7 × 9.25â•… SPINE: 0.

625â•… FLAPS: 0

your primal body

Discover the lean, fit, healthy

your
body that you were born to have.

Tired of feeling sluggish and bloated? Want to achieve a lean body and boundless energy, and to
prevent chronic illnesses, from diabetes to heart disease? Look no further than your Paleolithic

primal
hunter-gatherer ancestors. In Your Primal Body, fitness trainer Mikki Reilly shares her revolutionary
5-Step Primal Body Program, Paleo-based nutrition and workout plans that have helped men and
women of all ages and sizes become healthier, stronger, and more energetic. Your Primal Body not
only shows you the science—and good sense—behind the Paleo-based program, it gives you all the
tools you need to make the Paleo lifestyle work for you, including:

>>> The anti-inflammation primal diet—with easy recipes and meal plans

body
>>> An interval-based fitness program that can take less than 15 minutes a day
>>> Exercises for strength-building and pain-free movement
>>> Easy ways to turn your body into a highly efficient fat-burning machine
>>> Tips for keeping yourself looking and feeling younger

“Mikki Reilly is a world-class trainer. She gets “Mikki Reilly hits the nail on the head!

Fit, and Healthy at Any Age

The Paleo Way to Living Lean,
some of the most dramatic results I’ve ever She not only talks the talk and walks the walk,
seen with the approach she uses. Her book her plan will show you how to become
shows how you, too, can achieve your goals a leaner, fitter you.”
in this inspiring way.”
—Peter Park, Derek Fisher’s trainer and author of —Drs. Michael and Mary Dan Eades,
Foundation: Redefine Your Core, Conquer Back Pain, and authors of Protein Power and The 6-Week Cure for the
Move with Confidence Middle-Aged Middle

Mikki Reilly, MFS, CSCS, is a certified fitness trainer and former competitive
body-builder. She has served on the Balance Health Science Advisory Board
and as a member of Metrx’s “World’s Best Personal Trainer” advisory staff. She

The Paleo Way to Living Lean, Fit,

lives in Santa Barbara.
Reilly
Mikki

and Healthy at Any Age

www.FitnessTransform.com

Mikki Reilly
ISBN: 978-0-7382-1637-9 $17.99 US / £11.99 / $21.00 CAN HEALTH | FITNESS
51799
Da Capo Press
Lifelong Books A Lifelong Original
A Member of the Perseus Books Group Cover design: Laura Shaw Design
9 780738 216379 www.dacapopress.com Cover photograph: Linda Allen Blue Photography

Reilly_97807382163795_cvr_R1.indd 1 10/17/12 3:48 PM

9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page i

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page ii
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page iii

YOUR
PRIMAL
BODY
The Paleo Way to Living Lean,
Fit, and Healthy at Any Age

Mikki Reilly, MFS, CSCS

A Member of the Perseus Books Group

9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page iv

Copyright ©  by Mikki Reilly

Photographs by Linda Allen Blue

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a

retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written
permission of the publisher. Printed in the United States of America. For
information, address Da Capo Press,  Farnsworth Street, rd Floor, Boston,
MA .

Designed by Pauline Brown

Set in . point Warnock Pro Light by the Perseus Books Group

Cataloging-in-Publication data for this book is

available from the Library of Congress.

First Da Capo Press edition 

ISBN: ----

Published by Da Capo Press

A Member of the Perseus Books Group
www.dacapopress.com

Note: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our
knowledge. This book is intended only as an informative guide for those wishing
to know more about health issues. In no way is this book intended to replace,
countermand, or conflict with the advice given to you by your own physician.
The ultimate decision concerning care should be made between you and your
doctor. We strongly recommend you follow his or her advice. Information in
this book is general and is offered with no guarantees on the part of the authors
or Da Capo Press. The authors and publisher disclaim all liability in connection
with the use of this book. The names and identifying details of people associated
with events described in this book have been changed. Any similarity to actual
persons is coincidental.

Da Capo Press books are available at special discounts for bulk purchases in the
U.S. by corporations, institutions, and other organizations. For more
information, please contact the Special Markets Department at the
Perseus Books Group,  Chestnut Street, Suite , Philadelphia, PA, ,
or call () -, ext. , or e-mail [email protected].

         
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/29/12 9:47 AM Page v

Contents

Foreword by Dr. Art De Vany vii

Introduction ix

PART I: THE PRIMAL BODY: OUR GENETIC INHERITANCE

Chapter 1: Why Our Ancestors Were Right 3
Chapter 2: Losing Weight the Primal Way 17
Chapter 3: Live to Be 100 and Die Disease Free 35

PART II: THE 5-STEP PRIMAL BODY PROGRAM

Chapter 4: Step One—Eat the Anti-Inflammation Primal Diet 51
Chapter 5: Step Two—Supplement with the Super Six 69
Chapter 6: Step Three—Restore Your Muscles to Pain-Free Movement 87
Chapter 7: Step Four—Build Muscle with Primal Movement 105
Chapter 8: Step Five—Kick Up Your Metabolism to Burn Fat Faster 137

PART III: PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER: YOUR PRIMAL BODY

PLAN FOR LIFELONG HEALTH AND FITNESS
Chapter 9: Your Primal Body Eating Plan 153
Chapter 10: Your Primal Body Fitness Plan 185
Chapter 11: Your Primal Body for Life 197

Appendix A. Primal Resources 203

Appendix B. Bibliography and Recommended Books 205
Endnotes 207
Acknowledgments 211
Conversion Chart 213
About the Author 215
Index 217

v
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page vi
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page vii

Foreword

Mikki Reilly has done something unique with what I and others have been
calling the evolutionary or Paleo approach to diet and fitness. She, in essence, has
written the “user’s manual” that takes the theory and applies it practically to exercise
and lifestyle—it’s the “how-to” for Paleo followers.
She’s been able to do this because of her excellent background and professional
credentials—she earned the highly esteemed certified strength and conditioning
specialist (CSCS) credential from the National Strength and Conditioning Asso-
ciation (NSCA) and the master of fitness sciences (MFS) from the International
Sports Sciences Association (ISSA). But even more because she is a fitness trainer
who has been in the trenches, so to speak, working with clients daily to see how
an evolutionary approach is altering lives. Her clients of all ages got stronger and
leaner by changing their diet and performing functional, high-intensity exercise,
and in this book you will read their stories. I’ve long asserted from personal expe-
rience that “chronic cardio” was not the way to go, and now we have a blueprint for
the kind of exercise that takes the best advantage of our natural gene expression—
laid out and made simple for everyday use.
When I first began writing about the Paleo approach back in , few people
were interested. But that has changed. Following the diet and lifestyle of our earliest
ancestors, who were around for over  million years and lived fitter, healthier lives
in many ways than we do today, is appealing to more and more people. Mikki has
made it all the more accessible to do, and just in time, as now women are showing
interest, and she is a unique model for how a woman can embrace the Paleo way.
In fact, I might go so far as to call her the “female face of Paleo,” inspiring other
women, as well as everyone, to adopt a more natural, healthy way of life that puts
an end to fads and fashion in fitness.
A simple fact today’s scientists have discovered is that we humans evolved as
hunter-gathers, moving and eating in specific ways that shaped us genetically and
had us survive. Not only survive, but thrive! The latest evidence shows that our
ancestors lived out their days relatively disease free and with bodies that equaled

vii
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page viii

FOREWORD

those of our modern-day Olympic athletes. Your Primal Body shows us how
you can do what they did, and combined with our modern environment, thrive
even better.
Arthur De Vany, PhD
Author, The New Evolution Diet: What Our Paleolithic
Ancestors Can Teach Us About Weight Loss, Fitness, and Aging

viii
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page ix

Introduction

The book you hold in your hands, Your Primal Body: The Paleo Way to Living
Lean, Fit, and Healthy at Any Age, is a doorway to the total transformation of your
body, your health, and your life. It’s about fitness, but unlike most fitness books
today, this book offers more than directions and a routine for changing your body.
It gives you a revolutionary new context for weight loss, pain-free movement,
building muscle, heart health, and longevity—all based on scientific information
about humans that are . million years old.
The program you will read about in this book is unique in one main way: It’s
based on your DNA. Because the human genome has not changed in the last forty
thousand years, you want to mimic what the earliest humans did that worked. Their
DNA was shaped over . million years since they came down from the trees to
begin a lifestyle of hunting and gathering. The environment they encountered was
one that built strong muscles and lean bodies, so they could survive the harsh con-
ditions that prevailed for eons. When you exercise and eat according to the lifestyles
of the earliest humans, you gain a host of advantages that were honed over mil-
lennia to keep you in top condition.
My plan also includes a fitness program based on doing what your DNA has
programmed your body to do. The old model, still used in most gyms and programs
today, requires endless hours of cardio, boring low-fat diets, and machine-dependent
strength training. The low-fat, aerobic approach has been around for decades, ever
since Kenneth Cooper wrote Aerobics in the late ’s and Jane Fonda put millions
of women on the aerobic dance floor in the ’s. But now, there’s a new trend in
town. My -Step Primal Body Program, the backbone of this book, will turn your
world upside down and change forever how you think about fitness. Dr. Cooper;
move over; Jane Fonda, move over; and yes, Jillian Michaels, move over, too. The
biggest losers are about to become the biggest winners, and working out just got
a whole lot more fun.
The -Step Primal Body Program shows you how to be congruent with your
DNA and gives you a step-by-step program to get you in alignment with the
way your genes were designed to be expressed. It is based on my twenty years

ix
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page x

INTRODUCTION

of experience in the trenches, working daily with individuals whose stories you’ll
read and pictures you’ll see in these pages. My approach is not theoretical, nor is
it only what I’ve done for myself—although in this book I include plenty of scientific
theory and tell you how I transformed my own body. What makes my experience
valuable is that I have helped hundreds of people see remarkable results when
their eating and moving patterns become an expression of their human genome.
Fads come and go, most of them based on information designed to appeal to
our vanity. Few coaches you’ll run into have as their mission restoring our orig-
inal, genetically programmed state of health and fitness. This, however, has been
my purpose and passion, driving me to become highly credentialed as a college-
educated, award-winning fitness trainer with an internationally recognized fitness
certification—certified strength and conditioning specialist (CSCS) from the Na-
tional Strength and Conditioning Association, and the master of fitness sciences
from the International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA). In addition, I was
awarded the Distinguished Achievement Award from ISSA, which signifies place-
ment in the top  percent of certified trainers worldwide.
You are in good hands. I am highly qualified to help you change your body.
And so are you, by taking advantage of the physiology you’ve inherited to maintain
superior health and fitness—Your Primal Body.

HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

This book is divided into three parts. The first two provide a detailed overview of
the program (with lots of practical information); the third part helps you put it
all together to develop your own Primal Body plan. Here’s an outline of what you
will find in this book:
Part , “The Primal Body—Our Genetic Inheritance” introduces the back-
ground of my unique approach and shows how I apply it to health and weight loss.
In Chapter , you’ll read the science behind why our human ancestors had the
body of Olympic athletes and learn about their diet and movement patterns. I’ll
answer all of your questions and challenges about this approach. In Chapter , I
show how mimicking our ancestors’ diet and movement patterns can turn your
body into a highly efficient fat-burning machine for the most effective method of
fat loss. In Chapter , I dispel the notion that aging must be equated with disease
and show how the Primal Body Program supports you to become a healthy, active

x
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page xi

INTRODUCTION

centenarian. I explore how exercise effects gene expression, extending life span
beyond what is considered the normal range in our modern society.
Part , “The -Step Primal Body Program,” outlines in five chapters what you
must do to get on the evolutionary fitness wagon and ride. Each step includes in-
spiring, first-person stories of people I worked with who transformed their body
by changing over to a Primal lifestyle, and shows you how you can, too. Here’s a
brief summary of each step:
In “Step One—Eat the Anti-Inflammation Primal Diet,” you learn what in-
flammation is and how this condition becomes chronic due to modern, high-carb
diets. Guidelines are given for the kinds of foods that provide a healthy balance
of good fats and low-glycemic carbs, aimed at greater weight loss, but also pain-
free movement.
In “Step Two—Supplement with the Super Six,” I explain why our human an-
cestors didn’t take supplements, but we must. I introduce the “Super Six,” my list
of supplements to ensure you match the nutrient density our ancestors got from
their diet. Each supplement is described in detail for its benefits, and recommended
dosages are given.
In “Step Three—Restore Your Muscles to Pain-Free Movement,” I show how
you can increase mobility and flexibility through the Self-Myofascial Release (SMR)
technique. I give instructions based on the seven Primal movements and describe
twelve positions for SMR, with model photos included. The result is your body is
now ready for strength training and high-intensity interval training, the core of
the Primal exercise program.
In “Step Four—Build Muscle with Primal Movement,” you learn how to build
muscle and burn fat through functional training, rather than by more traditional
techniques that require isolating muscles on machines. Functional training, em-
phasizing movements that are found in daily activities, mimics how our ancestors
moved to stay muscular and lean naturally, congruent with their genetic blueprint.
I show you how to do this with fourteen illustrated functional training movements.
In “Step Five—Kick Up Your Metabolism to Burn Fat Faster,” I explain the
surprising news that traditional cardio⁄aerobic exercise can actually make you fat,
while a Primal form of exercise, high-intensity interval training, is more effective
for weight loss and all-around conditioning. In this step, I also present clear in-
structions on safe, effective use of kettlebells (the cannonball-shaped weight with
the handle) to crank up your metabolism and firm up your body.

xi
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page xii

INTRODUCTION

Part , “Putting It All Together,” brings all the information and techniques de-
scribed in the -Step Primal Body Program together to answer the question “So
what do I do now?” In Chapter , I provide practical advice about how to start
planning and cooking simple meals of mostly protein, fat, and nonstarchy vegeta-
bles, with plenty of recipes to get you started. In Chapter , I help you design an
exercise program, tailor-made to your specific fitness level and immediate goals,
using functional strength-training and metabolic activities. In Chapter , I show
you how to measure your results to maintain lifelong success on the Primal Body
Program. I also provide resources for acquiring Primal cooking aids (see page ),
as well as a recommended reading list and bibliography of books on the Primal
theory and lifestyle (see page ).
Your Primal Body is a book and program to mark the beginning of transform-
ing your fitness and health. If you have been following a program that has not pro-
duced the results you’ve wanted, or if you are new to fitness and have never trained
or eaten healthily before, the Primal Body Program will get you going in the right
direction—the same direction your human genome has been going in over the
past few million years.
This is your opportunity to use that evolution to your advantage. Stop strug-
gling to carve out the body you want by going against your genetic blueprint, and
join a revolution that takes you home to your original body.
I wish you the best in your adventure to discover Your Primal Body.

xii
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 1

PART I
The Primal Body:
Our Genetic Inheritance
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 2
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 3

Chapter 1

Why Our
Ancestors Were Right

Jog to burn fat—the longer the better.

Avoid saturated fats to stay healthy.
Eat six meals a day.
Always stretch before training.
Do cardio after weight training.

The list goes on of the conventional wisdom that we’ve all been led to believe
about fitness and weight loss. For the past four decades, since the aerobic exercise
revolution got under way, these sacred tenets have kept people doing hours of car-
dio exercise on a treadmill or bike, sweating the pounds away while sticking to a
low-fat diet in an effort to become healthy and fit.
But all of that is changing, and while what’s taking its place is very new, it’s
also very old.
You are about to discover that the way to getting a fit, lean, and healthy body—
one that moves powerfully and gracefully at any age—has nothing to do with hours
of “chronic cardio,” low-fat diets, or using machines to work out in the gym. This
is because becoming slim, muscular, and healthy is how you return—in both diet
and exercise—to the way that your body was intended to function originally, based
on millions of years of evolution and as proven by modern science.
As a personal fitness trainer, working with a wide range of clients—including
overweight, middle-aged men and women as well as top-tier athletes—I am bring-
ing a new paradigm of fitness to people that is natural, effective, and fun. My Primal
Body Program turns the old, more conventional wisdom on its ear, because it is
based on the premise that your body is genetically designed for health and fitness
on a scale far superior to what you experience today—even if you consider yourself
in good condition. Your body already is the Primal Body I am talking about. What
you’ll find here is a program designed for you to train and eat in ways that are con-
gruent with the body you already have, which has been shaped by the events of
. million years and unchanged over the past forty thousand years.

3
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 4

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

The Primal Body Program is a path consisting of five steps to realign your
lifestyle to fulfill that original genetic design of your body for increased health and
longevity. When you embrace the Primal Body Program, you no longer go against
your genetic inheritance. You can lose those extra pounds, whether  or ,
bring a cut and youthful appearance to your muscles and overall posture, and enjoy
sexual vitality throughout your life (and move pain free to maintain a muscular
and functioning body in every aspect of your daily life).
Sound like a dream come true? It is, and the surprising news is: All this is your
birthright! When you express your genes in the way they evolved to be expressed,
then all the weight loss, toned muscles, and pain-free ease of movement you’ve
ever wanted is yours—permanently. This is not a miracle but a natural physical
state, available to any human being at any age or any level of fitness.

HOW I DISCOVERED MY INNER (AND OUTER) CAVEWOMAN

I’ve been a personal trainer for twenty years, but in  I went back to school to
finish my degree in exercise and health science and communication. It was there
that I discovered the research behind what has become known as the Primal theory
of fitness, an approach based on how our Paleolithic ancestors moved and ate. I
was surprised and then intrigued to learn that this approach closely paralleled
what I was already doing to get results for myself and clients.
Over the years, I had tried all kinds of diets in my personal exploration of
health and fitness, immersing myself thoroughly in whatever the current approach
was. I followed a macrobiotic diet for some time, and then I became a vegetarian
for seven years. From there, I went low-fat. I followed the Zone diet made popular
by Barry Sears, until I discovered the low-carb Atkins diet.
Dr. Atkins was a low-carb guru in the s who advocated a strict regimen
of  grams of carbohydrate a day for the first fourteen days of his program. This
was designed to put the body into a state of ketosis, in which the body burns ke-
tones as an alternate fuel to glucose (you’ll find more info on ketosis on pages –
). I had great success with a number of my clients who used this method to lose
 to  pounds.
While working on my degree at the University of California at Santa Barbara,
I discovered the Paleo diet, a newer low-carb approach with an emphasis on daily
protein and healthy omega-–rich fats. I began following the work of Dr. Loren
Cordain, one of the world’s leading experts on the diet of our Stone Age ancestors.

4
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 5

WHY OUR ANCESTORS WERE RIGHT

I read everything I could of Dr. Cordain’s research (he’s written over one hundred
peer-reviewed scientific articles on the health benefits of the Stone Age diet for con-
temporary people), learning of the recent discoveries of paleo-anthropologists that
revealed our early human ancestors’ lifestyles. It was an eye-opening adventure!
Cordain delved into what archaeologists and paleo-anthropologists were find-
ing about the diet and movement patterns of early humans from their appearance
some . million years ago. From remains that have been found, it is clear that
early hunter-gatherers suffered from none of the diseases of modern man, such
as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, or obesity; rather, they lived a relatively disease-
free life. Whatever our cave-ancestors were doing kept them in an optimal state
of fitness and health.
Most important for me was what I had known all along, that a low-carb, high-
protein diet with healthy fats was the best way to eat for health and permanent
weight loss. Now I had both a context and confirmation for why: It is the ancestral
diet we evolved on and therefore is perfectly congruent with our human genome.

ANCIENT GENES AND MODERN HUMANS

The human genome is the set of chromosomes you and I have in every cell of our
body—our DNA—giving expression to who we are and how we function. Ge-
neticists have recently mapped the complete human genome, a stunning achieve-
ment that is altering what we know about our history as a species. It’s been
documented that the human genome evolved over a period of . million years
but remained the same since the last forty thousand years—the time period when
early humans started to hunt animals and gather vegetables and fruits as a way
of life.
In other words, you and I have the same DNA as those Stone Age hunter-
gatherers, and we carry in our cells a genetic blueprint that was shaped in an en-
vironment very different from the one we experience today. What does this mean
for our health and fitness in modern times? Dr. Cordain refers to a rule most bi-
ologists agree applies, when he states, “Biological organisms are healthiest when
their life circumstances most closely approximate the conditions for which their
genes were selected.”
The lack of close approximation between modern and ancient has led to a
question he and other theorists have started to ask, “Are we modern humans living
in a way that is out of step with our inherited genetic design?” They go even further

5
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 6

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

to ask, “Could our genetic ‘incongruence’ be the reason for the many diseases that
plague modern humans, diseases that weren’t around back in our ancestors’ times?”
Biologists tell us that when early humans radically changed their diet and ac-
tivity patterns by becoming agriculturists ten thousand years ago, the so-called
diseases of civilization—atherosclerosis, cancer, diabetes, arthritis, and others—
began to appear. While there is a lively debate afoot in the scientific community
about the evidence for this, as reported recently in the New York Times, there
are no clear signs that these diseases were anywhere near as prominent in Paleo-
lithic times as they have been in more recent evolution, especially since the agri-
cultural revolution.
These questions and the answers I was discovering made sense to me from my
own experience. Having eaten a low-carb, high-protein diet for years, I found myself
to be in the best physical condition of my life. My weight was easy to maintain and
I had plenty of energy to train, both in strength building and in my most recent in-
terest, high-intensity interval exercises. I was definitely doing something right!
I began to be interested in what life was like for our early hunter-gatherer
ancestors, and in my research found some fascinating information about how
they lived.

STONE AGE LIFESTYLES

Let’s take a closer look at the lifestyles of the earliest humans to learn more about
how they functioned—in particular, their diet and movement patterns.
By about twelve thousand years ago, hunter-gatherers had moved into most
of the habitable regions of the earth. In small, mobile bands, our ancestors adapted
to almost all climates and environments, from the Arctic to the tropics, by exploit-
ing whatever resources they found available.
These bands, often comprised of twenty-five to fifty people, moved seasonally
to take advantage of different sources of food as they became available. Within the
group, women did most of the gathering and men did the hunting, although this
gender distinction was not universal. To survive, everyone learned about the ge-
ographic area, the food sources, and the dangers, and this knowledge was shared
communally. Everyone had to be prepared to act in ways that fended off danger,
whether from natural disasters or attacks by predators. Conditions were harsh,
but in spite of this, our Stone Age ancestors had a great deal of leisure, enjoying

6
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 7

WHY OUR ANCESTORS WERE RIGHT

recreational activities, such as singing, dancing, playing instruments, and story-

telling around the open fire.
What did the early hunter-gatherer tribes eat? Studies show their diet consisted
mainly of animal protein, fats, and limited carbohydrates, such as roots and veg-
etables pulled from the ground, and fruits plucked from bushes and trees. They
ate a variety of plant foods that provided an abundance of vitamins, minerals,
antioxidants, and other phytonutrients.
Although there may be some resemblance between the foods they ate and our
modern versions of the same foods, most of their foods were very different. Not
only is nutrient density greatly diminished in modern food, but the actual chemistry
of the food, after centuries of hybrid growing, has been altered almost beyond
recognition. For example, the wild game they feasted on was grass-fed, as animals
grazed freely before domestication, and it was loaded with the essential fatty acid
omega-, an anti-inflammatory form of fat. This is completely unlike modern cattle,
which are grain-fed and therefore produce meat high in the fatty acid omega-, a
pro-inflammatory form of fat. An apple a million years ago had much less sugar
in it than the fruit of today and would probably not be appealing to our modern
taste for sweetness in fruits.
As I have said, modern humans have the same DNA as early hunter-gatherers
did. This is important in light of their lifestyles as compared to ours, because our
genes determine our nutritional and physical activity needs. Our modern body is
“expecting” to meet with the same foods and activity patterns it had grown accus-
tomed to over the past forty thousand years, a period in which nothing in our hu-
man genome changed. The problem is that our diet has changed, especially as we
began to grow our food and domesticate animals ten thousand years ago, when
grain-based agriculture became a way of life. Archaeologists uncovering remains
of early humans tell us that starting around that time, there was a characteristic
reduction in body stature, an increase in bone mineral disorders, an increase in
the number of dental cavities, and a decrease in the average life span.
Another fact brought to light by recent science is that before the advent of
agriculture, humans led much more active lives. Archaeological evidence shows
hunter-gatherers to be lean, fit—much like a modern-day athlete—and free from
chronic diseases. Exercise was not done during leisure time, as it is today; rather,
it was a part of everyday life. Hunting, foraging, escape from predators, water

7
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 8

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

transport, and all of the movements needed to survive in the Paleolithic environ-
ment shaped a genetic pattern that survives today.
A further study by Cordain showed that one thing is clear from our under-
standing of early human ancestors: The genetic model for human physical activity
was not developed in the gymnasium or in the sports arena. It was established
through adaptive pressures inherent in the environment over millions of years of
evolution. When the human body is viewed through this lens, it becomes clear
that the conventional thinking about diet and exercise is deeply flawed.

THE COST OF ADAPTATION

Given such huge gaps in how we evolved back then and how we live today, it isn’t
hard to understand why we modern humans tend toward obesity and chronic dis-
ease with age. The current state of health in the world is a clear reflection of the
incongruence of our genetic design as expressed in modern lifestyles. Our own
country tells the most shocking tale, in spite of the United States being one of the
wealthiest nations in the world—a fact that might lead you to expect it might be
one of the healthiest, too. But we have the highest rates of obesity, more than any
other country in the world.
In fact, health problems and chronic illnesses resulting from a diet of highly
processed foods and a sedentary lifestyle pose a serious threat to public health.
Over  percent of U.S. adults are overweight or obese, and  percent are obese.
Obesity is estimated to cause more than , deaths per year. In addition,
 million Americans adults have cardiovascular disease,  million have high
blood pressure, and  million have type  diabetes. At least . percent of post-
menopausal women develop osteoporosis, and . percent have osteopenia, a
precondition to osteoporosis. Cancer is the second leading cause of death after
cardiovascular disease, and it is estimated to cause  percent of all deaths in the
United States.
All this disease exists despite the remarkable technological and pharmacological
advances of the twenty-first century. Could the problem be that we are socially
adapted to the twenty-first century but physiologically adapted to the Stone Age
era? The solution in that case, I came to believe, was to align our lives with the
lifestyle patterns of our Paleolithic ancestors—to move and eat as they did—which
was the basis for Primal fitness theory and how I apply it in the Primal Body Pro-
gram, described in Part .

8
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 9

WHY OUR ANCESTORS WERE RIGHT

DISCOVERING PALEO EXERCISE: ART DE VANY

After completing my degree, I kept up my interest and exploration in evolutionary

fitness and discovered the work of Dr. Art De Vany, another Primal fitness theorist.
At the time, De Vany was a professor of economics and behavioral sciences at the
University of California at Irvine. He was also an accomplished athlete, with a
background ranging from Olympic weight lifting to professional baseball; at age
seventy-three, '" and weighing  pounds, he measured . percent body fat,
an impressive profile for a man his age, or any age.
Whereas Cordain had stressed diet in his research, only touching briefly on
exercise and movement, De Vany synthesized a holistic approach to health and
fitness that included both diet and exercise. Evolutionary Fitness, as he called his
theory and also titled his seminal essay presenting his ideas, is based on the premise
that our genes have encoded both behaviors and human physiology from a hunter-
gatherer body and mind.
I had already been mimicking the early hunter-gatherer diet by adhering to a
low-carb, high-protein, and healthy fats regimen, getting results not only for myself
but for my clients as I advised them on their fitness goals. But I was curious about
the exercise component of our ancestors’ early lives. I knew that an active lifestyle
was what made people healthy and that having more muscle and less fat on our
body was congruent with our genes. But De Vany gave me an important piece that
made it all come together—and coincidentally, paralleled the kind of training I had
naturally found to be the most effective for weight loss, fitness, and health.
De Vany suggests that “our genes were forged in an environment where activity
was mandatory—you were active or you starved or were eaten . . . diabetes,
Alzheimer’s disease, insulin resistance, heart disease and a whole modern panoply
of chronic, long-lasting diseases are the product of genes that require activity for
healthful expression.” His idea is that exercise should mimic the activities of our
ancestral past and “the key is to hit the right balance of intensity and variety . . .
[because] intensity is the key to reaching the fast twitch fibers of the muscles,
which are the key fibers to staying young.”
This is very different from the physical activity recommendations made by most
health professionals over the last four decades. Low-intensity, aerobic activity—
not high-intensity activity, the kind that uses the fast twitch muscle fibers—is most
often prescribed for fat loss, because it is believed that you burn more fat at the

9
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 10

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

lower intensities. But the low-intensity approach is very shortsighted, because you
only burn more fat during the time period you are exercising at the lower inten-
sities. You burn more total fat when you exercise at higher intensities, due to
what is known as the “afterburn effect,” which causes you to continue to burn fat
for up to  hours after exercise. (I explore this phenomena in more detail in
Chapter  and show you how to put it to work for fat loss in Part , “The -Step
Primal Body Program.”)
At the time I discovered De Vany’s approach, I had moved in my own training
program from a focus on body-building exercises—isolation and compound move-
ments to build muscle—to a focus on high-intensity intervals and functional
strength training—a shift that required a different kind of movement. High-intensity
interval training (HIIT) consists of short, rapid bursts of activity alternating with
brief periods of rest. It is proven by study after study as the most effective form of
cardiovascular exercise for fitness and fat loss, over the long term, which is why
it is the backbone of the recommended exercises in the Primal Body Program.
De Vany’s theory confirmed I was on the right track, when he described how
early humans moved. They often sprinted, using short, intense bursts of speed,
and then rested—the kind of pattern you’d expect for people who roamed the sa-
vannas in search of game. Also, our ancestors needed the cardiovascular power
to be able to move quickly when predators threatened them—even more than the
capacity for moving at moderate speeds over long distances. They needed to per-
form more explosive movement over short distances. Leaping and jumping were
more likely physical skills that evolved, given the circumstances.
A fitness program modeled on our early ancestors’ activities was exactly
what I had been developing on my own. My program was composed of high-
intensity sprints, functional strength training without machines, and a smaller
amount of low-intensity “play” activities, such as running or hiking. What made
my exercise program unique was the emphasis I placed on HIIT and the Primal
movement patterns used in my functional strength-training component. Long-
distance aerobic activities, such as running and hiking, complemented rather
than dominated it.
No wonder it was working! A light bulb went on when I realized I had naturally
evolved in my own routine to both eat and move as the earliest humans did. It ex-
plained perfectly the terrific results I had been seeing in myself and for my clients.
This was to make even further sense when I began training with kettlebells,
those ball-shaped weights of varying sizes that are showing up in gyms everywhere.

10
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 11

WHY OUR ANCESTORS WERE RIGHT

One way we modern humans can mimic the high-intensity movements of early
humans is by working out with kettlebells. Such exercises as the swing and the
snatch cause your body to hit the kind of metabolic peaks that our ancestors ex-
perienced every day of their lives.
An added benefit of these ballistic movements is that through practicing total
body tension and relaxation while generating power from the hips, the muscles
of the pelvic floor get stronger. Stronger pelvic floor muscles lead to an improved
libido and enhanced sexual vitality. In Chapter , I will tell you more about how
Primal movement and exercise, such as working out with kettlebells, can increase
longevity and sexual health.

MODERN-DAY OBSERVATION: WESTON PRICE

A third part in my understanding of Primal fitness theory came through a man

named Dr. Weston Price. Price, a dentist and nutritionist living in the early s,
was one of the earliest pioneers in doing the research that formed the basis for
Primal fitness theory. But unlike Cordain and De Vany, Price did his research on
humans still living the Stone Age lifestyle in his time.
As a dentist, Price noticed that the children of his patients were having dental
problems that their parents did not have. In particular, he observed a pattern of
crowded, crooked, or missing teeth and malformed dental arches. Price compared
this pattern with the beautiful teeth and excellent health of primitive cultures and
questioned whether our modern diet might be a reason for this difference.
In the s, when distant areas of the globe were becoming accessible through
air travel, numerous primitive societies were still living as they had been for many
thousands, even millions, of years. This was a great time to compare the effects of
the modern diet to the primitive ancestral diet. Price recognized this opportunity,
and he and his wife spent ten years traveling over , miles, studying the nu-
tritional health of numerous primitive societies.
Price observed that people in native societies had all thirty-two of their teeth,
perfectly fitting dental arches, and perfectly formed teeth, suffering little or no de-
cay. But when modern foods became integrated into their primitive diet, he noticed
first dental decay and then the emergence of disease, in addition to the beginning
of crooked, malformed teeth and dental arches.
Analyzing samples of native and modern foods in the laboratory, Price deter-
mined that native diets contained more than ten times the vitamins and minerals

11
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 12

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

of modern foods. In particular, his analysis revealed that levels of the fat-soluble,
animal-source vitamins A and D were significantly higher in native foods, when
compared to modern processed foods. He also noted that the common factors
among the native diets that accounted for superior health were an abundance of
animal foods and fat nutrients. From this exploration, it became clear that prim-
itive societies were not afflicted with any of the diseases that were plaguing West-
ern civilization.
Price’s book Nutrition and Physical Degeneration, published in , described
what he discovered as he traveled to the remote corners of the world, looking for
answers to health and disease. Today, the Weston A. Price Foundation, which can
be found online at www.westonaprice.org, is a nonprofit organization that shares
the research of Dr. Price and is dedicated to restoring nutrient-dense foods to the
American diet, through education, research, and activism.

CHALLENGES TO THE THEORY

As I continued to develop my -Step Primal Body Program, I encountered some

opposition to the basic tenets of the theory. I want to include those arguments
here—and my answer to them—for anyone who may likewise have questions about
the basis of the Paleo lifestyle.
Challenge number one: “The reason hunter-gatherers did not get the diseases
of civilization was because most degenerative diseases are age-related, and be-
cause hunter-gatherers had shorter life spans, they would be less likely to manifest
these diseases.”
Reality check: It is true that the diseases of civilization most often produce
mortality later in life, but the first signs of the disease usually begin much earlier.
For this reason alone, comparisons between members of modern industrial and
primitive societies in the same age group are valid. Indicators such as obesity, rising
blood pressure, atherosclerosis, and insulin resistance are more common in modern
humans, when compared to more primitive societies. Measurements of muscular
strength and aerobic power are more common in primitive groups, when compared
to members of modern day societies.
In addition, it is estimated that about  percent of hunter-gatherers we can
observe in remote tribes today reach age sixty or beyond, and of these elder hunter-
gatherers, almost all are completely free of any signs of disease. This evidence sug-

12
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 13

WHY OUR ANCESTORS WERE RIGHT

gests that it is modern industrial life, which is so out of sync with the lifestyle for
which our genome was originally selected, that causes what we have come to know
as the diseases of civilization.
Challenge number two: “Human adaptability, the premise that humans are
among the most adaptable mammals, able to adjust to many changing conditions,
so are quite capable of adapting to modern industrial life and thriving. Other fac-
tors, then, would have to account for the current state of ill health and disease so
prevalent in our society today.”
Reality check: No doubt, our capacity for adaptability has allowed our species
to survive and multiply in a variety of different environments, but this does not
mean that our biology operates perfectly in all of these environments. As I’ve men-
tioned, a general biological rule specifies that organisms are the healthiest when
their environment most closely resembles the conditions for which their genes
were selected. Our adaptive capabilities may allow us to tolerate conditions short
term with no immediate consequences to our health, but those short-term sacrifices
are going to affect our health somewhere down the line. Given that our genes are
coded for hunter-gatherer nutrition and activity patterns, the diseases of civilization
may be the long-term consequence.

THE REAL EVIDENCE

While there are probably other objections and arguments to the theory, the results
speak for themselves. Not only have I reaped the benefits of this lifestyle, I’ve been
able to share this program with hundreds of clients who share my enthusiasm and
conviction that the Primal Body Program is life changing, even life saving!
Today, I can truly say I am lean, fit, and pain free—absolutely pain free—as a
result of following the Primal Body Program. I’ve been lifting heavy weights for
twenty years. When I meet up with old friends from the hard-core gym where I
used to lift, they ask me, “Don’t your knees bother you? Aren’t you having back
problems?” My answer is no, because I’m in better shape now than I was back then.
Because my diet and exercise patterns are fully congruent with my DNA, I
don’t have the chronic inflammation in my body that most people have. Following
the Primal Body Program has kept me in excellent shape and steadily carrying
only  percent body fat over the years.
Don’t just take it from me:

13
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 14

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

require some kind of exercise program.

Alan’s Transformation:
That’s what got me to the gym, where I met
A Complete Lifestyle Overhaul
Mikki and started working with her as my
personal coach.
My first workout sessions were intense.
When I started, I couldn’t even stand on one
foot for an extended period of time. Some
things Mikki had me do seemed bizarre, really
wacky! She had me kneel on an exercise ball
and balance while lifting weights, a routine
that called on all my muscles to work
together—but I could barely do it. But I pushed
on until I started “bonking,” a term used to
explain the strange visual effects I was
experiencing after an intense workout. This
was due to low blood sugar and so I learned to
drink a little juice after my session to provide
some quickly digestible sugars. When I started
changing my diet more toward the Primal diet,
I noticed the bonking stopped happening.
When Mikki approached me with the idea
of the Primal diet—high protein, healthy fats,
and low carb—I was ready to hear it, even
though I may not have been initially
My client ALAN, a 54-year old computer convinced. Today, my diet is radically different.
engineer, shares how he transformed his body Breakfast is a chicken thigh or some other
and lifestyle, using the Primal Body Program: protein food that I can eat quick on my way
out the door. Not the normal American
When I first started working with Mikki, I breakfast! But I find it to be very satisfying,
knew I needed a total lifestyle change. I had and it starts me off well for any physical
some health issues, like high blood pressure activity during the day. And of course, my
and back pain, and I was overweight—266 weight is down in the range where I want it to
pounds. I’d been leading a pretty sedentary, be, which at my height of 6’ 0” is 186 pounds.
fast-food kind of lifestyle for about 30 years, I recently found I have a minor heart
and always knew that when I reached a certain problem, which didn’t surprise me since there’s
age, all that was going to have to change. a history of heart problems in my family. I take
I got especially motivated after opening the a beta-blocker to manage it, but the last time
newspaper one day and seeing the USDA’s I went in for an exam, my doctor was
latest charts on height and weight. According apologetic that there was nothing wrong—my
to them, I fit into the category of “morbidly blood pressure was right in range. I know this
obese.” I thought about doing the liquid diet, is a result of my Primal diet, and also the
but I decided against it, because I didn’t want elimination of salt. I’m active now and keep in
something short term and extreme; I wanted a shape by working out, which helps, too.
lifestyle change. I went to Weight Watchers I’ve come a long way. I started out doing
and lost 40 pounds but soon hit a plateau and step-ups, using a box that was 11 to 13 inches
knew getting down any further was going to high. It was easy enough to step up on the
14
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 15

WHY OUR ANCESTORS WERE RIGHT

box, but walking up and down stadium steps is I think of my progress as happening in
something I couldn’t do—ten would exhaust stages, each stage marked by my being ready to
me. Now, I’m able to run the steps—twelve full hear something new, to try what might have
stadium stair intervals (eighty-four steps each) seemed crazy but actually worked incredibly
in 15 minutes! The afterburn effect kicks in, well. The improvement I’ve seen is astounding.
and I burn calories like crazy. Another high- My body fat percentage is 10.2 percent, and I’m
intensity exercise I learned to do was to leap stronger than I’ve ever been in my life—I can
sideways over an obstacle, and then go back deadlift 245 pounds. My coordination, balance,
and forth multiple times. Again, the afterburn and stamina are all greater than ever, and the
effect kicked in for added burn. back pain I used to have is completely gone.

NEXT . . .

Primal fitness works for weight loss, as well as health, longevity, and freedom from
pain. In the next chapter, I will explain exactly how you can use this program to
attain your weight-loss goals, including the story of my client who lost  pounds
by following the Primal Body Program.

15
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 16
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 17

Chapter 2

Losing Weight
the Primal Way

Our caveman and cavewoman ancestors never had an issue with obesity or
weight loss. The scientific evidence tells us they had an exceptionally lean and
muscular body, as contrasted to modern humans who average  percent body
fat for men and  percent for women. There are the obvious explanations for
our ancestors’ trim condition: periodic scarcity of food and a physically active
lifestyle. But the story of how early humans naturally stayed lean, fit, and healthy
only begins there.
In this chapter, you will learn how our ancestors’ food choices carved the
human genome for millions of years to turn their bodies into healthy, highly ef-
ficient fat-burning machines. I will show you how you can mimic their diet and
use their genetic adaptation to achieve your weight-loss and fitness goals. When
you mimic your ancestors’ diet, you fully express your genetic inheritance, tap-
ping into the ancient DNA that still keeps your body functioning as a healthy
modern human being.

GENES AND YOUR DIET

Scientists give us plenty of evidence that mimicking our ancestors’ diet is the best
way to be healthy and lean, based on studies of the human genome. Since the Hu-
man Genome Project was completed in , approximately twenty-five thousand
genes have been identified in the human body, and a wealth of information has
become available about how nutrition impacts our genes at the cellular level to
create health or disease. The growing science of nutrigenomics, a new discipline
that studies the relationship between nutrition, genetics, and health, is a direct
result of this project. Nutrigenomics is based on the simple premise that dietary
chemicals affect the expression of genes—for health, fat loss, and longevity.
Here’s how it works: Most of the time, when you eat a meal, your body me-
tabolizes the food to provide a usable form of energy for the cell, adenosine triphos-
phate, referred to by the acronym ATP. But sometimes dietary chemicals don’t get
metabolized to provide energy as ATP; instead they become ligands, or messenger

17
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 18

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

molecules, that attach to proteins and “turn on” certain genes. These genes can
either move you toward chronic illness or restore your body to health, making
what you eat a potentially powerful influence on your physiology.
In her book Primal Body, Primal Mind, Nora Gedgaudas reports that “even
by the most conservative standards in genetics, we actually control anywhere from
a ‘low’ of  percent to upwards of  percent or more of our own genetic expres-
sion with respect to potential disease processes, and even longevity. Genes are
turned on and off by regulatory genes, and regulatory genes are controlled mainly
by nutrients. . . . There is no drug anywhere that can regulate genetic expression
better or more powerfully than diet.”
There are many examples of how diet and genes have evolved together. When
our ancestors migrated out of sub-Saharan Africa sixty-five thousand years ago
and began to populate southern Asia, China, Java, and later Europe, they met vary-
ing environmental conditions. Subgroups that formed on different continents
around the globe adapted to these different dietary and environmental conditions,
creating certain gene variants.
For example, if your earliest ancestors are from northern Europe, you can
probably digest milk products with little difficulty. In most humans, a gene for lac-
tose tolerance switches off once a person is weaned from mothers’ milk, making
it difficult to digest milk products. But a mutation occurred in the DNA of an iso-
lated population of northern Europeans about ten thousand years ago, creating
an adaptive tolerance for milk. As a result, descendants from this region can tolerate
dairy today, whereas those who evolved in Asian regions cannot.
Of course, most of our genes are very old and evolved over the long period of
time when we lived as hunter-gatherers. Studies by geneticists reveal that the DNA
of all modern humans can be traced to a single female ancestor who lived in Africa
about , years ago and a male ancestor who also lived in Africa , years
ago. (However, this doesn’t mean that male and female were the first modern hu-
mans; rather, it indicates that only their descendants survive to the present day,
all others having fallen by the evolutionary wayside and not having made it to pres-
ent time.)
Today, the human genome still contains many genetic traits of our earliest hu-
man ancestors and their contemporaries, so a healthy human diet would mimic
the diet of ancestral humans. Although we recognize that there has been some
genetic diversity and adaptations to different environments, it is scientifically sound
to begin with the diet of ancestral humans because of our evolutionary history.

18
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 19

LOSING WEIGHT THE PRIMAL WAY

FOOD, HORMONES, AND FAT

As we have seen in Chapter , our ancestors ate a diet of mainly animal protein
and fats with some carbohydrates, consisting of nonstarchy, fibrous plant food
they pulled from the ground or plucked from a bush. They ate none of the foods
we classify as carbohydrates today: starches and sugars found in grains, rice, po-
tatoes; sugar, natural and industrial sweeteners, such as high fructose corn syrup;
and fruits and sugar in dairy products. Theirs was naturally a low-carb, high-
protein, and high-fat diet that kept their body functioning optimally for more than
forty thousand years.
Our ancestors’ diet is the basis of the Primal Body diet I recommend for you
to keep your modern body lean and healthy. A key is how our food interacts with
an important hormone, insulin.
Contrary to what many diet gurus have advised, excess body fat comes from
eating carbohydrates that are converted into fat by the action of insulin. Most
overweight people became overweight because of a condition known as hyper-
insulinemia, or elevated insulin levels in the blood. This is a problem our ancestors
didn’t have to deal with, because they ate so few carbohydrates, their levels of glu-
cose and thus insulin were low. Elevated insulin didn’t make them fat, but it does
make modern humans fat.
Let’s take a look at how a diet typically high in carbohydrates and low in protein
and fat—the exact opposite of our ancestors’ diet throughout most of our evolu-
tionary history—can lead to elevated levels of insulin and cause the alarming rates
of obesity so prevalent in our modern lives.
Insulin has been with us over evolutionary time, carrying vital information to
control the amount of sugar, or glucose, circulating around in your blood. When
glucose is high due to eating a lot of carbohydrate foods, insulin from the pancreas
is poured into the blood to help cells open their little doors (receptors) and admit
the glucose. The cells need glucose as vital nourishment to run many important
bodily functions—for example, using your brain to think and be able to read the
words on this page.
You’ve probably heard of insulin in connection with diabetes, a disease that
occurs when insulin fails in its job to control blood sugar levels and damage to or-
gans results. What you may not know is that insulin has another job, one that was
of importance to our ancestors, which is to store fat and other nutrients away in
cells to be used later in times of famine—a condition that occurred often during

19
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 20

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Paleolithic times. In its role to store away nutrients, insulin ensures that sugar is
stored as glucose in the muscles and liver; amino acids, the building blocks of pro-
tein, are moved into muscle cells; and fat is stored away in fat cells.
All of the regulating activity occurs in response to what you eat. When you
eat carbohydrates found in starches (grains and beans) and sugar (fruit and sweet-
eners), a metabolic signal is sent out to raise levels of insulin to store glucose in
the muscles and liver. Eating protein from meat, fish, poultry, and eggs sends a
metabolic signal to raise levels of both insulin, the fat-storage hormone, and also
glucagon, a fat-mobilizing hormone that opposes insulin. The rise in insulin drives
amino acids into the cells so that the body can use them to build muscle. The rise
in glucagon signals the body to release stored fat, so that it can be burned for fuel.
Fats and oils found in meats, poultry, fish, butter, coconut oil, lard, olive oil, avo-
cados, and nuts send a neutral signal, stimulating the release of insulin, but to a
much lesser degree than carbohydrate or protein does.
When you follow the ancestral diet and eat mostly fibrous carbohydrates from
vegetables and greens with little sugar or starch content, you will easily maintain
blood glucose levels within the optimal range of  to  mg⁄dl. Your body is ex-
tremely meticulous about maintaining this range, because excess sugar circulating
in the blood can be damaging to blood vessels, organs, and tissues in the body.
Here is an example of how your body is genetically designed to function best
on a low-carb, high-protein, and high-fat diet: There are many hormones whose job
it is to raise glucose levels for quick energy in an emergency situation—epinephrine,
norepinephrine, cortisone, and growth hormone. These quick-energy hormones
were a necessary adaptation so our hunter-gatherer ancestors could make a quick
getaway from predators. But only one hormone evolved to lower glucose—insulin.
Why? Because in evolutionary time, the human body has had little need to keep
blood sugar lowered due to low carbohydrate intake.
In sum, our body was not genetically designed to have insulin play such a dom-
inant role in regulating energy. Our modern diet makes insulin work overtime,
and we pay a price—because early humans didn’t need to lower blood sugar, as
carbohydrates were a rare, almost nonexistent addition to their diet.

THE PRICE WE PAY

With the onset of civilization and a shift to an agricultural way of life, the human
body was challenged to adapt to a new diet and metabolize large quantities of

20
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 21

LOSING WEIGHT THE PRIMAL WAY

sugar and starch. With that change came corresponding high levels of insulin, the
hormone responsible for regulating glucose and storing fat—and the high price
that chronically elevated insulin levels extracts from our body.
The first price you pay has to do with how your body stores fat. The average
person can only store  to  grams of glucose in the muscles and  to 
grams of glucose in the liver. When the liver and muscles are full of glucose, excess
is converted in the liver to fat (triglycerides) and stored in fatty or adipose tissue.
In other words, when you overeat carbohydrates—starches and sugars—you cause
your body to automatically store fat.
Even worse, as insulin levels soar due to eating too much bread, pasta, grains,
and pastries, that stored fat becomes “locked in,” making it impossible for you to
use your own stored body fat for energy. Not only is the excess starch and sugar
stored as fat, but once stored, that fat remains in your cells, making you stay fat!
A second price you pay is how your health is affected by a diet high in carbo-
hydrates. Those soaring insulin levels can reduce the ability of your cells to receive
insulin’s message, which is to open the door and admit circulating blood sugar.
When cell doors are closed, glucose stays circulating in your blood, signaling the
pancreas to send out more insulin. But when the backup insulin arrives and knocks
on the cell door, there is no response, because the cell’s receptor has lost all sen-
sitivity. This loss of sensitivity is known as insulin resistance, and it begins a vicious
cycle that creates high levels of insulin, an exhausted pancreas, and high blood
sugar—a complex of events that heralds an early stage of type  diabetes.
Eventually, your exhausted pancreas can no longer keep up with the demand
placed on it for insulin, and you develop full-blown diabetes. First, your liver cells
lose their sensitivity to insulin. Eventually, other tissues lose sensitivity, until finally
your fat cells lose sensitivity. Then, with all doors closed, there is nowhere left
for blood sugar to go, and it starts to build up dangerously in your blood. This
can lead to a host of new health problems. Surges of excess glucose and insulin
can damage nerve and brain cells, blood vessels can become constricted, vision
and kidneys can become damaged, and ultimately you end up on dialysis, need a
limb amputated, or have a heart attack.
As you can see, maintaining insulin sensitivity—the ability of cells to admit
glucose from the blood—is a highly desirable state in terms of both fat loss and
health. When your cellular receptors are sensitive, you require very little insulin
in your blood to signal opening. The lower the insulin is in your blood, the lower
your risk for many of the diseases of civilization.

21
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 22

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

USE YOUR GENETIC ADVANTAGE

In terms of weight loss, when insulin levels are low, fat storage is nonexistent, and
you can easily unload fat from adipose tissue where it was stored. This is how your
body was designed to keep fat from accumulating, and you want to use this genetic
advantage for optimal weight loss. You do this naturally when you combine the
Primal Body diet, which is low in carbohydrates and high in protein and fat, with
the right exercise program, as you will see in Part  of this book.
In addition to eating a diet low in starches and sugars, adding more protein
to your diet can help you tap into your body’s genetic blueprint to lose weight and
stay healthy. When you eat sufficient protein—grass-fed beef, free-range poultry,
wild fish—stored fat is mobilized by the hormone glucagon. Glucagon helps move
fat out of storage, so it is no longer locked in your cells, and it becomes available
to be burned as fuel.
Bottom line, when you eat the way our ancestors did, the way we evolved to
metabolize our food over eons of time, you cause your hormones—insulin and
glucagon—to work for you to burn fat, stay lean, and keep excess weight off. With
a diet low in carbohydrates—sugar, grains, starchy vegetables—insulin levels stay
low to eliminate fat getting locked away and unavailable for use as fuel. Then,
insulin resistance that causes disease and increased fat storage does not develop,
because glucose is easily taken up by your cells as fuel.

ONE OF THE SECRETS TO BURNING FAT

Avoiding fat storage through limiting carbohydrates in the diet is helpful for weight
loss, but if you want to burn fat, you have to do more than lower your insulin levels.
To get your body to burn fat efficiently, you must create a need for fat as fuel. If
you are already eating enough food to meet all of your energy requirements, your
body has no need to call up its fat reserves. Cellular doors may be open, but fat
not needed for fuel stays inside.
To lose weight, you must create a caloric deficit, which is a shortage of calories
from food. A caloric deficit gets your body burning its own fat reserves for energy,
an optimal situation for weight loss. How do you create a caloric deficit? First,
figure your maintenance level of calories from food and then eat to drop down
below it. Combining the resulting calorie deficit with a low-carb, high-protein diet

22
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 23

LOSING WEIGHT THE PRIMAL WAY

will turn your body into a fat-burning machine. (In Chapter , I will show you how
to create your own individual caloric deficit.)

METABOLIC ADDED EDGE

Another way you can get your body to burn fat is to take advantage of a little-
known metabolic process our ancestors had going for them. Remember, your body
is fussy about maintaining blood glucose levels within a narrow range and will
work to insure adequate levels are maintained. On the low-carb Primal Body diet,
you can lower your carbs to a level where your body has to manufacture glucose
from protein to maintain optimal levels in the blood. This is done through a process
known as gluconeogenesis—literally, making glucose from protein.
Gluconeogenesis requires many reactions in the body that consume and dis-
sipate energy, burning an extra  to  calories in the process. This gives you
a metabolic advantage by boosting your fat-burning capacity. Our ancestors had
this metabolic advantage working for them to burn fat naturally, because they ate
so few carbohydrates.
Gluconeogenesis is one more reason why ancestral bodies were efficient fat-
burning machines, and why yours can be, too. From our discussion, it’s clear that
a calorie is not a calorie. Why? Because a diet that is lower in carbohydrate but
higher in protein and fat causes more weight loss than does a diet that is largely
carbohydrate, even if caloric intake is the same.

KETONES: FAT-BURNING ALTERNATE FUEL

We know that our hunter-gatherer ancestors did not have abundant sources of
carbohydrates in their diet, as we do today, and therefore had low levels of glucose
circulating in their blood. In fact, there were times when they would go for weeks
at a time with no food at all, so no glucose was on hand to nourish brain and tissues
for vital functioning. During such periods of fasting/starvation, the challenge to
the metabolism of early humans was to provide enough glucose, so they could
continue to function until food was found.
As I have explained, glucose is in part produced through gluconeogenesis, the
process of converting protein to glucose, and enabled early humans to survive
times of starvation. But this process came at a price, because the protein needed

23
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 24

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

to produce glucose is human muscle. Using precious muscle to make glucose could
never be a long-lasting solution for our ancestors, because muscle was needed to
hunt and gather food to survive and, therefore, couldn’t be depleted without threat-
ening their very survival.
An evolutionary adaptation was the creation of another source of internal fuel:
ketones. Ketones are a by-product of gluconeogenesis, created when the liver
burns fat to convert protein to glucose. Contrary to what you may have heard, ke-
tones are a safe and effective source of fuel. In fact, they are the preferred fuel for
almost every organ and tissue in the body. By providing this additional source of
fuel during times of starvation, ketones spared muscle, lessening the demand for
bodily protein sources in converting glucose for fuel.
The point is that your muscle is a valuable reserve of protein that can be used
for glucose production, when needed. But the body prevents too much loss of
muscle over long periods of starvation by boosting its production of ketones, a
process known as ketosis. In contrast to our ancestors, we modern humans are
not starving from any lack of glucose and, therefore, don’t need to worry about
wasting muscle to get sufficient glucose—our diet gives us plenty. However, the
evolutionary adaptation of ketosis can be useful for weight loss. When you eat a
low-carb diet—just low enough so that your liver still has to convert some protein
into glucose—you want to be sure you eat enough animal protein for conversion,
so that your muscles aren’t required in the process.
The amount of carbohydrate needed to reach the state of ketosis varies for
each person, but generally fewer than  grams of carbohydrate per day will take
you to a place where you can achieve a significant amount of fat loss while main-
taining your lean body mass. This is a very effective approach to weight loss.

A key element of the Evolutionary Fitness approach to health is to keep glucose levels in the
body low. Glucose alters gene expression in a profound way because it is a substance that was
comparatively rare during the evolution of our genes. We who are part of the growing
Evolutionary Fitness community know that glucose is an essential internal fuel. But we do not
obtain it from external sources; we rely on the glucose that is produced internally through
gluconeogenesis—a system the body controls closely to produce only the amount of glucose
demanded by the brain.
—ART DE VANY (ARTHURDEVANY.COM)

24
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 25

LOSING WEIGHT THE PRIMAL WAY

Once you gain experience with your body’s fat-burning state of ketosis, you
can begin to regulate your body fat naturally without any great effort. It becomes
almost instinctive. Why wouldn’t it?—humans have been living on ketogenic diets
for almost  million years!

HUNGER AND THE PRIMAL BODY DIET

Many of my clients are  to  pounds overweight when they first come to me.
When I introduce them to the Primal Body diet, they often tell me that cutting
carbs would be too difficult to maintain. “I’d be hungry all the time,” they say. This
is an understandable response, because almost everyone who is that much over-
weight has chronically elevated insulin levels, and therefore depends on the quick
fix of eating carbs to quell hunger.
As I’ve mentioned, when your insulin levels are high, fat is locked away in
your fat cells. This is a problem, because your body requires constant nourishment
and is not getting it from the stored nutrient. To compensate, your body takes in
extra nourishment (and calories) during meals and then locks it away in your fat
cells, where it cannot be accessed when needed after the glucose in your blood
is used up.
Once your cells have taken up all the glucose, your blood sugar drops and you
feel hungry. Hunger occurs even though there is an abundance of nourishment
stored in your fat cells. So you grab a sugary snack and get the response your body
wants, and your blood sugar comes back up. But so does your insulin, causing more
of the fat storing activity, making it less available and so requiring more food for
energy. You’re hungry again. This cycle goes on and on, taking you on a roller-
coaster ride as blood sugar and insulin bounce up and down. It soon becomes a
habitual response to unconsciously ply your body with carbs at every snack and
meal, to manage the highs and lows. Calling it quits would mean you’d risk expe-
riencing the mood swings that often accompany sustained drops in blood sugar.
No wonder my clients who are overweight say cutting the carbs is just too difficult!
When you switch to a low-carb Primal Body diet and start eating more protein
and fat, things begin to change. A meal consisting of roast leg of lamb with sautéed
Swiss chard sends a completely different signal to your body than does pasta and
a salad. The meat and vegetable meal provide protein and fat with a little carbo-
hydrate, so your insulin levels are elevated minimally, and fat stores remain available
as fuel.

25
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 26

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Also, because you ate the animal protein, your glucagon (insulin’s opposing
hormone) levels go up, stimulating your body to mobilize the stored fat in your
fat cells for energy. If you do require more glucose because your meal was low-
carb, the leg of lamb provides an abundant source of protein for conversion (glu-
coneogenesis), granting you not only the extra glucose but the metabolic
advantage from those calories expended in the process. As a result, your cells
get the nourishment they need, and you feel sated and begin to lose that un-
wanted fat.

LEPTIN: NATURAL HUNGER CONTROL

As if lowering insulin levels and increasing fat mobilization weren’t enough of a

fat-burning benefit from the Primal Body diet, an additional adaptation gives an-
other advantage—the hormone leptin. Remember, hormones are communicators,
and leptin’s job is to send a message to your brain to suppress appetite. But leptin’s
job is much bigger than that. Leptin essentially controls metabolism by regulating
all of your body’s energy stores; it is a master hormone that regulates your body’s
response to starvation.
It works this way: When your fat cells are full, they send a signal via leptin to
the hypothalamus in your brain, essentially saying, “Hunting is good, food not
needed.” You cease to feel hungry. As time passes, your fat cells get smaller and
produce less leptin, which sends a signal to your brain that you need more fuel.
You then experience hunger and get ready to go out for the hunt—or take a trip
to the nearest grocery store.
Why then, you may ask, if we have leptin regulating our hunger so regularly,
is obesity such a problem? Why don’t people who are overweight, with plenty of
fat stored in their bodies, get the signal that hunting is good, and therefore curb
their appetite? And even more puzzling, why do people with lots of fat on their
body constantly complain that they are hungry?
The answer is this: Just as there is insulin resistance, there is also leptin resis-
tance, and the same foods that trigger insulin resistance—starches and sugars—
also disrupt leptin function. The reason is that carbohydrates cause an increase in
triglycerides, which is fat circulating in the blood. When triglycerides are high,
leptin is blocked from crossing over the blood brain barrier to reach the brain,
and the brain doesn’t receive the satiety signal to turn off the hunger. In short,
leptin cannot do its job when you eat a high-carb diet.

26
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 10:31 AM Page 27

LOSING WEIGHT THE PRIMAL WAY

Your Ice Age primal body and mind are ruled by leptin. Adequate, not excessive, dietary fat—in
the absence of dietary carbohydrates—is the optimal key to unlocking its power and potential to
controlling your health, your well-being and your life span.
—NORA GEDGAUDAS, PRIMAL BODY, PRIMAL MIND

How do you know if you have leptin resistance and are experiencing hunger
when you are well nourished? Here are some of the symptoms, as reported in Pri-
mal Body, Primal Mind by Nora Gedgaudas:
• Being overweight
• Fatigue after meals
• The presence of “love handles”
• High blood pressure
• Constantly craving “comfort foods”
• Feeling consistently anxious and/or stressed out
• Feeling hungry all the time or at odd hours of the night
• Having osteoporosis
• Unable to lose weight or keep weight off
• Regularly craving sugar or stimulants (like caffeine)
• Having high fasting triglycerides over 100 mg/dl—particularly when
equal to, or exceeding, cholesterol levels
• A tendency to snack after meals
• Problems falling or staying asleep
• Your body seems to look the same, no matter how much you exercise

The way to restore leptin function is to eat the low-carbohydrate diet our an-
cestors did, because when you eat less carbs, you reduce your triglyceride levels.
When triglycerides are low, leptin can easily pass through the blood-brain barrier
and deliver the message to the brain that fat cells are full—once again, hunting is
good, food not needed. This is why it’s so easy to stay on the low-carb diet once
you get on it—there’s no hunger and you feel satisfied after eating.
When I ask clients who did not expect to be able to stay on the low-carb diet
how they feel after losing a significant amount of weight, most comment that
they never feel hungry. They also are surprised at how good they feel and how
easy it is to maintain the low-carb, high-protein lifestyle. Not only do they feel
better, but they have more energy, and so feel more like being active and exercising.
Movement becomes desirable, which was our ancestors’ experience when they
ate a similar diet.

27
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 28

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

By now, you can understand how the low-carb, high-protein, and high-fat diet
of our hunter-gatherer ancestors kept them lean and muscular, turning their bodies
into healthy and efficient fat-burning machines. There are many different pathways
that your genetic code has evolved for this purpose, and if you bring your lifestyle
choices congruent with your genes, you will have the foundation to build a lean,
fit, and healthy body.

EFFORTLESS FAT LOSS: THE DYNAMIC WEIGHT STAGE

Whenever I tell my clients about the dynamic weight stage, they get very excited.
Who wouldn’t get excited to learn that your fat loss can gather so much momen-
tum, it continues no matter what or how much you eat? Let me tell you my own
experience with this phenomenon.
I’ve had a lot of practice with weight loss over the years, not because I’ve been
overweight myself, but because I wanted to maximize my body composition for
competitive presentation. In , I dieted down to  percent body fat to compete
in the Iron Maiden bodybuilding contest. In addition, I’ve helped many of my
clients reach their ideal weight.
I’ve noticed that there’s a point you can reach where you seem to have an in-
credible amount of momentum—whether you’re gaining or losing. For example,
when I was a couple of weeks out from my bodybuilding contest target date, I re-
alized I had “peaked” in my weight loss and arrived at my goal too soon. So I tried
to reverse course by eating more food, and found that no matter what I ate, I just
kept losing.
You may be thinking you’d like to have that problem, and the fact is, you can.
I’ve observed a similar phenomenon with some of my clients. One client in par-
ticular lost over  pounds, and when he finally reached his ideal weight, it seemed
he could not slow down the fat-loss process. At first, he thought he might have
some kind of wasting disease, such as cancer, but that was not the case. In a short
time, he was once again able to reverse the trend and gain weight.
Dr. Michael Eades mentions this phenomenon, referring to the dynamic weight
stage in his blog. Here’s an excerpt from his blog:

If you want to be successful . . . you’ve got to follow a low-carb diet . . .

until you get to what was called in the old medical literature the “dynamic

28
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 29

LOSING WEIGHT THE PRIMAL WAY

weight stage” . . . when weight is changing rapidly in either an upward or

downward direction. Anyone who has gained or lost a lot of weight has
experienced this. . . . But you have to commit for a few solid weeks to get
there. You can’t . . . go on a few days and off, fill up on calorie-dense, low
or no-carb junk, say you’re doing a low-carb diet, and wonder why you
aren’t losing. You’ve got to get up into the low-carb saddle and ride.

Eades makes the point that because of the dynamic weight stage, you want to
be consistent in choosing low-carb foods and not veer from the diet. That way,
you can build the momentum needed for what may seem like effortless fat loss.
It’s so much easier than starting and stopping over and over again and takes a com-
mitment on your part to make it work.

PRIMAL EXERCISE TO BURN FAT

Eating low-carb, high-protein, and high-fats is one way to turn your body into an
efficient fat-burning machine, but equally as important to reach your weight loss
goal is the exercise and training program you choose.
As with diet, when we mimic the movement and activity patterns of early
hunter-gatherers, we tap into a genetic blueprint that hasn’t changed in forty thou-
sand years. Human anatomy and physiology has remained relatively unchanged
since our ancestors leaped from a cliff to escape a saber-toothed tiger or dragged
a mammoth carcass over long distances back to camp. While today you probably
aren’t going to be fleeing predators or taking home animal kill, you can imitate
those ancestral activities in how you exercise, taking advantage of your natural ge-
netic ability to burn fat and stay fit and healthy.
Three evolutionary adaptations early humans made in response to their envi-
ronment are key to the recommendations you will read about in Part , “The -Step
Primal Body Program.” The first is building muscle through functional movement,
and the second is burning fat through high-intensity interval training, most effective
when combined with resistance training. A third pattern of movement our ancestors
engaged in is referred to as play, consisting of low-intensity aerobic activities, such
as dancing, hiking, swimming, and other recreational kinds of movement.
In regard to strength or resistance training, it’s well known that the more mus-
cle you have on your body, the more fat you burn, because muscle is metabolically

29
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 30

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

active tissue. Even at rest, muscle is burning energy, and the amount it burns is
more than fat burns at rest. Quite simply, if you develop more muscle and have a
higher muscle to fat ratio in body composition, you burn more energy and more
stored fat as a result.

BODY COMPOSITION AND INSULIN SENSITIVITY

You’ve seen how a low-carb diet can keep you sensitive to insulin and thus avoid
storing fat, but did you know that your body composition—whether lean and mus-
cular or mostly fat with little muscle—affects insulin sensitivity, too?
In a recent study, Loren Cordain and others wanted to understand the rela-
tionship between body composition and insulin resistance. The researchers noted
that until about fifty years ago, proportions of muscle and fat on the modern body
remained similar to ancestral ratios. They compared the physiques of preagricul-
tural adults, based on skeletal remains, with those of modern elite athletes and
determined that body compositions were similar—in both groups, males had about
 percent body fat, and females had about . They then compared these statistics
to average modern humans and found that males have greater than  percent
body fat, while females have more than  percent.
Even more important, this evolutionary change in body composition can affect
insulin circulating in your blood, and thus your health and fat-burning ability. (Re-
member, high levels of insulin are not desirable, creating a condition known as in-
sulin resistance and decreasing the ability of your cells to take up glucose.) The
mechanism is this: Because fat cells and muscle cells compete for circulating insulin,
relative to your proportion of muscle to fat, your body composition determines
how insulin is distributed when it is released from the pancreas. And since insulin
receptors on muscle cells are much more efficient at glucose uptake than those on
adipose (fatty) tissue, fitness level is a big predictor in glucose uptake. In other
words, an individual in better condition with more muscle may induce seven to
ten times more glucose uptake than may someone with more adipose tissue.
The point is that a lean, fit, muscular person will have much greater insulin
sensitivity than will an out-of-shape, overweight person. Additionally, an imbalance
of fatty tissue receptors relative to muscle cell receptors requires the pancreas to
secrete extra insulin, which leads to insulin resistance. Bottom line, having more
muscle on your body will improve insulin sensitivity, because muscle cells are more
efficient at glucose uptake than are fat cells.

30
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 31

LOSING WEIGHT THE PRIMAL WAY

The rapid increase in insulin resistance seen by doctors in recent years occurred
much too quickly to have been caused by changes in DNA. Rather, Loren Cordain
and his team suggest that the increase is the result of the population’s change in
body composition. We have more fat on our body and therefore higher levels of
insulin leading to resistance, obesity, and disease.

Winning the Battle of the Bulge:

It’s Not Just About Diet
Putting more muscle on your body improves insulin sensitivity, which is a good reason
to lift weights and gain muscle. Better yet, you can combine strength training with
intervals in metabolic resistance training (a strength-training session using a series of
multijoint exercises with brief rests between sets). The reason metabolic resistance
training is better than strength training alone is because high insulin sensitivity requires
not just muscle, but muscle FITNESS. Muscle fitness is measured by the VO2 max
(maximum volume of oxygen that can be utilized in one minute of exercise) of the
muscle, and figures into the insulin efficacy equation in the following way:

insulin efficacy = % muscle mass × VO2 max

% fat mass

If you do metabolic resistance training to build strength and conditioning, you

improve your body composition, creating more muscle and less fat. But you also
improve your glucose uptake, and as a result have less circulating insulin, so you store
less fat. It’s how to win the battle on obesity!
Anyone who tells you that exercise alone does not affect weight loss is clearly
missing this point. It’s not about how many calories you burn in response to exercise;
it’s about changing your body composition through strength training and improving the
VO2 max of the muscle. This is the link; it’s why exercise is so important in the obesity
epidemic. IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT DIET.

But having extra muscle does not provide as much advantage for burning
fat as was originally thought. The resting metabolic rate of muscle is only about
 calories per pound, whereas fat burns about  calories per pound. The majority
of your resting energy expenditure actually comes from the activities of your
organs—kidneys, liver, heart, brain—which are just a small proportion of your overall
body mass.

31
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 32

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

AFTERBURN IS KEY

The key to fat loss is something called exercise afterburn, which refers to the calories
expended above resting values after you stop exercising.
Burn fat after you stop exercising? Yes, this is what our ancestors’ bodies were
so uniquely adapted to do, so when they engaged in high-intensity activities, their
body continued to burn calories and fat, even while they rested sitting around the
campfire, sometimes for days at a time!
Exercise scientists refer to the afterburn effect as excess postexercise oxygen
consumption (EPOC). When you train for brief intervals at high intensities, your
body goes into an “oxygen debt,” such as when you quickly sprint up a hill and are
caught short of breath at the top. This debt has to be paid back.
Furthermore, research suggests that the more muscle you have on your body,
the more calories you burn after an intense workout. Chris Scott, PhD, exercise
physiologist at University of Southern Maine Human Performance Laboratory,
reports, “When exercise ends, it takes time and energy for muscle cells to return
to resting levels. . . . Recovery can also be expensive: Depleted glucose and fat
stores need to be refilled, accumulated cell products need to be removed, and pro-
tein levels need to be built back up. All this requires energy.”
The amount of elevation in oxygen consumption and the duration of time that
oxygen is elevated are two important factors in the afterburn equation. They in
turn depend on two variables in your workout: how intense that workout is and
how long it lasts—intensity and duration. The more intensely you work out over
longer periods of time, the higher the elevation in oxygen consumption is and the
longer that elevation lasts, extending afterburn benefits sometimes by a great mar-
gin. Generally, it takes anywhere from fifteen minutes to forty-eight hours for the
body to fully recover back to a resting state.
How does this translate to the best kind of exercise you can do to burn fat
most efficiently? As you will see in Part , in the -Step Primal Body Program, I
recommend resistance (strength) training done along with high-intensity interval
training, to take advantage of the afterburn effect. Several studies suggest that
heavy resistance training elicits greater EPOC when compared to aerobic cycling,
lower-intensity circuit training, and low-intensity aerobic exercise. An added
benefit of resistance training is that you increase your muscle mass, and so pro-
gressively burn more calories following your workouts.

32
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 33

LOSING WEIGHT THE PRIMAL WAY

But high-intensity resistance training is not the only way to elicit EPOC. High-
intensity interval training produces a significant afterburn as well. Studies have
compared the effects of a continuous run (thirty minutes at  percent VO max)
to an interval run (twenty bouts of one-minute duration at  percent VO max),
and found significantly greater EPOC following the intermittent bouts of exercise.
Fittingly, these patterns of movement and exercise parallel the movement pat-
terns of our early ancestors who were required to use great strength (carrying that
mammoth carcass) and also to respond in short bursts of intense speed (fleeing
predators) to ensure their survival. It is no coincidence that what worked to keep
them lean and fit will work for you!

Patty’s Transformation: At 5' 10'' , that’s a pretty large amount of

Losing Close to 100 Pounds weight to be carrying around.
Also, I was in a lot of pain. My feet were
hurting so bad I could no longer wear high
heels, and the arthritis in my knees was killing
me. There were times when just sitting down
in a chair was painful. I was taking aspirin
every day, and I remember thinking to myself:
I’M IN MY FIFTIES AND THIS IS NOT THE LIFE
I INTENDED FOR MYSELF. I couldn’t remain in
denial much longer.
The turning point came while I was on
vacation. I needed a bathing suit, so I went
shopping to get one. Luckily, I found a Target
that carried giant sizes, and I tried on a few
suits in the dressing room. I remember looking
in the mirror and feeling sick—it was a moment
of truth.
I decided right then and there I would do
something. I met Mikki and began working
with her as my personal trainer. It’s now been
A former CEO, my client PATTY is now a two years since I started the Primal Body
strategic business coach and author. Here is Program—two years’ and 100 pounds’
her story of training with me and using the difference!
Primal approach to lose 100 pounds. I started working out twice a week and I
learned to use a foam roller, a tool I’ve gotten
In the decade before I started the Primal Body a great deal of benefit from, especially for the
Program, I’d allowed myself to get in very poor pain in my knees. After I began to lose weight
physical shape. Over the years, I steadily put on and get fitter, Mikki took me out to the
weight and finally topped out at around 260. college track, and we’d walk around it or run
33
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 34

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

up and down the stadium stairs. In the first six with the dogs. I never would have done that
months, I steadily dropped 8 to 10 pounds before because of the pain I was in, but now I
every month. work hard to plug exercise into my days. I
I also keep a food journal to stay on track naturally want to move my body and get
with my new low-carb eating style, writing sunshine, to debrief after a stressful day. And I
down all my food choices at each mealtime. know that this regular exercise is helping to
Analyzing it, and with Mikki’s coaching, I saw keep my metabolism going strong, so my
how I could choose to eat more animal calorie-burning furnace is more efficient.
protein—fish, chicken, or beef, for example— Most important, I feel like I have a valuable
rather than automatically go for the potato or key to living a longer life with more energy
corn on the cob if I was still hungry. Slowly, bit and awareness. I have a much better ability to
by bit, I was able to change my eating habits, judge what’s good for me and what’s not.
and now I eat protein and good fat at every Recently, I was visiting my family and we
meal, and take omega-3 fish oil capsules, went to a favorite eatery, the sort of very
along with other supplements. traditional, home-cookin’ kind of restaurant,
The inflammation and pain in my joints to have lunch. Ninety percent of the stuff they
started to go away. I was also taking the served there you wouldn’t want to put in your
supplement glucosamine for my joints every body. Fried chicken, French fries, onion rings,
day and doing a lot of work to strengthen the and everything super sized. I thought, I USED
muscles around my knees, so I’d have less TO EAT LIKE THIS ALL THE TIME. Luckily, I can
pressure on the arthritic parts. The go to a restaurant now and order a Cobb salad,
combination of diet, supplements, and exercise knowing I’m doing something good for my
made my knees get even better, and today, I body and my weight. I learned how to eat on
don’t have the arthritis pain any more. I can the Primal Body Program, and that has stayed
even wear high heels again! And I haven’t had with me no matter where I go. The Primal Body
an aspirin in more than a year and a half. Program is definitely an education—and it’s
On days I don’t work out, I’ll do something such a fundamental shift in living, your whole
outdoors, like take a hike behind my house life is affected by it.

NEXT . . .

In Chapter , you will learn what it takes to keep this program in your life, for the
rest of your life, with an emphasis on healthy longevity.

34
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 35

Chapter 3

Live to Be 100 and

Die Disease Free

What if you could live to be one hundred, and be pain and disease free, with all
your mental faculties intact? If that were possible, would you want to extend your
life and continue doing whatever you do that makes your life worth living?
Today, becoming a centenarian is more possible than ever before. The ranks
of this elite club have swelled in the United States to , in —up from
, just twenty years ago. But being healthy and alert in later age is not usually
how it goes. Most of us dread the thought of living to be one hundred, seeing the
diseases of civilization claim friends and family members as they age. Even if you
don’t get cancer, diabetes, or cardiovascular disease, do you want to be one hundred
years old with a body that can’t move or think well?
Extended youthfulness, not merely prolonged life, is the goal, and modern sci-
ence is pointing to exercise and diet as the key to reaching this fountain of youth.
From what they are saying, a lifestyle that mimics our ancestors’ and is congruent
with our genetic inheritance is the ticket that will get us there.

PRIMAL LONGEVITY

James Fries, an emeritus professor at Stanford School of Medicine, coined the

phrase compression of morbidity. By this, he meant you simply erase chronic illness
and infirmity from the first  percent of your life. You live a healthy life year in
and year out, until you expire from natural causes.
This, not decrepitude and painful decline, describes the lifeline of our hunter-
gatherer ancestors, who lived a healthy life and died with plenty of muscle on their
body. They may have met their end in the jaws of a saber-toothed tiger or drowned
in a tar pit or bog, but as paleo-anthropologists have shown, the earliest humans
didn’t die of diabetes, heart disease, Alzheimer’s, or cancer. So why should you?
Think about it: Animals in the wild don’t die of debilitating old age, and we
don’t have to, either. The earliest remains show our ancestors rarely suffered the
diseases we modern humans die from, largely due to our sedentary habits and
high-carb, processed-food diets.

35
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 36

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

According to Art De Vany, modern aging is a kind of slow death: “What we

call aging is really sedentary aging and carbohydrate abuse. The accumulation of
damage [from these causes] over a longer time scale is what aging is in Western
countries. . . . The aging [population] just die over a longer time scale than do
acutely ill individuals.”
In this chapter, I explore the latest science of longevity in light of what we now
know about the lifestyles of our Paleolithic ancestors. The Primal Body Program
lays the foundation for becoming a healthy, active human of any age, and building
on that, I will show you how you can extend your youthful vitality by taking ad-
vantage of both dietary practices and exercise that ensure you live a long life with
a fit and functioning body.
In the first part of this chapter, I show you how you can beat Mother Nature
at her game by taking advantage of caloric restriction and intermittent fasting. In
the second part of this chapter, you will learn of the latest, startling science that is
showing how exercise affects both sexual vitality and longevity, with tons of evi-
dence that “going Paleo” with the Primal Body Program is the best way to stay
young and prolong youthfulness.

CALORIC RESTRICTION AND LONGEVITY

While mimicking ancestral lifestyles is the best way to create a lean, strong, and
healthy body, it’s important to remember that our genes evolved with one goal
and one goal only: the ongoing reproduction of the human species. In other words,
Mother Nature wants us to survive just long enough to reproduce, and then, once
we have passed beyond our reproductive years, she loses interest in us. The design
is not automatically supportive of healthy longevity. However, I agree with Nora
Gedgaudas that we can beat Mother Nature at her own game by taking advantage
of certain biological mechanisms that have evolved over time. The mechanisms are
already there—we just need to know how to use them for modern-day longevity.
One of the ways you can beat Nature at her game is through caloric restriction,
or the cutting-back of calories in your diet—simply said, eating less food. Science
shows us in both animal and human studies, that caloric restriction contributes
to longevity and health. As far back as the s, researchers were studying caloric
restriction in animals to see whether it might extend youth or slow down the aging
process. They found that caloric restriction did indeed have the effect of improving
health and extending life span in animals.

36
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 37

LIVE TO BE 100 AND DIE DISEASE FREE

If there is a known single marker for life span, as they are finding in the centenarian and
laboratory animal studies, it is low insulin levels.
—RON ROSEDALE, MD (WWW.DIABETESHEALTH.COM)

Here are some of the benefits studies show can occur when calories are sig-
nificantly cut back:
• Reduced DNA damage
• Enhanced DNA repair
• Reduced inflammation
• Reduced levels of cholesterol and triglycerides
• Reduced risk for developing diabetes
• Reduced body fat
• Immune system ages slower
• Lowered blood glucose and insulin
• Reduced buildup of plaques leading to Alzheimer’s disease

To apply caloric restriction to humans, an approach called caloric restriction

with optimal nutrition (CRON) has been suggested. This approach involves sup-
plementing the calorie-restricted diet with added nutrition, because nutrient den-
sity is also a factor in increasing life span.
How does caloric restriction work to extend life in humans? Caloric restriction
impacts genes in some beneficial ways. In studies of healthy subjects who have
reached one hundred years or older, it’s been shown that some lucky people acti-
vated a gene called sirtuins (SIRT-)—the “longevity gene”—and as a result have
enjoyed extended life, even though they have not lived a particularly healthy life.
(This, however, is the exception and not the rule.) The SIRT- protein plays a key
role in repairing DNA damage and so helps protect the integrity of the genome,
which appears to be essential to longevity.
You may have heard of the recent discovery of a nutrient in red wine called
resveratrol that stimulates the longevity gene. But the dosage required to get the
benefit found in the studies would require the average person to drink one hundred
glasses of wine for one dose! More recently, additional longevity genes SIRT- and
SIRT-, which play an important role in maintaining the health of the mitochondria,
were discovered. Researchers have found that caloric restriction is the most pow-
erful way to activate these life-extending genes.

37
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 38

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

INSULIN AND LONGER LIFE

While numerous studies have shown that caloric restriction is effective for slowing
down the aging process, the underlying factor that makes caloric restriction so ef-
fective is the lowering of insulin levels.
Insulin is an ancient, single-celled molecule that has been around for millions
of years. As you may recall from Chapter , insulin was at first thought to control
blood sugar and store nutrients. But we now know that insulin’s main role is in reg-
ulating life span by switching on and off genes responsible for repair and maintenance
at a cellular level. For this reason, we can refer to insulin as “the aging hormone.”
Insulin’s role in aging was discovered in the s, when researcher Cynthia
Kenyon at the University of California was studying an ancient species of worm
called C. elegans. Kenyon discovered a genetic mutation in the worm that had
doubled the lowly creature’s life span. This mutation, called the DAF- gene, ba-
sically encoded an insulin receptor on the worm’s cells. In simple life forms, such
as C. elegans, insulin has nothing to do with regulating blood sugar; its job is to
regulate reproduction and life span. Further research has confirmed that insulin
has the same effect of regulating reproduction and life span with all species, in-
cluding humans.
Here’s how insulin regulates life span: When insulin levels go down, genes are
turned on that have the job of doing repair and maintenance of cellular damage.
In evolutionary time, during times when food was scarce, this allowed humans to
remain healthy long enough to survive and reproduce, by extending their lives
during times of famine.
Remember, Nature is interested in us surviving to reproduce, so it makes sense
that we are given a genetic advantage to survive times of no food. With repair and
maintenance mechanisms in place at the cellular level—thanks to low insulin—
we remain healthy until food becomes more available and we can finally reproduce.
Therefore, when you keep insulin low by restricting calories, you are ensuring that
your cells are kept in good repair and maintenance over time. In short, you can
take advantage of this famine “loophole” to increase your longevity.
This understanding of how insulin is the “aging” hormone, should make you
want to strive for low insulin levels to “turn on” genes that repair your cells and
maintain their health, thereby enhancing your longevity. Following the Primal
Body Program guidelines when making food choices is the best way to do this,
because restricting what you eat keeps insulin low and impacts how long you live.

38
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 39

LIVE TO BE 100 AND DIE DISEASE FREE

Restricting carbohydrates and sugar, it turns out, has even more of an impact
on longevity than does restricting calories. In , researchers from the University
of Alabama examined the effect of dietary sugar consumption on healthy human
lung cells and on lung cells that were precancerous. They found that restricting
the consumption of sugar can extend the life of healthy lung cells and speed the
death of precancerous ones. Again, genes were the key: Two key genes were affected
by the decreased glucose in the cell: telomerase, which allows cells to divide forever,
and p, a gene that encodes an anticancer protein.
This research on glucose restriction, the onset of disease, and aging in hu-
mans supports the earlier findings on caloric restriction from animal studies
done in the s and suggests that human longevity can be achieved through re-
ducing calories, especially carbs and sugars. “These results further verify the po-
tential health benefits of controlling calorie intake,” reported the principal
investigator, Dr. Trygve Tollefsbol. “Our research indicates that calorie reduction
extends the lifespan of healthy human cells and aids the body’s natural ability to
kill off cancer-forming cells.”
While there are many benefits to be had from caloric restriction—protection
from disease and longevity being just two—I doubt that many people would vol-
untarily decrease their caloric intake by  to  percent and stay there for life.
In my work with clients, I’ve seen people who wanted to lose weight resist creating
a caloric deficit of just  to  calories to reach their goals. This is because
some of the uncomfortable effects likely to be experienced when cutting back on
calories by  to  percent include loss of energy, decreased mental focus, and
loss of muscle. People get hungry, irritable, and depressed. Does this sound like
the kind of life you would want to extend?
Fortunately, there is a gentler method for practicing caloric restriction that
does not bring about such deleterious effects and is much easier to do than per-
manently cutting back the amount of calories you take in. This method is called
intermittent fasting.

INTERMITTENT FASTING: THE EASY WAY TO GO

In years past, the practice of fasting was usually associated with religious or spiritual
customs and traditions. Almost every major religion today includes some kind of
dietary restriction as a spiritual practice: Christian Lent, Jewish Yom Kippur, and
Muslim Ramadan. But now, a growing number of fitness enthusiasts are beginning

39
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 40

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

to include intermittent fasts in their lives as a way to lose fat and improve overall
health and longevity.
Intermittent fasting (IF) involves a period of fasting alternated with a period of
eating. It makes perfect sense from an evolutionary point of view. Our Paleolithic
ancestors went through regular cycles where food was either readily abundant or
extremely scarce. Feast or famine was the environment our genes evolved in. Because
of these cycles, we evolved with episodes of caloric restriction or deprivation.
As we have seen, during times of scarcity, genes responsible for repair and
maintenance get turned on. These genes increase the production of key biochem-
icals, such as glutathione, which promote the repair of tissues that would not be
repaired in times of surplus. It is this adaptation that allows cells to live longer.
Intermittent fasting can be done in a number of ways to alleviate the discomfort
associated with long-term fasting. An alternate-day fast involves a feast day during
which you eat all you want of the low-carb, high-protein diet for the entire day,
and then fast the next day. You can continue this cycle of alternate-day fasting for
as many days as you like. Another way to do intermittent fasting is to do a -hour
fast once a week, once a month, or whenever you decide on a planned or unplanned
schedule. Finally, you can skip a meal on a planned or unplanned basis and get the
benefits of IF. For example, there is no need to eat breakfast every day, as skipping
breakfast on a busy morning now and then may have the effect of repairing dam-
aged cells. You could also skip dinner on that same day and eat only one meal for
the day.
Scientists have explored IF as a way to stay healthy and benefit from caloric
restriction. Researchers compared three groups of mice: those doing intermittent
fasting (IF), those with nonintermittent caloric restriction (CR), and those allowed
to eat at will or ad libitum (AL). The purpose was to measure the effect of inter-
mittent fasting (alternate-day fasting) on various factors, such as how much the
mice ate, and their body weight, fasting insulin, fasting glucose, and IGF- (an
insulin-like growth factor). The scientists found that when mice were maintained
on IF, their overall food intake did not decrease and their body weight was main-
tained. Nevertheless, intermittent fasting resulted in beneficial effects that met or
exceeded those of caloric restriction, including reduced insulin levels and increased
resistance of neurons in the brain to stress. Intermittent fasting therefore has ben-
eficial effects on glucose regulation and neuronal resistance to stress in these
mice—effects that are independent of caloric intake.

40
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 41

LIVE TO BE 100 AND DIE DISEASE FREE

What’s interesting about this study is that even though the IF mice ate twice
as much as the AL mice, while the mice eating a calorie-restricted diet maintained
 percent less calories overall, the researchers found that the IF mice had lower
glucose and insulin levels than the CR mice. It has been thought that some of the
beneficial effects of caloric restriction are derived from the lowered blood glucose
levels, because less sugar in the blood can lead to less glycation, or damage to pro-
teins, and less oxidative damage. But in this study, you might wonder how the in-
termittent fasting mice could have had lower glucose and insulin levels, as they
gorged on food whenever they had access to it, while the calorie-restricted mice
were maintained on caloric restriction all the time.
In answering this question, the researchers suggest that by confining bouts of
high-caloric intake to a limited-time window, such as in intermittent fasting, there
are benefits that don’t occur when meals are more frequent, as with the CR regi-
men. It is the alternating periods of eating and fasting (anabolism and catabolism),
as in intermittent fasting, that trigger increases in cellular stress resistance and
the repair of damaged cells induced by the fasted state.
These findings suggest that intermittent fasting can enhance health and cellular
resistance to disease, even if the overall caloric intake is not decreased. Therefore,
intermittent fasting is a better method than merely restricting calories, and is a
lot more comfortable and doable by more people. This is a perfect example of how
conforming to the way our body is genetically designed to work, keeps us young,
eliminates disease, and even increases cellular stress resistance.

EXERCISE AND LONGEVITY

While what and when you eat plays a major part in your health and longevity, how
you move and exercise may be even more important. Why? Because your genes
are coded with the expectation of a certain level of physical exercise, based on the
activities of our human ancestors. To give us an idea of their level of fitness, re-
searchers suggest that preagricultural adults’ body and muscles were similar to
those of modern-day Olympic athletes!
One of the well-known consequences of aging for us modern humans is the
loss of lean muscle mass. Scientists have examined whether healthy aging is asso-
ciated with a particular genetic profile involving mitochondrial function and whether
strength training could reverse this signature to that of younger men and women.

41
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 42

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

In this study, researchers took tissue samples of gene expression profiles from
healthy older men and women who performed strength training two times a week
for six months. The samples were taken both before and after the regimen, and
then compared to tissue samples of younger men and women.
A gene expression profile measures how well an individual’s mitochondria are
working. You may recall that mitochondria are the energy furnaces of the cell that
produce ATP. It has been suggested that mitochondrial dysfunction is related to
loss of muscle and function in older adults. Mitochondrial function is measured
by counting the number of mistakes the mitochondria makes when transcribing
DNA to make such materials as proteins.
What is interesting about this study is that it was the first to examine the mo-
lecular “fingerprint” of aging in healthy, disease-free humans. The study found a
complete reversal of the genetic fingerprint back to the levels seen in younger adults,
as a result of strength training! The researchers said that the results strongly suggest
that mitochondrial dysfunction is linked to aging in humans. But the good news is
that strength training reverses aging! The researchers concluded that “following ex-
ercise training, the transcriptional signature of aging was markedly reversed back
to that of younger levels for most genes that were affected by both age and exercise.”
In the same study, the researchers also measured muscle strength. Before the
exercise program, the older adults had  percent less strength than did the younger
adults. But after strength training, the older adults improved by  percent; they
were only  percent weaker than were the younger adults. The participants of
this study worked out on a Universal Gym, performing machine exercises such as
leg press, chest press, leg extension, leg flexion, shoulder press, lat pull-down seated
row, calf raise, abdominal crunch, back extension, arm flexion, and arm extension.
Imagine how much strength could have been gained had they used free-weight,
functional exercises instead!
A ninety-one-year-old, record-breaking track and field star, Olga Kotelko who
was featured in a New York Times article, is living proof of the effects of high-
intensity training on aging. According to the editor of Masterstrack.com, Ken
Stone, Kotelko threw a javelin more than  feet farther than did her closest age
group competitor. She also ran  meters in . seconds, which was faster than
the finalists in the eighty- to eighty-four-year category—two brackets down. Re-
searchers biopsied the muscles of Kotelko to see whether they contained any mi-
tochondrial defects that are the usual biomarkers of aging. Such defects cause

42
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 43

LIVE TO BE 100 AND DIE DISEASE FREE

angular muscle fibers to stop working, because they have become unplugged from
the motor neurons that tell them to fire. The researchers reported that they didn’t
see a single fiber that had any evidence of mitochondrial decay.
Exercise helps to prevent muscle from slipping away, but according to Mark
Tarnopolsky, a professor of pediatrics and medicine at McMaster University in
Canada, strength training in particular is the most effective. Pointing to a phe-
nomenon known as gene shifting, he reports that strength training can activate a
muscle stem cell that has a rejuvenation effect on the mitochondria. If Tarnopolsky
is right, older adults who exercise can roll back the calendar. He has shown that
after six months of strength exercise training done twice weekly, the physiological,
biochemical, and genetic signature of older muscle is reversed nearly fifteen to
twenty years.

METABOLIC HEADROOM: AN AGING ADVANTAGE

We know that strength training reverses the effects of aging, but did you know
that exercise also gives you an aging advantage known as metabolic headroom?
This concept of exercise capacity was coined by Art De Vany and refers to the
difference between the most you can do and the least you can do. De Vany points
out that when the most and the least you can do are the same, then you are dead.
This concept relates to aging in that often the difference between the most and
the least decreases as you age. Maximizing the difference between the two, through
exercise, would then increase longevity.
What kind of activities determine the most you can do and the least you can
do? For the most, try the kind of exercise advised in Step  of my Primal Body Pro-
gram, high-intensity intermittent training (HIIT), which provides maximal stimulus
to the body. For the least, you would simply be resting with minimal stimulus. The
difference between the two is what De Vany is calling metabolic headroom.
According to De Vany: “Adults lose about  per cent of their lean body mass per
decade after they enter their thirties. Most of the muscle they lose is FT (fast twitch)
fiber, because they cease . . . to live in the FT region. They settle into the ST (slow
twitch) region, and, consequently, as they age their muscle fibers atrophy. . . . Their
skeletons are vulnerable to falls, and their muscles are not strong or quick enough
to keep them from falling, because their FT fibers atrophy. Keeping your FT fibers
is the best way to stay young.”

43
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 44

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

EXERCISE AND SEXUAL VITALITY

How does Primal fitness impact your sexual vitality, especially as you age? Many
of my women clients of a certain age start out complaining of declining libido, but
soon find their complaints disappear as they get fitter. That, along with my own
personal experience and studies done on the subject, are pieces of the puzzle pro-
viding answers to the question of how exercise impacts sexual health—especially
Primal fitness.
My own training involving kettlebells was the first clue. I had attended a three-
day seminar with Pavel Tsatsouline, the Russian who trained the Special Forces in
Russia and the United States, and who brought kettlebell training to the West.
After years of advanced/heavy lifting, I discovered that, as a result of kettlebell
training, I was getting in better shape. But an added benefit was that I noticed an
increase in my sexual vitality right after completing the three-day seminar, and
continuing as I adopted kettlebell exercises into my training routine.
The three-day training was intense. Prior to the workshop, I worked on the
kettlebell snatch (an explosive overhead movement), so that I could pass the snatch
test (one hundred snatches in five minutes), which was a requirement for the cer-
tification. Then, during the three-day workshop, we worked exclusively with kettle-
bells. By the end of each day, we had done literally hundreds of swings in addition
to practicing the other kettlebell movements.
An explanation came when I read a report of a study done on women kettle-
bell practitioners, showing that many sexual benefits resulted after eight to twelve
weeks of training. We all know that resistance training, in general (bench press,
barbell row, barbell squat, etc.), increases testosterone levels, so libido usually in-
creases when you lift weights. Also, developing a stronger core and more flexibility
can lead to more athletic sex. But this study went further in explaining why
swinging a cannonball with a handle was shown to lead to “higher levels of sexual
arousal, much stronger and more easily attained orgasm, and even multiple orgasms
for some women whom had not previously experienced them.”
The key to why kettlebells are so great for women, I discovered, was the involve-
ment of pelvic floor muscles (PFM) that are strengthened by the muscular contrac-
tions involved in swinging a kettlebell. According to Coach Stevo, an RKC instructor,
“Stronger PFM contractions mean better blood flow through the PFM and then into
and out of the clitoral erectile tissue before and after sexual arousal. This better blood

44
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 10:34 AM Page 45

LIVE TO BE 100 AND DIE DISEASE FREE

flow may contribute to keeping androgens and other sex hormones circulating in
tissue longer, thereby allowing further stimulation and continued orgasm.”
Do we need any more motivation to use kettlebells in training to get fit? The
science shows you’ll benefit from an increased sex drive, increased ability to orgasm
during intercourse, and an overall improvement in feelings of sexual satisfaction.
Compare these benefits against the small amount of time necessary to strengthen
the pelvic floor, and you’ll agree with me that these exercises are something that
should make their way into everyone’s daily routine.
And not to exclude the guys, who can also benefit in sexual health from train-
ing with kettlebells: Pelvic floor muscle contraction works the prostate and in-
creases blood flow to the penis, translating to a reduction in impotence, increased
ejaculatory control, and increased orgasmic intensity. Good-bye, Viagra!

REVERSING AGING

In the past, aging has often meant a gradual loss of health and vigor as the years
progress. We now know this slow decline is no longer inevitable. When you com-
bine the right exercise and nutritional program with periods of intermittent fasting,
even an unfit person can turn around most of the consequences of aging.
We know, for example, that VO max, the single best measure of cardiovas-
cular fitness, decreases about  percent per decade once you’ve reached thirty
years of age. Loss of lean body mass, another consequence once considered a nat-
ural part of the aging process, is now thought to result more from disuse and lack
of exercise—sedentary living—rather than simply from getting older.

ADRIENNE is a seventy-four-year old retired

Adrienne’s Transformation
career woman with two active grandchildren.
Never Too Late
In her own words, here’s the story of her
remarkable transformation.

I found Mikki through C Magazine, when she

was written up as one of the top trainers in
California. I signed up to train with her two
times a week, and that was three and a half
years ago.
At the time, I was a little overweight and
prediabetic. I’ve always been very active, so I
didn’t have big weight problems. I’m 5'2" and
at the most weighed 119. I didn’t lose a whole

45
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 46

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

lot of weight, but I did lose inches, and I’m so while to get me on track, but I’m very food
much stronger now than when I started. conscious now. I went from eating a lot of
One of my main reasons for getting in sugar and a lot of carbs, to the point where I
shape is to be able to care for and play with now eat Paleo style. For breakfast today, for
my grandchildren, to be up for that kind of example, I had eggs and ham and salad. Not
activity. It’s worked out beautifully. One of the typical breakfast, and not what I was
them weighs 37 pounds, and it’s not a problem eating when I first started with Mikki—then, I
for me to lift her. Plus, my husband is younger was eating croissants!
than me, and I have to keep up with him. He’s At seventy-four, I set a new personal best
very athletic and sails competitively. recently, going up and down the stadium steps
When I started the program, I couldn’t do at our local school track. There are 840 steps,
one roll-up—that was the condition of my ten sets of 84 steps each. I did all of them,
midsection. I can do twenty-five now, and I’m interval style, in a little less than thirty
that much older! It’s not a big deal. I’m fitter minutes. I thought it was amazing. It’s like the
too, more active, more healthy. I love working roll-ups—I couldn’t do steps at all when I
with 12-kilo kettlebells (26 pounds). started. We worked up to it slowly, and I think
One of my really big successes with Mikki that’s a key. It took a long time to get to this
has been conquering sugar. It’s made a huge point. I’m not suggesting anyone my age go
difference in my life. I loved sweets, out there and sprint around if they’re not used
chocolate, candy—all desserts are wonderful, to it. You have to go slowly, which is why it’s
one of the great pleasures in life, and I was important to have a pro, somebody who can
craving that stuff all the time. I still love it, see what you’re doing and guide you.
but I don’t crave it. I don’t eat very much of We’ve recently started setting short-term
it, because I don’t want to get diabetes. My goals. I have goals now that are six-week
doctor was recommending drugs, but I told goals, and Mikki keeps me on track for them. I
him I wanted to try a diet. He said a diet is set a goal, and she designs a program to meet
going to take you a year. It probably did, but that goal. I know for the next six weeks what
now I am no longer prediabetic and I did it I’m going to be doing. I ran a 5K this summer,
without drugs. and then I went on a 10-mile a day hike for a
I’ve also been tested for the Alzheimer’s week through England. By the time I went, I
gene, and I do have it. My mother had it, and knew I wouldn’t have any trouble going for
she deteriorated a lot around this age, but I five days, at 10 miles a day.
get tested every six months and don’t show My posture is better, too—I stand up
any signs so far in deterioration. Mikki thinks straighter than I used to. I was rounded in my
the cut back in sugar in my diet makes it less upper body, but since doing core exercises and
likely that the gene will be turned on. strengthening the muscles in my upper back,
I keep a food diary intermittently, when I I’m no longer that way.
need to bring down my weight. We did it for a So it’s a success story at my age. . . .

The good news is that with the right type of exercise—strength training and
high-intensity intervals—you can minimize or even reverse this trend. One of my
clients reversed the aging process when she started exercising at age sixty, after a
lifetime of never exercising. Adrienne started her training with me at the age

46
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 47

LIVE TO BE 100 AND DIE DISEASE FREE

seventy-one, and the story of her transformation is inspiring to anyone wanting

to extend their life and live into a healthy old age.

NEXT . . .

You are now ready to be introduced to the five steps of the Primal Body Program,
which follow in Part  of this book. The Primal Body Program is designed to max-
imize your body’s ability to burn fat, so you can lose weight. Because health is also
important, the program shows you how to achieve nutrient density with supple-
ments that compares to the diets of our earliest ancestors, whose food was not
depleted from modern industrial food practices, as is ours. Another focus is bring-
ing down dangerous levels of inflammation that most of us have from our modern
diet and sedentary lifestyles, giving you a chance to live an active, long, and healthy
life. Finally, you will learn how to move in ways that are congruent with your ge-
netic blueprint, so exercise is a natural extension of your day—something you
want to do, not struggle to do.
As you follow the program, you can focus on one step or another, depending
on your need and level, but all five steps need to be part of your program to get
the best results. Sequence is also important, so even though you might favor one
step over another, don’t get ahead of your game; start with Step  and work your
way through to Step . You’ll be glad you did that by the time you arrive!
Remember, the Primal approach is a comprehensive shift, rather than a quick
fix for a specific problem. While you may be addressing a specific problem such
as weight loss, the design of the program calls for you to include all aspects of Pri-
mal fitness in achieving your goal.

47
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 48
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 49

PART II
The 5-Step
Primal Body Program

49
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 50
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 51

Chapter 4

STEP 1
Step One—Eat the
Anti-Inflammation Primal Diet

The first step in restoring your body to the natural health and fitness of our
Stone Age ancestors is to rid your body of what doctors have come to agree is
the single greatest threat to our physical well-being: chronic inflammation. Since
the late s, study after study has come out showing chronic inflammation is
involved in every disease of civilization, including cancer, diabetes, coronary heart
disease, arthritis, Alzheimer’s disease, autoimmune diseases, and even chronic
fatigue syndrome.
Disease is certainly linked to inflammation, but joint pain is also caused by in-
flammation, a condition that stops people from getting exercise and keeps them
sedentary. In Step  of the Primal Body Program, I will show you how to eliminate
the chronic inflammation that is making you vulnerable to disease, as well as caus-
ing pain in your joints as you age. As a result, you will be healthier, live longer, and
be able to move and exercise in the fat-burning, muscle-building ways you were
genetically designed for.

PRIMAL EATING AND INFLAMMATION

We have seen how the human body, genetically speaking, is the same today as it
was more than  million years ago, when we were Paleolithic hunter-gatherers.
Then, our diet consisted of high-quality animal protein that was hormone, antibi-
otic, and pesticide free. The meat from animals our ancestors hunted was naturally
organic and completely grass-fed, meaning the animals grazed on open ranges
and ate wild grasses. This yielded a diet high in fat, a valued nutrient, because fat
is the most dense form of energy.
You have seen how eating a high-carbohydrate meal increases blood sugar
and stimulates the production of insulin, causing fat to be deposited in fat cells.
But eating high-carbohydrate foods can also increase pro-inflammatory hormones,
which inflame the body and lead to a large number of diseases.

51
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 52

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

The Primal Diet is naturally low in carbohydrates, so it reduces chronically

elevated insulin levels in the body. Additionally, it is high in omega-, the
anti-inflammatory fatty acid, and low in omega-, the pro-inflammatory fatty acid,
so it improves your omega- to omega- ratio (more on omega-s and -s on
pages  and ). This kind of diet is highly effective for reducing chronic levels
of inflammation. When you have less inflammation in your body, you feel more
like moving and exercising.
It’s important to keep in mind that we evolved on very few carbohydrates, be-
cause carbohydrate foods, mostly derived from fibrous vegetables and leafy greens,
were scarce in Paleolithic times. A diet relying heavily on grains—bread, cereals,
flour, and sweetened processed foods—is relatively new to our genome and there-
fore doesn’t work congruently with our inherited physiology.

INFLAMMATION—WHAT IS IT AND HOW IT BECOMES CHRONIC

Inflammation is a normal part of your body’s immune system. When you cut your
finger, for example, white blood cells secrete a number of inflammation-promoting
chemicals that rush to the injured area, where they fight germs and rid your body
of damaged cells. Then, once the wound is healed, your immune system settles
back down, no longer needing to respond with inflammatory substances.
But not always. Sometimes, the immune system stays active. Stress and dietary
imbalances can confuse the body into thinking that it’s under assault, even when
there’s no real threat. The result is a continued immune response, chronic inflam-
mation, leading to systemic inflammation associated with many of the modern
degenerative diseases.
Controlling inflammation not only reduces your risk for disease, it also de-
creases pain and stiffness in your joints, accelerates your recovery from injury and
improves your overall mobility. Increased mobility equates with increased exercise,
resulting in more success at weight loss. It also helps you to age gracefully, avoiding
the bent postures and jerky movements that make you look older and less func-
tional than you actually are.
Chronic inflammation has many causes. One cause is a diet consisting of foods
high in “bad” fats—omega- essential fatty acids (EFAs). Let’s look first at how bad
or toxic fats can make inflammation skyrocket in your body, causing painful joints

52
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/29/12 9:43 AM Page 53

STEP ONE: EAT THE ANTI-INFLAMMATION PRIMAL DIET

that contribute to your becoming sedentary, gaining weight, and experiencing

STEP 1
other degenerative conditions.
Barry Sears, PhD, author of The Zone, wrote about how the modern-day diet
is linked to chronic disease in his book Toxic Fat: When Good Fats Turn Bad. Ac-
cording to Sears, over the past few decades, three distinct dietary factors have
come together to create what he calls the “perfect nutritional storm.” These are ()
an increase in the consumption of cheap refined carbohydrates, which causes high
insulin levels; () an increase in the use of cheap vegetable oils, which are high in
pro-inflammatory omega- essential fatty acid; and () a decrease in the consump-
tion of fish oils, which are high in anti-inflammatory omega- essential fatty acids.
Sears explains that when you consume an excess of cheap carbohydrates and
cheap vegetable oils together, the increased levels of insulin from the carbohydrates
cause the omega- essential fatty acids from the vegetable oils to produce arachi-
donic acid (AA), a powerful inflammatory hormone. This results in a constant
low-level of inflammation that develops into chronic disease. Sears theorizes that
AA, which he calls “toxic fat,” is the underlying cause of chronic disease; it provides
the linkage between obesity and chronic diseases, such as diabetes.
A healthy balance of omega- to omega- EFAs is important for keeping in-
flammation under control. Prior to agriculture, the omega- ⁄ omega- EFA ratio
ranged from  to  to  to . Modern-day omega- ⁄ omega- EFA ratios average
about  to . In evolutionary history, it was the adoption of agriculture that created
a significant change in omega- ⁄ omega- EFA ratios, because grains are high in
omega- EFAs. Other dietary changes that occurred at this time included the
introduction of cold-pressed oils, (such as corn, sunflower, and safflower, which
are predominately omega-) and the use of commercially raised animals that were
fed grain instead of grass. All these dietary changes contributed to unnaturally
high omega- ⁄ omega- EFA ratios.
There is little doubt that the foods you eat directly influence the level of in-
flammation in your body, or as it’s recently been coined, inflamm-aging, because
as you age, you are more likely to have chronic inflammation—an association that
could be causative. Foods affect hormones, and hormones are powerful substances
in the body, sending messages that determine whether and when your immune
response is turned on or off. What you eat is directly linked to how much inflam-
mation is in your body.

53
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 54

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

GUIDELINES TO KEEP INFLAMMATION LOW

You can help control chronic levels of inflammation in your body by following
these important guidelines:

Eat good fat, not bad fat. As I have said, hormones regulate inflammation, and
your body manufactures hormones using essential fatty acids. They are considered
essential, because the body cannot manufacture them on its own; they must be
obtained from the food you eat. The omega- essential fatty acids (EFAs) are anti-
inflammatory, and the omega- essential fatty acids are pro-inflammatory.
An anti-inflammatory diet includes lots of foods rich in omega-, such as
Alaskan salmon, herring, mackerel, wild game, grass-fed meats, omega--
enriched eggs and dark leafy greens. To be avoided are foods that contribute
pro-inflammatory omega- EFAs, found in grains and many of the vegetable
oils, such as safflower, sunflower, corn, and soybean. Omega- fatty acids can
also be found in most processed and fried foods, because those foods contain
vegetable oils.
Wild animals that graze on grass are leaner than grain-fed farm animals, so
their meat is leaner, although still high in fat. Grass-fed meat has a different fatty
acid profile than grain-fed does. The majority of the meat we eat, if we don’t shop
at Whole Foods or other natural food stores, is grain-fed, so it’s high in omega-
EFAs and high in saturated fat. That’s what happens when you feed animals grains
instead of grass.
Grass-fed beef is a very different product from the beef normally sold in Amer-
ican grocery stores. The latter meat comes from cattle penned up in large feedlots
where they are confined, fed grains, treated with hormones, and given antibiotics,
all to promote fast weight gain and prevent diseases that are so prevalent in this
unnatural environment.
Grass-fed meat is higher in anti-inflammatory omega- EFAs and lower in
saturated fat than grain-fed meat is. It has a different fatty acid profile, but is still
high in fat overall, and that’s where ancestral humans got the majority of their fat,
as well as the majority of their nutrients, because fat is so dense. Protein has
 calories per gram, carbohydrate has  calories per gram, and fat has  calories
per gram. Our ancestors got most of their nutrients from fat, so as a species, we
are naturally fat eaters.

54
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/29/12 9:43 AM Page 55

STEP ONE: EAT THE ANTI-INFLAMMATION PRIMAL DIET

STEP 1
Good Fats/Bad Fats
(adapted from The Protein Power Lifeplan of the Drs. Eades)
GOOD FATS to include in your diet:
For cooking: Butter, ghee, olive oil, sesame seed oil, coconut oil, lard (natural and
organic), and fat that occurs in natural meats and poultry
For baking: Almond oil, butter, ghee, and lard (natural and organic)
For salads: Avocado oil, almond oil, hazelnut oil, macadamia nut oil, olive oil, sesame seed
oil, walnut oil, and flaxseed oil
BAD FATS to avoid in your diet:
Vegetable cooking oils (corn, soy, canola, safflower, sunflower), margarine, vegetable
shortening, and partially hydrogenated oils of any kind

The Primal diet requires that you consume animal protein and fat from clean,
grass-fed, organic sources free of industrial pesticides and hormones. Most toxins
are fat soluble and will store easily in animal fat, transferring those toxins into your
own body and making animal fat a “bad” fat, not good for consumption, unless
you stick with “grass-fed, free-range” labeled products.

Eat a variety of plant food. Wild plants consumed by hunter-gatherers had high
micronutrient concentrations. To replicate their diet, eat an abundance of plant
foods that provide vitamins, minerals, fiber, and phytonutrients—all important to
your health. The best sources are locally grown, organic, and in season such as the
produce found at your local farmers’ market.
It’s no secret that vegetables and fruits are good for us. You may assume that
it is because they contain minerals and vitamins, but plants are also rich in phy-
tonutrients, certain organic compounds that help protect the plant from environ-
mental damage, such as from ultraviolet light. Phytonutrients have a similar
protective quality for us, too, in helping the body to repair damaged cells, build
up the immune system, and act as powerful antioxidants. Many of the health ben-
efits are believed to come from the different chemical compounds that give them
their vibrant colors, which is why it important to include the five categories of
plant colors in your diet: green, white, blue ⁄ purple, red, and yellow/orange.

55
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 56

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Green plants (green beans, avocados, green peppers, and leafy greens) are rich
in lutein, a carotenoid that is helpful for vision. White plants (onions, garlic, leeks,
shallots, and chives) contain compounds that suppress tumor formation. Blue/
purple plants (blueberries, broccoli, plums, and eggplant) contain powerful anti-
oxidants which protect against cancer and reduce inflammation. Red plants (toma-
toes, beets, chard, and strawberries) contain lycopene, which reduces harmful free
radicals. Yellow/orange plants (carrots, golden bell peppers, oranges, and lemons)
contain beta-carotene, which enhances the immune system.

Keep sugar low, including fruit. Although you want to get an abundance of plant
food in your diet, eat fruits moderately on the Primal diet. Most people think of
fruits as healthy and natural, and certainly the wild fruit that our Paleolithic an-
cestors ate was healthy, but their fruit was more tart and fibrous than the sweet,
plump, and highly cultivated varieties available today. In addition, fruit in Paleolithic
times was only seasonally available, which naturally limited amounts available in
the diet.
The problem with fruit is that although fructose (fruit sugar), may not cause
a rise in insulin (because the body metabolizes it differently than other sugar), it
is extremely glycating. Andrew Weil discusses the “glycation theory of aging” in
his book Healthy Aging and likens the process of glycation to carmelization, the
process of sugar browning when heated. He suggests that a kind of carmelization
happens in the body when there’s enough sugar present in the blood, gumming
up adjacent proteins and forming advanced glycation end products (AGEs). AGEs
are deformed proteins that promote inflammation—and the acronym helps us re-
member the negative effect of modern diet on longevity and health.
Glycation from fructose happens more than from other forms of sugar, such
as glucose or the ubiquitous table sugar. In addition, studies have shown that con-
suming large quantities of fructose (also found as high-fructose corn syrup in many
processed foods) can ultimately impair your body’s ability to handle glucose, leading
to the negative condition of insulin resistance. Some of the sweeter fruits to avoid
include bananas, grapes, dates, pineapple, watermelon, cantaloupe, kiwi, and
raisins. Better fruit choices include apples, pears, strawberries, blackberries, rasp-
berries, grapefruit, plums, lemons, and limes.

Avoid grains and legumes (beans). Almost all grains and legumes contain anti-
nutrients, such as lectins and saponins. Lectins are sugar proteins that provide a

56
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/29/12 9:43 AM Page 57

STEP ONE: EAT THE ANTI-INFLAMMATION PRIMAL DIET

protective barrier for the plant. When plants are attacked by parasites or mold,

STEP 1
for example, lectins attach themselves to the invading cells to block the attack and,
in the process, render the sugar molecules useless. This may be great for plants,
but when you eat foods that contain lectins, they travel through your digestive
tract and attach themselves to healthy sugar molecules needed for digestion. Those
sugars are then viewed as defective and attacked by your immune system. This
can lead to intestinal permeability and increased risk of inflammatory disease.
Most legumes also contain saponins, which are known to disrupt cell membranes
and lead to altered or damaged intestinal lining, causing “leaky gut syndrome.”

Consume fresh, raw nuts and seeds in your diet, in small amounts. Nuts
and seeds are a great snack food; they are tasty, easy to carry, and loaded with
vitamins and minerals. The best choices are macadamia nuts, almonds, pecans,
Brazil nuts, pistachios, walnuts, and hazelnuts, as well as pumpkin, sunflower,
and sesame seeds.
One caveat: Nuts and seeds contain an antinutrient, phytic acid, which binds
to minerals and prevents their absorption. Also, many contain a high proportion
of omega- fatty acid, so you want to keep your consumption to a minimum.

Include dairy, in small amounts, if tolerated. While dairy is technically not a

Paleolithic food, the Weston A. Price Foundation argues that raw dairy is perfectly
nourishing, so it falls in the gray area.
Dairy is loaded with beneficial bacteria, protein, essential fatty acids, saturated
fats, and some carbs. The best choices are full-fat, cultured milk products, such
as yogurt and kefir, which introduce beneficial probiotics into the gut; raw butter,
and cream, which are full of saturated fat; and hard cheeses made from unpas-
teurized milk. If you decide to consume dairy, make sure the animals are grass-
fed and look for organic, hormone, and antibiotic free sources.

Use the glycemic index⁄glycemic load. One way to assess the sugary content
of foods is to use the glycemic index (GI), a measurement of how fast a carbo-
hydrate food raises your blood sugar after you eat it. Remember, when your blood
sugar rises quickly, the brain signals your pancreas to secrete insulin to lower
blood sugar, converting excess sugar to fat for storage. The greater the increase
in blood sugar, the more insulin your pancreas releases to drive blood sugar down,
and, consequently, the more fat gets stored.

57
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 58

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

A food with a low GI will cause a small rise in blood sugar, while a food with
a high GI will trigger a larger spike in blood sugar. A GI of  or more is considered
high; whereas a GI of  or less is low. Some foods with higher GIs are whole wheat
bread at , cornflakes at , and baked potatoes at . Healthier choices include
raw apples with a GI of , Greek yogurt with a GI of , and raw carrots with a
GI of . Another point to consider is that meals containing protein and fat will
cause a much lower spike in blood sugar than a heavily carbohydrate meal, because
they slow down digestion, thereby lowering the meal’s overall GI.
Another relatively new measurement, based on the GI, takes into account the
amount of carbohydrate per serving, rather than solely the sugar in the food. This
is called the glycemic load (GL). GL is calculated by dividing the GI by , and
multiplying the result by the grams of carbohydrate per serving. As a reference, a
GL of  or more is considered high; while a GL of  or less is low. Watermelon,
for example, has a high GI but a relatively low GL. This is because in a typical serv-
ing of watermelon, there are only  grams of carbohydrate, bringing the GL mea-
surement to about  on the scale.
The bottom line is choosing carbohydrates based on their GL is better than
choosing them based only on their GI. Ultimately, you want to lower the starch
and sugar content of your diet as much as possible. A good online reference for
the GI and GL of foods is located at www.mendosa.com⁄gilists.htm.

THE DRUG OF CHOICE FOR EARLY HUMANS

Recognizing the problems created by a diet heavy in carbohydrate foods, I’ve often
wondered why early humans ever wanted to become farmers. In hindsight, the
transition from the hunter-gatherer lifestyle to agriculture has been celebrated as
a major advance in civilization. But before civilization, hunter-gathering humans
had no idea what was to come or where they were headed. Theirs was a good life.
Scientists tell us that they worked about seventeen hours a week, leaving plenty
of time for leisure, enjoyed near perfect health, and lived long, healthy lives when
not killed by predators or natural disasters.
So why would anyone choose to become a farmer, when planting and field
work required toiling from sun up to sundown? In addition, the changeover to the
agricultural diet resulted in many nutritional deficiencies, because farmers no
longer consumed the large variety of nutrient-rich plant foods they’d previously
foraged; they relied on only one or two crops for nourishment. Agriculture also

58
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/29/12 9:43 AM Page 59

STEP ONE: EAT THE ANTI-INFLAMMATION PRIMAL DIET

meant that people were now sedentary, and so more vulnerable to infectious disease

STEP 1
and epidemics, because they lived in large groups in relatively small geographic
areas. In general, as agriculture evolved as a lifestyle, the quality of life our early
ancestors had at one time enjoyed declined considerably.
One of the more compelling theories to explain the changeover is presented
in an article that appeared in the journal Australian Biologist, “The Origins of
Agriculture: A Biological Perspective and a New Hypothesis.” The authors suggest
that humans invented agriculture so they could experience the euphoria produced
by grains and dairy products. The idea is that grains and dairy products contain
certain pharmacological substances called exorphins that affect humans the way
opium does.
The authors report that “the ingestion of cereals and milk, in normal modern
dietary amounts by normal humans, activates reward centers in the brain. Foods
that were common in the diet before agriculture (fruits and so on) do not have
this pharmacological property. The effects of exorphins are qualitatively the same
as those produced by other opioid and⁄or dopaminergic drugs—that is, reward,
motivation, reduction of anxiety, a sense of wellbeing, and perhaps even addiction.
Though the effects of a typical meal are quantitatively less than those of doses of
those drugs, most modern humans experience them several times a day, every day
of their adult lives.”
Is it fair to say that as a species, we humans got “hooked” on agricultural and
domesticated foods, tilling the fields to make sure we got our daily fix of exorphins?
An intriguing idea, and as there are no cogent theories as to why early humans
took to farming, I like this one as a way to understand why a behavior that seems
irrational became the norm for our early human ancestors.
The good news is that you can kick this addiction to grains and products from
domesticated animals and become much healthier.

DISPELLING THE MYTHS

The diet our ancestors ate kept their body inflammation and pain free, able to
move with ease and perform fat-burning, muscle-strengthening kinds of activity
patterns. However, the introduction of low-carbohydrate, high-fat, and high-
protein diets (the Atkins diet, South Beach diet, and the Drs. Eades’ Protein
Power diet, to mention a few) to the general public have met with some loud
objections. Most of the controversy surrounding the low-carb diet is based on

59
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 60

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

three myths that I will dispel, relying on the latest scientific research about how
diet impacts health.

Myth #: Eating saturated fat from animal protein causes heart disease.
The first myth surrounding the low-carb diet approach is called the diet-heart
hypothesis. This is the false idea that eating saturated fat from animal protein raises
your cholesterol, specifically your LDL and total cholesterol, to clog your arteries
and cause heart disease. It was the late Ancel Keys who convinced us that dietary
fat causes heart disease. He became famous for developing the K ration for combat
troops during World War II. Throughout the s, Keys insisted that all fat, both
vegetable and animal, raised cholesterol levels. This was how we came to believe
that a low-fat diet is a healthy diet.
One of the most influential studies often cited as proof of the diet-heart
hypothesis is known as the Framingham Heart Study, conducted under the direc-
tion of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Set up by Harvard University
Medical School in , this study involved , local residents divided into two
groups: those who consumed little cholesterol and saturated fat in their diet and
those who consumed large amounts of those substances. These groups were re-
examined every five years to see which had the most heart disease.
After forty years, the director of this study, Dr. William Castelli, made the
following admission: “In Framingham, Mass, the more saturated fat one ate,
the more cholesterol one ate, the more calories one ate—the lower the person’s
serum cholesterol. . . . We found that the people who ate the most cholesterol, ate
the most saturated fat, ate the most calories, weighed the least and were the most
physically active.”
One of the researchers of the Framingham Heart Study, George V. Mann, com-
mented, “On-going issues of pride, profit and prejudice caused outdated and never
proven notions of the saturated fat⁄cholesterol hypothesis to persist, despite a lack
of supportive evidence in the medical literature.”
Mary Enig, consulting editor to the Journal of the American College of Nutrition
and president of the Maryland Nutritionists Association, in addition to being a
world-renowned lipids researcher, states, “The idea that saturated fats cause heart
disease is completely wrong, but the statement has been published so many times
over the last three or more decades that it is very difficult to convince people other-
wise, unless they are willing to take the time to read and learn what produced the
anti-saturated fat agenda.”

60
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/29/12 9:43 AM Page 61

STEP ONE: EAT THE ANTI-INFLAMMATION PRIMAL DIET

The pharmaceutical and vegetable oil industries vilified saturated fat and were

STEP 1
involved in promoting the research that supported the antisaturated fat agenda,
as they had much to gain in the way of profits. What started out as a plausible
theory has never been proven, despite the millions of dollars that were spent. As
a result, people are confused and misinformed about the relation between diet
and heart disease.
However, when you consider the high saturated fat content advised in the Primal
diet, results are more supportive of the Framingham study results, rather than the
recommendations of food and drug companies with an interest in selling cheap
foods competitively and drugs that answer a need that is completely manufactured.
Understanding what is going on with HDL and LDL cholesterol and low-carb
diets can also go far in dispelling the diet-heart hypothesis. A recent study com-
pared the effects of a very low-carbohydrate, high-saturated-fat diet with a low-
fat diet to evaluate long-term weight loss over a one-year period. The outcome of
the study was that the low-carb group lost more weight and had greater decreases
in triglycerides and increases in HDL cholesterol—the “good” kind—but there was
also a minor increase in their LDL, or “bad” cholesterol.
According to what most doctors advise, an increase in LDL is dangerous, be-
cause LDL is known as the bad stuff that clogs arteries and causes heart disease.
But that is up for question. Dr. Michael Eades points out on his blog that “numerous
studies have shown that whenever subjects go on low-carb diets, they end up in-
creasing the size of their LDL particles. Large, fluffy LDL particles are not only
harmless, but may be protective. If they are protective, what’s wrong with having
a bit more of them?”
Cholesterol is a soft, waxy substance found in every cell of the human body.
It is especially abundant in cell membranes, where it helps maintain the integrity
of these membranes; it also plays a role in cell signaling so that your cells can com-
municate with one another; and it helps the body produce hormones, bile acid,
and vitamin D.
Because cholesterol does not dissolve in the blood, it is attached to a lipoprotein
that transports it and then dissolves with it. Lipoproteins are classified according
to their density. High-density lipoproteins (HDL) carry cholesterol away from the
arteries and transport it to the liver to be excreted from the body in bile. Low-
density lipoproteins (LDL) deposit cholesterol on the artery walls, which can lead
to a narrowing of the arteries, called atherosclerosis, and increases the risk for
heart disease.

61
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 62

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Within the category of LDL, researchers have found that not all particles are
created equal. When viewed under an electron microscope, some LDL particles
appear large and fluffy, while others appear small and dense. Surprisingly, the big,
fluffy LDL particles are harmless, whereas the small, dense particles do more dam-
age. The reason is that the small, dense particles can fit between the cells that line
the inner wall of the arteries. They are also more easily oxidized, which plays a
role in forming cholesterol plaques, which can result in a heart attack. The bottom
line is that LDL particle size predicts the risk for heart disease more accurately
than does simply measuring total LDL cholesterol.
One more point is that small, dense LDL particles are strongly correlated with
high triglycerides, or fat in the blood, and vice versa. Large, fluffy LDL particles
correlate with low triglyceride levels. So if your triglycerides are low, which happens
when you eat the low-carb ancestral diet, your LDL particles are probably large,
fluffy, and harmless.

In my opinion . . . the lipid parameters of most value in determining risk for heart disease are
triglyceride levels and HDL levels. In fact an important index of risk is the triglyceride to HDL
ratio (TGL/HDL): the lower the better.
—DR. MICHAEL R. EADES

Myth #: A diet of animal products causes loss of bone density. The osteo-
porosis threat is the second most common objection to the low-carb, high-protein
diet. The question arises: Does eating too much meat cause leaching of calcium
from bones?
Everything you eat when metabolized releases either an acid or an alkaline
by-product into the blood. Animal protein releases an acid by-product, creating
a mild, metabolic acidosis in your body. This excess acid is buffered by calcium
leached from the bones, causing a loss of bone density. The answer is therefore
yes—eating too much meat can cause bone loss, leading to osteoporosis, unless
you eat enough calcium-rich foods to provide a buffer, effectively neutralizing
the acidosis.
Understanding how calcium is handled in your body is the key to dispelling
the myth that eating meat will cause bone loss. Nutritionists tell us that there is a
balance between how much calcium you take in and how much you excrete, known
as the calcium balance. It’s quite possible to take in a lot of calcium and still be
low in calcium, if your excretion is high. It’s also possible to take in very little cal-
cium and be in calcium balance, if you excrete very little calcium.
62
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/29/12 9:43 AM Page 63

STEP ONE: EAT THE ANTI-INFLAMMATION PRIMAL DIET

The main factor that determines how much calcium is excreted is the acid–

STEP 1
alkaline balance in your blood. So the best way to neutralize acid-forming foods
(animal products) and retain more calcium is to eat more alkaline foods. Most
plant foods—dark leafy greens, colorful vegetables, and low-glycemic fruits—
create a mild alkalosis in the blood, and so buffer acid-forming foods.
Grains, dairy products, legumes, meat, fish, and eggs all produce acid. Sur-
prisingly, hard cheeses are the most acidic of all. You would think that cheese
would help build strong bones, because it is rich in calcium, but unless you con-
sume enough plant foods, the excess acid could cause bone loss.
On a short-term basis, our body can handle an acid buildup and the amount
of calcium lost from the bones would not be of any consequence. What we are
talking about is if this mild acidosis goes on for decades. That would eventually
lead to osteoporosis. But protecting your bones is easy if you follow the low-carb
Primal diet, which is rich in alkalizing (acid-buffering) plant foods. Other factors
for maintaining bone density include taking a calcium supplement, getting plenty
of sunshine, and taking additional vitamin D to help with the absorption of calcium.
This will ensure strong, healthy bones!

Myth #: Too much protein can damage your kidneys. A final myth is that of
the threat of kidney disease. Although studies have shown that in individuals with

Exercise and Bone Density

Two types of exercises impact bone health: resistance exercises and weight-bearing
exercises. RESISTANCE EXERCISE refers to the use of free weights or body weight
exercises to strengthen the muscles and the bones to which they attach. WEIGHT-
BEARING refers to exercises in which your bones and muscles work against gravity.
Sprinting, walking, and stair climbing are all examples of weight-bearing exercises.
Aerobic exercises, such as swimming and bicycling, are not considered weight bearing.
Numerous research studies have shown that the effect of resistance exercise is
relatively site specific to the muscles worked and the bones to which the muscles
attach. Also, although aerobic weight-bearing activity is important in maintaining
overall health and healthy bone, resistance training has a more potent impact on bone
density. In particular, high-intensity resistance training has the best effect—considering
our genetic inheritance and how using our fast-twitch muscle fibers give us an
evolutionary advantage.

63
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 64

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

preexisting unhealthy kidneys, excessive protein may indeed cause undue strain
on this organ, there’s not one scientific study, using healthy adults with normal
kidney function, showing excessive protein causes kidney damage.
In fact, quite the contrary. In one study, researchers examined the renal (kidney)
function of bodybuilders and other well-trained athletes with a high- and medium-
protein diet. The athletes underwent a seven-day nutrition record analysis, as well
as blood samples and urine collection, to see whether these diets affected kidney
function. The study found that both groups of athletes had renal clearances that
were within the normal range, concluding that “there were no correlations between
protein intake and creatinine clearance, albumin excretion rate, and calcium ex-
cretion rate.” In other words, a high-protein diet does not impair kidney function
in well-trained athletes, at least in the short term.
In another study, researchers investigated the effect of protein intake on renal
function in , women between the ages of forty-two and sixty-eight enrolled
in the Nurses’ Health Study over an eleven-year period. The researchers concluded
that “high protein intake was not associated with renal function decline in women
with normal renal function.”
From a purely anecdotal point of view, athletes and bodybuilders have been
known to consume high-protein diets for long periods of time. If a high-protein
diet caused kidney damage, you would expect to see kidney problems showing up
in this group. But that has not happened, suggesting that these diets are not harmful
to the kidneys.
One caveat: When choosing protein sources, always choose organic, grass-
fed meat, free-range poultry, and wild fish whenever possible. Although healthy
kidneys should have no trouble processing high-quality meats, many of the animal
protein sources available in our modern world are highly toxic and could burden
anyone’s kidneys. Plus, most supermarket⁄butcher-bought meat is far removed
from the wild animals our ancestors ate, and therefore not in congruence with our
genetic blueprint.

EAT PRIMAL: FIVE SIMPLE TIPS

In Chapter , I will help you design a meal plan for an easy and convenient adap-
tation to the Primal diet. Here are five easy-to-remember main points, to get you
started. Keeping these tips in mind will naturally move you in the right direction

64
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/29/12 9:43 AM Page 65

STEP ONE: EAT THE ANTI-INFLAMMATION PRIMAL DIET

toward more Primal eating habits and align your diet with the natural expression

STEP 1
of your DNA.
. Focus your meals on high-quality animal protein, such as fresh
beef, fish, and poultry. Whenever possible, consume local, grass-fed,
free-range, organic, antibiotic, pesticide and hormone-free meat, which
has a healthier fat profile.
2. Eat an abundance of plant foods, such as brightly colored vegetables,
berries, and low-glycemic fruit, which are rich in vitamins, minerals,
antioxidants, and phytonutrients. Many of the health benefits are be-
lieved to come from the chemical compounds that give them their vi-
brant colors.
3. Include fresh, raw nuts and seeds in your diet, such as walnuts,
macadamia nuts, almonds, pecans, hazelnuts, Brazil nuts, and pista-
chios, as well as pumpkin, sesame, and sunflower seeds.
4. Avoid all processed, fried, and fast foods, including most snack
foods, baked goods, frozen meals, and sweets. They are high in refined
carbohydrates, bad fats, and sweeteners, and low in vitamins, minerals,
and nutrients.
. Avoid vegetable oils, such as corn, soy, canola, safflower, and sun-
flower oils, as well as mayonnaise, margarine, and shortening, and in-
crease consumption of all foods high in omega- fatty acids, especially
from fish.

Ron’s Transformation
Getting Pain-Free and Moving Once Again

RON, a fifty-eight-year-old social investor/entrepreneur, came

to me when his wife, who I’d been training, recommended he
get help with issues that were preventing him from working as
hard as he wanted to stay fit. I’ll let him describe the painful
condition he’d been dealing with, and how he benefited from
all five steps of my program to become fit and pain free after
years of limitation.

I’ve been working out and playing sports most of my life. I

have a small boat and race it extensively at the national and
world levels, so in order to maintain my strength and agility,
I’ve been doing yoga, weight lifting, and as much as possible
getting cardio in by running and biking.
65
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 66

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

But over the last ten to fifteen years, I’ve Supplementing my diet also helped. With the
had to give up running, because after every run reduced inflammation and the change in how I
I’d be in pain for a number of days. My knees worked out, my knees started to feel much
were in bad shape, due to old basketball and better.
lacrosse injuries. Over the years, the injuries But the biggest change was in the way I
led to me making compensatory adjustments moved and used my knees. I learned some
to minimize the movements of my knees, while basic, Primal movement patterns that corrected
at the same time, developing movement the compensations I’d developed over the years
patterns that seemed to make my knees more from having pain and lack of mobility in my
injury-prone. I took up bike riding, but it soon knees. We worked on getting my knees to do
got to the point where even that was causing what knees were supposed to do and make
continued inflammation of my knees. other parts of my body, particularly my hips,
About a year ago, one knee was particularly do what they were supposed to do—back to
bad, and I was in constant pain from what had functioning in ways that made things better,
deteriorated to a bone-on-bone condition with not worse. For example, learning to hinge,
a lot of inflammation. Even though I’d had using my hips, actually minimized the work my
several surgeries on that knee, it was knees had to do, and adopting that new
continuing to get worse. I was diagnosed as pattern greatly relieved the stress on my knees
being in a stage 4 condition, and the next step and the resulting pain.
I was told would be the onset of arthritis and a We also worked on exercises to strengthen
big reduction in mobility. That was the last muscles that would improve the use of my
straw, and I decided to see what Mikki’s hips. As a result, I was able to establish more
program could offer. functional ways of walking, of standing, of
My goal in starting to train was to get back using my legs, than I’d been able to do for so
to where I was pain free—to have increased many years.
mobility and be able to do things I hadn’t been Now I’m running again, but this time it’s up
able to do, like ride a bike. It was beyond my and down stadium steps, and now I’m adding
dreams to think I might ever run again! But intensity by doing intervals on the stairs. And
what I learned from Mikki was how to address I’m on a bike again, without any inflammation
the underlying issue that was causing my or pain afterward!
knees to get worse—in spite of all I’d done to What makes the program so successful for
fix and protect them—which was me using my me was the multipronged approach: correcting
knees in the wrong way. movement patterns, bringing the inflammation
To begin with, Mikki got me using the foam down with supplements and diet, and
roller to keep my muscles loose so they could loosening and strengthening the quads and
function better. Working out on tight muscles glutes—all of which helped me to use my knees
was not helping me, but instead was making in the way that no longer creates pain today.
my muscles even tighter and not building the My original goals—to build strength, learn
strength and flexibility I wanted. So using the new movement habits, and get rid of the
foam roller before working out made my pain—have all been met. Focusing on keeping
progress faster. the supplements and diet going, gradually
In my diet, I’d been gradually moving away getting stronger and trying new things—all of
from eating high carbs, but today I eat mostly that has made the difference in me living and
protein, vegetables, and fruits, following the exercising with a renewed sense of my
Paleo diet as prescribed by Mikki. capabilities—and remaining pain free.

66
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/29/12 9:43 AM Page 67

STEP ONE: EAT THE ANTI-INFLAMMATION PRIMAL DIET

NEXT . . .

STEP 1
In the next step, you will learn how early humans had no need to take vitamins or
minerals in supplement form, but you, as a modern human, do. When you sup-
plement your diet with key nutrients, you match the nutrient density they enjoyed
naturally in their Primal diets, so it’s important to know exactly how to do that.

67
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 68
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 69

Chapter 5

STEP 2
Step Two—Supplement
with the Super Six

The image of cavemen and -women, sitting around the fire eating a mammoth
thigh, stopping to take their vitamins might be the stuff of a funny cartoon, the
scene being so incongruous for obvious reasons. But the reality is that early humans
had no need to supplement their diet—it was that good!
Our ancestors ate foods high in protein and fat, and low in carbohydrates,
the exact opposite of most modern humans’ diets today. But dietary content is not
the only thing that was different back then. Nutrient density, meaning the actual
vitamins, minerals, and other essential nutrients contained in their food—was dif-
ferent, too. Paleo-anthropologists have shown us that the foods our ancestors ate
had greater nutrient density, even when comparing the same food to the food we
are eating today.
For example, the vitamin and mineral content of our steak, apple, or carrot
can’t stand up to similar foods that our ancestors ate, as the following chart of con-
temporary hunter-gatherer nutrient intake shows.

Comparative Hunter-Gatherer Nutrient Intake 1

NUTRIENT PALEOLITHIC INTAKE RDA U.S. INTAKE

Vitamin C 604 mg 60 mg 77–109 mg
Vitamin E 33 mg 8–10 mg 7–10 mg
Calcium 1,956 mg 800–1,200 mg 750 mg
Magnesium 700 mg 350 mg 250 mg
Potassium 10,500 mg 3,500 mg 2,500 mg
Zinc 43 mg 12–15 mg 5–14 mg
Fiber 50–104 g 25–35 g 10 g

69
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 70

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Why was our ancestors’ food so much more nutritionally dense than ours is
today? For one, the soil in which their food grew was not as depleted as our soil
is today, due to modern farming methods that strip vital minerals through over-
planting. Even if you shop at the local farmers’ market and buy organic food,
you are not getting the same quality of nutrients as our ancestors got from their
mineral-rich soils. Also, they didn’t have to deal with the huge amount of envi-
ronmental toxins, as well as the chronic stress that challenges modern bodies. For
these reasons, they managed to function optimally and stay clear of the diseases
of civilization so endemic today, such as heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.
To match the nutrient density of the foods our ancestors ate, we modern hu-
mans need to supplement our diet with the right vitamins, minerals, and other
substances that I recommend in this chapter. My list of Super Six Supplements
will ensure that you are getting the same amount and quality of nourishment from
your food that your DNA evolved on for millions of years, fulfilling your genetic
blueprint that determines how you stay lean, fit, and healthy at any age.

SUPPLEMENTS AND FAT-LOSS BENEFITS

When you take supplements to match the density of the ancestral diet, you not
only become healthier, you eliminate constantly feeling hungry and tired. This
translates directly to you eating less and having more energy to exercise, thereby
gaining more muscle and losing more fat. In addition, when your diet is supple-
mented correctly for your DNA, you won’t be loaded with painful inflammation,
slowing you down and discouraging you from doing the kinds of activity that burns
fat. You will begin to feel healthier and be more energetic, less likely to lapse into
sedentary habits and more likely to perform natural activity.
Once again, modern scientific research confirms the wisdom of living congruent
to our genetic inheritance. A new study published in the International Journal of
Obesity, done by Chinese researchers, showed that a low-dose multivitamin-mineral
caused obese volunteers to lose  lbs (. kg) of fat in six months. In this study,
ninety-six obese women aged eighteen through fifty-five were given either a
multivitamin-mineral supplement, calcium, or a placebo during a twenty-six-week
period. The researchers found that those who were given the multivitamin-mineral
supplement lost more body weight and had a lower body mass index at the end of
the study than did the others, without changing their regular diet.

70
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 71

STEP TWO—SUPPLEMENT WITH THE SUPER SIX

Why would this be so? The authors suggested that the reason the women lost

STEP 2
the weight was that obese people, in general, tend to have lower blood concentra-
tions or lower bioavailability of a number of nutrients, including vitamins A, D,
K, and several B vitamins; zinc; and iron, and that this could affect appetite. They
also suggested that there was the possibility of increased calorie and fat burning
from some of the nutrients.
In regard to supplements helping fat loss, it’s important to keep in mind that
there is no magic bullet. As much as we all want to take that one little pill to get
rid of overeating, sedentism, and weight gain forever, no such supplement exists.
You don’t gain weight overnight, and you can’t lose it overnight, either, although
improving the nutrient density of your food may help. Supplements are not a magic
bullet to fix a problem, but work in relationship to the other aspects of the Primal
Body Program, which are exercise and diet.
Before I introduce you to the Super Six, I want to issue two important warnings
about taking supplements.
. Supplements cannot make up for a poor diet or an insufficient
exercise program. It’s dangerous to rely on supplements as substitutes
or replacements for any part of your fitness program. The majority of
the results you will get from following the Primal Body Program will
come from sticking close to the ancestral diet, and exercising in a way
that mimics ancestral movement patterns, including metabolic train-
ing. Think of supplements as supplemental, something that you take
in addition to a healthy diet and exercise program.
. All supplements are not created equal. Because the supplement in-
dustry is not regulated, sometimes dosages vary and ingredients may
be contaminated. So look for reputable companies. A number of man-
ufacturers offer unbiased lab testing as proof of the quality of their
product; they send random batches of their supplements to unbiased
labs for testing and then publish the results of those findings. This is
the best proof of quality.

Another way to ensure quality is to check vitamin bottles for the United States
Pharmacopoeia (USP), NSF International (NSF), or ConsumerLab.com (CL)
seals. The USP and NSF are nonprofit groups that verify whether companies
offer contamination-free products and use good manufacturing practices. Not

71
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 72

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

every brand has the seals; some don’t want to submit to the testing. But you can
be sure those that do are reliable.

INTRODUCING THE SUPER SIX

My choice of supplements is based on what our modern body needs to best repli-
cate the nutritionally dense diet our ancestral humans ate. Following is a list of the
nutritional supplements I recommend, in order of importance. Adding these sup-
plements on a daily basis is a vital component of the Primal Body Program, helping
you to get lean, fit, and healthy.
. Omega- essential fatty acid
2. Vitamin D3
3. Antioxidants (vitamins C, E, and coenzyme Q10)
4. Magnesium
5. Multinutritional formula
. Glucosamine

Super Supplement #1: Omega-3/Essential Fatty Acids

If you had to limit your supplement intake to just one supplement, the one I’d rec-
ommend over all the others is omega- essential fatty acid. You may recall from
Chapter  that omega- is an essential fatty acid (EFA), meaning it is a kind of fat
your body doesn’t make and therefore must be gotten from the food you eat.
In replicating the early human diet, the inclusion of omega- fatty acid is
what separates the Primal Body diet from other high-protein and high-fat, low-
carbohydrate plans, such as the Atkins diet. This is because in my diet, the emphasis
is on “good fats,” and getting the right kind of fat, not just any kind of fat, as is rec-
ommended in other diets.
Unfortunately, omega- fatty acid is the single most deficient nutrient in our
modern diet, and we pay a hefty price in having adapted to its absence in our evo-
lution. The following disorders and symptoms are correlated to the deficiency of
omega- essential fats in our foods today: ADD/HD, dyslexia, depression, weight
gain, heart disease, allergies, arthritis, violence, memory problems, cancer, eczema,
inflammatory diseases, diabetes, dry skin, dandruff, postpartum depression, alco-
holism, Crohn’s disease, irritable bowel syndrome, cirrhosis of the liver, PMS,
hypoglycemia, carbohydrate/sweet cravings, noncancerous breast disease, ulcerative

72
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 73

STEP TWO—SUPPLEMENT WITH THE SUPER SIX

colitis, scleroderma, Sjögren’s syndrome, hypertension, bipolar disorder, irritability,

STEP 2
soft or brittle nails, lowered immunity/frequent infections, frequent urination, fa-
tigue, dry unmanageable hair, hyperactivity, excessive thirst, dry eyes, poor wound
healing, learning problems, alligator skin, patches of pale skin on cheeks, and
cracked skin on heels or fingertips.
What is the cause of this rampant omega- deficiency? With the adoption of
agriculture, ancestral humans began to eat more grains, which are high in omega-
 fatty acids but not omega-s. They also tended to eat less grass-fed meat, which
is an important source of omega-s. Another dietary change that occurred at that
time was the use of commercially raised animals that were fed grain instead of
grass. All of these changes caused an increase in omega- consumption and a de-
crease in dietary consumption of omega-.
Many years later, after the advent of the “diet-heart hypothesis,” which linked
consumption of dietary fat to heart disease and other health problems, fats were
so heavily demonized that many people began thinking that the best solution to
the fat problem was to completely avoid fat. And they were right, to a point. There
are some types of fat you do want to avoid, such as trans fats, a product of the food
industry’s tampering with natural fats to enhance shelf life of foods containing
fats. But omega-s are so important for your health that they have been named
essential fatty acids, because your body needs them to perform important functions
and cannot manufacture them on its own. Foods that are rich in omega- fatty
acids include seafood from cold waters, such as salmon, herring, black cod, mack-
erel, and sardines. Other sources include wild game, including grass-fed beef, lamb,
venison, and buffalo; omega- enriched eggs; walnuts; and dark leafy greens. (Chia
seeds and flaxseeds are not great sources of omega- because they are not easily
converted from ALA to EPA and DHA in the body.)

Supplemental sources and dosages: Fish oil is the best supplemental source of
omega-, and can be taken in either capsule form or liquid in a bottle. But how
much do you need?
The truth is that both omega- and omega- essential fatty acids perform im-
portant functions in the body. To create health rather than disease, a balanced in-
take of both omega- and omega- fatty acids is required, which is what our
ancestors had in their diet before the agricultural revolution and processed foods
came along. The optimal ratio of omega- to omega- is believed to be within the

73
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 74

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

range of  to  and  to . The current average from the modern diet is not even
close to that optimal range; it is approximately  to !
Although scientists have not yet come up with a universal recommendation
for the exact dosage of omega- needed on a daily basis, some guidelines were es-
tablished in  at the Workshop on the Essentiality of and Recommended Dietary
Intakes for Omega- and Omega- Fatty Acids, held in Bethesda, Maryland, and
reported in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition. The workshop par-
ticipants agreed on the following guidelines, based on a ,-calorie/per day diet:
For omega- (linoleic acid), intake was set at . grams per day with an upper
limit of . grams per day, and for omega- (alpha-linolenic acid) intake was set
at . grams per day with no upper limit.
This recommendation sounds simple enough— to , omega- to omega-.
But when you consider that one tablespoon of safflower oil (as in one serving of
commercial salad dressing) supplies  grams of omega-, already exceeding the
upper limit of . grams, you can see just how easy it is to lose the delicate balance
called for. In addition to your salad dressing, all the processed and fast foods you
eat are loaded with vegetable oils, even the so-called healthy ones, such as whole-
grain cakes, cookies, crackers, and breads. These foods are therefore sources of
omega-, tipping the balance in a way that most consumers are completely un-
aware of.
In a recent nutritional study, researchers showed how mimicking the omega-
 to omega- ratio of ancestral humans leads to changes in gene expression that
can bring about less allergic inflammation and autoimmune disorders. Researchers
at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine took twenty-seven healthy
people and fed them a special diet that was designed to reproduce the omega-
to omega- fatty acid ratio of our caveman ancestors for five weeks. They then
looked at the gene levels of immune messenger molecules that impact autoimmu-
nity and allergy and found that many key signaling genes that promote inflamma-
tion were markedly reduced, when compared to a normal diet. This included a
signaling gene for a protein called PIK, a critical early step in autoimmune and
allergic inflammation responses.
More proof that the ancestral diet lowers inflammation! But what’s new in this
study is that it demonstrates that gene expression is the mechanism by which the
omega fatty acids reduce inflammation.
Taking into account the high amounts of omega- fatty acids we are all get-
ting, it is a good idea to increase the level of omega- supplementation above

74
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 75

STEP TWO—SUPPLEMENT WITH THE SUPER SIX

the bottom-line . grams recommended per day. Many nutritionists recommend

STEP 2
dosages in the range of  to  grams per day.
And remember that we are striving for balance, so in addition to supplementing
your diet with omega-, you would want to eliminate grains, legumes, grain-fed
meats, all vegetable oils (except olive and coconut oil), all commercially processed
foods and baked goods, all commercial salad dressings, and all fast foods, to bring
down your intake of omega- fatty acids. Of course, the easiest way to achieve this
optimum ratio of omega- to omega- would be to follow the ancestral diet. (One
word of caution, however: If you are taking medications, such as blood thinners,
consult with your doctor before using fish oil, because this supplement can thin
your blood.)

Super Supplement #2: Vitamin D

This quote from leading nutritional expert Dr. Michael Holick, in his book The Vi-
tamin D Solution, says it all: “If I had to give you a single secret ingredient that
could apply to the prevention—and treatment, in many cases—of heart disease,
common cancers, stroke, infectious diseases from influenza to tuberculosis, type
 and  diabetes, dementia, depression, insomnia, muscle weakness, joint pain,
fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, psoriasis, multiple
sclerosis, and hypertension, it would be this: vitamin D.”
Vitamin D is often thought of as the “sunshine vitamin,” because the body
manufactures it after exposure to sunshine. Most people believe that ten minutes
of daily exposure will supply all the vitamin D the body needs. While it is true that
the body can manufacture vitamin D from cholesterol in the skin when exposed
to ultraviolet B (UV-B) sunlight, it is more difficult than you might think to obtain
adequate vitamin D with such brief exposure.
The reason is that the amount of UV-B available has to do with the angle of
the sun’s rays; latitude and altitude affect the intensity of UV light. Unless you live
in the tropics, the only way you can form adequate vitamin D is by sunning between
ten AM and two PM during the summer months if you live in the northern latitudes
(or during the winter months if you live in the southern latitudes) for  to 
minutes, depending on your skin type and color. One more factor is that  percent
of your body surface needs to be exposed, just as it was for ancestral humans who
most likely dressed in animal skins and loincloths when out in the midday sun.
In most parts of the United States, there is insufficient sunlight to produce
optimal levels of vitamin D during six months of the year or more. No doubt the

75
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 76

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

safest way to obtain vitamin D is from natural sunlight, but for most people it
would not be possible to get adequate vitamin D this way. Surprisingly, a viable
alternative is tanning beds using UV-B bulbs.
Vitamin D can also be obtained though diet, mainly from fish and animal fats.
Ancestral humans consumed an abundance of vitamin D foods, including intes-
tines, organ meats, and the skin of animals they caught, as well as fatty fish and
insects. But in our modern diet, we tend to avoid vitamin D–rich foods, such as
kippers, sardines, mackerel, herring, and the yolk when eating eggs. We also remove
the skin, organs, and fats from our meat, and so miss most of the vitamin D avail-
able in foods.

Supplemental sources and dosages: The obvious solution is to supplement, but

how much should you take to supply your body with what it needs?
Nora Gedgaudas, in Primal Body, Primal Mind, discusses the idea that nutri-
ents do not operate in a vacuum, but that there is a “complex system of interrela-
tionships” in the body that should be considered. For example, she mentions that
for every receptor on cells in the body for vitamin D, there are two receptors for
vitamin A. To achieve health, a balance of these two nutrients would be necessary,
because deficiencies of vitamin A can make vitamin D toxic at lower levels. And
too much vitamin A can result in a vitamin D deficiency. One way to deal with
this would be to take cod liver oil, which tends to be high in vitamin A but low in
vitamin D, and supplement with vitamin D.
According to early evolutionary theorist Weston Price, dietary intake of vitamin
D by ancestral humans was approximately , IU per day. This, of course, was
in addition to the enormous amounts of vitamin D synthesized in the body from
daily exposure to sunshine.
There are two different types of vitamin D—D and D. Vitamin D is a syn-
thetic plant form not easily absorbed by the body. This is the type that vegans
prefer, because it contains no animal products. However, vitamin D is highly sup-
ported by the drug industry, which owns the patent and manufactures most quan-
tities commercially available, so these companies have an enormous financial stake
in D sales and production. It can be found in foods, in milk supplementation, and
in prescription vitamin D drugs.
Vitamin D is the animal-based natural form manufactured from the wool
of sheep (the animals are not harmed by this process). This form is produced in

76
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 77

STEP TWO—SUPPLEMENT WITH THE SUPER SIX

the human body with sunlight, so it is the preferred way to supplement with vi-

STEP 2
tamin D.
The Vitamin D Council, a nonprofit, educational corporation in the state of
California, suggests that there are three ways for adults to ensure adequate levels
of vitamin D:
. Regularly receive midday sun exposure in the late spring, summer,
and early fall, exposing as much of the skin as possible (being careful
to never burn).
2. Regularly use a sun bed (avoiding sunburn) during the colder months.
. Take , IU per day for  to  months, then obtain a -hydroxy
vitamin D test. Adjust your dosage so that blood levels are between
 and  ng/mL (or  and  nmol/L) year-round.

You can order the -hydroxy vitamin D test online at www.directlabs.com

without a doctor’s visit.

The question of sunscreen: One more point is to avoid sunscreen, as most SPF
sunscreens are manufactured with an omega- base, contain many carcinogenic
chemicals, and block all of the UV-B light needed to synthesize vitamin D. For ex-
ample, some products contain PABA, a substance that can be chemically altered
by the sun’s rays to cause cancer. Recognizing this problem, many manufacturers
have used other blocking agents and removed the PABA. But how do we know
that these other blockers don’t also change into dangerous compounds when ex-
posed to the sun’s rays?
The solution is to use your own natural sun protection, which is the gradual
buildup of pigment within the skin. With regular sun exposure in small doses, your
body can build up pigment to protect from the sun’s potentially cancerous effects.
You want to get an abundance of sunshine, so cover up only with a hat and clothing
or get out of the sun at the first sign of reddening until you build up a good tan.
For those who are afraid of the sun, you might want to consider that according
to the Drs. Eades, vitamin D can slow down the development and spread of
melanoma, as well as the development of breast cancer, colon cancer, and cancer
of the prostrate. Understanding the role vitamin D plays in your protection from
these forms of cancer, you don’t want to avoid the sun, but be smart about your
degree of exposure.

77
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 78

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Super Supplement #3: Antioxidants

Ancient humans evolved on a diet that was based on wild plants, particularly
green leafy vegetables and meat from wild animals. These vegetables provided
antioxidant vitamins, minerals, and many phytochemicals with a variety of anti-
oxidant properties. Their diet had an enormous variety of plant foods, each con-
taining a unique blend of protective compounds to counter free radical damage
and other oxidative stress.
But to understand the value of antioxidants, you want first to understand the
effects of free radicals in the human body. A free radical is an atom with an un-
paired electron. The nucleus of an atom is surrounded by a ring of paired electrons.
Sometimes an atom loses an electron (referred to as oxidation), leaving the atom
with an unpaired electron. The atom is then a free radical and is said to be highly
reactive, setting off a chain reaction of damaging events in the search for an elec-
tron to fill its outer ring. Free radicals damage DNA, proteins, cell membranes,
and other structures.
The presence of too many free radicals creates a condition called oxidative
stress. Andrew Weil, in Healthy Aging, says that “oxidative stress is simply the total
burden placed on organisms by the constant production of free radicals in the
normal course of metabolism. . . .”
Free radicals are produced in the body in a number of ways, but the most com-
mon production occurs in the mitochondria (cellular oxygen furnaces) through
the electron transport chain. This is significant, because this energy system is used
to produce ATP (the energy currency of the cell) during aerobic metabolism. So
when you spend endless hours doing aerobic exercise, you are actually increasing
free radical production, oxidative stress, and the likelihood of aging more quickly
over time.
To reduce oxidative stress, cut back on aerobic exercise and do more anaerobic
exercise, such as interval training, as presented in Step  of the Primal Body Pro-
gram. Also, include in your diet an abundance of plant foods, which are loaded
with antioxidants and other beneficial properties. Our bodies have enzymes (anti-
oxidants) that intercept free radicals, convert them to less harmful substances
(water and oxygen), and remove them from the body. These antioxidants are de-
rived from foods that are rich in vitamins and E and C.
According to the Drs. Eades, most of the powerful cancer-fighting nutrients
in plants are not absorbed well without eating some fat with them. These include
the carotenoids, found in colorful plants, and lycopene, found in tomatoes. So,
78
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 79

STEP TWO—SUPPLEMENT WITH THE SUPER SIX

when you make a salad, use extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) in the dressing; or if you

STEP 2
steam vegetables, drizzle some EVOO on them.
In addition to eating an abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables, the best
antioxidation strategy is to supplement your diet with vitamins E and C, and
coenzyme Q.

VITAMIN E
Vitamin E is a powerful fat-soluble antioxidant. It can protect your skin from ultra-
violet light, prevent cell damage from free radicals, allow your cells to communicate
effectively, and help protect against prostate cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. It
also aids in the protection and metabolism of essential fatty acids, so it is a good
idea to take it with fish oil. Good sources include mustard greens, chard, sunflower
seeds, turnip greens, almonds, and spinach.

Supplemental sources and dosages: Vitamin E is not an isolated nutrient but

a family of fat-soluble vitamins that includes alpha-, beta-, gamma-, and delta-
tocopherols and tocotrienols. Look for a source that contains mixed tocopherols
and tocotrienols. Supplement with  to  IUs daily.

VITAMIN C
Vitamin C, a water-soluble vitamin, is a highly effective antioxidant. Besides
strengthening the immune system to help you fight colds, it can protect proteins,
lipids, carbohydrates, and DNA from free radical damage. It also regenerates other
antioxidants such as vitamin E. It is needed in the synthesis of carnitine, which is
essential for the transport of fat into the mitochondria, so that it can be converted
to energy (think fat loss). And it helps the body produce collagen, the connective
tissue that holds everything together throughout the body. The list of benefits goes
on and on.
Dietary sources include red bell peppers, oranges, apples, beets, grapefruit,
lemons, pears, plums, strawberries, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cantaloupe, cauli-
flower, garlic, grapes, Swiss chard, collard greens, asparagus, raspberries, tomatoes,
green beans, summer squash, carrots, blueberries, spinach, celery, apricots, onions,
avocados, cucumbers, kale, and more. . . .

Supplemental source and dosage: In addition to eating an abundance of dietary

sources of vitamin C, supplement with  to , mgs daily. Vitamin C can be

79
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 80

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

taken as a powder or pill, in a buffered form, time-released, and a variety of com-

bination formulas.

COENZYME Q10
CoQ is a coenzyme, meaning that it helps enzymes, acting as a catalyst for bi-
ological chemical reactions. It is involved in basic energy production for every cell
in the body. This energy production takes place in the mitochondria through a se-
ries of chemical reactions along the electron transport chain where ATP (the energy
currency of the cell) is produced. CoQ is the messenger between the enzymes
of this chain. Without coQ, there is no production of energy for the cell, and
without energy there is no life!
Given the importance of this supplement, you would think that coQ would
be more widely used in the United States. But it’s the same old story, preventing
its more widespread use. Because it is a natural substance, it cannot be patented,
so the drug manufacturers are not able to make any money from producing it.
Worse yet, it might compete with patented drugs with similar functions. In Japan,
however, coenzyme Q is one of the most popular supplements on the market.
Coenzyme Q is also a potent, fat-soluble antioxidant. It is helpful with cardio-
vascular conditions, cancer, immune disorders, and periodontal disease. It can
also boost energy and speed recovery from exercise. Dietary sources include organ
meats such as heart, liver, and kidney, as well as sardines and mackerel.

Supplemental source and dosage: Supplement with  mg of coQ daily. For
individuals over age forty, or for those who are affected by chronic disease,
ubiquinol is more beneficial, because the body’s ability to produce coQ and con-
vert it into ubiquinol might be diminished. The dosage is the same for both.

Super Supplement #4: Magnesium

Magnesium is one of the most important minerals in the body, used in over 
enzyme processes. Every cell in your body has magnesium in it, yet it is one of the
most overlooked and depleted minerals in the modern diet.
From a Paleolithic point of view, studies show that early humans consumed
 to , mg of magnesium per day, and an equal amount of calcium. Modern-
day humans consume about the same amount of calcium but average  to 
mgs of magnesium per day.

80
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 81

STEP TWO—SUPPLEMENT WITH THE SUPER SIX

This is significant because the two minerals, calcium and magnesium, work

STEP 2
together. Calcium remains outside the cell until it is needed to generate an electrical
impulse, while magnesium remains inside the cell. An excess of calcium in the
body can upset this balance, causing low levels of magnesium inside the cell and
high levels of calcium, leading to hardening of tissues and resulting muscle con-
tractions (spasms). High levels of calcium inside the smooth muscles of the coro-
nary arteries, for example, can cause these smooth muscles to spasm, elevating
blood pressure. Interestingly, the medication for high blood pressure is a calcium
blocker, although magnesium could have the same effect without the added ex-
pense. Additionally, it’s safer and more natural.
Some of the illnesses associated with magnesium deficiency include asthma,
constipation, muscle cramps, PMS, fibromyalgia, depression, hypoglycemia, insulin
resistance, kidney stones, chronic fatigue syndrome, anxiety, depression, migraine
headaches, hypertension (high blood pressure), and heart disease, among others.
If magnesium is so important, why haven’t you heard more about it? Once
again, as a natural substance it can’t be patented, and therefore there’s no incentive
for pharmaceutical companies to do lengthy and expensive studies to prove its ef-
fectiveness. Unfortunately, money and profit drive research. Without large, long-
term, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies showing the effectiveness of
magnesium in such things as lowering blood pressure, improving insulin resistance,
or controlling asthma, very few doctors are recommending magnesium, and no
drug companies are paying for expensive ads to let consumers know about it.
Compared to being aware of the importance of calcium, which has the
megamillion-dollar dairy industry touting its benefits, the average consumer knows
very little about magnesium. You’d have to have lived in a cave to not have heard
that calcium builds strong bones!
The depletion of magnesium in our soils is one reason why our diet is so de-
ficient in magnesium. When plants grow, they get their minerals from the soil.
But when crops are grown year after year without giving the soil a chance to be
replenished, the soil becomes depleted. Another factor is that fertilizers replenish
the potassium and phosphorous but not the magnesium, so there’s less magnesium
in the soil for the plant to absorb.
Other factors contribute to magnesium deficiency. The way that we prepare
foods removes magnesium. The process of boiling and steaming vegetables leaches
magnesium into the water. Dietary phosphates found in soft drinks, high-sodium

81
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 82

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

diets, high-sugar diets, excess insulin, diuretics, and other cardiac drugs all cause
a loss of magnesium in the urine.
Good dietary sources of magnesium include dark green leafy vegetables, such
as Swiss chard and spinach. The center of the chlorophyll molecule that gives green
vegetables their color contains magnesium. Magnesium is also found in nuts and
seeds, such as almonds, Brazil nuts, hazelnuts, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds,
and sunflower seeds.

Supplemental sources and dosages: A variety of magnesium supplements is on

the market. Elemental magnesium, such as magnesium oxide, is the least expensive
but also the least absorbable source. Chelated products such as magnesium gly-
cinate or magnesium citrate are better options; they are more expensive but much
more absorbable. Recommended dosages range from  to , mg daily.

Super Supplement #5: Multinutrient Formula

For general health purposes, a daily multivitamin is like a little added insurance.
Unfortunately, even if you eat all the healthy foods recommended on the ancestral
diet, you may not be getting all the nutrients you need to compensate for the de-
pletion of nutrients in our soils, the abundance of environmental toxins that we
deal with on a regular basis, and the chronic stress in our modern lives.
On page  is a list of what to look for in a multivitamin. The ingredients do
not need to match this profile exactly, but you do want them to come close. One
caveat is that you want to avoid iron unless you are a menstruating woman or a
vegetarian. A number of studies suggest that too much of this mineral can increase
your risk for heart disease and certain cancers.

Super Supplement #6: Glucosamine

It is not uncommon for clients over forty-five years of age to come in for training
and have signs of osteoarthritis (OA), a degenerative disease of the joints. OA oc-
curs when cartilage around your bones breaks down and is lost. Cartilage is the
shock absorber between the bones of your joint; it protects your joints from damage
when you are running, jumping, and performing other high impact movements.
Damage to your cartilage can occur through wear and tear over time from ac-
tivities such as long-distance running or many years of playing soccer, especially
when combined with an inflammatory high-carb diet. Or it can occur from trauma
to the joint from playing physical contact sports, such as football or basketball.

82
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 83

STEP TWO—SUPPLEMENT WITH THE SUPER SIX

STEP 2
Multinutrient Formula Ingredients
NUTRIENT AMOUNT NUTRIENT AMOUNT
Vitamin A (as beta-carotene) 5,000 IU Pantothenic acid 300 mg
Vitamin C 500–1,000 mg Calcium 400 mg
Vitamin D 500–800 IU Magnesium 400 mg
Vitamin E (as mixed tocopherols) 400 IU Iodine 50 mcg
Vitamin B1 (thiamine) 50 mg Zinc 20 mg
Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) 15 mg Copper 2 mg
Vitamin B3 (niacin) 30 mg Selenium 100 mcg
Vitamin B6 20 mg Manganese 3 mg
Folic acid 800 mcg Chromium 250 mcg
Vitamin B12 500–1,000 mcg Molybdenum 100 mcg
(as methylcobalamin) Boron 2 mg

Obesity and sedentary living are also risk factors, as cartilage requires movement
for lubrication. And being overweight for a length of time with little muscle to
support the joint, puts a great deal of stress on it.
One thing to keep in mind is that cartilage does not repair easily because it is
predominantly avascular (without blood vessels). The compression and decom-
pression of the surrounding tissue circulates the fluid that nourishes the cartilage.
So, if you perform weight bearing or resistance exercise, you can get nourishment
to the joint. No movement, no nourishment.
Once the joint is damaged, the immune system kicks in with the inflamma-
tory response, and the joint becomes painful, inflamed, and swollen. This is
where glucosamine sulfate comes in. Glucosamine is a naturally occurring amino
sugar in the body that can also be synthesized from the amino acid L-glutamine
and glucose.
Research suggests that supplemental glucosamine stimulates the production
of cartilage-building proteins and inhibits the production of cartilage-destroying
enzymes. It also reduces the symptoms of joint dysfunction—the pain, swelling,
and tenderness—and improves overall mobility. Most people start to notice a
difference after taking glucosamine for four weeks, but maximum benefits usually
occur at eight to twelve weeks.

83
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 10:15 AM Page 84

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

In the Primal Body Program, supplementing with glucosamine is combined

with the ancestral diet to reduce inflammation, functional strength-training ex-
ercises to build muscle to support the joint, and stretching and foam rolling to im-
prove the quality of the tissue and create overall structural integrity. Amazingly,
many clients who come to me with joint pain, diagnosed as OA, are thrilled to
find that they become pain free when they follow these simple steps.

Supplemental source and dosage: There are no major food sources of glu-
cosamine, so supplementing is the only way to get it. Recommended dosages range
from , to , mg daily.
Adding these supplements may seem like a lot, but it’s for your body’s greatest
benefit. In Chapter , I’ll give you suggestions for managing your supplements, so
you can take them throughout the day.
While everyone may not need glucosamine, supplementing is a vital part of
the Primal Body Program, one I urge all my clients to do.

Jennifer’s Transformation
Reversing the Trend

In her own words, my client JENNIFER tells how the

program helped her turn her life around, from heading in
the direction of high medical bills for age-related illness
to heading for the gym with a good attitude!

When I first started with the Primal Body Program six

months ago, I was overweight, had no energy, and was a
bit of a couch potato. In my youth in England, I had been
very sporty and fit—played tennis, squash, field hockey,
lacrosse, and cricket—but I gave all of it up when I
started to work at eighteen. Therefore, at sixty-five years
old, my muscles were nonexistent (I didn’t have children
to lift up and run after!). Consequently, not much energy!
I really missed the “good old life” of sports and lots of
energy, so I wanted to get back to my old self again.
PHEW! What hard work it was in the beginning! Yes,
it hurt, and I rarely looked forward to going to the gym. I
could NEVER have put myself through that pain and
discomfort two or three times a week, but I trusted the
program and that I would come to no harm. If I hurt
somewhere or pulled a muscle (which usually meant that

84
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 85

STEP TWO—SUPPLEMENT WITH THE SUPER SIX

I hadn’t been stretching enough), Mikki would weight training, stretching, and exercises,

STEP 2
know exactly what the remedy should be. Mikki also tutored me on my eating habits
After six months of the gym, and having (which were appalling, as I loved all the worst
lost 20 pounds, I have learned exercise things!) and that has been a big contribution
“etiquette” (don’t complain as much!) and to my weight loss. Eating has been one of the
LOVE it when people notice that I have lost most enjoyable activities in my life, so now I
weight and look so good. My clothes are two am learning to focus on other things to enjoy.
sizes smaller—I gave my large clothes to Now I “eat to live” instead of “live to eat”!
Goodwill—and much more comfortable Working with the Primal Body Program has
to wear. turned my life around, helping me feel better
My goal is to lose at least another 10 about myself, I have more energy to accomplish
pounds (maybe 15) and still work on my more in my life, and I have more FUN! The
muscle and body shape. It is easier going to investment has certainly paid off, and in the
the gym now. I look forward to the loss of long run saves me from large medical bills in
each pound. Of course as well as providing the future.

NEXT . . .

When you switch to the Primal Diet, you reduce the inflammation in your body
and become less sedentary. As a result, fat begins to melt away. You will naturally
begin to feel more energetic and have the kind of boundless energy our ancestors
had when their survival depended on having a lean, fit, and healthy body.
Step : Restore Your Muscles to Pain-Free Movement shows you how to re-
move the adhesions and restrictions in your muscles resulting from sedentary
living and injuries, so you can do the most congruent types of exercise for your
human genome. A simple tool, the foam roller, helps you prepare for two kinds of
Primal exercise: functional strength training (Step ) and high-intensity interval
training (Step ).

85
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 86
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 87

Chapter 6

STEP 3
Step Three—Restore Your
Muscles to Pain-Free Movement

Eating to get rid of painful inflammation is Step  in the Primal Body Program;
increasing nutrient density through supplementation is Step ; and restoring your
muscles, tendons, ligaments, and fascia to pain-free movement is Step . These
steps go hand in hand, supporting you to be able to move and exercise in a way
that expresses your Primal physiologic inheritance. Although different people will
need different amounts of restorative activity, almost everyone needs to attend to
pain levels that restrict movement, before beginning the muscle building and meta-
bolic interval training I recommend in Steps  and .
A pain-free body is a body ready and eager to exercise, allowing you to burn
fat with speed and efficiency. You can restore your muscles to the condition best
expressed by your genes using two techniques I show you in this chapter: () Self-
Myofascial Release (SMR) with the foam roller, to reduce scar tissue and adhesions,
decrease the density and overactivity of tight muscles, and improve mobility and
range of motion; and () stretching, both passive and active, to lengthen muscles
and surrounding tissue, for improved quality of movement.
Done together, these two techniques prepare you to take on Steps  and ,
which are the heart of your Primal Body training and exercise program. Not only
will you be able to move with more ease and mobility, but you will also be pre-
venting painful injuries that might result from tight muscles.

THE MESSAGE OF PAIN

One of the most common reasons people stop making progress in an exercise pro-
gram and fall short of their fitness goals is pain caused by muscle tightness. In the
Primal Body Program, instead of letting pain stop you, you pay attention to pain,
learning how to release the muscle tightness causing that pain, so you can be pain
free to move and exercise.
Often when I’m initially training people, they experience pain in their hip
or knee on attempting simple movements, such as stepping up on a bench. This
situation is more common than one would imagine. Hip pain, knee pain, back

87
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 88

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

pain—all of these show up when the body is put under load for the first time, as
is inevitable when you decide to become fit.
Dealing with pain is essential in any program that aims to help people who’ve
been sedentary to get fit and lose weight. Pain on exercising is often a message
from your body telling you about the condition of your muscles. The pain that
shows up when you start to exercise is saying, “You need to release, lengthen, and
strengthen your muscles.”

THE COST OF SEDENTARY LIFESTYLES

Our ancient genes call for us to be physically active so as to maintain our health
and fitness, but today, a sedentary lifestyle is more the norm. For us modern hu-
mans, the condition of our muscles is weak and stiff, due to sedentism and stress;
and the tissue surrounding our muscles, the fascia, is tight and restrictive. This
makes it difficult to move with ease, and as a result, injury to the muscle and tissue
is a common event, whether it shows up as small tears or major disruptions that
require lengthy recovery.
Of one thing we can be sure: When our cave-ancestors needed to make a quick
getaway over a hill and through the brush, because a saber-toothed tiger was hot
on their heels, they were not held back by muscle adhesions and chronic inflam-
mation. If they had been, they would have been lunch and never survived to pass
their genes down to us. In fact, because of their diet and activity patterns, our an-
cestors were much less likely to experience the kind of pain on movement or ex-
ertion we experience.
Unfortunately, we have adapted to the sedentism of our times by developing
restriction in our muscles and in the fascial tissue that surrounds them, by means
of bad postural habits and lack of use. A chronic tension keeps our muscles tight,
and over time they are unable to perform even simple functions, such as holding
the body upright in good posture and maintaining structural integrity of the body.
You can see examples of this failure in the rounded shoulders of people who spend
much of their time at a computer, or in the painful lower back of people carrying
excess body weight.
Many of the aches and pains that people complain about as they get older are
the result of dysfunctional postures and movements that lead to knots, dense tissue,
and especially adhesions in the soft tissues of the body, making it painful to exert
any force (as is needed when performing strength-building exercises). The overall

88
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 89

STEP THREE—RESTORE YOUR MUSCLES TO PAIN-FREE MOVEMENT

effect is to restrict movement, causing even more tightness and dysfunction, a vi-

STEP 3
cious cycle that results in a more sedentary lifestyle, which indirectly caused the
problem in the first place.

HOW ADHESIONS FORM

Anyone who has ever torn or hurt a muscle has adhesions, which occur when the
body tries to repair the damage caused by an injury. As part of the inflammatory
and healing process, the body initiates mechanisms that attempt to regenerate the
damaged tissue. This is not a perfect process. Usually, a less specialized tissue or
form of collagen is produced in the process, not replicating exactly what was there
before. Then the motion of the injured tissue influences the structure that forms
when the tissue is healed.
If the limb does not get adequate movement while healing, it adheres to other
muscle fibers, tendons, ligaments, or bones. This causes that part of the body to
become nonfunctional and sometimes painful. Hence, you experience pain in your
knee when you do that first step-up or lunge, and because of the discomfort, you
don’t want to continue. Your program gets stalled and eventually derailed, while
you wait to heal.
The following exercise program is the way to restore your body back to a pain-
free condition that leads to health, mobility, and flexibility.

THE SELF-MYOFASCIAL RELEASE TECHNIQUE

You can release chronic muscular tension by a technique known as Self-Myofascial

Release (SMR). A simple tool that is becoming a staple in training programs world-
wide, regardless of fitness level, is the foam roller. I will show you how to use the
foam roller to release tightness and get rid of pain-causing adhesions in twelve
different movements, but first let me explain what SMR is and how it works.
In Self-Myofascial Release, myo refers to muscle and fascia refers to the con-
nective tissue that surrounds the muscle fibers. A more traditional way to release
tightness in these tissues is through deep tissue massage, but using a foam roller
is both more convenient and less expensive.
The way SMR works is that when you put pressure on a tight, tender area of
the muscle, tiny sensing mechanisms located at the muscle-tendon junction are
activated. When pressed, these sensors, called golgi tendon organs (GTO) stimulate

89
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 90

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

the muscle spindles to relax the muscle in question, helping adhesions to release,
blood flow to increase to the area, and the quality of the tissue to improve.
The SMR technique involves finding the painful spot and putting pressure on
the area, using a tool such as the foam roller, for  or  minutes. During this time,
you are consciously relaxing the area and releasing the knot, adhesion, or dense
tissue. This takes focus and patience, especially if you have many painful spots and
have not been stretching or doing activities to keep your muscles relaxed and elon-
gated. But you’ll notice that your efforts quickly pay off in the range of motion
available immediately following an SMR session. And though it may be difficult
in the beginning, once you learn the technique, it soon becomes a quick and easy
way to release problems in the muscles and fascia.

FOAM ROLLER USE AND TECHNIQUE

The foam roller is a tool for doing SMR. With it, you can get near instant results
by releasing chronic tension in the soft tissues (the muscles and the fascia that en-
capsulates them) and realigning the skeletal system in a way that makes it work
better. More ease in your activities leads to greater ability to build muscle and burn
fat through the kind of functional strength training and interval training I will
show you how to do in Steps  and .
Also, when you begin to feel better in your body, you will want to do more
playful activities, such as going for a walk on the beach or taking a dance class,
both of which help improve fat loss and fitness, while not being perceived as work.
Soon, you have changed from someone stuck in a sedentary existence to someone
who is out and moving every day, reaping many of the benefits our ancestors had
from their highly active lifestyle.
You can purchase a foam roller at most local sporting goods stores as well as
online. But buyer beware: All foam rollers are not created equal. The white low-
density rollers tend to lose their shape and break down easily. I recommend the
black high-density rollers, which are firm and hold their shape well. I also recom-
mend the Grid, a foam roller that is small enough to fit in a suitcase for travel. It
has PVC underneath with softer material on top, giving it a nice firm feel. (See
page  for more information.)

90
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 10:20 AM Page 91

STEP THREE—RESTORE YOUR MUSCLES TO PAIN-FREE MOVEMENT

Nancy’s Transformation

STEP 3
Pain-free Muscles Led
to Weight Loss

NANCY is a freelance editor and college

instructor who’s been working with me for
seven months, starting her fitness program at
age sixty-four. Initially, she dealt with painful
adhesions in her muscles that severely
restricted her ability to do the exercises I was
prescribing. The foam roller was a major tool
in her program to prepare her muscles for
more rigorous training. In her own words:

It was around my birthday that I was finally

ready to get serious about my weight and
health issues. I was about 20 pounds
overweight, not sleeping well, and having
injuries from falls. So at sixty-four, I told
myself, I’m going to work with someone, since
obviously I can’t do it by myself. I met Mikki me for a week. I had no muscle ability, very
and thought, here is an experienced woman little strength! And I thought I CAN’T DO ANY
who isn’t thirty years younger than me and OF THIS!
who looks great, and that gave me hope. I learned from Mikki about something
I weighed 159 and was having trouble called functional training, which is amazing
getting in and out of my car—not because of because you do exercises that translate to your
excess weight, but because I had such weak everyday movements, for instance, getting in
muscles and joints to move my weight. I’d park and out of your car. That’s a hinging
my car, open the door, and notice, GOSH IT’S movement, I learned, bending from the hips
TAKING ME A LONG TIME TO GET OUT OF and knees while keeping my back flat—a
THIS THING! WHEN DID THAT HAPPEN? I live movement that is used frequently both in and
in an upstairs condo and more and more I was out of the gym.
asking my husband, “Honey, will you get these I could immediately apply what she was
grocery bags?” He’s a kind man so he did, but teaching me to my everyday activities, and so I
it was a sign to me that I was obviously started to get stronger right away. It was
deteriorating and needed to do something natural, even automatic to be developing
soon, or I’d lose my window. strength by just doing what I did, and then I
I was worried that maybe I really needed a could exercise more and burn fat to lose that
physical therapist, but Mikki was confident weight. Also, by doing the Primal movements,
and said she could help me. I’d had a foot such as squats, I was reeducating myself on
injury from falling the year before and had how to move. I also strengthened my core
gone to a physical therapist for sessions that muscles, which I hadn’t used in a while—I’ve
didn’t help much. I’d also had sciatica in my been sitting in front of the computer for a few
left hip and lower back that had immobilized decades and had become very sedentary.

91
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 92

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

I was introduced to the foam roller for exercises, like inverted rows and push-ups that
several of my issues. The first time I used it I couldn’t do before.
was because I couldn’t do simple lunges I jog for twenty minutes around my
without having knee pain. I could only do one neighborhood every day now, and I work out
or two and that was it. Mikki showed me how three to four times a week, including going up
to use the foam roller on my quadriceps, and and down stadium steps. My husband is
after a minute or two on each leg, I got back inspired by my newfound fitness and often
up and immediately could do a series of accompanies me on my jaunts and gym trips.
lunges. Now I do fifteen easily, in three It’s easy and fun to do things that before were
repeated sets. boring tasks—so boring I’d skip them! I also
Previous to beginning my program, I had take a yoga or dance class once a week, or just
started to develop plantar fasciitis, a painful go to my club for stretching and the treadmill.
condition of the foot. I tried the self- I lost 17 pounds and feel so much more
myofascial release technique with a baseball like myself now. Keeping a food journal and
and it went away very quickly. After a few learning to eat the Primal way helped me
months of using SMR and building strength, I drop the weight and also reduced the
was ready for a family hiking trip in inflammation in my joints—a nice
Yellowstone. I used a foam roller on the arch complement to using the foam roller. I’m now
of my foot every day, and was able to get up down to size 10 from 14, getting a big boost
with ease and hike around without pain. in how I feel about myself. I have more
Returning home, I started to jog and was able energy and don’t ask my husband to carry the
to do many activities of everyday life. groceries upstairs for me anymore. I’m getting
I still had adhesions and scar tissue from an in and out of cars with ease, hinging before
old frozen shoulder injury; they were lowering my butt onto the seat, and getting
restricting my arm’s full range of movement, out with a new bounce.
and the muscle had atrophied somewhat. I No more “little old lady” movements for
thought I wouldn’t be able to do the strength me! I’m more mobile, more youthful, and so
training because of how weak my muscles much more pain free following this program—
were. The foam roller was great for working all a big benefit I never thought I’d get when I
that out, and now I can do upper body started out with weight loss as my goal.

92
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 93

STEP THREE—RESTORE YOUR MUSCLES TO PAIN-FREE MOVEMENT

SMR FOAM ROLLER EXERCISES

STEP 3
You can learn to use the foam roller on your own. However, a trainer can be in-
valuable when you are learning to use this new tool, as it can be uncomfortable at
first and you can benefit by expert advice. (For more on choosing a trainer, see
page .)
When I work with a client on using the foam roller, I assess which bodily areas
would benefit from application by observing how the person moves in the seven
Primal movement patterns—squat, lunge, push, pull, bend, twist, and gait (to be
introduced in more detail in Step ).
If you are not working with a trainer, pain can be your guide, showing you the
areas of your body you need to roll out to adjust the tone and flexibility of your
musculature. If after using the foam roller on your painful areas, function is restored
and you can do the movement you couldn’t do before, then you can assume you
have released the problem. This is a process of experimentation, but over time,
you will know exactly which areas benefit from doing the SMR technique with the
foam roller.

12 SMR Foam Roller Exercises

EQUIPMENT: FOAM ROLLER, TENNIS BALL
Following is a list of muscle areas that may be tight and ⁄ or adhered, and suggested
ways to use the foam roller for releasing them. For each of the foam roller exercises,
roll slowly through the particular area until you find the tightest spot. Some areas
will require more time than others, depending on the quality of the tissue, but
spend at least a minute or two on each area in the beginning.

1. GLUTEUS MEDIUS
Lie on your side with the upper lateral area
of the gluteal muscle resting on the foam
roller. Place your same-side elbow and foot
on the ground. Roll the entire muscle and
stop on any sore spots. Switch sides and
repeat.

93
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 94

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

2. PIRIFORMIS
Sit on the foam roller, cross your right ankle
over your left thigh, and lean into the meaty
part of your right gluteal muscle while put-
ting your left hand on your right ankle. Roll
around this area and see if you can find any
hot spots. Switch sides and repeat.

3. QUAD
Lie facedown with your upper body sup-
ported on your forearms and one thigh
resting on the foam roller. Roll from your
hip down to the top of the knee and lean
from one side to the other to get to all four
muscles. Switch legs and repeat.

4. IT BAND
Lie on your right side with your body sup-
ported on your right elbow, the roller po-
sitioned just below your right hip, and
your right leg fully extended. Bend the
knee of your left leg and place the sole of
your left foot on the floor in front of your
right knee. Roll down the outside of your
right leg until you reach the knee area.
Switch legs and repeat.

5. ADDUCTOR
Lie facedown with your upper body sup-
ported on your forearms and the top of one
inner thigh resting on the foam roller. Roll
from your upper inner thigh down to just
above the knee. Switch legs and repeat.

94
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 95

STEP THREE—RESTORE YOUR MUSCLES TO PAIN-FREE MOVEMENT

6. LAT

STEP 3
Lie on your right side with your right arm
overhead, the foam roller under your arm-
pit, and your body in a straight line. Roll
from your armpit toward your hip, along
the lat muscle. Switch sides and repeat.

7. HAMSTRING
Sit up on the foam roller with the back of
your right leg resting on the foam roller
and your left foot positioned in alignment
with the foam roller, sole on the floor. Lean
forward with your upper body and roll
from your hip down to your knee. You’ll
want to rotate your leg from side to side to
reach all of the hamstring muscles. Switch
legs and repeat.

8. CALF
Balance on your hands with your lower legs
resting on the foam roller. Roll from your
ankle to your knee with your toes pointing
toward you (dorsiflexion) and then pointing
away (plantarflexion). To increase the in-
tensity, stack one leg on top of the other.

9. PERONEAL
Lie on your right side with your upper body
supported on your right elbow, legs ex-
tended, roller positioned just below your
right knee. Roll down the lateral area of
your lower right leg. Switch legs and repeat.

95
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 96

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

10. UPPER BACK

Lie back with your arms behind your head
and the roller positioned beneath your up-
per back. With your elbows pointing out,
roll your upper back/shoulder blade area.
Roll to the left or right to emphasize one
side or the other.

11. MIDBACK
Lie back with the foam roller positioned un-
der your midback. With your hips raised,
roll from the base of your shoulder blades
to the top of the pelvis, emphasizing one
side and then the other.

12. ROTATOR CUFF

Lie on your back with a tennis ball or larger
softball placed between your upper arm and
shoulder blade and the floor. Place your up-
per arm on the floor and bend your elbow
to  degrees. Slowly internally and exter-
nally rotate your shoulder by moving your
hand back and forth with your elbow bent.

STRETCHING TO BECOME PAIN FREE

A comprehensive approach to becoming pain free, as well as preventing future

pain from possible injury, includes following the foam roller with a series of passive
stretches. First roll, then stretch. Both approaches correct sedentary living effects
and can help restore movement capacity, preparing you for the functional training
that follows in the next two steps. With movement restored, staying fit and keeping
weight off is natural and easy.
I will show you two ways to stretch and improve the health of your muscles:
static stretching for flexibility and active stretching for mobility. Stretching for

96
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 97

STEP THREE—RESTORE YOUR MUSCLES TO PAIN-FREE MOVEMENT

flexibility should follow your foam roller sessions, whereas stretching for mobility

STEP 3
increases the range of motion of your joints and can be used as a warm-up for
your training.

STATIC STRETCHING FOR FLEXIBILITY

The foam roller and static stretching go hand in hand; the roller helps you remove
restrictions, and then static stretching helps you restore muscle to its proper
length. Because restrictions are removed, the muscle is ready to be stretched after
foam rolling.
Imagine a rubber band that has a knot tied in it. If you try to stretch a rubber
band that has a knot in it, the band will most likely break at the point where the
knot is. Once the knot is removed, however, you can stretch the band without
causing a break. Muscles are like rubber bands; knots in them are likely to cause
tears and stop lengthening, so getting the knots out first with the foam roller allows
muscles to elongate on stretching.
Flexibility is defined as the measure of a joint’s movement through a normal
range of motion. A flexible joint has the ability to move through a greater range
of motion, so you’re much less likely to become injured in the course of your every-
day activities and sports if you stretch for joint flexibility.
Flexibility training for improving posture and reducing pain involves length-
ening a muscle through static stretching. Poor postural habits can cause your mus-
cles and the connective tissue that surrounds them to shorten and mold into the
positions you maintain throughout your day (such as the rounded shoulders that
develop from spending too many hours in front of a computer). Stretching these
short, tight muscles helps lengthen the muscle, which then allows the body to re-
align the soft tissue structures, so it’s a lot easier to maintain good posture.
Probably the greatest benefit is the effect stretching has on the lower back. By
increasing the flexibility of your hamstrings, hip flexors, quadriceps, and other
muscles that attach to the pelvis, you reduce the tension on the lumbar spine, so
you’re much less prone to suffer from low back pain.
One more point of interest is that researchers claim stretching immediately be-
fore exercise does not prevent injury, and it may actually make you weaker. Stretching
after training, however, is effective to reduce muscle soreness. So stretch following
your workouts, when your muscles are warmed up for the maximum benefit.

97
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:47 AM Page 98

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

STRETCHES TO INCREASE FLEXIBILITY

EQUIPMENT: MAT OR TOWEL; STABILITY BALL (BE SURE TO USE A BALL THAT IS ANTI-
BURST, WHICH MEANS THAT THE BALL WILL DEFLATE SLOWLY IF IT IS PUNCTURED
WHILE YOU ARE ON IT; IT WILL NOT SUDDENLY COLLAPSE UNDER YOU.)

For each stretch, focus on the muscle you want to stretch and gently move your
body into the position, until you have reached the desired level of tension (accom-
panied by a feeling of discomfort but not pain) in the muscle. Hold the position
for  to  seconds, then release. Never bounce or jerk while stretching. Relax
your breathing and visualize your muscles, tendons, and ligaments all lengthening
as you stretch.

1. HIP FLEXOR STRETCH

Lunge forward with one knee on a mat
and the other foot flat on the floor. Squeeze
your glutes and straighten the hip above
your back leg by pushing your hips forward.
Relax and repeat with the other side.

2. HAMSTRING STRETCH
Sit on a mat with your legs pointing to the
diagonal and knees extended. Bring your
chest toward one leg while keeping the
knee extended. Relax and repeat with the
other leg.

3. QUAD STRETCH
While sitting on a mat, bend one knee be-
hind you and lower yourself back until you
are resting on your elbows. Continue, if
possible, until your back is on the floor. Re-
lax and repeat with the other leg.

98
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 99

STEP THREE—RESTORE YOUR MUSCLES TO PAIN-FREE MOVEMENT

4. TRICEP STRETCH

STEP 3
Standing, kneeling, or sitting, grasp one el-
bow overhead with your opposite hand.
Pull your elbow back and toward your head.
Relax and repeat with the other arm.

5. ABDOMINAL STABILITY BALL STRETCH

Start by sitting on a stability ball and lower
yourself down until the middle of your
back is resting on the ball. Gently lean
back, with your arms overhead, and extend
your arms and legs until they reach the
floor, if possible.

6. PEC STRETCH
With your arm extended, position your
hand on a doorway or structure at shoulder
height. Turn your body away from your
arm to stretch. Relax and hold stretch. Re-
peat with opposite arm.
Note: Your upper chest becomes more
stretched with the elbow lower; your lower
chest becomes more stretched with elbow
the higher.

99
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 100

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

7. ADDUCTOR STRETCH
Sit on a mat. Bring the soles of your feet to-
gether and pull your feet toward your groin.
Press your knees toward the floor.

8. CALF STRETCH
Place both hands on a wall or stable surface
and extend your arms. Lean into the surface
with one leg bent forward and the other leg
extended back. Push the heel of the back
leg down to execute the stretch.

9. HIP STRETCH
Lie back on a mat. Cross the ankle of one
leg over the thigh of the other leg. Grasp
the hamstring of the leg that has the ankle
crossed over it with both hands and pull
your leg toward your chest until you feel
the stretch in your buttocks. Relax and re-
peat with the other leg.

100
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 101

STEP THREE—RESTORE YOUR MUSCLES TO PAIN-FREE MOVEMENT

10. LOW BACK STRETCH

STEP 3
Lie back on a mat with your head on the
floor. Bend both of your knees and grasp
the back of your thighs behind your knees.
Pull your knees toward your shoulders and
hold.

11. NECK STRETCHES (ALL THREE PLANES OF

MOTION)

SIDE TO SIDE
Sit on a mat or stability ball. Bend your neck
and bring your ear close to your shoulder,
relax, drop your shoulders, and hold. Re-
peat on the other side.

FRONT TO BACK
Sit on a mat or stability ball. Bring your chin
toward the top of your chest, relax, drop
your shoulders, and hold. Then move your
chin away from your chest, relax, drop your
shoulders, and hold.

101
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 102

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

ROTATION
Sit on a mat or stability ball. Rotate your
face toward one shoulder, relax, drop
your shoulders, and hold. Repeat on the
other side.

ACTIVE STRETCHING FOR MOBILITY

Whereas flexibility is the ability to move joints freely through a full range of motion,
mobility is the ability to move joints through a full range of motion with control.
Contrasted to flexibility, mobility involves active movement and requires strength
to produce a joint’s full range of motion.
Many individuals prepare for their training by performing static stretches prior
to their workout. However, though stretching helps to improve (nonmoving) flex-
ibility, it may not do such a good job at preparing your body to move quickly and
efficiently. That’s why I recommend mobility exercises to loosen up before working
out or competing in sports. Dynamic mobility exercises prepare your body for
the vigorous movements that make up the more demanding part of your training
or sports.
Joint mobility exercises work by circulating the synovial fluid (lubricant) that
washes the joints. Because joints have no direct blood supply, this fluid provides
nutrition and simultaneously removes waste products. When performed correctly,
joint mobility exercises can restore complete range of motion to the ankles, knees,
hips, shoulders, spine, neck, elbows, wrists, and fingers.
Use mobility exercises as your warm-up and perform static stretches after the
workout or sports competition as part of the cooldown to restore tissue length
and prevent long-term injury. Static exercises help bring the body back to a state
of rest and recovery and allow you to focus on relaxing and lengthening the muscles
that you just put under stress while you were exercising or playing sports.

102
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 103

STEP THREE—RESTORE YOUR MUSCLES TO PAIN-FREE MOVEMENT

Mobility Drills

STEP 3
The following mobility drills are dynamic exercises that prepare you for activity.
These movements increase the blood flow to your muscles, increasing your range
of motion and your body temperature, and they stimulate your nervous system,
so your mind and body are ready to go. Begin with a series of joint rotations, and
then perform several jumping jacks, or alternate drills to vary the routine.

JOINT ROTATIONS
Start in a standing position with your arms hanging at your sides. Then rotate each
of the following joints slowly in both directions, about eight times in each direction.
. Neck
2. Shoulders
3. Elbows
4. Wrists
5. Hips
6. Knees
. Ankles

JUMPING JACKS
This is the old-fashioned exercise that baby boomers will recall from many years
ago. Stand with your feet together and arms at your sides. Jump up, moving
your feet apart and raising your arms over your head. Jump again and bring
your feet together and your arms back to your sides. Perform  repetitions,
then rest.

NEXT . . .

Once you have learned how to roll out painful adhesions with the foam roller and
begun stretching to gain mobility and flexibility, you are ready for the next step in
the Primal Body Program: building muscle strength through functional training.
Functional training teaches you how to use your body for everyday fitness,
whether you are an athlete, a weight-loss candidate, or just someone who wants
to stay fit using the best possible technique. Functional training relies on the
seven Primal movements that you will learn about in Step , which best express
your genetic inheritance and can be done at any age. It is your fastest route to
having a lean and muscular body, because it mimics your -million-year-old ge-
netic blueprint.

103
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 104
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 105

Chapter 7

STEP 4
Step Four—Build Muscle
with Primal Movement

The first three steps of the Primal Body Program showed you how to reduce
inflammation through diet and supplementation, and release restrictions in your
muscles, leaving you pain-free and ready to move. Now, in Step , I show you how
to exercise your body and build muscle as our early human ancestors did, so you
can restore your body’s inherited ability to move with grace and power.
The Primal Body Program assumes that we are all natural-born athletes, fully
equipped with everything we need to rapidly and effectively respond to a variety
of physical challenges. The problem is that modern bodies don’t get many physical
challenges, partly due to conveniences brought about by the agricultural revolution.
We don’t have the daily challenge of hunting game for food, fleeing from predators,
or hoisting heavy tree trunks into place for our shelter. Through sedentary living,
we’ve lost touch with the basic patterns of Primal movement, and so developed
muscle imbalances and asymmetries, leading to faulty movement patterns, and,
in some cases, overall dysfunction.
In Step , I introduce functional strength training, an approach to fitness that
emphasizes full-body movements rather than isolated muscle movements done on
machines. Functional strength training is the first part of this training program.
Then, in Step , you will learn the second part, metabolic training (also referred to
as cardiovascular training), using high-intensity interval training (HIIT) interspersed
with low-intensity “play” activities, such as swimming, hiking, and walking.
Together, functional strength training and metabolic training provide the clos-
est approximation of exercise to your genetic blueprint, allowing you to take ad-
vantage of your physiology as it was designed to be lean, fit, and healthy. As you
continue in the Primal Body Program, I will show you how to bring the two ap-
proaches together into a unique hybrid training that is highly effective for both
building muscle and burning fat. Then in Chapter , you will see how to put it all
together in a customized program for your individual use. Keep in mind that while
the material in this chapter and the next may seem like a lot all at once, you will
be able to use it in a plan I will help you design.

105
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 106

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

FUNCTIONAL TRAINING

When I started out as a personal trainer twenty years ago, people who came to
me were in better shape than are the people I see today. Today, people are starting
out in much worse condition, due to an increase in sedentary lifestyles.
On top of that, people eat more fast foods and have more stress, both of
which show up in their body, often as more body fat and less muscle. All of these
changes affect their ability (or lack of ability) to perform basic movements, many
of which are Primal movements that our ancestors performed, such as simple
squats or step-ups.
As a result of this trend, many personal trainers have completely overhauled
their approach to training. Before the trend, an exercise program typically involved
a body-building type of workout. Exercises were grouped by body parts, the indi-
vidual working different parts of the body on different days of the week. One such
routine might be chest and back on Monday, legs on Wednesday, and shoulders
and arms on Friday. Low-intensity aerobic exercise was performed on the days of
the week one was not lifting weights, and stretching was recommended. But all
that is changing.
Functional training departs from more traditional workout programs by shift-
ing the focus to full body exercise, no longer focusing on isolating body parts to
build muscle. Instead, the goal of functional exercise is to restore function by un-
covering muscle imbalances and faulty movement patterns caused by weak links
in the kinetic chain, and then correcting them.
The kinetic chain is a linkage system; it links adjacent joints and muscles to-
gether so that energy, or force, generated by one part of the body can move suc-
cessfully through the body. When you have a weakness in one segment, the body
tries to compensate by misusing other body parts. Once these weak links in the
kinetic chain are corrected—by releasing restrictions using the foam roller and
building strength and awareness with Primal ⁄ functional movement patterns—
you will be able to move the way your body was designed to move.
Functional/Primal movement patterns not only correct these imbalances, but
they will prepare you for the activities of your daily life. For example, a functional
exercise such as stepping up on a bench with dumbbells in your hands and pressing
the dumbbells overhead will prepare you to step up on a chair to put a box on a
shelf. The idea is to work against the resistance in such a way that the strength

106
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 107

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

gained from the exercise transfers to a specific movement in life. This is the essence

STEP 4
of functional training.
Unlike the earlier, traditional approach of working one muscle at a time, as in
body-building training, functional strength training involves combining exercises
to get all the muscles working together. This is not only a more natural movement
pattern that we use in everyday life, but it is the movement pattern that early
hunter-gatherers used in their lives.
Coach Mike Boyle points to another aspect of functional training when he
defines it in his book Functional Training for Sports: “Functional training is best
described as a continuum of exercises that teaches athletes to handle their own
body weight in all planes of movement.” He’s pointing to the fact that we humans
perform a wide range of movements (walking, running, pushing, pulling, bending,
twisting, starting, stopping, etc.) that take place in all three planes—front to back,
side to side, and rotational. Because of this, you should train in all three planes,
not just the front-to-back plane emphasized in the traditional gym setting.
But at the very essence, functional training is about purpose. When you train
this way, you are preparing yourself for the specific activities of your life. And some
exercises are more functional than others.
In the traditional gym setting, for example, the machine leg curl has been
considered a staple of lower-body strength training. It’s an isolation exercise (a
single joint movement) stressing knee flexion, used for strengthening the ham-
strings. However, this exercise is useless, because you never use the muscle action
of isolated knee flexion, (especially when lying on your stomach) in everyday
activities and sports. The leg curl is nonfunctional, meaning there’s no transfer
to it.
In activities such as walking, running, and jumping, the function of the ham-
strings is not to flex the knee but to extend the hip. So, to develop functional
strength for these activities, you want to perform hip extension exercises where
your foot is in contact with the ground. This is known as a closed-chain exercise,
as opposed to an open-chain exercise where your foot, or the limb that’s working,
is not in contact with the ground, such as the leg curl.
In addition, your hamstrings don’t work in isolation; rather, they work together
with your glutes (buttocks) in almost all movements to create hip extension. So,
an exercise such as the one-leg stiff-leg deadlift (demonstrated on page ),
which strengthens the glutes and hamstrings at the same time, is a great functional

107
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 108

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

movement, because it works the muscles in ways that you actually use them in
your everyday life and sports.

BENCH DIPS ON A SEAWALL

A client asked me recently for exercises to firm muscles on the back of her upper
arms, the triceps. Summer was around the corner, and she wanted to go sleeveless
without worrying about unsightly flabby upper arms.
Using my approach of functional training, I demonstrated in the gym how to
perform bench dips, an exercise to strengthen the triceps muscles. My client re-
peated my movements, putting her hands behind her on a low bench, feet on the
floor, and gradually lowering her body in front of the bench until her butt touched
the floor. By doing this, she was using her triceps to lift and lower her entire body
weight, an effective way to build muscle.
However, after one attempt at this exercise, she found it too difficult and asked
whether I could show her an easier exercise to accomplish the same goal. It was
the perfect opportunity to explain how functional training is a better approach
than more traditional—and possibly easier—approaches. I explained how easier
exercises for the triceps, such as dumbbell kickbacks—done while the knee, foot,
and hand rest on a bench and you extend the elbow of your opposite arm—had
little transfer value to movements done routinely in her daily life, and therefore
were not as effective in building muscle. On the other hand, an exercise such as
the bench dip, I further explained, relates directly to natural movements done in
the course of her day and so will prepare her to do that movement better. The
bonus is she’d be building muscle for use both in and out of the gym.
To further make the point, I suggested that she visit the Santa Barbara Harbor
and walk out on the breakwater. There I suggested she attempt to lift herself up
on the -foot-high concrete sea wall to sit and enjoy a relaxing view of the ocean.
She balked, saying she’d probably never be able to lift her body weight up onto the
wall. But after a few more sessions of doing bench dips in the gym, she took my
advice and surprised herself by finding the -foot hop up easier to accomplish than
she’d thought.
This is a perfect example of functional training, because the exercises are whole
body and Primal. Once you learn to train functionally, you won’t want to go back
to isolating muscles and joints on machines to miss having your hard work trans-
lated into everyday results. Functional movement exercises prepare you for the

108
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 10:36 AM Page 109

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

STEP 4
Principles of Functional Training
1. Functional training is purposeful; there’s a reason for the exercises, which is to
prepare you for movement in your daily life or sports.
2. Functional exercises train full-body movements, not individual muscles, without
the use of machines.
3. Functional movements involve multiple joints in multiple planes, whereas more
traditional single joint exercises isolate specific muscles, and are therefore not very
useful.
4. Functional training incorporates balance and proprioception (internal sense of
where you are in space) into the exercise program. Single-leg exercises are
emphasized as a way to improve balance.
5. In MOST functional exercises (such as the pull-up), the foot or hand that is
working is in contact with the ground or a stable surface. So, the chain is closed;
an open chain is when the foot or hand that is working is not in contact with a
stable surface (such as in the lat pull-down).
(Adapted from Mike Boyle’s Functional Training for Sports)

activities of your life. In my client’s case, lifting her body weight to a higher ground
was the kind of movement our ancestors might have used to escape a predator or
avoid drowning in a flash flood.

SEVEN PRIMAL MOVEMENT PATTERNS

Functional training, because it emphasizes full-body movements in all three planes

and translates to common activities, is the essence of Primal movement—the
closest you can come to moving as our early human ancestors did.
The link to Primal movement is even clearer when we see how functional
training simulates the seven Primal movement patterns, distinct movements that
our ancestors would have had to perform effortlessly to survive. Identified by
physical therapist Paul Chek on his Web site, these seven basic movements consist
of squatting, lunging, bending, pushing, pulling, twisting, and gait (as detailed in
the following chart) and would have been used in ancient activities, such as shoot-
ing a bow and arrow, hoisting a spear, or lifting a heavy rock. Failure of muscles
to fire in any of these patterns would cause a momentary hesitation in, for example,
an early hunter’s attempt to bring down a large mammal, possibly costing him
his life.

109
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 110

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

The 7 Primal Movements

Type of Directions Exercise Primal Movement
Movement Examples Examples
. Squat Bend knees and hips, keeping Kettlebell squat, bar- Squatting down to
back straight and knees bell squat, or prison gather wild herbs and
pointed in the same direction squats plants
as feet, and descend until
thighs are parallel to the
floor. Return by extending
knees and hips until legs are
straight and you are standing.
. Lunge Step forward and lower knee Front lunges, lateral Lunging forward to
of opposite leg until knee is lunges, or reverse throw a spear
almost in contact with the lunges
floor. Return by pushing off
front foot and bringing both
feet together.
. Bend Bend your hips and knees Kettlebell swings, bar- Bending over to clear
while pushing your hips bell deadlifts, or one- a rock to make camp
back and keeping your back leg stiff-leg deadlifts
straight, also known as hing-
ing. Return to standing by
extending hips and knees,
bringing your hips forward.
. Push Use your upper body to Push-ups, one-arm Pressing a log over-
push a weight away from stability ball chest head to carry back to
you, or to push yourself press, or kettlebell camp or catching
away from the ground or military press yourself when you fall
other stable surface. forward
. Pull Use your upper body to pull Inverted rows, or hor- Pulling heavy game
a weight toward you or to izontal pull-ups, pull- back to camp or
pull yourself toward a stable ups, or prone rows pulling up on a tree
surface. branch to avoid danger

. Twist This movement is usually Reverse medicine ball Throwing a spear or

combined with other Primal wood chop or T push- twisting to avoid a tree
movements, such as squat- up branch while hiking
ting or rowing, and involves
rotating the torso.

. Gait Walk, jog, or sprint. Walking, jogging, or Sprinting to avoid a

sprinting predator or walking to
track wild game

110
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 111

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

These seven movements may already exist in one form or another in your ex-

STEP 4
ercise regimen. If they do, challenge yourself with the following variations, including
using the kettlebell, a tool I give further instructions for using later in this chapter.
If they don’t exist for you, incorporate them in your routine for something new
and different. To make this easier for you, in a following section, “Primal Body
Foundation Exercises,” I describe a set of fourteen exercises that incorporate the
seven Primal movements presented here.

Kettlebells: The Ultimate

Functional Training Tool
If you’re not familiar with the kettlebell, this training tool looks like a cannonball with
a handle. It’s this shape that makes the kettlebell so different from using a dumbbell.
The design causes the weight of the bell to hang off your body, creating an offset
center of gravity. This causes your body to utilize core, stabilizing muscles to create
balance.
Another difference is that the kettlebell creates momentum, because it swings.
Dumbbells don’t offer that. In daily life, we pick up grocery bags, we pick up kids and
animals, and we move things around. These activities all have momentum. Training with
kettlebells prepares us for these types of functional activities.
The kettlebell is a highly functional training tool; it effectively increases strength,
power, speed, coordination, and core stability. The workouts are intense, and they cause
your body to hit the kind of metabolic peaks our ancestors experienced in their
movement patterns.
Incorporating kettlebell training into my own personal workouts has brought some
surprising results. Amazingly, after years of advanced/heavy lifting, I discovered that as
a result of kettlebell training with Pavel Tsatsouline (see page 45), I was actually
getting in better shape.
Before I attended his seminar, I knew some trainers who had been to one of Pavel’s
previous seminars, and I joked about how they came back as Russian Kettlebell
Challenge (RKC) clones. Another trainer commented that there must have been a chip
implanted in their brain, because they came back so over the top in their enthusiasm
about KB training. I swore the same thing would never happen to me.
But even with that intention, it still happened! I was and continue to be highly
enthusiastic about kettlebell training, because after many years of performing free-
weight exercises with great proficiency, I am now getting in better condition with
kettlebells. This is because in the context of the SAID principle (see page 113), the
challenge imposed by kettlebells is different and greater than what I had previously
experienced, so my body is adapting.

111
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 112

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

And the science backs up my experience. A study done in 1983 by a Russian

researcher named V. I. Voropayev validates just how effective kettlebell training can be.
In this study, two groups of college students were followed over several years. One
group used a standard military regimen of pull-ups, 100-meter sprints, standing broad
jumps, and a 1 km run. The experimental group used nothing but kettlebells and
kettlebell exercises.
After several years of training, both groups were tested, using the same traditional
exercises as the standard military group. Amazingly, the kettlebell group scored higher
in every test—even though they had never practiced those particular exercises!

KETTLEBELL WARNING
Kettlebell training is becoming increasingly widespread in gyms and with trainers.
However, some trainers may be using poor technique and unsafe training practices.
Kettlebells can be unsafe if proper technique is not followed. I was trained and
certified by Pavel Tsatsouline and my instructions for kettlebell use as shown in this
book are in accordance with Pavel’s teaching.
If you are interested in advanced training with kettlebells, make sure you are guided
by a professional who is formally trained by the RKC, which requires a high level of
fitness and excellent technique to pass the certification, or other reliable source.
I recommend that women purchase an RKC brand 8 kg (18-pound), 12 kg (26-
pound), and 16 kg (35-pound) kettlebell and that men purchase a 12 kg (26-pound),
16 kg (35-pound), and 20 kg (44 pound) kettlebell. Please keep in mind that these are
general guidelines. If you are super strong, you might want to pick up a heavier bell. Or,
if you are out of shape, try something lighter. For information about where to purchase
kettlebells, see page 203.

HOW TO GET RESULTS

If building muscle is your goal, there’s one basic notion you’ll want to adhere to.
It’s called progressive overload. The concept comes from the Greek legend about
a wrestler named Milo who lived in the city-state of Crotona. According to the
tale, Milo put a baby calf on his shoulders every day and walked around a large
stadium. As the calf began to grow, Milo grew, too, developing the muscles
he needed to carry the animal. Eventually, Milo became so strong that one day he
was able to carry a full-grown bull on his shoulders.
This was the beginning of the concept of progressive overload, which states
that you need to increase the demand you impose on your body if you want to
continue to gain muscle. Whether your goal is to add muscle for better athletic
performance or to turn that middle-aged flab into well-defined arms, butt, and

112
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 113

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

abs, the demand, or load, you place on your body is what’s going to get your body

STEP 4
to change.
While you may not have access to a calf to carry or a stadium to circumnav-
igate, there are a number of ways you can bring the principle of progressive over-
load into your own regimen and use it to harness your body’s physiology. I’m
going to show you exactly how to load your body in a way that is progressive and
natural, matching the original pressures of the environment your body evolved
in response to, over millions of years. But first, some basic physiology so you can
understand the design of your body and how to utilize the principles of its design
for maximum results.
When designing a strength-building program, keep in mind that the human
body is resistant to change; it wants to remain the same. This is what scientists
refer to as homeostasis. Homeostasis is defined as the ability of the body to main-
tain a condition of equilibrium or stability within its internal environment, when
dealing with external changes. An example is when your body regulates your in-
ternal temperature to stay around . degrees: We sweat to cool off during the
hot summer months and shiver to produce heat during the cold winter season.
This same principle of homeostasis applies to body weight, body composition,
and strength. For your body to change, you need to impose a demand that overloads
it in a way that it is not accustomed to, so as to bring about a particular outcome.
Imposing a demand is guided by something called the SAID principle. SAID
is an acronym which stands for “specific adaptation to imposed demand.” It
means that when your body is placed under some form of stress, it starts to make
adaptations that will allow it to get better at withstanding that specific form of
stress in the future. While there are innumerable mechanisms involved in the
adaptation process, the general idea is that your body will get better at the specific
thing you do.
For example, if you stress the bones of your body through repeated impact,
your body will respond by hardening the bones in the area where they were
stressed. The same thing happens to tendons and ligaments when they are sub-
jected to repeated stress through resistance training, making them thick and strong.
Similarly, repeated stress will cause muscles to get bigger and stronger. The bottom
line is that unless you impose a demand greater than what your body is already
capable of, your body will not change and you will not get stronger.
Here are my suggestions for incorporating progressive overload into your ex-
ercise regimen:

113
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 114

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Use your own body weight. Begin with simple body-weight exercises, such as
push-ups and squats. Once you have mastered these basic exercises and you can
support your own body weight, progress by increasing the difficulty to more chal-
lenging body-weight exercises. For example, start with the split squat (rear foot
on the floor), and progress to split squatting with your rear foot elevated on a
bench. Then advance to the forward lunge, the walking lunge, and finally the lunge
jump. When doing push-ups, start by supporting your weight on a bench rather
than on the floor, and progress to the floor when you are stronger.

Add weights. Once you can support your own body weight, begin to add weight,
or resistance, while keeping the number of repetitions the same. For example,
while performing the split squat with rear foot elevated, do a set of  repetitions
with  pounds (-pound dumbbells in each hand). Then in the next workout, do
a set of  reps with  pounds. Then in the following workout, do a set of  reps
of the same exercise with  pounds.

Increase repetitions. Another method of progressive overload involves adding

repetitions while keeping the weight the same. For example, in the first workout
you do a set of  reps with  pounds. In the second, you do a set of  reps with
 pounds. And in the third, you do a set of  reps with  pounds.

Increase volume. One more variation is to increase the training volume by adding
more sets to the workout. For example, in one workout you perform  sets per
workout. In the next workout you perform  sets. Then, in the following workout,
you perform  sets per workout.

STABILIZING YOUR CORE

Early in the trend toward functional training, strength coaches and personal trainers
started seeing a pattern of problems involving certain parts of the body that require
stabilization: the hips, trunk, and posterior shoulder. Because these core areas
were weak, they were repeatedly causing problems and injuries.
To avoid injury, therefore, it’s recommended to add core exercises to your
functional training, to strengthen your body’s stabilizers. Although core exercises
appear to be nonfunctional, not ground based, they are an important part of the

114
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 115

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

functional training program. Strengthening these muscles corrects problems caused

STEP 4
by sedentary living and returns function to the body.
One example of muscle imbalances caused by sedentary living is sitting in
front of the computer. This posture causes rounded shoulders, because it en-
courages weak lower trapezius muscles in the upper back, and short, tight
pectoralis/chest muscles. Likewise, long periods of sitting also cause the gluteal
(butt) muscles to stop firing; they become elongated and dormant, while the an-
tagonist hip flexors become short and tight. Because the glutes no longer fire prop-
erly, the hamstrings and lower back have to pick up more of the load, and the result
is often low back pain. (The glute muscles are not stabilizers though; they are prime
movers and should be strengthened with functional hip extension movements.)
Here’s how it all works: A stabilizer is defined as a muscle that contracts with
no significant movement to maintain a posture or fixate a joint. This type of muscle
is not directly involved in moving a weight, for example. A stabilizer’s job is to
keep certain parts of the body still, so that the muscles directly involved in moving
a weight—the prime movers—can work effectively.
Three key areas of the body that require stabilizing are the trunk, hips, and
posterior shoulders. Here is the physiology involved in strengthening and stabilizing
these three areas:

The trunk is stabilized primarily by the transversus abdominus and multifidus

muscles. The transversus abdominus is the deepest layer of abdominal muscle
that runs from the pubic bone to the upper rib cage and attaches to the spine via
the lumbar fascia, The multifidus is located along the back of the spine. These
muscle groups work together to stabilize or stiffen the core through a “bracing”
technique. Most people with low back pain have dysfunction ⁄ weakness in these
important muscles.

The hips require stabilization for movements such as walking, running, and
single-leg exercises, such as the one-leg squat. The gluteus medius muscle is the
main stabilizer of the hip joint, and strengthening this muscle helps prevent injuries
to the knee as well as improving the power of the quadriceps.

The shoulder is the most mobile joint in the body, and it, too, requires stabilization
for correct mechanics and injury prevention. The lower trapezius muscle stabilizes

115
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 116

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

the shoulder blades during movement. Engaging these stabilizers, by seating the
shoulder blades—pulling them down and back—can help prevent rotator cuff in-
juries. It also reduces upper trapezius activity, which is one of the main causes of
neck pain and tension.
Strengthening the stabilizers is necessary, not only to avoid injury, but also
because stronger stabilizers will affect the amount of weight you’re able to lift while
strength training. For example, in the kettlebell military press exercise (see page
), the amount of weight you can lift is affected by the stabilizers of the trunk
and shoulders. Regardless of your strength, if your stabilizers are weak, you won’t
be able to lift as much weight.
In addition to your doing specific core exercises, these stabilizers can be de-
veloped through functional training. Functional training, without the use of ma-
chines, requires that you be your own stabilizer. When you perform unilateral
movements, such as one-leg squats and one-leg stiff-leg deadlifts, with good form,
you develop the stabilizers of the hips, trunk, and shoulders. Holding your body
tight, or bracing, while exercising is one of the best ways to do this.
According to Stuart McGill, the spinal mechanics expert, “Good technique in
most sporting and daily living tasks demands that power be generated at the hips
and transmitted through a stiffened core.”
Here are the six core strengthening and stabilizing exercises I recommend to
be incorporated in your functional strength-training regimen. (You’ll see that I
don’t mention numbers of reps; remember, I’ll show you in Chapter  how to put
all this together for your own customized program.)

116
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 117

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

6 Core Exercises

STEP 4
EQUIPMENT: MAT, STABILITY BALL
1. SIDE BRIDGE
This is a lateral flexion exercise for devel-
oping stability in the lumbar spine.

Action: Lie on your elbow with your top hip

stacked above your bottom hip. Raise yourself
up until your body is in a straight line through
your feet, hips, and head. Lower your body
down under control until your hips barely
touch the ground. Repeat this sequence for
the desired number of repetitions. Then
switch to the other side and repeat.

Comments: This exercise should be done

without using any rotation to get yourself
up. Beginners might want to bend the knee
of the bottom leg to  degrees to decrease
the difficulty.

2. PRONE BRIDGE
This develops stunning core strength. There
are three different levels to this exercise. I
suggest working through the progression
using the method outlined here.

Action: Lie facedown on the ground or

floor and stretch out your limbs. Lift your
body up so that you are balanced on your
forearms and toes. Now tuck your pelvis
under. This basically means rotating the
lower part of your pelvis toward the ground,
also referred to as posterior pelvic tilt. This
tilt should cause you to go into a neutral
spine, where there’s almost no extension in
the lumbar spine. Then hold this position
for  seconds and rest.
117
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 118

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

To increase the difficulty of this exercise, get into the position where you are
balanced on your forearms and toes with your pelvis tucked. Then raise one leg
and hold for  seconds. Repeat on the other side for  seconds and then rest.
To advance this exercise one step further, once again, get into the position
where you are balanced on your forearms and toes with your pelvis tucked. Then
raise your opposite arm and leg simultaneously and hold for  seconds. Repeat
on the other side for  seconds and then rest.

Comments: This exercise not only develops strength in the muscles involved, it
also teaches you to maintain stability (relative stillness) in the lumbar spine while
performing exercises in the prone position, such as push-ups and prone rows.

3. STABILITY BALL JACKKNIFE

This targets your lower abdominals. Be-
cause the ball is unstable, your entire core
has to work to maintain the position of your
body.

Action: Start by getting into a push-up

position with the tops of your feet on a sta-
bility ball. Your body should form a straight
line from your toes to your shoulders, with
your hands positioned just slightly wider
than your shoulders.
Keeping your back flat and abs tight,
bend your knees and hips and roll the ball
toward your torso. Squeeze your abs for a
second and then roll the ball back to the
starting position. Repeat for the desired
number of repetitions.

Comments: Keep the movement smooth and maintain a neutral position in the
spine. In other words, don’t let your hips drop. Beginners might want to practice
holding a static bridge with feet on the ball before rolling the ball toward the torso.

118
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 119

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

4. SINGLE-LEG GLUTE BRIDGE

STEP 4
This is a hip and hamstring strengthener. It
teaches you to use your hips and ham-
strings together, rather than your lower
back, to extend your hips.

Action: Lie on your back with your arms at

your sides. Bend your left knee to  de-
grees with your left foot flat on the floor.
Then, while keeping your right leg straight,
raise your hips so that you create a straight
line from your knee through your hip to
your shoulder. Maintain this position by
pushing your left foot into the ground while
squeezing your glutes. Hold for  seconds,
then repeat on the other side.

Comments: Brace your midsection (abdominals) while squeezing your glutes. Be-
ginners might want to start with both feet on the floor and gradually progress to
the one-leg bridge.

5. LYING HIP ABDUCTION

This works the gluteus medius, which sta-
bilizes the hip during single-leg movements
such as walking, running, and one-leg
squats.

Action: Lie on your side with your bottom

leg bent in front of you and top leg straight,
with your hip slightly hyperextended.
Slowly raise your thigh up and down for the
desired number of repetitions. Then repeat
on the other side.

Comments: Keep your hip stationary. You

can check for any unwanted movement by
putting your hand on your hip. You also
119
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 120

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

want to keep your femur (thigh bone) internally rotated, which you can check by
watching to see that the side of your foot is flat when you raise your leg.

6. MOUNTAIN CLIMBERS
This is a full-body exercise that challenges
both the legs and the core.

Action: Begin in a push-up position with

arms straight and the balls of your feet on
the floor. Brace your midsection and keep
your body still. Bring your right knee to-
ward your chest and then back down to the
starting position. Repeat with your left knee
and continue alternating your feet as fast as
you can.

Comments: Focus on bracing your core and

keeping your body balanced while main-
taining a neutral spine.

PRIMAL BODY FOUNDATION EXERCISES

Now you are ready to bring the seven Primal movements, the foundation of the
Primal Body functional strength program, into your exercise workout. As previ-
ously noted, the seven movements used by early humans in all their activities are
the squat, lunge, bend, push, pull, twist, and gait. All functional exercises target
these seven basic movements, or combinations thereof, and are built on their
foundation.
The following fourteen functional exercises can be incorporated into your
training routine. Use the principle of progressive overload to gradually increase
your results in strength and muscle building. In Chapter , I will refer to these
exercises in helping you design a specific regimen to fit your needs, level,
and goals.

120
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 121

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

Primal Movement Exercises

STEP 4
EQUIPMENT: KETTLEBELL, STEP, MEDICINE BALL, PULL-UP BAR, BENCH, STABILITY BALL

1. STEP-UPS (SQUAT)
This works every muscle in the leg. This ex-
ercise develops leg strength for running and
jumping because the independent leg action
of stepping up closely resembles the move-
ment patterns of those activities. Use your
body weight first and progress by using a
dumbbell, barbell, or weighted vest.

Action: Place the foot of your first leg on a

step. Stand on the bench by extending the
hip and knee of your first leg, while your
second leg rests behind your first leg with-
out touching the bench. Lower your sec-
ond leg back down to the floor. Return to
the original standing position by placing
your first leg on the floor. Repeat this se-
quence with your opposite leg, then alter-
nate between legs for the desired number
of repetitions.

Comments: Look straight ahead and keep

your torso upright. Stepping closer to the
bench emphasizes the quadriceps; stepping
farther away from the bench emphasizes
the buttocks.

121
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 122

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

2. LATERAL LUNGE (LUNGE)

This is a frontal-plane (side-to-side) hip
mobility exercise that can be used to in-
crease range of motion when done at body
weight. To improve strength, use a kettle-
bell, dumbbells, or a medicine ball. (This is
example of progression in training.)

Action: Stand with feet together and hands

clasped above your chest. Keeping your abs
tight and chest high, take a big step to the
left and squat down by lowering your hips
down and back. Your trailing leg should be
relaxed with the knee extended.
Then push off with your left leg and re-
turn to the starting position. Repeat for the
desired number of repetitions on the left
side and then switch to the right side or al-
ternate back and forth between sides within
the same set.

Comments: Keep your torso upright with

back as straight as possible and knees be-
hind your toes. Your shoulders, hips, knees,
and feet should point forward at all times.

122
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 123

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

3. SPLIT SQUAT (SQUAT)

STEP 4
This is for improving single-leg strength and
works almost every muscle in the lower
body. As with most body-weight exercises,
begin with no external weight, and as you
advance, add dumbbells, a bar, or weighted
vest to increase the difficulty (again as a
progression).

Action: Position yourself with one leg out

in front and the back leg raised on a step.
Slowly lower yourself down by dropping
your back knee down. Your front knee
should bend to  degrees, with the shin
vertical and your back knee coming close
to touching the ground. Then push yourself
back up to the start position. Continue for
the desired number of repetitions and then
repeat on the other side.

Comments: Maintain an upright posture so

that your upper body is not leaning for-
ward. Keep your chest high and shoulder
blades seated down and back. Your hips,
shoulders, knees, and feet should all be
pointed straight ahead. Beginners may want
to start with the back foot on the floor to
decrease difficulty.

123
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 124

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

4. ONE-LEG STIFF-LEG DEADLIFT (BEND)

This develops the glutes and hamstrings
while also enhancing balance and mobility.

Action: With shoulder blades down and

chest elevated, raise your foot and continue
to push your leg back, with knee fully ex-
tended, until your leg is parallel to the floor.
Then return to the starting position and re-
peat for the desired number of repetitions.
Switch sides and repeat.

Comments: Strive to keep your hips level

throughout the entire range of motion.

124
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 125

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

5. KETTLEBELL MILITARY PRESS (PUSH)

STEP 4
This is a great exercise for strengthening
the shoulders, pecs, and triceps. It is also
very effective at teaching you to lift as one
unit (all of your joints are linked)—the
essence of functional training. (For more
on kettlebell training, see page .)

Action: Stand with your feet shoulder

width apart and the kettlebell in the racked
position (elbow in, hand by your shoulder,
and the kettlebell resting on top of your
forearm).
Tighten your glutes, abdominals, and
quads, and while keeping your shoulders
down, push your elbow out and up, keeping
your forearm vertical, so that your hand is
facing away from you and your elbow is
locked out and close to your ear at the top.
Lower the kettlebell down actively, by
pulling it down with your lats. Pause for
one second in the rack without relaxing and
press again.

Comments: Avoid bending back while

pressing. Keep the shoulder down and
think of pushing yourself away from the
kettlebell while keeping your whole body
tight.

125
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 126

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

6. T PUSH-UP (PUSH + TWIST)

This is a transverse-plane (rotational) upper-
body exercise that combines upper-body
strength training with trunk development.

Action: Perform a traditional push-up. In

the up position, balance on your right hand
and rotate your body, using your core mus-
cles,  degrees until your left arm is per-
pendicular to the floor (your body will form
a T). Rotate back until the right arm is
down and you are in the up position of the
push-up. Then perform a traditional push-
up and, upon return to the up position, re-
peat the process, but balance on your left
hand and rotate your right arm and torso.
Continue this sequence for the desired
number of repetitions.

Comments: This particular push-up not

only builds upper body and torso strength, it also develops shoulder stability while
working in two planes of motion: the sagittal (front-to-back) and transverse (ro-
tational) planes. Beginners may want to place their hands on a bench to decrease
difficulty.

126
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 127

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

7. LUNGE JUMPS (LUNGE)

STEP 4
This is a plyometric exercise (involves rapid
stretching and contracting of the muscle to
produce power) that develops lower-body
speed, strength, and leaping ability.

Action: Start in a lunge position with your

right foot in front. Explode up, using both
legs, and lift your body as high into the air
as you can. Then switch legs in midair and
land with your left foot in front and right
foot behind, balancing on your toes. Con-
tinue to alternate back and forth.

Comments: This is a great exercise to use

for metabolic resistance circuits, a series of
multijoint movements performed in a cir-
cuit with brief, incomplete rests between
exercises.

127
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 128

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

8. PLYOMETRIC PUSH-UP (PUSH)

This is a high-intensity exercise that devel-
ops upper-body strength and power.

Action: Begin in a push-up position with

your arms straight and the balls of your feet
on the floor. Brace your midsection, lower
yourself down to the floor, and with explo-
sive force push yourself up so hard that your
hands come off the floor. Repeat for the de-
sired number of repetitions or amount of
time, if performing timed sets.

Comments: Perform this exercise on a

padded surface.

128
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 129

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

9. SINGLE-ARM STABILITY BALL CHEST

STEP 4
PRESS (PUSH)
This strengthens the chest, abs, lower back,
glutes, and hamstrings.

Action: Lie on a stability ball with dumbbell

in hand, arm fully extended, opposite hand
on your hip, hips level with your shoulders,
knees bent, and feet flat on the floor. Lower
the dumbbell with control to your chest
and then press it back up while keeping
your glutes tight and shoulder blades down
and back.

Comments: Be sure to use a ball that is an-

tiburst, which means that the ball will de-
flate slowly if it is punctured while you are
on it; it will not suddenly collapse under
you.

129
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 130

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

10. PRISON BODYWEIGHT SQUATS (SQUAT)

These are a slight variation on the squat Pri-
mal movement pattern.

Action: Stand with your feet slightly wider

than shoulder width apart and your toes
pointing slightly outward. With your hands
behind your head, bend your knees and
hips, keeping your back straight and knees
pointed in the same direction as your feet,
and descend by pushing your hips down
and back until your thighs are parallel to
the floor. Return by extending your knees
and hips until the legs are straight and you
are standing.

Comments: Keep your chest high and shoul-

der blades down throughout the movement.
Maintain a natural arch in your back, brace
your midsection, and don’t lean forward.

130
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 131

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

11. PRONE ROW (PULL)

STEP 4
This is hybrid version of the classic dumb-
bell row. It works the muscles in the upper
back while also developing core strength.

Action: Position yourself with one hand on

a step while the other hand holds a dumb-
bell, arm fully extended, with your body
fully extended and your feet on the floor.
Pull the dumbbell up, with elbow in, until
your upper arm is just beyond the height of
your back. Return to the starting position
by extending your arm, and repeat for the
desired number of repetitions. Then switch
sides and repeat.

Comments: To maintain good form in this

exercise, you need to tuck your butt. In
other words, rotate the front of your pelvis
toward the step, into a posterior pelvic tilt.

131
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 132

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

12. PULL-UP (PULL)

This is one of the best upper-body ex-
ercises for strengthening the back. The
traditional pull-up uses an overhand
grip (palms facing away); the chin-up
uses an underhand grip (palms facing
you); and in the semisupinated grip, the
palms face each other. The pull-up bar
should be at a height that requires you
to jump up to grab it and your feet
should hang free.

Action: Stand below the bar with your

feet shoulder width apart. Jump up and
grab the bar with a semisupinated grip.
Pull yourself up until your chin is level
with the bar. Lower yourself down until your elbows are straight. Repeat the move-
ment without touching the floor. If you can’t do one pull-up, loop a resistance band
around the handles on the pull-up bar and one knee, to provide some assistance.

Comments: Steady any swinging and lead with your chest high and your shoulders
132 down.
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 133

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

13. REVERSE MEDICINE BALL WOOD

STEP 4
CHOP (TWIST)
This involves rotating a medicine ball
across your body in a smooth, wood-
chopping motion, starting with the ball
on the side of your hip and ending with
the ball above your head. This exercise
strengthens not only your core but also
your arms, shoulders, and lats.

Action: Pick up a medicine ball and move

the ball up and across your body in a
smooth, reverse wood-chopping motion.
Your upper body should stay upright
with your elbows extended, so that you
are moving the weight with your torso.

Comments: Don’t use more weight than

you can handle.

133
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 134

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

14. KETTLEBELL SWING (BEND)

This involves swinging a kettlebell back
and forth between your legs and out in
front of you to chest height for repeti-
tions. This exercise teaches you to im-
mobilize the spine while mobilizing the
hips in what is known as a hinge. (For
more information on kettlebells, see the
box on page .)

Action: Stand a foot behind the kettlebell

in a wider-than-shoulder-width stance,
toes pointed out about  degrees. Sit
back into your heels, grab the kettlebell
with both hands, and pull your shoulders
down. Start by pulling the kettlebell
through your legs close to your groin and
thrust the bell forward to chest height,
using your hips. Squeeze your quads and
glutes at the top of the movement and
repeat for a desired number of repeti-
tions or timed sets.

Comments: This is a ballistic movement

and is meant to be done explosively. Be
sure to keep your shoulders down and
chest high to avoid rounding your back.

134
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 135

STEP FOUR: BUILD MUSCLE WITH PRIMAL MOVEMENT

Rick’s Transformation

STEP 4
Finding the Fountain of Youth

RICK is a forty-one-year old air force veteran

and has been a police officer for the past
eighteen years. In his own words, he tells how
training the Primal way got him his stunning
results.

As a police officer, I’ve always stayed at the

top of my game in physical fitness and mental
stability. In my twenties and early thirties, I
carried 190 pounds on my 5'8" frame. But in
my later thirties, I started to slow down. I’d hit
my own pinnacle of self-knowledge, working
with traditional body-building techniques, and
was no longer motivated to continue.
This was a problem because I was training
newer officers who were half my age. I
watched them do things I couldn’t do than when I was thirty, and people guess I’m in
anymore—but could’ve done ten years ago— my late twenties or early thirties. It makes me
and it made me think I was on the downside of feel good and I want to keep going.
my career. Police officers usually retire around When I’m on duty, I carry a 25-pound gun
fifty, but maybe, I thought, it was time for me belt, often the source of an aching back by the
to bow out gracefully. end of the day. Sometimes I have to chase
Instead, I decided to get a personal people with all that equipment on, something I
trainer—and chose Mikki. I felt more can now do without getting slowed down and
comfortable training with a female than I did winded. I’m able to end altercations more
with a male, because my whole career has been quickly and dole out punishment more
male-oriented and very competitive. Mikki was effectively. But the mental and emotional
no nonsense, strong, and that’s what I wanted, aspects of my job, dealing with people’s
because I like to push as far as I can. I was not problems all day, is even more of a challenge,
disappointed. After our first meeting, I and being fit from both diet and exercise, I’m
couldn’t drive my car the next day, because my much more able to deal with that stress.
arms hurt so bad! The dietary change on the program was
After following her program for two years, hard for me at first, mainly due to my shift
sometimes three times a week, I’ve gone from hours and work demands. I’ve noticed the
190 to 155, losing 35 pounds. Now, when I leaner I’ve gotten and the more I work out, the
interact with people as a police officer, they less hungry I am, but still, I had to learn to
look at me with new respect, because I’m plan to bring food with me and plan my meals.
leaner and younger looking. When I go out on For example, I usually carry a couple of protein
a call and people want to talk with the senior shakes, water, nuts, and pieces of protein, like
officer, they’re surprised to see me, compared meat, that I can eat cold because I’m on the go
to another officer who’s younger but a bit a lot. I’ll also try to take a small salad and
overweight and looking older. I look younger some fruit. I watch the other officers eat at
135
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 136

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Taco Bell or McDonald’s, but I haven’t done me to strengthen my upper body to the point
that in over a year. I also no longer eat what of making me faster, able to move laterally and
was my favorite comfort food, bread, and a front to back. In my profession, I often have to
side benefit of that is I no longer have allergy move on the spur of the moment, and KB
symptoms from being gluten intolerant. training is great for learning fast reactions. It’s
To say I went through a full lifestyle also made me more limber, more agile, very
change, not only in working out and dietary flexible, and helped with endurance. I can carry
change, but in self-confidence and self- my heavy equipment around for twelve hours
esteem, is an understatement—I feel like a and not feel worn out by the end of my shift.
totally different person now than I did two Now, at forty-one, it’s great to feel that I
years ago. haven’t hit my peak yet—I’ve got a lot more to
Kettlebell training has been a large part of go! It’s like finding a fountain of youth—I’m
my increased confidence on the job. It’s helped aging backward as the years go by!

NEXT . . .

In the next chapter, I will show you how to do metabolic exercises to burn fat and
how to combine high-intensity interval training with functional strength training
for an exciting new hybrid that guarantees you will turn your body into an efficient
fat-burning machine. This is the way our ancestors moved, and the way that you
will find is the most natural and effective way to exercise for the best results.

136
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 137

Chapter 8

STEP 5
Step Five—Kick Up Your
Metabolism to Burn Fat Faster

Whereas Step 4 emphasized the full-body movements of functional strength

training, Step  focuses on metabolic training, also referred to as cardiovascular
training. Metabolic training uses high-intensity interval training (HIIT) combined
with low-intensity “play” activities, such as swimming, hiking, and walking. As
you will see, it is the perfect fat-burning exercise for your genetics, mimicking the
kinds of movements done by our early human ancestors.
Again, keep in mind that while you are getting an overview of the different
approaches to metabolic training in this chapter, Chapter  will show you how
to lay it all out in a plan that is customized for your individual use.

AEROBICS VS. HIGH-INTENSITY TRAINING

Step into any gym at peak times and what do you see? Treadmills, elliptical trainers,
and stationary bikes all maxed out, sometimes with a waiting line. The activity
most exercisers are engaged in on these machines is continuous and low intensity,
commonly known as aerobics.
Very possibly, you are one of these people yourself, working out on machines
regularly or maybe running a couple of times a week. Your purpose is to burn fat
and stay fit. And there is every reason for you to think you are doing the right thing.
Our national devotion to cardiovascular exercise, as introduced in  by
Dr. Kenneth Cooper—a former air force colonel and author of the best-selling,
trend-starting book Aerobics—has become a worldwide tradition. The Jane Fonda
craze hit only a few years after Cooper, capturing millions of baby-boomer women
who wanted their body to reflect fitness and health, not just shapely curves.
Ever since then, aerobic-style weight-loss and fitness exercise has been ac-
cepted without question by the general public. People today can’t seem to get
enough running, cycling, and dance classes, along with other extensions of tra-
ditional “cardiovascular” aerobic exercise.
But continuous, aerobic training of this kind has had its price, not only in in-
creasing the number of knee replacement surgeries required by aging baby

137
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 138

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

boomers, but in the sheer amount of time needed to accomplish any kind of results.
Still, the trend persists, and in asking myself why, I can only answer that it is because
of the common misconception that aerobic training is the best exercise for fat loss.
In this chapter, I will show you how nothing could be further from the truth.
Traditional aerobic exercise as the mainstay of a fitness program is not con-
gruent with how your genes were designed to be expressed, and therefore not the
best for your health. Nor is low-intensity, continuous aerobic training the most
efficient form of exercise for burning fat. Yes, running does burn fat, and our an-
cestors did run, but that kind of continuous aerobic activity was not their only—
or even their primary—form of movement. Something else got them to be in a
physical condition analogous to that of Olympic athletes of today.
Research clearly shows that for millions of years our Paleolithic ancestors per-
formed movement of varying intensities, not just the long-distance, low-intensity
type of traditional exercise so prevalent today. Actually, the movement patterns
of early humans were predominantly high intensity, involving bursts of explosive
movement rather than movement over long distances. These patterns evolved
over eons of time to take advantage of specific kinds of muscle fibers and metabolic
pathways most efficient at providing energy for survival, and so are a part of what
we know today as the human genome.
Our ancestors performed activities of varying intensities, but their ability to
perform high-intensity movements kept them in the evolutionary race. A caveman’s
fate could be decided in an instant by his ability to sprint from a predator or fight
his way to safety. Cavewomen who could leap up onto a ledge to avoid flash floods
or lava flows from volcanic eruptions lived longer. How we modern humans can
mimic the activity patterns of ancestral humans is through performing high-
intensity interval training.
What does HIIT look like in terms of modern human activity? While we’re
not likely to have predators and frequent natural disasters at our heels, we can im-
itate ancestral patterns by sprinting up hill in intense thirty-second bursts of move-
ment, followed by ninety seconds of rest. And then do it again for a number of
times. Another way to do HIIT is to climb a set of stadium steps at a rapid pace,
followed by a period of recovery, and then repeating the climb again, interval style.
There are many other ways to do HIIT, including a hybrid form of strength
training and another that gives you the best bang for your buck in time spent and
calories burned, as well as protecting your joints so you can take exercise with you
into your later years. There are directions for these in this chapter.

138
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 139

STEP FIVE: KICK UP YOUR METABOLISM TO BURN FAT FASTER

The HIIT routines I show you in this step is actually a different kind of cardio-

STEP 5
vascular training than the traditional aerobic training people have been doing since
the ’s. Traditionally, people have mistakenly used the term cardio to describe
low-intensity, aerobic exercise, such as long-distance running or cycling. Mistak-
enly, because researchers have found that the most effective cardiovascular training
doesn’t have to be aerobic or low intensity—it can also be high-intensity activity
that is done noncontinuously, in intervals. I prefer the term metabolic training
rather than cardio, because metabolic training includes both low-intensity, con-
tinuous aerobic training, as well as high-intensity, anaerobic interval training.

METABOLIC TRAINING

A new buzz word used increasingly by popular fitness gurus is metabolism, pointing
to a very basic but rarely understood physiologic process as the key to weight loss
and conditioning. But how exactly does your metabolism play a part in helping
you achieve your goals? The answer lies in what I am referring to as metabolic
training, an approach to working out in which exercises are performed to improve
the efficiency of your metabolism by accessing key energy pathways.
Metabolism is defined as the set of chemical reactions that happen in living
organisms to maintain life. These reactions happen through specifically organized
metabolic energy pathways in which the food you eat, aided by enzymes, is trans-
formed into energy in a series of steps. When you do metabolic training, you target
each of the body’s three key metabolic energy pathways through specific kinds of
exercises I will show you in this chapter, maximizing your metabolism to accom-
plish your goals.
Here is how it works: For movement to occur, your muscles must contract,
which requires energy. The energy is supplied by the food you eat—carbohydrates,
fat, and proteins—when it is converted into adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Think
of ATP as a usable form of energy released during the metabolic process and made
available to your muscle cells for movement. Depending on the intensity of your
exercise, you can access the best energy pathway to most efficiently burn fat and
improve your conditioning, although the three energy pathways do not work in-
dependently of one another.
Each of the three pathways utilizes a different process to create energy, and
by understanding the characteristics of the three pathways, you can better plan
the appropriate work and rest intervals for the specific exercises I will show you

139
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 140

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

in the second part of this chapter. The three key energy pathways are: the ATP-
CP pathway, the glycolytic pathway, and the oxidative pathway:
The ATP-CP pathway is the most immediate source of ATP for muscular
contraction. It supplies energy in the absence of oxygen (anaerobic), providing
your muscles with about ten seconds’ worth of energy. This pathway first uses up
the ATP already stored in the muscle (two to three seconds’ worth) and then it
uses creatine phosphate (CP) to resynthesize ATP.
When you train using the ATP-CP pathway, you do activities of very high in-
tensity and short duration, such as high-intensity intervals lasting six to ten seconds.
Sprints are one way that your body uses this energy pathway to produce ATP.
Tabata, a protocol which I will introduce later in the chapter, is another. The best
way to allow the muscles to effectively replenish the CP and ATP stores is to rest
during the recovery period.
The glycolytic pathway supplies energy through the partial breakdown of
glucose, and like the ATP-CP pathway, does this without the use of oxygen, or
anaerobically. This pathway provides a greater amount of energy for short, intense
bursts of activity (HIIT) that can last for up to a couple of minutes. However, large
amounts of lactic acid are produced as a by-product of the glycolytic pathway,
until a point known as the lactate threshold is reached when muscle burn and fa-
tigue make it difficult to continue. Training using this energy pathway involves be-
coming accustomed to the discomfort and fatigue that result from high levels of
lactic acid in the muscles and blood. If you want to remove some but not all of the
lactic acid accumulated during the work intervals, perform light activity during
the rest phase of the interval, which should help with any discomfort.
The oxydative pathway is different than the other two pathways in that it uses
oxygen (aerobic) to make ATP, the usable source of energy for the body. This path-
way is slow to produce ATP, taking about two minutes, because it requires the cir-
culatory system to transport oxygen to the working muscles before ATP can be
produced. This pathway is used primarily during aerobic exercise, which is less
intense and can continue for long periods of time, sometimes hours. Think running,
biking, hiking, skating, and other traditional aerobic, low-intensity activities. They
all access the oxidative pathway.
As I have said, the energy (ATP) produced through the three energy pathways
is utilized by your muscles to create movement, and that movement depends on
the type of muscle fiber making up your muscle. Two types of muscle fibers are
called into action: slow twitch (ST, or type I) and fast twitch (FT, or type II). We

140
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 10:12 AM Page 141

STEP FIVE: KICK UP YOUR METABOLISM TO BURN FAT FASTER

all have a genetically predetermined mix of both types, but on average, each person

STEP 5
has about  percent slow twitch and  percent fast twitch in the muscles we use
for movement. Fast-twitch muscle fibers are recruited to generate short bursts
of strength or speed, but they fatigue more quickly than slow-twitch fibers do. A
good example of generating force rapidly is a sprint. Slow-twitch muscles are
better suited for activities that require extended muscle contractions, as they
fire more slowly and can go on for a long time before they fatigue. Slow-twitch
muscle fibers are great for helping athletes run marathons or ride bicycles for hours
at a time.
Now let’s relate the two kinds of muscle fibers to the three pathways of energy
production to get the full picture of how to use metabolic training to improve
movement efficiency for your specific purpose.
For simplicity, let’s group the two anaerobic energy pathways (ATP-CP and
glycolytic) together, as both are utilized in high-intensity intervals (HIIT). The
other pathway, the oxidative, is utilized by a slower pace of movement. The box
below summarizes these differences.
The human body, as I’ve said, is composed of about half ST fibers and half FT
fibers, the composition varying by specific muscles. Why then, if distribution of ST
and FT fibers is roughly equal, do most exercise programs—recall the gym lineup
for “cardio” machines—focus mainly on the ST fibers through aerobic exercise?
Clearly, this isn’t the way to go. Fast-twitch muscle activation is the key to lon-
gevity and youthful movement. Research has proven that as we age and fail to use
our FT muscle fibers, we lose them, limiting our ability in athletic endeavors and
in basic everyday activities. The reflexes needed to catch ourselves from falling,
to lift a heavy object quickly, or sprint our way to safety are no longer reliable with-
out healthy FT muscle fibers.

Energy, Muscles, and Movement

ANAEROBIC/HIIT: When the training is characterized by short bursts of intense activity
and your body uses FAST-TWITCH MUSCLE FIBERS to facilitate explosive movements.

AEROBIC: When the body uses SLOW-TWITCH MUSCLE FIBERS and produces energy at
a slower pace but can sustain the production over a longer period of time.

141
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 142

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Art De Vany’s model of fitness, similar to mine, combines activities of varying

intensity to mimic ancestral humans. He says the key is to hit the right balance of
intensity and variety, and advises that we live in the fast-twitch muscle fiber zone,
where our metabolic rate is many times our basal metabolism for intermittent, brief
intervals—in other words, train using HIIT. Most of us today are too sedentary in
our everyday routines and typically perform low-intensity aerobic exercise, never
achieving the kind of metabolic peaks that were commonplace for our ancestors.

GAINING WEIGHT WITH AEROBICS

A client I trained a few years back contacted me recently to say she’d been gaining
weight and needed to do something about it. When I asked her what kinds of ac-
tivities she’d been doing, she told me she was inline skating along the beach in
Santa Barbara every day, and that was it.
How could she be gaining weight, she asked, when the continuous, aerobic
exercise she’d been doing every day was supposed to burn calories? My answer to
her question came right out of Primal fitness theory and shows why aerobic activity
is inferior to HIIT when weight loss is the goal.
De Vany believes that too much aerobic exercise can decrease the human
growth hormone that tells your body to burn fat and build muscle. Another ex-
planation is that high-volume aerobic training downgrades your fast-twitch muscle
fibers into slow-twitch muscle fibers over time. Furthermore, aerobic training de-
creases your total muscle mass, which slows down your metabolic rate, so you ex-
pend less energy. Less energy expended means less calories burned, which would
explain the weight gain my client was experiencing.
Obviously, it takes a while for this process to happen. With aerobic training,
you’d certainly burn fat in the beginning, especially if you have been sedentary for
a number of years prior to exercising. But if fat loss is your goal, a fitness program
that emphasizes aerobic activity is not the best. A program that emphasizes interval
and resistance training is much more effective, and it is this kind of program that
forms the backbone of my Primal Body exercise program.

HIIT BURNS FAT FASTER

Scientific studies have shown how aerobic exercise compares with HIIT to bear
out the importance of HIIT in the Primal Body Program. One of Australia’s top

142
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 143

STEP FIVE: KICK UP YOUR METABOLISM TO BURN FAT FASTER

fat loss researchers, Steve Boutcher, put forty-five overweight women through a

STEP 5
fifteen-week study, where one group did intervals for twenty minutes. That group
of women sprinted on a stationary bike for eight seconds, followed by twelve sec-
onds of light cycling. The other group of women did aerobic exercise at a contin-
uous pace for forty minutes—the more traditional approach to fat loss. Both groups
exercised three times a week and had their dietary intake closely monitored. The
results were that the interval group lost three times as much fat, doing half as
much exercise!
Why did the HIIT work better to burn fat? The first group of women in
Boutcher’s study were doing the kind of training that causes a phenomenon called
excess postexercise oxygen consumption (EPOC). As discussed on page , after
you perform high-intensity exercise, such as sprinting on a stationary bike, your
body continues to need oxygen, leaving your metabolism elevated for hours after
your workout before it returns to normal. Originally referred to as “oxygen debt,”
EPOC is the term researchers now use to describe the events that occur as the
body returns to homeostasis.
Research suggests that high-intensity training, whether you are running sprints
or performing resistance circuits, disturbs the body’s homeostasis, throwing the
body off its normal balance. This results in a larger energy requirement after ex-
ercise to restore the body’s systems back to normal. This energy expenditure causes
a significant increase in fat loss, which makes HIIT the most effective method for
fat loss.
Having your metabolism kick into such high gear is a key for burning fat
and losing weight. In a  study, European researchers found a measurable
increase in EPOC thirty-eight hours after exercise. The study involved a circuit
of four sets each of heavy bench press, power cleans (an explosive lift), and
squats, for a total of twelve sets performed in thirty-one minutes. The re-
searchers found that EPOC was significantly elevated up to thirty-eight hours
postworkout.
Thirty-eight hours is a long time for your metabolism to remain elevated
after exercising. Imagine you worked out on Monday morning at  AM. On Tues-
day evening at  PM, you would still be burning fat from Monday’s workout!
This is the reason that HIIT is so much more effective than the more traditional
aerobic exercise alone, because you burn more fat after the workout rather than
while exercising, the latter has always been the claim regarding aerobic exercise.

143
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 144

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

HIIT BENEFITS BEYOND FAT LOSS

HIIT has many benefits beyond fat loss that make it the ideal form of metabolic
exercise for you to do at any age. These benefits include stimulating antiaging hor-
mones (HGH), saving your muscles from being wasted as fuel, decreasing the time
of working out, increasing your endurance, and protecting your joints from being
worn out and injured over the years.

Antiaging effects: Interval training stimulates your body to release human growth
hormone (HGH). A  study in Britain’s Journal of Sports Science showed that
a thirty-second cycling sprint increased HGH levels by  percent. HGH is re-
sponsible for height growth in children, but once you finish growing, the hormone
changes roles. HGH becomes an antiaging hormone in adults; it signals the body
to burn fat and grow muscle.

Muscle protection: HIIT also protects your muscles, so you don’t use them for
fuel. This type of training drives your muscles to exert a lot of force, so rather than
use muscle for energy, your body burns more fat and in the process spares your
hard-earned muscle. This effect is evident if you compare the physique of a top
sprinter to that of a top marathon runner. Sprinters physiques are well developed
and highly muscular, whereas marathoners have very little muscle.

Decreased workout time: HIIT workouts don’t take as much time as slower-
paced, more traditional aerobic workouts do. You can complete a workout in
twenty minutes or less. This can be convenient for modern-day exercisers with
hectic schedules. You can get in a good workout and burn a significant amount of
fat without spending a lot of time in the gym.

Increased endurance: Amazingly, HIIT is better at improving endurance than

steady-state aerobics is. The Tabata protocol is the best example of how effective
HIIT can be at improving aerobic capacity. Named after the Japanese researcher
who developed the routine for a speed-skating team, the workout Dr. Tabata stud-
ied involves twenty seconds of maximum intensity exercise, followed by ten seconds
of rest (ATP-CP is the dominant energy pathway). The cycle is repeated eight times
and takes a total of four minutes.

144
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 145

STEP FIVE: KICK UP YOUR METABOLISM TO BURN FAT FASTER

In the Tabata study, two groups were compared: an interval group that cycled

STEP 5
at  percent of its VO max, and an aerobic group that cycled for sixty minutes
at  percent of its VO max. After six weeks, Dr. Tabata found that in the interval
group the aerobic capacity had improved by  percent and the anaerobic capacity
(which measures your speed endurance, or the duration you’re able to sprint at
full effort) had improved by  percent! The aerobic group showed an improvement
in aerobic capacity of  percent, but there was no effect on those participants’
anaerobic capacity.
The Tabata protocol proved that HIIT is more effective at improving aerobic
fitness than is performing aerobic work directly. And what’s interesting is that
these results took place on physically fit athletes.
One of the reasons this protocol is so effective is the short rest intervals be-
tween sprints. Standard interval training involves a work–rest ratio of  to  or
 to . In other words, your rest interval lasts two or three times as long as the du-
ration of the sprint. But the Tabata’s work–rest ratio is  to , which means your
rest periods are only half as long as the duration of your sprint. Obviously, this
protocol offers a quick way to get fit in just four minutes a day. But this kind of
training is very challenging, to say the least.

Joint protection: Interval training is easier on your joints than steady-state aerobic
training is. One reason is that there are fewer repetitions with anaerobic exercise
than with aerobic training. Also, the increased muscle mass associated with interval
training translates to joint protection, which can protect you from injury.

METABOLIC RESISTANCE CIRCUITS

By now, you are probably coming on board with the kind of exercise and training
that is evolutionarily compatible with your physiology, and you are ready to learn
how to do it. In the remainder of this chapter, I will give you a brief orientation to
a newer kind of HIIT, and then show you how best to train using this method,
using metabolic resistance circuits (see page ).
As you have seen, HIIT can be done in a variety of ways. The more traditional
way is to use intervals solely for sprinting, whether on a track, on a bicycle, or in
the pool. However, a new approach has emerged over the past couple of years that
combines HIIT with resistance training, creating a hybrid method. In the new

145
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 146

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

method, resistance training exercises, as introduced in Step , are performed in

an interval fashion, using timed sets. This entails alternating high-intensity, all-
out bursts of movement, followed by periods of rest, so you get the benefits of
resistance and metabolic training in one package.
One immediate advantage of metabolic resistance circuits is the time factor.
Now instead of lifting weights and then doing your metabolic workout at another
time, you can get everything done in one workout by combining the two.
Another benefit is less wear and tear on your joints, when compared to tra-
ditional aerobic exercise. Typically, running a mile is about , foot strikes with
forces as high as three to five times your body weight through the hip, knee, and
ankle joints. That’s a lot of trauma to your body. Compare that to a metabolic re-
sistance circuit in which you perform a series of sets for the same amount of time,
using a variety of upper- and lower-body exercises, where the force is less than
body weight on the joints. Both exercises burn calories, but there would be less
stress to your joints when using metabolic resistance circuits.
Our ancestors knew the wisdom of combining resistance training and interval
training. To survive, they had to do certain intense activities that had them hit
metabolic peaks, causing EPOC and giving them a natural afterburn to keep them
lean and fit. For example, after hunting and catching wild game, early humans had
to carry the carcass of the felled animal back to camp. This kind of activity is like
performing metabolic resistance circuits: The hunters would pick up the heavy
carcass, walk a short distance, then put the carcass down and rest, and then repeat
this process—like lifting weights interval style—until they got back to their camp.
This is a different activity than sprinting to get away from a predator or to catch
wild game, but all are examples of high-intensity interval training and how our
ancestors moved—movements that are coded in our genes and backed by modern
science in their high degrees of efficiency.

HOW TO PERFORM METABOLIC RESISTANCE CIRCUITS

There are many ways to use the metabolic resistance circuit protocol, including
the two methods I describe here, which are timed sets and the Tabata protocol.

Timed sets: With this protocol, you use timed sets of thirty to sixty seconds for
each exercise. The resting interval is fifteen to thirty seconds before performing
the next exercise. There are many ways to design these workouts, but to begin,

146
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 147

STEP FIVE: KICK UP YOUR METABOLISM TO BURN FAT FASTER

STEP 5
Primal Metabolic Resistance Circuit
Equipment: kettlebell, medicine ball
Prison Bodyweight Squats (hands on head) (page 130)
Kettlebell Swing (page 134)
T Push-Up (page 126)
Reverse Medicine Ball Wood Chop (page 133)
Mountain Climbers (page 120)

T HE TABATA PROTO C O L

This workout involves 20 seconds of maximum intensity exercise, followed by 10 seconds

of rest. The cycle is repeated 8 times and takes a total of 4 minutes. Here are a couple of
examples:
1. Lunge Jumps (page 127)
Plyo Push-Up (page 128)
2. Kettlebell Swing (20 seconds work/10 seconds of rest) (page 134)

pick five exercises from pages – and perform the entire circuit three times
with ninety seconds of rest between each round.
Here is an example of five exercises you could use. Instructions for how to de-
sign such a workout (including reps and weight loads) are in Chapter .

KETTLEBELL SWINGS: HEALTHIER ALTERNATIVE TO AEROBICS

If you could do only one exercise, and fat loss was your goal, the two-handed ket-
tlebell swing is the exercise I would recommend. Simply swinging a kettlebell,
using correct form, will cause you to build a great posterior chain (glutes and ham-
strings) and lose dramatic amounts of body fat, while improving your cardiovas-
cular fitness. More to the point, it’s the fastest way to achieve a firm derriere (a
tight butt).
And science backs me up. A study recently published in the Journal of Strength
and Conditioning looked at the metabolic effect of swinging a kettlebell. Results
showed that kettlebell swings provide a healthy alternative to traditional aerobic
exercise, such as long-distance running, which can put a lot of wear and tear on
the joints.

147
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 148

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

In the study, researchers at Truman State University asked ten college-aged

men to swing a  kg (-pound) kettlebell, using two hands, as many times as
possible within a twelve-minute period. The men could rest as needed but the goal
was to do as many repetitions as possible within the time frame. The researchers
found that the men completed an average of  swings in the twelve minutes,
and they worked at an average of  percent of their maximum heart rate and 
percent of their VO max, which was measured prior to the test.
The researchers concluded that “continuous kettlebell swings can impart a
metabolic challenge of sufficient intensity to increase VO max. Heart rate was
substantially higher than VO during kettlebell swings. Therefore, kettlebells pro-
vide a useful tool with which coaches may improve the cardio-respiratory fitness
of their athletes.”
If you try this workout, I suggest starting with three minutes of kettlebell
swings. In a week or two, progress to six minutes of swings. Then, when you are
able, perform nine minutes of swings. Continue on in this way until you can per-
form twelve minutes. With each and every exercise, you want to keep in mind the
idea of progressive resistance. Start at a realistic level and progress gradually. (See
page  for tips on form.)

LOW-INTENSITY AEROBICS FOR “PLAY”

In addition to pursuing high-intensity activities, our Primal ancestors performed

a variety of low-intensity aerobic activities. These would have included walking
for hours through meadows to gather plant foods, such as nuts and berries; walk-
ing for days to track wild game; moving camp while carrying a load to the new
location; running long distances to deliver a message to a distant tribe; and swim-
ming, dancing, and hiking for fun.
To replicate the low-intensity aerobic activities of ancestral humans, you want
to include similar activities in your life, preferably done out of doors. I like inline
skating along the beach in Santa Barbara, California. I also enjoy hiking in the
beautiful foothills. Relaxation and enjoyment is the focus.
You may want to take a tai chi class at the park or play a game of beach volley-
ball or Frisbee with your friends. Maybe you prefer to go for a long walk in the
hills with your dogs. Another idea would be to wear a weighted vest and go for a
hike in the mountains. Or plant and tend a garden. Any of these activities would
work. Just pick an outdoor activity that you like, allot some time in your schedule,
and incorporate the activity into your life. It’s that simple.
148
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 10:23 AM Page 149

STEP FIVE: KICK UP YOUR METABOLISM TO BURN FAT FASTER

Our ancestors walked a lot carrying heavy weight in order to move camp and bring back as much

STEP 5
of the kill as they could. Power walking, laden with real weight on the order of 35 to 100
pounds, is an effective modern version of what our ancestors did. Power walking with a backpack
or scuba diving weights around the waist dramatically increases the intensity and effectiveness of
walking. And it is about as effective as jogging for aerobic capacity, without the pounding and
damage. It is what women among hunter-gatherers do when they gather.
—ART DE VANY, FROM HIS ESSAY “EVOLUTIONARY FITNESS”

Tiffany’s Transformation
The Push to Recovery

TIFFANY is a young woman who came to me

after dropping out of the Police Academy
training program. She’d experienced shoulder
soreness that limited her ability to do push-
ups, which was of concern to her trainers. An
MRI showed a rotator cuff tear due to a bone
spur, which she had removed surgically and
then went through a five-month healing
process of physical therapy and rest, before
beginning to work with me.
She tells you in her own words how the
Primal Body Program was part of her recovery
and strengthening process that enabled her to
return to the academy and eventually
graduate:

I’m one of those people who believe that

things happen for a purpose. When I injured the sugary foods I loved so much. I remember
my shoulder six weeks into the Police Academy, my reply: “We shall see.” I was not
it was hard to see any light at the end of the automatically a believer! The hardest part was
tunnel. After surgery and a five-month breakfast, but I learned to make protein shakes
recovery time, I was introduced to the Primal in the morning. I noticed my body changed as
Body Program and Mikki through a co-worker— a result of switching to the low-carb diet. My
an event that changed my life. energy increased dramatically, and I felt
One of the first things we tackled was my healthier all around. Supplements also were
unhealthy eating. When we started, I ate part of my shoulder injury recovery, especially
whatever I felt like eating, which was basically glucosamine and fish oil.
a ton of carbohydrates. Pasta, bread, cookies—I I focused on strength training with Mikki
was a carb lover. It was a hard transition to for eight months, two to three times a week, in
begin eating protein and vegetables at every preparation for returning to the Police
meal, and very little carbs, especially sweets. Academy. I honestly never believed I’d be able
Mikki told me that after being on the to do a push-up without any pain, but I’m
Primal diet, one day I would no longer crave proud to say that I now do twenty of them,
149
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 150

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

completely pain free. I also did high-intensity After eight months of working with Mikki, I
interval training, running up stadium steps returned to the academy for a second try.
twice a week and learning to work out with During the class, my diet unfortunately went
kettlebells. out the window. I had no time to shop or cook
Kettlebell training was a totally new and actually gained quite a bit of weight while
experience for me. I’m not the most losing muscle mass. My hard work with Mikki
coordinated person on the planet, but I find had strengthened my shoulder, and then I came
swinging kettlebells a lot of fun. It sharpens close to seeing it all reversed! But the
my focus and challenges me to perform experience of “falling off the wagon” was
perfectly—I still have a long way to go. But it’s valuable in that it let me see how sticking to a
entertaining, something different than what Primal diet made a difference. Now, having
I’ve done for so many years, which was the graduated from the academy, I’m back on the
more standard weight lifting. Primal Program and have quickly lost the
An important part of my recovery was the weight I gained.
foam roller. I used it to work out adhesions in Looking back over my healing and
my shoulder muscle from the injury, so I could strengthening progress of the past few years, I
do more resistance training. Now, I use the realize that injuring my shoulder and meeting
foam roller every morning to start my day, Mikki was what led me to become healthier
whether or not I’m training that day. It makes and ultimately transform my body. I’m now so
a big difference, because I wear a lot of weight much better prepared as a police officer. My
from my vest and gun belt, and I carry it better Primal lifestyle keeps me on track and in shape
when my muscles aren’t tight. to do a job that I trained for and I earned!

NEXT . . .

In the next and final chapters of Your Primal Body, I show you how to tie together
the many elements I’ve covered for a comprehensive plan for living the Primal
Body lifestyle. You will find what you need to design a diet and exercise regime
tailored to fit your fitness level. You’ll also find information on how to measure
your success by tracking your results. This will help you stay motivated and on
track to transform your current lifestyle into one that is more in alignment with
the way your body has been shaped to function over the millennia.

150
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 151

PART III
Putting It All Together:
Your Primal Body Plan
for Lifelong Health
and Fitness

151
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 152
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 153

Chapter 9

Your Primal Body

Eating Plan

In Part 2, I showed you how Primal health and fitness is possible through my -
Step Primal Body Program, each step an important module for restoring your
body to genetic congruency. In Part , you will learn how to create a plan based
on the components of my program to transform your body and live a Primal Body
lifestyle for the rest of your life.
Starting with this chapter, I will show you how to design an individualized eat-
ing plan to give you the results you want, whether you are looking to lose weight
or just maintain your current weight and improve your overall health. To begin
your transition, I provide tools to transform your diet to a plan more congruent
with your DNA; a weekly meal plan for both fat loss and maintenance on the Primal
Body diet, including recipes; and a pantry list to help you shop and get started.
For most people, switching to the Primal diet takes some consideration and
planning before it becomes second nature. If you have been eating the standard
American diet (SAD), consisting of high carbs, bad fats, and the all-too-frequent
fast-food meal, it may take a period of adjustment to get fully on board. Maybe
you’ve been eating a vegetarian ⁄ vegan diet or a low-protein diet consisting of some
low-fat animal products, whole grains, fresh fruits, dairy, and vegetables. From
there, it may be a little easier to switch to a diet that is based on greater quantities
of animal products, no grains or legumes, and less overall carbs.

FAT LOSS OR MAINTENANCE?

I offer two levels of the Primal Body diet, determined by your current needs. The
first is for weight loss, designed to get you dropping that extra weight/fat fast.
The second is a maintenance plan if weight loss is not your concern. If you want
to lose weight, begin with the first level, and then once your weight loss goals are
met, switch to the more moderate maintenance level.
For both levels, the starting point is to determine the amounts of each food
type—protein, carbohydrate, and fat—you will be eating. The Primal Body diet is
not a calorie-counting plan but a food-type plan. This is because the way your

153
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 154

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

physiology has evolved, the type of food you eat is more important than the amount
of calories that food contains.

Protein
Let’s start with the requirements for protein. The amount of protein you need is
based on your lean body mass—the portion of your body that is not fat. The basic
rule is . to  gram of protein for each pound of lean body mass, depending on
your activity level (higher levels require more protein). This recommendation takes
into account the fact that the Primal Body Program includes strength training,
which involves building and maintaining lean muscle mass.
It is not essential to measure your lean body mass to determine your exact
protein requirements. Many of my clients start out following the guideline of
eating a protein food at every meal and then being careful to avoid snacking
on carbohydrates.
However, when you are first adjusting your protein intake for the Primal Body
diet, a more exact measurement may be called for to predict the proper quantities
of food types. The biggest challenge is to make sure you are getting enough protein,
especially if you plan to go into ketosis for fat loss (revisit page  for more on
ketosis). To maintain a state of ketosis for fat loss, you want to provide enough
protein in your diet so that your body does not use your muscle to make glucose—
a process called gluconeogenesis, as explained in Chapter .

Measuring Your Lean Body Mass

To measure your lean body mass, use a body fat caliper (see Resources, page 203) to
pinch the three sites on your body, referencing the drawings on my site at
http://fitnesstransform.com/assessment_of_body_composition/, and enter the data into
the windows. Once you know your percentage of body fat, multiply that number by
your total body weight. This number is the weight of your body fat. Subtract that
number from your total weight to get your lean body mass.
Let’s take for example a 100-pound woman with 25 percent body fat. Multiply her
total body weight, 100 pounds, by her percentage of body fat, 0.25, to arrive at the
amount of fat she has on her body: 100 x 0.25 = 25 pounds of body fat. Then subtract
the 25 pounds of fat from her total weight of 100 pounds to get 75 pounds. That’s her
lean body mass. With a lean body mass of 75 pounds, this woman would shoot for 60
to 75 grams of protein per day to build, repair, and maintain her lean mass.

154
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 155

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

Creating a Caloric Deficit
While I stand behind the simple method of making food choices based on food types
rather than the more involved method of counting calories, some people will want to
know exactly how to calculate a specific caloric deficit (as mentioned in Chapter 2) for
weight loss. Here is the formula I have used with my clients:
1. Create a food diary for three days, based on the foods you eat to maintain your
current weight. Total the calories for the three days and divide by three to get
your average daily intake.
2. Determine your protein requirements using the formula on page 154. Then
multiply the number of grams by four (there are 4 calories per gram) to get the
number of protein calories you require.
3. Limit your carbohydrates to 50 grams or less. Because there are 4 calories per
gram of carbohydrate, your carbohydrate intake should be 200 calories or less.
4. Add the number of protein and carbohydrate calories together.
5. To determine fat intake, take the average of the three days of maintenance
calories and subtract 500 calories (the caloric deficit). This is the total number of
daily calories required to reach your caloric deficit.
6. Then subtract your protein and carbohydrate calories from the total number of
calories needed to reach your caloric deficit. The result is the number of fat
calories you require. To determine the number of grams of fat, divide by 9 (there
are 9 calories per gram of fat).

Carbohydrates
The next step is to determine your level of carbohydrates. If fat loss is your goal,
keeping your carbohydrate intake under  grams per day will get most everyone
into ketosis and give you the metabolic advantage I spoke about in Chapter . With
this approach, you can achieve a significant amount of fat loss while maintaining
your lean body mass. To reach  grams of carbs, enjoy small portions of low-
glycemic vegetables at every meal, eliminate dairy and most nuts, and skip fruits
until you have reached your fat-loss goal.
If you do not have excess stored fat on your body, and maintaining a steady
weight is your goal, then your carbohydrate intake will depend on your body size,
activity level, and training intensity. To maintain your current weight, you may
want to include some Paleo-friendly carbs, such as yams, along with low-glycemic
fruits and vegetables, while still avoiding grains and sugars, such as honey, agave,
and of course the ubiquitous table sugar.
155
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 156

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Important Guidelines for Primal Meal Planning

• Eat protein at every meal. Emphasize animal protein foods from natural sources,
such as organic, free-range, fresh meat, fish, and poultry, which have a healthier
fat profile. Find a local supplier, if possible.
• Eliminate all grains. This includes gluten and nongluten grains, and whole and
processed grains. Oatmeal is a grain. Quinoa, millet, brown rice, and corn are all
grains and are not on the Primal Body diet. Grain products such as bread, cereal,
pasta, pastries, and pancakes are considered grains. Go grain free!
• Include fresh, raw nuts and seeds, if you are not on a fat-loss plan. These include
almonds, pecans, filberts (hazelnuts), walnuts, Brazil nuts, macadamia nuts, and
pistachios, as well as pumpkin, sesame, and sunflower seeds. Raw nut butters, such
as almond butter, are a good choice, too.
• Include raw, pastured dairy (if you tolerate it), such as raw cheese, yogurt, and
butter, in small amounts. Avoid conventional, grain-fed dairy products. Grass-fed
fermented raw milk products are an excellent source of probiotics.
• Eliminate all legumes (beans). Just like grains, legumes are a source of
antinutrients, such as lectins and saponins, which wreak havoc with your hormonal
and immune system. Lectins and saponins increase intestinal permeability,
increasing the risk of inflammatory diseases, such as celiac disease, rheumatoid
arthritis, or multiple sclerosis.
• Cut back on or completely eliminate fruit. Modern-day hybridized fruits contain high
amounts of sugar, more than our Primal body can safely handle, when eaten too
often and too frequently. Glycation (cellular aging) can result from too much fruit in
the diet, and in general is preventable when levels of dietary sugar from all foods are
lowered. When choosing fruit, choose low-glycemic fruits, as mentioned on page 56.
• Drink an abundance of water and herbal teas. Pure, filtered water is the most
natural beverage available to satisfy thirst, so drink plenty of it. Men require about
3 liters per day, and women need about 2 liters. You can spice it up by adding a
slice of lemon, lime, or orange to give it a citrus flavor. Or try sparkling water,
which is very refreshing. Herbal teas are also a good choice on the Primal diet.
Whether hot or cold, herbal teas can add variety to your beverage selection. A cup
of coffee in the morning can be a great way to start the day. Coffee is brewed
from the seeds of the coffee plant, not beans. And alcohol, (which was probably
consumed sporadically by our ancestors) may be consumed in moderation.

156
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 157

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

Fat
The balance of your calories will come from fat. If you are on a fat-loss program,

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

you will want to eat just enough fat to keep your energy levels up and feel sated.
Once you have lost the excess fat, you will be able to consume higher quantities
of healthy fat in your diet.

PRIMAL DIET TOOL: KEEP A FOOD JOURNAL

A food journal is a notebook in which you record your daily food intake. You can
jot down how you feel when you are eating, to uncover any emotional triggers, or
just keep it simple and write down what you ate. In either case, it’s a great way to
examine your eating habits.
Here are some basic guidelines:
• Carry your journal with you and write down what you eat when you
eat it, rather than waiting until later and relying on memory.
• Track the date and time of day you eat.
• Note the portion size (e.g., a small bowl, fist-size, tablespoon, etc.).
• Include snacks and “just-one-bite” foods.
• Jot down any exercise you did that day.
• Update your diary every day and review it frequently. Note when you
hit certain fat-loss or fitness goals, as well as when you gain weight or
lose momentum, and look at the causes.

Here is a sample entry from a client’s food journal

157
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 158

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

T UESDAY, J UN E 21

BREAKFAST
1 protein shake, 2 scoops protein
½ apple with 2 tablespoons of almond butter (running late)
LUNCH
2 turkey wraps with lettuce, sprouts, avocado, and honey mustard
1 small bottle of sparking water
SNACK
20 almonds
DINNER
2 chicken and steak kebabs with bell pepper
1 dinner salad with olive oil and vinaigrette dressing
1 cup of peppermint tea

WEDN ESDAY, J UN E 22

BREAKFAST
1 (12-ounce) coffee with cream
3 eggs with raw cheese and spinach
2 slices of bacon
LUNCH
1 chicken breast, seasoned with rosemary
2 small raw carrots and 2 celery sticks with 2 tablespoons of ranch dressing
1 small bottle of water
SNACK
Kale chips with ½ avocado
DINNER
New York steak (8 ounces)
1 large salad with olive oil and vinaigrette dressing
2 cups of steamed broccoli
1 cup of chai tea

158
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 159

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

Healthy Snacks
INSTEAD OF . . . ENJOY . . .
Potato chips Kale chips (see recipe on page 183)
Crackers Raw almonds
Pretzels Celery sticks
Corn chips Radishes/carrot sticks
M&M’s Macadamia nuts
Ice cream Greek yogurt
Onion dip Guacamole
Brownies Berries

PRIMAL MEALS DAILY PLAN

Now that you know what to eat and what not to eat, and how to track the foods you
choose with a food journal, how do you design and plan meals on the Primal Body
diet? Here are a few basic ideas for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, to get you started.
Breakfast is the biggest challenge for most followers of the Primal Body diet,
as it’s usual to start out the day by eating grains—toast, oatmeal, or cereal. I suggest
that you go to your local health food market, or possibly to Trader Joe’s if there’s
one in your area, to find some nitrate-free, uncured bacon, and make free-range
scrambled eggs to go with it. Or scramble your eggs in butter with veggies, such
as onions, mushrooms, spinach, or leftover asparagus from the previous evening’s
dinner, and drink your coffee enriched by half-and-half or coconut milk. Fish for
breakfast—a can of salmon, smoked or cured salmon fillet, or grilled fresh salmon
steak—is a great way to start the day. Here’s my motto: Eat dinner for breakfast
and breakfast for dinner!
Lunch and dinner can follow a simple rule: a protein food plus vegetables.
For lunch, have meat (beef, lamb, chicken, or fish) with a salad of raw vegetables.
Alternate for dinner, by grilling your meat, fish, or chicken with an assortment
of grilled vegetables. (You can use an outdoor grill, a George Foreman grill, or
simply a ridged cast-iron pan coated with oil.) I like to put my meat and vegetable
combination du jour into a cast-iron pot (or use my preferred “paleo pots”; see
Resources, page ), place the covered pot in the oven, and turn on the timer.
159
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 160

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Depending on my choice, I can have a stew or roast and vegetables ready pretty
quickly, or I can use a slow cooker, to have my meal ready when I come back to
my house many hours later.
Preparation is simple when you are following the Primal Body diet. When I
shop, I buy locally grown, in-season organic vegetables and grass-fed, hormone/
antibiotic-free meats from the farmers’ market. I’ll also pick up some organic herbs
for seasoning. Primal nutrition is easy and satisfying and doesn’t require a lot of
preparation. On the other hand, if you enjoy cooking, you can make foods that
are flavorful by adding herbs and create your own favorite recipes. Following are
one-week meal plans for both fat-loss and maintenance diets. Recipes are given
on pages – for the starred (*) items.

MEAL PLANS FOR ONE WEEK

Fat-Loss Meal Plans

MO N DAY

BREAKFAST
Spinach and Eggs*
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Balsamic Chicken Breast* and Garden Salad*
Water or herbal tea
DINNER
Baked pork chop
Oyster Mushroom, Asparagus, and Onion Sauté*
Sparkling water or herbal tea

T UESDAY

BREAKFAST
Western Omelet*
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Grilled lamb chop and Vegetable Stir-Fry*
Sparkling water or herbal tea
DINNER
Grilled Salmon* and Roasted Vegetables*
Water or herbal tea

160
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 161

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

WEDN ESDAY

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

BREAKFAST
Grilled grass-fed beef burger with Steamed Vegetables*
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Baked chicken breast with Sautéed Green Beans*
Sparkling water or herbal tea
DINNER
Sautéed Giant Shrimp* and Greek Salad*
Water or herbal tea

T HURSDAY

BREAKFAST
Grilled sausage, sliced pear, and pecans
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Baked ham in Garden Salad*
Water or herbal tea
DINNER
Turkey thigh with Steamed Vegetables*
Sparkling water or herbal tea

FRI DAY

BREAKFAST
Canned wild salmon on a lettuce bed
Almond butter on apple slices
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Bacon and poached eggs
Sparkling water or herbal tea
DINNER
Grilled grass-fed rib eye steak
Steamed broccoli with butter
Water or herbal tea

161
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:48 AM Page 162

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

SAT URDAY

BREAKFAST
Grilled bison breakfast steak with scrambled eggs, mushrooms, and onions
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Grilled Lamb Burger* with Greek Salad*
Sparkling water or herbal tea
DINNER
Salmon Roll-Ups* with celery sticks
Water or herbal tea

SUN DAY

BREAKFAST
Poached eggs
Chopped tomato, avocado, and bell pepper with olive oil and lemon juice
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Grilled lamb chops and Sautéed Kale*
Water or herbal tea
DINNER
Roast Beef with Carrots and Pearl Onions*
Roasted Green Beans*
Sparkling water or herbal tea

Maintenance Meal Plans

MO N DAY

BREAKFAST
Baked chicken breast and Sautéed Green Beans*
Pecans
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Grilled Lamb Burger* and Greek Salad*
Water or herbal tea
DINNER
Grass-fed rib eye steak
Baked yam
Steamed broccoli with lemon-butter drizzle
Sparkling water or herbal tea
162
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 163

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

T UESDAY

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

BREAKFAST
Salmon Roll-Ups* with celery sticks and walnuts
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Grilled Chicken Salad*
Sliced pear with Gruyère cheese
Water or herbal tea
DINNER
Grilled grass-fed New York steak
Grilled asparagus with lemon-butter drizzle
Red wine (1 glass) or sparkling water

WEDN ESDAY

BREAKFAST
Canadian bacon with leftover asparagus, sliced tomato, and almonds
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Grilled turkey tenders
Sweet potato
Sautéed Kale*
Water or herbal tea
DINNER
Grilled bison burger
Cold beets, Cheddar cheese, and walnuts
Sparkling water or herbal tea

T HURSDAY

BREAKFAST
Veggie egg scramble with leftover sweet potato and steamed kale
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Grilled turkey burger and Garden Salad*
Sparkling water or herbal tea
DINNER
Sautéed Cod Marinade*
Roasted Vegetables*
Macadamia nuts water or herbal tea

163
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 164

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

FRI DAY

BREAKFAST
Grilled sausage (pork, turkey, or chicken)
Cabbage Sautéed with Apples and Walnuts*
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Grilled chicken thighs with rosemary
Baked acorn squash with butter
Sparkling water or herbal tea
DINNER
Grilled lamb chop and Roasted Green Beans*
Water or herbal tea

SAT URDAY

BREAKFAST
Western Omelet* with bacon
Fruit salad (1 cup total of berries, pears, and apple)
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Bay Shrimp Salad* with avocado
Walnuts
Water or herbal tea
DINNER
Baked pork chop
Steamed artichoke with lemon-butter dip
Sparkling water or herbal tea

SUN DAY

BREAKFAST
Spinach and Eggs* with Parmesan cheese
Coffee or tea
LUNCH
Lettuce Wrap with Ham and Cheese*
Kale Chips*
Sparkling water or herbal tea
DINNER
Grilled Salmon* on Garden Salad*
Walnuts
Mixed berries (½ cup)
164 Water or herbal tea
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 165

PRIMAL
MEAL
RECIPES

165
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 166
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 167

Primal Body Pantry List

SUPPLEMENTS CANNED/BOXED GOODS
Whey protein powder Organic free-range chicken and
Super Six Supplements (see page 72) beef broth
Wild salmon
OILS AND VINEGARS
Sardines
Olive oil
Coconut milk
Coconut oil
Tomatoes
Balsamic vinegar
Apple cider vinegar DAIRY
Red wine vinegar Yogurt
Organic half-and-half, if you take cream
SNACKS
Hard, unpasteurized cheeses, such as
Roasted seaweed
Parmigiano-Reggiano, Gruyère, and
DRINKS Cheddar
Sparkling water NUTS AND SEEDS (PREFERABLY
Herbal teas RAW AND UNSALTED)
Coffee Almonds and almond butter
CONDIMENTS Macadamia nuts
Celtic sea salt Walnuts
Peppercorns Pecans
Dried and fresh herbs and spices: cumin, Brazil nuts
basil, dill, garlic, ginger, marjoram, Pistachios
oregano, rosemary, and thyme Hazelnuts
Green or black, preferably organic and Pumpkin seeds
naturally cured olives Sunflower seeds
Sesame seeds

167
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 168

Egg Dishes
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 169

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

SPINACH AND EGGS

EGG DISHES
SERVINGS: 4

 tablespoons butter
½ cup minced onion
 pound fresh organic spinach, washed and chopped
 eggs
¼ teaspoon salt

. Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat and cook the onion for
about  minutes.
. Add the chopped spinach and cook until tender, about  minutes.
. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, beat the eggs.
. Pour the eggs into the mixture in the skillet and cook for another  minutes.
. Add the salt and serve.

WESTERN OMELET
SERVINGS: 3

 tablespoons butter
 large eggs
¼ cup chopped and seeded green bell pepper
½ cup chopped tomato
⅓ cup chopped onion
¾ cup chopped cooked ham
¼ teaspoon salt

. Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat.

. Beat the eggs in a bowl and pour into the skillet.
. Add the pepper, tomato, onion, and ham.
. When the eggs have begun to set about  minutes, turn and cook the
other side for about  minutes.
. Season with the salt and serve.

169
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 170

Vegetable Dishes
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 171

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

STEAMED VEGETABLES

VEGETABLE DISHES
SERVINGS: 3

 cup chopped cauliflower

 cup chopped broccoli
 cup chopped asparagus
 cup chopped green beans
¼ teaspoon salt

. Place about ½ inch of water in a pot with a vegetable steamer and bring to
a boil over high heat.
. Add the chopped cauliflower, broccoli, asparagus, and green beans, and
cook until soft,  to  minutes.
. Drain the vegetables, season with the salt, and serve.

VEGETABLE STIR-FRY
SERVINGS: 4

 tablespoon coconut oil

 cup chopped green beans
 cup chopped zucchini
 carrot, chopped
 stalk celery, sliced
 cups, ribs removed, chopped kale

. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

. Add the green beans, zucchini, carrot, and celery, and stir-fry for about
 minutes.
. Add the kale, along with  tablespoons of water, lower the heat to
medium, and cook for an additional  minutes.
. Stir and serve.

171
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 172

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

ROASTED VEGETABLES
SERVINGS: 4

 pound asparagus, chopped into small pieces

 red bell peppers, seeded and chopped into small pieces
 yellow summer squash, chopped into small pieces
 zucchini, chopped into small pieces
 red onion, chopped into small pieces
 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
 teaspoon salt

. Preheat the oven to °F.

. Toss the vegetables with the olive oil and spread in a single layer on a
cookie sheet. Roast for about  minutes, until tender.
. Season with salt and serve.

SAUTÉED GREEN BEANS

SERVINGS: 3

 tablespoon butter
 cups chopped and trimmed green beans
¼ cup sliced almonds
¼ teaspoon salt

. Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat.

. Add the green beans and sauté until tender, about  minutes.
. Add the almonds, season with the salt, and serve.

SAUTÉED KALE
SERVINGS: 3

 tablespoon coconut oil

 clove garlic, minced
 pound chopped kale, ribs removed
¼ teaspoon salt

. Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat.

. Add the minced garlic and cook for about  minute.
. Add the kale and cook until bright green, about  minute.
. Add ⅓ cup of water, lower the heat, and cook for about  minutes, until
the greens are tender.
. Add the salt and serve.

172
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 173

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

ROASTED GREEN BEANS

VEGETABLE DISHES
SERVINGS: 3

 tablespoon olive oil

 pound chopped and trimmed green beans
¼ teaspoon salt

. Preheat the oven to °F.

. Spread the green beans on a cookie sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil and
toss to coat evenly. Roast for  to  minutes, until crisp-tender.
. Add the salt and serve.

OYSTER MUSHROOM, ASPARAGUS, AND ONION SAUTÉ

SERVINGS: 2

 tablespoon coconut oil

 onion, chopped
 to  cloves garlic, minced
 pound asparagus, chopped and trimmed
 cups chopped oyster mushrooms
¼ teaspoon salt

. Heat the oil in a large skillet.

. Add the chopped onion and sauté until transparent.
. Add the garlic, asparagus, and mushrooms. Lower the heat and cook,
covered, until tender, about  minutes.
. Season with the salt and serve.

CABBAGE SAUTÉED WITH APPLES AND WALNUTS

SERVINGS: 2

 tablespoon coconut oil

 cups chopped cabbage (use a mixture of red and green)
 tart apple, cored and chopped
½ cup walnut pieces

. Heat the oil in a large skillet.

. Add the cabbage and cook for  to  minutes.
. Add the chopped apple and cook until tender.
. Sprinkle with the walnut pieces and serve.

173
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 174

Fish, Chicken,
and Meat Dishes
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 175

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

GRILLED SALMON

FISH, CHICKEN, AND MEAT DISHES

SERVINGS: 1

½ pound salmon fillets

 tablespoon melted coconut oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

. Preheat a grill to medium-high.

. Coat the fillets with the coconut oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
. Cook the fish until opaque,  to  minutes on each side.
. Remove from the grill and serve.

SAUTÉED COD MARINADE

SERVINGS: 2

MARINADE:
¼ cup olive oil
 tablespoon minced garlic ( to  cloves)
 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

 fresh or frozen (thawed) cod fillets

 tablespoon coconut oil

. Combine the marinade ingredients in a bowl large enough to fit the cod

fillets.
. Place the cod fillets in the bowl and marinate overnight.
. Heat the coconut oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
. Place the cod in the skillet. Pour the marinade over the fish, cover, and
simmer for  to  minutes, until the fish is white.
. Serve.

SALMON ROLL-UPS
SERVINGS: 1

 ounces smoked salmon

 ounce raw Cheddar or Gruyère cheese

. Place the salmon fillet and cheese on a plate.

. Roll up the fish and cheese and slice into bite-size pieces.
. Secure each piece with a toothpick and serve.

175
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 176

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

SAUTÉED GIANT SHRIMP

SERVINGS: 2

¼ cup butter
 cloves garlic, minced
 pound uncooked giant shrimp, peeled and deveined
 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

. Place the butter and garlic in a large skillet over medium heat.
. Add the shrimp and cook until they turn pink, about  minutes.
. Remove from the heat, add the lemon juice, and serve.

BALSAMIC CHICKEN BREAST

SERVINGS: 2

 tablespoons coconut oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper
 chicken breasts
 cloves garlic, minced
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
⅓ cup chicken stock
 tablespoons white wine

. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

. Salt and pepper the chicken.
. Place the chicken in the pan and cook for  minutes on one side.
. Turn the chicken over, add the garlic, and cook for another  minutes.
. Lower the heat; add the balsamic vinegar, chicken stock, and wine; and
simmer for  minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed.
. Serve.

176
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 177

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

ROAST BEEF WITH CARROTS AND PEARL ONIONS

FISH, CHICKEN, AND MEAT DISHES

SERVINGS: 4 TO 6

 tablespoon coconut oil, slightly warmed

 cloves garlic, minced
 tablespoon Dijon mustard
 teaspoon dried thyme
 teaspoon dried rosemary
 teaspoon dried marjoram
½ pounds top sirloin beef
¾ cups beef broth
 cup chopped carrot (cut into bite-size chunks)
 cup pearl onions

. Preheat the oven to °F.

. Combine the oil, garlic, mustard, and herbs in a small bowl. Coat the beef
with the mixture.
. Place the beef in a baking dish and roast at °F for  minutes.
. Add the stock to the baking dish, lower the heat to °F, and roast for
about  minutes longer.
. Add the chopped carrot and pearl onions, and roast for an additional 
minutes.
. Serve.

GRILLED LAMB BURGER

SERVINGS: 3

 teaspoon ground cumin

 teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
 pound ground lamb
 tablespoon coconut oil

. Add the cumin, thyme, salt, and pepper to the ground lamb.
. Form three or four patties.
. Coat a ribbed cast-iron pan with coconut oil. Grill the patties for  to 
minutes on each side.
. Serve.

177
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 178

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

LETTUCE WRAP WITH HAM AND CHEESE

SERVINGS: 1

 slices ham
 slices hard cheese
 large romaine lettuce leaves
Mustard

. Place one slice of ham and one slice of cheese on each lettuce leaf.
. Add mustard to taste.
. Roll the lettuce around the ham and cheese, secure with a toothpick, and
serve.

178
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 179

Salads
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 180

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

GARDEN SALAD
SERVINGS: 4

 to  cups mixed hearty greens (no iceberg lettuce)

 celery stalk, chopped
 red bell pepper, sliced and seeded
 cucumber, peeled and sliced
 tomatoes, cut into wedges
 red onion, sliced
 avocado, peeled, pitted, and diced
 carrot, shredded
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
½ teaspoon salt

. Mix the lettuce and other vegetables in a large bowl.

. Whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, and salt in a small bowl.
. Pour the dressing over the salad and serve.

BAY SHRIMP SALAD

SERVINGS: 1

 cup fresh or frozen (thawed) tiny bay shrimp

 cup chopped lettuce or mixed greens
 hard-boiled egg, sliced
½ cup chopped tomato
¼ cucumber, sliced
 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon dried dill
½ teaspoon dried basil
½ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

. Mix the shrimp, lettuce, egg, tomato, and cucumber in a large bowl.
. Whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and herbs in a small bowl.
. Add the cheese, pour the dressing over the salad, and serve.

180
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 181

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

GREEK SALAD

SALADS
SERVINGS: 2

 head romaine lettuce, chopped

 tomato, chopped
½ cup sliced red onion
 cucumber, sliced
½ cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
½ teaspoon salt

. Mix the lettuce, tomato, onion, cucumber, and cheese in a large bowl.
. Whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, and salt in a small bowl.
. Pour the dressing over the salad and serve.

GRILLED CHICKEN SALAD

SERVINGS: 1

 grilled chicken breast or thigh

Garden Salad (page ) or Greek Salad (page ), reserving dressing

. Slice the chicken into long, thin pieces.

. Top your choice of salad with the chicken slices.
. Pour the dressing over the salad and serve.

181
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 182

Snacks
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 183

YOUR PRIMAL BODY EATING PLAN

KALE CHIPS

SNACKS
SERVINGS: 4

 bunch kale, ribs removed

 tablespoon olive oil
 teaspoon salt

. Preheat the oven to °F.

. Chop the kale into bite-size pieces. Drizzle with the olive oil.
. Place the kale on a cookie sheet and bake for about  minutes, or until
crisp.
. Sprinkle with the salt and serve.

183
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 184

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

SUPPLEMENTING FOR PRIMAL NUTRITION

You want to include the Super Six supplements I presented in Chapter  in round-
ing out your Primal Body diet, so that you can approximate the nutrient density
of the diet our ancestors ate. I’ve listed them here, with recommended dosages,
for your convenience.
If you are not used to taking quite as many supplements, here’s how to get
them all into your day without becoming overwhelmed and then forgetting to take
them: In the morning (or the night before), divide the total pills between three
containers—one container for each meal—and keep near your eating area. At each
of your three meals, take the portioned amount with your food.
• Omega-—enough to create a : ratio of omega- to omega-. Spread
out equally with meals.
• Vitamin D—2500 to 5,000 IU. Spread out with meals, if possible.
• Antioxidants
º Vitamin E—400 to 800 IU. Take with omega-3.
º Vitamin C—500 to 1,000 mg. Spread out equally with meals.
º Coenzyme Q10—100 mg. Take early in day, due to energizing
effect.
• Magnesium—400 to 1,000 mg. Spread out equally with meals.
• Multinutrient formula—as suggested. Take early in day due to ener-
gizing effect of B vitamins.
• Glucosamine—as needed, for painful joints. Take with or without
meals.

NEXT . . .

At the same time you are implementing your new plan for Primal Body fat loss,
nutrition, and supplementation, you can begin to initiate the physical activity sec-
tion of the Primal Body Program for the full comprehensive approach. In this next
chapter, I will show you how to design your Primal Body strength-training sessions;
metabolic activities (HIIT); and “play,” or low-intensity activities.

184
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 185

Chapter 10

Your Primal Body

Fitness Plan

In my many years of consulting with clients to design their individual plans, I

occasionally come across a person who tells me he or she only wants to have an
exercise component and is not interested in the diet. My response is that to get
all of the benefits of the program, you want to do both. Why adapt Primal move-
ment in your workout but then ignore your DNA’s requirements for fueling that
workout most efficiently?
The Primal Body Program is a fundamental and comprehensive approach that
will return your body to its Primal state—lean, fit, and healthy. Only then can you
count on getting results that will be long lasting, because what you’re doing is con-
gruent with your genetic blueprint and therefore easy and natural to maintain.
In this chapter, I will show you how to design a Primal Body Fitness Plan for
your level, and then tailor that program to fit your individual needs and goals.
For example, you may be a beginner in fitness and want to lose weight to im-
prove your health and appearance. Or you may be starting at an intermediate
level and want to build muscle so you can perform in a chosen athletic activity.
As an advanced person, you may want to train more intensely but spend less time
in the gym. All of these goals and more are possible with the Primal Body Program
and can be met by following a regimen you design with my help to achieve your
specific goals.

PRIMAL MOVEMENT AND TRAINING

Keeping in mind that we evolved to perform Primal movements, emphasizing full

body exercises, the Primal Body Program is based on this model. In our modern
world, we don’t have the same challenges that our ancestors faced (e.g., we don’t
need to carry a carcass back to camp to eat), but we can look to early humans for
the amount and types of exercise we evolved to perform and then replicate these
activity patterns in the training environment.
When designing a program for your level and goals, where do you start?
The following assessment questionnaire will help you find your entry level for

185
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 186

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

the movement/training portion of the Primal Body Program, depending on how

sedentary or active you have been. Once you have placed yourself in the level ap-
propriate to your fitness and goals, you are ready to get started.

YOUR SESSION DESIGN

The first part of your Primal Body training is a strength-training workout session
you perform either at home or at a club you join. This workout is designed accord-
ing to a template of activities to be done at each session, beginning with a mobility
drill or dynamic warm-up; followed by core strengthening, and then the mainstay
of the program, Primal movement exercises; followed by foam rolling and stretching
to keep the tissue healthy and flexible. (Refer to Chapters  and  for more detailed
descriptions of these activities.)
For easy reference, the basic four-part template for each workout session looks
like this:
. Mobility for warm-up
2. Core strengthening
3. Primal movement exercises
. Foam roll and stretch

In addition to your strength-training workout session, you want to include in

your program a segment of metabolic training, including high-intensity interval
training, as well as “play” activities. For example, an HIIT activity could consist of
sprinting uphill in intense, thirty-second bursts of movement, followed by ninety
seconds of rest, repeated X number of times (depending on your level). Another
HIIT activity is climbing a set of stadium steps rapidly, followed by a period of re-
covery, and then repeating. Low-intensity play activities would include hiking,
swimming, skating, and so on. (See Chapter  for a more detailed list of both high-
intensity interval training and low-intensity play activities.)
Here is a sample of how such a workout plus HIIT ⁄ play might look for the dif-
ferent levels.

Tier : Three strength-training sessions in the gym and two lower intensity
metabolic sessions (about forty-five minutes total), gradually building up to HIIT.
(I almost never start my Tier  people out on high-intensity intervals. Most be-
ginners are not strong enough to perform high-intensity activities but can build

186
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 187

YOUR PRIMAL BODY FITNESS PLAN

YOUR PRIMAL BODY FITNESS PLAN

Where Do I Start?
Answer the questions by assigning a value of 0 to 4. Zero is essentially “never,” 1 is
“rarely,” 2 is “sometimes,” 3 is “almost always,” and 4 is “always.” Add your total score
and use that number to place yourself in one of three levels: Tier 1—Beginner (0–12
points); Tier 2–Intermediate (13–26 points); or Tier 3—Advanced (27–40 points).
Rate your entry level for the training program:
1. Have you transformed your physique with diet and/or exercise? 01234
2. Rate your strength level. 01234
3. Have you worked with a coach or trainer? 01234
4. Rate your flexibility. 01234
5. Do you enjoy a regular physical activity for fun: skate, bike, play Frisbee? 0 1 2 3 4
6. Rate your core strength. 01234
7. Have you ever competed in sport activities? 01234
8. Rate your level of coordination. 01234
9. Are you free of physical problems that might limit your activity? 01234
10. Rate your cardiovascular fitness. 01234

My score: ______________ My Tier: ________________

up to it in time.) Lower-intensity activities include brisk walking up hills, hiking,

or cycling.

Tier : Two strength-training sessions in the gym, two HIIT sessions, and one
play session, such as light jogging at the beach or around the neighborhood, or
playing tennis.

Tier : Three strength-training sessions in the gym, two HIIT sessions on alternate
days of the week, and one low-intensity play activity, such as inline skating.
(You’ll find charts detailing all these activities on pages –.)
The foam rolling and stretching component of the template can be incorpo-
rated in a variety of ways and is useful in preparing you overall for your Primal
Body training program. Regardless of your level, when you first begin this program,
you will want to go through the entire series of Self-Myofascial Release modalities
and all of the stretches two or three times a week, to release the chronic muscular
tension and restrictions in your body (refer to Chapter ). After you have become

187
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 188

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

familiar with the SMR exercises and stretches, and you know where you store your
tension, you can probably stay loose with a few SMR exercises and stretches at the
end of each strength-training session, while periodically going through the entire
series. But if you come into a training session feeling tight, you may want to foam
roll at the beginning of the session to loosen up and then stretch after your workout,
to lengthen the muscles you put under stress while exercising and improve over-
all recovery.
All three segments of your training are important: strength training and both
types of metabolic exercise—high and low intensity. You want to design a fitness
program that includes all of these on a weekly basis. For example, Tier  performs
strength training two times weekly, HIIT twice weekly, and low-intensity play ac-
tivities once a week.
Here is one way to structure that program in your weekly calendar: Perform
strength training on Monday and Thursday; HIIT on Tuesday and Friday, and on
Saturday, low-intensity play activities. Rest on Wednesday and Sunday. It’s impor-
tant to allow at least one recovery day between strength-training sessions, and al-
ways take one day a week to rest.

SAMPLE STRENGTH-TRAINING SESSIONS

The strength-training program works just as well for high-level athletes as it does
for those who are beginning an exercise program. Men and women at all levels
experience results because all of the exercises can be modified, based on individual
fitness levels.
I’ll take you through two strength-training workouts for each of the three tiers,
so that you can see how they work. Refer to the exercise descriptions and photos
in Chapter .

188
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 189

YOUR PRIMAL BODY FITNESS PLAN

Strength Workout Session A

EQUIPMENT: BENCH, DUMBBELL (DB), MEDICINE BALL

YOUR PRIMAL BODY FITNESS PLAN

T I ER 1

COMPONENT EXERCISE SETS/REPS/TIME REST

Mobility Jumping Jacks 2 sets/10 reps 15 secs
Core Lying Hip Abduction 1 set/ 20 reps 5 secs
Core Prone Bridge 1 min hold 15 secs
Core Mountain Climbers 2 sets/10 reps 15 secs
Primal Movement Split Squat (back leg on floor) 2 sets/10 reps each 60 secs
Primal Movement One-Leg Stiff-Leg Deadlift 2 sets/12 reps each 60 secs
Primal Movement T Push-Up (hands on bench) 2 sets/6 reps each 60 secs
Primal Movement DB Prone Row (moderate weight) 2 sets/10 reps each 60 secs
Primal Movement Reverse Medicine Ball 2 sets/8 reps each 60 secs
Wood Chop (light)
Foam Roll and Stretch Problem/tight areas 10 mins

T I ER 2

COMPONENT EXERCISE SETS/REPS/TIME REST

Mobility Jumping Jacks 2 sets /15 reps 15 secs
Core Lying Hip Abduction 1 set/ 25 reps 15 secs
Core Prone Bridge (one leg) 1 min hold each 15 secs
Core Mountain Climbers 2 sets/15 reps 15 secs
Primal Movement DB Split Squat (back leg on bench) 2–3 sets/8 reps each 60 secs

Primal Movement One-Leg Stiff-Leg Deadlift (DB 2–3 sets/8 reps each 60 secs
in opposite hand of working leg)

Primal Movement T Push-Up (hands on floor) 2–3 sets/6 reps each 60 secs

Primal Movement DB Prone Row (heavy weight) 2–3 sets/10 reps each 60 secs

Primal Movement Reverse Medicine Ball Wood Chop 2–3 sets/8 reps each 60 secs
(moderate weight)

Foam Roll and Stretch Problem/tight areas 10 mins

189
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 190

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

T I ER 3

COMPONENT EXERCISE SETS/REPS/TIME REST

Mobility Jumping Jacks 2 sets /20 reps 15 secs
Core Lying Hip Abduction 1 set/ 35 reps 15 secs
Core Prone Bridge (opposite arm/leg) 1 minute hold each 15 secs
Core Mountain Climbers 2 sets/ 25 reps 15 secs
Primal Movement Split Squat (DB on opposite 3 sets/12 reps 60 secs
shoulder of working leg)

Primal Movement One-Leg Stiff-Leg Deadlift (DB in 3 sets/8 reps each 60 secs
opposite hand of working leg)

Primal Movement T Push-Up (hands on floor) 3 sets/10 reps each 60 secs

Primal Movement DB Prone Row (heavy weight) 3 sets/5 reps each 60 secs

Primal Movement Reverse Medicine Ball 3 sets/8 reps each 60 secs

Wood Chop (heavy)

Foam Roll and Stretch Problem/tight areas 10 mins

NOTES

190
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 191

YOUR PRIMAL BODY FITNESS PLAN

Strength Workout Session B

EQUIPMENT: KETTLEBELLS (KB), STABILITY BALL, STEP, PULL-UP BAR, BAND

YOUR PRIMAL BODY FITNESS PLAN

T I ER 1

COMPONENT EXERCISE SETS/REPS/TIME REST

Mobility Joint Rotations 8 rotations each 15 secs

Core Single-Leg Glute Bridge 1 set/12 reps 15 secs

(use two legs)

Core Side Bridge (bottom knee bent) 1 set/20 reps 15 secs

Core Stability Ball Plank 30-sec hold 15 secs

Primal Movement Step-Ups (low step) 2 sets/12 reps 60 secs

Primal Movement KB Military Press (light) 2 sets/6 reps 60 secs

Primal Movement Pull-Up (with band) 2 sets/5 reps 60 secs

Primal Movement Lateral Lunge 2 sets/8 reps 60 secs

Primal Movement KB Swing (light) 2 sets/10 reps 60 secs

Foam Roll and Stretch Problem/tight areas 10 mins

T I ER 2

COMPONENT EXERCISE SETS/REPS/TIME REST

Mobility Joint Rotations 8 rotations each 15 secs
Core Single-Leg Glute Bridge 1 set/12 reps 15 secs
Core Side Bridge 60-sec hold each 15 secs
Core Stability Ball Jackknife 1 set/15 reps 15 secs
Primal Movement DB Step-Ups (medium step) 2–3 sets/12 reps 60 secs
Primal Movement KB Military Press (moderate) 2–3 sets/6 reps 60 secs
Primal Movement Pull-Up 2–3 sets/8 reps 60 secs
Primal Movement Lateral Lunge 2–3 sets/8 reps 60 secs
Primal Movement KB Swing 3/30-sec intervals 30 secs
Foam Roll and Stretch Problem/tight areas 10 mins
191
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 192

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

T I ER 3

COMPONENT EXERCISE SETS/REPS/TIME REST

Mobility Joint Rotations 8 rotations each 15 secs
Core Single-Leg Glute Bridge 1 set/12 reps each 15 secs
(one leg/3 steps up)
Core Side Bridge 90-sec hold each 15 secs
Core Stability Ball Jackknife (w/push-up) 2 sets/10 reps 15 secs
Primal Movement DB Step-Ups (high step) 3 sets/12 reps 60 secs
Primal Movement KB Military Press (heavy) 3 sets/8 reps 60 secs
Primal Movement Pull-Up 3 sets/12 reps 60 secs
Primal Movement KB Lateral Lunge (bell at chest) 3 sets/8 reps each 60 secs
Primal Movement KB Swing 5/30-sec intervals 30 secs
Foam Roll and Stretch Problem/tight areas 10 mins

NOTES

192
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 193

YOUR PRIMAL BODY FITNESS PLAN

HIIT/PLAY TRAINING PROGRAM

YOUR PRIMAL BODY FITNESS PLAN

I offer two methods of HIIT: intervals and metabolic resistance circuits:

Intervals consist of sprinting uphill, for example, in intense, -second bursts of

movement, followed by thirty to ninety seconds of rest, repeated X number of
times (depending on your level). This is a basically a fifteen- to-twenty-minute
workout consisting of eight to fifteen sprints, with brief rests in between. Keep in
mind that the goal is intensity, not duration. You want to sprint as hard and fast
as you can, not hold back or pace to “save yourself ” so you can do more.
Intervals can be done in the activities of swimming, inline skating, running,
power walking, cycling, or running the bleachers at your local college or high
school track. You can also use your favorite cardio machine—the stair stepper,
treadmill, cycle, or elliptical trainer—for interval training.

Primal metabolic resistance circuits consist of a series of exercises using timed

sets of thirty to sixty seconds for each exercise, then resting for fifteen to thirty
seconds before performing the next movement. Perform the entire circuit three
times with ninety seconds of rest between each round. Try to do as many reps as
possible within the time frame. (See Chapter  for a description of each exercise).

HIIT (SPRINTING UPHILL) INTERVALS WORK/REST

Tier 1 8 30 secs/90 secs
Tier 2 8–10 30 secs/60 secs
Tier 3 10–15 30 secs/30 secs

193
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 194

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Metabolic Resistance Circuit A

EQUIPMENT: KETTLEBELL, MEDICINE BALL, BENCH

T I ER 1

EXERCISE WORK/REST*
Prison Bodyweight Squats (hands on head) 30 secs/30 secs
Kettlebell Swing 30 secs/30 secs
T Push-Up (hands in bench) 30 secs/30 secs
Reverse Medicine Ball Wood Chop 30 secs/30 secs
Mountain Climbers 30 secs/30 secs
*Rest for 90 seconds and repeat for a total of 3 rounds.

T I ER 2

EXERCISE WORK/REST*
Prison Bodyweight Squats (hands on head) 45 secs/15 secs
Kettlebell Swing 45 secs/15 secs
T Push-Up 45 secs/15 secs
Reverse Medicine Ball Wood Chop 45 secs/15 secs
Mountain Climbers 45 secs/15 secs
*Rest for 90 seconds and repeat for a total of 3 rounds.

T I ER 3

EXERCISE WORK/REST*
Prison Bodyweight Squats (hands on head) 60 secs/15 secs
Kettlebell Swing 60 secs/15 secs
T Push-Up 60 secs/15 secs
Reverse Medicine Ball Wood Chop 60 secs/15 secs
Mountain Climbers 60 secs/15 secs
*Rest for 90 seconds and repeat for a total of 3 rounds.

194
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 195

YOUR PRIMAL BODY FITNESS PLAN

Metabolic Resistance Circuit B

EQUIPMENT: STEP, KETTLEBELL, MEDICINE BALL, STABILITY BALL

YOUR PRIMAL BODY FITNESS PLAN

T I ER 1

EXERCISE WORK/REST*
Split Squat (rear foot on floor) 30 secs/30 secs
Kettlebell Swing 30 secs/30 secs
Reverse Medicine Ball Wood Chop 30 secs/30 secs
Lunge Jumps 30 secs/30 secs
Stability Ball Jackknife 30 secs/30 secs
*Rest for 90 seconds and repeat for a total of 3 rounds.

T I ER 2

EXERCISE WORK/REST*
Split Squat (rear foot on step) 45 secs/15 secs
Kettlebell Swing 45 secs/15 secs
Reverse Medicine Ball Wood Chop 45 secs/15 secs
Lunge Jumps 45 secs/15 secs
Stability Ball Jackknife 45 secs/15 secs
*Rest for 90 seconds and repeat for a total of 3 rounds.

T I ER 3

EXERCISE WORK/REST*
Split Squat (rear foot on step) 60 secs/15 secs
Kettlebell Swing 60 secs/15 secs
Reverse Medicine Ball Wood Chop 60 secs/15 secs
Lunge Jumps 60 secs/15 secs
Stability Ball Jackknife 60 secs/15 secs
*Rest for 90 seconds and repeat for a total of 3 rounds.

195
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 196

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Low-intensity “play” activities include walking, hiking, easy cycling, or whatever

you enjoy. The emphasis is on enjoyment! (See Chapter  for more suggestions.)

T I ER 1 PRO GRAM

WEEK SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

1 Off Strength Brisk Strength Cycling Strength Off

Workout A walking Workout B Workout A
uphill
2 Off Strength Inline Strength Metabolic Strength Off
Workout B skating Workout A Resistance Workout B
Circuit or
sprints

T I ER 2 PRO GRAM

WEEK SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

1 Off Strength Metabolic Off Strength High- workout

Workout A Resistance Workout B intensity Jogging
Circuit A sprints
2 Off Strength High- Strength Metabolic Frisbee
Workout A intensity Off Workout B Resistance
sprints Circuit B

T I ER 3 PRO GRAM

WEEK SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

1 Off Strength Metabolic Strength High- Strength Dance

Workout A Resistance Workout B intensity Workout A class
Circuit A sprints
2 Off Strength High- Strength Metabolic Strength Tennis
Workout B intensity Workout A Resistance Workout B
sprints Circuit B

196
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 197

Chapter 11

Your Primal Body

for Life

MEASURING YOUR RESULTS

Keeping your eye on the results produced by sticking to your new program is an
important way to know beyond a doubt that what you’re doing is working. It will
also help you stay motivated.
I recommend that you monitor your results and get involved with the outcomes
you are causing. If you became the proud owner of a new Ferrari, for example,
wouldn’t you be meticulous about checking oils and fluids, getting the proper tune-
ups and tests?

Blood work is one of the most valuable tools western medicine has to offer. It can
provide an accurate measurement of the changes your body goes through when
you alter your nutrition and⁄or exercise program, the level of inflammation in your
body, how well you are aging, and how well you are managing your stress. I rec-
ommend getting blood work done before embarking on the program, and then
annually along the way.
Staying on top of your blood work is another way (in addition to a Primal diet
and exercise) that you can begin to take an active role in your health. With today’s
health-care system, I believe that you have to be your own best advocate; you can’t
depend on your doctor.
Some of the standard tests most doctors order include total cholesterol, HDL
cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, glucose, and triglycerides, which you are probably
familiar with. But you’ll want to request tests for LDL particle size, C-reactive pro-
tein (CRP), and glycated hemoglobin, in addition to the basics he ⁄ she recommends.
(I will discuss these less familiar tests.)
In looking at the lipid panel, there are a couple of key values you’ll want to pay
attention to. According to Dr. Michael Eades, the lipid parameters of most impor-
tance in determining risk for heart disease are triglyceride and HDL levels. In par-
ticular, the best indicator of health is a low triglyceride-to-HDL ratio (TGL ⁄ HDL);
below  is considered ideal.
197
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 198

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

Triglycerides are a measure of circulating blood fats. When your liver and
muscles are full of glucose, the excess glucose is converted to fat in the liver
and stored in the body as adipose tissue. If your triglyceride levels are high, you
can be pretty sure you are eating too much carbohydrate, and you may be moving
in the direction of insulin resistance and disease. So, you want to keep this value
low. The reference range on the lab results suggests a level under  mg/dl. I have
found that many who follow the Primal Body Program have values under  mg/dl.
HDL is the good cholesterol; it carries cholesterol away from the arteries and back
to the liver to be excreted away from the body in bile. You want to keep this value
high, above  mg ⁄ dl or better.
LDL cholesterol is the bad cholesterol (think L for lousy), the kind that deposits
cholesterol on the artery walls, which can lead to a narrowing of the arteries and
increase the risk for heart disease. But remember, all LDL particles are not equal;
the large, fluffy particles are harmless, whereas the small, dense particles do more
damage. The small, hard kind of LDL cholesterol (associated with elevated triglyc-
eride levels) is believed to be the cause of atherosclerosis, since the small, dense
particles can squeeze between tiny gaps in the arterial walls and get stuck to cause
harmful buildup of plaque. The large, fluffy kind of LDL cholesterol is not ather-
osclerotic and therefore does not predict heart disease. Because of these differences,
it is important to note that particle size predicts the risk for heart disease more
accurately than simply measuring your total LDL cholesterol.
In Chapter  on the anti-inflammatory diet, I discussed the importance of
controlling inflammation in your body. Testing for C-reactive protein measures
the overall level of inflammation in your body. High levels of CRP are often caused
by infections and/or chronic disease.
The glycated hemoglobin test measures the amount of sugar that is sticking
to your red blood cells. As this measure is related to the age of the red blood cells,
it determines the average glucose level over the previous two to three months, as
compared to a glucose blood test, which reflects your glucose measurement over
the previous twelve hours.
One reason the glycated hemoglobin test is so valuable is that if glucose is
sticking to your red blood cells, you can be sure that it is also sticking to your pro-
teins. You may recall our discussion of advanced glycation end products (AGEs)
in Chapter  and how, through a process of cross-linking, they cause intercellular
damage, resulting in age-related disease. This test measures not only your glucose
levels but also the level of AGEs in your body, which are associated with loss of

198
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 199

YOUR PRIMAL BODY FOR LIFE

vision, reduced muscular function, Alzheimer’s, cardiovascular disease, and many

other conditions.

Body composition measurement: One of the best ways to determine your level
of fitness is to measure your body composition. The human body is composed of
lean body mass—metabolically active tissue, such as bones, muscles, the brain,
and organs—and fat or adipose tissue, which is nonmetabolically active tissue.
Most people use a standard scale to measure weight, but the scale does not
tell you the ratio of your lean body mass to fat. Why is this ratio important? Because
an athlete with  percent body fat may be considered overweight, according to a
standard weight chart, when he is actually in excellent condition—his lean body
mass–to–fat ratio is very good.
Hydrostatic (underwater) weighing, in which an individual is weighed while
submerged in a large tank of water, is considered the gold standard for measuring
body composition. But because this method is impractical, I prefer skinfold mea-
surements, using a body fat caliper (which can be purchased at http//fitnesstrans
form.com/store/) and entering the data into the formulas provided on my website
at http://fitnesstransform.com/assessment_of_body_composition/.
What is the ideal percentage of body fat? Women tend to carry more body fat
than do men, and most fitness professionals consider  to  percent to be excellent
for women; and  to  percent is considered good. For men,  to  percent is
considered excellent; and  to  percent is considered good. Over  percent for
women and over  percent for men would be considered excessive. If you are
sedentary (Tier ), you may have  percent, if you are male, and  percent, if
you are female.

Photos: Amazingly, many people who start a fitness and ⁄ or nutritional program
never take “before” photos. This is a step I never miss with my new clients (as long
as they agree) because photos clearly document the clients’ progress.
Once you have the before photo, you might want to update that photo every
month, every three months, once a year, or when you have reached your goal. I
like to start with a before photo and a baseline body composition measure. Then
I’ll measure percentage of body fat and take a “progress” photo every three months,
when I see changes, or when the client requests it. The changes in body compo-
sition and/or the visible progress from photos can be extremely motivating.

199
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 200

YOUR PRIMAL BODY

STAYING INSPIRED AND MOTIVATED

Designing and implementing a Primal Body Fitness Program is a first step toward
a lifelong transformation of your body and health. Congratulations! Along the way,
it’s natural that you may become discouraged and occasionally relapse—you’re
only human! To stay on track and maintain your newly transformed body, you
must find ways to keep motivated and inspired.

Find support. One of the keys to success is to surround yourself with people who
are living the Primal lifestyle. I encourage you to interact with my website, http://
fitnesstransform.com/, for support and motivation.

Work with a personal trainer. Scientific research supports that working with a
trainer is highly beneficial. A recent study compared the effects of exercising with
a trainer, to exercising without one but getting advice. In this four-month study,
one group met with a trainer twice a week; the other group received advice about
training and had access to a fully equipped gym but lacked supervised instruction.
The researchers found that members of the group that worked with the trainer
lost almost  pounds more fat—a total of . pounds while the unsupervised
group lost only . pounds each. And this was without any changes in diet.
So if you are serious about changing your body, consider hiring a coach—
someone who can help you reach your goals. I find that most people need advice.
They also need someone to be accountable to. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve
heard the words “If you weren’t standing there, I’d never do this.”
So how do you find a good trainer? What do you look for? Obviously, a trainer
must have knowledge. One of the more rigorous certifications to look for is the
National Strength and Conditioning Association’s (NSCA) Certified Strength
and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS). This certification requires the trainer to
have at least a bachelor’s degree to qualify for the test, and it ensures that the
trainer/coach has a basic understanding of biomechanics, exercise physiology,
and program design.
You also want to look for a trainer who uses foot-based, functional/Primal
movements in combination with high-intensity interval training to build muscle
and burn fat. This is the best way to reach your goals following the Primal Body
Program, not the more traditional approach of isolating muscles on machines and
low-intensity cardiovascular training emphasized in so many gyms.

200
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 201

YOUR PRIMAL BODY FOR LIFE

One thing you want to be aware of is that the fitness industry is not standard-
ized. Because of this, you as a consumer are vulnerable to rip-offs. Fit-looking
trainers with fly-by-night certifications are ubiquitous. If you do decide you want
to work with a trainer, do your research and make sure that whoever you hire is
qualified to help you.

If you can’t afford a personal trainer . . . If for whatever reason, working with
a personal trainer on a weekly basis isn’t for you, then consider hiring a coach once
per month and use him or her as a consultant to design your monthly fitness pro-
gram. Maybe you have a friend with some knowledge of fitness, with whom you
can work out to explore the Primal Body Program laid out in this book. And then
again, perhaps you want to go it on your own. The good news is that all of these
approaches will lead to success if you make the commitment and follow through.
Then one day, when you’ve reached your health and fitness goals, you’ll look back
to the day when you first started, hopefully marked by a photo of the former you,
and realize how far you’ve come.

LOOKING AHEAD . . .

In the fitness world, the first six weeks of your training is known as the “drawing-
in” period. Somewhere between the third and sixth week, a wonderful metamor-
phosis takes place. You no longer think of going to the gym as something you must
do, or your new diet as something you must eat. Instead, the new habits become
a welcome way of life, an essential part of who you are. This is because you begin
to notice small changes, physically and/or psychologically, which are motivating
and make you want to continue.
The Primal Body Program is not difficult—you can commit to it for at least
six weeks, letting yourself be drawn in to a new way of living life. Anyone can do
it and achieve the birthright benefits of Your Primal Body.
How about you?

201
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 202
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 203

Appendix A: Primal Resources

La Chamba cookware for the ancestral diet

www.mytoque.com

Slimguide Body Fat Caliper

www.fitnesstransform.com/store/

High-Density Foam Roller

www.fitnesstransform.com/store/

The Grid
www.PerformBetter.com

Glycemic index/load
www.mendosa.com/gilists.htm

Kettlebells
www.dragondoor.com

Paleo information
www.paleodiet.com
www.robbwolf.com
www.arthurdevany.com

Nutrition information
www.nutritiondata.self.com/

203
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 204
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 205

Appendix B:
Bibliography and Recommended Books

Boyle, Michael. Functional Training for Sports. Human Kinetics, .

Cordain, Loren, PhD. The Paleo Diet: Lose Weight and Get Healthy by Eating the
Foods You Were Designed to Eat. John Wiley & Sons, .
De Vany, Arthur. The New Evolution Diet: What Our Paleolithic Ancestors Can
Teach Us About Weight Loss, Fitness, and Aging. Rodale, .
Eades, Michael, MD, and Mary Dan Eades, MD. The Protein Power Lifeplan: A
New Comprehensive Blueprint for Optimal Health. Grand Central Publishing,
.
Gedgaudas, Nora T. Primal Body, Primal Mind: Beyond the Paleo Diet for Total
Health and a Longer Life. Healing Arts Press, .
Keith, Lierre. The Vegetarian Myth: Food, Justice, and Sustainability. PM Press,
.
Price, Weston A., DDS. Nutrition and Physical Degeneration. Price Pottenger Nu-
trition, ; th edition, .
Ryan, Christopher, and Cacilda Jetha. Sex at Dawn: How We Mate, Why We Stray,
and What It Means for Modern Relationships. HarperCollins, .
Taubes, Gary. Good Calories, Bad Calories: Challenging the Conventional Wisdom
on Diet, Weight Control, and Disease. Alfred A. Knopf, .
———Why We Get Fat: And What to Do About It. Alfred A. Knopf, .
Tsatsouline, Pavel. Enter The Kettlebell! Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen.
Dragon Door Publications, .

205
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 206
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 207

Endnotes

CHAPTER 1
. “Unearthing Prehistoric Tumors, and Debate,” New York Times, December ,
.
. S. B. Eaton and L. Cordain, “Evolutionary Health Promotion: A Consideration
of Common Counter-Arguments,” Preventive Medicine  (): –; L. Cor-
dain, R. W. Gotshall, and S. B. Eaton, “Physical Activity, Energy Expenditure and
Fitness: An Evolutionary Perspective,” International Journal of Sports Medicine ,
no.  (): –.

CHAPTER 2
. Richard D. Feinman et al., “Thermodynamics and Metabolic Advantage of
Weight Loss Diets,” Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders , no.  ().
. Michael R. Eades, MD, www.proteinpower.com/drmike.
. S. Boyd Eaton, Loren Cordain, and Phillip B. Sparling, “Evolution, Body Com-
position, Insulin Receptor Competition, and Insulin Resistance,” Preventive Med-
icine  (): –.
. According to studies on exercise afterburn from a review by Dr. Len Kravitz
and Chantal A. Vella, heavy resistance training elicits greater EPOC, when com-
pared to aerobic cycling, lower intensity circuit training, and low-intensity aerobic
exercise. Elliot et al. () studied the difference in EPOC between aerobic cycling
( minutes at  percent heart rate max), circuit training ( sets,  exercises, 
reps at  percent RM), and heavy resistance training ( sets,  exercises,  to 
reps at  to  percent RM) and found that heavy resistance training produced
the greatest EPOC, compared with circuit training and cycling. Gilette et al. ()
compared resistance training ( sets,  exercises,  to  reps at  percent RM)
to aerobic exercise ( percent VO max for  minutes) and found that the re-
sistance training produced a significantly greater EPOC response. Thornton and
Potteiger () compared the effects of a high-intensity ( sets,  reps,  percent
RM) to low-intensity ( sets,  reps,  percent RM) resistance training and
found a significantly greater EPOC with the high-intensity program.
But high-intensity resistance training is not the only way to elicit EPOC. High-
intensity interval training produces a significant afterburn, as well. Laforgia et al.
() compared the effects of a continuous run ( minutes at  percent VO

207
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 208

ENDNOTES

max) to an interval run ( bouts of -minute duration at  percent VO max)
and found significantly greater EPOC following the intermittent bouts of exercise.
Kaminski et al. () also found significantly greater EPOC in comparing an in-
termittent bout of exercise (two -minute sessions at  percent VO max) to a
continuous bout of exercise (-minute continuous run at  percent VO max).

CHAPTER 3
. “Glucose Restriction to Enhance Longevity,” http://www.sciencedaily.com/
releases///.htm.
. R. Anson et al., “Intermittent Fasting Dissociates Beneficial Effects of Dietary
Restriction on Glucose Metabolism and Neuronal Resistance to Injury from Calorie
Intake” (), http://www.pnas.org/content///.full.
. F.W. Booth, “Exercise and Gene Expression: Physiological Regulation of the
Human Genome Through Physical Activity” (), http://jp.physoc.org/content/
//.full.
. “The Incredible Flying Nonagenarian” http://www.nytimes.com////
magazine/athletes-t.html?pagewanted=all.
. Simon Melov et al., “Resistance Exercise Reverses Aging in Human Skeletal
Muscle” ().
. See Stevo Ledbetter, http://coachstevo.com/blog////hard-style
-kettlebells-and-benefits-for-female-sexual-respon.html.

CHAPTER 4
. Greg Wadley and Angus Martin, “The Origins of Agriculture: A Biological
Perspective and a New Hypothesis,” Australian Biologist (June ): –,
http://ranprieur.com/readings/origins.html.
. G. D. Brinkworth et al., “Long-Term Effects of a Very-Low-Carbohydrate
Weight Loss Diet Compared with an Isocaloric Low-Fat Diet After  Months,”
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (July ): –.
. Michael R. Eades, www.proteinpower.com/drmike.
. E. L. Knight et al., “The Impact of Protein Intake on Renal Function Decline
in Women with Normal Renal Function or Mild Renal Insufficiency,” Annals of
Internal Medicine (March ): –; J. R. Poortmans et al., “Do Regular
High Protein Diets Have Potential Health Risks on Kidney Function in Athletes?”
International Journal of Sport Nutrition (March ): –.

CHAPTER 5
. S. B. Eaton, S. B. Eaton III, and M. J. Konner, “Paleolithic Nutrition Revisited:
Twelve Year Retrospective on Its Nature and Implications,” European Journal of
Clinical Nutrition  (): –.

208
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 209

ENDNOTES

. Y. Li, C. Wang, K. Zhu, et al., “Effects of Multivitamin and Mineral Supple-

mentation on Adiposity, Energy Expenditure and Lipid Profiles in Obese Chinese
Women,” International Journal of Obesity (London) , no.  (June ): –
; February , , http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/.
. Gedgaudas, Primal Body, Primal Mind, .
. Workshop “The Essentiality of and Recommended Dietary Intakes for Omega-
 and Omega- Fatty Acids,” held in Bethesda, Maryland, and reported in the Jour-
nal of the American College of Nutrition , no. , (): –, http://www
.jacn.org/cgi/content/full///.
. Kelly L. Weaver, Priscilla Ivester, Michael C. Seeds, L. Douglas Case, Jonathan
Arm, and Floyd H. Chilton, et al., “Omega Fatty Acid Balance Can Alter Immunity
and Gene Expression,” Journal of Biological Chemistry  (June , ): ,–
, http://www.jbc.org/content///.abstract; http://www.eurekalert.org/
pub_releases/–/asfb-ofa.php.
. See http://www.westonaprice.org/fat-soluble-activators/miracle-of-vitamin-d.
. See http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/.

CHAPTER 7
. Michael Boyle, Functional Training for Sports (Place:: Publisher, Year), Page#.
. Paul Chek, http://www.chekinstitute.com.

CHAPTER 8
. E. G. Trapp, and S. H. Boutcher, “Fat Loss Following  Weeks of High Intensity,
Intermittent Cycle Ergometer Training,” University of South Wales, Sydney, Aus-
tralia, .
. M. D. Schuenke, R. P. Mikat, and J. M. McBride, “Effect of an Acute Period of
Resistance Exercise on Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption: Implications
for Body Mass Management,” European Journal of Applied Physiology  ():
–.
. I. Tabata, K. Nishimura, M. Kouzaki, et al., “Effects of Moderate-Intensity En-
durance and High-Intensity Intermittent Training on Anaerobic Capacity and VO
Max,” Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise , no.  (): –.
. Ryan E. Farrar, Jerry L. Mayhew, and Alexander J. Koch, “Oxygen Cost of Ket-
tlebell Swings,” Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research  no.  (April ):
–.

CHAPTER 11
. See S. P. Nicolaï et al., “Supervised Exercise Versus Non-Supervised Exercise
for Reducing Weight in Obese Adults,” Journal of Sports and Medical Physical Fit-
ness , no.  (March ): –.

209
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 210
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 211

Acknowledgments

I wish to thank my clients, first and foremost, who have shared this fitness journey
with me. Thank you for trusting me with your body and your fitness. Working
with you has given me the experience that enabled me to write this book. Thanks,
too, for those who have let me share their stories in this book.
Thank you to Art De Vany for writing his essay, “Evolutionary Fitness” (),
which greatly inspired me and completely transformed my thinking on health
and fitness.
Thank you to my editor, Nancy Marriott, for showing me how to develop my
ideas into a book and for getting it into the hands of my agent. This book would
not have happened without your help.
Many thanks to my agent David Nelson at Waterside for finding a great pub-
lishing home for my book, Perseus Books.
To my editor at Perseus, Renée Sedliar, and the folks at Da Capo Press, thank
you for transforming my manuscript into a book and getting it onto bookshelves
everywhere.
Thank you to my model, Tawnnie Pingle, who literally walked into my studio
when I was wondering where to find a fitness model for photos.
Thank you to my fellow fitness professionals and associates. I have learned a
great deal from all of you along the way. Some of you are mentioned in this book.
And to my mom, Cecelia Reilly, who encouraged me to get an education. Thank
you for all your support.

211
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 212
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 213

Conversion Chart
General Formula for Metric Conversion
Ounces to grams Multiply ounces by 28.35
Grams to ounces Multiply grams by 0.035
Pounds to grams Multiply pounds by 453.5
Pounds to kilograms Multiply pounds by 0.45
Cups to liters Multiply cups by 0.24
Fahrenheit to Celsius Subtract 32 from Fahrenheit temperature, multiply by 5,
divide by 9
Celsius to Fahrenheit Multiply Celsius temperature by 9, divide by 5, add 32

Volume (Dry) Measurements

¼ teaspoon = 1 milliliter ½ cup = 118 milliliters
½ teaspoon = 2 milliliters ²∕³ cup = 158 milliliters
¾ teaspoon = 4 milliliters ¾ cup = 177 milliliters
1 teaspoon = 5 milliliters 1 cup = 225 milliliters
1 tablespoon = 15 milliliters 4 cups or 1 quart = 1 liter
¼ cup = 59 milliliters ½ gallon = 2 liters
¹∕³ cup = 79 milliliters 1 gallon = 4 liters

Volume (Liquid) Measurements Oven Temperature

1 teaspoon = ¹∕6 fluid ounce = 5 milliliters Equivalents
Fahrenheit (F) and Celsius (C)
1 tablespoon = ½ fluid ounce = 15 milliliters
2 tablespoons = 1 fluid ounce = 30 milliliters 100°F = 38°C
¼ cup = 2 fluid ounces = 60 milliliters 200°F = 95°C
¹∕³ cup = 2²∕³ fluid ounces = 79 milliliters 250°F = 120°C
½ cup = 4 fluid ounces = 118 milliliters 300°F = 150°C
1 cup or ½ pint = 8 fluid ounces = 250 milliliters 350°F = 180°C
2 cups or 1 pint = 16 fluid ounces = 500 milliliters 400°F = 205°C
4 cups or 1 quart = 32 fluid ounces = 1,000 milliliters 450°F = 230° C
1 gallon = 4 liters
Linear Measurements
Weight (Mass) Measurements ½ inch = 1¹∕³ cm
1 ounce = 30 grams 1 inch = 2½ cm
2 ounces = 55 grams 6 inches = 15 cm
3 ounces = 85 grams 8 inches = 20 cm
4 ounces = ¼ pound = 125 grams 10 inches = 25 cm
8 ounces = ½ pound = 240 grams 12 inches = 30 cm
12 ounces = ¾ pound = 375 grams 20 inches = 50 cm
16 ounces = 1 pound = 454 grams

213
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 214
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 215

About the Author

Professional certified fitness trainer Mikki Reilly has been teaching people about
fitness for twenty years. A one-time competing bodybuilder, she brings her wealth
of experience to helping people of all ages lose weight and become fit.
Mikki graduated from the University of California at Santa Barbara with de-
grees in both exercise and health science, and communication. She earned the
highly esteemed certified strength and conditioning specialist (CSCS) credential
from the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) and the master
of fitness sciences (MFS) from the International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA).
Mikki was awarded the ISSA Distinguished Achievement Award, which sig-
nifies placement in the top  percent of certified trainers worldwide. C Magazine’s
January/February  issue named her as one of the top ten fitness gurus in Cal-
ifornia. She was featured in The Complete Guide to Fiscal Fitness: The Business
Guide for Personal Trainers published by the ISSA. In addition, she took the Russian
Kettlebell Challenge with Pavel Tsatsouline and became RKC certified. Eighteen
months later, she was invited back to assist with instructing trainers and coaches
in this elite method.
A proponent and practitioner herself of what evolutionary theorists call the
“Paleo” approach, Mikki is a trainer who walks her talk. She adopted the Primal
Body lifestyle ten years ago and has never looked back. Today, she’s a living example
of the benefits available and has inspired and trained a long list of clients who have
gotten remarkable results from following her diet and exercise recommendations.
As a highly certified trainer, working daily with people to support them accom-
plishing their fitness goals, she has a unique vantage point to see what works and
what doesn’t. This perspective allows her to tailor her programs to men and women
with a variety of goals and conditions in any age group.
Mikki is also an experienced speaker and writer, presenting recently on health
and longevity at the Santa Barbara  Women’s Festival. Her articles have been
published in Santa Barbara Fitness Magazine; Med Fit, a personal training trade
journal for ISSA; and the Balance Bar Newsletter. Additionally, she served on the
Balance Health Science Advisory Board and on Metrx’s World’s Best Personal
Trainer Advisory Staff.
215
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 216

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mikki lives in Santa Barbara, California, where she owns and operates her own
fitness studio, Fitness Transform. When not training clients, she can be found en-
joying the outdoors and staying fit by hiking and skating, among other activities.
For more information, please visit www.yourprimalbody.com.

216
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 217

Index

Abdominals, stretch for, 99 Back

Acid-alkaline balance, 63 exercises for, 96
Adductor stretch for, 101
exercise for, 94 Beef, grass-fed, 54
stretch for, 100 Beta-carotene, 56
Adenosine triphosphate, 17, 139 Blood work, suggested tests,
Adhesions, 89 197–199
Advanced glycation end products, Body composition
56 insulin sensitivity and, 30–31
Aerobics measurement of, 199
defined, 141 Body fat caliper, 199
gaining weight with, 142 Bone density, exercise and, 63
“play” activities, 148 Boutcher, Stephen H., 143
vs. high-intensity training, Boyle, Michael, 107, 109
137–139
vs. kettlebells, 147–148
Aerobics (Cooper), 137 C. elegans, 38
Afterburn, 10, 32–33 C-reactive protein, 198
Aging Calcium, 62–63, 80–81
glycation theory of, 56 Calf muscles
mitochondrial dysfunction and, 42 exercise for, 95
reversal of, 45–47 stretch for, 100
Agriculture, origin of, 58–59 Caloric deficit, 22, 155
Anaerobic/HIIT movement, defined, Caloric restriction
141 CRON (caloric restriction with
Animal protein and fat, in Primal optimal nutrition), 37
diet, 55 longevity and, 36–37
Antioxidants, 56, 78–80, 184 uncomfortable effects of, 39
Arachidonic acid, 53 Carbohydrates
Atherosclerosis, 61, 198 intake of, 155
Atkins, Robert, 4 unhealthful effects of, 21, 26, 51
Atkins diet, 4 Cartilage, 82–83
ATP-CP energy pathway, 140 Castelli, William, 60

217
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 218

INDEX

Certified Strength and Conditioning “Evolutionary Fitness” (De Vany), 9,

Specialist, 200 149
Chek, Paul, 109 Excess postexercise oxygen
Cholesterol consumption (EPOC), 32–33,
saturated fat and, 60–62 143
tests for, 197–198 Exercise
Civilization, diseases of, 6, 51 aerobicanaerobic, 78
Coenzyme Q10, 80, 184 aging and, 45–47
Compression of morbidity, 35 bone density and, 63
ConsumerLab.com, 71 importance of, 31
Cooper, Kenneth, 137 longevity and, 41–43
Cordain, Loren, 4–5, 8, 30–31 pain, causes of, 87–88
Core Primal, 29–30
exercises for, 117–120 sexual vitality and, 44–45
stabilization of, 114–116 Exorphins, 59
Creatine phosphate, 140
CRON (caloric restriction with
optimal nutrition), 37 Fasting
intermittent, 39–41
study of, 40–41
DAF-2 gene, 38 Fat, burning, 10, 22–25, 29–30,
Dairy foods 142–143
as opiate, 59 Fat-loss meal plans, 160–162
in Primal Diet, 57, 156 Fats
De Vany, Arthur, 9, 24, 36, 43, 142, bad, 52–53, 55
149 good, 54–55
Diet, comparison of in native and in Primal Diet, 55, 157
modern societies, 11–12 Flexibility
Diseases, civilization-related, 6, 51 defined, 97
DNA, human, evolution of, 5, 18 exercises for, 97–102
Dynamic weight stage, 28–29 Foam roller
exercises, 93–96
use of, 90
Eades, Mary Dan, 55, 77, 78 Fonda, Jane, 137
Eades, Michael R., 28–29, 55, 61, 62, Food journal
77, 78, 197 guidelines for, 157
Energy, pathways of, 139–140 sample entries for, 157–158
Enig, Mary, 60 Framingham Heart Study, 60
EPOC (excess postexercise oxygen Free radicals, 78
consumption), 32–33 Fries, James, 35

218
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 219

INDEX

Fructose, 56 Heart disease, saturated fat and,

Fruit, in Primal Diet, 56, 156 60–61
Functional training Herbal teas, 156
example of, 108 High-density lipoproteins (HDL), 61
kettlebells, use of in, 111–112 High-intensity interval training
principles of, 109 (HIIT)
purpose of, 106–107 afterburn and, 33
Functional Training for Sports benefits of, 144–145
(Boyle), 107, 109 bone density and, 63
burning fat with, 142–143
defined, 10–11
Gedgaudas, Nora, 18, 27, 76 HIITPlay training program
Gene expression profiles, 42 intervals, 193
Gene shifting, 43 low-intensity “play” activities, 196
Genetic incongruence, 6 Primal metabolic resistance
Genome, human, 5 circuits, 193–195
Glucagon, 20, 22 Hip flexor, stretch for, 98
Gluconeogenesis, 23, 24, 154 Hips
Glucosamine, 82–84, 184 stabilization of, 115
Glucose, 19–20, 21, 24 stretch for, 100
Glutathione, 40 Holick, Michael, 75
Gluteus medius, exercise for, 93 Homeostasis, defined, 113
Glycated hemoglobin, test for, 198 Human genome, 5
Glycation, 56 Human Genome Project, 17
Glycation end products, 198–199 Hunger, Primal Body diet and,
Glycemic index, 57–58 25–28
Glycemic load, 58 Hunter-gatherer tribes
Glycolytic energy pathway, 140 diet of, 7, 19, 69–70
Golgi tendon organs, 89–90 nutrient intake of, 69
Grains physical activity of, 7–8
as opiate, 59 transition to agriculture by, 58–59
in Primal Diet, 56–57, 156 Hydrostatic weighing, 199

Hamstring Inflammation
exercise for, 95 chronic, 51–53
stretch for, 98 control of, 54–58
HDL (high-density lipoproteins), Insulin
61 longevity and, 37, 38–39
Healthy Aging (Weil), 56, 78 role of, 19–20

219
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 220

INDEX

Insulin resistance, 21 Lean body mass, measurement of,

Insulin sensitivity 154
body composition and, 30–31 Lectins, 56
maintaining, 21 Legumes, in Primal Diet, 56–57,
International Journal of Obesity, on 156
study of supplements and body Leptin, role of, 26
weight, 70–71 Leptin resistance, symptoms of, 27
IT band, exercise for, 94 Lipid panel, 197
Longevity
caloric restriction and, 36–37
Joint pain, 51 exercise and, 41–43
Joint rotations, 103 gene for, 37
Journal of Sports Sciences, on interval genetic mutation in worms, 38
training and HGH, 144 insulin and, 37, 38–39
Journal of Strength and Conditioning, Low-carb diet, myths about, 59–64
on kettlebell swings, 147 Low-density lipoproteins (LDL),
Jumping jacks, 103 61–62
Lung cells, sugar consumption and,
39
Kenyon, Cynthia, 38 Lunge jumps, 127
Ketones, 23–24 Lutein, 56
Ketosis, 4, 24, 154 Lycopene, 56
Kettlebell military press, 125 Lying hip abduction, 119–120
Kettlebell swing, 134, 147–148
Kettlebells
effectiveness of, 11 Magnesium
functional training, use of in, deficiency, causes of, 81–82
111–112 dosage, 184
sexual health and, 44–45 importance of, 80–81
vs. aerobics, 147–148 sources of, 82
Keys, Ancel, 60 Maintenance meal plans, 162–164
Kidney damage, protein and, 63–64 Mann, George V., 60
Kotelko, Olga, 42 McGill, Stuart, 116
Meal planning, guidelines for, 156
Meal plans
Lactic acid, 140 fat-loss, 160–162
Lactose tolerance, gene for, 18 ideas for, 159–160
Lat, exercise for, 95 maintenance, 162–164
Lateral lunge, 122 Metabolic headroom, 43
LDL (low-density lipoproteins), Metabolic resistance circuits,
61–62 145–147, 193–195
220
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 221

INDEX

Metabolic resistance training, Omega-6 essential fatty acids, 52–53,

defined, 31 54
Metabolic training, 137, 139–142 One-leg stiff-leg deadlift, 124
Metabolism, defined, 139 Osteoarthritis, 82–84
Mitochondrial dysfunction, aging Osteoporosis, animal products and,
and, 42 62–63
Mobility Oxidative stress, 78
defined, 102 Oxydative energy pathway, 140
exercises for, 103
Modern lifestyle, health-related
consequences of, 8, 20–21 P16, 39
Mountain climbers, 120 Pain, exercise-related, 87–88
Movement Paleo diet, 4
aerobic/anaerobic, 141 Pantry list, 167
of Paleolithic ancestors, 138 Pectorals, stretch for, 99
Multinutrient formula, 82, 83, 184 Peroneal, exercise for, 95
Muscle Personal trainers, 200–201
building, 112–114 Photos, use of in assessment, 199
fast-twitch fibers of, 9, 141 Phytic acid, 57
slow-twitch fibers of, 141 Phytonutrients, 55
PI3K, 74
Piriformis, exercise for, 94
National Strength and Conditioning Plant foods, 55–56
Association, 200 “Play” activities, 137, 148, 196
Neck, stretches for, 101–102 Plyometric push-up, 128
New York Times Price, Weston A., 11, 76
on diseases of civilization, 6 Primal Body, Primal Mind
on Olga Kotelko, 42 (Gedgaudas), 18, 27, 76
NSF International, 71 Primal Body Program
Nurses’ Health Study, 64 achieving specific goals, 185
Nutrigenomics, 17 case histories, 14, 33, 45–46, 65,
Nutrition and Physical Degeneration 84, 91, 135, 149
(Price), 12 measuring results, 197–199
Nuts and seeds, in Primal Diet, 57, 156 motivation, 200
Primal Diet
chronic inflammation and, 52
Omega-3 essential fatty acids dairy foods in, 57, 156
deficiency of, 72–73 fruit in, 156
dosage, 74, 184 grains and legumes in, 56–57, 156
omega-3 to omega-6 optimal ratio, hunger and, 25–28
53, 73–74 main points of, 65
221
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 222

INDEX

Primal Diet (continued) Resveratrol, 37

meal planning, guidelines for, 156 Reverse medicine ball wood chop,
nuts and seeds in, 57, 156 133
pantry list, 167 Rosedale, Ron, 37
plant foods in, 55–56 Rotator cuff, exercise for, 96
protein and fat in, 55, 156 Russian Kettlebell Challenge, 111,
Primal fitness theory, challenges to, 112
12–13
Primal movement
assessment questionnaire, 187 SAID (specific adaptation to imposed
exercises, 121–134 demand), principle of, 113
list of, 110 Saponins, 57
workout session design, 185–188 Saturated fat
Prison bodyweight squats, 130 cholesterol and, 60–62
Progressive overload, 112–114 heart disease and, 60–61
Prone bridge, 117–118 Scott, Chris, 32
Prone row, 131 Sears, Barry, 53
Protein Self-Myofascial Release, 89–90
kidney damage and, 63–64 Sexual vitality, exercise and, 44–45
in Primal Diet, 55, 156 Shoulder, stabilization of, 115–116
requirements for, 154 Side bridge, 117
The Protein Power Lifeplan (Eades Single-arm stability ball chest press,
and Eades), 55 129
Pull-up, 132 Single-leg glute bridge, 119
SIRT-2 and SIRT-3, 37
Sirtuins (SIRT-1), 37
Quad Skinfold measurements, 199
exercise for, 94 Snacks, healthy, 159
stretch for, 98 Split squat, 123
Stability ball jackknife, 118
Stabilizer, defined, 115
Resistance training Step-ups, 121
afterburn and, 32 Stevo, Coach, 44
bone density and, 63 Stone, Ken, 42
in combination with HIIT, Strength training
145–146 sample workout sessions,
effectiveness of, 31, 43 188–192
sample workout sessions, 188–192 workout session design,
sexual vitality and, 44 186–188
workout session design, 186–188 See also resistance training

222
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 223

INDEX

Stretching Vitamin D
flexibility, exercises for, 97–102 dosage, 77, 184
mobility, exercises for, 103 sources, 76
Sugar, effect of on lung cells, 39 UV-B sunlight, availability of,
Sunscreen, 77 75–76
Supplements Vitamin D Council, 77
benefits of, 70–71 The Vitamin D Solution (Holick),
Super Six, 72, 184 75
warnings about, 71 Vitamin E, 79, 184
Synovial fluid, 102 VO2 max, 31, 45
Voropayev, V. I., 112

T push-up, 126
Tabata protocol, 144–145, 147 Water, 156
Tarnopolsky, Mark, 43 Weil, Andrew, 56, 78
Telomerase, 39 Weston A. Price Foundation, 12,
“The Origins of Agriculture: A 57
Biological Perspective and a Workshop on the Essentiality of and
New Hypothesis” (Wadley and Recommended Dietary Intakes
Martin), 59 for Omega-6 and Omega-3 Fatty
Tollefsbol, Trygve, 39 Acids, 74
Toxic Fat: When Good Fats Turn Bad
(Sears), 53 The Zone (Sears), 53
Trans fats, 73
Tricep, stretch for, 99 RECIPES
Triglycerides, 21, 26, 27, 62, Almonds
197–198 Sautéed Green Beans, 172
Truman State University, study of Apples
kettlebell swings at, 148 Cabbage Sautéed with Apples and
Trunk, stabilization of, 115 Walnuts, 173
Tsatsouline, Pavel, 44 Asparagus
Oyster Mushroom, Asparagus,
and Onion Sauté, 173
Ubiquinol, 80 Roasted Vegetables, 172
United States Pharmacopoeia, 71 Steamed Vegetables, 171
UV-B sunlight, availability of, Avocados
75–76 Garden Salad, 180

Balsamic Chicken Breast, 176

Vitamin C, 79–80, 184 Bay Shrimp Salad, 180

223
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 224

INDEX

Beans, green Eggs

Roasted Green Beans, 173 Bay Shrimp Salad, 180
Sautéed Green Beans, 172 Spinach and Eggs, 169
Steamed Vegetables, 171 Western Omelet, 169
Vegetable Stir-Fry, 171
Beef Garden Salad, 180
Roast Beef with Carrots and Pearl Greek Salad, 181
Onions, 177 Greens
Broccoli Bay Shrimp Salad, 180
Steamed Vegetables, 171 Garden Salad, 180
Grilled Chicken Salad, 181
Cabbage Sautéed with Apples and Grilled Salmon, 175
Walnuts, 173
Carrots Ham
Garden Salad, 180 Lettuce Wrap with Ham and
Roast Beef with Carrots and Pearl Cheese, 178
Onions, 177 Western Omelet, 169
Vegetable Stir-Fry, 171
Cauliflower Kale
Steamed Vegetables, 171 Kale Chips, 183
Celery Sautéed Kale, 172
Garden Salad, 180 Vegetable Stir-Fry, 171
Vegetable Stir-Fry, 171
Cheese Grilled Lamb Burger, 177
Bay Shrimp Salad, 180 Lettuce
Greek Salad, 181 Greek Salad, 181
Lettuce Wrap with Ham and Lettuce Wrap with Ham and
Cheese, 178 Cheese, 178
Salmon Roll-ups, 175
Chicken Mushrooms
Balsamic Chicken Breast, 176 Oyster Mushroom, Asparagus,
Grilled Chicken Salad, 181 and Onion Sauté, 173
Cod
Sautéed Cod Marinade, 175 Onions
Cucumbers Garden Salad, 180
Bay Shrimp Salad, 180 Greek Salad, 181
Garden Salad, 180 Oyster Mushroom, Asparagus,
Greek Salad, 181 and Onion Sauté, 173
Roast Beef with Carrots and Pearl
Onions, 177

224
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 225

INDEX

Roasted Vegetables, 172 Spinach and Eggs, 169

Spinach and Eggs, 169 Squash
Western Omelet, 169 Roasted Vegetables, 172
Oyster Mushroom, Asparagus, and Steamed Vegetables, 171
Onion Sauté, 173
Tomatoes
Peppers, bell Bay Shrimp Salad, 180
Garden Salad, 180 Garden Salad, 180
Roasted Vegetables, 172 Greek Salad, 181
Western Omelet, 169 Western Omelet, 169

Roast Beef with Carrots and Pearl Vegetable Stir-Fry, 171

Onions, 177
Roasted Green Beans, 173 Walnuts
Roasted Vegetables, 172 Cabbage Sautéed with
Apples and Walnuts,
Salmon 173
Grilled Salmon, 175 Western Omelet, 169
Salmon Roll-ups, 175 Wine
Sautéed Cod Marinade, 175 Balsamic Chicken Breast, 176
Sautéed Giant Shrimp, 176
Sautéed Green Beans, 172 Zucchini
Sautéed Kale, 172 Roasted Vegetables, 172
Shrimp Vegetable Stir-Fry, 171
Bay Shrimp Salad, 180
Sautéed Giant Shrimp, 176

225
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 226
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 227
9780738216379_text_Layout 1 10/16/12 9:49 AM Page 228