Growing up I was always an active child. I spent the majority of my time playing hide and go seek, tag, touch football, or just running around the neighborhood. I would come in for dinner and then go right back outside until dark.
At five, my parents started me in AYSO (American Youth Soccer Organization) and from then until High School soccer was my main form of exercise. We had practices once or twice a week and games every Saturday and even a couple Sundays. In High School I played for my school's team, coached AYSO with my dad, and ran track in the spring.
By college I had, had my fill of rigorous training. I hated going to the gym (since I had never worked out as part of my soccer training I always felt judged by the devoted gymrats). I played intramural sports, but for the most part I did not devote any of my time to exercise. Luckily I was not plagued by the freshman 15 and was able to maintain my slender frame.
It wasn't till after I graduated college, got married, and started working behind a desk that I began to put on weight. After buying bigger pants a couple times, I decided to look for a solution to my weight gain. I knew that there had to be something sustainable out there that didn't require counting calories or spending hours in the gym that could help me. I found it in the Primal Blueprint.
The Primal Blueprint strives to create a flexible, sustainable program of maintaining health and lean body weight. The premise is that sugar is converted by our bodies into fat and then stored in fat cells. The source of this sugar being carbohydrates and overly processed food. In order to cut down the amount of sugar we consume, all grains are eliminated from consumption.
According to the Primal Blueprint, the body only needs 150 grams of carbohydrates to maintain body weight. under 150g will promote weight loss, and over 150g will promote weight gain. On the standard American diet the average person will consume over 300g of carbohydrates a day. By limiting your carbohydrates to fruits and green leafy vegetables (and maybe the occasional potato) you will most likely consume between 100-150g of carbs without having to count or measure them.
Our bodies do, however, use carbohydrates for energy and therefore need an alternate source of energy. In the Primal Blueprint, this is accomplished by natural fats. Natural fats are typically contained in nutrient dense sources like animal meat and nuts (along with the proteins, vitamins and minerals that our bodies need anyways). Also our body stores and uses natural fat more efficiently.
The Primal Blueprint is 80% diet and 20% exercise. The exercise portion consists of 10-20mins of sprints a week, 3-5 hours of slow moderate movement or play a week, and body weight exercises twice a week (such as push ups, pull ups, squats, etc.). It contains multiple levels to accommodate those just starting out and make room for progress.
Personally, I have enjoyed the 11 weeks that I have been experimenting with the Primal Blueprint. I am no longer starving at 10 o'clock everyday. Sometimes I don't even get hungry till 3 in the afternoon and even then it is not connected with stomach pains. I spend the evenings going on walks with my family instead of parking myself on the couch and watching TV. I have more energy and never feel groggy or lethargic, even after a restless night. Most importantly of all, I have shed almost 20 lbs and 4 inches off my waist.
The Primal Blueprint may not be for everyone, but for me it has been the easiest transition into a more healthy lifestyle. I would recommend anyone to give it a try.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
The Every Day Carry (EDC)
If you peruse any camping gear, knife, or wilderness survival forums you may come across the acronym EDC or Every Day Carry.
In the simplest terms your Every Day Carry is the stuff that you keep in your pockets, purse, or on your belt that you have determined are the most useful in your everyday life.
Every person has their own circumstances that determine what they need for their EDC. I personally, am a tinkerer that loves taking things apart and am often trying to fix things in confined spaces with low light (like my computer, or recently the hoses behind the washing machine). I am also a gadget junky that usually does not want to wait until I get home to open those plastic human-proof packages. I would rather be able to pull something out of my pocket to tighten that loose screw, or open that package that just arrived, than go looking for the screwdriver, scissors, or flashlight the task might require.
Aside from the common denominators in most people's arsenal (keys, wallet, and cell phone), here are the following items I have added to my EDC that I find extremely helpful with unexpected tasks:
A. Pen - As an Engineer I spend the majority of my time in the office, however I occasionally need to visit job sites. A pen is essential for recording dimensions, marking plans, making notes, and a number of other things. I don't know how many times I've seen someone ask for a pen. Perhaps I should start charging people to use mine.
B. Leatherman Micra - Words can not express how often I use this handy little gadget. I originally bought one to go in my camping gear but found myself taking it out of my gear to use it so often that I decided to just carry it with me on a regular basis. I especially like the scissors, as opposed to the typical pliers on leathermans. I use this tool so much that my wife has become jealous and wants one of her own. Maybe Santa will bring her one this year.
C. Peanut Lighter - Ok, being honest, this is probably the item in my EDC that I use the least. I am not a smoker and am not typically in the habit of lighting things on fire. However, if you have read my previous post on fire basics then you understand that carrying an ignition source is a very simple way to ensure that you can start a fire should you need to. As an aside, my leatherman and lighter combo comes in handy when I am making things out of paracord since after I cut the nylon it needs to be melted to prevent unraveling. This particular lighter is extremely small, waterproof when closed, refillable, and inexpensive.
D. LED Light - Light, like fire, is something that you typically do not want to be without when you need it. LED flashlights tend to last longer battery-wise and are typically more resilient. The model I found has the ability to be set in two modes. The first is the typical press to turn on, let go to turn off. The second mode allows for three settings: one press turns it on high, a second press turns it on low, and a third press turns it on a flashing strobe. I find the ability of the light to stay on in the second mode extremely helpful when I am using it to tinker in tight spaces.
Think about the items you carry on a regular basis. Are there times when you wish you had a particular tool on you to take care of an unexpected task? Do you carry around items that you never use? Do you think about the unexpected tasks when you fill your pockets or purse? What items have you found helpful in your everyday life? What are your EDCs?
In the simplest terms your Every Day Carry is the stuff that you keep in your pockets, purse, or on your belt that you have determined are the most useful in your everyday life.
Every person has their own circumstances that determine what they need for their EDC. I personally, am a tinkerer that loves taking things apart and am often trying to fix things in confined spaces with low light (like my computer, or recently the hoses behind the washing machine). I am also a gadget junky that usually does not want to wait until I get home to open those plastic human-proof packages. I would rather be able to pull something out of my pocket to tighten that loose screw, or open that package that just arrived, than go looking for the screwdriver, scissors, or flashlight the task might require.
Aside from the common denominators in most people's arsenal (keys, wallet, and cell phone), here are the following items I have added to my EDC that I find extremely helpful with unexpected tasks:
A. Pen - As an Engineer I spend the majority of my time in the office, however I occasionally need to visit job sites. A pen is essential for recording dimensions, marking plans, making notes, and a number of other things. I don't know how many times I've seen someone ask for a pen. Perhaps I should start charging people to use mine.
B. Leatherman Micra - Words can not express how often I use this handy little gadget. I originally bought one to go in my camping gear but found myself taking it out of my gear to use it so often that I decided to just carry it with me on a regular basis. I especially like the scissors, as opposed to the typical pliers on leathermans. I use this tool so much that my wife has become jealous and wants one of her own. Maybe Santa will bring her one this year.
C. Peanut Lighter - Ok, being honest, this is probably the item in my EDC that I use the least. I am not a smoker and am not typically in the habit of lighting things on fire. However, if you have read my previous post on fire basics then you understand that carrying an ignition source is a very simple way to ensure that you can start a fire should you need to. As an aside, my leatherman and lighter combo comes in handy when I am making things out of paracord since after I cut the nylon it needs to be melted to prevent unraveling. This particular lighter is extremely small, waterproof when closed, refillable, and inexpensive.
D. LED Light - Light, like fire, is something that you typically do not want to be without when you need it. LED flashlights tend to last longer battery-wise and are typically more resilient. The model I found has the ability to be set in two modes. The first is the typical press to turn on, let go to turn off. The second mode allows for three settings: one press turns it on high, a second press turns it on low, and a third press turns it on a flashing strobe. I find the ability of the light to stay on in the second mode extremely helpful when I am using it to tinker in tight spaces.
Think about the items you carry on a regular basis. Are there times when you wish you had a particular tool on you to take care of an unexpected task? Do you carry around items that you never use? Do you think about the unexpected tasks when you fill your pockets or purse? What items have you found helpful in your everyday life? What are your EDCs?
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