Dieters.

Whenever you get together with family, keeping eating like you always do without making it a big deal. Who knows? Maybe one of these days you’ll notice they’re slathering up their dinner with real butter instead of spraying on the fake stuff.

Sara asked:

“I’ve been Primal about 2 years and I’m still struggling with how to eat healthy at parties when there are limited food options. I always end up eating what’s there because I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. Got any advice?”

Let me ask you this. What’s more important, your health or the host’s feelings? If passing on chips or cake makes you feel bad, you might want to dig a little deeper into why you’re choosing to eat Primally in the first place. I use an exercise called WHY x 5  with my clients that works wonders when it comes to gauging their deep-down motivating factors for change; and all you have to do is ask yourself WHY five times:

Why is living a Primal lifestyle important to me?
Why does that matter?
Why is that important?
Why would that be great to achieve?
And (to address any remaining questions) why?

My guess is that when you eat processed junk, you end up lethargic and bloated. Maybe you feel foggy, your cravings are out of control, you don’t sleep as soundly at night, and you don’t feel as rested in the morning. When you eat protein-forward foods made with real ingredients and healthy fats, you probably feel like a million bucks.

I get it though. It’s really hard to pass on a dish that someone has made from scratch and is being offered from the goodness of their heart. But here’s how you do it. Just say “no.” Or “no thanks” if you’re feeling extra polite. You don’t need to come up with an excuse to justify your answer either. You don’t have to say you aren’t hungry or that you don’t eat grains. All you have to say is “no, thank you.” So liberating, right?

Here’s another technique I use personally and recommend in my own health coaching practice. Bring a Primal-ish dish 2 (that won’t scare off your non-Primal friends). That way you’ll be guaranteed something healthy to eat — something where you know all the ingredients. Even if you’re not much of a cook, you can easily throw together a colorful salad and bring along a delicious Primal-friendly dressing that everyone in attendance will love (and ask you about). There’s also the possibility that your real food contribution will spark a non-confrontational conversation about why you eat this way and (hopefully) give them an alternative perspective on what good health is all about.

James asked:

“When you are out and there are no Primal choices, is it better to eat unhealthy or nothing at all?”

Here’s the deal James. Once you have a solid understanding of what ‘healthy’ is, you can always find a better-for-you choice. When you’re hung up on following the rules to a tee, or the opposite end of the spectrum, having those “life’s too short not to eat the cake moments” — that’s when people typically get into trouble.

But let’s back up a sec. Say you’re at a restaurant and you’re starving, completely ravenous. Even with the best willpower, you’d be struggling not to scarf down the whole bread basket. Anyone would. Now, I love when my clients have the awareness to realize that they’re hungry (vs looking for something snacky to pass the time), however there’s a difference between being hungry and being hangry 3 That’s when all logic and reasoning go out the window.

When you answer hunger with a processed, grainy thing like bread, you’re going to have a blood sugar spike, then a big ol’ sugar crash — quickly followed by another round of ravenous hunger.

So, my first piece of advice is to eat a little before you arrive. When your blood sugar is stable, you’re more apt to make choices that are aligned with your goals. Meaning, you’re more likely to choose a healthier option than dive head-first into a basket of grains.

Second, you can almost ALWAYS find something Primal-ish at a restaurant. Order a burger and scrap the bun. Ask for a plate of steamed veggies with butter. Or sip on a cup of coffee with cream ‘til you can get your hands on something more satiating.

And third, the Primal lifestyle is all about balance, so if you end up eating the bread, don’t sweat it. While the 20% isn’t intended to be about cheating, it is about navigating real life scenarios.

Have you had to defend your Primal lifestyle to family or friends? If so, what strategies have you used? Share your experience in the comments below.

References https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2787021/https://www.marksdailyapple.com/low-carb-barbecue/

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Keto Chai Ice Cream Bon Bons Recipe

Bon bons sound so fancy, don’t they? It’s like saying “ice cream bites,” but with a French accent and a posh flair. You may get the impression that ice cream bon bons are difficult to make, but here’s a secret: they’re easy. If you can scoop ice cream, you can pull it off. And if you use Keto Pint Ice Cream, you can make low-carb keto ice cream bon bons without churning a thing.

Go ahead. Show off a little.

We used Primal Kitchen® Chai Tea Collagen Latte Drink Mix to give these keto bon bons a warm, cozy spice flavor against a chilled ice cream backdrop, plus collagen that your skin and hair love as a bonus.

Don’t wait for your next opportunity to share a batch of bon bons. Make a tray, keep them in the freezer, and pop one whenever a sweet moment strikes.

Keto Chai Ice Cream Bon Bons Recipe

Time in the kitchen: 60, including 45 minutes in the freezer

Makes: 10 bon bons, or more if you decide to use more ice cream

Ingredients

3 oz. coconut butter
2 oz. cacao butter
1 Tbsp. coconut oil
1.5 scoops Primal Kitchen Chai Tea Collagen Keto Latte Drink Mix
½ tsp. vanilla extract
1 (or more) pints Keto Pint Ice Cream (Coffee or Sea Salt Caramel)

Directions

Finely chop the cacao butter.

Scoop out the coconut butter and spoon both into a heat-safe bowl. Set up a double boiler by heating a few inches of water in a pot.

Once the water is hot, reduce the heat to low and place the bowl over the pot so it’s resting on top of it. Use a whisk and begin mixing the cacao butter and coconut butter to encourage it to melt.

Remove the bowl from the heat right before the cacao butter is fully melted, and continue to whisk when it’s removed from the heat.

Whisk in the coconut oil until the mixture is uniform. Add the collagen powder and vanilla extract and whisk until combined. Set the mixture aside.

Scoop out the ice cream using an ice cream scoop and place each scoop on a sheet pan with a piece of parchment on it.

Place the scoops of ice cream in the oven for 30-45 minutes to harden.

Once the scoops of ice cream have set, place a scoop of ice cream on a spoon or spatula and spoon the white chocolate mixture on top.

Cover the ice cream twice with white chocolate, allowing the chocolate to coat all sides of the ice cream. Carefully place the finished bon bon on a piece of parchment and repeat with the remaining ice cream.

Place the bon bons in the freezer to allow them to set and harden.

Dust a little of the chai collagen on top and enjoy!

 

Tips

When setting up the double boiler, set the burner over low heat and only let the coconut butter and cacao butter come near being fully melted before removing the bowl from the pot. Continue stirring after you remove the bowl from the heat and then stir in the coconut oil, vanilla and collagen powder.
The chai white chocolate coating will thinly coat the ice cream on the first pass, so I recommend giving each scoop of ice cream two dips of coating.
If chai flavor isn’t your thing, you can try this recipe out with a different flavored Primal Kitchen Collagen and your favorite ice cream flavor.

Nutrition Info (per scoop, about 10):

Calories: 136

Total Fat: 15g

Total Carbs: 3g

Net Carbs: 2g

Protein: 2g

The post Keto Chai Ice Cream Bon Bons Recipe appeared first on Mark's Daily Apple.

Weekly Link Love — Edition 92

Research of the Week

Some modifiable risk factors for dementia.

35% of healthy, unexposed donors had evidence of T-cell reactivity to the coronavirus.

We can handle one-off feasts pretty well.

Genetic variants that may predict severe coronavirus outcomes.

New Primal Blueprint Podcasts

Episode 436: Dr. David Roetman, DC: Host Elle Russ chats with Dr. David Roetman, who gets major results with non-surgical orthopedics and functional medicine.

Episode 437: Nathanael Morton: The Benefits of Jumping Exercises and Persevering Through Extreme Challenges: Host Brad Kearns chats with Nathanael Morton about the benefits of explosive jumping.

Primal Health Coach Radio, Episode 71: Laura and Erin chat with Christine Hassler about our true purpose.

Media, Schmedia

Top athletes who’ve gone carnivore.

22% of Millennials say they have no friends, 25% no acquaintances.

Interesting Blog Posts

Photorealistic depictions of Roman emperors.

This one weird Neanderthal gene could make you more sensitive to pain.

Social Notes

Planting rice.

Everything Else

Restaurant prices may have to go way up.

The “Forrest Gump” approach to COVID-19.

Things I’m Up to and Interested In

Interesting study: Societies that historically farmed rice have tighter social norms.

A sign of the times: Pastured egg outfit Vital Farms goes public.

Good policy: A two-line remote work policy.

Phrase I hadn’t heard before: “Educational colonialism.”

Everyone should do this: Teach college class outside.

Question I’m Asking

How would you change education?

Recipe Corner

Love a quick pickle.
Thai-style meatballs.

Time Capsule

One year ago (Jul 25 – Jul 31)

10 Keto Hacks to Try… Or Not  – Should you try these?
15 Low-Carb, Keto-Friendly Desserts  – Sometimes you want something sweet.

Comment of the Week

“I notice the comforting way my dog smells. Yes, really.

How delicious 90 and humid feels when stepping out of too much AC.

The meditative fun of coloring.

A satisfying bubble belch after kombucha.”

-Good one by Margi, but they were all good.

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What Is Low Carb Flu, or Keto Flu? And Ways to Beat It

Over the first few days (up to two weeks) of eating low-carb, you may run into some frustration. Where is all of this energy I’m supposed to have? Why do I want to mow through that bag of chips right now? Am I coming down with a cold? For some people, the transition from burning glucose to burning fat comes with unwanted symptoms that range from slightly uncomfortable to miserable. This transition period is known as keto flu, or low-carb flu. It’s real, and it can be pretty terrible.

But, it’s temporary.

What is Low Carb Flu?

Low carb flu, or keto flu, is a set of symptoms that you may feel over the first few days of limiting carbohydrates. Low carb flu isn’t a flu or infection at all, and it’s not a medical term. It got its name because some of the symptoms of carb restriction can feel like you’re sick with the flu.

Low carb flu has dissuaded millions of people from pursuing and sticking to a healthy diet. You can laugh now that you’re fat-adapted and humming along on stored body fat, but you’ve forgotten just how terrible the transition from sugar-burning to fat-burning can be.

Symptoms of Keto Flu, or Low Carb Flu

It shows up differently for everyone. Some people, likely the ones who are metabolically flexible to a degree before even starting, won’t notice much trouble. That’s somewhat rare. More often, people new to carb restriction will experience some degree of:

Headaches
Brain fog
Malaise, fatigue, listlessness, and other synonyms for “exhaustion”
Feeling lightheaded or dizzy
Irritability
Mood changes
Constplation
Diarrhea
Nausea
Vomiting
Muscle aches
Lack of motivation
Feelings of anxiousness
Cravings

At some point, you’ll just have to accept the reality of the situation: you’re shifting from a sugar-burning metabolism to a fat-burning metabolism. You’re building the metabolic machinery necessary to burn fat. You’re updating your body’s firmware, and it’s a big update. That takes time.

How Long Does Keto Flu Last?

Generally, you can expect keto flu to last 4-7 days.

Most commonly, people who have symptoms with low-carb will experience symptoms If the results of one study are representative, it takes about five days on a low-carb, high-fat diet to increase AMPK and start building new fat-burning mitochondria.12 And sure enough, most people report that the low-carb flu lasts from four to seven days—right on target.

But that doesn’t mean we have to like it. So, what can you do to speed up the transition and reduce the pain and suffering?

Here are a few strategies to help you cross the rocky terrain of keto flu more quickly.

11 Keto Flu Remedies to Make Low Carb Easier

Eat fatty fish or take fish oil
Support your stress systems
Don’t skimp on salt
Eat enough potassium
Take magnesium
Stay hydrated
Eat more fat
Include medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs)
Consider ketone supplements
Move around at a slow pace
Reduce carbs gradually

1. Eat fatty fish or take fish oil

One theory is that low-carb flu is caused by the release of stored arachidonic acid from adipose tissue. Since AA is the precursor to inflammatory molecules implicated in headaches,3 a sudden rush of AA into the blood—as happens in obese and overweight people during initial weight-loss—could be responsible.4 If this is true, taking extra fish oil or eating fatty fish like sardines or salmon should counter the omega-6-induced inflammatory response triggering the headaches. If this isn’t true, eating fish is still a good idea.

2. Support your stress systems

There’s a good chance you have been fueled by glucose for most of your life. So, when glucose suddenly isn’t available, your body might think you’re in danger – that you’re in a time of scarcity or famine. That triggers your stress response, and your adrenal glands release cortisol, which makes you store body fat.

An easy way to combat this is with adaptogens – supplements that act directly on your body’s stress mechanisms. Adaptogens help to modulate the stress response so that the physical effects of stress are less pronounced.

3. Don’t skimp on salt

Going low-carb increases salt requirements on multiple levels. First, when your body dumps glycogen, it doesn’t just dump the water that accompanies it. You’re also losing tons of sodium. Second, a byproduct of low insulin is reduced sodium retention,5 so you’re both losing and failing to hold on to it. Third, going on a Primal eating plan inevitably entails eating more fresh food and less unprocessed food. Unprocessed food is usually low-salt; processed food often comes with added salt. Nothing a little extra salt can’t fix.

Add salt to taste. Drink salty bone broth (Peter Attia likes bouillon dissolved in hot water, but I prefer the real stuff). Sprinkle a little salt in your water.

4. Eat enough potassium

You also lose potassium when you go low-carb and dump all that water weight.6 To replenish your stores, Use Lite-Salt (a potassium salt) along with your regular salt, and eat lots of non-starchy green vegetation, like spinach. Other great potassium sources include avocados and yogurt (if you get real yogurt, the bacteria have consumed most of the sugar).

5. Take magnesium

Notice a theme here? Electrolytes matter when you’re going keto.

Although losing water doesn’t really flush out magnesium like it does other electrolytes, we do need extra magnesium to regulate sodium and potassium levels in the body.7 Leafy greens like spinach (again) are great sources of magnesium, as are most nuts and seeds. Even though low-carb and sweeteners don’t usually mix, I’d say the huge amount of magnesium in blackstrap molasses makes a tablespoon worth adding.

You may have to dip into the supplement bin for this one. Any magnesium ending in “-ate” will do: glycinate, citrate, malate, etc. And once again, it’s one of those cases where almost everyone can probably use extra magnesium regardless of their current diet. It’s simply a good nutrient to have.

6. Stay hydrated

People tend to focus on the electrolytes you lose with water loss, but there’s also the water. If you’ve ever been dehydrated, you know the symptoms—dizziness, fatigue, mental confusion—match those of the low-carb flu. Pay attention to your thirst and get yourself a good source of mineral water with a TDS of at least 500 mg/L (or make your own using mineral drops), like Gerolsteiner, to boost your intake of minerals that may be lost to water shedding. Don’t drink healthy-sounding things like reverse osmosis water without remineralizing it.

7. Eat more fat

The study I cited earlier in which a low-carb, high-fat diet increased AMPK had another experimental group who also experienced AMPK upregulation: lean adults given a bunch of fat to eat. It turns out that both carbohydrate restriction and fat feeding can increase AMPK activity. In both instances, the amount of fat available for burning increases. By supplementing your endogenous fatty acids (the stuff coming off your body fat) with exogenous fatty acids (dietary fat, or the fat you eat), you can maximize the AMPK activation and, hopefully, get to a state of metabolic flexibility faster. You may not lose as much body fat this way, but you’ll be happier, less fatigued, and more likely to stick with the diet.

8. Include some medium chain triglycerides (MCTs) in that fat

MCTs metabolize differently than other fats. Rather than store them in the body fat or use them in cell membranes, the body sends them directly to the liver for burning or conversion into ketones. So a good percentage of the MCTs we eat become ketones, which provide some additional fuel to glucose-deprived bodies that haven’t quite adapted to a fat-based metabolism. Coconut fat is the natural source of MCTs, though only about 14-15% of the fatty acids in coconut oil are MCTs. If that’s not giving you the boost you need, MCT oil is an isolated source of the ketogenic fatty acids. You can go even further and get just caprylic acid-based MCT oil, which isolates the specific fatty acid with the most ketogenic potential.

9. Consider ketone supplements

Part of the low-carb flu comes down to poor energy availability: when you take away the energy source you’ve been relying on all your life, it takes a while to feel normal. Similar to MCTs but more so, ketone esters “force” ketone availability. And while I’m skeptical of taking large amounts of supplemental ketones on top of a high-carb diet, I can imagine them helping the newly low-carb speed up the adaptation process and overcome the low-carb flu.

10. Move around a lot at a slow pace

If you haven’t read Primal Endurance, consider grabbing a copy. It really fleshes all this out. But long story short? Hold off on the extended sugar-burning training—long CrossFit WODs, long hard endurance efforts, 30 minute interval workouts, P90X—until you’re fat-adapted. Do some intense stuff, but keep it really intense and brief. Short 2-5 rep sets of full body lifts, brief 5-10 second sprints (with plenty of rest in between), things like that. The bulk of your training should consist of easy movement keeping your heart rate in the fat-burning zone (180 minus your age) until you’re adapted and the low-carb flu has abated. Hikes, walks, light jogs, cycling, swimming are all great depending on your level of fitness, and they’ll jumpstart the creation of new fat-burning mitochondria to speed that process up.

11. Reduce carbs gradually

The vocal ones, the people who post on message boards and leave comments and submit success stories, are generally going to be more extreme. They’re going from 400 grams of carbs a day to 20 grams. They’re going all in. They’re going cold turkey (literally: they’re eating entire meals consisting entirely of cold turkey to avoid carbs). That doesn’t work for everyone.

Another option, and one that might work even better for most people, is to gradually reduce carbs. By reducing carbs more gradually you reduce the shock to your system and give your body the chance to find its sustainable sweet spot. You might do best on 150 grams a day (that’s about where I am, in fact). You might like 120, or 130, or 70. The point is going gradually allows you to take a journey through all the possible permutations of carb/fat/protein intake. It’s quite possible that 140 grams a day works best for you, but because you immediately launched into a very low-carb 20g/day diet and failed miserably, you’re turned off from the idea altogether.

You can judge your ketone sweet spot by how you feel after the first week. Or, you can measure your ketones and see what levels make you feel your best.

That’s what I’ve got, folks. Those are the tips that work best for me and mine. Those are the tips that science suggests actually work. What about you? How have you gotten over the low-carb flu?

Thanks for reading, everyone. Take care.

References http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20533901https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/abstract/10.1055/s-0032-1312656http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3143481http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1901193http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3533616/http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7332312http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8274363

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Posterior Chain Training: Exercises for a Strong Lower Back

There is an epidemic of chronic lower back pain.1 It’s one of the leading causes of “Years Lived with Disability” (YLD), is responsible for over 7 million ER room visits each year, and costs us both time (hard to do much of anything when our lower back is hurting) and money (people with lower back pain end up spending thousands of dollars a year on average to treat it). I can’t think of anything that degrades overall quality of life more than persistent lower back pain.

And as is so often the case, our attempts to treat the condition often make it worse. What does the average person do when their back hurts?

They avoid using their back altogether. They tiptoe around and craft a cocoon of comfort for their lumbar spine. Chairs that recline. Slouching. Leaning on their arms. It’s only natural to avoid the pain, but it is also our undoing. In order to reduce low back pain, we must make our backs stronger by training it.

But that’s not how the average person trains.

They’re doing pushups and bench presses. They’re curling (sometimes in the squat rack). They’re doing leg presses and squats. They want strong chest, biceps, quads, and they have them, but they also have the rounded shoulders of the bench press addict, the “folded in hulk” look. Those are the parts that pop in the mirror. They’re the easiest to monitor and see grow before your eyes. They’re what you see when you flex.

And don’t get me wrong. Those exercises and those muscles are incredibly important for health and performance (and aesthetics). But they neglect perhaps the most vital musculoskeletal complex in the human body: the posterior chain.

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Posterior Chain Muscles

Think of your posterior chain muscles as the muscles that hold up your back, starting at your waistline. Posterior chain muscles include:

The butt, including the gluteus minimus, gluteus medius, gluteus maximus
The hamstrings
The lower back muscles (erector spinae)

Some sources include the calves or latissimus dorsi (aka lats, or side back muscles) in the posterior chain, but the primary ones are lower back, glutes, and hamstrings.

How Can Posterior Chain Training Reduce Lower Back Pain?

In movement, the posterior chain controls hip extension—the hip hinge we perform to lift heavy objects, jump great distances and heights, make explosive movements like throwing punches or fastballs, and run sprints. When you swing a golf club or baseball bat, most of the power comes from the hip extension performed by the posterior chain.

In everyday life, the posterior chain maintains posture. It’s the foundation upon which the torso rests, moves, and stabilizes. It provides safety and security for smaller upper body movements and power for larger lower body movements.

When we neglect the posterior chain, our lower back suffers. It bears the brunt of the work. Its primary role is to resist motion, to provide stability as the rest of the body moves, to be a lever. But when the hips aren’t moving and the posterior chain isn’t engaged, the lower back must move—for which it is ill suited.

Can’t hinge at the hips to pick up that Lego or move that bag of mulch? You’ll hinge with the lower back. Easy way to tweak it.

Can’t engage your glutes to hold up your torso? Your lower back will cover for them. Easy way to develop an overuse injury.

When you’re working at a laptop or scrolling your phone, hunched over, head jutting forward, your lower back bears the brunt of the weight. It’s not a lot of weight. You may not even feel the pain or strain in your lower back muscles. But it’s a low level chronic stress applied to your lower back that reduces its overall work capacity. So when you go from your desk job to the gym and try to deadlift, your lower back can’t tolerate as much resistance. It’s more likely to fail.

When we sit, the posterior chain is “turned off.” The glutes are inactivated, the hamstrings are slack, and the lower back muscles assume the role of posture stabilizer.

When we’re inactive, the posterior chain atrophies. If you’re not throwing balls, lifting barbells, jumping, sprinting, or heck, dancing and playing, you are not using your posterior chain.

Worse still, lower back pain often dissuades people from training the posterior chain. So many of the most effective posterior chain exercises require the lower back to resist forces acting on it that it scares people — and the medical professionals treating them. The last thing the average doctor will tell his or her patient with low back pain to do is swing a kettlebell or do Romanian deadlifts. This is understandable—you can hurt yourself and make the problem worse — but it’s also unfortunate because proper posterior chain training is one of the best allies we have in the fight against low back pain.

Do involve your doctor, though. You’ll want to rule out any small injuries that could become significant or debilitating injuries before you jump into posterior chain exercises. 

Deadlifts for Lower Pack Pain

Wait a minute, Sisson: are you saying that deadlifts can actually improve lower back pain?

Yes.

In a 2015 study, 39 men and women with chronic low back pain underwent a 16 week free weight training course.2 They did deadlifts, goblet squats, lunges, planks, and step-ups. This was a progressive program, meaning they started with lower weights and added resistance as they progressed in strength. Loads were between 6 and 10-rep max.

After 16 weeks, they were stronger, their pain had dropped by 72%, their disability score had improved by 76%, and their overall quality of life (every 4 weeks they completed a self-assessment) had skyrocketed.

Another study from the same year had similar results.3 Both the deadlifting group and the group who did more traditional back pain exercises saw major improvements in pain and functionality.

The key with the deadlift is it’s very safe and indeed beneficial for the lower back as long as you maintain proper form. In the two studies I mentioned, researchers didn’t just tell the patients to start deadlifting their 6 rep max. They coached proper technique. If a subject couldn’t maintain a flat (neutral) spine, they raised the barbell until they could.

Neutral spine is everything. You’re not bending your lower back to move the weight. It must stay flat.

Hinge at the hips. Lift with your hips (glutes and hamstrings), not your back.

Barbell deadlifts are the gold standard, but they aren’t required. You can do trap bar deadlifts, kettlebell deadlifts, Romanian deadlifts, or sumo deadlifts. What matters is that you hinge at the hips and maintain a neutral spine using proper technique.

It’s important to not max out. In fact, if you’re deadlifting to address back issues, start light. Going for a PR with back pain is not the ticket. Stick to 6-10 rep sets—enough to provide resistance and build strength gradually.

Planks for Lower Back Pain

The plank is about as simple and accessible as it gets. You don’t need any equipment but the ground. You can modify them to be as easy or as hard as you like.

Do ’em on the knees if you can’t manage the toes. Do them on your hands if the elbows are too much.

Get in the pushup position, only put your forearms on the ground instead of your hands. Your elbows should line up directly underneath your shoulders. Toes on the ground.
Squeeze your glutes and tighten your abdominals.
Keep a neutral neck and spine.
Create a straight, strong line from head to toes – a plank, if you will.
Hold that position.
Repeat.

Tips and cues for best results:

Don’t let your hips sag down to the ground. Sagging hips makes the exercise initially easier, but it takes your posterior chain out of it and defeats the purpose of the exercise.
Look down at the ground. This is a good prompt for maintaining a neutral neck and thus spine position.
When your form begins to suffer, pull the plug. You’re only benefiting from the plank by actually doing the plank.

Does it work? In subjects with chronic lower back pain, 8 weeks of planks improved lower back pain and improved low back strength.4

Planks can be done just about every day. They’re a great way to start the morning or break up sedentary time.

Kettlebell Swings for Lower Back Pain

These are not to be taken lightly. Whereas planks and deadlifts are relatively linear and non-dynamic, KB swings take a lot of precision to get right, especially if you have lower back pain. A lot can go wrong with a poorly-done kettlebell swing.

This is a hip hinge and hip extension exercise. All the power should be coming from your glutes and hamstrings with your lower back a stable lever for transferring the force. If you use your arms to “swing” the kettlebell, you’re doing it wrong. Arms should be passive.

Keep the weight on your midfoot/heel. If the weight gets “in front” of you and you start going onto your toes, your lower back will bear the brunt.

At the height of the swing, maintain upright posture and a straight torso. Do not lean back—this takes the emphasis off the hips and places it on the lower back.

When the weight is coming back down, accept it by sticking your butt back and hinging your hips. Don’t “bend over”; get those hips back.

Stick with a weight you can swing for 20-30 reps at a time. You’re not going for any records here. You just want to get the blood flowing and the hips moving. One effective method is to keep a kettlebell in your office and do a minute of swings every hour.

There are other posterior chain exercises you can do to improve lower back pain, but these give the biggest bang for the buck. They should serve as the foundation for your journey back to pain-free life.

Do you have lower back pain? What worked for you? What didn’t work?

References https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4939568/https://bmjopensem.bmj.com/content/bmjosem/1/1/e000050.full.pdfhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25641309https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26864586/

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Is BBQ Sauce Keto?

Summer is for grillin’ and smokin’ meats. Brisket, ribs, tri-tip, sausages, pork shoulder, chicken, salmon… I’m making myself hungry. What goes perfectly with grilled and smoked meats? BBQ sauce.

Whenever I mention how much I enjoy barbecue, someone says to me, “Wait, Mark, can you have BBQ sauce?” I get it. BBQ sauce is often on the list of condiments to avoid on low-carb, Primal/paleo, or keto diets. People are surprised to find out I can and do eat BBQ sauce regularly.

I’m not just being rebellious and ignoring my own rules here. Although there is some important nuance that I’ll cover in this post, it’s definitely possible to enjoy BBQ sauce even on low-carb and keto diets.

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Is BBQ Sauce Keto?

There’s nothing inherently un-keto about BBQ sauce. It’s basically tomatoes, vinegar, and spices. No problems there. I know some keto folks will say tomatoes aren’t allowed on keto, but I think that’s nonsense. No vegetable is de facto forbidden on a healthy keto diet if you ask me. “But tomatoes are fruit.” Okay, fine. You can still eat them on keto.

Some people can’t do nightshades, so they would want to avoid tomatoes, but that’s an issue of intolerance, not carbs or ketosis. Separate issue.

The biggest considerations here are how many carbs are in BBQ sauce and whether it’s a good way to way to spend your carb allotment. Already this is a nuanced question. There’s a lot of individual variation in carb tolerance and what constitutes an optimal keto diet for a given person. As a starting point, the Keto Reset recommends that most people aim for 50 grams of carbs per day without counting above-ground, non-starchy vegetables. For some people, this might be too high; for others, it’s too low.

I’ve also recommended a flexible limit of 18 grams of carbs per meal (unless you’re doing OMAD). Some brands of BBQ sauce have 18 grams of carbs in a single two-tablespoon serving. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend devoting your entire carb allowance to a small ramekin of sauce. On the other hand, Primal Kitchen Classic BBQ Sauce only has 3 grams of carbs per two tablespoons. Other brands are somewhere in the middle.

You can easily stay under your carb limit and enjoy a big plate of meat, a side of grilled zucchini, and a generous pour of a lower-carb BBQ sauce. Given that most of the carbs in a sauce like Primal Kitchen’s come from tomatoes, I see no reason to avoid it.

Aren’t Sweeteners Prohibited on Keto?

Again, this isn’t a straightforward question. On principle, most keto folks choose to abstain from sugar altogether. A small amount of sugar won’t necessarily knock you out of ketosis, but it’s certainly wise to limit consumption of sugar-sweetened BBQ sauces. There are more keto-friendly options anyway.

Some brands use “natural” sweeteners like date paste or molasses. These aren’t inherently un-keto either, in my opinion, aside perhaps from the carb load. Still, if staying in ketosis is important to you, it’s wise to invest in a blood glucose meter and test your reaction to these ingredients. If you don’t experience a massive blood glucose response, they’re fine to consume within reason. Likewise for sauces sweetened with stevia or sucralose (although I’d avoid the latter myself).

With most sweetened BBQ sauces, you’ll probably have to stick to a small serving to keep carbs reasonable. Of course, there are unsweetened options. Not to toot my own horn again, but Primal Kitchen Classic BBQ Sauce and Golden Barbecue Sauce are both unsweetened and organic.

Carb count isn’t the only reason I prefer unsweetened sauces, though. Since I’ve been eating a Primal and keto diet for so long, I find that I don’t enjoy uber-sweet BBQ sauces anymore. They mask the flavor of the meat rather than enhancing it. My palate is more attuned to prefer savory flavors now.

What About the Other Ingredients?

Beyond the sweeteners, are there other ingredients in BBQ sauce that would make it not keto-friendly?

That depends on what type of keto diet you’re following. With dirty keto or IIFYM (if it fits your macros), anything goes in terms of ingredient quality as long as you stay with your macros. For those of you with more Primal sensibilities, the answer is yes, some BBQ sauces contain ingredients you probably steer clear of—modified corn starch, caramel color, and the aforementioned sucralose, for example.

Strictly from a keto perspective, you don’t have to avoid those ingredients. Caramel color won’t knock you out of ketosis. Nevertheless, many folks believe that the whole point of keto is to support metabolic health, so food quality matters. I obviously agree. However, we should acknowledge that other people only care about carb counting.

So I AM Allowed to Eat BBQ Sauce on Keto?

Let’s reframe that question. You’re allowed to eat whatever you want, especially if you’re not trying to stay in ketosis 24/7. I’m not trying to be pedantic, though. The answer is: Yes, it’s possible to include BBQ sauce on a keto diet, maintain ketosis, and still have enough carb allowance to eat plenty of foods like vegetables.

Your best options are to buy an unsweetened variety or make your own. I have a recipe on MDA and in The Keto Reset Diet Cookbook. Secondarily, you can choose a store-bought option made with a sweetener you’re comfortable with and adjust your serving size based on how many carbs it contains.

How to Eat Keto at a BBQ Joint

You can basically guarantee that restaurant BBQ sauce options are not going to be keto-friendly by most people’s standards. If you’re lucky, they might offer a Carolina-style mustard-based BBQ sauce, but even those are often made with honey or sugar.

That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the heck out of some great BBQ from your favorite restaurant. Here are some tips:

Check the menu before you go so you know what to expect.
Bring your own sauce. I’ve been toting salad dressing to restaurants for years, so I have no qualms about this.
Ask for your meat to be served “naked.”
Avoid anything described as fried, battered, or sweet.
For sides, stick to steamed vegetables, collard greens, and salad.
Pass on the rolls and biscuits, corn, baked beans, and potatoes. Restaurant coleslaw is often loaded with sugar, unfortunately, not to mention dodgy oils in the mayo dressing.

Dry rubs usually contain sugar, too. Personally, this isn’t something I stress about. The amount of sugar you’ll actually get in a serving of brisket or pulled pork is probably pretty small. I don’t think you’ll ruin your keto diet by consuming a small amount of dry rub. Worst case scenario, you’re out of ketosis for a few hours before slipping back in. However, this is a personal comfort issue. If you have a zero-tolerance policy for sugar, ask your server about how everything is prepared (or better yet, call ahead).

Keto Should Be Enjoyable

I’m writing this post in the first place because as a purveyor of BBQ sauce, I’ve so often been asked if BBQ sauce is keto. This tells me that there is still a lot of dogma in the keto world. It brings to mind an image of a keto dieter sitting over a plate of meat, looking forlornly at a bottle of BBQ sauce, believing they must abstain or get kicked out of the keto club forever. Tragic.

Deciding whether to eat BBQ sauce shouldn’t be a major source of angst. As with so many other dietary decisions, you have to consider your specific context, health, and values. Don’t let other people set hard-and-fast rules for you. If you’re suffering through bland, boring meals, or your diet stresses you out, it’s not going to be sustainable. Food is meant to be enjoyed. Use your head… and watch your carbs.

The post Is BBQ Sauce Keto? appeared first on Mark's Daily Apple.

10 Reasons Why Eating Beef is Good for You and the Planet

Today we’re sharing a post by guest authors Robb Wolf, New York Times Best Selling Author and one of the early advocates of the paleo lifestyle, and Diana Rodgers, RD, Real Food Dietitian and Sustainability Advocate. Robb and Diana co-authored Sacred Cow, an eye-opening book about meat, health, and sustainability, out this month. 

The ancestral health community generally accepts the right type of meat as a health food. In fact, eating animals is the number one guiding principle of the Primal lifestyle. Still, some groups advise against meat consumption.

Two of the main arguments that you should give up meat are:

It’s healthier to eat vegan
You reduce your impact on the planet if you’re vegan

If your primary meat source comes predominantly from a drive-thru, then yes, these arguments probably hold true. But there’s a world of difference between mass-produced meat from large agricultural operations, and pasture-raised meat from small-scale farms. The animals’ diet and living conditions have a profound effect on what the meat does for your body and for (or against) the planet.

Here are the main reasons why eating meat the right way can benefit your health, as well as the planet’s carbon load.

Stay on track no matter where you are. Instantly download your Primal and Keto Guide to Dining Out.

Meat Is a Great Source of Protein

Protein is the most satiating macronutrient – it simply fills you up better than fat or carbs. It’s also the building block of our bodies and immune systems. Meat is a low calorie way to get the most bioavailable source of protein for humans. It contains all of the amino acids we need to grow and thrive. Unless you are eating a LOT of vegan protein powders, a “plant-based” diet sourced from industrial agriculture is a sure way to ensure you are always hungry and will consume a lot more energy to get the nutrients you need, including protein. Read more here.

Red Meat Is Nutrient Dense

Meat is not just high in protein. It is also a source of many nutrients that are simply not available in plants. Meat provides B12, highly absorbable heme iron, preformed vitamins, all the essential amino acids, zinc, EPA, DHA, vitamin D, and vitamin K2, none of which are found in plant foods. Plants provide important antioxidants, vitamin C, and fiber. We need this variety of nutrients to survive. Compared to rice and beans or other plant proteins, red meat contains more vitamins and minerals per gram of protein. In order to get 30g of protein, you could eat about 200 calories of beef or about 700 calories of beans and rice.

Meat Provides Critical Nutrients That Aren’t Available in Other Foods

Vitamin B12 is not found in plant foods and is essential for neural development. Other vitamins and minerals that are found in both meat and plants are usually in their most absorbable form when eating from animals. This includes iron, zinc, vitamin A, calcium and essential fatty acids. Even though chicken and beef are both quality sources of protein, beef simply blows chicken away in the nutrient department. It has significantly more B12, zinc, choline, iron, and potassium. Meat contains heme iron, the most absorbable type of iron. Iron-deficiency anemia is the most common mineral deficiency in the United States. In terms of micronutrients, chicken only has more B3 than beef. Recommendations that ask people to reduce beef intake and replace it with chicken or vegetables are essentially asking them to reduce the nutrient quality of their diets. Read more here.

Without Grazing Animals, Some Ecosystems Fall Out of Balance

Well-managed grazing systems mimic the way that herds of bison used to migrate through the plains, biting and trampling pasture while depositing manure, before moving to the next spot and allowing the previously grazed area to rest. If plants are not controlled, then a few varieties typically takeover and shade out other plants. To test this theory, stop mowing your front yard for six months and see what happens. Without regular harvesting – whether through grazing or mowing – ecosystems can become dormant. Grazing animals help stimulate the constant regeneration and growth of pastures and grasslands. This provides better living conditions for wildlife, encourages plant root growth, and improves soil health.

Well-managed ruminants can also help eliminate the need to use chemicals to maintain weeds and other undesirable plants. Controlled grazing encourages cattle to eat types of forage that they may not otherwise select while adding sheep and goats can specifically target weeds and invasive species of plants. The use of chemical inputs like pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides has also taken its toll. Pesticide usage has led to pollinator decline while fertilizer runoff has created a dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico the size of Connecticut, as a few examples.

Good Grazing Management Can Improve Soil Health and Sequester Carbon

In a well-managed grazing system, the rest period after grazing has another important function. The more leaf surface area that a plant has, the quicker it will be able to regrow after a grazing period. By ensuring that the cattle only take the top half of a pasture, producers can ensure that those plants will rebound during the rest period. As plants photosynthesize sunlight, they expand their root systems. Healthy root systems help those plants transmit nutrients into the soil to feed microbial life. The more abundant a root system is, the healthier the soil will be, and the more carbon will be sequestered.

Grazing Animals Can Thrive on Land That Cannot Be Cropped

Removing livestock doesn’t mean that we will free up more land for crop production. More than 60% of agricultural land globally is pasture and rangeland that is too rocky, steep, and/or arid to support cultivated agriculture. Yet this land supports cattle production and nutrient upcycling. Sheep and goats are also well-equipped to thrive in harsh conditions and on challenging types of terrain. By raising well-managed ruminants in these areas, we are able to improve the ecosystems, create better wildlife habitat, and build soil health while also generating a nutrient dense source of protein and other nutrients. Burger King, Cargill and World Wildlife Fund recently announced a new project to reseed 8,000 acres of marginal cropland throughout Montana and South Dakota to ecologically diverse grasslands with beef cattle as the primary grazers to maintain the new ecosystem.

Cattle Upcycle Agricultural Byproducts and Other Materials We Can’t Eat Into Nutritious Meat

Only 13% of global animal feed (including feed for chickens, pigs, and cattle) consists of grain crops, according to United Nations FAO research, and only 32% of overall global grain production in 2010 was used to feed livestock. A staggering 86% of global livestock feed consists of materials that we cannot digest as humans, like crop residues including stover and sugarcane tops. Pigs and chickens are also monogastrics (like humans) and cannot digest these products either. However, ruminant animals like cattle, sheep, and goats can safely consume these materials and turn them into nutrient-dense protein for humans. When looking at what only ruminants eat, the numbers are even lower for grain, at only 10% of the diet for cattle, globally. Grass and leaves makes up 57.4% of global ruminant feed ration. The rest is inedible by humans, like “crop residue” such as corn stalks.

Buying Direct From Local Farmers Boosts Farmer Income and Food Security

The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted many of the weaknesses of our current heavily-consolidated and industrialized meat industry. Choosing meat from local farmers helps to create a new supply chain that pays farmers what they actually deserve for the hard, never-ending work of raising livestock. It can also reduce the number of miles that your food has traveled while in some cases offering high standards of welfare for the livestock. Supporting small farmers also supports the preservation of open space in or near your community while keeping money close to home. Investing your food dollars close to home helps build a more resilient local food system that can withstand crises like the current pandemic.

Grazing Animals Produce So Much More Than Meat

Many people view livestock production as providing one simple output: meat. But when you add up the many products that source ingredients from cattle alone including tallow for beauty products, cartilage for osteoarthritis medications, and gelatin for foods as a few examples, it paints a much different picture of a cow’s contribution to our society.

In most cases, synthetic leather is made from two plastic-based substances polyurethane (PU) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The process involves bonding a plastic coating to a fabric backing to create the look and feel of genuine leather. PVC has been identified by numerous organizations as one of the most environmentally damaging types of plastic. Many vegan leather makers also rely on plasticisers like phthalates to make the material flexible. Unfortunately, the wool industry has seen a similar turn of events. Competition from synthetic fibers has led to a reduction in the price for wool leaving many sheep producers in the lurch particularly in New Zealand and Australia.

Livestock Are a Critical Resource for Women and Children in Developing Nations

When people in a position of privilege talk about reducing global meat consumption, they overlook the negative impact that it would have on women and children in developing nations who rely on these animals for economic stability, food security, and vital nutrition. Two of the leading nutrient deficiencies worldwide are Iron and Vitamin B12. Animal products deliver these in the best form. Meat is a critical component of a child’s diet, particularly in developing nations where improved health and cognitive function is a key step to fostering a healthier, more successful nation.

According to ILRI, two-thirds of the world’s 600 million low-income livestock producers are rural women who are responsible for the day-to-day animal management, including processing, marketing, and selling animal products. The organization has found that when women control income, 90% is invested back into their household compared to only 30% to 40% when income is controlled by men. Enabling women to derive economic independence through livestock will directly improve the health, education, and food security of their households. Read more here.

To learn more about these topics and more, pick up the book Sacred Cow: The Case for Better Meat, by Diana Rodgers and Robb Wolf. They also have a companion film coming out this fall. Keep up to date at www.sacredcow.info.

The post 10 Reasons Why Eating Beef is Good for You and the Planet appeared first on Mark's Daily Apple.